2012 Book 5 - Catching Fire

Its been almost a week since I have finished this book. However, I've been so swamped at work that I haven't had time to pen down my thoughts so I will make this a quick one before I head off to bed.

In my opinion, Book 2 is better than the first. In fact, amongst the 3 books, I enjoyed Book 2 the most of them all.

There you have it....I have indeed finished Book 3 - Mockingjay as well. I didn't quite enjoy Mockingjay though but I will save my rants for another time in a dedicated book review just for the Mockingjay.  :-)

Back to Book 2.

Based on most of the reviews and discussions I have had about the Hunger Game series, it appears that I'm not alone in my impression of the trilogy. Catching Fire has received mostly positive reviews and appears to be a favourite at least amongst my friends who have finished reading the series. 

Jamie's Rating: 4.5 out of 5

The story starts with Katniss Everdeen enjoying a much deserved recovery in her new found life in District 12. She is now staying in the Victor's Village and has her needs mostly taken care of by the Capitol. She is expected to go on Victory tours and eventually become a mentor for future Hunger games but on the most part, her family no longer needs to worry about making ends meet and other practical matters. So it appears that the worst is over for Katniss, or is it? 

 

Unbeknown to her, Katniss catches on during her victory tour that she had unwittingly sparked off a rebellion against the oppressive Capitol which seemed to be ...yes...gaining momentum or rather "catching fire". For the sake of her loved ones, she attempts to suppress the rebellion (or minimally not further aggravate matters) but finds herself failing miserably. 

In a twist of fate or rather manipulation on the part of the evil President Snow, Katniss and Peeta find themselves forced to return to the arena in a special edition of the Hunger Games. With each strategizing to sacrifice themselves for the other, how would the story end for this "star-crossed lovers"...........? 

As always, for more information and other book reviews on Catching Fire: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catching_Fire

http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2012/05/book-review-catching-fire-by-suzanne.html

http://www.ittakesawoman.co.uk/blog/2012/05/14/book-review-catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins/



2012 Book 4 - The Hunger Games

I have never heard of this book till the Hollywood movie hit the cinemas a couple of months back. I was duly informed by a fellow avid reader that this novel comes highly recommended. "You will enjoy it!"....I was promised. My interest was mildly piqued when I saw that this Hollywood blockbuster had achieved quite a following....(close to the "Twilight" proportions). Eye Candy?? Yum!!

So what is "The Hunger Games" about....

We are placed in the future, in the country of Panem (where the countries of North America once existed). The surviving human race are mostly split into 12 Districts, each functioning with a special purpose and all working under the direction of the highly advanced metropolis and privileged few known as the Capitol. Life is hard and the people in the districts are living in perpetual poverty. To keep the districts in check (and for sadistic entertainment purposes), the Capitol throws an annual event known as "The Hunger Games" where one boy and one girl aged 12 to 18  are selected by lottery from the 12 Districts to compete in a televised reality show where the objective for the contenders are simple.  To Kill or be Killed. Only 1 child can be declared a victor and return home....the last one standing  breathing.

Wait...wait....wait a minute...................This plot reminds me so much of another Japanese movie - "Battle Royale". And boy, did I hate that movie. Grotesque!!!

This book and I....we are not getting onto a good start.............

Jamie's Rating: 4.0 out of 5
From the rating, you can safely say that I'm a convert. I finished the book in less than 48 hours and was rather pleased that I did not suffer from "Battle Royale" blacklash. In fact, there were a lot of emotions in play within this book which was able to draw the reader (aka me) in. The movie was also rather enjoyable (Eye Candy!!) but once again, for a truly immersive experience, reading the book is still the best way to go.  
Other book reviews:http://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/blogcritics/article/Book-Review-The-Hunger-Games-by-Suzanne-Collins-3431912.php http://childrensbooks.about.com/od/productreviews/fr/The-Hunger-Games-review.htm
For more information on battle royal, please click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale

2012 Book 3 - Shadowfever

The truth is...I've been waiting for this book for almost a year. And I've never waited for a book before so this would be my first and oh yea....waiting is never fun.....

My first Fever series book "Dark Fever" was courtesy of Sony. It was one of those free featured books that I could download with my Sony eBook reader. If my memory serves me correctly, it was about 4 years ago and after a couple of chapters, I found it so compelling that I finished the book within the week or less. After some difficultly, I downloaded the other 3 books in the Fever series (Blood Fever, Fae Fever and Dream Fever)  and (to put it in Karen's style of writing) relished and devoured them. Imagine my horror when I realized that the key to the puzzle, the final book which would put an end to the suspense was not even written yet and was not due for release for another 12 months!! HORROR!

After a year of waiting and even adding the author onto my Facebook so that I can keep tabs of the release date, the final book of the Fever Series "Shadow Fever"is released.

Okay, this is where it gets crazy: I found that I didn't quite enjoy it as much as I had enjoyed the earlier books. It was like a roller coaster ride with parts with me going "HELL YEAH" and then parts where I simply glossed through (mostly in the middle where Mac and Dani became just so tedious to read). Overall though, I'm pleased to say that  the book seemed to redeem itself towards the last quarter of the book which fortunately makes for a rather happy ending for me and my one year wait. :D

I really think that the Fever Series makes for a good blockbuster trilogy. (Yes 5 books condensed into 3 movies and please remove the tedious Mac and Dani parts).

Jamie's Rating: 3.5 out of 5 

(But make sure you read the other books first or you would be lost with this one.) 

For more information about the Fever Series, please go to:
http://www.karenmoning.com/kmm/novels/fever-series.html

For other reviews on ShadowFever, please go to:
http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-b-reviews/b-minus-reviews/review-shadowfever-by-karen-marie-moning/
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7304203-shadowfever
http://theunreadreader.com/2011/01/review-shadowfever.html

2012 Book 2 - Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going

As you probably know, I started the year with this book but I've only completed reading it as of 4.30am this morning. (March 10th) That's almost 70 days and is quite a considerable amount of time by my standards. 

The reason why I took such a long time is simple: This is one of the books where I find myself taking as long as I needed to read, contemplate and re-read again where necessary. Still, I'm not confident to say that I understood it all. 

The first few lines of the Foreword goes like this:

"My abiding concern for Singapore arises from my belief that the younger generation, especially those below 35, had never seen the harsh economic conditions. They therefore do not know the threats we face from neighbouring countries" 

Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore, August 2010.

Firstly, I am pleased to say that I still fit into LKY's definition of younger generation (that is less below 35). :)

I must also admit that (after having completed the first few chapters of the book) I might also have been guilty of living in a "make-believe" world of safety and progress, in which I might have unwittingly started to take for granted. Bottom line: The book tells me that we shouldn't and that every step we have made was a combination of luck, the ability to seize the right opportunity and also consistently making painfully calculated decisions for the future. With that said, between my "make believe" world of safety and the "dark and dangerous" place that LKY have painted out, I believe that the truth might just be somewhere in between. 

Written in a question and answer style, this book is a fairly informative and quite an interesting read. Fresh out of the 2011 election fever, I dare say that some of the unhappiness we have raised can perhaps be addressed by this book in terms of difference in opinion on ideology, a matter of differences in terms of  prioritization (doing first things first) and last but not least, the idea of science or pragmatism (also labelled as elitist thinking by critics). Of which, MM Lee is adamant on his views and have no apologies about. 

I found out for instance, according to Gosta Esping - Andersen's book The Three World of Welfare Capitalism, a society like Singapore is described as a "liberal" welfare state", where welfare benefits are means-tested and social insurance and income transfers are modest. Such states end up with high levels of income inequality because the government only guarantees a minimum level of subsistence and leaves it up to individual effort to make up the rest. This is to be contrasted against countries such as Austria, Italy and France which have a conservative welfare regime, where social benefits preserve class and social status. Scandinavian statues such as Norway, Sweden and Denmark have expensive social democratic welfare regimes, which seek to equalise standards of living to a high level for all. 

All in all, this is the first LKY book that I've picked up and I dare say that it will not be my last. I found myself agreeing to a large part of his reasoning and at one point, considered if I might be guilty of stereotyping and a bigoted "elitist" too. Horror! Haha. I will consider this more. 

Jamie's Rating: 4 out of 5 (Recommended read)

Other reviews:

http://vickychong.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/lee-kuan-yew-hard-truths-to-keep-singapore-going-book-review/

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10379147-lee-kuan-yew

2012 Book 1 - Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

I typically don't enjoy reading biographies but this book was so riveting that I had trouble putting it down! I would describe it as one of the better (if not the best) non fiction book that I can recall reading in a very long time. 

If you don't believe me, trust the experts. Steve Jobs by Water Isaacson has been recently nominated by Amazon as a contender for "The Best Book of 2011" award. For more information on the Top 100 contenders, here is the link.  

Apart from gaining an insight to the otherwise unknown life of the legendary Steve Jobs, I also found myself becoming much more appreciative of the iPhone and iPad devices which I'm sure that everyone would agree are simply life transforming devices which most of us would now have trouble living without. 

Being a Intel and Windows person from the day I started using computers, I've neither been caught up with the Apple "We are the Rebels" siren call nor have been particularly attracted by its design or aesthetic plus points to want to make myself go through the trouble of working on a Apple desktop in a predominantly Windows world. However, by the end of the book, I found myself itching to get my hands on an iMac so that I can see for myself the "close integrated hardware and software" vision that Steve so adamantly held close to his heart. 

Beyond the magical transformation that I've just described, this book of about 700 pages have also for very special reasons (which I would not further elaborate in this post) touched me on a much deeper and personal level. :D

I hope that you will enjoy reading this book as much as I did. 

Jamie's Rating: 5 out of 5 (Must read)

About the Book

Based on more than forty interviews with Jobs conducted over two years—as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues—Walter Isaacson has written a riveting story of the roller-coaster life and searingly intense personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.

At a time when America is seeking ways to sustain its innovative edge, and when societies around the world are trying to build digital-age economies, Jobs stands as the ultimate icon of inventiveness and applied imagination. He knew that the best way to create value in the twenty-first century was to connect creativity with technology. He built a company where leaps of the imagination were combined with remarkable feats of engineering.  

Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off-limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.

Driven by demons, Jobs could drive those around him to fury and despair. But his personality and products were interrelated, just as Apple’s hardware and software tended to be, as if part of an integrated system. His tale is instructive and cautionary, filled with lessons about innovation, character, leadership, and values.

Where to get it

1. Popular in Singapore (Get additional 20% discount if you are a Popular member)

2. Shell Gas Station

3. The Book Depository: http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Steve-Jobs-Exclusive-Biography-Walter-Isaacson/9781408703748

4. Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-Walter-Isaacson/dp/1451648537

2012 - My Reading List and other plans

This year I've decided to limit the number of books that I read for the year to a grand number *drum rolls* of FIFTEEN. 

The problem is not that I don't read enough but rather I tend to get too carried away and then find myself  spending ALL my time reading some novel when I should be doing a whole lot of other things. 

Considering that I only have 11 months to renew my PMP certificate (among a rather long list of new year resolutions), I really need to start getting more discipline into my reading habits.

Alas! Barely 26 hours into the new year and I have already planned out the next 3 books to read starting with...... 

THE VERY IMPORTANT BOOK

P/s: I fully intend to read this book with an open mind. I believe our respected leader has got something to say to us so LISTEN UP!!

Book Reviews - Introducing Reading like Rabbits

I love reading.

I find nothing more enjoyable than sitting in a comfortable chair with a cup of coffee/tea in my hand and a good book.

This year alone I'm on my 44th book. For a year that has a total of 52 weeks that's almost a novel each week and considering the time that I took to study for my GMAT, read technology magazines, newspapers and so on, that would be almost 2-3 novels on some weeks. :D

One thing I can say about myself is that I'm not a picky reader. When I've decided to start on a book, I normally trudge on right till the end. Its almost like an obsessive compulsive disorder and it is extremely rare for me to put down a book when it is half-read (unless of course, I have misplaced the book or heaven forbid *gasps* it was really that bad!)

A reader like me would therefore need to do careful research before I even get started on any book. Sometimes it would be good enough that the book comes highly recommended by a trusted friend but most of the time I would have to rely on renown book lists or charts and even then these recommendations are then carefully scrutinized before I commit myself to plunge into the deep end (in a manner of speaking).

Despite all the books that I've read, I'm glad to say that I have not actually zeroed in on any particular genre of books and my interests remain broad and varied. However, with that said, I do find myself gravitating towards history (mainly tudor history), religion (or discussions about religion) and then for some light reading - thriller, supernatural or fantasy books.

Well, that basically sums up my general reading habits. For today, I would end this post with a rather good book review site which I've recently chanced upon.

It is cutely named:" Reading Like Rabbits". Enjoy!

*Updated:  FREE delivery worldwide ??!?! This really rocks!! At Book Depository*