Tag Archives: scifi

Review: Artemis

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Artemis
by Andy Weir
4 stars

Another great read from Andy Weir! I was very excited to get an advance reader copy of this, but I didn’t love it as much as The Martian. This book was different from The Martian in setting, characters, and theme (the majority of the novel is centered around crime). Lots of science again, but it didn’t take away from the novel for the most part. The book is mainly about Jazz, a 26 year old woman who lives on the moon. She has a side business of smuggling, is super smart, and has a foul mouth. She is offered a considerable amount of money for an offer she can’t refuse and this is where things get crazy! The humor was great and I had a lot of laughs. The setting was well developed. It made living on the moon seem possible and fascinating. I didn’t find Jazz as likable as Watney, but again different books and setting. The smuggling and heist were very interesting and I loved the ending.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC to read and review!

Read-alikes

2001, a Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke

Farside by Ben Bova

My Real Challenge by Jo Walton

Review: The Circle

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The Circle
by Dave Eggers
4 stars

I read Dave Eggers’ The Circle for the library’s new Well Red Book Club that meets at Vino Villa each month. I chose the book for the club because a fellow staff member raved about it and because the movie adaptation starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks came out recently.

Mae Holland has just gotten a new job with the help of her college friend, Annie, at The Circle, a company similar to a merger of Google, Amazon, and Facebook. Mae finds that to perform well at her job, she must also participate socially pretty much 24/7 with her fellow employees on The Circle campus and not hurt anyone’s feelings.  And “socially” is in-person and particularly through social media.

As the world outside The Circle campus becomes less real to Mae her counterpoint is her parents and a high school friend who are not enmeshed in The Circle. We see them try to pull her back, but Mae is enthralled with The Circle and its potential to help the world…but at what cost?

While I did not find Mae to be very sympathetic, I found the storyline to be compelling and chilling. And very relevant in today’s society. Read and be warned!

Read-alikes

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Podcast: Good Morning, Midnight

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It’s no secret that librarians like to talk about books.  Actually we more than like it – book discussions and conversations about literacy and authors is one of our deep and abiding loves.  That’s one of the reasons why we started the #GPLtalk podcast.  Our audio inspired book club allows readers to participate in a conversation even if they are unable to make it to one of our regularly scheduled book club events.

This month we discussed Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton, a literary selection that was named one of the best science fiction titles of 2016.

Good Morning, Midnight tells the story of two scientists coping with loneliness and regret in vastly different landscapes after an unspecified crisis on earth leaves them stranded from society.  Augustine is an astronomer nearing the end of his life who finds himself caring for a young girl in the Arctic, while Sully is an astronaut travelling home from a journey to Jupiter.  Both had chosen untethered lives, but now, drifting without communication from the outside world, they find themselves tied to humanity in ways they weren’t before.

Book Club Conclusion: Good Morning, Midnight is a lyrical, reflection of humanity and relationship that isn’t quite a must read, but a recommended read when you have the time.

Take a listen as Emily, Aubrey, Jessica, and Valerie discuss unreliable narrators, vague endings, and the use of setting as a character in a novel.

If you’ve read the book (or plan to read it!), we’d love to hear your book club conclusion.  Would you recommend the book to others?  What are your opinions on unreliable narrators and vague endings?

And be sure to read along with us next month as we discuss Sarah Porter’s Vassa in the Night.