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Mental Dessert
What is a person’s potential?
When struggling writer James Cicero learns of a secret school called The Academy Place, he embarks on an incredible journey to discover how and why this organization turns out the most talented people on Earth.
Amusing and thought provoking, Mental Dessert is a tale that will leave you wishing you could spend a single day at The Academy Place.
When struggling writer James Cicero learns of a secret school called The Academy Place, he embarks on an incredible journey to discover how and why this organization turns out the most talented people on Earth.
Amusing and thought provoking, Mental Dessert is a tale that will leave you wishing you could spend a single day at The Academy Place.
239 pages, Paperback
First published May 14, 2014
256 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
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June 14, 2020As of June 14, 2020, I have never received the copy of this book that I won via Goodreads First Reads. I am making a note here to keep track of what ones I was unable to read due to it being lost/unreceived.
March 20, 2015
I won this book in a Goodreads first-reads giveaway.
This was an interesting concept and intriguing storyline. It was inspiring and it really shows the potential that is inside of all of us, if we only know how to broaden our horizons.
This was an interesting concept and intriguing storyline. It was inspiring and it really shows the potential that is inside of all of us, if we only know how to broaden our horizons.
September 30, 2014
I received an ARC, signed copy of Mental Dessert by M.H.J. Rice after entering a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
I was hooked from the start of this book. It is an easy and quick read; great for rainy days. The story is told from the view point of James Cicero, a magazine writer, who needs his next big story in order to keep his job. He stumbles across a school called The Academy Place. This school is a private 'high school' for gifted and talented students. A hidden school only the elite know about. James ends up spending 4 weeks at the school for research. The rest of the book focuses on his time there and his interactions with the students and staff.
What I liked about Mental Dessert-
I love the tone. Easy to read and very enjoyable. I also love the foundation of the story. A mystery school for the gifted and talented. I enjoyed the ideas expressed in the book. The box Steven brings to discussion each day is wonderful. I enjoyed how it changed with each idea. There are many smart ideas expressed in this novel. I found myself wondering about them and asking myself questions, as if I was attending school there.
What I didn't like about Mental Dessert-
The characters appeared flat. I would have liked to read more of the back story on the students James hangs out with. Who are their parents, what are their likes and dislikes, why are they there, etc.. I also felt like the story about Steven needs more work. Who is he? Why is he sad all the time? Why is he wearing the black shirts? Who is the Black Shirt gang? What does it have to do with Steven and the school?
I want to know more about the school. For instance, who is the Founder? Did anyone get the prize for the fountain? The ending wraps everything up in a nice little box very quickly. I found myself wondering what happened to the other students. I would also have enjoyed to see more information on his daughter. Would sending her to the school have helped her?
Overall, I enjoyed this novel. I am excited to see what else comes from it and am looking forward to the next book, if there is one. Thank you M.H.J. Rice for allowing me to read this ARC of Mental Dessert! Please keep writing, I will be looking for more of your work!
I was hooked from the start of this book. It is an easy and quick read; great for rainy days. The story is told from the view point of James Cicero, a magazine writer, who needs his next big story in order to keep his job. He stumbles across a school called The Academy Place. This school is a private 'high school' for gifted and talented students. A hidden school only the elite know about. James ends up spending 4 weeks at the school for research. The rest of the book focuses on his time there and his interactions with the students and staff.
What I liked about Mental Dessert-
I love the tone. Easy to read and very enjoyable. I also love the foundation of the story. A mystery school for the gifted and talented. I enjoyed the ideas expressed in the book. The box Steven brings to discussion each day is wonderful. I enjoyed how it changed with each idea. There are many smart ideas expressed in this novel. I found myself wondering about them and asking myself questions, as if I was attending school there.
What I didn't like about Mental Dessert-
The characters appeared flat. I would have liked to read more of the back story on the students James hangs out with. Who are their parents, what are their likes and dislikes, why are they there, etc.. I also felt like the story about Steven needs more work. Who is he? Why is he sad all the time? Why is he wearing the black shirts? Who is the Black Shirt gang? What does it have to do with Steven and the school?
I want to know more about the school. For instance, who is the Founder? Did anyone get the prize for the fountain? The ending wraps everything up in a nice little box very quickly. I found myself wondering what happened to the other students. I would also have enjoyed to see more information on his daughter. Would sending her to the school have helped her?
Overall, I enjoyed this novel. I am excited to see what else comes from it and am looking forward to the next book, if there is one. Thank you M.H.J. Rice for allowing me to read this ARC of Mental Dessert! Please keep writing, I will be looking for more of your work!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2014
I received a free advance copy through Goodreads First Reads. I absolutely love the premise of The Academy Place. It's a school for highly talented people from around the world. Each student is paired with a teacher, with whom the student begins each day's instruction by engaging in open dialogue - the discussions between Stephen and his teacher Andrea were very interesting. I also love the morning lectures by visiting professionals (like James, I was impressed by the quality of the speakers). The school campus is also impressive, with individual classrooms for the students, an amphitheatre for the morning lectures, a garden that provides fresh ingredients for their delicious meals, etc. I think my favourite place would be the observation tower, or maybe perhaps the lovely individual quarters for staff and students....
Mental Dessert was an entertaining read. However, I would have liked to know more about the other characters. Stephen seems like an intriguing character, but we don't know much about him outside of his dialogues with Andrea. Alan, James' boss, is portrayed as a rather one-dimensional villain until the end, when he and James chatted for hours after his return, but this scene was incredibly brief. The ending was nice, but it felt too rushed.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. Mental Dessert is a wonderful debut novel from M.H.J. Rice and I look forward to his future works.
Mental Dessert was an entertaining read. However, I would have liked to know more about the other characters. Stephen seems like an intriguing character, but we don't know much about him outside of his dialogues with Andrea. Alan, James' boss, is portrayed as a rather one-dimensional villain until the end, when he and James chatted for hours after his return, but this scene was incredibly brief. The ending was nice, but it felt too rushed.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. Mental Dessert is a wonderful debut novel from M.H.J. Rice and I look forward to his future works.
July 1, 2014
I won this from a goodreads, first reads giveaway.
I liked this book and got through it rather quickly. It was less than 3 hours start to finish. It's a very entertaining story. Although, I only give it 3.5 stars.
I liked the time he was at the school and his interactions with the other students. I have to say it was a very non-traditional school and a lot of their lessons for the students were interesting. The author also introduces a lot of abstract thinking, especially in the morning sessions with Stephen. I felt like James learned a lot from just one month there and changed him for the better.
Even though, I liked this book, I had a few issues that bumped it down a star and a half. First, there wasn't much of a development in the supporting characters. All the worries about the "gang in black" and Stephen's new found association with them. I felt like it just was forgotten and it wasn't really resolved. You really didn't learn much about his lunch group, even though, they hung out all the time. To think the relationship he made and you didn't get any of their character background. Also, all the problems with his daughter. I wish he would have had some kind of progress with her. The ending of this book was wrapped up so quickly and I felt like it wasn't satisfying.
Overall, it's a good read and I did enjoy it.
I liked this book and got through it rather quickly. It was less than 3 hours start to finish. It's a very entertaining story. Although, I only give it 3.5 stars.
I liked the time he was at the school and his interactions with the other students. I have to say it was a very non-traditional school and a lot of their lessons for the students were interesting. The author also introduces a lot of abstract thinking, especially in the morning sessions with Stephen. I felt like James learned a lot from just one month there and changed him for the better.
Even though, I liked this book, I had a few issues that bumped it down a star and a half. First, there wasn't much of a development in the supporting characters. All the worries about the "gang in black" and Stephen's new found association with them. I felt like it just was forgotten and it wasn't really resolved. You really didn't learn much about his lunch group, even though, they hung out all the time. To think the relationship he made and you didn't get any of their character background. Also, all the problems with his daughter. I wish he would have had some kind of progress with her. The ending of this book was wrapped up so quickly and I felt like it wasn't satisfying.
Overall, it's a good read and I did enjoy it.
August 5, 2014
I won Mental Dessert through FirstReads.
I'm a bit confused about how I feel about this book. There were a lot of things I loved about it, and a few things I wasn't crazy about.
I'll start with the positive. The Academy Place, the school the majority of the story takes place in, was described beautifully. I had a very good image of the school in my mind, and I wish it was real! The whole concept of it is very smart and very cool. Along with the awesome setting, this book really makes you think. It asks a lot of good questions about life, pain, and human nature. Mental Dessert is just that: mental dessert.
While I enjoyed those aspects of the book, I couldn't connect to the narrator and main character, James Cicero. He was quite negative about himself and others throughout the book, which made it super hard for me to sympathize with him.
I also felt like there were a lot of little loose ends I was left wondering about. What happens to Stephen and the black shirts? What happens with Alice?
I overall enjoyed Mental Dessert and would recommend it!
I'm a bit confused about how I feel about this book. There were a lot of things I loved about it, and a few things I wasn't crazy about.
I'll start with the positive. The Academy Place, the school the majority of the story takes place in, was described beautifully. I had a very good image of the school in my mind, and I wish it was real! The whole concept of it is very smart and very cool. Along with the awesome setting, this book really makes you think. It asks a lot of good questions about life, pain, and human nature. Mental Dessert is just that: mental dessert.
While I enjoyed those aspects of the book, I couldn't connect to the narrator and main character, James Cicero. He was quite negative about himself and others throughout the book, which made it super hard for me to sympathize with him.
I also felt like there were a lot of little loose ends I was left wondering about. What happens to Stephen and the black shirts? What happens with Alice?
I overall enjoyed Mental Dessert and would recommend it!
June 27, 2014
I won this copy through Goodreads giveaways! A fast read and an entertaining story. I found the lectures at the school particularly interesting. However, I had a couple of problems that made this a three for me. The first, and I think someone else already commented on it, was the ending. It didn't quite feel completely finished and was a bit abrupt in it's various stopping points. There were also times where I wished the supporting characters were a little more developed and we could learn more about them. Lastly, and this is probably due to the fact that it was an advanced copy, there were many typos and grammatical errors that sometimes made it difficult to focus on the story. Overall, though, it was a cute book and I enjoyed reading it.
October 31, 2014
I received this book from GoodReads. Thank you!
When I opened the book I was immediately disappointed. The font was old school - how could this possibly be a good read? A few pages in and I was in love!! MHJ Rice is a thinker - and he got me thinking. I WOULD love to spend a year at the Academy. What a fascinating concept.
Mental Dessert follows James Cicero, a writer, who through luck and insomnia finds himself at The Academy, an amazing free thinkers paradise. It is a school for young learners of brilliance. There is nothing typical about the classrooms, the lectures, the cafeteria or the students....and I want to go there!!
A quick read, Mental Dessert is a great trip to the other side of the fence where the grass smells like the color nine.
When I opened the book I was immediately disappointed. The font was old school - how could this possibly be a good read? A few pages in and I was in love!! MHJ Rice is a thinker - and he got me thinking. I WOULD love to spend a year at the Academy. What a fascinating concept.
Mental Dessert follows James Cicero, a writer, who through luck and insomnia finds himself at The Academy, an amazing free thinkers paradise. It is a school for young learners of brilliance. There is nothing typical about the classrooms, the lectures, the cafeteria or the students....and I want to go there!!
A quick read, Mental Dessert is a great trip to the other side of the fence where the grass smells like the color nine.
June 26, 2014
I won this copy on GoodReads. Oh! I enjoyed this book. Mr. Rice's writing style was something I had never encountered before, but I LIKED it! He has a concise cadence to his form, and he never left a detail out. The story ran smoothly without any awkward tangents or longwindedness and it made perfect sense. Story itself drew me in in a way that any adult would understand when they know that their life isn't exactly what they know it should be. Also, knowing that if they knew in high school what they know now, things would be vastly different. A completely remarkable book and I look forward to reading anything M.H.J. Rice writes in the future.
June 26, 2014
Won a copy through FirstReads. This book was so good I couldn't put it down and read it in one day. I thought the book kept my attention well by continually adding new things and presenting a sometimes abstract way of thinking. The concept was also realistic enough that it seems plausible (maybe it is real, I'm not really sure) but still different enough that it was intriguing. My only complaint was that the end seemed to lack the necessary detail to make it as clear as I would have liked. I would definitely suggest grabbing a copy and reading it for yourself as it is an easy and very interesting read.
February 26, 2015
I received this book as a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
I think the overall theme, story and setting is very interesting. The Academy Place has a lot of potential for future developments. I'd love to read a second installment that picks up where this has ended and develops what I felt like it was a rushed ending. Even the second part of the title "My first visit to The Academy Place" made me think that this book was the first of a serie.
I like the style of writing and I'd like to say to M.H.J. Rice to keep up with the good work!
I think the overall theme, story and setting is very interesting. The Academy Place has a lot of potential for future developments. I'd love to read a second installment that picks up where this has ended and develops what I felt like it was a rushed ending. Even the second part of the title "My first visit to The Academy Place" made me think that this book was the first of a serie.
I like the style of writing and I'd like to say to M.H.J. Rice to keep up with the good work!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews