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Mod
The Last Overseer... Boy, that was a chore for me. I enjoyed the concepts but I can not agree on your 'Style' part of the review. I didn't appreciate the writing at all. The author posted a reply to some review I read that he wrote in british style? Is british style constantly repeating the same words over and over again? Gah. So frustrating.
I wasn't in time to get a copy of Chainge, the author only offered 3 :(
And finally, I can totally relate to GR reawakening the love in books. I read a whole lot more than I used to and always with that end goal of posting my review. To know that people will actually be reading my opinion makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!! xD
Mod
Well, basically, life is the same as almost everywhere else, as long as you don't dig too deep or get too politic. Especially in Shanghai, which is a very westernized city, and not really China according to a lot of people.Regarding censorship, as I said, don't get too politic, or rather, I should say, don't criticize the governement. Or don't do porn (but strangely, the censoring is not as well enforced for porn as for political subjects). For example, in one of the game topics, I mentionned Beijing Coma. That's typically a book that gets censored. For example, in the last James Bond, there are some scenes in China, or talking about China, in a not so good way (prostitution, etc.). Those were cut (since I heard there were some cut scenes, I didn't went to see the film at the theatre, but I bought the "illegal" DVD and watched it at home).
FB, Twitter, etc. are censored too. So unless you have a VPN, you can go on these sites in China (as well as several others). Dissident artists or bloggers get regularly invited by the police to "drink tea". While "drinking tea", police will usually tell them to keep it down, stop stirring trouble. If they get invited too many times, or have too much of a following, consequences can be much more dire. But most people just won't dable too much in politics.
Regarding children, policy is currenlty changing to allow more children/
Basic line is you can only have one child. If you live in the countryside, you can have one more child. If you are from a minority (China is divided in the Han, the majority of Chinese, and other minority - it's a bit like race. There are 56 in total), you can have one more child. If one of your parent is an only child, you can have one more child.
So actually, there are quite a lot of situation where you can get several children. But as in most developped countries, people living in cities don't want to have kids anymore, it's too expensive to raise them (thus the relaxing of law on this subject, to compensate).
So basically, you live like everywhere else, and as long as you stay in line and fit in the society, you're fine. As long as you don't annoy the government too much, your fine.
Think a bit of 1984, but in a consummer society. So no lack of food, no lack of entertainement (even if people still do work a lot), but that's it. Earn money, use your money to live well and have fun, and shut up. Which anyway, is what a lot of people want.
There is still also a lot of poverty in China, a huge gap between countryside and cities, etc., but those are problems we find everywhere around the world, not just here.
Pollution is pretty bad too and unfortunately, there's not much we can do right now, except try to be more green conscious, but it's very hard here.
Mod
Haha, no, I won't get any trouble for writting this. Almost no one is reading this, so I'm fine.And I wear a face mask when pollution is really really bad only. For the rest, I'm used to it ;-)
Mod
^^Well, not at all actually, but I live here, so maybe it all seems normal to me.
Anyway, it's not as if we are all activists or very politically active anyway most of the time.
And pollution is not worse than in other cities such as Mexico I think.
Basically, life is the same as everywhere. Get up, go to work, come back home, eat, read or go out, sleep.
I thought of you regarding Discworld, Found these gorgeous collector's books.http://www.discworldemporium.com/book...
I thought I wouldn't like them due to the different art work however they have done a superb job on them. I have ordered Mort and Reaper man to start me off.
Sarah wrote: "I thought of you regarding Discworld, Found these gorgeous collector's books.http://www.discworldemporium.com/book...
I thought I wouldn't like them due to the di..."
Those are simply beautiful!
OMG they are gorgeous! And I really do not need and have no space for new books right now... So, to buy or not to buy?
If I am correct, I think they are the same size as the collectors library books not sure if you have seen them anyway they are smaller than the small sized paperbacks usually with gold gilt along the page edges and a built in bookmark. In my head I always have space for books, however in reality there are not many surfaces left.Kandice My bad I forgot you would appreciate these as well. xx Least you saw them here.
My mum had to get me a new shelve recently because she was fed up with the piles of books on my floor. And guess what, this new shelve is already full...I suppose I'll just have to go back to piling my books on the floor ;-)
I have quite a few bookcases and shelves throughout my house and while no books are stacked on the floor, many are shoved above nice rows of boos wherever they will fit, or perched in front of the neat shelves because there is NO MORE room on the shelves themselves. One day I would like a room with floor to ceiling, built in, shelves on every wall and just a comfy wingback chair and hassock in the center of the room. That would be heaven.
Aaron(Reblast) wrote: "Wow. Sounds awesome, Kandice! HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND ALL THE BEST IN 2015!:)"Too bad I have to share our house with other people! Good thing I love them. ;)
Happy New Year to everyone and may 2015 hold many new bookshelves for Melaslithos.
The library in the Disney Beauty and the Beast is my dream library. All those books, from floor to the ceiling! I want one like that too.
See,my dream is more realistic because we have regular 9 foot ceilings!
Floor to ceiling book shelves make more sense than just looking spectacular, they are also highly useful for insulation.
Good to know that Sarah. That's a good argument for next time we'll discuss house arrangment.
Sarah wrote: "Floor to ceiling book shelves make more sense than just looking spectacular, they are also highly useful for insulation."LOL
It's been a while since I posted some reviews here. Here are the latest ones I wrote:- My review for Cat Country by Lao She
- My review for Big Breasts & Wide Hips by Mo Yan
- My review for DeepStorm OutTack by George S. Boughton
My review for Four Corners: A Journey into the Heart of Papua New Guinea.Very impressive true story.
Because I love Colleen McCullough so much and she has been so involved with Papua New Guinea I may need to read this. Thanks! I would never have found it on my own.
I didn't know about it until The World's Literature Group had it as a group read.I want to try to follow their group reads this year. They look really interesting, and all from regions and authors I don't know and don't read much about. I love discoveries like these!
Melaslithos wrote: "I didn't know about it until The World's Literature Group had it as a group read.I want to try to follow their group reads this year. They look really interesting, and all from regions and author..."
Me too! I often completely fall in love with books I would never, ever have picked up otherwise. Those are the best finds.
Looks like I haven't posted any reviews here in a while. Here are my latest ones (I won't post those written in French or with only a couple of words):Permanently Temporary by Tess Johnston
Description
Tess Johnston's peripatetic half a century has taken her through fourteen Foreign Service postings to her retirement – and this book, written in her permanently temporary home in Shanghai. She loves to talk, and to write and the range of her interests is broad. Tess has filled them with life, with anecdotes and with humor. Travel with her in her "little life" in a wider world.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Four Corners: A Journey into the Heart of Papua New Guinea by Kira Salak
Description
Four Corners is Kira Salak's riveting account of her epic, solo jungle trek across the remote Pacific island nation of Papua New Guinea—often called the last frontier of adventure travel. Traveling by dugout canoe and on foot, confronting the dangers and wonders of a largely untouched world, she became the first woman to traverse this remote country and write about it. A New York Times Notable Travel Book, Four Corners: A Journey into the Heart of Papua New Guinea is a must-read for world travelers and adventurous spirits.
Review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett
Description
Something is coming after Tiffany ...
Tiffany Aching is ready to begin her apprenticeship in magic. She expects spells and magic -- not chores and ill-tempered nanny goats! Surely there must be more to witchcraft than this!
What Tiffany doesn't know is that an insidious, disembodied creature is pursuing her. This time, neither Mistress Weatherwax (the greatest witch in the world) nor the fierce, six-inch-high Wee Free Men can protect her. In the end, it will take all of Tiffany's inner strength to save herself ... if it can be done at all.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Description
Told by the central character, Alex, this brilliant, hilarious, and disturbing novel creates an alarming futuristic vision of violence, high technology, and authoritarianism. Anthony Burgess' 1963 classic stands alongside Orwell's 1984 and Huxley's Brave New World as a classic of twentieth century post-industrial alienation, often shocking us into a thoughtful exploration of the meaning of free will and the conflict between good and evil.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Notes From Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Description
The compelling works presented in this volume were written at distinct periods in Dostoyevsky's life, at decisive moments in his groping for a political philosophy and a religious answer. From the primitive peasant who kills without understanding that he is destroying life to the anxious antihero of Notes from Underground—who both craves and despises affection—the writer's often-tormented characters showcase his evolving outlook on our fate.
Thomas Mann described Dostoyevsky as "an author whose Christian sympathy is ordinarily devoted to human misery, sin, vice, the depths of lust and crime, rather than to nobility of body and soul" and Notes from Underground as "an awe- and teror- inspiring example of this sympathy."
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Trees, Vol. 1 by Warren Ellis
Description
Ten years after they landed. All over the world. And they did nothing, standing on the surface of the Earth like trees, exerting their silent pressure on the world, as if there were no-one here and nothing under foot. Ten years since we learned that there is intelligent life in the universe, but that they did not recognize us as intelligent or alive.
Trees looks at a near-future world where life goes on in the shadows of the Trees: in China, where a young painter arrives in the “special cultural zone” of a city under a Tree; in Italy, where a young woman under the menacing protection of a fascist gang meets an old man who wants to teach her terrible skills; and in Svalbard, where a research team is discovering, by accident, that the Trees may not be dormant after all, and the awful threat they truly represent.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Mod
I am using Adobe for ACSM file. I never had issues with it before, although I never really managed to authorize my computer (whatever that means).But as I mentionned in a previous post I think, the files I get from netgalley are time-stamped. Maybe that's your problem?
When did you asked for this book? Maybe you could try re-downloading it?
Is a Worry Worrying You? by Ferida Wolff & Harriet May Savitz
Descrition
Adults think of childhood as a carefree time, but the truth is that children worry, and worry a lot, especially in our highly pressurized era. This book addresses children's worries with humor and imagination, as hilarious scenarios teach kids the use of perspective and the art of creative problem-solving.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Mod
I have actually no idea about how they work.Usually, when I get a ACSM file, I open it directly in Adobe Digital Edition (then, I open the resulting pdf file in calibre, removing the DRM, but I'm not suppose to say that - I have a very old reader, it's the only solution I found to read these files).
For files from netgalley, and only those from netgalley, I have a 54 days banner accross the book once I open it, which is a countdown. For example, for Bald New World, I am now at 20 days.
I don't know if this countdown starts on the day I request the book, the day I download it, or the day I open it in Adobe Digital Edition. So I can't really answer your question. I guess I should consider these files on loan from netgalley, not really owned (like it would happen if I bought the book).
edit: the countdown I mentionned has nothing to do with archived date.
Mod
I guess they just don't want free books randomly wandering around.But yes, I don't really understand it either.
Have you tried downloading the books again?
The Pullman Porter by Vanita Oelschlager and Mike Blanc
Description
Children and adults under the age of 40 are forgetting about the Pullman Porter. They were very important figures in the history of American. This book will teach children and adults, who the porters were and why they were so important in our history. Porters worked in early train cars, they would look, listen and learn from their predominantly white passengers. They would read the newspapers passengers left behind, listen to conversations and begin to talk to one another. The porter learned how important education was for children and how important it was to take this message home to his children. He eventually landed at the forefront of the civil rights movement.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Man Who Loved Children by Christina Stead
Description
Every family lives in an evolving story, told by all its members, inside a landscape of portentous events and characters. Their view of themselves is not shared by people looking from outside in--visitors, and particularly not relatives--for they have to see something pretty humdrum, even if, as in this case, the fecklessness they complain of is extreme.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Madame Frankenstein
Description
In 1932, Vincent Krall sets out to create his perfect woman by reanimating the corpse of the love of his life. He'll soon discover, however, that man was never meant to peer beyond the veil between life and death, and a woman is not as easily controlled as he believes. As his monster becomes more conscious of who she was and who she is becoming, Vincent ends up with a lot more than he bargained for. Mixing vintage horror with mythic drama, this graphic novel by writer Jamie S. Rich (You Have Killed Me) and smashing newcomer Megan Levens is guaranteed to send chills through even the warmest of hearts. Expect murder, betrayal, and some vintage Jazz Age parties. The collected Madame Frankenstein contains all the covers by Helheim artist Joelle Jones and an exclusive gallery section showcasing Megan Levens' development process.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Bald New World by Peter Tieryas
Description
What if you woke up one morning and everyone in the world lost their hair? In Bald New World, that very event happens and overnight, religion, politics, and fashion undergo dramatic shifts. Nick Guan and his friend Larry Chao are a pair of eccentric filmmakers who choose to explore the existential angst of their balding world through cinema. Larry is heir to one of the most lucrative wig companies in the world. Nick is a man who s trying to make sense of the tatters of his American Dream. Taking place throughout China and America, the pair set off on a series of misadventures involving North Korean spies, veterans of an African War, and digital cricket fighters. Their journey leads them to discover some of the darkest secrets behind wig-making and hair in a hairless world."
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Snowbirds by Jim Fitzsimmons
Description
In a small Japanese mountain village, young Shoji enters an ice carving competition. He soon finds he has a rival in Orochi, another boy in the village, who tries to sabotage Shoji’s entry, but with the help of his family Shoji creates a most beautiful Snowbird.
When the other ice carvings are revealed they discover that Orochi has stolen Shoji’s idea and has also carved an equally beautiful Snowbird. The judges cannot decide the winner of the competition so they announce that the result will be declared the next morning.
During the night Jack Frost discovers the two Snowbirds and thinks one of them will make an ideal companion for his Grandfather Frost, the Snow King. At the same time Shoji, anxious for the safety of his Snowbird, sneaks out of his house and meets Jack Frost who explains his plan. Shoji agrees to let him have his Snowbird, but they are both interrupted by the arrival of Orochi who demands payment in return for his.
Jack Frost brings the Snowbirds to life and tells them they must travel to the North Pole where his Grandfather will choose one of them to be his companion. On their journey they meet different characters and encounter many difficulties until they both finally arrive, but which one will be chosen? Jack Frost has a cunning idea to help his Grandfather decide…
The Snowbirds is a magical tale that will be enjoyed by children from the age of seven. In the style of a full length novel, it will help the younger reader progress to more challenging literature, while providing a thrilling read for those who are older.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sins of the Father by Anthony Vicino
Description
“Our mistakes as parents become the burden of our children.”
When Ricky O’Connell was nine years old he murdered his grandmother with a shattered bottle of Jack Daniels while she slept.
Nobody knows why. Not even Ricky.
Forty-two years later and Ricky still believes himself to be that little boy. The face of the man in the mirror is a stranger he’s never known.
Doctors at Pinebrook Mental Hospital, desperate to help Ricky confront the suppressed memories locked away in his fractured mind, perform a radical new therapy that will reveal the secrets buried on that fateful night. But at what cost?
Some memories are better left forgotten.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Not really on topic, but I've always loved the word "snowbirds". I know it means the elderly who migrate during winter to some people, but I always see beautiful little grey birds in snow when I hear or read that word. O_o
Well, in this book, it is really snowbirds, as birds made of snow. And they seem so beautiful, I would love to see them IRL!
It's been a long time since I've been here.Since last time, I've read and reviewed:
*in English:
- The Leopard: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
- Probably Monsters: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
- Venus in Furs: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
- Dusk: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
*in French:
- Monsieur Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
- Le Sumo Qui Ne Pouvait Pas Grossir: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
- Théâtre: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
And here is the thread for the discussion launched by Venus in Furs, and other similar books: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
The Sound of One Hand Clapping: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...Rickshaw Boy: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Book Lair
Books mentioned in this topic
The Painted Veil (other topics)Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (other topics)
Brideshead Revisited (other topics)
Licence to Date (other topics)
Oedipe tragédie de Voltaire, suivi de Oedipe travesti parodie de Dominique (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Jim Fitzsimmons (other topics)Anthony Vicino (other topics)
Peter Tieryas (other topics)
Christina Stead (other topics)
Vanita Oelschlager (other topics)
More...
I mistakenly deleted my presentation, while trying to edit it, how clumsy of me. I guess that this fact only is already presentation enough.
But since it might interest people, I'll try to start again.
So I'm MelasLithos, from China, although I'm French.
A friend invited me to GR, and I registered just to have a look. Since then, GR probably became my most visited website! It really made me realize how little I have been reading at that time, when I love that! And since then, it really made me help make some time for reading. It's impressive how often, we are so carried by our work/life that we just tend to forget the small things that make life so pleasurable.
Since using GR, I have also started writting more reviews and detailing them more. Please do not hesitate to comment on them, and tell me how I can improve them/what more you would like to see in them.
The problem also with getting back on the reading wagon, it's that I just seem to go on and on on picking new books, when I don't have time to finish all those I already own! You'll find a list below of all the books I have on my to be read list. Please warn me if there's one you would like to read too, and let's try to set up a buddy read on it on the relevant topic!
/edit
edit (11-06-2015)/
TBR list
Netgalley:
The China Collectors: America's Century-Long Hunt for Asian Art Treasures
The Great Zoo of China
The Feminine Future: Early Science Fiction by Women Writers
Indiscretion
How to Get Dressed: A Costume Designer's Secrets for Making Your Clothes Look, Fit, and Feel Amazing
Nowhere to Be Found
The Color of Secrets
Tikkipala
The Art of American Whiskey: A Visual History of the Nation's Most Storied Spirit, Through 100 Iconic Labels
Deng Xiaoping: A Revolutionary Life
Victorian Fairy Tales
The Negroni: Drinking to La Dolce Vita, with Recipes & Lore
Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction
Planck: Driven by Vision, Broken by War
The Snow Kimono
Thicker Than Soup
Drought: A Novel
Lilliput
The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: The Life and Times of Jacob Fugger
Euphoria/Dysphoria
The Pyramids of London
Whispers from Mirrowen trilogy
Our Dried Voices
White Seed
Typewriter in the Sky
Once Upon A Fairy Tale: A Collection of 11 Fairy Tale Inspired Romances
Feng Shui & Charlotte Nightingale
Beauty and Chaos: Slices and Morsels of Tokyo Life
Snow Beach
The Color of our Sky
Young Babylon
The Arrival
Man Tiger: A Novel
The WikiLeaks Files: The World According to US Empire
Circling the Sun: A Novel
Lament for the Afterlife
The Good Brother
What We Salvage
Licence to Date
ebooks
Dead Mountain: The True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident
Exodus
Sudden Justice: America's Secret Drone Wars
Life and Death in Shanghai
Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice Continued
Lonely Vigil: Coastwatchers of the Solomons
From Here To Bethlehem
The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future
Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard
The Lotus Eaters
Homemade Liqueurs and Infused Spirits: Innovative Flavor Combinations, Plus Homemade Versions of Kahlua, Cointreau, and Other Popular Liqueurs
The Emigrants Trilogy
Beneath Ceaseless Skies 157
A Good Man Gone
The Warrior's Path
The Synchronicity War Part 1
The Tube Riders
Possess
The Misadventures of the Laundry Hag: Skeletons in the Closet: Book 1 in The Misadventures of the Laundry Hag series
Lacuna
Bypass Gemini
Middlemarch
Silas Marner
Beneath Ceaseless Skies Issue 155
Love, China and Alcohol
A Room of One's Own
Mrs. Dalloway
Orlando
To the Lighthouse
The Waiting Stars
Sons and Lovers
Broken City
All Agatha Christies
The Circular Staircase
The Man in Lower Ten
All Dune Chronicles
Fugitives and Refugees: A Walk in Portland, Oregon
Survivor
Choke
Invisible Monsters
Lord of the Flies
Les Chansons de Bilitis
Le Procès De Franz Kafka
Les Chants de Maldoror
La Divine Comédie
The Big Breach: From Top Secret To Maximum Security
Fugues
The Complete Works of H.G. Wells
Don Vicente: Two Novels
The Samsons: Two Novels;
Lady of Devices
The Prediction
Paper Books
The Secret Chord
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Kite Runner
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Raising Steam
The Science of Discworld IV: Judgement Day
Dodger
Les Morues
World Film Locations: Shanghai
To Kill a Mockingbird
Ulysses
The Metamorphoses
Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of TibetThe Accidental Duchess
La Horde du Contrevent
La baronne meurt à cinq heures
Ce qui plaît aux dames et autres contes galants
La Princesse de Babylone
Oedipe tragédie de Voltaire, suivi de Oedipe travesti parodie de Dominique
The Painted Veil
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Brideshead Revisited
That's all for now! Next, I'll try to add little by littke all the books I own, but not for review (that's a huge task!). For now, I have added all my ebooks, excepted for the books I got through Humble Bumble.
/edit
Hi, as mentionned above, I'd love your help to improve my reviewing, and more generally, my writting skills. So here are a few reviews I've written, of books you seemed interested in.
Please do not hesitate to comment on my review or discuss the books here!
So let's start with Chainge. Here is my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Then comes The Soul and the Seed, which I think some of you are currently reading:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(Too bad I'm having a really busy week, I can't wait to read the next episode!)
And, as we say in French "jamais deux sans trois" (never two without three), here's my review of The Last Overseer. I think some of you have read it too.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
If your fine with it, I'll continue posting my reviews here (at least those written in English).
Thank you!