Comment of the Fortnight
19 October 1997
Book Report
I've had time to do some reading recently (plane trip to and from the East Coast)
and here are some quick reviews:
Icebreaker by John Gardner
This is one of the "new" James Bond novels. It helped pass the time nicely,
and it was an easy read. The characters are still larger than life in a cartoonish
sense. I enjoyed it, of course, but at an entirely different level than the way I
enjoyed the Ian Fleming novels when I was in my teenage years. One of my favorite
passages from those novels was the scene in Goldfinger where Mr. Strap
and Miss Galore trade insults with one another. Nothing in this novel quite lives
up to that, but then, what could?
The Lost World by Michael Crichton
Again, another very nice read with non-stop action. No, I haven't seen the "major
motion picture," and, after reading the book, I probably don't need to. As with
all of Crichton's books, it is thoroughly overresearched.
The Ritual Bath by Faye Kellerman
Wonderful! This book is just fantastic. My mom
introduced me to this mystery novel series; The Ritual Bath is the first
of those novels. It introduces Peter Decker, a Los Angeles detective, and
Rina Lazarus, a devout Orthodox Jew. Ms. Kellerman's characterizations are right
on target; you feel as if you know the people, and you'll also learn a bit about
Judaism. I highly recommend this book!
The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson
An extra-brilliant novel about a future wherein nanotechnology provides for
people's needs. This is not so much a book about the technology as it is about
people. Stephenson skillfully weaves his narrative together with that of A
Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, a book which is central to the story. This
book is well worth your attention.
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