Mockingay by Suzanne Collins

I would first like to apologize (again) for my recent absence. Some of you, or none of you, or all two of you may know that by day I am an accountant. And you may know that this time of year can be very busy for accountants, especially if the company you work for nearly doubled in size at the first of the year. So, now that I am no longer working 60 hour weeks, I can get back to entertaining all you book nerds. Or boring you. Whichever.

ONCE AGAIN SPOILERS, SPOILERS, SPOILERS!!!!! DON'T CONTINUE READING IF YOU PLAN TO READ ANY OF THE HUNGER GAMES TRILOGY BOOKS!!!!

As promised however long ago my last post was, tonight I will review Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - the third and last book in her Hunger Games trilogy. (That sounds stupid since a third book in a trilogy is, by definition, the last book but I don't care.) I actually finished this book quite a while ago (see previous comment about being a busy accountant in order to afford my pricey book habit) so let's see if I can recall accurately my feelings and opinions on the book. Feel free to reread my previous posts on the first two books here and here as a kind of refresher course. As you may remember, I gave both books a perfect five bows so the final book had a lot to deliver.

We pick up Mockingjay exactly where Catching Fire left off. (And yes, I just realized that underlining book titles, rather than italicizing, is actually the grammatically correct way of writing about a book. It's never too late to improve upon ones self, I always say.) Katniss and a few of her fellow tributes have been saved by being snatched up out of the arena by a rebel hovercraft. While the 75th Hunger Games progressed, it appears a revolution in the districts was brewing. And everyone but Katniss was in on it. It also turns out that the once believed destroyed district 13 is actually thriving and spearheading the revolution from their massive underground lair. War against The Capitol has broken out and Katniss was saved from the arena for the explicit purpose of becoming the face of the revolution.

Peeta was not so lucky. The Capitol kidnapped him and began using him in televised interviews to plead with the rebels to call off the revolution. And to counteract Katniss' televised pirated rebel PSAs. Everyone was relieved to see a healthy Peeta in the interviews, however, it all appeared a sham once the rebels snuck in to The Capitol and kidnapped him back. Peeta was malnourished and had been brainwashed to kill Katniss on site - something he very nearly succeeds in doing on their first reunion.

With her one true comforting presence programmed to kill her, a nagging distrust of the district 13 leaders and the fate of the country literally on her shoulders, will Katniss Everdeen ever liberate Panem and more importantly liberate herself from her haunting memories? Read the book to find out, but I have to warn you: you may not be satisfied with the outcome. I know I wasn't.

I've said it a number of times: this book had a lot to live up to. The first two were exotic thrill rides that kept you on the edge of your seat wanting more. However, the trilogy had to come to an end and I believe Collins may have had a hard time coming up with a suitable ending and, in my humble opinion, she took the easy way out. (Read the book to see what I mean.) It's not closed out with a nice and tidy happy ending. Yet, neither does the shit hit the fan. I believe she tried to straddle the fence to please everyone rather than provide an ending that may have been richer and more true to the nature of the story and characters.

One very interesting theme Collins tackles in this book, more so than the previous two, is the nature of power and the motivations behind those with the power. Revolutions can be a tricky business. Just ask Egypt and Lybia. When you oust an oppressive governing body, there's no guarantee what you get in its place is going to be any better. Castro promised all kinds of wonderful freedoms and joys for the people of Cuba when he took power from Batista in 1959. We all know how that turned out. It's been recited a billion times: "If we don't study history, we are bound to repeat it." Collins does an excellent job of illustrating this point. And it's quite depressing, actually. There is no such thing as a completely corruption-free government. That's not really a rosy view of society or human nature in general.

I'm going to have to give Mockingjay four bows this time. It really was chugging along, exciting and engaging just like the previous two books, right up until the last chapter. And then it's like Collins just gave up and tacked an ending on. Frustrating, to say the least. But it was still a good read. And I am still uber-stoked for the movie that's in the works. It sounds like the leading contender to play Katniss is Jennifer Lawerence of Winter's Bone. I am praying this come to fruition as Ms. Lawerence seems to have been born to play Katniss. Beautiful yet feisty and athletic. (And by the way, see Winter's Bone immediately if you haven't done so already. You won't regret it.) Now let's just hope they don't cast that Twilight douche as Peeta or Gale.

In housekeeping news, I am WAAAAYYYY behind on my blogging. I have two finished books waiting in queue on which to write about and a number of tasty articles and such to talk about. So I hope to been around much more often in the coming weeks. And until then, happy reading everyone!

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Tonight's book was a recommendation from a woman at work who described it as the most beautiful book she had ever read. When someone describes a book to you in such a way, you just have to read it so I ran right out that evening and bought it. More on that description later...

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is another young adult novel set in Nazi Germany right smack in the middle of World War II and the Holocaust. Once again, I would never have known this was a young adult novel had that not been the section in which I found it in the book store.

One of the most interesting and unique aspects of this book is that it is narrated by Death. Yeah, this guy:

Although, in the book, he claims to not look like this at all. Which begs the question: what does Death look like? Hopefully, he looks like Michael Fassbender. That way, maybe I'll be more apt to follow him when my time comes. Yum.

Anywho, back to The Book Thief. As I said above, Death narrates this story - the story of Liesel Meminger, the book thief of the title. When Death first encounters Liesel, she is on a train with her mother and brother on their way to a suburb of Munich, Germany. Death is there to take Liesel's little brother. Unfortunately for Liesel, not only has she just lost her little brother but she is also on her way to Munich to be delivered to foster parents. Luckily for Liesel, her foster parents are good, kind people and she soon begins to flourish in her new home. Liesel makes friends and plays soccer but her real joy is reading - something she wasn't able to do when she arrived in Munich but her new foster father was happy to teach her. Her passion for books extends not only to reading books but also stealing them, as the title implies, sometimes from the bottom of a Nazi book burning pile.

This book presents a unique perspective on the WWII genre - at least one unique to me. Most WWII novels I've read are from the Allied Forces or conquered counties' point of view. Seldom have I seen the story told from the plain old German citizens point of view. Not all Germans were Nazis. Not all swallowed the propaganda unquestioningly. And those German citizens lived in just as much fear as the rest of the world. Scared they would make one wrong step and the Nazis would come knocking on their doors.

And not only were these innocent Germans terrorized by the Nazis, they were also terrorized by the Allied bombing raids. Some of the most powerful and haunting scenes in this book are the scenes of Liesel and her family, friends and neighbors clinging to each other in basement bomb shelters during Allied bombing raids. People running from their homes in the middle of the night with only their most precious belongs that they could carry. Liesel, of course, carried her books to the shelters, where she calmed everyone by reading to them.

Zusak's choice as Death for the narrator seemed a bit unnecessary to me. It appeared as if he was trying too hard to make his novel unique and inventive. I mean, I understand his choice. A lot of deaths happened in and because of Nazi Germany at that time in history and presumably, Death was a first hand witness to them all. But it felt like Zusak was just trying too hard.

Another area where it felt like the author was trying too hard was in his writing style and choice of words and literary devices. My coworker described this as "the most beautiful book" she had ever read. I agree. It is beautiful (although I may not classify it as the most beautiful book I've ever read). However, it's also a little much. A little much with the metaphors, a little much with the descriptions and a little much with the flowery words. At one point, the narrator (Death) describes the sun as "breakfast colored". What does that even mean? It's the color of a sunny-side-up egg? Another: "Her wrinkles were like slander?" Huh!?!? The book is full of them.

But, BUT, sometimes the author gets it right and it is beautiful. Some of the best includes scenes when Death gingerly and sweetly comes for the souls of the dead. "Who was there to sooth him as life's rug was snatched from under his sleeping feet? No one. There was only me. And I'm not too great at that sort of comforting thing, especially when my hands are cold and the bed is warm. I carried him softly through the broken street, with one salty eye and a heavy, deathly heart. With him, I tried a little harder." Awww. Death has a heart. Sweet and touching.

I heard this book described somewhere else as "experimental literature". I'm not sure what that means exactly but it does seem to fit somehow. It's lovely and picturesque. It's profuse and showy. It's touching and heart warming. It's bleak and depressing. And it's unlike any other book I've ever read. I'm going to give it four bows. The good more than makes up for the pointless. It's not a feel good story so if you're looking for a happy ending, this isn't your book. (And really, if you're looking for a happy ending, you shouldn't be reading a book about the Holocaust in the first place.) But it's a good read that will provide you with an interesting look at WWII through the eyes of the German citizens.

On to some housekeeping business: this post took me a good two weeks of beginning, starting over and stalling. It's a tough book to describe. And because of that, I have a bit of a back log in posts. Next up will be the third and final book in the Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay. So stay tuned for that. And after that will be the third and final book in the Millennium trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest. So, until next time, happy reading everyone!

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

WARNING: SPOILERS, SPOILERS, SPOILERS!!!!1!1!

Don't say I didn't warn you. Since this is book two in the Hunger Games trilogy, and there were some plot twists at the end of book one that will be unavoidable when talking about book two, there will be some spoilers following. So stop reading now if you are or are planning to read book one. I'll give you a minute to leave...

OK, now that those losers are gone, we'll get down to talking about Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. Feel free to refresh your memory on book one by rereading my blog entry here.

We pick up with Katniss back in District 12 a few months after the unprecedented declaration of her and Peeta as duel winners of their Hunger Games. Both have settled into their beautiful new homes in the Victor's Village next door to their friend and mentor (and drunk) Haymitch. And both are preparing for the customary victor's tour of the other districts when Katniss is visited by President Snow, the president of Panem. President Snow is not happy with Katniss. Not one bit. The Capitol, it seems, interpreted Katniss' attempt to commit duel suicide in the arena during the games as a public disregard of the Capitol's authority. And the other districts, it seems, interpreted the same action as a rally cry for revolution. President Snow warns Katniss that she had better be on her best behavior during the victor's tour or bad things could happen to her and those she loves.

So, the next Hunger Games is fast approaching and it seems that the next game is a "Quarter Quell" meaning it's the 75th games. Each 25th game is called a Quarter Quell and a new twist in the tribute selection process is thrown into the mix just to spice things up. For instance, for one of the prior Quarter Quells, four tributes were sent to the games rather than the customary two. Anywho, everyone is gathered around their TVs to hear what special twist will happen this Quarter Quell when it is announced that for the next games the tributes will be selected from each district's current pool of victors. District 12 only has three victors - Katniss, Peeta and Haymitch. It seems that Katniss failed to impress President Snow and she's going back in the arena.

I had wondered how Collins was going to get Katniss back in the arena again for a second book and although this plot devise seemed a bit contrived to me, I'll let it pass. It works fine enough, I guess. And truthfully, the games and the actual time in the arena are a much smaller part of this book. Much more time is spent on the rumors of revolution and unrest in the districts.

Even though the games is a much smaller part of this book, the game twists and arena that Collins dreams up for this book are crazy! How much fun she must have had coming up with some of the stuff that appears in that arena this time around. Burning rain! Tidal waves! Attack monkeys! It was freakin' awesome! I wish I could think up crazy shit like that. If I could, I would be the best selling author, I guess rather than sitting on my couch in my jammies describing the book to all you nerds.

What was particularly intriguing with this book was the way Collins expertly and deftly draws Katniss as the reluctant revolutionary leader. She didn't ask to be the spearhead of a revolution. She didn't plan it and tries to avoid it to protect those she loves. But she also craves freedom and security. Every so often, a leader and revolutionary emerges in Katniss regardless of how hard she tries to suppress it. I have to imagine that many revolutionaries begin this way. You don't just one day decide to risk your safety, reputation and loved ones on a whim. And Collins does an excellent job of showing this inner turmoil in Katniss.

Overall, I would say I enjoyed this book as much, if not more, than the first book (despite the cliffhanger). I burned through it in about two days. It's the kind of book that gets under your skin and you just can't put it down. So, once again, I'm going to give Catching Fire five bows. Everyone just go read these books this instant so I have someone to talk with them about.

The third book in the trilogy, Mockingjay, has a lot to live up to. Hopefully it delivers. I just picked it up at the Scholastic Book sale last weekend and plan to read it after I finish my current book.

Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May there be many good books under all your Christmas trees this year!

Animal Farm by George Orwell

I can't quite remember if I ever read this book or just studied it in various literature and history classes. I knew the themes and general plot points but couldn't remember the details which leads me to think I just studied it. Regardless, Rusty the Hubby has been bugging me to read it lately and it seemed like a logical next book after reading The Hunger Games.

Largely considered Orwell's masterpiece (along with 1984 which is also on my to-read list), Animal Farm was published in 1945 as a criticism of Soviet Socialism. Orwell, being the genius that he was, used farm animal characters instead of humans to illustrate his criticism. By doing this, I believe, he was warning that any society could fall prey to totalitarianism unless they were careful.

The book begins with Old Major, a champion boar on Manor Farm, calling all the farm animals to a clandestine meeting in the barn. Old Major had a dream of a farm owned and operated by the farm animals. All work is shared equally to each animal's ability and all harvests are shared equally to each animal's needs. As Old Major sees it, the animals are slaves to the farmers. The animals do all the work while the humans reap all the benefits. Some animals agree wholeheartedly while some are simply happy with the status quo.

Manor Farm is owned and run by Mr. Jones, a somewhat lazy yet comfortable farmer given to bouts of drinking. One evening, after a particularly long afternoon at the local pub, Mr. Jones falls asleep on the couch without feeding the animals. The hungry animals take it upon themselves to raid the feed stores only to be fell upon by Jones and his men with whips. The animals rise up as one and chase Jones and his men off the farm. The animals are now in control of the farm. They rename it "Animal Farm" and create a list of governing rules for the farm, calling the new governing philosophy "Animalism". The rules mostly detail how humans are evil and that animals should never try to emulate them. The overarching theme is "four legs good, two legs bad". The animals take to calling each other "comrade", singing patriotic songs and having regular meetings and parades to celebrate their new freedom.

The pigs, being the smartest animals on the farm, naturally fall into leadership roles. Two main pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, become the driving force behind Animal Farm. However, they can never agree on anything and a power struggle ensues. For a time, things on Animal Farm go smoothly and as planned. The animals all work hard but are happy to do so knowing they are contributing to the good of the community as whole rather than lining Jones' pockets. Soon, though, the power struggle between Snowball and Napoleon comes to a head over the building of a windmill and Snowball is driven off the farm. Exiled.

Here Orwell shows us just how easy it is for a society to slip from communist utopia to totalitarianism. Napoleon takes over sole leadership of Animal Farm. He begins commandeering additional food and resources for he and the other pigs. He takes a new litter of puppies and trains them to be his ferocious guard dogs. And he moves out of the barn and into Mr. Jones' old farmhouse. All the while, the other animals on the farm are kept in submission by a constant stream of propaganda from Napoleon's main mouthpiece, a particularly persuasive pig (say that three time fast!) by the name of Squealer. In essence, Napoleon establishes a cult of fear in the other animals on the farm - fear of Mr. Jones returning to enslave them again, fear of humans unethical influences and mostly fear of Napoleon himself.

Orwell's comparisons to Stalin era Soviet Russia are not subtle. He's basically hitting the reader over the head with his criticism. It's clear Mr. Jones is the Russian royal family. Human society in general is capitalism and Western society. And Napoleon is Stalin himself. As most totalitarianism societies are formed, a charismatic leader overthrows an old and corrupt governing body by promising the citizens wonderful things only to renege on those promises immediately. Such as it was with Stalin. Such as it was with Napoleon the pig.

I believe Animal Farm is timeless in it's warnings against corrupt government. Society as a whole must be ever diligent lest they be lulled into complacency and vulnerability. This is not meant as a criticism of any particular current government official. Much the opposite. American society has the wonderful ability to oust any official we deem not representing the good of the nation as a whole. Not every country has that privilege. Look at Cuba. Look at China. Most notably, look at North Korea. Their leaders are clearly only interested in power and wealth and not the good of the people. Much like Stalin. Much like Napoleon the pig.

Although the book was engaging and adept at getting it's points across, I sometimes felt I was reading a children's book rather than political satire. This may very well have been Orwell's aim - to get his points across in the least threatening and easily to understand way possible and thus get his message out to more people. But at times I almost forgot what I was reading and half expected the spider from Charlotte's Web to pop up exclaiming "salutations!" However, it's a small criticism and didn't really detract from the overall message of the book. Therefore, I give Animal Farm four bows. It was educational and as timely today as I'm sure it was during the Cold War.

Let me know what you thought of Animal Farm or this review in the comments section below. And as always, happy reading everyone!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Good evening fellow book nerds! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

For tonight's blog posting, I bring you The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. My friend Jessica lent me this book pleading with me to read it so she would have someone to discuss it with. Well, I was happy to oblige, as always. I had heard about the book here and there and was interested in reading it anyway. Jessica assured me I would love it and she definitely didn't lie.

The Hunger Games is book one in a trilogy. (What is it with me and trilogies lately? I believe I am at various stages of at least three different trilogies at the moment.) The books take place in a future dystopian society called Panem which is located in what used to be North America. Panem's capitol city - aptly named The Capitol - is located somewhere in the Rockies. The Capitol is surrounded by twelve districts which seem to get poorer and bleaker the farther away from the Capitol the district is positioned.

Our heroine, Katniss Everdeen, lives in District 12. District 12 is located in what used to be Appalachia and nothing has changed much in Appalachia. Everyone is still dirt poor and the main industry is coal mining. Katniss lives with her mother and little sister, Primrose. Her father died in a mine explosion when she was quite young leaving Katniss as the family's sole provider. She hunts everyday in the forest surrounding District 12 in order to feed her family, even though it is punishable by death. In other words, Katniss can take care of herself.

When we meet Katniss, she is preparing for the annual reaping. We come to find out that each year the Capitol stages a kind of lottery in each district called the reaping. Every child between the ages of 12 and 18 are required to enter his or her name in the reaping. At age 12, your name is entered once. At age 13, twice and so on. Any child may also chose to add his or her name to the reaping additional times in exchange for tesserae (a year's supply of grain and oil for one person). And these additional entries are also cumulative. Because of this, poor children's names are entered into the reaping many more times than wealthy kids and therefore have a much better chance of being chosen in the reaping.

This brings us to the purpose of the reaping. Two children's names are drawn each year from each district - one boy and one girl. These children, called tributes, are then sent on to the Capitol to compete in The Hunger Games. The Capitol created the games as a reminder to the districts to toe the line or else. You see, the games consist of the tributes being thrown together into an enormous terror dome and fighting each other to the death live on TV. Last one standing wins and brings wealth and honor to his or her family and additional food and resources to his or her district.

Against all odds, Primrose, with one entry, is drawn as District 12's female tribute. Katniss volunteers to take her young and delicate sister's place. Volunteering is not unheard of in other wealthier districts where children are breed to compete in the games, but in District 12, it's considered a death sentence. However, volunteering has also captivated District 12 and all of Panem therefore giving Katniss a leg up in a competition that is as much a reality show popularity contest as it is brutal blood bath.

Here I must stop myself before I give away every detail of this book. I loved this book so much and was so engrossed by every word that I want to tell you everything. But I'm no spoiler. I will restrain myself.

Games is classified as Young Adult literature. I believe I have to respectfully disagree. The themes and violence are much more adult than young adult. And the writing is far superior to any young adult novel I've ever read, past or present. But maybe my memory is clouded by what I was reading when I was in the young adult demographic - Judy Blume being in the forefront of my mind. But the main characters are teens and maybe that's all a book needs anymore to be classified as young adult.

One guideline I go by when judging how much I like a book is how quickly I read it. And I burned through this book. I keep a bit of a writers journal in which I take notes and jot down thoughts and opinions on the books I read. (Sorry, the English major in me is hard to squash.) I didn't take one note on this book. I couldn't tear myself away! To take notes would mean I would have to stop reading and that was just not an option.

And even without taking notes, I remember every detail, I believe because the details are what makes this book so enthralling. Every detail is logically laid out, a tough task in the fantasy genre where an author could very easily tend toward the absurd. Just when I found myself questioning something, a logical explanation was given. And the world Collins created is so rich and fleshed out that I almost never questioned anything, even when gifts dropped from the sky to help out a tribute during the games. Everything is plausible yet exotic and captivating.

I really can't praise this book enough. I've enjoyed it more than any other book in quite awhile. I took a brief break to read another book (I will blog on it later this week) and have now begun on book two of the trilogy, Catching Fire. I just couldn't wait. It's like the book crawled into my brain and laid eggs. I NEED to know what happens next. And for this I am giving The Hunger Games five bows. It was fabulous and I urge you all to read it at your next available opportunity. If you've already read it, stop on by the comments section and we'll discuss more. Until then, happy reading everyone!

Meeting David Sedaris for the Fourth Time

Last evening, David Sedaris was at the Barnes & Noble on University Avenue in West Des Moines, Iowa for a book signing and short reading. We all know my obsession with and borderline stalking of my favorite author from previous posts here and here. This meeting went 100 times better than the last time in Ames and you will all be pleased to know I was on my very best behavior.

The reading was scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM but I knew from past experience that Mr. Serdaris often signs books prior to as well as following readings. So I rushed home after work, fed the dogs quick and ran on up to B&N, arriving a little before 6:00. Sure enough, there he was seated at a small table just to the right of the front doors.

The line was a mere ten people long when I arrived. He tends to spend a good five minutes with each fan at book signings but the wait was short nonetheless. When I reached the front of the line, he quipped, "And who are you?" We got to chitchatting while he signed my book, having a lovely discussion about our previous meetings. Much to my delight, he remembered me asking a question from the audience at his reading in Ames last month. I nearly fainted! I told him about my bad Black Market Pizza experience that kept me from getting my book signed in Ames. He told me about his dismay with people asking inappropriate questions (oops, I may have been one of those people at one time). We were like long lost friends - in my own deluded mind, at least. I tried not to linger too long and let on my stalker tendencies. Here is a snapshot of my first edition Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk he signed last night:



It says, "To Shannon. We meet again, enchantress. David Sedaris." You hear that people! I'm an enchantress! Squee! I giddily ran off and called everyone on my speed dial who would take my call.

I had some free time then to browse a little and regain my composure before his reading began at 7:00. The reading was to happen at the book signing table and there were no chairs for listeners. People were just expected to mill around while he spoke. After making some purchases (natch, I am at B&N after all), I wandered back to the front of the store around 6:45 and grabbed a prime spot next to the customer service desk. This turned out to be a smart move on my part as the B&N staff turned into nazis about keeping the aisles clear. Anyone who tried to stand in front of me and therefore in the aisle, they would order to the rear or to the railings on the second level. I essentially had commandeered the most prime spot in the house. Yay me!

He spoke for about 45 minutes, reading from Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk as well as his journal. He took a few short questions following his reading and from my prime spot I was able to step right up and ask a question - a literary one that I am not at all embarrassed of this time, too. As always, Mr. Sedaris was utterly charming and delightful to listen to and speak with. Until we meet again, Mr. Sedaris! I will be anxiously awaiting your next book.

John Dies at the End by David Wong

Good evening fellow book nerds! Tonight I am going to tell you all about one of the funniest books I have read in a long time. A least the funniest fiction novel I've read in a long time. Most definitely the funniest sci fi/fantasy book I've ever read.

John Dies at the End is the story of John (the same as in the title) and Dave (the author and narrator). John and Dave are two twenty-something slackers that live in a small Midwestern town Dave calls "Undisclosed for reasons that will become obvious later".

Strange happenings begin to occur in Undisclosed one evening when a levitating Jamaican introduces John to a new drug called "Soy Sauce". The soy sauce provides the user with a heightened sense of awareness. It also opens up a new realm of reality allowing the user to see things normal people can never see with the naked eye - monsters wearing wigs, Ronald McDonald eating his own intestines, demons composed entirely of cockroaches, etc.

Also thanks to the soy sauce, John and Dave become a sort of target for all kinds of super natural beings. They find themselves in a number of different skirmishes with all nature of creatures always accompanied by their super natural creature spotter of sorts, Molly the dog, who at one point in the story explodes but later reappears unharmed. The story culminates in a meeting of the minds between John and Dave and an all-powerful demigod named Korrok who ends up insulting the size of Dave's manhood and calling him gay.

I know I'm not being very thorough with my plot description and I'm sorry for that. It's a hard book to recap. John Dies at the End is really a collection of a number of different smaller stories. It began as an online serial blog posting by David Wong, the pseudonym for Jason Pargin. (Pargin is the editor in chief of Cracked.com, one of my favorite websites. Check it out if you get a chance.) Unfortunately, you can tell the book was a serial. The stories aren't tied together all that well. The main characters are the same but that's about it. It shifts from ghost story to monster story to alien story to alternate universe story and back again leaving major plot holes in its wake.

But, all that being said, this book was freakin' funny. There were just too many one-liners to even mention. At one point John and Dave are battling a demon made of meat (hams, summer sausages, turkeys, etc.) and Dave is worried about being "sodomized by a bratwurst poltergeist". The humor distinctly reminded me of a cross between Zombieland and Army of Darkness. It's crass and juvenile and there is an over abundance of penis and fart jokes but they're funny penis and fart jokes. But I also had to wonder if someone who wasn't so up on pop culture would get a lot of the jokes.

I do know that I could not have found two more different books to read back to back, if you remember my previous blog posting. No one can accuse me of not having eclectic taste in my literature of choice.

All in all, I'm going to give John Dies at the end four bows. It was laugh out loud funny but had some gaping plot holes that I just couldn't overlook. They're filming the movie version now so I am excited to see what they do with it. Until next time, happy reading everyone!