Review: Kitchen Confidential, by Anthony Bourdain

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain My rating: 3 of 5 stars Once again I find myself flying in the face of popular sentiment. Somehow I feel I should have gone with public acceptance of Bourdain’s very raw, even visceral, autobiographical journey as a chef, and as an individual. His culinary autobiography is well-written, much to the credit of his ghost writer, and so I cannot give any honest evaluation of…

25

Feb 2022

By Lorina StephensReviewsComments Off

An explanation regarding my reviews

During a recent discussion with colleagues, a rating for a recent review I’d done was met with surprise. How could I not have given five stars to a novel I had, in fact, very much enjoyed? Allow me to explain It occurred to me my rating system is quite different from that of my colleagues’. They rate according to emotional response, which is quite fine. However, for me, when I’m reading whether for pleasure or…

25

Jan 2022

By Lorina Stephensrants, ReviewsComments Off

Review: The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini My rating: 4 of 5 stars The Kite Runner is my introduction to Khaled Hosseini, and it’s a good one. The tale Hosseini weaves is one of sorrow and redemption, primarily set in his native Afghanistan during the fall of the monarchy and the rise of Soviet invasion. Against this backdrop Hosseini creates a relationship between a privileged boy, Amir, in the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, and…

19

Jan 2022

By Lorina StephensReviewsComments Off

Review: A Brief History of Iceland, by Gunnar Karlsson

A Brief History of Iceland by Gunnar Karlsson My rating: 3 of 5 stars If nothing else, Gunnar Karlsson’s title for his history of Iceland is accurate. It is definitely a brief history. Something like an amuse-bouche. It’s well-written, albeit dry, focusing more on mid-19th century to relative present day. There is brief reference to its indigenous and Viking roots, referring more to the advent of Christianity and more modern political structure. Still, a quick…

15

Jan 2022

By Lorina StephensReviewsComments Off

Review: The Centaur’s Wife, by Amanda Leduc

The Centaur’s Wife by Amanda Leduc My rating: 3 of 5 stars If you’re looking for a post-apocalyptic, nature-takes-revenge on humans, with a fantasy overlay novel which represents disability rights, then The Centaur’s Wife is your ticket. Amanda Leduc presents a dark, relentless story in which a group of survivors takes refuge in the remains of a city which sits at the foot of a mystical mountain. And the mountain is in turn the refuge…

10

Jan 2022

By Lorina StephensReviewsComments Off