Book Review: Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh

 Title: Hyperbole and a Half

Author: Allie Brosh

Rating: 5 Stars

Genres: Humor, Memoir

During one of my trips to the local bookstore, I noticed Hyperbole and a Half’s bright, yellow cover surrounded by the muted greys and blacks of other recent titles. As a fan of the website with the same name, I knew I had to pick it up. Especially when the back cover’s description reads as magical as this:

For those not familiar with her blog, Allie Brosh irreverently depicts her life’s events and situations with illustrated stories in a purposefully simplistic style. Pro-tip: Because of the simplicity, she’s possibly the best at bringing the young, stubborn, and frequently one-track child perspective to life convincingly.

The Hyperbole and a Half book mixes both new and previously featured stories. A couple of my (and fan) favorites that made it in include “The God of Cake,” “Dinosaur (The Goose Story),” and “This is Why I’ll Never be an Adult.” My favorite book-exclusive story is titled “Warning Signs,” in which Brosh hilariously replies to a letter she wrote as a 10 year old to her adult self.

”The God of Cake” has an almighty NEED

While one of my favorites, “The Alot is Better Than You at Everything,” didn’t make it in, that just makes me hope there will be a sequel. *Fingers crossed* Either way, I’ll be revisiting the book and blog quite a few times.

Also good to note, this book is printed on wonderful paper! It’s meant for images. It isn’t your low-quality, sometimes-smudgy paper that will die unless carefully preserved in plastic. No, this paper will last a long time. Bonus: The paper makes the book hefty so you can bludgeon anyone who makes the mistake of trying to destroy you laughter times by stealing it.

FIND HYPERBOLE AND A HALF
& ALLIE BROSH ONLINE:
Blog | Facebook | Twitter

Game Review: BADLAND

Title: BADLAND
Type: iPhone app
Genres: Side-scroller, action adventure, puzzle
Developer: Frogmind
Rating: 5 Stars

I was instantly drawn to the atmospheric art in BADLAND. It’s as if a space station crash landed and a few hundred years of forest growth had taken it over. Yet, there are still functioning gears, saws, and exploding elements. And a host of silhouetted bunnies that stare creepily at you from the background.

And then we have our character, a pudgy thing that flies. I’ve taken to calling them ‘hedgies’ since they look remarkably similar to a squeaking hedgehog toy my dog gets overly possessive about. The hedgies move in response to screen tapping—if you hold your finger down, he flies to the top of the screen, let go and he falls to the ground. A multitude of things can happen to the hedgies from power ups: grow, shrink, multiply, spin, or get super sticky.

Pretty simple, yeah? Well, some of the puzzles and obstacles become quite difficult. Bombs sometimes look like just a normal part of the scenery; other times spiky balls of death look like a bomb that might propel hedgie through the landscape. Some puzzles take two or three plays just to find out what you need to do. Then getting the timing and luck right may take 5+ more.

While some of the trickier puzzles make me want to throw my phone across the room (a desire I have so far kept at bay), I cannot stop playing. I become a little masochistic with difficult, yet simplistic puzzles—playing until I’m a fuming ball of hate, and then I keep going. Yet despite that, these are my favorite. It’s a gorgeous challenge with a mix of thinking, timing, and dexterity.

Not only can I become a fuming ball of hate in single player, but I can also attempt to ruin my friendships with multi-player mode! A player wins if their hedgie survives the longest or they have more points from course time and clones saved. Levels are filled with the same tricky traps as single player, but now opponents can kill their rivals by pushing them off screen, squishing them, and knocking them into traps. At least with consoles there is a slight distance, but on the iPhone or iPad the potential ex-friends are huddled close with easy elbow jabbing potential.

Despite all of that, I love this game. I highly recommend it for fans of Portal, Jetpack Joyride, Limbo, and Super Meat Boy.

Find BADLAND online:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | App Store

Music Monday: Zombies!

This past weekend I participated in Run For Your Lives, a zombie-themed 5K obstacle race. Instead of running, I chose to be a zombie, staggering after racers. After I checked in, workers custom shred my clothes, gave us the undead look, and literally threw handfuls and buckets of fake blood on us.

It was tons of fun. I even found a zombie Goku! So of course I had to take advantage of this photo op.

FUUUUU-SIOOOOON-HAAAAAA!!!!

In honor of this undead experience, I present to you six songs that feature zombies.

1. “Zombie” by Family Force 5

 

2. “Stagger Slide” by Dance Band

 

3. “Zombie Jamboree” by Jack Jeans (Harry Belafonte Cover)

 

4. “Zombie Prostitute” by Voltaire

 

5. “Zombie” by The Cranberries

 

6. “Zombie Dance” by Escape the Fate

Music Monday: Cover Song Playlist and Game!

A while back, a couple friends and I were playing Scrabble. Part way through, we realized the album we were listening to, one that I hadn’t heard before, was completely cover songs. We spent the rest of the album attempting to remember the original artists—not so easy when the genres were completely flipped. Seeing an opportunity to indulge our current ADD mindset, our ‘DJ’ searched for more cover songs for us to guess.

A new game was born!

Or at least a new game for us. We spent a couple hours guessing songs and laying down Scrabble words. Suffice it to say, that Scrabble game took several times longer than usual.

After this night of musical fun, I was inspired to create a playlist of cover songs. Some are very popular, some are obscure, but all wonderfully pay homage to the originals.

Can you name all of the original artists? Did I miss your favorite cover song? Let me know and I’ll add it to the list!

Retro Review: The Harper Hall Trilogy by Anne McCaffrey

Title: The Harper Hall Trilogy (DragonSong, DragonSinger, DragonDrums)
Author: Anne McCaffrey
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy

Synopsis:
This enduring trilogy, set in the larger Pern series, begins with Menolly in her isolated home of Half-Circle Sea Hold. She a highly gifted musician to the dismay of her family, and especially her father, who believe girls shouldn’t be harpers. After the death of Harper Petiron, Menolly’s only friend who encouraged her musical abilities and song writing, she is forbidden music.

Surrounded by harsh people and denied the one thing that makes her happy, Menolly spends her days as far away as possible collecting food. One such day finds her out during Threadfall, a deadly storm of menacing silver creatures that only devour and multiply. In her haste for safety, she unintentionally “impresses” nine fire lizards that resemble the large dragons that protect Pern from Thread.

The Harper Hall Trilogy follows the adventures of Menolly as she becomes one of the first female harpers, as well as how she and her friends start their influential lives on Pern.

My Thoughts:
A long time ago, I lost my excitement for reading. That’s mostly in part to school. We were required to read at or above our reading level and if we didn’t, we wouldn’t fulfill our point requirements. At 11 years old, I was reading at an 11th/12th grade level. You can understand my apathy towards my choices, especially when that just happened to be the time when the Harry Potter books were coming out. Suffice it to say, I was so frustrated with the situation that I quit reading.

But I am a reader at heart, and once I was a couple years away from that mess, I eased myself back in. After a few duds, I still wasn’t excited at the prospect of reading. This is where the Harper Hall Trilogy comes in. A friend suggested it to me and I devoured the trilogy, and all 15+ books of the series that were out at the time. My love of reading was rekindled by a book over twice my age. Consequently, the Pern novels will always hold a special place on my bookshelves.

As for the Harper Hall Trilogy itself, the books are quick reads (the longest being 240 pages) that ease readers into the world of Pern. As we follow Menolly, we meet characters from the rest of the series, and get a taste of the lifestyles of harpers, holders, dragonriders, and explorers.

At once, it is very easy to connect to the main characters in the trilogy because they are the ‘normal’ people, not those in the elevated roles of Lords or dragonriders, but at the same time, they are young and are sometimes preoccupied by shallow worries. In a series that is mostly adult, the teen perspective stands out a bit. For teens, this makes it a great starting point. For adults who don’t read Young Adult novels, I would suggest starting with DragonFlight.

DragonSong was first published in 1976. When I first read it in the early 2000s, I honestly thought it was more recent than that. After reading it this past week, the voice still feels more modern than the haughty fantasy that I’ve read from that era. I think that is one of the reasons this trilogy is so enduring. Not only did my grandmother love them, but so do my similarly aged friends and younger acquaintances.

I should also not that the first two novels follow Menolly, while the third follows her friend and harper apprentice Piemur. If you don’t know this is coming, it can be jarring. DragonDrums is also set three years after the end of Dragonsinger. Menolly still plays a significant role in the third installment, but she is definitely a side character. The first time I read it, I was mildly disappointed that Menolly was pushed to the side, but part way through, I was enjoying Piemur’s ‘scampish’ adventures.

I highly recommend this trilogy, and series, for fans of  fantasy, dragons, and sci-fi fantasy blends. This is also a great series for those who want to dip their toes into the fantasy genre.

Movie Review: Scream 4

Title: Scream 4
Rated: R
Genres: Horror, Mystery, Suspense, Campy Humor
Director: Wes Craven
Writer: Kevin Williamson
Stars: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courtney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Rory Culkin
Rating: 4 Stars

Description:
While promoting her new book, Ghostface survivor Sidney Prescott (Neve Campell) returns to Woodsboro. Soon after, the murders start again, targeting Sidney’s cousin Jill (Emma Roberts). It’s up to Sidney, Dewey (David Arquette), and Gale (Courtney Cox) to stop Ghostface’s most recent murder spree.

My Thoughts:
If you’re a fan of the original Scream film, then you will no doubt enjoy this installment. Scream 4 is one of, if not the, best reboots I’ve seen to date. Craven and Williamson bring back all the gore, humor, and postmodern awareness that started the franchise.

Rule 6: Don’t f**k with the original

Remember that famous opening with Drew Barrymore? I don’t know a horror buff that doesn’t, or will ever forget it. How does a franchise outdo that? Scream 4 definitely makes a go at it with a slew of cameos and meta references. It probably won’t go down in the books as terrifying, but it is definitely one of the more creative ways to poke fun at your own movie legacy, while planting yourself in your fan’s minds for a good, long time.

Overall, I loved the return to Woodsboro. Campell, Arquette, and Cox give the great performances you expect in the series. I loved seeing Emma Roberts in something not kid-oriented, and realizing that she could definitely make it in the horror genre. While some of the other newcomers fell a bit flat, it didn’t take much away from the overall.

While I was talking to other people about Scream 4, an interesting gap presented itself. Mostly, Scream fans liked it a lot. The only folks that didn’t like it were teenagers. They hadn’t been around for the earlier films. Many of them “didn’t get” the campy humor and were disappointed that it wasn’t super gory like the Saw or Hostel films. Even those that had seen at least one of the earlier films weren’t enthused. Clearly, the people I speak to do not constitute everyone, but how stark that line was makes me worry about the generational gap in horror fans. Cause really, like these teens don’t make me feel old enough already.

Find Scream 4 Online:
Website | IMDB | Netflix

Vacation Part 4: The Swag

By now, I hope you know that I went on a little multi-continental jaunt, so I will just skip that backstory. But if you’re not caught up, you can click these links to read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

As the title suggests, this post is about what I brought back with me. Admittedly, most of my money was spent on the trip necessities: plane tickets, hotel, transit, and the all important food. BUT I did get a few items for myself and others.

While in Rome, we needed to figure out how to get places. Originally, we were going to attempt the busses, but after looking at a map, we realized everything was within walking distance. This map ended up being the only souvenir I bought in Rome for myself, as most things I saw were waaaay overpriced and trinket-y.

Remember how I said we got a bit lost? This is where that happened—this little bend of the river to that larger street with ‘Corso’ on it. It would’ve helped if the actual streets were labeled.

The only other souvenir from Rome was for my mother who collects shot glasses. Before I left, she demanded a shot glass from each place I ended up—even if I was only in the airport, as the case was for Amsterdam.

I couldn’t leave Istanbul without a bajillion Evil Eyes (Nazars), which are protective pendants that are everywhere. Since they are so popular, they were quite inexpensive as well. I snagged several of these hanging and magnet versions for people back home, as well as a magnet for myself.

This one is mine. I love the goofy shape and how it’s a bit different than the normal Nazars. I only saw this style at one shop the entire time we were in Istanbul. I have yet to get rope or string or whatever to hang it up with, but for now it’s nestled in nicely on my knick-knack shelf.

And what kind of media addict would I be if I didn’t come home with some music? I kept my eyes open for a music store the whole trip, but didn’t see one—even in the major shopping area. Then in the airport, BAM! Music store. It cost a bit more than I was hoping, but still much less than importing. So I picked up a copy of Murat Boz’s Dance Mix, and album of remixes and the self-titled MaNga+, which is rock with a bit of hip-hop flair. Sadly, the store was completely out of Tarkan albums.

Thus concludes my vacation ramblings.
I’ll be back to reviews and media updates by next week!