Weekly Wrap Up 1/8/15

I have decided to do weekly wrap ups for all of the graphic novels/trades that I read.  I figured this was another way to share with the world my love of comics. Below is a list of each book as found on Amazon. I do receive a very small percentage of every sale, so if you enjoy watching my videos please help me by purchasing something. I hope that this wrap up was helpful, and entertaining.

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5.  6. 7.

Review of Acid House by Irvine Welsh

I just finished reading Acid House, by Irvine Welsh. If you follow my booktube channel you know how much I enjoy reading this authors works.  This last book is a collection of short stories, a few poems, and a novella. Like all of the other books I have read by Welsh I really enjoyed this book. Like his other books this collection of stories involved the right of satire, drugs, sex, and shenanigans.

For instance, one story was about a man named Bob Coyle, who God chose that because he hated himself for not making the world a better place he would then punish Bob. He punishes Bob by turning him into one of the lowest forms of life, a fly.

Another story involved a young man named Coco Bryce, who has a tragic accident one night that he is tripping on acid on the night of a thunderstorm. He is struck by lightning, and finds himself inhabiting the body of a newborn baby. This was a rather comical story, and one that I remembered from the Acid House film. A talking baby as if that were not funny enough, but the things he does, and says were good for a laugh. Coco Bryce!

The last part of the book is a novella entitled "Smart Cunt", and is broken up into smaller chapters.  This story involves a first person account of a man named Brian, who seems to think that every important female in his life has abandoned him. First his mother when he was 8yrs old, and later his girlfriend who decides to go away to college in London. Brian chooses to cope with his sense of abandonment, and depression through drinking, drugs and reading horrible biographies. The title of this story has the same meaning as what we Americans refer to as a "smart alec", and I'm sure some people would be offended by the term used in the title, but this a perfect example of the way an average person living in the schemes of Scotland talks. The reader gets the impression that the main character is lost in his drugs, drinking and depression, because the story seems to jump from events in his life with no clear explanation of transitions.  This story is very tragic in it's telling and we get a feeling of pity for the main character, as he feels like people do not like him because he is a "smart cunt".

Like his other books that I have read so far I really enjoyed seeing into another life, and culture, which I may never get to experience, and one that I think is a good example of being a diverse read. I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

Above is an affiliate link. If you choose to purchase the book I receive a very small percentage.

Some Things I Love About CNY (Central New York)

When I say I'm from NY most people assume NYC. But I have to clarify that all the time that there is more to NY than just the Big Apple. For instance, Syracuse has a lot to offer tourists to our region which is centrally located in the middle of the state.

So I wanted to make a list of a few things that I think make Central NY a great place to live. I have to say that these are in no particular order. So here it goes:

1. The Great NYS Fair- Being that Syracuse is in the center of the state what better place than here to have our State fair? If you have only gone to your local county fair and have yet to go to this....what are you waiting for? The Great NYS Fair runs from late August till Labor Day. Last year they got a new Amusement provider and the Midway was HUGE. There are so many things to do and see. Animal barns, many varieties of carnival foods, attractions, and free music shows in Chevy Court.

2. Jreck Subs -  Yeah, there is Subway, and everyone knows them, but there is nothing quite like a Jreck sub. These Sandwich shops are located all over the CNY area. These subs are delicious, and they offer a sub of the day , which is a great value at almost half price and it's a whole sub.  They also have a sub of the month, which is always something unique. Not only do they offer subs, but they also offer Fried Pickles, and Sweet Potato French Fries.

3.Wegman's -  If I ever moved from CNY I would terribly miss this grocery store chain. Started in Rochester, NY this supermarket has become a staple of CNY shopping. One of the cool things about this store is that they let customers sample the food before committing to buying it.

Even Alec Baldwin, whose mother has been a long time resident of the region thinks this store is great.

4. White Christmas? - If you're one of those people who thinks it's not Christmas unless there is snow...well then you will love it here in Central New York. Where the snow falls in record breaking numbers. With an over abundance of snow one would find it hard not having snow for the Holidays.

5.Salt Potatoes - One of the delicacies of this region, and one that has been a staple of CNY Summer picnics. Made from baby potatoes and boiled in a saltwater solution until tender they are then served with melted butter. Yes they are salty, but oh so good.

6. Dinosaur Bbq - Who doesn't love barbecue, paired up with bikers and the blues. The inside and outside is decorated with murals from a famous CNY artist, named Eliot Matisse. The restaurant in Syracuse is the first and original Dinosaur BBQ. They soon opened chains throughout the state.  If you come to CNY you must try this place out. 

7. Byrne Dairy - Another CNY thing is a convenience store that sells milk, ice cream and other local products. They sell dairy products made from milk that comes from local farms. The milk they sell comes in glass gallon bottles. This store even sells holiday flavored milks, such as a green St. Patty's day milk that tastes like mint.

So if you ever get a chance to visit this region I hope this list will help you in discovering some of the things that we have to offer. Feel like I left something out? Leave a comment down below.

Review of Uncle Tom's Cabin

I never read this book in school, and decided to pick it up just because of it's historical value.  I had heard that this book had a part in  prompting American citizens to support the American Civil War.  I know I would have rather read a personal account from a former slave, but the author states in the last chapter of this book that the people and events were based on reality....of course the names were changed.

I will admit that the language which is of the slaves is hard to get through, as it's sometimes unintelligible.  I also found the overwhelming mentions of religion to be another reason for me not to really enjoy this book. I know that religion played a big part of that time period so I tried to overlook it.  I also found the chapter breaks to be very annoying, because the author jumped from one group or persons to another with no smooth transition. I will admit that I did find most of the characters to be believable, and found the title character to play a strong role in the persuasion of the author's argument to abolish slavery.

One of the most important things I learned from this book was that often as present day people we forget just how atrocious were the conditions under which slaves were treated, and that they were often separated from their families.  I think that films often focus on the brutality of slave treatment, but I found it touching how the author reminded the reader of the slaves humanity, and how they were no different in loving and wanting to be with their families.

Overall I rated this book 3 out of 5 stars on Goodreads just because I do not think this is the best example of slavery. I may have to someday read 12 Years a Slave to get the real deal.

No one has paid me to read and review this book. I have given my honest opinion of it, and the above Amazon links go to products which if are purchased I receive a very small percentage of the sale.

RASL Review

When I uploaded this video...I was experiencing trouble with my camera, and had to film a very quick review of this graphic novel. I didn't get to say all that I wanted to say about this great story. I do have another camera coming in the mail, so in the meantime I decided to supplement this video review with this blog post.

I rated this graphic novel by Jeff Smith (the creator of Bone) 5 stars on Goodreads.  I thought this was a very strong suspenceful scifi story. But I didn't really like the artwork. Sometimes the characters looked like real people and then other times they looked too cartoony. This was my only negative about this book. Aside from that I found this story to be a page turner that I read in a very short time. The talk about Tesla, and alternate dimensions had me intrigued, and make me want to do my own research into these topics.

Horns by Joe Hill: A book and film reviews

I have owned a copy of Horns by Joe Hill for almost over a year before I decided to read it. It seems to be a popular Halloween read, and one that is quite trendy due to the release of the film here in the USA on Halloween night. I have been waiting a very long time to view this film, and recently got an opportunity to watch it.  For a limited time the film is available to stream on certain sites. For those who are curious as to what I thought of both the film and the book please watch the video above.

Filth: A Film Review

To date I have seen three of Irvine Welsh's films based on his books, such as Trainspotting, Acid House, and Filth. All of these works seem to involve a a broken person who is wrapped up in a mixture of Sex, drugs, and Rock 'n Roll, with the exception of the last film I watched, Filth. Filth was a about a broken person named, Bruce Robertson (played by James McAvoy) who likes to live life fast with a mixture of sex with various women, and a bit of an alcohol/coke habit. All seems fine at the start of the film, as we see that the main character seems to have it all. He has a beautiful wife, and daughter. He's in the running for a promotion at the police station. It's later that we see him unravel a bit, and see that not all is as it seems. We find out that he visits a shrink to deal with some sort of problem that isn't mentioned till much later in the film. I don't want to spoil this film for those who have not seen it, but this was just as good as Trainspotting. Although Filth lacked the musical thrill that the first film had to offer. I rated Filth 4 out of 5 stars on Netflix, which I may add has this movie as streaming.