I’m not quite sure what brought me to another supernatural, teen romance (especially after giving up on the Twilight books after only halfway through the second) but I guess I wanted to see if they were truly as similar as they seem. One of the things I noticed right away (especially since I was listening…
Author: alving4
The Magicians by Lev Grossman – Book Review
Did you always think that there needed to be more sex, drinking, or 4-letter words in the Harry Potter books? Or that the kids in the Chronicles of Narnia weren’t as snarky, cynical, or full of ennui as the ones you knew at that age? Perhaps that upending of a beloved series of fantasy books…
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins – Book Review
I wasn’t very excited to read Catching Fire at first. The first book, The Hunger Games, was an original blend of sci-fi, action, and drama but I expected that the 2nd novel might be a revisiting of those same elements: the Katniss-Peeta-Gale love triangle, the inventive yet cruel Hunger Games, and the dystopian backdrop of…
Drop Dead Healthy by A.J. Jacobs – Book Review
Recently iTunes had a promotion on the audiobook version of Drop Dead Healthy so I picked it up for $7. Normally I don’t spend much time reading health books, or self-help books. All lot of them seem bogus, or only useful for people who are willing to change everything about their lives in order to…
Springtime for Genre TV 2013
It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted, but I blame that on the fact that I’ve been watching a lot of new shows on TV. While mid-season (i.e. a couple of months ago) was kind of a letdown in terms of getting cool new shows (though I have been watching The Following. More on…
Skyfall – Capsule Review
After Quantum of Solace, I was a bit concerned for Daniel Craig’s 007. I was worried that the franchise was too preoccupied with what is supposed to make up a Bond movie to make it a good movie, period. Thank goodness that Skyfall proved the previous film to be an aberration. This movie is not…
Argo – Capsule Review
With its other awards this year, I knew Argo was likely to win the Best Picture Oscar. The distribution company probably felt the same way so they released it on disc (and iTunes) with enough time for us all to see it before the Oscars ceremony. I think I skipped seeing this movie in the…
Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 – Capsule Review
Though I no longer consider myself a Twilight fan, I was anticipating this final chapter in the “saga” (at least enough to make an iTunes rental of it). I was not crazy about Part 1 mostly because of how unpleasant it was to watch Kristen Stewart waste away as Bella, the human girl who fell…
A Storm of Swords – Book Review
If you’re reading this review, I presume that you have an interest in the George R.R. Martin “A Song of Ice and Fire” series of novels and preferably you’ve read at least the first two (or at least watched the HBO television series up to season 2). I have become a big fan myself, and…
Alvin's Adventures in Pop Culture 