Atlas Shrugged
By Ayn Rand
3 out of 5
What a long book!
I enjoyed this book. It was a lot of reading and even more thinking.
I couldn't help but place the America of today in the America of the book. Things are so close! And I can see us ending up the same, too, if we don't change our path.
This epic novel is filled with Rand's philosophy. While I agree with her politically, I disagree with a lot of her philosophy.
But the story was good reading.
Dagny Taggart is the main character and it's her against the political world. She runs a railroad and is forced to fight politics and the public over and over.
Along the way she meets up with a few people of same mind, and they team up to take on society.
There's a bit of everything in this book: Action, mystery, love, lust, hate....
I recommend it, but only if you read with an open mind (but not too open).

After Dark
By: Haruki Murakami
4 out of 5

I love Asian writers (and directors, actors, singers, etc.) so it's no surprise that I found this book very enjoyable. But if it weren't for the names of characters and cities, you might never know this was an Asian novel. The translation is flawless and flows as smoothly as most American written English novels.
Fans of Raymond Carver will eat this book up. Very similar style.
The story takes place over the span of a few hours. From dark till first morning light, and follows Mari, who is the youger sister of Eri. Mari has a hard time sleeping and roams around all night, while Eri is at home, where she has been sleeping for two months.
Mari meets a few very interesting characters on this night, and the story is fun. Filled with humor, darkness and thrills, I will put this one on the shelf to re-read in a few years.

Brighton Rock
By: Graham Greene
4 out of 5
Brighton Rock is a good book, especially if you enjoy J.D. Salinger's style. The story is not like a J.D. Salinger story, but I couldn't help but picture Pinkie as a Holden Caufield type.
The story itself is rich in character and plot.
It starts out very interesting, and then settles in to itself to unfold the story.
Its the story of Pinkie, a.k.a. 'the Boy'. He is very young, and takes over as leader of a gang when the original leader is killed.
The story starts with one of the gangs 'wanted' men coming into town because his job requires it. We follow along as the gang takes action and what a ride it is.
I can't really delve into the plot very much without giving anything away, but it is exciting and fun to read, so read it!
I enjoyed it a lot, and give it 4 out of 5.
The only issue I had with this book is that it is a little wordy.
By the way, Brighton Rock is a candy.

Remainder
By: Tom McCarthy
4 out of 5

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. The main character receives a huge settlement and can't decide what to do with the money. After investing, his money continues to grow, and grow...
At a party, he has an epiphany while zoning out staring at a crack in the bathroom wall.
He decides to use his money re-creating a memory that he can't place.
It's weird. But it gets weirder as the main character does the same.
One of the best endings I've read in a long time.

Geek Mafia
By: Rick Dakan
1 out of 5

I usually don't review books that I don't enjoy, but this one is a real stinker, so consider this a warning:
The plot and storyline had promise. I was really excited to dig into the story after reading the info on the back cover. I bought it and started reading it right away.
Lesson: Never judge a book by its cover, or what is written on the back of it.
Rick Dakan may make a good author someday. He has potential. But he is not a good writer yet.
The characters in this novel are not believable and very unlikable. It reads like a bad B-Movie with discount rate actors. The dialogue tries so hard to sound intelligent that it comes off sounding like 3rd graders playing office. And the scenes are impossibly set-up.
The story is way too long for what Dakan wanted to say. He could have (and should have) cut about half the words.
And I HATE seeing misspelled words in a published book, and there are quite a few in this one. A misspelled word can derail a story in a split second.
And then there is Dakan's political agenda. And I REALLY HATE it when I buy a book for entertainment purposes only to find the author preaching at me or spewing hate through the mouths of his characters. Leave the politics to political novels, please. if I want to hear from Left-Wing Idiots or Right-Wing Clowns, I'll pick up a book by Al Franken or Sean Hannity.

The Snow Train
By: Joseph Cummins
5 out of 5

I first read this wonderful book in 2001 and recently thought about it again. I ordered a fresh copy and settled in for another dose of magic.
This is the story of Robbie. he is a young boy, 3 at the first part of the book, 7 for the rest, who has a skin disease.
The story is told through his point of view and is very well told.
Robbie's family experiences a tragedy at the end of the first section that will forever change their lives.
The rest of the book is about Robbie and his lonely reality. We walk with him through his world of home, church, school and finally to the hospital. Along the way we meet some of the most wonderful characters in modern fiction.
This book will make you think, and the story will stay with you for years to come.

King Dork
By: Frank Portman
4 out of 5


From now on, every time I hear the Ramones I will think of this book.
Now for the review:
This story is a multi-level mystery disguised as a 'coming-of-age story' and very entertaining. There are a lot of laughs here... the band and album names alone are worth the price of the book.
Frank Portman has managed to take the story of a dorky kid and not alone preform a magical character transformation, but he throws in a crazy mystery (involving his school adminstration, his father (who may or may not have been murdered), and a bunch of great books. Then there are the crazy little 'mini-mysteries' thrown in as a bonus (like: Who IS Fiona, Really? and Did Sam have more to do with this than he claims...etc.etc.)
Lots of fun and lots of thinking. For a book that's classified as 'Young Adult', this book is very intelligent.