Being John Maringmei

Book Review of The Long Way Home

2010-02-16T20:00:00.000-08:00

Andrew Klavan's The Long Way Home is the second book in The Homelander series. It continues from the first book where Charlie West wakes up one day to find he had forgotten everything about his life in the previous year. And he finds himself being framed and convicted of his friend Alex murder.

The book tells the story of how Charlie is on the run from both the cops and the terrorist group - the homelanders. He is desperate to prove that he did not kill his friend and set out to do that with the help of his friends. In this second book, we are taken through a couple of flashbacks and revelation with lots of twists and thrills thrown in.

As a thriller, this book is not as gripping as I expected it to be but was good enough to sustain my attention throughout. A good thing about is that it is a breeze to read and has enough twists and turns to make it some kind of a page-turner. It might not be the best thriller I have read but what it managed to do is roused my curiosity for the third and last book of the series - and I will surely buy it when it comes out in November 2010.

Review of NKJV Greatest Stories of the Bible

2010-01-12T20:20:00.000-08:00

NKJV Greatest Stories of the Bible is a collection of 250 stories from the Bible carefully selected, which can be a very handy reference book for the Bible. It comes in a beautifully designed cover and has a "classic" feel to it.

All the stories from the old and new testament concentrate on providing an easier way to understand the most important stories of the Bible and in a very concise format. It can be a very good starting point for someone who would love to explore the various teachings of the Bible but is quite intimated by the original version.

I personally liked how the book has been organized in a very easy to navigate and compact format but my only gripe is that it lacks visuals that could have made this book much more interesting. But all-in-all, a very good book for referencing the Bible in a completely new "Light".

Book Review "Five Cities That Ruled The World"

2009-11-23T20:53:00.000-08:00

Douglas Wilson's Five Cities That Ruled The World is a book that focus on the five powerhouse cities of the world - Jerusalem, Athens, Rome, London, and New York - how all theses cities started and became the most influential cities in the world.

The book take us through a bit of history lesson on the various aspects of each cities and what was common or the tradition prevalent that time and also what personalities molded the cities into what it is right now. After taking a thorough look on various factors of how the cities became a powerhouse, it also tries to examine the downfall and resurrection of each cities. The legacy section in the book for each cities tries to summarize everything about the cities and how they stand in the current scenario.

As a book for providing insight into these well-known cities, it succeeded partially because I felt that in some instances the narration of the historical background was a bit abrupt but at the same time it bring in some important information about the cities that I have not encountered earlier. So on the whole, I would say it provided me with a good background of each cities but it also left me wondering on some topics covered in the book.

Book Review of Lonestar Secrets

2009-10-20T22:10:00.000-07:00

Lonestar Secrets by Colleen Coble throws in all the ingredients needed for an engrossing novel - love, betrayal, mystery, adventure, family ties - all rolled into one well-written book.

The main protagonist in the story, Shannon Astor in her bid to make a better life for her daughter gets away from the hurly-burly city life and return to the country life where she was brought up. But all her plans goes haywire when she stumbles into her ex-flame and his daughter who has a distinct resemblance to her own daughter. And also the mystery of some lost treasures and how the main protagonists tries to resolve the complexity in their life is neatly thrown in into the plot of the book.

As a book that has all the flavors of an interesting fiction novel, it is a pleasure to read and the suspense aspect of the novel also makes it a page turner. All-in-all, a well-written book with the right mix of romance and mystery.

Book Review of "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years"

2009-09-29T03:18:00.000-07:00

Donald Miller's "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" is a touching book about how one can make our lives better by trying to create a more meaningful story out of our otherwise seemingly 'worthless' life.

The author starts off with the description of his life as a boring existence with nothing to look forward to - even though he's a successful writer. He only gets the taste of real life when two filmmakers approach him to make a movie out of a book he wrote in the past. This kicked off a series of adventure in which he created new stories out of his 'boring' life and in the process came in contact of many instances where normal people creates a better life by living a better story of their lives. There are many scenes in this book which makes it such a pleasure to read - like the story in which the father all out to impress her daughter, the family who jumps into the water to bade their guest farewell, or the parade that they started at new year which has become a trend in their locality.

On the whole, this book comes as a good reference for living a better life. But it is different with other similar books because it doesn't try to lecture on life and what's wrong and right of life. But this book cleverly focus on the writer experience and little anecdotes of life that we can follow to make our life a better story. A good read with lots of lesson to learn about life.

Book Review of "Fearless - Imagine Your Life Without Fear"

2009-09-08T00:49:00.000-07:00

Fearless - Imagine Your Life Without Fear by Max Lucado is a timely message touching on the current turmoil happening around the world. The author explore on the various fears lurking around and the remedy to overcome them. It takes inspiration from the teachings of Jesus Christ and propose different solutions to our common fears.

As an inspirational book, Fearless does really touch on all kinds of issues plaguing the entire world. It doesn't really give a step-by-step solution to our fears but rely on the teachings of Jesus Christ and the advice he gives for conquering them. And also it is really a handy guide to the various verses that can be found on the Bible that teaches us the way to defeat our fears and take courage - with promises of a better future in eternity.

Personally, I thought the book is very relevant to what's happening around the world. We can survive the various calamity and threats enveloping the world if only we have enough courage and belief of a better world and a higher being. So, I would suggest that anyone who is caught with the fear bug, take a little time-out and read this beautifully written book.

"Faces in the Fire" Book Review

2009-08-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

T. L. Hines "Faces in the Fire" touch upon the story of four seemingly different character and how circumstances and a particular number binds them together.

It is written in a "disjointed" and "haphazard" manner with the chapters mixed up together but culminating in a gripping climax. It revolves around four main characters - Kurt, a truck driver who lost his memory in some incident and who is trying to recollect his true identity and purpose of his life; Corinne, an email spammer by profession and who is dying of cancer; Grace, a tattoo artist who's a heroin addict and trying to get her life back; and finally of Stan, a hired hit man who's burdened with the gift of killing others with his own bare hands. These different characters are described in four different stanzas in the book and describe how a particular symbol (a catfish) and a 10 digit number seems to influenced their life in a supernatural way. Only in the end is the mystery resolved but with some anticipation still hanging in the air.

I would say that this novel has been the best I have read in a long time. Because of the unusual writing style and how all the ends are tied up brilliantly in the end making it a very good suspense novel as a whole. A very gripping read indeed with the amazing and unexpected ending adding a must read tag to this beautifully written book.

Book Review of Face Of Betrayal

2009-08-17T23:17:00.001-07:00

Lis Wiehl's and April Henry's Face of Betrayal is about three friends coming together to solve the mystery of a girl who first went missing and then was eventually found murdered.

The plot centers around a girl who worked as a page in the US senate and gives brief insight on the relationship between a senator and the girl and what actually happened between the two of them. It also dwells on the girl's family and how she cope with the situation of having a step mother. Another interesting part in the story is the exploration of the characters of the three friends who investigate the murder mystery.

This book might not might be the best murder mystery I have read but still holds my attention with its different approach of tackling the plot - the relationship between the senate and the murdered girl, the girl's family, and the three investigators life intertwined to create an absorbing reading. In between there is also the heart-wrenching portrayal of a father-daughter struggle to lead a normal life in all the madness around them. All these coupled with the unexpected ending makes it a gripping read. I would say this does not qualify as a must read for the die-hard murder mystery lover but still holds good on story line and good characters sketches.

Book Review - "I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse"

2009-08-17T23:15:00.000-07:00

This book by Michael Franzese, a former mob boss, provides a view in the working of the mob and how to implement the principles he learnt in the mob for running a successful business legally.

It is written in an easily readable style without using too many fancy words. It gives a good insight on how the mob works and also the downside of running business the ‘mob way’. But as a book for providing business tips, it falls short in providing something new. The advice given inside the book are not ‘out of the world’ but the ones you can find in any other books in similar category.

I was anticipating to be a book where one can learn the good part of the way the mob works and implements the work ethics to run or start a successful business but I found the tips are the general type with some splattering of anecdotes from the author’s previous mob life and the advice was bit repetitive and it leans heavily on the sayings of Machiavelli and Solomon rather than basing it from the way the mob works – as the book was projected.

Overall, I would say the book can be a good companion for learning the basics of a business for someone starting out but not as a book to look forward to as an inspiration to provide you with new and inventive ideas.

Review of the Book 'Rex'

2009-08-17T23:13:00.000-07:00

Cathleen Lewis' book about her autistic yet supremely gifted child - Rex, is a deep insight into the incredible journey of a mother struggle for bringing a semblance of normalcy into her son's dark (Rex is also blind) and complicated life and how Rex miraculously became a musical genius despite his disability.

As an Autobiography/Biography, this book lacks the fluidity of a smooth read and sometimes it lacks the connectivity in the story. But somehow, the reader's interest is captivated by snatches of brilliance, but the lack of consistency is where it was a bit disappointing. Still, as an example of what a strong will and faith in God can do, this book is a must-read.

Personally, what I feel about the narrative is that it could have been better if it had been dealt in a more flowing story-telling style instead of the incident-in-patches story. That’s where this book lost focus. But as an insight into the life of a boy who was born different but still struggling to find a place in this haphazard world, it takes us into a world where we normally don’t venture into.

So as conclusion, I would say, even if I didn’t thoroughly enjoy it as much as I anticipated, it is still a treasure trove of information of a different world, which we were never were able to dwell into, because of our being normal.