World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A good enough book. It's mostly interesting because of the thinking that was put into all the different situations that would realistically arise from a zombie apocalypse. But some (not all, really, just a few) of its 'interviews' or short stories are well written and interesting. Still, it didn't manage to move me much.
It really shouldn't be read as a novel, it's more of a series of vignettes or short stories of varying importance and quality.
It's worth the read as entertainment but it's nothing life-changing, and it just sort of ends. It would have benefited by a tighter manuscript and trimming some of the less interesting and poignant stories.

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The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book feels like a palate-cleanser to satisfy a Mistborn reader, but I wonder how it will fit into the planned second saga of Mistborn. Will it be just a throwaway novel, or will it have an impact on the second saga?
It's a by-the-numbers book, with some clever uses of allomancy, as is to be expected, though the characters are plain and the otherwise great plotting Sanderson got us hooked to is more pedestrian here, making it harder to elevate the material. The characters feel too overpowered at times and the risk is not upped enough to make you fear for them.
We'll have to see if Sanderson continues his plans for the Mistborn world. Maybe if he picks up from where this book left off, he will return to form and give the characters more substance, since it's not the world that needs fleshing out.

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The Plot Against America by Philip Roth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Plot against America is a book that's thorough in its world-building, even if its a parallel-world historical fiction.
The sense of dread pervades the entire book, and it goes beyond the perils of the period it's set in. It brings to mind the sense of having your freedoms stripped away, in any period and country, and even in today's world, it rings true.
I didn't give it a 5-star only because the ending felt a little flat to me. I didn't get a sense of conclusion, and even though it's not mandatory in a book like this, the ending was altogether too fast and it didn't have enough room to breathe. There was relief, yes, but it came from the situation itself and not for seeing the characters live on and well.
A great book, the first one I've read by Philip Roth, and I'll be sure to read more of them.

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The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There's always another secret

That sums up the Mistborn trilogy, and it's a fitting motto. I had to give this book a five-star review because of how tightly it fits all the mysteries and half-truths we learned in the course of the trilogy.

As a fantasy-fan and fellow author, what Brandon Sanderson did here is stunning. Amazing. Watertight. His world-building is made even more amazing by the fact it all goes back to the first book, without incoherences or made-up stuff.

I found myself smiling through most of this last book, or laughing at how stupid I had been, since I hadn't figured it all out. But this series of books is so well-crafted, that what you overlook as a throwaway comment is actually a big part of the story.

There are some issues, though. Some plotlines plod along while others with more potential are barely shown. I think Sanderson's dialogue is ok, his prose is not the most stunning. But his worldbuilding, his plotting and his rhythm are perfect. And he has some truly satisfying lines, especially when he pulls a move that makes total sense and you barely saw coming.

But the sheer magnitude of the author's accomplishment dwarfs any weaknesses. I spent half the book wondering how he would make all the juxtaposed plotlines fit, thinking he wouldn't have the time or that it would be unsatisfying. I should have had more faith. I should have trusted him more.

And that's the message of this trilogy, and it's a good one. It doesn't feel like a cliche. I was smiling at the end, though I was sad for some of the characters. But the twists and turns in this story are deeply satisfying. I was betting on a different outcome, though. I thought Elend would end up being the Hero of Ages. I was wrong, but I was never happier to find out I was.


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The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Very good book. Though it seems a little formulaic at first, it manages to surprise the reader thanks to its complex world-building. Even right up to the end there are twists and turns that are hard to predict, and you are fed the information in trickles, so it's not overly expository, though a few of the dialogues seem a little forced.

The thing is, it's a very enjoyable book that you can't put down. Shallan's chapters are boring mostly, so I found myself wanting to skip ahead to the Kaladin chapters, which are the emotional cornerstone of the book. Kaladin's journey is very well told and seems more original than Shallan's or Dalinar's. It has one or two "Hell, yeah!" moments near the end which give you a huge payoff.

It's a long book, but the pacing is good and it doesn't slog down much. The length is necessary due to the amount of world-building and especially to give a payoff to Dalinar and Kaladin's story. Without the room to breathe, their 'epiphanies' at the end wouldn't have the huge impact they do.

There are some issues, but mostly with expository dialogues and some awkward phrasing. Brandon's prose is not as beautiful as, say, Patrick Rothfuss's, but he makes it up with truly superior world-building and some truly awesome scenes.

Can't wait for the next book and to find out more about the mysteries!

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The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book surprised me. I hadn't read any Heinlein works before, and I had him pegged as a "minor" sci-fi author. Obviously I was wrong, at least regarding this book.

As a writer, I appreciate how he uses chopped-up english and russian terms to create a very specific language that acts as a way of immersing the reader in his world. Also, the technicalities of the moon are pretty well thought-out (for the time it was written) and it makes for an extremely interesting rumination on revolution, social control and propaganda (or realpolitiks, to sum it up).

The only weak spot I found is that the ending is not as powerful as it could have been, though it does portray the motto of the whole book: TANSTAAFL.

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The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a great, beautiful, moving book. I could find no flaws in it. It's always interesting, funny, poignant. It's a must-read book for anyone interested in comics, obviously, since it deals with the subject extensively, but also for anyone interested in such varied issues like the life before, during and after WW2; the plight of the immigrants and of those left behind in Europe; the life of women and gays in the pre-60's US; stage-magic, and underneath it all, a profound need to escape it all.

Well-researched and always on point, this is one of the books that, as a fellow writer, you just wish it was you who had written it, but are nonetheless glad that someone else did, so you can enjoy it in full.

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Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a beautiful book, full of great images and dialogues, filled with prose that is really, really good.
The characters are great and perspire the truthfulness that comes from writing about one's culture to be seen by the "mainstream", whether it's cultural (as the characters are greek-americans) or sexual.

I couldn't suggest any improvements to the book, since it's really solid, though some of the portrayals border on the charicaturesque, maybe due to stereotypes that are not the author's fault but which undoubtedly have their weight on the reader (the old wise grandmother, the selfish second-generation immigrant, etc).

What I missed, as I was approaching the end, was another look at Cal's adult life. We spent so much time on his grandparents and parents that it seems we barely get to know him/her before the book's over. I guess that's just the way it had to be, since most of life's strongest experiences are when we find out who we are, usually in adolescence. But watching the character cope with his condition was like an afterthought in a book that is, ostensibly, about a rather complicated-to-put-your-head-around theme. So I wished we got more than a glimpse at adult Cal and his relationship with Julie, too.

Overall, a must-read for anyone that likes beautiful prose and quirky characters with a good dose of social commentary on the "Americana" circa 1930-1970.

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Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a good book I overlooked far too long due to having a horribly spanish-translated version.

I think it's interesting and really thought provoking given the period in which it was written. It seems it could have been written ten years ago and it still would have been spot-on with most of its social critiques.

Anyone interested in it should also take a look at Guy Debord's Society of Spectacle, since it speaks about much of the same issues.

The book makes you uncomfortable because at some point you start thinking: "maybe this society ain't all bad", while, if you read 1984, you never get that kind of feeling because it's so easy to step into an opposition to the society posited in that book.

The ending is powerful and monstruous.



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Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I haven´t read the other books by Nick Hornby, though based on the scripts of his two movies (High Fidelity, About a Boy) I wanted to read something by him. This is a quirky book, not quite a novel, a bit incomplete for a memoir. I would define it as a love story, though its and unconventional love between a man and football. It is laugh-out-loud funny at times, and it gives a thoroughly honest look at a man's relationships and obsessions.
Not being a big football fan, I could relate to the feelings he has (I just follow the Argentina national team, a constant source of joy and sorrow), and the way in which he tells the story of a country in different decades through one set of phenomena (football, that is) is very interesting. I'll definitely check out his other books.

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