Carregando
Dados do livro
The Mystery Cruise
Escrito por Gertrude Chandler Warner
Narrado por Tim Gregory
Ações de livro
Comece a ouvirDescrição
The Aldens are on a cruise in the Caribbean! No sooner has the cruise begun than things start to go wrong. The ship's radio breaks. It appears someone has fallen overboard - but it turns out to be a false alarm. And then there's engine trouble! Is someone deliberately tampering with the ship? It's a mystery - good thing the Boxcar Children are on board!
Ações de livro
Comece a ouvirDados do livro
The Mystery Cruise
Escrito por Gertrude Chandler Warner
Narrado por Tim Gregory
Descrição
The Aldens are on a cruise in the Caribbean! No sooner has the cruise begun than things start to go wrong. The ship's radio breaks. It appears someone has fallen overboard - but it turns out to be a false alarm. And then there's engine trouble! Is someone deliberately tampering with the ship? It's a mystery - good thing the Boxcar Children are on board!
Sobre o autor
Avaliações
This is a short picture book biography of Elisha Otis, the inventor of the elevator. An entertaining and engaging story for children learning about inventions. The brief text and large pictures on each page make it accessible for upper elementary aged students. It would be great for children who are curious about inventions or for a school library. The book jacket on this review copy also turns into a poster for the series of invention books. Very useful in a school or classroom!
What is it about Flaubert? He writes novels drawing on his amoral life. This appeals to some who call this a great, influential novel - among the "some" were contemporary French authors of similar lifestyles. I found this book tedious.
I will start off my review by stating that I only very rarely dip into crime Noir novels so please do not accept my thoughts as being those of a seasoned reader of the genre. This is a very dark, brooding type of read. On a presentation/emotional level, it is kind of a strange read. The emotions of the characters - and their actions - are very emphatic in expression. There is a lot of brute force, angry shouting and exaggerated gesturing going on in this story. The very unstable political time period is pronounced here, as is the sweltering hot summer the story take place in. For me, this story had more of a pulp crime feel to it, given that the police - and the Gestapo - were prone to doing their own things and resorting to rather interesting interrogation strategies that really had me squirming uncomfortably in my chair. Looking at the mystery/crime aspect of the story, I do have to say that Krajewski did a fine job with the details and the reveal, but I still cannot get past the rather stilted impression I have of the characters and the story as a whole. This could be due, in part, to the translation.... it just had an overall jarring feeling to it that made it difficult for me to become absorbed in the story. From a purely psychological perspective, one could analyze this story for years and still only scratch the surface of all the possible meanings embedded in it. Maybe that is part of the problem for me: too much all jumbled up in this story, making it difficult for me to extract the substance from the garble. Overall, definitely a different read for me and intriguing enough that I will consider reading the second book in the Inspector Eberhard Mock Investigation series.
Magida sticks close to the documented evidence in his account of Hermann Steinschneider, an Austrian Jew who adopts the stage name and persona Erik Jan Hanussen in his quest for first an income, and soon wealth and celebrity. Ultimately Hanussen becomes a renowned mentalist and stage magician, with an enterprise encompassing stage performances, private consultations, a weekly paper, and projects including a "strongwoman" sideshow act he took to the United States, and a failed speculative spa property. It appears Hanussen was at his height perhaps the best-known magician in Europe, gaining notoriety through his vindication in the Czech courts once state charges of fraud are found without grounds after Hanussen "demonstrated" his talents before the court. In the end, though, Magida argues Hanussen's undoing was in maintaining he had genuine psychic abilities, and in believing it feasible to remain in Berlin in 1933, as a publicly-established Jew, by conning the Nazis while stockpiling IOUs from ranking members of the Sturmabteilung. He was wrong.Magida tracks strictly within the the bounds of established fact, leaving unaddressed anything else however relevant. This is a strength of the narrative, but leaves odd gaps: the primary source for all background on Hanussen is his autobiography, which Magida acknowledges strains credulity in many places. Yet the first two chapters largely relay the story told by Hanussen, with some comment and framing by Magida, even while the seminal shift from knockabout clown to con man is largely passed over. Magida shares that Hanussen learns the key talent of "muscle reading" (the basis for many psychic performances), but there is nothing on why Hanussen chooses to pursue this line, nor how he translates this one skill into a stage show. Presumably there simply is no account of this: there is only the testimony of Hanussen's teacher of muscle reading, and the fact that a manual on muscle reading (still considered the premiere example) was written by Hanussen himself. But here is the irony: it would appear Hanussen wrote this manual because at the time a book seemed more lucrative than practicing the craft, though that is not how it turned out. So in the end we read a lot that is probably made up by Hanussen, and nothing on what Hanussen did to transform himself from small-time con to major mentalist and stage magician.Another gap: little to nothing on the role of mysticism and the occult in the Nazi party and ideology, or even among select Nazis. One reference to the hollow earth theory, an example with little direct relation to how Hanussen's mentalist act could reasonably prove attractive to Hitler or other high-ranking Party members. The influence of occult sciences in Nazi history isn't necessary to the story, but it's an obvious question that is left largely unaddressed.In the end, Hanussen's story is largely a sidelight if an entertaining one. The important part of the book has less to do with his alleged role in Hitler's Circle, than with the possibility Hanussen may have had inside knowledge of the Reichstag Fire, better establishing the long-held belief (never proven) the Nazis were behind it. Evidence is circumstantial and again Magida is careful to walk the line of what can be established; but it's persuasive that the fire may have been planned and implemented by the Berlin SA chief Count Wolf-Heinrich von Helldorf. Magida does a smart job of outlining von Helldorf's role in street fighting and pogroms, as well as establishing the Count's reliance upon Hanussen to bail him out of recurrding financial problems, prior to the fire. And then he dangles these two facts: first, while Hitler and Goebbels race to the Reichstag to establish what is occurring (and capitalize on the opportunity to smash the Communists), von Helldorf later testified he calmly instructed an aide to go down and call him if he was needed, as though he already knew what was afoot; and second, Hanussen "predicts" the event one evening before the fire at a major private party, without naming the Reichstag specifically, and the night of the fire he calls a liberal newspaper 20 minutes after the alarm is sounded and claims the Communists have set fire to the Reichstag. To his credit, Magida doesn't speculate who may have ordered the fire, assuming von Helldorf was implementing someone else's vision, nor on the nature of the conversation between Hanussen and von Helldorf which would have revealed the plans. But he does establish that von Helldorf was capable of such an act of terrorism, that he made public statements which suggest he did, and that it would have been in character for von Helldorf to tip his hand to Hanussen. Yet it seems clear Hanussen's "slip" in using his inside information was not condoned by the Nazis, and it was probably a key factor in the decision to kill Hanussen then. (That and when he was caught trying to swindle the Nazis on a business deal.) He was murdered less than a month later.The insinuations of Hanussen becoming a personal psychic or confidant of Hitler are blatant exaggerations, and appear limited to the book's marketing rather than Magida's argument. It becomes clear that if Hitler did speak with Hanussen, it was done in a public area and smacks of a chance meeting between two strangers who knew of one another by reputation, rather than an intimate discussion in private residence or office. Nothing else came of it. Hanussen was connected to the Nazis through von Helldorf and a few other SA officers, not Hitler or anyone in his circle.
On a cold winter's day in New York City, Jake does what he always does: watches the pay phone across the street from his third-floor apartment. He scans the passersby, hoping that one of them will answer the ringing phone, that when someone does answer -- and he knows they will -- that he can convince him or her to come up to his apartment to help quell his loneliness. And once the apartment door closes behind them, only then can he let loose his true desire...with the help of a sharp blade.But on this particular day, after waiting almost too long, a woman answers the phone who reminds him of another special woman in his life. He pours on the charm trying to lure her to his apartment, but she manages to slip away, disappearing into the crowd. But he can't let her get away that easily and will stop at nothing until he finds her....How many times have you walked by a ringing pay phone and resisted the temptation to pick it up, just to find out who would be calling a pay phone? Brandon Ford's "Pay Phone" answers that question and twists it into a bloody psychological thriller. I give him much credit for the character of Jake. That is one sick individual, not simply because of his murderous intentions but when you learn of his special relationship with the character Susan, you understand just how far off the deep end he is.I did have trouble with two of the characters. Chelsea, the woman who got away, seems to fall head over heels for the voice on the other end of the phone, believing that he could be the one after one very brief conversation. I know it fits the purpose of the story, but for me, it didn't feel realistic. The other character is Gladys, Jake's representative at the Unemployment Office. I liked her until, out of the blue, she seemed to think the Jake wanted her. That threw me for a loop and threw off the pacing for a moment.In spite of that, I still enjoyed the book and found myself staying up until the wee hours of the morning to read one more chapter.
This book shares a story about a young boy who goes through some exciting adventures alongside his friends. Tom and his friends Finn share some innocent adventures that turn sour when they come upon a murder in a graveyard. The rest of the book follows the young men who are both afraid of the murderer and excited to be having an adventure. They end up being the town heros and find a box of gold which the murderer had been trying to hide. This book is full of excitment and would be great for any kid who craves a little adventure and suspense.
This book is so much better than the movie. So if you enjoyed the movie, you will love the book even more. I, however, didn't enjoy the movie but loved this book and cried till the end. The story revolves around a troubled teenager with lots of resentment towards her family named Ronnie. She and her little brother are sent to stay with their dad for the summer in North Carolina. Part of the way through the summer, after pulling numerous disapperances and falling for a well off, blue blood boy, Ronnie discovers that her father is gravely ill. This illness comes to bound the two back together, and heal some of the wounds from her childhood. As with Nickolas Sparks, not everything turns out roses competely, but there is always a "somewhat" happy ending. I love NIcholas Sparks' writing and storytelling capabilities. This one was written with Miley Cyrus in mind, but don't hold it against him. He still has the same familar writing style I, and many of his other fans have come to love.
My mom and grandma are both fans of the John Grisham books, so I decided to try this out. It's a good story, and for most of the book, I couldn't put it down. However, the whole point of the book seems to shift and the ending leaves you hanging. There are a lot of unanswered questions and the book just doesn't end well.
If you know someone who has been diagnosed with OCD,this might be one of the books that you will want to read. To me, it read more like a journal. And also to meit seemed that the mom was plagued by denial for far too long. She does fight a valiant fight. She is like any mother would be,unprepared to deal with the behaviors that come with this illness. There are some very interesting points and theories here.Some may very well be worth researching if it is pertinent to you.My job is not to review the mom who clearly did her best. I am here to review the book. It is a book of facts as this mom saw them.It is a story of her journey with her son. I found it difficult to read for some reason that I for some reason cannot put a finger on. Perhaps it is the journal-like reporting. Perhaps it was the repetitiveness of the descriptionsof Sammy's actions? I am simply not sure. Please look at my star ratings on my profile.. because to me.. a three star book is a good solid read. This book had a lot to offer, butcould have done with a little more presentation of cause and effect.Perhaps I seem harsh, but this is my opinion. Do not pass this one by if you have an interest in this subject. I will be placing it on the shelves of our staff library where I workbecause it has value. I think it will be helpful, and even more importantlyencouraging to some.
"A Very Special House" reminds me of the simple pleasures of the imagination. You're never at a want for little things to appreciate in life, when you have just a bit of imagination - and that's what this is about.As Maurice Sendak's sparsely illustrated little boy dances about the book's pages drawing imaginary friends and objects, Ruth Krauss's simple, rhyming prose almost invites us into a little dance and song of our own. This seems like a terrific book to remember when you need just a bit more levity in your step, or a distraction from your problems. There's nothing quite the cure like the imagination.
If you have been wondering why every major intersection in every American - suburb looks the same and why there always more strip-malls - just when you think there were already enough, this is the book for you. A history of how the American (sub-)urban landscape has become as bad as it is. Highly recommended.
Kundera's Ignorance is less a love story and more a treaty on how our memories work; No two people who have lived through the same experiences will retain the same memories of the events. When a man and a woman return separately to their homeland after a forced absence of 20 years, they find that their memories of their lives, their homeland, and their friend's memories of them, cannot be reconciled. The separate storylines of the individuals overlap towards a heartbreakingly logical climax. This is one of Kundera's best works.