PINS by Jessica McHugh is out now! This is a slightly sapphic stoner stripper slasher that is guaranteed to leave you salivating for more. Birdie is aPINS by Jessica McHugh is out now! This is a slightly sapphic stoner stripper slasher that is guaranteed to leave you salivating for more. Birdie is a college drop-out trying to find her way in life. What better way to asset her individuality than by taking a job at Pins, the nearby strip club/bowling alley? She could consider how this job is really just a rebellion against her beauty queen mom and sister, but she never finished her first psych class and has more important things to do. Or so she thinks.
McHugh's prose will have you laughing out loud with a clever turn of phrase one moment and cringing in horror the next. She walks the line between humor and horror in an effortless way that is a pure delight to read. Reading this book will make you fall in love with the characters, and McHugh herself. Why not check out the McHughniverse while you're buying a copy of PINS?
After all, nothing says summer fun like a good slasher....more
What would you be willing to pay to live the life you've always wanted? Would you sacrifice a stranger for that pleasure? Would you be willing to do iWhat would you be willing to pay to live the life you've always wanted? Would you sacrifice a stranger for that pleasure? Would you be willing to do it again and again, knowing that one day you might be the one someone else is willing to sacrifice? That's one of the many questions that Michael Boulerice grapples with in FEEDING THE WHEEL. It's a quick read, replete with cosmic horror and a deep look at codependency, manipulation, and the cycle of abuse. Don't miss out on the bonus story LORD OF DOORS, either. There's a lot going on under the surface in these quick-paced, pulpy reads. Boulerice is a writer to keep an eye on. ...more
Roald Dahl really does well in explaining the extreme poverty that Charlie Bucket and his family are growing up in. While This book really has it all.
Roald Dahl really does well in explaining the extreme poverty that Charlie Bucket and his family are growing up in. While the descriptions are often a bit comedic, particularly the job at the toothpaste factory, the simple fact of the matter is that the overall situation is pretty believable. Particularly Mr. Bucket getting laid off after never having been paid enough in the first place. Poor Buckets. Can hardly blame Charlie for gobbling down the chocolate bar to stave off starvation when he did.
The Oompa Loompas are even more unsettling in the book than in the movie adaptations, and Mr. Wonka is definitely just participating in human trafficking. The people are just being paid in cacao beans, and their entire species is now stuck living underground in the factory. No wonder the doors to the factory are never open to the public. Their songs are even more petty and judgmental and somehow only Grandpa Joe and Charlie seem fascinated by them in the first place. Curious.
Quentin Blake's illustrations are great, and the book overall is both hilarious and clever in the way all of Dahl's writing tends to be. I read this book once as a child, rereading it as an adult has been a particular delight. I'm curious how the sequel holds up, as I read that once long ago in... second grade, I think? I only remember little glimpses of it.
Somehow, as classic as the movie(s to some) are they never quite hit the right note of sheer madcap insanity that the book captures. The property destruction alone is hilarious. As are the squirrels....more
Uketsu's Strange Pictures is made up of a series of unusual drawings, each with a story behind it connected to a crime. Every short story gives the reUketsu's Strange Pictures is made up of a series of unusual drawings, each with a story behind it connected to a crime. Every short story gives the reader the information that they need to solve it - but can you do so before the character's do? It's a mystery, and a grisly one at that - the crimes aren't for the faint hearted. At the center of it all is the question: What might drive a person to do these things?
Uketsu's writing is minimalist and stark. The facts of each case are bolded, and often arranged by the character for easier access making it far more fun for the reader to try to parse things together as well. The drawings, the eponymous "Strange Pictures" are as disturbing as the cases that they are connected to. Altogether it creates an entertaining, quick read that is difficult to put down. There is definitely a reason this book is so popular!
I would love to see more of Uketsu's work translated for English readers. Uketsu has a great sense of tension and the logic of the cases was fun to experience and grapple with. I can definitely understand the popularity of this author in Japan, the case was very similar to playing a game of Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, and every bit as satisfying when one gets the answers right!...more
Arcades were the beating heart of 80s culture. Hours could be spent feeding quarters into the machines there. Reputations were made and broken based oArcades were the beating heart of 80s culture. Hours could be spent feeding quarters into the machines there. Reputations were made and broken based on high scores. What if the hours spent in front of those machines wasn't something that the teens and children chose? What if the addictive nature of the video games was something built into the games themselves? Following that, what if the addiction was something that could turn deadly?
Polybius was the first addictive video game. The urban legend goes like this: a mysterious game shows up in a handful of arcades near Portland Oregon in the 80s. The game, Polybius, is like nothing anyone has ever seen before. The graphics are too complicated, even though the gameplay is relatively simple. The game is addictive. People can't play enough of it, even though it causes migraines, memory loss, and other detrimental effects. It's a great urban legend, and one that Cat De Spira has proven has its basis in a surprising amount of facts. Collin Armstrong takes these basics and spins them out into a deliciously tense, violent pulp tale.
Our main character is Andi - a young girl with a knack for engineering who wants to be a video game developer. She works at the arcade in Tasker Bay when Polybius is delivered there. When the violence starts to happen she begins to put the pieces together with the help of Ro - her classmate who is in a bit over his head with all of this. His dad is the local cop though, which might give Andi and Ro the edge they need to make a difference before things spiral too horrifically out of control. Right?
Armstrong constructs the perfect sleepy little Oregon town only to absolutely demolish it all in the most horrific ways possible. He has a knack for action scenes, and is excellent at ramping up the tension bit by bit until you don't think you can take any more - only for it to explode like a blast of shotgun shells. This book is exactly the sort of thing you can imagine reading under the covers by flashlight long after you should've gone to bed. Think Goosebumps for a decidedly more adult audience - there's no slime here, but plenty of blood, after all.
Polybius will keep you up at night, and might just make you want to start reading it over again once you finish it. It's just that much fun. It's an urban legend with teeth, and it lends itself well to the cinematic flair and pulpy fun that Armstrong brings to the table. Can't wait to see what Armstrong does next....more
This was my favorite of the Fables arcs that I've read. It's also the longest one.
At this point I'd already shed a lot of tears over dear Ambrose (moThis was my favorite of the Fables arcs that I've read. It's also the longest one.
At this point I'd already shed a lot of tears over dear Ambrose (mostly called Flycatcher, the Frog Prince) and his tragic backstory. The comics have lingered on him here and there, and always for the most heartbreaking stories. Here we finally get to see him come into his own, grow up, and accept what Fate has decried for him.
This is the most fairy tale story that Fables has delivered just yet. It's inspiring and beautiful, though some might call it a bit saccharine. It's great to see old faces again, and it's good to see Ambrose really come into his own.
Mowgli's mission to track down Bigby finally comes to an end - but not without some interesting adventures in their own right. Bigby's explosive erranMowgli's mission to track down Bigby finally comes to an end - but not without some interesting adventures in their own right. Bigby's explosive errand is quite the sight to see. Cinderella has a diplomatic mission that tests her patience as well as her wits. Bigby finally gets to meet his children - and there is a Fabletown-wide celebration that brought a tear to my eye....more
The Adversary invaded the land of the Arabian Fables, causing many to flee to the Mundane Baghdad to escape his clutches. MowglThings are heating up.
The Adversary invaded the land of the Arabian Fables, causing many to flee to the Mundane Baghdad to escape his clutches. Mowgli, with much effort, arranged a meeting between Prince Charming and Sinbad - the emissary for the Arabian Fables. The language barrier proves difficult, but also the least of their issues. It turns out there is a djinn among the manifold belongings of the Arabian Fables, and that djinn poses a greater threat to the Mundane World than even, perhaps, the Adversary would.
This was a fun, exciting arc. I grew up with 1001 Arabian Nights in a few different incarnations, so it was entertaining to see a bit of that flavor enter the text. The Baghdad of the Homelands is gorgeous and well-worth lingering upon, and I liked the way that the djinn was handled by the text. I've also really enjoyed seeing Beast grow into his new responsibilities (and Charming, in some ways, fail to.)
Hilary "Fox"
>
Books:
fiction
(1618)
