Comments for Book Lovers Cafe http://www.bookloverscafe.net Wed, 08 Sep 2010 20:47:56 +0000 hourly 1 Comment on Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by D. Lee http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/comment-page-1/#comment-1197 D. Lee Wed, 08 Sep 2010 20:47:56 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/#comment-1197 This was highly recommended, but after 3 pages I knew it wasn't for me :) Rating: 2 / 5 This was highly recommended, but after 3 pages I knew it wasn’t for me :) Rating: 2 / 5

]]> Comment on Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by Objecta http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/comment-page-1/#comment-1196 Objecta Wed, 08 Sep 2010 20:26:22 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/#comment-1196 I read this book because it was chosen as the ONE CITY/ONE BOOK choice for my city. Literature, it is not. Thoughtful? No way! This book reminds me of when I was a teenager lying on the couch fantasizing about climbing Mount Everest as I read the National Geographic with my feet propped up. I expect its readers will fantasize about developing a meaningful cross-cultural relationship and go on to something else in a few weeks. Ron Hall is a very rich art dealer whose wife Debbie befriended an illiterate street man and more or less involved Ron before dying of cancer. Apparently Ron wrote the story while dealing with his grief, added Denver's words (partly in dialect) using a tape recorder or something, got a third person to fix it up somewhat, and published it as a vanity publication. How, why, or on what terms Thomas Nelson later picked it up is not clear. I personally was uninspired by the way it glossed over all the hard and meaningful social questions and by the apparent ego-trip for Ron. I also found it poorly written and really fuzzy when it came to details about things like whether Denver ever learned to read and what can be done about today's deprived children. On the other hand, I did eventually climb mountains in Nepal. Maybe this book can plant the first seeds of some worthwhile questions for young people who would not have otherwise thought outside of their bubble. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> Rating: 1 / 5 I read this book because it was chosen as the ONE CITY/ONE BOOK choice for my city. Literature, it is not. Thoughtful? No way! This book reminds me of when I was a teenager lying on the couch fantasizing about climbing Mount Everest as I read the National Geographic with my feet propped up. I expect its readers will fantasize about developing a meaningful cross-cultural relationship and go on to something else in a few weeks. Ron Hall is a very rich art dealer whose wife Debbie befriended an illiterate street man and more or less involved Ron before dying of cancer. Apparently Ron wrote the story while dealing with his grief, added Denver’s words (partly in dialect) using a tape recorder or something, got a third person to fix it up somewhat, and published it as a vanity publication. How, why, or on what terms Thomas Nelson later picked it up is not clear. I personally was uninspired by the way it glossed over all the hard and meaningful social questions and by the apparent ego-trip for Ron. I also found it poorly written and really fuzzy when it came to details about things like whether Denver ever learned to read and what can be done about today’s deprived children. On the other hand, I did eventually climb mountains in Nepal. Maybe this book can plant the first seeds of some worthwhile questions for young people who would not have otherwise thought outside of their bubble.

Rating: 1 / 5

]]> Comment on Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by rock http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/comment-page-1/#comment-1195 rock Wed, 08 Sep 2010 17:29:48 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/#comment-1195 Here's the gist of this book: I'm so rich, I made so much money, people who are different than I are less than I, especially if they are poor and black. Oh, look! I discovered compassion! Yay me! <br /> <br />Ho hum. I suspect he is pocketing the money from the book because he is white and better than everyone, while his "New Best Friend" gets a McDonalds gift card, and a clean piece of cardboard. What a tiresome creep! Rating: 1 / 5 Here’s the gist of this book: I’m so rich, I made so much money, people who are different than I are less than I, especially if they are poor and black. Oh, look! I discovered compassion! Yay me!

Ho hum. I suspect he is pocketing the money from the book because he is white and better than everyone, while his “New Best Friend” gets a McDonalds gift card, and a clean piece of cardboard. What a tiresome creep! Rating: 1 / 5

]]> Comment on Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by V. HASELOFF http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/comment-page-1/#comment-1194 V. HASELOFF Wed, 08 Sep 2010 15:50:20 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/#comment-1194 This book had a HUGE 50% off label stuck on the front of it like somebody bought it at a 1/2 Price Book store; yet, charged me full price for it. I am not happy about it. There's no way I could give this as a gift to someone else. The label could not be peeled off without tearing the cover up. Rating: 1 / 5 This book had a HUGE 50% off label stuck on the front of it like somebody bought it at a 1/2 Price Book store; yet, charged me full price for it. I am not happy about it. There’s no way I could give this as a gift to someone else. The label could not be peeled off without tearing the cover up. Rating: 1 / 5

]]> Comment on Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by Amanda Moon http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/comment-page-1/#comment-1193 Amanda Moon Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:59:53 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/same-kind-of-different-as-me-a-modern-day-slave-an-international-art-dealer-and-the-unlikely-woman-who-bound-them-together/#comment-1193 If your elementary school reading list was anything like mine, you may have read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. If you're from the north, that may have been your only exposure to life in the south after slavery. I knew all about sharecropping and how it was essentially a way to make slavery legal, what I didn't realize until I read Same Kind of Different As Me was that there are still sharecroppers alive. I thought it was one of those terrible things in our history that went on long before the World Wars and modern times. It's not. <br /> <br />Same Kind of Different As Me chronicles the stories of Denver Moore, a sharecropper-turned-homeless man and Ron Hall, an up and coming art dealer. It is told in alternating chapters from each man's own perspective, first recounting the life events that brought them to Texas at the same time, and their ultimate meeting and friendship. <br /> <br />Written directly to the reader, as if you are sitting down for coffee with Ron and Denver, the story is gripping and personal. You come to know them like friends, and it's just as hard to put the book down as it would be to walk out on someone while they are talking. Rating: 5 / 5 If your elementary school reading list was anything like mine, you may have read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. If you’re from the north, that may have been your only exposure to life in the south after slavery. I knew all about sharecropping and how it was essentially a way to make slavery legal, what I didn’t realize until I read Same Kind of Different As Me was that there are still sharecroppers alive. I thought it was one of those terrible things in our history that went on long before the World Wars and modern times. It’s not.

Same Kind of Different As Me chronicles the stories of Denver Moore, a sharecropper-turned-homeless man and Ron Hall, an up and coming art dealer. It is told in alternating chapters from each man’s own perspective, first recounting the life events that brought them to Texas at the same time, and their ultimate meeting and friendship.

Written directly to the reader, as if you are sitting down for coffee with Ron and Denver, the story is gripping and personal. You come to know them like friends, and it’s just as hard to put the book down as it would be to walk out on someone while they are talking. Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The World Set Free by Margret Edison http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/comment-page-1/#comment-1192 Margret Edison Tue, 07 Sep 2010 08:10:55 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/#comment-1192 Certainly Wells viewed war as the inevitable result of the Modern State; the introduction of atomic energy in a world divided resulted in the collapse of society. The only possibilities remaining were "either the relapse of mankind to agricultural barbarism from which it had emerged so painfully or the acceptance of achieved science as the basis of a new social order." Wells's theme of world government is presented as a solution to the threat of nuclear weapons. <br /> <br />It is possible that several years of nuclear terrorism could frighten world leaders so much that they are willing to consider a one-world government, seeking "peace and safety", for example. Rating: 5 / 5 Certainly Wells viewed war as the inevitable result of the Modern State; the introduction of atomic energy in a world divided resulted in the collapse of society. The only possibilities remaining were “either the relapse of mankind to agricultural barbarism from which it had emerged so painfully or the acceptance of achieved science as the basis of a new social order.” Wells’s theme of world government is presented as a solution to the threat of nuclear weapons.

It is possible that several years of nuclear terrorism could frighten world leaders so much that they are willing to consider a one-world government, seeking “peace and safety”, for example. Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The World Set Free by R. May http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/comment-page-1/#comment-1191 R. May Tue, 07 Sep 2010 07:19:24 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/#comment-1191 Book arrived in perfect condition (of course) and it got to me in record speed due to technology. I'd buy like this again. Rating: 5 / 5 Book arrived in perfect condition (of course) and it got to me in record speed due to technology. I’d buy like this again. Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The World Set Free by Dr. S. Johnson http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/comment-page-1/#comment-1190 Dr. S. Johnson Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:38:53 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/#comment-1190 I love this book, it is easy to read in the typical Wells style with some humor and irony to the whole subject. Very intersting and exciting book! Rating: 5 / 5 I love this book, it is easy to read in the typical Wells style with some humor and irony to the whole subject. Very intersting and exciting book! Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The World Set Free by Brahms Scholar http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/comment-page-1/#comment-1189 Brahms Scholar Tue, 07 Sep 2010 02:52:54 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/#comment-1189 When I opened the pages of this book, I couldn't believe my eyes. I was shocked to see that the font used was about the worst I had ever seen. You would be hard pressed to find anything smaller. I'm surprised that the previous reviewer didn't mention it. I would have to disagree with him. This book is certainly not "easy to read" due to the very reason mentioned above. <br /> <br />Just as an experiment, I compared the font in this book to an 8 and 9 point font that I printed out on my computer. The font they've used seems to be Times Roman. What I found is that the size is a little larger than an 8 point, but smaller than a 9 point. That puts the size somewhere around an 8.5 point Times Roman. If such a small size doesn't bother you, then by all means, dive in. I certainly didn't keep this book myself. This is my way of protesting the way font size has been shrinking over the years, simply for the sake of saving money on the production of the book. <br /> <br />What's the fix for this Mr. And Mrs. Publisher? Simply charge the reader a few dollars more for the book. People that want to read a particular book won't mind the extra cost for an increased page count, due to a larger font; but no--instead you violate and denigrate that very act of reading itself, by asking the reader to burden himself with the task of reading such a tiny font. Well, you won't get my vote nor my money. I'll purchase the book elsewhere from a publisher that cares about the reading experience enough to use at the very least a 10 point, but ideally 12 point font! <br /> <br /> Rating: 1 / 5 When I opened the pages of this book, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I was shocked to see that the font used was about the worst I had ever seen. You would be hard pressed to find anything smaller. I’m surprised that the previous reviewer didn’t mention it. I would have to disagree with him. This book is certainly not “easy to read” due to the very reason mentioned above.

Just as an experiment, I compared the font in this book to an 8 and 9 point font that I printed out on my computer. The font they’ve used seems to be Times Roman. What I found is that the size is a little larger than an 8 point, but smaller than a 9 point. That puts the size somewhere around an 8.5 point Times Roman. If such a small size doesn’t bother you, then by all means, dive in. I certainly didn’t keep this book myself. This is my way of protesting the way font size has been shrinking over the years, simply for the sake of saving money on the production of the book.

What’s the fix for this Mr. And Mrs. Publisher? Simply charge the reader a few dollars more for the book. People that want to read a particular book won’t mind the extra cost for an increased page count, due to a larger font; but no–instead you violate and denigrate that very act of reading itself, by asking the reader to burden himself with the task of reading such a tiny font. Well, you won’t get my vote nor my money. I’ll purchase the book elsewhere from a publisher that cares about the reading experience enough to use at the very least a 10 point, but ideally 12 point font!

Rating: 1 / 5

]]> Comment on The World Set Free by R. J. Hendrickson http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/comment-page-1/#comment-1188 R. J. Hendrickson Tue, 07 Sep 2010 02:25:00 +0000 http://www.bookloverscafe.net/the-world-set-free/#comment-1188 Even good writers produce a turkey or two. This is definitely Well's gobbler. I thought he was going in the right direction when he did some character development in a couple of places; it started to get interesting, but then he lapsed back into post-atomic war preaching mode. His model for world government by a single body is pretty lame, but he came close to describing what an atomic bombing and the aftermath would be like. His description of unlimited energy from fission was completely off the mark, however. Altogether, it got pretty darn tedious after awhile. Rating: 1 / 5 Even good writers produce a turkey or two. This is definitely Well’s gobbler. I thought he was going in the right direction when he did some character development in a couple of places; it started to get interesting, but then he lapsed back into post-atomic war preaching mode. His model for world government by a single body is pretty lame, but he came close to describing what an atomic bombing and the aftermath would be like. His description of unlimited energy from fission was completely off the mark, however. Altogether, it got pretty darn tedious after awhile. Rating: 1 / 5

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