Book Review & Giveaway: As One Devil to Another

Katie May 18, 2012 2 Comments

As One Devil to Another by Richard Platt was quite an entertaining read.  The book is a series of letters, mostly from Slashreap to his nephew and protege, Scardagger, who are as you may have guessed, both devils.

The book also includes some great illustrations of the devils which I really enjoyed seeing every few chapters.

Slashreap is teaching Scardagger how to win the soul of a woman away from Heaven and get her for Hell.  Scardagger is not doing such a great job of it, and Slashreap is certain to let him know this!

It was interesting to see the devil’s perspective on life and almost mock what the living are doing.  Since the letters are one sided, you almost have to guess what Scardagger might have done or written to his uncle to elicit such a response from him.  Slashreap is certainly an interesting character, but one that I think you will enjoy!

If you think you might be interested in reading this book (and be sure to read the blurb below as I am sure I have missed key points in my review – as I probably always do for fear of giving away too much of the plot) then be sure to enter the giveaway we are doing sponsored by Tyndale.  One lucky reader will win a certificate to get their very own copy of the book from their local Christian bookstore. If you’re on the fence about reading it – enter anyway – it’ll be a free book for you – what have you got to lose? And you’ll probably end up enjoying it.

I received a free copy of this book from Tyndale Publishers in exchange for my review. I was also sent a reward certificate to send to the lucky contest winner.

About the Book

My dear scardagget, we shall now begin the task of satisfying your ever-growing hunger…. a client has been selected for you by the low command.

Thus begins an early piece of correspondance in As One Devil to Another, an astonishing debut work from Richard Platt that foremost C.S. Lewis authority Walter Hooper declares “a stunning achievement, the finest example of the genre of diabolical correspondance to appear since this genre was popularized by C.S. Lewis.”

Enter into this chilling and diabolical tale, one that reveals the very tricks and strategies of Hell.  Through a series of letters between devils created by Platt, senior devil Slashreap trains his young protege, Scardagger, to win a soul away from Heaven and into their clutches. As the devils plot their way to triumph, they reveal that the spiritual dangers and risks we face in today’s society.  Their firghteningly accurate perspective on issues such as contemporary technology and sexual mores is interwoven with timeless matters such as the power of prayer, the purpose of suffering, and the promises held out by Heaven…and Hell.

Destined to become a modern classic, As One Devil To Another is a brilliantly written, deeply unsettling perspective on twenty-first-century society . . . a glimpse of ourselves through the eyes of those who have embraced their underworldy existence.

Richard Platt has been in love with words and the music of language all his life, but he did not begin writing until his early forties. He is a contributor to the literary quarterly Slightly Foxed, was a finalist for a 2012 San Diego Foundation Creative Catalyst Fellowship for his one-man play, Ripples From Walden Pond: An Evening with Henry David Thoreau, and has studied and volunteered at The Kilns, C.S. Lewis’ former home in Oxford.

Walter Hooper is the editor of The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis.

Giveaway!

One winner will win a copy of As One Devil To Another from Tyndale.

The fine print: The winner will receive a certificate – in order to claim the book the winner must present the certificate to their local Christian bookstore in exchange for the book. Winner pays taxes where applicable. Limit: One award certificate per winner & their family each month.  If no store is available, order direct from Tyndale.  Details available on the certificate for how to get in contact with Tyndale.  USA Winners only for t his contest.  Certificate must be redeemed by August 1, 2012.

Contest ends June 2 at 12:01 AM EST.

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Book Review: United Breaks Guitars

Katie May 15, 2012 0 Comments

When I picked Dave Carroll’s “United Breaks Guitars” to read, I wasn’t aware of the viral videos that went along with his story. I’m kind of shocked I didn’t – millions of hits, music videos, where the heck was I for this? I chose to read it simply because when I saw Hanson in June of last year they were complaining about how the airline broke one of their guitars (although I think in their case it was actually American, though my memory may be tricking me.)

The story is that Dave is a musician and was traveling and while on the plane another passenger commented out loud that they guys on the tarmac were throwing guitars.  Turns out it was his bands guitars and one of them was damaged by the trip.  When Dave questioned United about it, he was told that was what he signed a waver for (except he was given no waiver) and no one really gave a crap about him or his guitar.  Gotta love that customer service, right?

Dave decided that he would not stop until his issue was resolved and after numerous emails and phone calls he realized United wasn’t going to do much so he decided he was going to write 3 songs about the issue and see what would happen then.

The video went viral and Dave became an overnight sensation with everyone from CNN to Letterman wanting to have an interview with him. (Some of which didn’t work out for whatever reason.)

The book talks about the incident with United, how he tried to resolve everything first with United and his “threat” to write these songs about United.  Then it goes in to his thought process with writing each song and deciding what it would be about and what genre it would be.  But it also talks about social media and how valuable of a tool it is for companies as well as consumers because it is so easy to get the word out there about new products or in the case of a consumer bad products and bad customer service.

Dave’s career has now taken off, he is an artist and author and a public speaker. You can find out more about Dave at http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/

I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley in order to write this review.

About the Book

Book Review: Star Wars The Clone Wars

Katie May 14, 2012 0 Comments

Star Wars The Clone Wars: The Enemy Within is one of the first comic books I’ve read on my Nook Tablet.  I have to say I was not all that impressed with the quality, it was incredibly difficult to read some of the dialogue, and making the pages larger made the problem worse, not better.  Pages became more fuzzy the bigger I made it.  I think I would enjoy comic books on the nook a lot more if they were a bit more HQ. (Or maybe HD?)

That being said, the illustrations in this book were great.  The story is about a gang of Clone Troopers whos mission goes bad and they end up being attacked by Drones and them some other large green Chewbacca looking things.  There’s a bit of a subplot as well, but I don’t want to give too much away (and who knows how much I missed making up words when I couldn’t make out a bubble of text)

You can preview this comic at Dark Horse Comics website: http://www.darkhorse.com/Books/19-465/Star-Wars-The-Clone-Wars–The-Enemy-Within-TPB

I think I might stick to comic books in “real life” instead of on the Nook, although I do have one more to check out.  I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher in order to write this review.

About the Book

Spearheading a bold, covert mission intended to bring an end to the fighting on a war-torn world, a platoon of Clone Troopers find their plans undone by faulty intelligence and bad luck, and themselves stranded deep inside hostile territory. With no choice but to see their flawed mission through to its end, the ragged soldiers make their final push toward their target, unaware that their victory could spell disaster for the Republic!

* Dirty Dozen in space!

Book Review: Baby’s In Black

Katie May 13, 2012 0 Comments

Baby’s in Black is one of the first graphic novels I have reviewed. I’m not usually one to read them, but I really enjoyed this one.  The book is entirely done in Black and White, which I think really helped set the scene for the story.  The story is about The Beatles at the beginning of their career.  There’s John, Pete, George, Paul and Stuart.  Not the lineup we’re so used to hearing about.  They are playing in a club in Germany that not a lot of people freqent.  Klaus ends up checking them out and really loving the band so he drags his friend Astrid along the next night.

Astrid is a photographer and wants to photograph the band, and they agree.  She ends up falling in love with Stuart, they get engaged and he leaves the Beatles and ends up living with Astrid and pursuing art in her attic. (His real love, he was just in the band to help out John.)

I think that the graphic novel is a really interesting approach to tell this story – which is based on the true story of the beginning of the Beatles, by the way – rather than just using words which probably wouldn’t have made things quite as interesting.

If you like graphic novels and like music (especially the Beatles) then I would recommend that you check out this book. It’s really nicely done.

I received a free review e-copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.  I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

A fascinating, exhilarating portrait of the Beatles in their early years.

Meet the Beatles . . . right at the beginning of their careers.

This gorgeous, high-energy graphic novel is an intimate peek into the early years of the world’s greatest rock band. The heart of Baby’s In Black is a love story. The “fifth Beatle,” Stuart Sutcliffe, falls in love with the beautiful Astrid Kirchherr when she recruits the Beatles for a sensational (and famous) photography session during their time in Hamburg. When the band returns to the UK, Sutcliffe quits, becomes engaged to Kirchherr, and stays in Hamburg. A year later, his meteoric career as a modern artist is cut short when he dies unexpectedly.

The book ends as it begins, with Astrid, alone and adrift; but with a note of hope: her life is incomparably richer and more directed thanks to her friendship with the Beatles and her love affair with Sutcliffe. This tender story is rendered in lush, romantic black-and-white artwork.

Baby’s In Black is based on a true story.