Carolyn Wilhelm Offers Book and Movie Guide on Life on Our Planet

Title: A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future

Author: Sir David Attenborough

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (October 6, 2020)

Publisher Website

Publisher Contact

ASIN: B089CKYNT9

ISBN-10: 1538719983

ISBN-13: 978-1538719985

Pages: 272

Price: Kindle $14.99, Audio Book $12.99, Hardcover $23.40, Audio CD $26.00

Format: Kindle, Audiobook, Hardcover, Audio CD

Film: Available on Netflix

 

Sir David Frederick Attenborough is an English broadcaster and natural historian. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC.

Discussion Guide Instant Download Link

A Life on Our Planet describes his lifetime and the climate changes he witnessed first-hand. It is an autobiography not of him but planet Earth during the Holocene and Anthropocene. The Holocene, he says, was 10,000 years of our Garden of Eden. The Anthropocene is the next period during which human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment, most likely since the 1950s. And, you have probably guessed, it is the time of global warming and could end in the disappearance of human civilization. He says we need to save ourselves, not the Earth. The Earth has survived five previous mass extinctions and will continue.

Discussion questions based on the book: 

1.     How is humankind different from all other species, and why did this cause the climate difficulties we are now facing? 

2.     Homo Sapiens, people, are no longer changing physically, so what is changing about us now? Provide an example. 

3.     What does Attenborough say about human mistakes and bad planning (at the beginning and end of the book)?

4.     What is the true tragedy of our time? 

5.     What is one dire possible outcome? What consequences could cause mass migration by 2100?

6.     What is a better and still possible outcome? What do we need to do to have this better ending?

7.     Are solutions available now? What are some examples of countries demonstrating progress?

8.     Why is modern life unsustainable? What is the definition of sustainability?

9.     Why is eating meat and dairy such a problem for the climate?

10. What are the leading causes of climate change and global warming? 

 

His latest movie, also his mission statement, A Life on Our Planet, may be his best work ever. Oblivious to climate change as a young man, he realized the importance of saving the planet – wait, not the Earth, but ourselves. The planet will continue. We may not. 

He provides simple answers to correct the course we are on, damaging Earth, animals, biodiversity, and ourselves. We already know what to do to save life on Earth. Will we do so?

Discussion questions based on the book:

1.     Attenborough states Earth is a life support machine. What does he mean? 

2.     He mentions biodiversity many times. What are some examples he provides of how are we dependent on biodiversity? 

3.     Ice at the poles helped during the Holocene Epoch (the past 10,000 plus years and currently). What did they do for our planet? 

4.     Attenborough says there was a stable air temperature in the 1990s. The Earth was actually warming as something was masking the problem. What is his explanation? 

5.     Discuss: 15 billion trees are cut down each year on Earth. Did you know before watching the film?

6.     How do no fish zones increase fish populations? What country’s policies illustrates this truth?

7.     In a single day, he said there is more than enough solar power from the sun to do what? 

8.     How does eating meat impact climate change? What does he say a person is “saying” when he or she eats meat?

9.     The Netherlands was held up as a country using innovative farming techniques as they do not have more land. They used fewer chemicals to grow more food. What else did you notice in this segment? 

10. Attenborough says we need to work with nature, not against it and mentions several methods of doing so. Have you noticed efforts in this direction? Why are they important?

Thank you for reading, Carolyn Wilhelm

More About Carolyn Wilhelm:

Carolyn Wilhelm, a veteran educator, owns Wise Owl Factory LLC  and reviews for Midwest Book Review  and The New Book Review where she occasionally writes study guides for film and books like this one.  She is the author of  Change Captives 2035 and Project SAVE . Learn more about her:

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About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the form at https://www.bit.ly/FinishedReviewSubmissions. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. And know that Carolyn Wilhelm, our IT expert, award-winning author, and veteran educator, makes an award image especially for those who volunteer to write reviews from Lois's review-request list and post them in the spirit of her "Authors Helping Authors" project. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

DR. Wesley Britton Reviews British-Flavored Mystery by Timothy Miller

The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittle

Timothy Miller

Publisher : Seventh Street Books (January 19, 2021)

Paperback : 256 pages

ISBN-10 : 1645060217

ISBN-13 : 978-1645060215

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1645060217?tag=simonsayscom

Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton originally for BookPleasures.com

 

Sherlock Holmes pastiches, of course, are nothing new.  In stories penned by literary descendants of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the fictional detective has encountered actual historical figures from Aleisteir Crowley to Winston Churchill to the Dalai Lama. He has been portrayed alongside literary characters created by other authors  like Count Dracula, Fu Manchu, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

 

I admit, when I first saw that Timothy Miller was merging the realms of Holmes and Watson with the characters George Bernard Shaw introduced in his play, Pygmalion, later adapted by Lerner and Loewe into their classic musical, My Fair Lady,   I suspected I was about to experience a real stretch. At best, a humorous mash-up.  I couldn't have been further off the mark.

 

In fact, The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittle is a inventive pastiche true enough,  but it's no laughing matter. Mostly. I must say Miller did a very credible job at capturing the well-known and oft-imitated cadence of Dr. John Watson as demonstrated in all the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle yarns.  Miller does mix into that well-established style comic touches, especially his use of similes and metaphors. one humorous scene featured actual American actor William Gillette. Known for his portrayal as Holmes in the London theatre  (it was Gillette, not Conan Doyle, who gave Holmes the trademark of wearing a deerstalker hat), Gillette plays Holmes in a scene where Holmes bemusedly looks on and Watson is surprised to see the real and fictional detectives together in the same living room with Henry Higgins.      

 

Throughout, Miller shows a very detailed knowledge of the historical milieu when the Victorian era was giving way to the Edwardian period when motor cars were replacing hansom cabs. There's a strong tone of danger as Holmes and Watson try to find out just how Eliza Doolittle had been so transformed. Was she in fact a continental princess taking on a secret identity to avoid assassination? Had the original Eliza Doolittle been replaced by a doppelganger? Or had something sinister happened to completely transform a flower girl into a proper English lady beyond phonetic tutoring?

 

Along the way, we don't just see Holmes and Watson being inserted into Henry Higgins cantankerous environment where we might expect Rex Harrison breaking into song.  Not for the first time in the Holmes canon, we see the transformative formula of Dr. Henry Jekyll and his alter ego Edward Hyde, sort of, becoming a major thread of the complex plot. Because of that plot line, we have many dark and bloody scenes.

 

In short, The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittle is full of surprises and no shortage of twists and turns in the multi-layered plot.  The book has a rich vitality with it's inclusion of many tones and in-depth characterizations and vivid descriptions. In addition, there are many passages, notably the fast-paced chase scenes, that show a strong influence of more recent high-octane screen versions of Holmes adventures. 

 

You don't have to be a Sherlock Holmes aficionado to enjoy The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittlealthough Doyle fans will get to see many references to events and characters from the Holmes canon updated into a sort of sequel to the original stories.  So, on many levels, the novel is a lot of fun. I enjoyed this book more than      many  a title I've read of late. A perfect diversion from the weird world of 2020.

 

 MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

 

 Dr. Wesley Britton is the author ofThe Beta Earth Chronicles and a regular reviewer BookPleasures.com and #TheNewBookReview. Learn more about him here: 

 

Explore the Beta Earth Chronicles website:

 

Follow Wes Britton’s Goodreads blog:

 

Check out Wes Britton’s Beta Earth Chronicles Facebook page:

 

Enjoy the videos at Wes Britton’s YouTube Channel:

MORE ABOUT BLOGGER AND WAYS TO GET THE MOST FROM THIS BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ) that covers 325 jam-packed pages covering everithing from Amazon vine to writing reviews for profit and promotion. Reviewers will have a special interest in the chapter on how to make reviewing pay, either as way to market their own books or as a career path--ethically!

This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Note: Participating authors and their publishers may request the social sharing image by Carolyn Wilhelm at no charge.  Please contact the designer at:  cwilhelm (at) thewiseowlfactory (dot) com. Provide the name of the book being reviewed and--if an image or headshot of the author --isn't already part of the badge, include it as an attachment. Wilhelm will send you the badge to use in your own Internet marketing. Give Wilhelm the link to this post, too!

 Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Taking a Road Trip in the Time of Covid

Title: This Space Available

Author: LB Sedlacek

Publisher: Goats on Mars Press, 2020

ISBN 9798654725974

Adult/ Poetry

Contact Reviewer: hojoreviews@aol.com

Taking a Road Trip in the Time of Covid

Though LB Sedlacek is a force in the poetry world, I don’t want you to think of her This Space Available as poetry. In these times of Covid, I want you to think of it as a journal—very nearly a record of the simple pleasures of her road trip through the South. Perhaps you could even make it a substitute trip for yourself as you stay cozily ensconced in the recommended sheltering you know is best for you.

Readers who don’t believe themselves to be poetry aficionados will love the simple language, the conversational pacing, the way she can make a point without being didactic as she does in the title poem when she observes that the huge billboards advertising religion she sees along the side of the road in South Carolina.  “It must cost a lot to be advertising Jesus,” she says. She does something similar with the cops in Georgia (and, an ever equal opportunity poet, the drivers!) and those who sell baby alligators to who- knows- what- fate. She tells the mini-stories. The reader gets to feel the way he or she feels about it. 

Nevertheless, Sedlacek’s poetic nature is alive everywhere. She is seeing a part of the US with a fresh perspective. And you get it in little living pieces, sometimes recorded with her camera in full-blown color as well as words. 

You may decide this slender book is the best trip you could possibly take in this, the summer of 2020.  Perhaps you want an assessment in one word.  Here it is: “Refreshing.”

 On Amazon

-----

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page and in a tab at the top of this blog's home page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites so it may be used a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

A Poem/Review for Bob Dylan's Memoir

BOOK TITLE AND SUBTITLE:

Chronicles - Volume One

AUTHOR: Bob Dylan

GENRES: Nonfiction - autobiography

ISBN-10 : 0743244583 

ISBN-13 : 978-0743244589 

LINK TO AMAZON 

 

Reviewed by Leslie Klein

 

LESLIE'S REVIEW POEM

HIS CHRONICLE

Reading of Dylan’s 
education in the city —
making friends of heroes
and like-minded musicians.
Learning history and selfhood
simultaneously constructing
the icon of music and poetry
he will become.

At this time he is a rover
a student of life and people —
absorbing every note he observes
and experiences
while sleeping on couches
roaming the clubs
devouring book shelves of philosophy
and microfilmed news.
Facts to plant in his mind
for a song to pen…later.

Now he is the young lad 
in the classroom of the life 
he yearns to establish.
His interests and connections
feed his developing soul.

Yet when his star ascends
privacy and peace are stolen.

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bob Dylan has released thirty-eight studio albums, which collectively have sold over 120 million copies around the world. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature and has been awarded the French Legion of Honor, a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor. His memoir, Chronicles: Volume One, spent a year on the New York Times best seller list.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Leslie Klein is an artist and writer, living in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. Her op-eds, feature stories, and poetry have been published in various newspapers and magazines. 
Her book of poetry, Driving Through Paintings was published by Shanti Arts LLC. 
Klein has had a long career teaching and showing her work in galleries and juried exhibitions. She was commissioned to create the sculpture for The Boston Freedom Award.  Reach her at clayforms@aol.com. Learn more about her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/leslie.klein.399/.

MORE ABOUT BLOGGER AND WAYS TO GET THE MOST FROM THIS BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ) that covers 325 jam-packed pages covering everithing from Amazon vine to writing reviews for profit and promotion. Reviewers will have a special interest in the chapter on how to make reviewing pay, either as way to market their own books or as a career path--ethically!

This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Note: Participating authors and their publishers may request the social sharing image by Carolyn Wilhelm at no charge.  Please contact the designer at:  cwilhelm (at) thewiseowlfactory (dot) com. Provide the name of the book being reviewed and--if an image or headshot of the author --isn't already part of the badge, include it as an attachment. Wilhelm will send you the badge to use in your own Internet marketing. Give Wilhelm the link to this post, too!

 Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Carole Mertz Enjoys Reviews Poet Wilda Morris' Moby Dick Inspired Poems

Pequod Poems: 

Subtitle: Gamming with Moby Dick

by Wilda Morris

Genre: Poetry Collection

ISBN  9781949229608

Reviewed by Carole Mertz

It’s Fun to Go Gamming with Morris’s Pequod Poems

Wilda Morris’s latest collection, Pequod Poems, is delightful for its vibrant story telling through poetry. Its publication commemorated the 200^th anniversary of Herman Melville’s birth. It consists of poems written in an outstanding variety of forms, some rarely used, and even some invented by the author. Each poem relates in some way to Melville and his famous whale and each one attests to Morris’s artistry and vivid imagination.

Organized into five sections. The poems in Part I introduce us to major characters in Moby-Dick treated here in unique fashion. Morris presents Ishmael by way of a Mesostic poem. In this form, all the printed characters of the epigraph weave vertically through the poem and form the sentence: “What a fine frosty night; how Orion glitters…” “Oceans” uses the Pleiades form, seven lines of six syllables each, in which the first letter of each line is from the poem’s title. “The Captain,” is rendered as a spiraling (and double) Abecedarian.

The full enjoyment of Morris’s poems derives not only from her abundant variety of poetical forms. Her clever wielding of content brings us so clearly into the whalers’ experiences. “A Pequod Sailor Speaks,” imagines the watery vistas the captain and crew might have seen.

 

Sudden winds bellow, curdle foam.

Sword-sharp, they rip the sails, shriek

and break the mast. Lightning stabs…

 

We read of Ahab considering the wind, learn  of Pip, the tormented cabin boy, and encounter poems written from the viewpoint of Ahab’s wife. Using the sestina, Morris describes Stubb pondering the shadows he sees

 

…when the Angel of Death knocks and I hear

the window of my life closing…//

…I try to be bold, look into the face of death.

Ahab vows the finish of the great white whale in “Prophecy.” In “White” we find “…like tempestuous / wind and breakers, the spun / water that the white whale / whipped into a fury…” The Captain’s monomaniacal quest to avenge himself of his dismemberer is ever present in the lines. 

In Part II, Morris uses the bouts-sonnet form, an erasure poem, the “a gram of &s” form, and other playful narrative styles, one of which takes end words from Shakespeare’s Sonnet No. 80. Throughout, the poet deftly maintains her theme.

The poet speaks in more philosophical tones in Part III. Here she sometimes addresses Melville directly. In Part IV, unexpectantly she brings out a bit of backtalk, assuming a new pitch. In “Meditation by the Water,” a speaker asks just what the psalmist means when he declares “the Almighty will keep you / under his wings.” And in “No Harm in Ahab,” a poem significant for our current times, Morris delves into the theme of evil and the question of righteousness.

Five poems in Part V bring the volume to a close. Here we come upon the “Golden Shovel,” the “lipogram,” and a form Morris herself devised.

With its rich content and variety, the skillful manipulation of words into logical form, and Morris’s imaginative imagery, Pequod Poems forms an engaging collection. One can read it for story, for reconnection with Melville’s novel, for pure delight in the richness of Morris’s descriptions, and for her skillful rhyming techniques. 

About the Author:

Wilda Morris serves a wide community of poets both through her own published poems, and through the many workshops and courses she has taught in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa. In addition, she holds leadership positions in major artistic organizations throughout Illinois. These include the Illinois State Poetry Society and Poets & Patrons of Illinois, both for which she has served as president. 

About the Reviewer:

Carole Mertz, poet and essayist, has reviewed for Arc, Eclectica, Main St. Rag, The Bangalore Review, The Compulsive Reader, The League of Canadian Poets, World Literature Today, and elsewhere. She is the author of Color and Line, with Kelsay Books, 2021. Carole lives with her husband in Parma, OH. Her chapbook, Toward a Peeping Sunrise is available at Prolific Press.

View Carole’s writer profile at http://www.pw.org/directory/writers/carole_mertz

MORE ABOUT THE #SharingwithWriters BLOGGER

 Howard-Johnson is the multi award-wining author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is 

also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including the multi award-winning The Frugal Book Promoter (http://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered by Modern History Press in its third edition. Carolyn's latest is in the #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers is How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically. Learn more on her Amazon profile page (http://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile). Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers (http://bit.ly/Last-MinuteEditsII) is one of her booklets just released by Modern History Press in its second edition--perfect for inexpensive gift giving--and, another booklet, The Great First Impression Book Proposal (http://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) helps writers who want to be traditionally published. The Frugal Editor (http://bit.ly/FrugalEditor), now in its second edition, is the winningest book in the series. Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it will help them convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques (http://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews here at TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs at all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor (http://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com)

Writer-Artist Deborah Lyn Stanley Reviews New Little Editing Reference

Title: Great Little Last-Minute Editing Tips for Writers

Edition: 2nd Edition

Subtitle: The Ultimate Frugal Reference Guide for Avoiding Word Trippers and Crafting Gatekeeper-Perfect Copy

Series: Multi Award-Winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers

Author: Carolyn Howard-Johnson

ISBN: 9781615995240

Reference: Nonfiction/Writers, Editing Reference 

Available as paperback, hard copy, and ebook on Amazon, https://amzn.to/2RInuea 

Reviewed by Deborah Lyn Stanley originally for Goodreads

My favorite self-editing book just got better, with its second edition addendum of Great Little Last-Minute Tips. Carolyn Howard-Johnson, a friend and co-contributor to Writer’s On The Move, is a constant source of encouragement for every writer’s journey!

I enjoy Carolyn’s down-to-earth and humorous writing style. It enlightens, is a kick and prevents headaches too.

 

This little book is powerful with pointers from the depth of her knowledge, writing and editing expertise. This is NOT a boring grammar/editing book. Carolyn’s Word Trippers are full of surprises and fun to make us better writers, better communicators, and better at doing the job we set out to do.

 

I highly recommend this book. It’s enlivening, instructive and strengthens our writers' journey.

 

Thank you, Carolyn Howard-Johnson for providing me a review book copy of “Great Little Last-Minute Editing tips for Writers."  I was not required to write a positive review, I receive no compensation, and it was my choice to write this review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.

 

Thank you, Carolyn Howard-Johnson!

Carolyn Howard-Johnson has been promoting her own books and helping clients promote theirs for more than a decade. Her marketing plan for the second book in the HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, The Frugal Editor, won the Next Generation Millennium Award for Marketing. See my review of The Frugal Editor  here: https://deborahlynwriter.com/2020/05/11/book-review-the-frugal-editor/. Carolyn's just-released third edition of The Frugal Book Promoter published by Modern History Press, is also new, expanded, and updated. Learn more at www.howtodoitfrugally.com. Learn still more at 

 

https://howtodoitfrugally.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Great-Little-Last-Minute-Editing-Writers

http://www.writersonthemove.com/

 

 

More About the Reviewer

Deborah Lyn Stanley is an author and artist. Learn more about her at: 

My Writer’s Life: https://deborahlynwriter.com/

Writing for Caregivers: https://deborahlyncaregiver.com/   

Artist’s Website: https://lynstanleyart.com

 

Dr. Wesley Britton's Reviews Always as Entertaining as His Reading Choices

 

The Ascension Machine

Author: Rob Edwards

Genre: YA, 

Publication date : September 1, 2020

Publisher : Shadow Dragon Press (September 1, 2020)

ASIN : B089HNNVFM

Available on Amazon 

Reviewed by: Dr. Wesley Britton originally for Book Pleasures 

 

Maybe I'm showing my age, but my first thoughts when meeting the lead character of Grey in The Ascension Machine, I thought of Harry Harrison's Stainless Steel Rat series.

 

 That's because, like Harrison's Jim Di Griz, Edward's Gray starts out as  an amoral con artist on the run from one space station to the next. He's very good at finding hiding places to elude capture all over the galaxy.   Like Di Griz, Gray's yarn is told in the first person, allowing for his personality to be expressed in nearly every sentence of the saga.

 

 Like the Rat books, Edwards' story is full of clever humor. For example, when we begin meeting the young students wanting to be "space alien super heroes," one is named Gadget Dude. Another calls herself Sky Diamond, born simply Lucy. But these young would-be heroes aren't in Sgt. Peppers' Lonely Hearths Club Band.  Nor are they candidates for Professor Charles Xavier's Institute where young mutants learned teamwork, how to use super-powers, and how to combat bigotry.

 

 Gray isn't anything like an X-Man. He only goes to the super-hero school to pretend to be a student, has no obvious powers, and has no drive to benefit anyone other than himself.    Well, he spends much of the novel in a wheelchair and ultimately becomes the leader of a team of young super-heroes out to save a planet from nasty invaders. I must admit, beyond the main baddie, Gravane/ Dr. Gravestone,    those powerful invaders aren't especially well-defined. I confess, the contrivance of villains being constant bad shots, even with super-weapons,  is a trope rather overused by now.

 

If it sounds like I'm describing a comic book in novel form, that's pretty much what Ascension Machine is. Nothing wrong with that.  Ascension Machine is intended to be light reading, straight-ahead action-adventure, and is quite suitable for YA readers. For example, it has a character arc where a young grifter finds his identity, finds a purpose greater than himself, and we see how important teamwork is in solving complex problems. In short, the very sort of comic book I'd be happy to give the grandkids to read, knowing they'd enjoy the colorful ride.

   

Me too. Reading the final coda in this debut novel, it seems clear we're going to be seeing more of the young heroes taking on new super-villains.   Here's your chance to get in on the ground-floor of an entertaining new series. With any luck, Edwards will spark up some romances among the new "space alien super-heroes" and the team will encounter some memorable new opponents.

 

More About the Reviewer

Dr. Wesley Britton is the author of the The Beta Earth Chronicles. His reviews appear in  BookPleasures.com and this blog. Learn more about him at: 

 

Explore the Beta Earth Chronicles website:

 

Follow Wes Britton’s Goodreads blog:

 

Check out Wes Britton’s Beta Earth Chronicles Facebook page:

 

Enjoy the videos at Wes Britton’s YouTube Channel:

More About the Blogger and What This Blog Offers

  

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ) that covers 325 jam-packed pages covering everithing from Amazon vine to writing reviews for profit and promotion. Reviewers will have a special interest in the chapter on how to make reviewing pay, either as way to market their own books or as a career path--ethically!

This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Note about other #TheNewBookReview free services: Participating authors and their publishers may request the social sharing image by Carolyn Wilhelm at no charge.  Please contact the designer at:  cwilhelm (at) thewiseowlfactory (dot) com. Provide the name of the book being reviewed and--if an image or headshot of the author --isn't already part of the badge, include it as an attachment. Wilhelm will send you the badge to use in your own Internet marketing. Give Wilhelm the link to this post, too!

Lois W. Stern, educator, anthology editor, and authors' advocate, offers a way for authors, readers, and publishers to find new reviewers for their books. It's also a way for reviewers to find new books at no charge. Find her submission guidelines in the tabs at the top of The New Book Review home page.  

 Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing