Harlem Duet by Djanet SearsMy rating: 3 of 5 stars A short play that looks at race, sex and the dissolution of a relationship. I enjoyed the element of “history repeating itself” as the playwright chose to show the same relationship during three different time periods. I was longing for more, though. The reader is provided with glimpses of the three time periods, where the present time receives greater attention than the other two past time periods. I hoped for a greater fleshing out of the characters in those lesser mentioned time periods.Other than that, the characters and dialogue were strong and the plot was easy to follow.Overall, I would…

A Potion to Die For by Heather BlakeMy rating: 4 of 5 stars I could tell from the way the author chose to introduce characters and advance the plot that this book is clearly meant to belong to and be read as part of the new and probably longer lasting Magic Potion Mystery series.I was a bit at odds with the first half of the story, since it plunged the reader right into the middle of the action, but on the other hand took about 170 pages to pick up the pace. There was quite a group of characters introduced at the beginning of the story and one could feel…

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel JoyceMy rating: 4 of 5 stars I think my rating will contradict my review a bit. I liked the idea of the unlikely pilgrimage; however, I found that the author focused too much on tangents that took considerable attention away from the actual plot. The author attempted to create distance between the main character and his life/surroundings, unfortunately she also achieved distance between the reader and the story by always keeping it at arm’s length.I can’t really comment much on the story and characters without unintentionally giving away much of the book as a whole.I see the potential in the story and…

What is an Author? by Michel FoucaultMy rating: 3 of 5 stars I was surprised how easily I was able to work myself through this one, relatively speaking. I have read other articles by Foucault that had me question my abilities in the English language. This one I could actually follow and will be able to use in an argument without having to research the meaning of it. I was intrigued by his argument, although I hoped he could have been a bit more specific with respect to some topics he addressed.Overall, it wasn’t bad and certainly worth a read for any English major. View all my reviews

Structure, Sign, and Play by Jacques DerridaMy rating: 4 of 5 stars I never thought I would say this, but I wished this article could have been longer. I was very interested in Derrida’s ideas and I felt the references to Levi-Strauss overtook his arguments. I know that was part of the point, I just really got enthralled by Derrida’s viewpoints.It’s a very good article, although a bit of a challenge to get started; like relaxing one’s brain while at the same time focusing on what is before one’s eyes. I will definitely reference him in my upcoming term paper. View all my reviews

It Takes a Witch by Heather BlakeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars I thought this book was absolutely super cute. The idea of combining the fantasy genre of magic and witches with the murder mystery genre is brilliant. Neither of the two very different genres ever overtook the story, nor was the magic kitschy.The setting of the village was adorable; a feel good little place the reader can easily escape to.The characters are believable and possess depth, although they are designed to be a bit stereotypical.I have to include a sentence or two about the author’s writing style, since I was quite impressed by the choices she made. Firstly, the…

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra ClareMy rating: 2 of 5 stars Oh, the tragedy. I am not referring to the plot of the book/series, but the unfortunate turn this series has taken with the third and final installment of The Infernal Devices.I am sitting here at my computer, fighting the urge to go into depth and detail about all that turned this series from a promising fantasy trilogy into a heaping mess of teenage angst and “wannabe” emotions. Although, a few quick remarks on plot, characters and general execution by the author will follow.Plot: being the last book in this series I expected more focus on the actual “action” part of…

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra ClareMy rating: 2 of 5 stars What in the world did I just read?The second installment of the Infernal Devices series seemed to have been just a filler or a bridge between the first and third. At least that is my utmost hope, since I cannot come up with a better reason as to why Clockwork Prince received better ratings than Clockwork Angel.To point out a few instances that annoyed the heck out of me without “giving” away much of the mostly lacking plot, I will start with the character of Tessa. I found her still very underdeveloped, although now she is adopting an air of…

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra ClareMy rating: 4 of 5 stars Actually, I am still on the fence about the rating: 4 stars, 4 1/2 stars, I really can’t decide at this point.Clockwork Angel was really good. It combined my love of Victorian London, its grime, its darkness and mysteriousness as well as Victorian literature with fantasy. Something I find difficult to come by and the author accomplished the merge of both splendidly.This book falls under the category of young adult fiction/fantasy, therefore it is not too heavy. The author creates a world that intertwines that of the humans, yet keeps it oddly and distinctly separate from those that are ordinary.There…

The Rosie Project by Graeme SimsionMy rating: 2 of 5 stars I really wanted to like this book. Moreover, I really wanted to enjoy reading this book. Unfortunately, I felt let down.I found the narration confusing and jumping too quickly from one scene to the next. The main character, who also acted as narrator was boring, since he lacked the foils of secondary characters to make his social awkwardness funny. The secondary characters were too far removed from the recount of his experiences and seemed flat.As the story progressed, the main character’s actions and the events described became more and more puzzling.I did not laugh or even smile once while…