"Kobe Bryant: A League of His Own" Review

When Kobe Bryant: A League of His Own came across my desk, I naturally had an interest in reviewing the book. I've been watching NBA basketball since I was a little kid, and Kobe Bryant has long been the enemy of some of my favorite teams over the years. When I was a Suns fan from 2004-2012, I remember how much I wanted to see Kobe lose when he had to face Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns in the playoffs during those years: I remember the thrill of watching the Suns come back from a 3-1 series deficit in the 2006 playoffs and the dominating 4-1 series win in the first round of the 2007 playoffs, and I also remember the bittersweet 2010 playoffs when Kobe, Paul Gasol, and company beat my favorite Suns team of all-time 4-2 in the Western Conference Finals.

When I was a Heat fan from 2010-2014, I took great pride in watching Lebron and Wade dominate against Kobe's Laker teams in the regular season.

Having said all that, I am man enough to admit that when it comes to talent, Kobe was one of the top-10 players in the NBA when he was in his prime and at the end of his prime before the injuries caught up to him. Since I've seen Kobe play on television countless times over the years, it was with great interest that I wanted to read Kobe Bryant: A League of His Own.

As far as what the book covers, we get a look into Kobe's upbringing as a child all the way up to when he was drafted. After that, we have 1-2 page summaries of each and every season of Kobe's career that basically gave the lowdown of what the team did on the season, and what they did in the playoffs. We also have a chapter that lists all of the weightlifting exercises that Kobe does, and we have chapters containing interesting facts about Kobe as well as a chapter listing all the accolades and statistics that Kobe acquired over the course of his NBA career. Throughout the book are a number of high-quality color pictures of Kobe in action.

One of the book's positive features is that it contains all of the necessary information about Kobe that an 8-10 year-old basketball fan would want to know, which is what Kobe and his team did in each season, and a player card containing Kobe's overall stat line in each season. Aside from a couple typos, the book's grammar was clean, and it was formatted well for Kindle. One of the things I didn't like about the book is that the book is marketed in a way that makes you think that you're about to get a lot of information about what was going on with Kobe behind the scenes and in-between seasons, and I was let down by the fact that such information was not present. Personally, I would have liked more details about Kobe's behind-the-scenes relationship with Shaq back in the early 2000s, and I would have liked more information about Kobe's relationship with his teammates during the 2007-2013 time frame. Giving us access to such information would have given us a lot better idea of what Kobe was like as a person and teammate.

If you're looking for a deep, comprehensive book about the life of Kobe on and off the court that gives you an idea of what he was like as a person, then you probably will want to stay clear of this book. However, if you're an 8-10 year-old basketball fan looking to learn more about one of best players in NBA history, or you know an 8-10 year-old basketball fan who would love to read such a book, then I would recommend you show them Kobe Bryant: A League of His Own.

Final Grade:  B 

"Arcanaland Series Book 1: Far From Shandesto" Review

Do you love fantasy adventures? Do you love witches and gnomes? Do you love potions and magic spells? Do you love portals to magical worlds? Do you like stories that are set in the multiverse? Are you into new ageism and Eastern religious thought? Are you a fan of franchises like Harry Potter or The Chronicles of Narnia? If you are, then you might want to check out Arcanaland Series Book 1: Far From Shandesto by Wyborn Senna.

Wyborn Senna has a a bachelor’s degree in Journalism/Mass Communication from St. Bonaventure University, a Masters in Professional Writing degree from USC, and is published by Full Fathom Five Digital. Inspired by metaphysical studies, Far From Shandesto is the first in a series of fantasy novels that take readers on a journey to different lands where they encounter situations and characters inspired by new-age subject matter including tarot and oracle decks.

The story starts out with Holly, Jen, Sophia, and Rob going to the house of a Gypsie. We're told that four years earlier, three senior guys from their school disappeared in the woods around the gypsie's house, and everyone goes into the Gypsy's house to see if she's home. Before too long, everyone finds themselves transported to Arcanaland, a universe where the laws of physics are radically different from ours, and they promptly run into Trath, Alejo, and Will, the three senior guys who disappeared four years earlier. It also turns out that the Gypsy is Leticia Elizondo, who had been in Arcanaland many years before. After they all meet up and get acquainted, they split up and embark on a journey to find a way back to their world, each group heading to a different location that supposedly will allow them to return home.

One of the most positive aspects of the book is that it thrusts you very dramatically into the world of Arcanaland; not much time passes from the very beginning of the book when we see Holly, Jen, Sophia, and Rob at the school to the four of them discovering the magical, vast world of Arcanaland as they're met by multiple people. The book also does a solid job of combining a Harry Potter-like wizarding world with the talking animals, dimensional travel world of The Chronicles of Narnia. Sadly, this book had many typos in it, most of which are missing quotation marks that make it hard to tell if someone is speaking or not at first glance in some cases, and is just annoying in other cases. Also, this book promotes many Eastern religious ideas that are not true, such as on page 125 when Alejo describes the process of reincarnation in relation to the ghosts of Lake Etherea. While such ideas might make for entertaining reading in a science fiction novel, they are completely unfalsifiable in the real world.

To make it clear, I'm not into fantasy adventures that involve wizardry, spells, potions, and magic worlds in general, so it's hard for me to appreciate what this book has to offer, and the fact that the book feels like a knock-off brand of the Chronicles of Narnia doesn't really help me. However, if you are interested in this kind of novel, then Arcanaland Series Book 1: Far From Shandesto might be for you.

Final Grade: B-

"Occupied" Review

So far in my time as a book reviewer, the majority of the books I have read, with a few exceptions, tend to have more of a religious/supernatural element to them, many of which contained Christian themes and elements. So when I came across Occupied by Joss Sheldon, I found myself dealing with a story and world that I had yet to explore as a book reviewer.

According to his website, Joss Sheldon is a 34-year-old man who has a degree from the London School of Economics. Before he became a writer, Sheldon spent his time “selling falafel at music festivals, being a ski-bum, and failing to turn the English Midlands into a haven of rugby league”. In 2013, Sheldon moved to McLeod Gan, a village in India full of Tibetan refugees. This turned out to be the beginning of his travels that eventually led him to write Occupied.

Occupied is a story from the perspective of four different people in the Middle East who experience occupations of various sorts over the course of their lives. The story starts out following Tamsin and her daily life with the Godlies in the village of Doomba. After Doomba is attacked by a group of people known as The Holies, Tamsin and the surviving Godlies of Doomba relocate to the town of Natale as refugees. After that, the story switches to the perspective of Ellie, a Natale native whose father, like many of the natives, complains that the refugees are stealing their jobs, and that they should be expelled from their land. Without giving away too much more of the plot, the story shifts to the perspective of the colonisers who come in later and occupy Natale after the six-day war (a boy named Arun), and the perspective of a family of economic immigrants who come in later (through the eyes of a boy named Charlie).

Some of the positives of this book are that Sheldon really captures the feel of a small village like Doomba and a small third-world town like Natale from the perspective of a child running through the village, and running through the streets and marketplace. Sheldon also does a fantastic job of capturing the irony of the refugees complaining about the Protokian soldiers taking away their jobs after the natives of Natale lodged the same complaint about the refugees earlier in the story. The thing that stops me from giving this book an A grade is the fact that part of the story is based on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and Sheldon seems to be sympathetic to the narrative of that issue, which is that the Palestinians were living in the land that Israel has occupied since 1948 before Israel was given that land by the UN, and that the Israel claim that their ancestors lived in the land long before the Palestinians did (which is true if you know the historical records contained in the Old and New Testaments) is somehow illegitimate.

While I have a pretty strong disagreement with the part of the story that refers to the Israel-Palestine conflict, I will say that Sheldon has given us a book that is highly readable, well-written, and allows us to relate to the characters involved in the conflict. If you're looking for a heart-wrenching story about ordinary people living through different occupations in the middle east, then feel free to get Occupied.

Final Grade: B+

"Skeleton Keys" Review

Many a people have given testimony as to how God has changed their lives for the better, talking about the unhealthy and broken lifestyles they used to live before submitting to Jesus, and subsequently turning their lie around.  Such a concept is not unfamiliar to anyone who knows the following Bible passage:

1 Corinthians 6:7-11:  "The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?  Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters.  Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men  nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.  And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

One such person is Julia Pilon, or JFJewelz, author of Skeleton Keys.  According to her own words, Pilon used to be a regular party animal, a girl whose priorities in life were going to parties, getting drunk, doing drugs, and at one point becoming a full-time stripper.  Having lived this lifestyle prior to her conversion to the Faith, Pilon spends the majority of the book giving her testimony on top of giving life advice to people to help them live lives that are filled with peace, joy, and happiness.

That being said, there are a few problems with this book.  First off, while I get that Pilon was trying to write a book to help people deal with different emotional and relationship issues, the advice itself has very worldly feel, meaning that the advice sounds like something that any non-believer could tell us.  There are very few mentions of God or Jesus, and only a handful of scripture verses are quoted.  Another problem is that on pages 39-40, we read the following:

"Always remember, if you want apple trees, you must plant apple seeds! This goes for everything. Money, love, forgiveness, respect, whatever it is you need or want. Give, give, give and then give some more because it is the skeleton key to financial gain, financial security and many of your deepest desires!"

In the context of the chapter, Pilon talked about how after years of cheerful giving and fervent prayer, God eventually gave her and her family the house that she had always wanted to live in.  She then concludes that if you give cheerfully and pray enough, God will give you financial gain, financial security, and your deepest desires.  This a form of the prosperity gospel, which is completely unbiblical and therefore false theology. 

Also, Pilon at the end of the book leads the reader into a prayer that asks Jesus to come into someone's heart.  Such a concept is not what scripture says about salvation; to know what scripture teaches about what man must do to be saved, watch my old video blog about the Gospel.

If you're looking for a book that relies on scripture to make its points, has solid theology, and constantly talks about what God and Jesus have done for them, then you might want to look somewhere else.  However, if you are looking for a motivational self-help book to help you through your daily life, then you might get some value out of Skeleton Keys.
 
Final Grade:  C+

"An Evil" Review

WARNING!!!!  SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!

Recently, I was invited to review a relatively unknown book called An Evil, which was written by a relatively unknown author, Thomas Brittendahl.  I read and review a lot of books that most people probably have never heard of, and of all the books I have reviewed so far, this one seemed at first glance to be the least impressive one of the bunch.  However, after I finished the last page, I found myself singing a much different tune about An Evil.

The story centers around Paul Bellomy, an evangelical leader and the head pastor at Riverwood Church.  In the beginning of the story, we learn what Paul's life is like:  Everyone in the church loves him and his preaching, and his book sales netted him enough money to make him into a millionaire; he has a beautiful wife and eight children, and they all live in a house overlooking a lake.

Unfortunately, because Paul Bellomy is modeled after the typical postmodern, emergent church pastor, we can immediately spot his character flaws:  He takes Bible verses out of context to make his message of love seem attractive, and he takes verses out of context when he tries to get his children to do what he wants.  He pretends to be humble when his church attendees heap praise onto him, even though he secretly loves it, which causes him to be prideful. 

The next day, things start to go horribly wrong, and an evil spirit possesses Paul's body, causing Paul to give away all his family's money to charity.  Shortly after that, the evil spirit starts to torture and kill Paul's children in a manner similar to a slasher movie.  Eventually, Paul's wife renounces her faith, and commits suicide.  At the end, the evil spirit reveals that he was sent by God to test Paul's faith.  In other words, An Evil is a modern day version of what happened to Job in the Old Testament.  As someone who adheres to the Biblical worldview, we know that God tests people sometimes because of the conversation that God had with Satan in the book of Job:

Job 1:6-12:  "One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.  The Lord said to Satan, 'Where have you come from?'

Satan answered the Lord, 'From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.'

Then the Lord said to Satan, 'Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.'

'Does Job fear God for nothing?' Satan replied.  'Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land.  But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.'

The Lord said to Satan, 'Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.'

Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord."

While it's a bit on the short side in terms of length, and the story feels a bit more on the "tell" side when it comes to the show-don't-tell methodology, An Evil is an incredibly dark and disturbing modern-day re-telling of the beginning of the book of Job, with a surprise twist that leaves you satisfied and marveling at Brittendahl's ability to make you want to turn the page to see what happens next.


Final Grade:  A


To buy the book, click here.

"Eat Meat & Stop Jogging" Review

I don't know about you, but I love to eat food, and I love meat, so when I stumbled across Eat Meat & Stop Jogging and saw a picture of meat on the cover, my interest in the book was raised, as was my interest in the author.

Mike Sheridan is a man whose childhood ambition to play professional football ultimately lead to an obsession with nutrition and fitness, resulting in Mike becoming a nutrition and fitness expert as an adult.  In Eat Meat & Stop Jogging, Mike uncovers everything that’s wrong with fat loss and exercise advice.  Inspired by his personal practice and research, Mike discusses the flaws in today's recommendations to get fit, and shows the negative affect on our health and body composition they have.

As far as how the book is written, it is done quite well.  Even though Mike uses many of the complex names of the different nutrients that our body both needs and doesn't need, he writes in a language that is easy for the average person to follow; as someone who is not familiar with nutrition and how certain nutrients affect the body, I was able to follow along with relative ease.  It was also nice to see Mike make good use of studies and graphs without over-relying on them. 

The only real problem with this book is when Mike attempts to explain the origin of why our bodies require certain nutrients in order to operate at maximum efficiency, and he does so by appealing to the evolutionary worldview, which says such things as the Earth and universe are billions of years old, and that man used to be a bunch of primitive hunter-gatherers thousands upon thousands of years ago.  As a Young Earth Creationist in my apologetics line of work, I challenge both assertions.  Having read the book, I don't think Mike is intentionally trying to deceive people into believing false evolutionary ideas; he seems like a man who espouses evolutionary ideas in regards to nutrition because that is what was taught to him in school.  What it does though is create an interesting contradiction in his book:  he does a great job describing the design of the human body in terms of which nutrients and exercises allow the human body to operate at it's maximum efficiency and what reduces it's maximum capacity on hand, and then he appeals to a worldview that denies such design on the other. 

Conflict of worldviews aside, Eating Meat & Stop Jogging is a highly readable, highly informational book that will help the average joe understand why traditional diets aren't working for them, which in turn helps them make some informed decisions when trying to construct a diet that helps them lose weight without doing long-term harm to their body.  If you're into diet and food books, then Eat Meat & Stop Jogging is a book for you.

Final Grade:  B+

 

"Waves of Reprisal" Review

There have been many, seemingly countless stories and franchises over the years that have been set in a post-apocalypse Earth; some of the more well-known franchises include The Terminator and Resident Evil, I Am Legend and 28 Weeks Later, and The Walking Dead and Kill Zone.

This particular post-apocalyptic thriller novel, Waves of Reprisal by Malcolm Little, is set in a post-apocalyptic earth where most of the human race was wiped out in a mass-extinction event; before that happened though, the humans created a series of androids called Synthoids, who were put into cold storage with the intent of being awoken after the apocalypse to rebuild human civilization.  The humans who survived the mass-extinction event ended up forming a bunch of different villages and living in primitive tribes. 

Hanyma, a woman from the village of Kepler, witnessed the destruction of her village and the murder of her family at the hands of some nasty marauders; Hanyma then spends her days hunting down and killing off the members of this team of marauders one by one.  One day, Hanyma uncovers the chamber where Synthoid X-5, named Lascaux, lay dormant, and Lascaux explains to Hanyma that her mission is to restore human civilization back to what it was before the mass-extinction event, and she needs Hanyma's help to complete her mission.  Hanyma spends the rest of the story torn between her desire to help Lascaux complete her mission to restore human civilization, and her desire to exact vengeance on the group of marauders who slaughtered her village and family.  

Even though the book is less than 300 pages, I found that it was not a quick read.  While the level of detail in the sentences in terms of vocabulary used was very advanced, the flow of the story was very ragged and draggy at times, and it was hard for me to get sucked into the story even though this particular genre of writing is one that I like.  Granted, some people might find nothing wrong with the flow of the story and will get sucked into the book, I just wasn't one of those people.  On the other hand, I was very impressed with the action sequences and fight scenes, and would be interested to see them enacted on a movie screen if that ever happened for this book.

If you're looking for a post-apocalypse action novel that brings a different scenario than your average post-apocalyptic story, and you enjoy following a character who struggles to choose between duty and vengeance, then Waves of Reprisal is a book you should take a look at. 

Final Grade:  B

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To buy the book, go here.