Wellington High School and Com Ed Centre

35,795 pages read and 2,326 team points

Team members

VSW

7,418 pts

(6,139 pages read)

Ezaara

By Eileen Mueller

3 stars

YA fantasy. The first half is a bit dire with predicable plot turns. But it picks up a bit in the second half. Interesting reading it after reading the prequel a few weeks ago.
Stone & Sky

By Ben Aaronovitch

4 stars

Technically this should not be regarded as a Rivers of London book (although it is in the main sequence) as it takes place up in Scotland. Interesting story, weaving in local narratives and odd spots. I found the editing a little off, and the overt use of a lot of Scottish idioms slightly off putting. Still a great read, and nice to see both Bev and Abigail play bigger roles.
The Cryptic Clue

By Amanda Hampson

5 stars

Wonderful cozy crime. Elderly tea-ladies solve mysteries and go on strike when serve-your-own coffee machines are introduced to the workplace. Now I need to go back and read the first one.
The Lincoln Highway

By Amor Towles

3 stars

As I enjoyed 'A Gentleman in Moscow' I was looking forward to this. It is not as good. This book feels very much like a road trip, it ambles around, and the journey is the point, rather than the destination. Which is just as well. While beautifully written, I found the ending both rushed and unsatisfying. The book as a whole felt less than the sum of its parts.
The Hitwoman's Guide to Reducing Household Debt.

By Mark Mupotsa-Russell

2 stars

This book can't quite decide what it wants to be. It starts off as almost cozy crime, but then we get some quite traumatic scenes. And it ends up being more of a thriller. Interesting idea, that made me remember "The Long Kiss Goodnight" - more from the overall premise of 'Retired hitwoman's past comes back to haunt her' than the execution.
Death and Croissants

By Ian Moore

3 stars

A fun Cozy murder. The protagonist is a mid-fifties Englishman running a B&B in France. The slightly younger and much more vivacious Valerie enters his life like a whirlwind and much chaos ensues.
Tailored Realities

By Brandon Sanderson

4 stars

A collection of short stories. Mostly not part of his other series. Some are very short, and at least one is novella length (150 pages) - but this is Sanderson who is not exactly known for the briefness of his tales.
The Night Before Christmas

By Clement C. Moore (& Niroot Puttapipat)

5 stars

A lovely cut-away/pop up version of the poem. Fun to read out-loud.
Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us

By Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross

2 stars

This book should have been good. It reads like popular science with the topic being the intersection between art and neuroscience. However, in spite of lots of interesting anecdotes, I found this really tough going. It feels very "New Agey", and the chapters are really long (typically 30 pages or so), which makes it hard to pick up for short periods of time. Ultimately, I was left feeling this should have either been a lot shorter or contained more science and less stories. Ironic given that part of the premise is around how stories are important for learning.
Strange Houses

By Uketsu

0 stars

This is a strange book indeed. Maps, murder and an old family curse. It has all the ingredients, but it didn't come together for me. Perhaps it is just that translated from Japanese the language and/or cultural aspects get lost, so it feels jarring.
Stray Cat Blues

By Ben Aaronovitch

4 stars

The latest Rivers of London graphic novel. The foxes find they are outmatched by some cat-girls.
Shipping: Today and Yesterday(August)

By Nigel Lawrence(ed)

3 stars

A magzine delivered by Santa. The first several pages read like a gossip column of which shipping lines (and ports) are doing what to whom - and notable accidents. Kiwi rail even gets a mention! There are lots of articles, including one about the Wairarapa, the first "cruise" ship to visit the Pacific Islands - and her sad fate. There are actually a good number of articles about a surprisingly diverse set of topics (including using cargo ships to carry lots of pilgrims on the Haji - a big photo of several of these even make the center pages!) This made for a surprisingly interesting read.
Everyone this Christmas has a Secret

By Benjamin Stevenson

5 stars

A nice easy read mystery story. This continues the series, but there are extra rules this time. Not only does it have to conform all the rules of a mystery novel from the classic age, but also the rules of a Holiday Special. Very enjoyable.
Sharing the Sun

By Viggers, Stuart & Howden-Chapman (eds)

5 stars

This starts with a great overview of the history of electricity generation and regulation in Aotearoa. It then moves on to discuss distributed generation in theory before branching into case studies in both urban and rural areas. It finishes with a chapter on passive houses and an overview of the difficulties facing large scale distributed generation at the moment. A very interesting read.
For Duck's Sake

By Donna Andrews

5 stars

Meg Langslow continues to solve improbable mysteries in the lovely and festive town of Caerphilly. This time it is digging a new duck pond that is the catalyst for solving a thirty year old murder. There are all the regular shenanigans - this time Meg is busy organizing a Mutt March, to encourage the adoption of hundreds of dogs from local animal shelters, which makes for an interesting backdrop for the rest of the action.
Anakisha's Dragon

By Eileen Mueller

3 stars

Young adult Fantasy Fiction. Starts a bit slow but the pace picks up. This is the first book in a prequel series.
Operation Biting: The 1942 parachute assault to capture Hitler's RADAR

By Max Hastings

3 stars

A good review of the operation. However inconsistent editing leads to occasional annoyances in reading. Much time is spent early in the book discussing some of the personalities, but then we don't get to necessarily see much of what they ended up doing. Likewise, there is little conclusion about how important the actual outcome was (as opposed to the propaganda value).
OOTS: Dim Sun

By Rich Burlew

3 stars

A dark-sun alternate universe for the Order of the Stick
Death at the Dolphin

By Ngaio Marsh

3 stars

A bit slow paced. Read more like a romance than a detective story.
Slow down or die. The economics of Degrowth

By Timothee Parrique

4 stars

A full thought out, though distinctly Marxist leaning discussion of degrowth whys and hows. It covers a lot of the history of the degrowth movement along with its philosophy and politics, along with the economic and environmental necessity behind it.
Starter Villain

By John Scalzi

4 stars

This is a fun filled story of someone inheriting their uncle's villainous business. Lots of humour, a series of running gags with a coherent storyline behind it.
Bad Luck and Trouble

By Lee Child

3 stars

Standard Jack Reacher. Looks like it was the basis for one of the TV seasons. This volume sees Jack catch up with what has been happening to his team from the past.

18 - 0 - 1

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Wellington High School and Com Ed Centre

35,795 pages read and 2,326 team points

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