Book review: Dan Brown’s “Inferno”

Posted on May 18, 2013 by Ronald

Dan Brown’s announcement back in January of this year that he would be coming out with a new Robert Langdon thriller was immediate headline news, stoking excitement and anticipation not just from fans but from the publishing world as well.

And why wouldn’t it be met with excitement? Dan Brown’s 2003 thriller, “The Da Vinci Code,” was an international success, and by 2009 had already sold 80 million copies around the world. It has been translated in over 40 languages, and has even been adapted into a blockbuster movie.

The book hasn’t just inspired a movie adaptation, it has also spurred the growth of cottage industries as well. Aside from inspiring several “guides” to the symbols and conspiracies outlined in the book, the “The Da Vinci Code” has also inspired themed tours through Rome, Paris, and London.

The novel that came after “The Da Vinci Code,” 2009’s “The Lost Symbol,” achieved similar success, becoming the fastest selling adult novel in history, with one million hardbound and ebook copies sold on its first day in stores.

It’s not wonder that everyone is looking for “Inferno” — which was released worldwide last Tuesday — to perform. Now that it’s out in the world, will it grip readers’ imaginations the same way “The Da Vinci Code” did? Or has the time come for Robert Langdon to hang up his Harris tweed and call it a day?

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Free Comic Book Day!

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Ronald

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The crowd at National Book Store’s Free Comic Book Day celebrations.

First of all, I’d like to apologize to the handful of people who read this blog. Real life has been a lot hectic lately, and it’s been really hard trying to find the time and the energy to finish reading a book, much less update the blog.

I did, however, manage to squeeze in National Book Store’s (NBS) Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) celebrations last Saturday. I couldn’t stay until the afternoon like I wanted, but I did manage to catch a little bit of the morning activities while I was there.

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Gifts for the newly grad

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Ronald

I resisted the lure of online shopping for the longest time, based on a couple of reasons:

1.) I was one of those people who did not have a credit card until I was well into my job at the broadsheet. And credit cards are essential to online purchases.

2.) Before moving to Manila, I lived in what would be generously labeled as the armpit of the National Capital Region — Pasay City. While delivery service would probably have no trouble finding the post office, getting my packages would involve me risking getting jeered, mugged, or stabbed. For real-real.

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Book review: Daniel Tudor’s “Korea: The Impossible Country”

Posted on April 7, 2013 by Ronald

Sometime you just need some overproduced K-Pop in your life.

Everyone knows about the “Hallyu wave” — the rise in popularity of Korean entertainment and culture that started in the 90s and is still going on today, if the programming of local television stations is taken as an indication.

Beyond their conquest of our airwaves, Koreans are also present in a very physical way here in the country. Not only has the Philippines recently welcomed its one millionth tourist from South Korea, the number of South Koreans coming here to the country to study the English language show no signs of declining any time soon.

However, there is still more to South Korea than K-Pop stars, Korean dramas, and students looking to learn English in a country closer to home. In “Korea: The Impossible Country”, The Economist’s Korea correspondent, Daniel Tudor, takes a look at the country beyond the kimchi and the K-Pop and reveals to readers a complex country full of conflicts and contradictions.

Indeed, there is so much more to Korea than what we see on our television screens — and some of it may even be shocking to the casual follower of Korean history.

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Book review: Jennifer A. Nielsen’s “The False Prince”

Posted on March 8, 2013 by Ronald

Jennifer A. Nielsen is no stranger to epic plots and lovable anti-heroes.

For instance, her “Underworld Chronicles” series features such a formula. The first book in the series, “Elliot and the Goblin War”, charmed readers and reviewers alike as it told the adventures if Elliot Penster, a boy who finds himself in the middle of a war between Goblins and Brownies. Kirkus called “Elliot and the Goblin War” a “quickly addictive page-turner”, and it spawned two equally liked sequels, “Elliot and the Pixie Plot” and :Elliot and the Last Underworld War”.

With “The False Prince”, published by Scholastic, Nielsen is taking that tried and tested formula and setting it in a much darker and deceptive world –  a definite departure from the world the “Underworld Chronicles” introduced to readers. Will going dark work in Nielsen’s favor? Or would it have been better off if she had stuck to her roots?

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Book to movie review: “Beautiful Creatures”

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Ronald

The people who’ve been reading the blog for the past two years know that, with the exemption of “Beautiful Redemption“, I have been a very big supporter of the “Beautiful Creatures” series. I quite frankly bawled at the end of “Beautiful Chaos”.

When news of the movie adaptation came out, I was understandably excited, especially when Jack O’ Connell was first cast in the role of Ethan. Then he got replaced by Alden Ehrenreich, and I was a little bummed.

BUT THEN! Emma Thompson and Jeremy Irons got cast as Sarafine and Macon, respectively, and I felt myself getting excited for the movie adaptation again. Add to that the fact that the movie had some pretty impressive trailers, and I was quite pumped to see it over the weekend.

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Book review: Melissa Marr’s “Carnival of Souls”

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Ronald

From 2007 to 2011, Melissa Marr was a constant presence on bestseller lists, thanks to the five books that make up her “Wicked Lovely” series.

Through “Wicked Lovely,” “Ink Exchange,” “Fragile Eternity,” “Radiant Shadows,” and “Darkest Mercy”, Marr introduced readers to the world of the Faery Courts, where mythical creatures plot and plan against each other and struggle against the machinations of Bananach, the embodiment of war.

After achieving so much success writing faery tales — “Wicked Lovely” peaked at number two on the New York Times Bestseller Lists, while “Ink Exchange” was a Locus Recommended Read — one wouldn’t fault Marr if she kept on doing so.

However, her latest book, “Carnival of Souls”, is certainly something different. Marr takes a break from the world of the fae and introduces readers to The City, a place populated by daimons and where danger, deception, and violence is the norm.

But will Marr’s decision to take on a new world that readers may not be familiar with prove to be a wise one? Will “Carnival of Souls” blaze a new path for Marr, or would she have been better off sticking to what worked in the past?

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Ronreads interview: Lysley Tenorio

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Ronald

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I feel like I have to start this out with an apology.

Lysley Tenorio is a nice guy, who was very accommodating even after a day full of interviews. He answered every question I had, and they were great answers too! He would often be quiet for a few seconds, really digesting the question in his mind, I guess, before replying.

What I feel I need to apologize for is that I could have done better. I feel like I could have asked better questions and dug deeper, but this was an off day for me. Everybody has them, I guess.

In this interview, Lysley Tenorio talks about growing in a multicultural neighborhood in California, getting the emotions rights, and why he loves working with the short story.

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Book review: Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung’s “Avengers: The Children’s Crusade”

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Ronald

I’ve had my copy of “Avengers: The Children’s Crusade” for almost a year now, but it was only until recently that I finally started reading it, mostly spurred on by the release of Kieron Gillen and James Mckelvie’s take on the teenage superheroes.

As I clearly spelled out in my review of the Young Avengers Ultimate Collection, I loved how Heinberg and Cheung took on these superpowered teens. I loved the art, I loved the characterization, and I loved how everything about it still felt so fresh even if it’s been more than half a decade since it was published.

I personally went into “The Children’s Crusade” with quite a bit of expectation, as I knew about bits and pieces of it, thanks to Tumblr. I knew that it would feature multiple superpowered teams, from the Avengers to the X-Men, and I knew that there would be a Wiccan/Hulkling kiss somewhere in there. But were those expectations met? Or is “The Children’s Crusade” a bit of a let-down?

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Scholastic Asian Book Awards looking for entries

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Ronald

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The Scholastic Asian Book Awards (SABA), a joint initiative of the National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS) and Scholastic, is currently looking for entries.

The Scholastic Asian Book Award is awarded every two years to an unpublished manuscript (original or translation) targeted at children aged six to 18 years, written by writers of Asian descent, living in Asia, who are 18 years of age and above.

All submissions must be in English, and a chapter book or novel of 6,000 words or more. The story must be set in Asia and should not be accompanied by illustrations. Entries are limited to one submission per writer.

Entries must be submitted, complete with six copies of each manuscript. The manuscript must be typed double spaced in Times New Roman font, size 12. An official entry form must be attached to each submitted entry. Submissions can be made by mail to: SABA Secretariat, National Book Development Council of Singapore, Geylang East Public Library, 50 Geylang East Avenue 1, Singapore 389777.

The closing date for the 2014 SABA is Oct. 21, 2013, 5 p.m., Singapore time. The results will be declared in May 2014, at the Asian Festival of Children’s Content. For more info, visit www.scholasticbookaward.asia.

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