Books

For maverick LAPD homicide detective Harry Bosch, the body in the drainpipe at Mulholland Dam is more than another anonymous statistic. This one is personal...because the murdered man was a fellow Vietnam "tunnel rat" who had fought side by side with him in a hellish underground war. Now Bosch is about to relive the horror of Nam. From a dangerous maze of blind alleys to a daring criminal heist beneath the city, his survival insticts will once again be tested to their limit. Pitted against enemies inside his own department and forced to make the agonizing choice between justice and vengeance, Bosch goes on the hunt for a killer whose true face will shock him.

Author Michael Connelly has now written 10 books about detective Harry Bosch, The Black Echo was the first.

Harry Bosch is a loner. He has been in and out of institutions his entire life and seems to have never developed the ability to get close to other people. He is very good at what he does, arguably one of the best, but he is forever chastized for not being part of the police "family." This makes for a very interesting perspective on a mystery; Bosch solves his cases with very little direct help from others.

This is yet another mystery novel that I was unable to put down until I was able to find out "who dunnit." Until the very last pages I was still learning details about how the case was solved, there were no slow moments.

| Forum | Also by Connelly: Void Moon | The Poet

The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger

It was the storm of the century—a tempest created by so rare a combination of factors that meteorologists deemed it "the perfect storm."

When it struck in October, 1991, there was virtually no warning. "She's comin' on, boys, and she's comin' on strong," radioed Captain Billy Tyne of the Andrea Gail from off the coast of Nova Scotia. Soon afterward, the boat and its crew of six disappeared without a trace.

The Perfect Storm is a real-life thriller, a stark and compelling journey into the dark heart of nature that leaves listeners with a breathless sense of what it feels like to be caught, helpless, in the grip of a force beyond understanding or control.

Buy The Perfect Storm $6.99

| Forum |

Though lessened, there still exists a decent amount of controversy over the books in the Harry Potter series. Are they children's books? Are they written for adults? Is it ok for adults to read them? Should I be embarrassed by reading Harry Potter? These questions, though common, are quite absurd. The beauty of these books is simply that they are written for everyone. The only thing required to enjoy Harry Potter is an open mind.

Give author J.K. Rowling a fair chance and her books will take you to another place. The now five (5) book series will transport you from your normal life to a world where humans co-exist with wizards and witches. Open your mind to a hidden society of magic people and follow the maturation of Harry Potter.

When I started reading the books, after they were first released, there was not much excitement surrounding Rowling's work, though you could feel the tide turning. As Harry Potter became a household name, the books began to carry the stigmatism of being for children only. Once this happened, many people who were new to the series knew them only as children's books and would never give them a chance. You may feel the same way. You are doing yourself a disservice if you like to "let go" every once and a while.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Harry Potter has never been the star of a Quidditch team, scoring points while riding a broom far above the ground. He knows no spells, has never helped to hatch a dragon, and has never worn a cloak of invisibility.

All he knows is a miserable life with the Dursleys, his horrible aunt and uncle, and their abominable son, Dudley — a great big swollen spoiled bully. Harry's room is a closet at the foot of the stairs, and he hasn't had a birthday party in eleven years.

But all that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives by owl messenger: a letter with an invitation to an incredible place that Harry — and anyone who reads about him — will find unforgettable.

For it's there that he finds not only friends, aerial sports, and magic in everything from classes to meals, but a great destiny that's been waiting for him... if Harry can survive the encounter.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The Dursleys were so mean and hideous that summer that all Harry Potter wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. But just as he's packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange, impish creature named Dobby who says that if Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.

And strike it does. For in Harry's second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor, Gilderoy Lockhart, a spirit named Moaning Myrtle who haunts the girls' bathroom, and the unwanted attentions of Ron Weasley's younger sister, Ginny.

But each of these seem minor annoyances when the real trouble begins, and someone — or something — starts turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects...Harry Potter himself!

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

For twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black. Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort. Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where he might be headed: Harry Potter's defeat of You-Know-Who was Black's downfall as well. And the Azkaban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, "He's at Hogwarts... he's at Hogwarts." Harry Potter isn't safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends. Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

It's the pivotal fourth novel in the seven-part tale of Harry Potter's training as a wizard and his coming of age. Harry wants to get away from the pernicious Dursleys and go to the International Quidditch Cup with Hermione, Ron, and the Weasleys. He wants to dream about Cho Chang, his crush (and maybe do more than dream). He wants to find out about the mysterious event that's supposed to take place at Hogwarts this year, an event involving two other rival schools of magic, and a competition that hasn't happened for a hundred years. He wants to be a normal, fourteen-year-old wizard. Unfortunately for Harry Potter, he's not normal — even by wizarding standards.

And in his case, different can be deadly.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

"I say to you all, once again—in the light of Lord Voldemort’s return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort’s gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust."

So spoke Albus Dumbledore at the end of Harry Potter’s fourth year at Hogwarts. But as Harry enters his fifth year at wizard school, it seems those bonds have never been more sorely tested. Lord Voldemort’s rise has opened a rift in the wizarding world between those who believe the truth about his return, and those who prefer to believe it’s all madness and lies—just more trouble from Harry Potter.

Add to this a host of other worries for Harry…
• A Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher with a personality like poisoned honey
• A venomous, disgruntled house-elf
• Ron as keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch team
• And of course, what every student dreads: end-of-term Ordinary Wizarding Level exams

…and you’d know what Harry faces during the day. But at night it’s even worse, because then he dreams of a single door in a silent corridor. And this door is somehow more terrifying than every other nightmare combined.

In the richest installment yet of J. K. Rowling's seven-part story, Harry Potter confronts the unreliability of the very government of the magical world, and the impotence of the authorities at Hogwarts.

Despite this (or perhaps because of it) Harry finds depth and strength in his friends, beyond what even he knew; boundless loyalty and unbearable sacrifice.

Though thick runs the plot (as well as the spine), readers will race through these pages, and leave Hogwarts, like Harry, wishing only for the next train back.

One thing that I would say J.K. Rowling does best in her writing is her description of the magical setting at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She has a talent for getting both very detailed and also not crossing the line that would have her too focused on the setting. She keeps the story moving and simply mentions a place, a name, a spell, an object that is entirely made up yet perfect for it's place in the book. She makes the books very entertaining.

I have just finished reading all five books in a row for the first time. I have now read each book twice, and they are still as fun as the first time I read them. I will admit that reading all five in a row was quite cumbersome as they are (especially 4 and 5) such long books.

Part of the fun is in simply trying to guess what Rowling will come up with next!

I highly recommend these books. They truly are a treat for the imagination.

So I happened to check my Amazon recommendations today as I had a brief moment. What I didn't know is that my reputation preceeds me, even on the internet. It was just a normal day seeing mostly the same DVDs that I won't clear out of there as I plan on using them as a rental guide sometime in the future until I happened upon a book in which someone at Amazon thinks I would be interested.

It is safe to say that when I review my recommendations I do NOT expect to see books like, "How to Get Laid Today! The System"

What I want to know now is, Does everyone know? Am I that open of a book that even Amazon can read me? I know I am not good with the ladies, but do I need the internet to rub it in? No.

And I have reached a new low...