Chuckles Mini Reviews Catchup

I review everything I read, on my blog and on Goodreads. Most reviews are of a decent length but sometimes you don't have much to say about the book because of its length or you DNFed it or various other reasons. In cases like that it makes sense to write a few mini reviews in one post and clear them out your way! So lets catch up with some reviews from December!

1) James F McCloy & Ray Miller-The Jersey Devil
In the course of its extraordinary history, the Jersey Devil has been exorcised, shot, electrocuted, declared dead, and scoffed at as sheer foolishness none of which has had any apparent effect on it or the people who continue to see it. This mysterious creature is said to prowl the lonely sand trails and mist-shrouded marshes of the Pine Barrens, and emerge periodically to rampage through the towns and cities of New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. The authors point out that while a few appearances have been hoaxes, and other sightings of it have been the result of mass-hysteria, the Jersey Devil has been seen by enough sane, sober, and responsible citizens to keep the possibility of its existence alive today. Many theories about the Jersey Devil's origin are discussed and carefully reviewed and explained by the authors.

The Jersey Devil lives in the desolate Pine Barrens, scaring multiple people all along the Delaware and communities in southern New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. The authors have put together every alleged sighting of the beast, witness statements and discussion over what the people were seeing or experiencing. The authors do their job fine and share every known story they could find and I have no issue with how they put this together. The origin of the monster is quite interesting with various different accounts and theories. It is the information in the monster reports itself that lacks interest for me. I was just expecting something a bit more exciting. Most of the reports are very old, dating back to to the early 1900's and few after that. The photos shown were things like cops hanging up a sign declaring the Jersey Devil was a hoax, a man walking on a path, a kid selling pinecones, aerial view of a highway...but only one close up of the alleged tracks left and one of an alleged birthplace of the monster. The rest is drawings and posters. It didn't make me want to believe in the monster or want to rush to the area to explore the legend. It was ok but nothing more. If you want to read the accounts, I suggest borrowing a copy rather than buying it. I'll stick to Jersey Devil fiction!

Read December 2019
2 stars.  

2) Saul Tanpepper-Shelter in Place
Originally published as Lockdown in The Doomsday Chronicles anthology. When her elementary school goes into lockdown, a third grade teacher shifts into survival mode. But she'll soon discover that the children under her charge pose as much risk as any threat waiting outside her door.Shelter in Place is a standalone short story in the world of Bunker 12. 

I have yet to read The Flense or Bunker 12 books but I certainly plan to, so it seemed safe enough to read a short stand-alone story in that world. It makes me want to read them even more as the idea of such a scary type of disease really appeals to a reader like me. This is a virus that is passed from simple skin contact-think how deadly that could be-and it turns the infected feral and eager to spread the infection further. In this story Allison, a schoolteacher, has two kids in her class while the others go to the library. Without warning, the school goes into lockdown with orders over the tannoy about not opening the door or attracting attention to where you are. As the time ticks by, Allisons fears multiply with the messages from parents on her phone and the infected roaming outside. I really enjoyed the book and it shows her fear, her impatience with a boy who won't do what he was told and a desire to protect the kids. It looks like a good way for those new to the author to see what he is all about and I liked it!

Read December 2019
3.5 stars.

3) Michael Ashcroft-The Lost Majority
The 2017 general election was supposed to be a walkover for the Conservative Party – but the voters had other ideas. In The Lost Majority, Lord Ashcroft draws on his unique research to explain why the thumping victory the Tories expected never happened. His findings reveal what real voters made of the campaign, why Britain refused Theresa May’s appeal for a clear mandate to negotiate Brexit and where the party now stands after more than a decade of ‘modernisation’ . And, critically, Ashcroft examines the challenges the Tories face in building a winning coalition when 13 million votes is no longer enough for outright victory. This is an indispensable guide that will provide food for thought to anyone wishing to examine in detail what really happened on 8 June, 2017, and how this will impact on future elections. 

I'm very much a political animal so I love looking at analysis of general election voting and the reasons behind a win or a loss. I vividly remember being shocked and unconvinced by May's early call but I did expect her to win, based on her huge lead in the polls. But as I watched the campaign unfold I grew irritated by her mantra of 'strong and stable', the way she seemed unwilling to dare go outside in case she bumped into a real voter-and the unpopular policies she announced then U-turned on. It was a shambles of a campaign that cost her the majority she had been looking to increase and allowed a following two years of Remainer MPs blocking Brexit and messing up everything. It was interesting to hear what the interviewed voters said and see the voting statistics. I like the author's work and intend to read more by him in the future. 

Read December 2019
3 stars.

4) Stan Berenstain-The Bear's Picnic 
Illustrated in full color. The Berenstain Bears endure countless trials before finding a suitable picnic spot. 

*giggles* Papa Bear decides to take his wife and son on a picnic to get them out of the house for the day but it seems that didaster falls everywhere they go...trains, crowds, insects, rain...one thing after another! I loved the frazzled expressions of Mama Bear who is quickly getting frustrated with her husband! One of the better books for kids, done in rhyming sentences for added fun. 

5) JK Rowling-Fantastic Beasts 
J.K. Rowling's screenwriting debut is captured in this exciting hardcover edition of the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them screenplay. When Magizoologist Newt Scamander arrives in New York, he intends his stay to be just a brief stopover. However, when his magical case is misplaced and some of Newt's fantastic beasts escape, it spells trouble for everyone…

I'm not really a reader of screenplays but I did enjoy The Cursed Child and decided to try this one. I liked the character of Newt because he had such love for the animals that he was transporting, and the zoo inside his suitcase was a fascinating concept. But reality suggests that maybe he just do a spell and fix the clasp on it rather than wait for the creatures to escape and then try to round them up? Anyway the creatures escape and mayhem ensues. I liked the early scenes as he argued with the contents of his case and tried to track a niffler who I loved in the main Harry Potter series. However I was less keen on the setting of 1920's New York. The whole reason I loved Harry Potter so much is because of how British it was. Most of what I read and watch these days is American so I wanted this to be British too. 

I also found it hard to imagine the animals being described in the zoo setting, which is a serious limitation of the screenplay format. The other limitation is the lack of character development, something that was excellent in the Potterverse. I feel that this would have worked so well as a book rather than screenplay as it loses all her descriptive powers by cramming it into a couple of lines. I also didn't really take to the anti-witch woman and her rallies for a sub-plot. I was a bit disappointed by this compared to what I hoped it could be. I hope I like the film more and plan to watch it soon.

Read December 2019
2 stars.