This book is one of the best considerations of the character. In fact, it is amazing for an absolutely perfect character study of Superman, carried ouThis book is one of the best considerations of the character. In fact, it is amazing for an absolutely perfect character study of Superman, carried out in pretty much a single page. There's a little setup, but the scene with Superman on the ledge with Regan is basically the most perfect illustration of Superman's character in all of comics. If you haven't read it, do, if only for this one page. This ought to be required reading for anyone who thinks Superman's powers are his definition....more
The Tower of Swallows starts in the middle of the action. It starts off with one of the major characters being found wounded, and works through the evThe Tower of Swallows starts in the middle of the action. It starts off with one of the major characters being found wounded, and works through the events that led to that in flashbacks where the wounded character and the doctor that finds that character talk about their pasts and exchange some information about each other. It's good in that it relates exposition by exposing character, which is hard to do.
This is still a story in the world of Geralt the Witcher. That means that it's still a story written about a fantasy world where the elves aren't ethereal, willowy walkers of the forest, but an oppressed minority struggling to survive in a world increasingly dominated by humanity. Like George R. R. Martin, Sapkowski removes some of the high epic from fantasy (and really, if you're a fan of the new, gritty sort of fantasy stories, their roots clearly include Sapkowski). I find the Witcher books to be far more enjoyable than a slog like Game of Thrones, but your mileage may vary....more
It's not fiction, but it definitely reads like fiction, or at least, like a screenplay. That's probably not too surprising about one of the most enticIt's not fiction, but it definitely reads like fiction, or at least, like a screenplay. That's probably not too surprising about one of the most enticing murders in the history of the film industry. If you're looking for a careful collection of all the historical documents, laid bare in an easy to access case file, then this is not the book for you. The good news is that William Mann has already gone through the trouble of reading all the dry primary source material and synthesized it into this book, trying to create a narrative of all the events surrounding William Desmond Taylor's death.
Overall, it's a pretty successful retelling of the murder and provides an outline of all the things happening around the murder so that you can sort of see how he comes to the conclusion that he ultimately arrives at for the answer to the question of who killed Taylor. It's not for everyone, I'm sure, but it's not a bad read, overall. Pick it up if you can on the cheap, and it makes for a good bit of reading. A little slow and meandering at times, but that's probably due to the effort to show all the different parties that were associated with the crime at the same time....more
Loading...
