Category: Book review

“Tesla’s Words: A Stunning Utopia of the Future” By Ellis Oswalt Review

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Tesla’s Words is a reconstruction of Nikola Tesla’s autobiography designed for a 21st century audience. In the book, Nikola Tesla speaks to you directly to share the story of how he came to invent the modern world. He shares some of the most intimate details of his life, and speaks at length about a mysterious life-long health condition that renders his mind into perpetual, fantastical hallucinations and inconceivable mental abilities that sound like magic.

If you are a Nikola Tesla fan as I am, this book is for sure a must read and it is a quit enjoyable and quick read as well. Which makes this book even more fun to read. 

So this one was pretty good book about Nikola Tesla and his words together with his ideas and facts which the world at some point or another have forgotten. Which in my opinion is super bad because I can’t get my head around the fact about how we can forget stuff about probably one of the most important people in the history of humankind and the entire earth as an independent planet. 

The writing style was far from good, and it was clear that this book was re-written by a first time author. Which really speaks for itself. 

I personally appreciate the amount of the knowledge which this book and author gives, because you can really learn a lot from it. Even if you think that you know a lots about him.

Keep in mind that this book is sort of re-written by Ellis Oswalt, the first versions of this in sorts is written by the man himself which of course is Nikola Tesla.

However this book there were times were this book was super boring which of course isn’t great. 

This book could have been written in a much better way than it already was. 

I give this book 2 / 5

“Frankenstein” By Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Review

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Frankenstein tells the story of gifted scientist Victor Frankenstein who succeeds in giving life to a being of his own creation. However, this is not the perfect specimen he imagines that it will be, but rather a hideous creature who is rejected by Victor and mankind in general.

Let me just start this review with saying that this one is a fucking classic and if you are a book reader and lover you just must read this one.

You won’t regret reading this one as long as you are into horror and gothic story which will drag you into the story and wont let you go until you finish the book.

This one have surprised me a lot because I was expecting a super hard book with very difficult old english in it but oh boy it had surprised me. But in fact it is the full opposite of it. The language in this one was super interesting and enjoyable, it was easy and it seemed like a mix between Edgar Allan Poe and Stephen King. 

This one is just an incredible tale of horror which wouldn’t be written in a better way. 

The writing style of the author is fucking incredible and probably the best I have seen in my reading journey which really speaks for itself when it beats Stephen King and the rest. The writing style is completely beautiful and it really brings a lot into the story.

There were moments in this book which seemed a little bit as a drag but they are survivable.

This one beats most of the modern day horror books which also says a lot about how good this one really is.

However there are people who wont like this one because it has a huge gothic vibe to it and it isn’t scary as you may expect. This one is rather a thriller book than a horror book.

This one is a classic for a reason and you will know why when you read this one. 

This one is so far in the top 10 books Ive read so far in my life and I have read over 350 books.

I give this book 4 / 5

“I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer” By Michelle McNamara Book Review

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A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case. “You’ll be silent forever, and I’ll be gone in the dark.”

Since this book was released back in 2018 I wanted to read this book so badly that I can’t even explain it, and finally this year I read it.

To be honest I had low expectations for this book, but oh boy I was wrong with setting these small expectations. This book was not full pot book but it was close to it.

If you are interested in true crime and cold cases you should definitely read this book if you haven’t so far. 

I need to say that so far this book is my favourite true crime book I’ve read. 

This book was super interesting and I couldn’t stop reading this book at times. Which doesn’t happen a lot in true crime books, because most of the true crime books happens to be boring because of the amount of details they provide and zero room for personal thinking.

This book not only covers the details about the case but also it covers all the people which have helped Michelle McNamara coming closer and closer to solving this case. It also involves the journey which lead Michelle McNamara becoming obsessed with cold cases.

This book gives you a lots of details about the Golden State Killer and all of his rapes and kills. But these details which this book provides you aren’t overwhelming which happens in a lots of true crime books now on days.

Michelle McNamara was an incredible true crime writer and investigator which both hers blog (which you can find here) and this book.

This book also provides you with a lots of details about the police investigations and all the wrong things the police have done during the investigations. But this one also shows that the Golden State Killer was much more smarter than a lots of people thought he was. 

I personally also have a huge obsession with true crime or to be more specific with cold cases so when I’ve heard that this book was coming out I just knew that I’ve got to read it. 

After reading this book I’ve understood why this book won Goodreads Choice for best nonfiction book in 2018. The reason behind why this book won this is because this book is amazing and fucking good.

This book is one of the few books where you wish it could have been longer, which doesn’t happen a lot. 

I give this book 4 / 5

“The Devil’s Advocate” by Andrew Neiderman Review

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When Kevin Taylor joins the Manhattan criminal law firm of John Milton and Associates, he’s hit the big time. At last, he and his wife can enjoy the luxuries they’ve so desired. A chauffeur-driven limo, a stunning home in the very building that Mr. Milton himself lives in. Little does Kevin realize that he’s joined a strange brotherhood which goes deeper than he can even imagine at first.

30 years have passed since this book have been first published, but it this book didn’t lose the eerie impression of something being very wrong in a dream situation. 

It’s important to say that this book is very different from the movie with Keanu Reeves. But this doesn’t mean that this book is less interesting, fun and enjoyable to read. However the movie is much better than this book.

This book only covers the basics of what the movie actually covers. This book could have been longer if the author actually bothered to give us meat on the bone than just a raw bone which this book actually is. This book is written in a such way that the reader needs to imagine and explain almost 40 % of what’s happening in the book.

The plot is amazing, but this book leaks explanation, details and descriptions. For the most part this book have descriptions which goes something like “he was dressed in black suit and white shoes” or “the apartment was big with kitchen, bathroom, living room and two bedrooms”. Easily said this book have a lots of poor and sometimes even bad descriptions and details. What Im trying to say here is that this book is very much tell and not show type of book which not a lot of people like.

However this book still have something to it which keeps you reading until the last page especially if you haven’t watched the movie before reading this book. 

The characters itself in this book are pretty basic. And for the most part it is easy to see how is the good guy, how is the crazy guy, and how is the bad guy here. The characters are very flat in this book and they are very one dimensional. Which will soon or later make you tired or annoyed by some characters in this book. 

The dialogues in this one, was oh boy. They were so cringe, clichéd and lame. You can’t even imagine them if you haven’t read this book yet. At the beginning they were somehow good, but as the story continued they just went downhill with the rest of the story in this book.

The author could have go into more details, deep and for the most part put much more work into this story. Because this book doesn’t feel like it was written by someone who became writing back in 1987. 

The whole picture of this book feels very lazy. Because this book have a large potential which was far away from using.

For the most part people who haven’t watched the movie will like / love this book. But when it comes to people who have watched the movie will don’t like it or even hate it. Because the movie is so much better than this book.

This book is a rare case (which almost never) of a movie being 10 times better than the novel the movie being based off. 

I give this book 2 / 5

“The Diary of a Young Girl” By Anne Frank Review

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Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl is an inspiring and tragic account of an ordinary life lived in extraordinary circumstances that has enthralled readers for generations. In Amsterdam, in the summer of 1942, the Nazis forced teenager Anne Frank and her family into hiding. For over two years, they, another family and a German dentist lived in a ‘secret annexe’, fearing discovery.

This one is really worth reading because it opens your eyes on things you probably didn’t think about or consider. Of course this one is hard to read at times because of what Anne Frank had written about the life in her hidden place and how it really is to be hidden for over then 2 years which is a fucking long time.

It’s important to say that this book might not be for everyone, because of the harsh reality of it and the tragic life which Anne Frank and her family had. 

For everyone who is interested in World War 2 just like me this book is a must read because it gives you a perspective from a jews girl who was very optimistic and hoped for the best even when she knew that the reality might be very different then what she hopes it would be some day.

This book is very different from most books about World War 2 because it comes from a perspective of a little jew girl who was in hiding with her family for over 2 years to escape the Holocaust. 

This book is really hard to review because it’s not a typical book in which you can point out things you like and not like. This book is essentially a diary written by a girl during war time and you sort of cant say “oh, this is wrong” because people who didn’t go through Holocaust dont know what it really was like to suffer in these fucking places. 

But of course this diary / book was written by a 13 / 14 year old girl which means that there are a lots of cringe moments in it. So be warned about that.

This book at times also feels like a hardcore history lesson which not everyone will like, but I guess that there are people who are like me and prefer to rather have a hardcore history lesson than a censured history lesson.

There were also times were this book felt like a major gossip written by a teen girl who is shitty about her parents because they didn’t allow her to do things which she wanted to do. 

I give this book 3 / 5

“Hjertet mot steinen” By Adrian Pracon Review

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On July 22, 2011, AUFs and Norwegian Pole Adrian Pracon will face Anders Behring Breivik on Utøya. Pracon prays for his life, but realizes deep down that he is going to die. For a few long seconds, he waits for the shot that will end his life. But the mass murderer lowers his weapon, turns around and walks away.

At the time of writing this book is only available in Polish and Norwegian so keep that in mind. 

This book is a nonfiction book about the July 22, 2011 Norway attacks written from the survivors perspective.

This book was much better than “One of Us” by Åsne Seierstad which was reviewed on the blog somewhen in 2020. (LINK HERE.) But it wasn’t so good to get 5 stars. Because there were various errors which didn’t go so well with me at least. 

The writing style was pretty decent but there were parts where the writing could have been better than it was. 

The whole book is pretty closed-off, and the author sort of tells you how you should feel about things you read in this book. Which shouldn’t happen in books especially when it comes to nonfiction books because everyone will more or less react and feel differently about the same things. And by doing this the author will make it super hard for many readers to like or even relate to what they are reading. 

There were many times in this book where it felt like you are just reading someone’s letter to his / hers therapist and not like you are reading a nonfiction book. It might have been the authors way of dealing with the trauma after the attack but still it didn’t feel like something which should have published for many people read. 

Half of the book was about days and events which the author have done in days leading to July 22, 2011 and pretty much of the topic which this book was about. The whole topic of what it was like to be on the island when the shooting happened tok maximum 10 pages. And then the book went to the criticising and bitching about the predator and the court trails which happened. 

If you want to read something which really will make you think and still is about the July 22, 2011 Norway attacks then you should much rather choose “One of Us” by Åsne Seierstad than this one because 60% of this book is about the authors life before the shooting massacre on that island, 5% is about the shooting and 35% is about the court trails. 

The author could have used more time on it and plan it out much more. It would have been so much better if the author would have written bigger book than what it is (only 170 fish pages) and focus much more on what happened on the island and the court trails than about his life pre July 22, 2011.

I give this book 3 / 5

“The Last Days of Jack Sparks” By Jason Arnopp Review

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Jack Sparks died while writing this book. It was no secret that journalist Jack Sparks had been researching the occult for his new book. No stranger to controversy, he’d already triggered a furious Twitter storm by mocking an exorcism he witnessed. Then there was that video: forty seconds of chilling footage that Jack repeatedly claimed was not of his making, yet was posted from his own YouTube account. Nobody knew what happened to Jack in the days that followed, until now.

I personally had high expectations for this book which it didn’t live up to.

This book is sort of a horror and paranomal book, which had the potential to be good but wasn’t that. It would be much better if we first got to know Jack and his investigation and then throughout his brother which is also in this book we would learn what have happened to him.

I need to give this book points for being funny and the fact that I personally could relate to Jack at the beginning.

The story itself was amazing but wasn’t used in the right way as I metioned above. The story had the potential to create this book one of the best horror books but all we got is a skeleton of a story.

Story started off right up my alley and I thought that I will love it. But after around 80 pages all I wanted is the book to end as fast as possible. An Italian exorcism that Jack gets permission to watch for his next book, the whole principle of the story sounds very interesting, but we as readers need much more than just a good idea for a book.

The main character Jack, was at the begining an amzing character he was sort of a jerk and a huge skeptic in the paranormal which I also am so it made it very easy to releate to him. But after around 100 pages he became more and more annoying. And the rest of the characters in this book was sort of just there to fill the story.

This book was definitely an odd book which had a big potential but it wasn’t scary or even close to it. So this book won’t get points for that.

The writing style was okay, but it could be better than it was. There were points in this book where the writing style was insufferable.

The ending is sort of hard to describe or say anything about without spoling anything for you. All I can say is that it was weird.

Overall this book was entertaining at times but it lacks elements which would make this book good or anthing close to it.

I give this book 1 / 5

“Thinking, Fast and Slow” By Daniel Kahneman Review

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In the highly anticipated Thinking, Fast and Slow, Kahneman takes us on a groundbreaking tour of the mind and explains the two systems that drive the way we think. System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. Kahneman exposes the extraordinary capabilities—and also the faults and biases—of fast thinking, and reveals the pervasive influence of intuitive impressions on our thoughts and behaviour.

This one is definitely a must read book, because there are a lots of things which you will learn about your brain and yourself. And most of these things are things which you probably didn’t think about before.

This book explains also a lots of psychological reasons behind the decisions and action we take even when we dont think about it. Dont worry this book explains this in a very easy and smooth way and everyone will at least understand 50% of this book.

I need to give this book points for being very quick read at least for me. 

By reading this book you can just skip reading books like “Black Swan”, “Blink”, “Nudge” and very likely hundreds of other Behavioural Economics books because this one really covers what most Behavioural Economics books leak to cover. 

If you are interested in psychology or in why human beings behave the way they behave you should read this book. 

I need to be honest and say that this book is pretty lengthy, self-conscious and a challenging read if it is your first book about psychology. But you will gain a lots out of this book when you only give it a try. 

This book gives you a fascinating and very interesting study of the human mind. But also about how people make decisions together with how the decision-making process can be improved.

This book was written by a Nobel-prize-winning economist which can be trusted that he isn’t feeding us bull shit. 

I give this book 4 / 5

“Alien” By Alan Dean Foster Review

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Based on the screenplay by Dan O’Bannon. The crew of the spaceship Nostromo wake from cryogenic sleep to distress signals from an unknown planet. One is attacked when they investigate a derelict alien craft. Safely on their way back to Sol, none foresee the real horror about to begin.

So another boring science fiction book about aliens killing everyone on board of a space ship. 

I need to say that I’m not a fan og science fiction genre no matter if we are talking about books, movies or video games. The science fiction genre is not something for me.

This book is the first Alien Movie Novelisations, which isn’t that great as the movie itself as you can expect. To be honest here with you the movie wins over this book in every single way you can imagine to look at it.

The writing style is boring and very poorly used. Its also very simplistic and it feels like it was written by a high school students writing this book in a huge rush. 

When it comes to the scary part of this book when the Alien is chasing and killing every human on board the ship. Then you have to know that it wasn’t scary, a kid in the kindergarten would be scared and nobody else pretty much.

The characters were very badly done. The same characters were much better in the movie than they were in this book. 

I give this book 1 / 5

“Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future” By Ashlee Vance Review

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Elon Musk, the entrepreneur and innovator behind SpaceX, Tesla, and SolarCity, sold one of his internet companies, PayPal, for $1.5 billion. Ashlee Vance captures the full spectacle and arc of the genius’s life and work, from his tumultuous upbringing in South Africa and flight to the United States to his dramatic technical innovations and entrepreneurial pursuits. Vance uses Musk’s story to explore one of the pressing questions of our age: can the nation of inventors and creators who led the modern world for a century still compete in an age of fierce global competition? He argues that Musk is an amalgam of legendary inventors and industrialists including Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Howard Hughes, and Steve Jobs. More than any other entrepreneur today, Musk has dedicated his energies and his own vast fortune to inventing a future that is as rich and far-reaching as the visionaries of the golden age of science-fiction fantasy.

If you are like me and you are a big fan of Elon Musk and a big geek of Tesla and SpaceX, you will enjoy this book. Because this book provides us with a lots of information about Elon Musk and what kind of a person he is in his comapnies and behind closed doors.

This book is excellent and inspiring. It might also give you motivation about following your dreams and make cool projects no matter the odds against you. If you are afraid of taking action because you think that your business will not make it than remeber that Tesla had very small chances to succeed back in 2003 but look at it now.

This book shows that being reckless like Elon Musk helps. Elon Musk was reckless in two areas: in the risks he took, and the way that he manages his companies.

The attitude which the author took with hounding to Elon Musk and wearing him down till he agreed to cooperate with this biography, was amazing but still there are couple of things which this book could be better.

There are moments in this book which the author is like”Holy crap, Elon Musk is CRAZY”. And thats the thing every genius is in their own way crazy untill everyone sees that they are actually not that crazy after all.

Elon Musk’s comapnies are also the most exciting companies ever. And the fact that you can read about their early struggles at the beggining are amazing, and really brings a light that every company have the change to succeed no matter what.

The writing style itself is pretty good but there are times where the writing could be much better than it actually was. But I think that in this asspect and in this book that doesnt matter that much because of the whole concept of this book and idea behind it.

Even if you are not the biggest fan of Tesla, Space X, Solar City or Elon Musk you will at least have the opinion that this book is pretty decide and worth reading. Because there are always something to learn when it comes to big and important people like the goat himself aka Elon Musk.

Elon Musk is an important innovator of our times, but the author could take different take with this book. Of course the author had many interviews with Elon Musk and it would be very dope if he had mentioned stuff about there interviews and his feelings he got out of these interviews. It would have been also very dope if the author had involved some of these interviews in this book and not just talk about Elon Musk and his dope companies.

Of course this biography isnt the best one which you can find. But still you will learn something from it and most of you will enjoy it.

I give this book 4 / 5