Review: A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It was Christmas time, so it was time to re-read "A Christmas Carol". Why is it worth re-reading? Here are three reasons...

One of the greatest opening sentences ever: "Marley was dead: to begin with."

So many memorable (and funny) passages:

“Why do you doubt your senses?” “Because,” said Scrooge, “a little thing affects them. A slight disorder of the stomach makes them cheats. You may be an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone potato. There’s more of gravy than of grave about you, whatever you are!”

And, sadly, still relevant in places:

“They are Man’s,” said the Spirit, looking down upon them. “And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy...

Worth reading every Christmas. God bless us, every one!

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Review: Marvel Ironman: The Gauntlet

Marvel Ironman: The Gauntlet by Eoin Colfer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The book had a lyric from a Rush song as a preface. He had me at hello.

Trouble is, it went a bit downhill from there. Too many easy fixes for what should have been stupidly difficult problems. There was no sense of jeopardy. The thing that annoyed me most though was it read like an advert from the Irish Tourist Board. So, here is a review of the book sponsored by Visit Scotland...

I was thinking about "Marvel Ironman: The Gauntlet" as I walked past the traditional Christmas market in Glasgow's George Square. I decide to read a bit more as I stop for a gastronomic treat, a warming glass of festive cheer and a unique festive gift. As I sat enjoying the warm welcome and the festive atmosphere I contemplated the destruction described in the book. I was reminded of the many examples of world class architecture in Scotland. I hope Ironman and the Mandarin don't destroy the Forth Bridge, Rosslyn Chapel or, worst of all, Charles Rennie Mackintosh's Hill House in Helensburgh, I thought. What a loss it would be to the world if Mackintosh's visually arresting mix of Arts & Crafts, Art Nouveau, Scottish Baronial and Japonisme architecture and design as well as the beautifully restored garden, was demolished in a dust up between Tony and the Mandarin's minions. However, I was reassured by the thought that Tony Stark, that great inventor, would feel at home in the birthplace of inventors like John Logie Baird, James Watt and John Boyd Dunlop. I enjoy reading about Ironman's trip to Ireland but couldn't help think of Bonnie Scotland - there's no place like home!

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