The Perfect Predator by Steffanie Strathdee and Thomas Patterson

Nonfiction

I can’t believe that I found another book about disease and illness that I loved so much when I just finished one not too long ago. It’s the perfect mix of biography and advocacy, but also medical science that an average person will be able to understand. Steffanie Strathdee and Thomas Patterson do an incredible job of telling the story of his battle against a killer bacteria, from the days leading up to his first symptoms, to a year after he finally was able to leave the hospital.

While I was already aware of the dangers our society is facing regarding antibiotic resistance, these two doctors really get the point across that this is an issue that we need to be more aware of and that we need to start making a plan of action towards. In this book, you can learn about how some bacteria have gone from harmless to deadly, the speeds at which they can detect threats and adapt to them, and how quickly they are able to pass along what they have learned when they reproduce, which all factor into how and why some bacteria have become resistant to antibiotics. When a deadly bacteria is resistant to all the medications you can throw at it, the last thing you may be able to do is attack it with bacteriophages, or viruses, but most people do not know about this type of treatment. Even so, knowing about this treatment doesn’t mean you can get it because the treatment is not available everywhere. It has pretty much only been implemented in medical facilities in Georgia and Poland since phage therapy was discovered. Other than that, phage therapy is mostly only studied in labs in very few locations elsewhere and it’s not tested or used to treat humans. This is pretty frightening. 

While not as terrifying as some of the other medical and psychology books I have read, it is still scary to know that there is a really good treatment out there that is not being utilized to its full potential because it is thought of as dangerous, taboo, or second best to traditional antibiotics. I am going to keep my eye out for more books on the subject because I am very curious about this subject seeing as it could be the future of medicine.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Fiction

I’ve been seeing this book everywhere and I finally decided that I needed to see what all the fuss was about. I read it, and I get it. Throne of Glass is the first book in a seven part fantasy series following world famous assassin Celaena Sardothien, but the tale begins with her in confinement rather than discovering her on an exciting and secretive assignment to kill someone. We don’t find out the details of exactly how she got there but I imagine that the details will slowly come out in the next six books. I have already ordered the second book in the series, as I couldn’t find it in stores, and I have also already committed to purchasing them in very nice hardcovers because I have a feeling that this is a series I will thoroughly enjoy and want to reread in the future. 

The only negative thing I have to say about the story is that I think the magical aspects were glossed over too quickly at the end of the book, the going between worlds part during the duel at the end specifically. I feel like a lot was thrown at us very suddenly without there having been a sufficient amount of supplemental information provided in earlier chapters. However, if that was the intent, to get us to wonder what the heck was going on and to anticipate more insight into the magic of this world in the following novels, then it worked. 

Since the next book isn’t due to arrive at my house until Friday, although I am sure I will be able to read it and write a review before Tuesday, my next review will not be the sequel. If I’m feeling motivated I think you can look forward to a bonus review on Friday next week.

David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, And The Art Of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell

Nonfiction

Malcolm Gladwell is one of my favorite authors. I was browsing through the aisles of Barnes and Noble a week ago and I saw one of his books that I had not read yet, but had been meaning to, and I bought it. It was an easy decision for me to make knowing how much I had enjoyed his other books. Also, the book had the original cover design. Personally, I don’t like the new covers as much, plus, I already have the other books in the original white covers and I would only allow myself to buy David and Goliath if it matched. 

I like the way Gladwell writes. He is very obviously an intelligent man, but his books are written in such a way that the concepts are easy to comprehend. It makes me feel as though he wants everyone to be able to get a grasp on the topic at hand, not only the intellectuals, and I like that. I enjoyed how he interviewed many different people and used their real life stories to explain why the seemingly weaker party in a confrontation may end up in a David and Goliath type of outcome. It’s a very inspirational book, it makes me feel like I can one day defeat a giant. If you need a pick me up, pick this up. It took me very little time to read, as I was enjoying it so much, and I feel like it is worth spending a little bit of time when you could benefit so much intellectually and psychologically. I feel as though I gained a lot of insight into how I can prepare for any future battles if I recognize that I am being viewed by others as a longshot.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Fiction

My all time favorite movie is Jurassic Park, the original, the classic. I could watch it every day for the rest of my life and never be bored of it, and it always impresses upon me how well the special effects have held up over time. The film was released in 1993, just three years after the book was written by Michael Crichton. I can’t believe it took me all this time, a spell of over twenty years since I first saw the movie in my friends basement, to finally read the book that inspired the movie. 

From the start, I could see that there were going to be a lot of differences between the book and its film adaptation. Some scenes in the book were excluded from the film but I recognized them as being used in the plot of some of the other films that followed. Some of the characters that live in the movie actually die in the book, and some of the characters that die in the movie survive the Jurassic Park nightmare. There are also some variations in character personality, gender changes, and deviations to the outcome. The differences don’t change my feelings about the book or the movie, I like them both independently of each other. I’m very interested to read the sequel, I wonder if the movie version of The Lost World coincides with the storyline.

Touch of Darkness by Christina Dodd

Fiction

I like this book a lot more than the first book in the Darkness Chosen series, there is more action, a better story, and it is much more spicy. We follow the second eldest Wilder brother, Rurik, the ex military pilot and current archaeologist, as he searches for one of the four icons that his family is desperately trying to find. Unlike how the icon was discovered in Scent of Darkness, finding the second piece requires research, deciphering ancient pictures and symbols, and actual digging. I found this much more exciting than having the icon just falling into the lap of the prophesied chosen one. I love the female love interest in this story as well, Tasya, she is the complete opposite of Ann and I absolutely admire her strength and independence. The entire book gives the feeling of reading a well written movie script, and, in fact, I would love to see this made into a film, I think it would be amazing. 

I have a feeling that out of all the books in this series this one might end up being my favorite. I could be wrong, maybe I just liked this one so much because it makes the first one seem bland in comparison. The ending conveniently sets you up for the next book in the series, which is on order, so I’ll be posting a review of it very soon.