Review of "Wilson," by Daniel Clowes

Review of

Wilson, by Daniel Clowes ISBN 9781770460072

Four out of five stars

Self-absorption on steroids

 Some losers are lovable in their antics, others annoying and a few you want to give a hard slap to. Wilson is in the last category, his self-absorbed thoughts and actions turn off fellow passengers on mass transit, people that he meets on the street, his ex-wife and the daughter that he did not know existed. When those characters are introduced, they are not much more than animated mannequins, providing little in the way of meaningful responsive dialog.

 Wilson is one of those people that will ask you a standard opening line question and then complain about the response. The character is summed up very well by a single caption of the short strip on the back cover. Wilson is browsing in a bookstore and he says, “All these books and not a single one about me!”

 Clowes is to be commended for going where other cartoonists fear to tread, having Wilson making nasty comments to his father in his deathbed during his last hours of life. That is indicative of most of the humor in the book, dark, gloomy and offensive to many. If there is a theme to the book it is petty self-absorption to the point of being a person you would like to kick hard in the privates.

Review of "The Awakening: A Woman’s Search For Truth," by Lisa Anne

Review of

The Awakening: A Woman’s Search For Truth, by Lisa Anne, ISBN 9781440197093

Four out of five stars

 In the broad view, this is a book about a woman in a failing marriage with three children that keep her running fast and furious. Meg Richards is married to Craig and he is struggling in his job, losing a major account to their neighbor. Craig is a person with problems from his childhood that Meg only has a slight understanding of and he is withdrawing from both the marriage and their children. All other members of the household tense up when he comes home, there are no significant conversations between Craig and Meg or the children.

Meg has two siblings that were always the ones favored by the parents and that has extended into adulthood. Conversations with her mother never seem to have any content in the form of support or assistance to Meg. A therapist, Meg is very good at her job, but that talent is divorced from her personal life. She does have one close friend, a woman that was abused as a child and is still working through the long-term consequences.

 The story moves along well, despite the relatively innocuous events. There are no dynamic and extremely tense moments, just situations that all people face at some point in their lives. For example, nearly everyone with children has attended a gathering where it was necessary to bring food and purchased their contributions due to a lack of time.

 In the last section of the story, Meg learns a great deal about Craig’s childhood problems and the truth about the lives of her sisters. In many ways the book reminded me of the classic “Catcher in the Rye” where the main character thinks everyone is phony. It turns out that everyone Meg deals closely with is wearing a Potemkin facade that covers what they really are. Once Meg understands this, she realizes that her life is not the relatively hopeless entity that she thought it was. For nothing alters your perspective more than learning that the people you envy in fact envy you.

Review of "Explore the World of Space and the Universe," by Iain Nicolson

Review of

Explore the World of Space and the Universe, by Iain Nicolson ISBN 0307686086

Four out of five stars

 Written in 1992, this book about the stars, planets and other astronomical objects is somewhat dated. Yet, for the most part it remains accurate and the colorful images and explanations are interesting to look at and read. Astronomy is one of the most fascinating areas of study and this book is an excellent primer written for the child in the middle years of elementary school.

 Telescopes and the locations of some of the most famous ones are also mentioned. While there is little depth to the coverage, this is an excellent selection as a child’s first book on astronomy.