The Lost Symbol

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dan Brown does not disappoint. The Lost Symbol is another fun romp. It's not as revolutionary in concept as The Da Vinci Code. But, Robert Landon's character is familiar and does a good job in introducing more hidden Masonic symbols in the nation's capitol. The rest of the characters are believable enough to keep me turning to the next page.

However, there are some plot holes and technical inconsistencies. I might be a bit of a stickler when it comes to simple function of everyday tools. I can accept the idea of Noetic science. But I can't accept the fact that if one cell phone identifies a call via caller. Then, few pages down, the same cell phone could not call back to the same caller.


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Big Girl Bed

My little girl is not so little anymore. Granted, she's still only 2 and some months, but she has graduated out of her crib. Instead of putting her in a toddler bed, I went ahead and got her a full sized bed. She is tiny compared to the adult-sized bed. Her small body is lost in the pile of pillows and down blanket.

I anticipated difficulty, revolt, nighttime wandering. Instead, she love her bed from day one. She's fully aware that it is her bed, her space. I'm pretty sure she's aware that a bed without bars is a sign that she's not a baby anymore.

I now give her a good night kisses without having to bend over crib railings. She says good night to me and tells me bye-bye to leave her room. She wants to spend alone time on her bed by herself. Looking at her in her own space just shocks me into recognizing how fast my little nugget is growing. Less than 2 years ago, she was barely wiggling on her tummy. Now? Now I have to let her be her own person. Too soon.

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The Sweet Relief of Missing Children

The Sweet Relief of Missing Children by Sarah Braunstein

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm still deciding if I really like the book or annoyed by it. What I like about it is the raw look at being passive and not doing anything. We are all told that children can be anyone and everyone. But, in real life, usually nothing happens. Children grow up. We all become adults with pedestrian lives. Many don't become astronauts, doctors, or Indian chiefs. We all go through our lives passively.

However, I'm annoyed by the transition between characters and time. I devoted too much of my intellectual capacity trying to remember and decipher the characters and how they are related. And the non-linear time progression from one chapter to another taxed my patience. I wished for more linear and simple transition from character to character and chapter to chapter.


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Feed

Feed by M.T. Anderson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A new take on future dystopia where we are "targeted" by corporations and we can't go offline. I like the premise that we are constantly bombarded with messages, banners, and information. Not too far off from the current state of things where we are constantly checking Facebook status, Groupon deals, etc. The plot itself was fine using teenagers to guide the readers through this new world. But, I wish the book dwell deeper into the ramification of being connected and controlled by some unknown corporate/marketing entity.

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I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell

I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm definitely not the right audience or demographic for this book. Granted, there were several funny parts where I laughed out loud because I do enjoy the occasional potty humor. Other than that, I felt like I was reading someone's boastful diary. However, what make it worst for me was, knowing that all these stories are suppose to be true. I'm just glad that my world didn't and will not intersect with the worlds that belong to the author and his friends.

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Tech Toys, I Love Them

I have to confess, I love gadgets. It's a different type of love than what I have for my little girl and the Mister. Gadget love is not reciprocal but, I know it's love. I go to bed with one. I can't leave the house without one. Most of the time, I even have one with me in the bathroom. The only place that I'm not attached to some kind of gadget would be in the shower. That will change whenever things are are water proof.

Some examples of the technologies and gadgets I love:

Kindle: Ever since the Kindle and the Kindle app came along, I've read more books in the last year then the 5 years before that. The simplicity and the portability of having something so easy to use.

iPad: I do everything on this little awesome invention. I read, I watch TV, movies, photos, communicate, what do I not do with it? Not much. This is the little electronic lover that I bring with me to bed, the train, the bus, and the toilet.

HTC Aria: That's correct, not an iPhone. It's the Android platform. The phone itself is just more compact and a bit more geek. The Android platform has simpler multi-tasking. I suspect my beloved iPad will have a challenger soon.

Another of my new love is the OverDrive app. It's an app that hooks up with many public libraries. I can use it to read, checkout ebooks from my local library. It's saving me quite a bit of money.

And I just connected a wireless keyboard to the iPad via bluetooth. Now, I can type as fast as I want and not worry about getting good with touch typing. And, I get the entire iPad screen back.

Gadgets, I love you.

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