Orbital by Samantha Harvey

"Essentially, it's the story of six Astronauts, working and living on the International Space Station that orbits the Earth. Though the author tried to give the characters background, the book was too short to make any one character stick out and the lack of a cohesive plot made it so the book just kept going, around and around, much like the Space Station in its continuous orbit of the Earth."

⭐⭐

Pros: There were moments of true beauty at the beginning, seeing Earth from the vantage point of Space.

Cons: The author tried to give the characters background but they all kind of blurred together, none of them really stuck out/The narrative, since there was no real plot, just ended up going around and around in circles, meandering and pointless.

Full Review:

This book follows six astronauts who are on the space station that’s orbiting earth. To be perfectly honest, none of the character stuck out to me enough to remember their names or their places of origin.

There were a few moments where the author tried to give the characters back story, such as when Chie learned that her mother has passed and she won't be there for the services. Or when a super typhoon forms over the Pacific and one of the astronauts remembers befriending a fisherman on a trip he took with his wife. He knows the typhoon is forming just over that small chain of Pacific islands and he hopes his friend will be okay.

Overall though, try as the author might, this book just kind of meandered and spun its way around and around, much like the space stations continuous orbit of Earth. There was no real cohesive plot, so nothing really happened. This book was only a little over 200 pages and honestly, it took me a long time to read because, nothing really caught my interest.

Comments

Animal Farm by George Orwell

"A blithe and scathing commentary on equality, power, corruption and how everyone is created equal, but...some are more equal than others. Orwell hit the nail right on the head with this novel and it's no wonder it's a staple for most high school curriculums. " 3 Stars. Pros: Benjamin the Donkey is the smartest animal on the farm and it would have done all the others a world of good if they had listened to him in the first place. Cons: The fact that societies like this actually do exist is nauseating and terrible. It's not a con, per se, it's just a gut wrenching fact. Full Review: When the overworked and mistreated Animals on Manor Farm decide to rise up and overthrow their cruel master, they're successful. They rebel and now find themselves with an entire Farm to run. They rename it Animal Farm and are intent on creating a paradise, where work and play are equal, where productivity is key but relaxation is a must and all the lives of all the animal...

Fantastic Voyage by Isaac Asimov

"When a scientist, Benes, who has integral and world changing information attempts to defect and join our Side, he's injured. A blood clot forms in his brain and the only way to save his life is to miniaturize the crew of the Proteus and inject them into Benes' body, so they can break up the blood clot from the inside. Of course, one thing after another goes wrong and every chapter is a new catastrophe but it was definitely a fantastic voyage. 2 Stars Pros: Grant is one dry character but he's a welcome bit of amusement in an otherwise serious and scientific novel. Cons: Grant is also SUCH a man that he spends most of the mission staring at saving the one woman board, Cora./Definitely ripe with anatomical lessons and what part of the body they were in. Since I've never been great at anatomy, a lot of it was lost on me and became burdensome near the end. Full Review: As in all things, there is a good side and a bad side. This book is very vague as...

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.

"Arnold Spirit, Jr, or "Junior" as he's known on the Rez, does something no Spokane Indian has ever done. He enrolls in Reardon High School and begins the long and often painful process off navigating not only high school and adolescence but also being an outsider. Alexie handles it all with grace, humor and honesty. This was a great read. I would recommend it to anyone." 5 Stars Pros: Alexie handles the ups and downs of not only adolescence, but tragedy and loss in a stark, honest but gut wrenchingly relatable way. Cons: Some of Junior's all-consuming guilt, though understandable was a little repetitive but it's all part of being a teenager. Full Review: It all starts when Arnold Spirit Jr, or Junior, throws a textbook across the classroom. When he opened the book he saw his mother's name, her maiden name and it enrages him. He's furious that the reservation is so poor that they're learning from thirty-year old textbooks. He doesn't...

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