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Dear pupils,

This HBL period is a fantastic opportunity for you to catch up on your reading! Take advantage of National Library Board (NLB)'s  online e-books to satisfy your reading hunger.

Practice good Cyber Wellness:
- Be kind and polite in your posts.
- Use proper English and avoid emojis.
- ALWAYS identify yourself in your post by including your name. Posts without names might be deleted.

NOTE: Treat this wall like it's your  school environment. Always be respectful and mindful of your words.

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Your task:

1) Read the book that you have chosen on NLB's OverDrive.

2) After reading for a few chapters (you don't have to read to the end!), answer the following questions in a post:

1) Name of book and author?

2)Why did you select this book?

3) Is it living up to your expectations? Why / Why not?

4) Predict how the book is going to end.

5) A new word or phrase that you have learnt?

You may include a picture of the book cover as well!

Consider the example on the right.

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What Dreams May Come by Richard Matheson 

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What Dreams May Come by Richard Matheson 

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Review by Mr Issac Pang

I selected this book for a leisure read as I wanted to find out if it's different from the movie version (starring the late great Robin Williams). The book explores deep themes such as living a fulfilling life and personal redemption. So far, the book is living up to my expectations as it is so much richer compared to the movie. Don't get me wrong - Robin Williams is a FANTASTIC actor. However, the book explores a lot of mini stories that the movie couldn't afford to. If it did, the movie would have been 5 hours long! Although I think I know how the book is going to end (as I have seen the movie), I have a feeling that there will be some twists in the story.

My favourite sentence in the story is uttered by the main character as he laments about his regrets in life - "Failures plagued me. Things I had omitted or ignored, neglected. What I should have given and hadn’t. I felt the biting pang of every unfulfillment".

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Shelia Burnford
Review by Kaejay Ng

I selected this book for a literary challenge and refreshment based on its straightforward review by the  New York Times”Captivating! A tale of charm and high drama”.The book is cleverly written and is evocative among adventure seekers and animal lovers, simply a page-turner. The sweet prose-like language is especially a key highlight.A touching story of trials and tribulations, testing the unity and resilience of the dogs  and cat. The story portrays the difficulties of the animals; a Labrador’s innate instinct to do no harm, an old bull terrier’s seemingly impending end and a petite Siamese’s fear of water.The book was inspired 2 movies to be made based in it, although one is unrelated to the main story.
The story revolves around three animals soon to be returned to their first owners chasing their temporary owner on a fishing trip, only to be lost further north. Despite the dog’s inner compass telling them that they must go west, the trio goes north to experience the untouched forest.

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Author: Neil Humphreys
Quasi-review by Thomas Rettig

It all started with my mum. Indeed, she was the one who introduced me to this colourful book. She picked this up from the second-hand bookshop somewhere near Bras Brasah. Technically, it's a third-hand book, since it was from the second-hand donation corner of the second-hand bookshop.
Whatever that is.

ANYWAY...

This fresh book pokes fun at every tiny habit that we make, from the brain-numbing acronyms to those bra-wielding coffee shop aunties.

The book also criticises stereotypes like the SPG and laws to censor movies like Saint Jack, the author laments.

And  lastly, the book covers juicy anecdotes of Humphrey's own life, be it having a close encounter with an SPG in the nightclubs or joining in Aunties inside a shopping mall to watch teens break-dancing to catchy Hip-hop numbers.

***
Yes, this book is living up to my expectations. (By expectations I'm thinking about hilarity, controversy, and originality.)

There's one negative facet of this book, however.

With an overwhelming scoop of profanities, (some British slang included) this book is definitely not for those who worship Conservative ideology, but nonetheless, I'm guessing that you'd like this book (provided your kind parents don't mind it too.)

Other than that, the language is chock-full of Singlish terms that we "orh is spiaking".

Surely, this book is the best that I've ever read by a Cockney "Foreign Talent" (coming in second is Notes from an Even Sexier Island, by the same white guy).

Regarding a new word or phrase I learnt, it is, well, ****. Just use your wonderful imagination. As I've said earlier, you shall be warned of explicit language and controversial topics. But the overall experience of reading this book is magical and eye-opening.  This book will forever be on my shelf.

(P.S. This book is slightly outdated, since it was published in the early noughties. Nevertheless,  this book still is very entertaining. I would recommend you to look up Neil Humphrey's newer books like "Telling the OTTERS to leave home was a REALLY Big Mistake" if you're a person who doesn't appreciate a good laugh.)

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I've read that book too, Thomas, and the guy is hilarious. We need more people like him who can be outright about their views and opinions and yet inject humour at the same time.

Thank you for your review. However, I really don't think it is quite age-appropriate. His targeted readers are adults after all!

Great and absolutely lucky you that your mother is so cool about the books that you read. However, other parents might be stricter with the materials that their children consume.

Therefore, for the rest of the class, please enjoy your friends' book reviews with discretion! :D

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Hi guys,
:)

Please write something in this Padlet. I can't really be the only one writing right?

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Reviewed 6 June 2020
Ever wish there was a book that summed up all the quotes, legends, statistics, and insider advice? Well there is. This book, titled “Singapore at Random”, offers a quirky selection of trivia related to anything Singaporean. Of course, this book is slightly outdated (first published in 2011), and thus ridiculous stuff pops up every now and then. For example, the book raves on and on about the iPhone and that it has become an increasing trend to see folks in the MRT playing with their phones. Nowadays, this would not even occur to me as it has become the norm. I hope the book will be updated soon though, since much has changed; it might be even more interesting to envision this book post-pandemic.

Now, I still can’t proudly say that I’ve read the entire book, even though I started doing so somewhere in 2017 (because I have a penchant for reading non-fictional books in no particular order). But even so, I find myself re-reading parts again and again — since the book bandies around so many interesting facts. Apparently, I just learnt that this book is part of a series on South-East Asia (I think there’s a Malaysia and Thailand volume).

Things I like…

I like the illustrations inside — just as I expected for a book of this genre. Also notable is the format of this book — it is arranged randomly. For instance, the authors write about religious rituals and then ice cream, or drugs juxtaposed with Chilli Crab. The authors, some of them local and others Non-Singaporean, have also written the book with a sharp sense of humour.

… And not that much

A problem I have with the book is that the authors seem to sound like tour guides rambling on to clueless tourists who are snapping photos in every possible angle. But it’s targeted at expats or what not, you say. Maybe it really is, but nevertheless I think it is somewhat stereotyped. For example, the book highlights that the Singapore Sling has garnered international fame. Is this true? What’s the big deal anyway? It’s hardly a national favourite. I’m sure many would prefer their typical coffee from the Kopitiam. Also, the kucinta cat is all made-up nonsense from a few decades back. This book is starting to confuse me a bit, and I wonder if anything became misinterpreted in the process.

Of course, I wholeheartedly agree that it is a good idea to have local and foreign authors; it lends a whole new dimension to the story, after all. While this book evidently gravitates toward the intrepid tourist that craves for the typical tour around our island , it wouldn’t be too fair for the editors to churn out less-than-accurate information.

Review By Thomas (open source with attribution)

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After a long hiatus (for which you are not allowed to ask why), I am reviewing this book; It's called Lang Lang: Playing with Flying Keys. The book is a compelling manifesto on the illustrious life of world-renowned pianist Lang Lang, written by the man himself, and a Michael French, who helped adapt the book for younger readers.

This autobiography on Lang Lang's early childhood and adult life is well-written, with colourful language and an interesting storyline. but this might be because my expectations were rather low when I first saw the paperback book. (As I've said earlier, I fear musicians becuse their all a little dotty). So when I read the first few pages of the book, I was rather impressed alredy, although looking back, there were probably some editors tweaking the narrative behind the scene.

Lang's Lang's description of major milestones in his life, like winning his first international success in Germany, or his career-changing perfomance with the New York Philhamonic, is especially exceptional. Lang Lang also manages to capture sobre moments with a lighthearted sense of humour.

My favourite part of the story is the scene in which a professor/enemy nicknamed "Professor Angry" shouts and curses at Lang Lang and his father, becuase it is perhaps the most dramatic part of the book.

Another of my favourites is the chapter in which Lang Lang and his father have plot a plan to travel to Germany (previously mentioned) by making risky moves at every turn.

Main story aside, you'll also find  bonus material at the front and back of the book, which is pretty  nice of him to do.

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Thomas reviews… The World’s WORST Teachers 

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Thomas reviews… The World’s WORST Teachers 

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Hi! I’ve been thinking of starting my own book review business, so I’ll be trying to churn out some content every other day.

Now, today, I will be sharing with you, a children's book by David Walliams. (I know, I know, just hang on for a while.)

The book title is called “The World’s WORST Teachers”, and is a collection of 10 short stories. It sounds pretty gimmicky. Seriously, who’d like to know made-up stories like that?

Perhaps this book is too babyish for me, but anyway I’m still going to bring some justice to this book.

Now, while I find the book to be very nicely illustrated, the main thing of a book is to have a strong plot, one whose ideas are very entertaining.

Unfortunately, I have found this book to be flawed in this crucial aspect. I find this book to be a repetition of 10 same plot structures. Just imagine, a skeleton wearing 10 different clothes for every different story.

The basic formula is largely the same, in which every teacher, old or young, short or tall, has a very disturbing habit or characteristic, exaggerated by ten fold. Then, this particular teacher will cause some trouble to their students, but the student(s) plot down an evil scheme to take revenge on their teacher. Have a rough picture? Well good. This goes on and on to torturous degrees.

That being said, I am already very old, so younger children might enjoy such creations by Walliams. For instance, my coming-to-8-year-old-in-3-days sister says she enjoys the book.

Anyway, to make matters worse, this book is brimming with colourful illustrations by Quentin Blake 2.0, Tony Ross. The book is also packed with a suffocating amount of myriad fonts, which scream at the reader to hold on to the book for a while longer. I see that as a reincarnation of Geronimo Stilton, but without mice.

Because this is an attempt to convince the reader to read on, it means that the publisher is more absorbed in profit-making than in content itself. Either way, I will leave this thought of mine alone.

I think if you just want to have a bit of a joy ride, this book is a good candidate. Just don’t examine the little details (which I regrettably did). I quite like the book overall though; but for now, this hitherto-standing-at-my-shelf book should hibernate inside the cupboard for a while.

After all, we’re thankfully safe from terrible flesh-eating teachers, and there’s no need to read such tales of terror.

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THE MASTERMINDS
Steven Heller (hi again), and Lita Talarico, the big bosses of AIGA.

INTRO
Well, this is yet another book on typography (you: "duh..."), written by Lita Talarico and co-written by Steven Heller.

This is similar to the previous book on design that I reviewed, because it's more of a gallery than a book. This book contains over 100 of the worlds leading typographers' (typographer = person who designs letters [the letters that form your alphabet]) sketchbooks.

SPECS
The book comes with matte paper and has rather heavy stock-paper.

THE CONTENT
In terms of the stuff that's within (the text and images, not the atoms), it is still OK (i.e. passed my benchmark test).

The book's main purpose is to showcase the sketches of other typographers as previousl mentioned, and that is done well. This gives me inspiration and stimuli to pass the time.

I like the fact that there is an introduction to every artist within the book.

The only problem is that the images reproduced in the book are not of the same quality. Some photos seem like they were taken by someone with Parkinsons, another taken by a DSLR-equipped whiz. But I am merely stating that the images should be more uniform, especially for an image-heavy book. This, I hope, will make the pleasure of reading such a book much better.

THE VERDICT
A distinctively curated book with only one minor pitfall.

***
Date of review:  🆃🅷🅴 🅵🅾🆄🆁🆃🅴🅴🅽🆃🅷 🅾🅵 🅼🅰🆈, 🅰.🅳. 🆃🆆🅾 🆃🅷🅾🆄🆂🅰🅽🅳 🅰🅽🅳 🆃🆆🅴🅽🆃🆈

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And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie

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And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie

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Review by the same ol’ person, Thomas.
(Please don’t read my first post over here! It has just been labeled by Ms Tan/ Ms Tan as age-inappropriate!)

****************************
I hope this book review will not trigger so much of controversy as of the first review.

This book that I’m reviewing is a rather well-known book by Agatha Christie. Long story told short, it documents an intriguing and mind-boggling fictional story of 10 strangers who get lured into a much buzzed-about island off the coast of Devon in England, by a mysterious mastermind named “U.N. Owen”.
When the 10 strangers reach the island, a violent storm approaches.

From the first their until the last, one character dies mysteriously after the other every day, until, one day, there, are none.

Gripping and heart-pounding, Agatha’s masterful use of suspense seems to tug on to people and prompt them to the proceding page to find out about what happens next.

Personally in my humble opinion, I feel that the book has too much unnecessary thought and speech dialogue which makes the book’s narrative very confusing. I have about less than a quarter to read left, so I can’t spoil the story for you. (Yay!)

I also think the setting of the book is rather clichéd.

The book is currently living up to my expectations. I only could wish for more gory scenes to be peppered within the story to make it more entertaining.

I really, really wonder who is that murderer. Or are there more two or more murderers? I can’t be sure yet.

I can’t wait to finish reading the whole heap of the book! I hope it doesn’t disappoint.

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Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, as reviewed by Thomas on the Thomas Book Reviews Channel [10 May]

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Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, as reviewed by Thomas on the Thomas Book Reviews Channel [10 May]

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Author: Gladwell, Malcolm
Not-so-much-proffessional-author (aka reviewer): Thomas

******************************************************************

Eye-opening.

That’s how I would sum up Malcolm Gladwell’s bestseller book, Outliers. Though sporting a less-than-pleasing tint of yellow on every page of my own copy (borrowed from my mother), this novel transcends the borders of time with evergreen subjects; those, that perpetually seem to captivate the masses. And it also does wonders by educating readers with (groan) educational content.

One such example is where he touches onto the crashes of not just one, but a couple of catastrophic crashes which all proved fatal, one such instance being the (then-called) Korean Air Flight 801 on the 5th of August, 1997.

In that chapter, he goes through, explains, and comes up with possible theories that are sure to enlighten one’s mind, with the input of people in the higher echelons of their respective fields.

And you can expect similar yet interesting themes examined and elaborated by Gladwell in the other chapters in this 350-odd pages book.

Thanks to Gladwell’s extensive (and probably very laborious) research, we can all enjoy and consume the gripping stories that he has stitched together.

I hope to read Gladwell’s newest book fresh off the press, titled “Talking to Strangers”, which explores, to quote another reviewer,

“… our relationship with trust, truth, and the people we don’t know as well as we might have hoped."

I wish to have the book on a subconscious level but just am not motivated to do so currently on a conscious level.

Now,  enough of being an ambassador for “Cheeminology”, because I’m not going to waste any more time writing this review.

I awfully need to continue reading finish this wonderful book.

P.S. By the way, a new word I learnt (acronym in this case) is "SSLANT", which stands for:

Smile

Sit up

Ask questions

Nod when being spoken to

Track with your eyes

This actually refers to a protocol implemented by teachers in KIIP (a school in New York)  to their own students, in which the students themselves must pretend to be aliens and address people very nicely.
(Hmm… Perhaps the former isn’t too true… )

I know you teacher millennials will love this titbit! Heehee.

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(An open letter to a Mr Steven Heller)

Dear Mr Steven Heller,

I have just recently read one of your books.

It is a design book. Graphic design in particular. And rather wordy. So I know you’ll love it. But I just wrote this review to you, to satisfy my feelings. In case you’ve forgotten (since I understand that you’ve written well over 150 books), this book is called “Graphic Style Lab”. Do you still remember it? I truly hope you do. Yes? Good… Good…

And thus, I shall begin.

This book, by you, a type-nerd and former AIGA chair, is like chicken soup for the soul. It unfolds first by introducing the main graphic design styles: Most notably, Art Deco (ooh la la!), Art Nouveau (it’s no-vo by the way), Bauhaus, Fascist, Dada (plain old nonsense), Heroic (Mao Zedong era), and the Swiss style (pretty ambiguous, the only thing that comes to mind is Swiss cheese.) And there are a half a dozen more.

But seriously, please go and read that up yourself. I’m not allowed to retell everything to you Mr Heller. I will get sued for copyright evasion by you.

Ok.

The next few sections explore different exercises and concepts to gain a certain visual style. (Do you still remember that part with some largely inappropriate “John-Lennon-and-Yoko-Ono-in-Rolling-Stones” propaganda. Could you please take it away? Appreciated.)

In my opinion, the exercises featured in this book are not effective. I’ve tried one by designing a typeface on BirdFont, based on my sister’s handwriting. But I just don’t get the instructions given. Vague and brief… With little provided examples, both on the book and net… I’m frustrated.

Moreover, the so-called hands-on exercises’ meaning and usefulness is shockingly shallow. I’d much prefer to just slash out those silly exercises.

And I would like to scold you personally for emphasising the genius of Louise Fili, another fellow graphic designer. And here’s the twist: Louise Fili, is you’re *gasp!* wife! Oh yes! Louise Fili is your wife! A quick Google check proved just that. So, haha, are you gonna’ admit it? You’ve been caught red handed.

*Rolling eyes…*

Rants aside, I quite like the case studies highlighted throughout the book though, especially those Russian-ish posters. Altogether, this is a book with a shallow foundation of concepts, yet a nicely designed litt’l book. But, after all, I just wanted to admire the graphic design in the first place.

Yours sincerely,

Thomas Rettig

A type fanatic

P.S. I recently signed up for one of your webinars on Zoom secretly but then found out that it is at 1 a.m. Singapore time, so I cancelled my registration. I’m abashedly sorry for this piece of news.

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hi

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Hi there, but please provide your name and say something more constructive. Don't just say hi like that. Are you Sarah? If so, can you stop it? Even if you aren't, I still won't tolerate this kind of spammy posts. Please stop!

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Why Handel Waggled his Wig, reviewed by Thomas

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Why Handel Waggled his Wig, reviewed by Thomas

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Book title: Why Handel Waggled his Wig

Author: A person called Steven Isserlis, CBE (that ‘CBE’ is just for fun okay? It's just some British tite, probably the "Contributions to British Empire" gobbledygook)

***

What did Haydn’s wife use for curling-paper for her hair? Why exactly did Dvorak get in a major sulk about a bottle of beer? And why did Tchaikovsky worry that his head was going to fall off?

These are just a few of the questions that well-known cellist* Steven Isserlis answers in his much anticipated sequel, “Why Handel Waggled his Wig”.

This humorous book is targeted at children, and introduces no less than 6 classical music composers, all of whom were rather mad fellows (just like the author himself, heh heh ).

Contrary to your typical classical music book, this one communicates in a simple and easy-to-understand manner, making the pages of this book is naturally a page-turner, like a Dahlian book (whatever that is supposed to be). Each composer’s story entails his main biography, from birth to death; facts of life; and musical recommendations on what music works to hear from the composer.

I immensely enjoy his recommendations for the music because he effortlessly blends his personal life experiences with the music, making for a harmonious concerto between the two.

My favourite part of the book is the so-called ‘facts of life’ section.

Why?

Because this section features fresh little anecdotes which are rarely heard of in the musical realm. Hence, this easily is the crème de la crème of Isserlis’s own writing.

Of course I wonder if this is real stuff recorded in the archives, or just plain old nonsense from his hallucinating brain. But nonetheless, this book is an interesting read that opens up the weird yet wonderful land of classical music.

Moreover, in a saturated world with irreversible amounts of pop tunes (which I HATE by the way), I feel that this it’s primetime for younger people like us to appreciate the evergreen beauty of classical music.

Maybe I am exaggerating a little — but please go and listen to a few pieces to get an initial taste. You could fall madly in love, or loathe it. But you’ll never know until you take action.

Even though I know Mr Isserlis hates writing to the extreme, and was an unsuccessful writer who wasted his whole career in his past life (last part mine), I truly am waiting impatiently for more of your books!

For, this book is a genuine gem of classical music.

Post-review
***
“What?! You greedy twit!”

“Is that you Mr Isserlis? Oh it shall be a great pleasure to—”

“Stop it! I’ll never write again in my whole life! End of story!”

“...”

*Definition to "Cellist" (and by that I'm judging you):
cellist

/ˈtʃɛlɪst/

noun

1. a person who plays the cello.

*********************************

P.S. I think Steven Isserlis is rather rare a gem, because most musicians are pretty bad at literature to say the very least (— it might be because my mother just preached that gospel). Thus, I urge you to read up on his books. There is also a first book on the same classical music topic which was his debut as an author — go check that out too!)

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3e344

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..........

l

lol

lo

🤬 you

go to hell

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Whoever wrote that post called “Troll title”, “l’morte de Arrthur”, please delete it right now. I kindly suggest you to shut up.

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okay

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Fallout: The Hiroshima Cover-up and the Reporter who Revealed it to the World

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Please do not read this book

Troll?

Go away

🤬 off 🤬

Stop looking

Go away

Why the hell are you still looking 🤬 you