Quick Review: THRILL ME by Benjamin Percy (Graywolf Press)

November 14, 2016 Civilian Reader Review Benjamin Percy, Graywolf Press, Memoir, Must Read 2016, Non-Fiction, Thrill Me, Writing

An excellent writing memoir and book of advice

Anyone familiar with the meteoric rise of Benjamin Percy’s career will surely have noticed a certain shift: After writing two short-story collections and a literary novel, he delivered the werewolf thriller Red Moon and the postapocalyptic epic The Dead Lands. Now, in his first book of nonfiction, Benjamin Percy challenges the notion that literary and genre fiction are somehow mutually exclusive. The title essay is an ode to the kinds of books that make many first love fiction: science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, horror, from J. R. R. Tolkien to Anne Rice, Ursula K. Le Guin to Stephen King. Percy’s own academic experience banished many of these writers in the name of what is “literary” and what is “genre.” Then he discovered Michael Chabon, Aimee Bender, Cormac McCarthy, Margaret Atwood, and others who employ techniques of genre fiction while remaining literary writers. In fifteen essays on the craft of fiction, Percy looks to disparate sources such as Jaws, Blood Meridian, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo to discover how contemporary writers engage issues of plot, suspense, momentum, and the speculative, as well as character, setting, and dialogue. An urgent and entertaining missive on craft, Thrill Me brims with Percy’s distinctive blend of anecdotes, advice, and close reading, all in the service of one dictum: Thrill the reader.

Benjamin Percy is one of my favourite “new” authors. I only discovered his work upon the publication of Red Moon, which gripped me from very early on. Since reading that novel, I’ve read everything of his that I could get my hands on — The Dead Lands, his two-part story for Detective Comics, his ongoing run on Green Arrow, and now Thrill Me. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this book, but I came away entertained and inspired. Continue reading →

Quick Review: CANADA by Mike Myers (Doubleday Canada)

October 17, 2016October 16, 2016 Civilian Reader Review Canada, Comedian, Doubleday, Memoir, Mike Myers, Non-Fiction, Penguin Random House

An endearing, informational memoir

Mike Myers is a world-renowned actor, director and writer, and the man behind some of the most memorable comic characters of our time. But as he says: “no description of me is truly complete without saying I’m a Canadian.” He has often winked and nodded to Canada in his outrageously accomplished body of work, but now he turns the spotlight full-beam on his homeland.

His hilarious and heartfelt new book is part memoir, part history and pure entertainment. It is Mike Myers’ funny and thoughtful analysis of what makes Canada Canada, Canadians Canadians and what being Canadian has always meant to him. His relationship with his home and native land continues to deepen and grow, he says. In fact, American friends have actually accused him of enjoying being Canadian — and he’s happy to plead guilty as charged.

A true patriot who happens to be an expatriate, Myers is in a unique position to explore Canada from within and without. With this, his first book, Mike brings his love for Canada to the fore at a time when the country is once again looking ahead with hope and national pride. Canada is a wholly subjective account of Mike’s Canadian experience. Mike writes, “Some might say, ‘Why didn’t you include this or that?’ I say there are 35 million stories waiting to be told in this country, and my book is only one of them.”

This beautifully designed book is illustrated in colour (and not color) throughout, and its visual treasures include personal photographs and Canadiana from the author’s own collection. Published in the lead-up to the 2017 sesquicentennial, this is Mike Myers’ birthday gift to his fellow Canadians. Or as he puts it: “In 1967, Canada turned one hundred. Canadians all across the country made Centennial projects. This book is my Centennial Project. I’m handing it in a little late…. Sorry.”

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this book. I had high hopes, of course, that it would be an amusing look at Myers’s Canada, and it certainly did contain that. It is also a more-general memoir. Every chapter, though, even when covering Myers’s time in the UK or US, is filled with references to Canada (Toronto in particular) and how the country has shaped his character and comedy. It is amusing, intelligent and quite endearing. Continue reading →

Eight Quick Audiobook Reviews

September 1, 2016September 1, 2016 Civilian Reader Review Amy Schumer, Antonio Garcia Martinez, Audible, Audiobooks, Biography, Dey Street Books, Harper Collins, Irin Carmon, Jessi Klein, Memoir, Nick Offerman, Non-Fiction, Orion, Penguin, Philip Delves-Broughton, Randall Munroe, Richard Porter, Shana Knizhnik, Simon & Schuster, Simon Vance

A quick round-up of recent audiobook ‘reads’, with thanks to Audible UK for the review credits (except for the first reviewed, which I borrow from the Toronto Public Library). I’ve kept the reviews very short on purpose. I’ll try to keep on top of these reviews in a more timely manner in the future.

Featuring: Philip Delves-Broughton, Irin Carmon, Jessi Klein, Shana Knizhnik, Antonio Garcia Martinez, Randall Munroe, Nick Offerman, Richard Porter, Amy Schumer Continue reading →

Quick Review: THE VIEW FROM THE CHEAP SEATS by Neil Gaiman (William Morrow/Headline)

May 26, 2016May 23, 2016 Civilian Reader Review Advice, Comics, Fantasy, Fiction, Headline, Memoir, Most Anticipated 2016, Must Read 2016, Neil Gaiman, Non-Fiction, View From the Cheap Seats, William Morrow, Writing

A must-read collection of essays

An enthralling collection of nonfiction essays on a myriad of topics — from art and artists to dreams, myths, and memories — observed in #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman’s probing, amusing, and distinctive style.

An inquisitive observer, thoughtful commentator, and assiduous craftsman, Neil Gaiman has long been celebrated for the sharp intellect and startling imagination that informs his bestselling fiction. Now, The View from the Cheap Seats brings together for the first time ever more than sixty pieces of his outstanding nonfiction. Analytical yet playful, erudite yet accessible, this cornucopia explores a broad range of interests and topics, including (but not limited to): authors past and present; music; storytelling; comics; bookshops; travel; fairy tales; America; inspiration; libraries; ghosts; and the title piece, at turns touching and self-deprecating, which recounts the author’s experiences at the 2010 Academy Awards in Hollywood.

Insightful, incisive, witty, and wise, The View from the Cheap Seats explores the issues and subjects that matter most to Neil Gaiman — offering a glimpse into the head and heart of one of the most acclaimed, beloved, and influential artists of our time.

What to say about a collection of excellent and far-ranging essays? It would be easy to pick through many of my favourites, and quote Gaiman at length, but I’m not sure that would make for a very good/interesting review. So, I’ll keep this very short instead.

If you have any interest in Gaiman’s thought-processes when it comes to art, creativity, books, popular culture, specific works… Then you will undoubtedly find something fascinating in The View From The Cheap Seats. It’s a substantial collection of essays and speech transcripts. There is some overlap between certain pieces, which I thought was interesting — giving us some insight into those authors and books that most influenced Gaiman, and also the issues that have been most important to him at certain points during his career.

At no point was it a slog to get through, but it works just as well as both a binge-read and a book to dip in-and-out of at your leisure.

Erudite, informed, passionate, and sometimes amusing. This is an excellent collection. Very highly recommended.

The View from the Cheap Seats is published on May 31st, 2016, in North America by William Morrow, and in the UK by Headline.

Audio Review: TRUTHS, HALF TRUTHS & LITTLE WHITE LIES by Nick Frost (Hodder)

October 22, 2015October 21, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Audible, Audiobook, Biography, Comedy, Hodder, Memoir, Nick Frost, Shaun of the Dead, Spaced, Truths Half Truths and Little White Lies

An amusing, at times moving, memoir of a life up to stardom

“No life can really be all black, right? Even during the darkest times, what got me through that bleakness was laughter and time. With enough of both of these things I reckon you could get over just about anything.”

Nick Frost burst onto our screens in a blaze of camo fatigues and weaponry as the Territorial Army obsessed loveable idiot Mike Watt in the hit cult comedy Spaced. Since then, fans around the world have watched him with a fervent devotion as he fought zombies, rescued aliens and salsa’d his way to box office smash after smash.

It’s quite a story. But it’s not this story. This story isn’t the romp from movie set to Hollywood party. This is a story of a life like no other.

With blistering candour Frost recounts his childhood growing up in Essex in a household full of love and optimism but tragically blighted by alcoholism, illness and sudden life shattering misfortune.

Dogged by his own personal demons, Nick tells of the hilarious, jaw dropping and at times heartbreaking experiences that have punctuated his tumultuous life.

Nick Frost is possibly best known for his roles in Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Paul. He’s probably also best known as Simon Pegg’s best bud. After reading (or listening) to this audiobook, though, you’ll know him as a very funny, friendly, yet introverted fellow, too. I didn’t know anything about him outside of his film roles, so I was very interested in listening to this audiobook. I was not disappointed — this could be one of the top five audiobooks I’ve listened to this year. Continue reading →

Audio Review: YOU’RE NEVER WEIRD ON THE INTERNET (ALMOST) by Felicia Day (Simon & Schuster)

September 17, 2015September 14, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Audible, Audiobook, Autobiography, Biography, Felicia Day, Geek Culture, Joss Whedon, Memoir, Simon & Schuster, The Guild, You're Never Weird on the Internet

The much-anticipated memoir from SFF Champion and creator of The Guild

From online entertainment pioneer, actress, and “queen of the geeks” Felicia Day, You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) is a “relentlessly funny and surprisingly inspirational” (Forbes.com), memoir about her unusual upbringing, her rise to internet stardom, and embracing her weirdness to find her place in the world.

When Felicia Day was a girl, all she wanted was to connect with other kids (desperately). Growing up in the Deep South, where she was “home-schooled for hippie reasons,” she looked online to find her tribe. The internet was in its infancy and she became an early adopter at every stage of its growth — finding joy and unlikely friendships in the emerging digital world. Her relative isolation meant that she could pursue passions like gaming, calculus, and 1930’s detective novels without shame. Because she had no idea how “uncool” she really was.

But if it hadn’t been for her strange background — the awkwardness continued when she started college at sixteen, with Mom driving her to campus every day — she might never have had the naive confidence to forge her own path. Like when she graduated as valedictorian with a math degree and then headed to Hollywood to pursue a career in acting despite having zero contacts. Or when she tired of being typecast as the crazy cat-lady secretary and decided to create her own web series before people in show business understood that online video could be more than just cats chasing laser pointers.

Felicia’s rags-to-riches rise to internet fame launched her career as one of the most influential creators in new media. Ever candid, she opens up about the rough patches along the way, recounting battles with writer’s block, a full-blown gaming addiction, severe anxiety and depression — and how she reinvented herself when overachieving became overwhelming.

Before listening to this audiobook, I was actually not that familiar with Felicia Day. Aside from seeing her in Buffy and some episodes of Supernatural, I am not at all versed in her work. Of course, being a fan of SFF and its connected media, I am familiar with her thoughts on genre, gaming, etc. So I was quite interested to read (or listen) to her memoir. What I found was… mixed. It’s certainly entertaining, though. Continue reading →

Review: DARK DAYS by D. Randall Blythe (Da Capo Press)

August 14, 2015August 12, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Biography, Century, D Randall Blythe, Da Capo Press, Dark Days, lamb of god, Memoir, Metal, Music, Non-Fiction

Blythe recounts his arrest, time in a Czech prison, and offers plenty of thoughts on life, music and sobriety in the process

Lamb of god vocalist D. Randall Blythe finally tells the whole incredible story of his arrest, incarceration, trial, and acquittal for manslaughter in the Czech Republic over the tragic and accidental death of a concertgoer in this riveting, gripping, biting, bold, and brave memoir.

On June 27, 2012, the long-running, hard-touring, and world-renowned metal band lamb of god landed in Prague for their first concert there in two years. Vocalist D. Randall “Randy” Blythe was looking forward to a few hours off — a rare break from the touring grind — in which to explore the elegant, old city. However, a surreal scenario worthy of Kafka began to play out at the airport as Blythe was detained, arrested for manslaughter, and taken to Pankrác Prison — a notorious 123-year-old institution where the Nazis’ torture units had set up camp during the German occupation of then-Czechoslovakia, and where today hundreds of prisoners are housed, awaiting trial and serving sentences in claustrophobic, sweltering, nightmare-inducing conditions.

Two years prior, a 19-year-old fan died of injuries suffered at a lamb of god show in Prague, allegedly after being pushed off stage by Blythe, who had no vivid recollection of the incident. Stage-crashing and -diving being not uncommon occurrences, as any veteran of hard rock, metal, and punk shows knows, the concert that could have left him imprisoned for years was but a vague blur in Blythe’s memory, just one of the hundreds of shows his band had performed over their decades-long career…

This is a really interesting memoir. It was also not what I was expecting. I’ve been reading a fair few music biographies and memoirs, recently, and this one is a stand-out. It is by turns engaging, insightful, funny, and even heart-wrenching. I am not as familiar with lamb of god’s music as I am most of the other bands/musicians I’ve been reading about, but they have been popular so long, that to be even a little interested in metal, I’ve frequently come into contact with their albums and read stories about them in the many magazines I read. That being said, the events covered in Dark Days happened during a time when I wasn’t really following music news at all, and I only heard of his arrest and, later his release. So, I was eager to give this a read to learn the full story. Continue reading →

Review: ROCKS by Joe Perry (Simon & Schuster)

June 18, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Aerosmith, Biography, David Ritz, Joe Perry, Memoir, Music, Rock 'n' Roll, Rocks, Simon & Schuster

“My Life In and Out of Aerosmith” – A superb rock memoir

Before the platinum records or the Super Bowl half-time show or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Joe Perry was a boy growing up in small-town Massachusetts. He idolized Jacques Cousteau and built his own diving rig that he used to explore a local lake. He dreamed of becoming a marine biologist. But Perry’s neighbors had teenage sons, and those sons had electric guitars, and the noise he heard when they started playing would change his life.

The guitar became his passion, an object of lust, an outlet for his restlessness and his rebellious soul. That passion quickly blossomed into an obsession, and he got a band together. One night after a performance he met a brash young musician named Steven Tyler; before long, Aerosmith was born. What happened over the next forty-five years has become the stuff of legend: the knockdown, drag-out, band-splintering fights; the drugs, the booze, the rehab; the packed arenas and timeless hits; the reconciliations and the comebacks.

Rocks is an unusually searching memoir of a life that spans from the top of the world to the bottom of the barrel — several times. It is a study of endurance and brotherhood, with Perry providing remarkable candor about Tyler, as well as new insights into their powerful but troubled relationship. It is an insider’s portrait of the rock and roll family, featuring everyone from Jimmy Page to Alice Cooper, Bette Midler to Chuck Berry, John Belushi to Al Hirschfeld. It takes us behind the scenes at unbelievable moments such as Joe and Steven’s appearance in the movie of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (they act out the murders of Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees).

This is an excellent memoir. After a somewhat shaky start in Johnny Depp’s introduction, Perry (with the help of David Ritz) gets on with telling his story. It’s quite the story, too: Perry takes us through his childhood in (upper-)middle class Massachusetts, his difficulties at school, his love for the outdoors, and eventual discovery of music and guitars. It’s a fascinating look into the life of a rock megaband, and one of the creative minds behind it. I really enjoyed this. Continue reading →

Review: IT’S SO EASY (AND OTHER LIES) by Duff McKagan (Touchstone)

May 27, 2015May 27, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Biography, Duff McKagan, It's So Easy, Loaded, Memoir, Music, Non-Fiction, Rock 'n' Roll, Simon & Schuster, Touchstone, Velvet Revolver

A superb memoir of Guns ‘n’ Roses and more

A founding member of Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver — and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee — shares the story of his rise to the pinnacle of fame and fortune, his struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction, his personal crash and burn, and his phoenix-like transformation.

IN 1984, AT THE AGE OF TWENTY, Duff McKagan left his native Seattle — partly to pursue music but mainly to get away from a host of heroin overdoses then decimating his closest group of friends in the local punk scene. In L.A. only a few weeks and still living in his car, he answered a want ad for a bass player placed by someone who identified himself only as “Slash.” Soon after, the most dangerous band in the world was born. Guns N’ Roses went on to sell more than 100 million albums worldwide.

In It’s So Easy, Duff recounts Guns’ unlikely trajectory to a string of multiplatinum albums, sold-out stadium concerts, and global acclaim. But that kind of glory can take its toll, and it did — ultimately — on Duff, as well as on the band itself. As Guns began to splinter, Duff felt that he himself was done, too. But his near death as a direct result of alcoholism proved to be his watershed, the turning point that sent him on a unique path to sobriety and the unexpected choices he has made for himself since.

I really enjoyed this book. Despite being a huge Guns ‘n’ Roses fan (my first CD was Use Your Illusion I), McKagan’s story was mostly unknown to me. The first music magazine I ever bought was an issue of Hit Parader which included a long interview with and feature on McKagan and his music, but beyond that I don’t believe I’ve read anything else about him. After finishing Billy Idol’s Dancing With Myself, I wanted to read another music biography, and this one came highly recommended. I can certainly see why: it’s gripping, extremely well-written, sometimes amusing, and brutally honest. Continue reading →

Quick Review: DANCING WITH MYSELF by Billy Idol (Touchstone)

May 11, 2015 Civilian Reader Review Billy Idol, Biography, Dancing With Myself, Memoir, Music, Non-Fiction, Rock, Simon & Schuster

Vital Idol reading…

“I am hopelessly divided between the dark and the good, the rebel and the saint, the sex maniac and the monk, the poet and the priest, the demagogue and the populist. Pen to paper, I’ve put it all down, every bit from the heart. I’m going out on a limb here, so watch my back.” — Billy Idol

An early architect of punk rock’s sound, style, and fury, whose lip-curling sneer and fist-pumping persona vaulted him into pop’s mainstream as one of MTV’s first megastars, Billy Idol remains, to this day, a true rock ‘n’ roll icon.

Now, in his long-awaited autobiography, Dancing with Myself, Idol delivers an electric, searingly honest account of his journey to fame — from his early days as front man of the pioneering UK punk band Generation X to the decadent life atop the dance-rock kingdom he ruled — delivered with the same in-your-face attitude and fire his fans have embraced for decades. Beyond adding his uniquely qualified perspective to the story of the evolution of rock, Idol is a brash, lively chronicler of his own career.

A survivor’s tale at its heart, this sometimes chilling and always riveting account of one man’s creative drive joining forces with unbridled human desire is unmistakably literary in its character and brave in its sheer willingness to tell. With it, Billy Idol is destined to emerge as one of the great writers among his musical peers.

Billy Idol’s music has been pretty much a constant in my life. His albums were among my father’s eclectic collection; “Dancing With Myself”, “Rebel Yell” and “Mony, Mony” were frequently on tapes he would put together for road trips. So, it was perhaps inevitable that Dancing With Myself caught my eye. It’s a great rock biography, one that charts the rise of not only the author, but punk in general. He was a pioneer of so many styles and quirks that we take for granted today. An essential read for all fans of his music, but also for anyone interested in the evolution of rock and punk music. Continue reading →