Gabriel Gil Lorca Gil Lorca itibaren Brindabella NSW 2611, Avustralya itibaren Brindabella NSW 2611, Avustralya

I loved these stories. They were beautiful, little slices of life. Each sliver was richly described with characters you could really feel for. There is no pretty little bow at the end of these stories, but I liked that too -- the story ended, but you knew that wasn't the end (though it doesn't leave you unsatisfied in any way). In a couple of cases, you see recurring characters and it's a sweet surprise to know how those lives turned out. There's a lot of heartbreak and a lot of strength. But such is life, no?

Ga tau kenapa, tiba-tiba aja keinget lagi sama buku ini. Dan kangeeeeen rasanya pengen baca lagi buku ini. Tapi rada males bongkar-bongkar lemari buat cari buku ini, hehehe.. The Horse Whisperer ini adalah karya pertama (dan sayangnya, satu-satunya sejauh ini) dari Nicholas Evans yang kubaca. Dan aku sangat terkesan dengan buku ini. Cerita persisnya sih, udah lupa. Mengingat aku baca buku ini sudah bertahun-tahun yang lalu, sekitar awal tahun 2000an. Tapi garis besar ceritanya inget, lah. Plus ada filmnya dengan judul yang sama, dan aktor utamanya adalah Robert Redford dan Scarlett Johanson (eh bener ga ya, namanya?) sebagai anak tokoh utama perempuan (ga kenal sama artisnya, hehe). Back to novel.. Ceritanya sangat menyentuh dan mengharukan. Tentang perjuangan seorang Ibu yg rela melakukan apapun demi mengembalikan semangat anaknya. Tentang persahabatan antara manusia dan hewan (kuda). Dan juga tentang hubungan pria dan wanita. Aku terkesan sekali sama kuda Grace, Pilgrim. Baca buku ini seolah-olah kita diajak masuk buat baca pikiran hewan ini. Juga, yang paling utama, Tom Booker. Jatuh cinta aku sama tokoh Tom ini. Dan adiknya yang hanya sedikiiiiiit aja muncul di buku ini.

I liked this book, but it was a bit of a wrestle. Rajaniemi (who is Finnish, which wasn't my first guess when I saw his name) drops the reader right into the middle of a fairly complex sci-fi world. Lots of physics and technology stuff here and you have to pay attention to catch the bits of information that help you understand the world he has built. An additional thing that makes this book a little tougher is that not everything is revealed here--this is the first of a trilogy, and I'm still a little confused about what exactly has happened what the different groups in the solar system want and do. I intend to read the other books in the trilogy, and will re-read this one when the others come out (and I hope that this one will make a little more sense during the re-read). Rajaniemi has worked some cool ideas into his book. A society where privacy is such a huge issue that even memories have public key cryptography going on, use of quantum technology, uploading of human personalities, prisons where the automated wardens run iterations of the Prisoner's Dilemma, time as currency, etc. Very cool. But as of right now (without knowledge of the rest of the plot), it reminds me a bit of Rainbows End--tons of really cool ideas without a really awesome story to help carry those ideas. So, if the book's synopsis / jacket text sounds of interest and you've got a little bit of previous sci-fi reading under your belt, go for it. If it sounds interesting but you don't have previous sci-fi, but you're feeling brave, then I suppose you could give it a shot, but it might be best to start somewhere a little easier first. Rating: R, for some moments of strong language (f-words), some PG-13 violence and sexuality.

Fast read (about 30 min.) Her name is Emma and she is crazy.