Category: Classic

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

On By J. Patrick LasherIn Book, Book review, Classic, ReadingLeave a comment

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Ender’s Game was one of my favorite books when I was growing up. Orson Scott Card’s story of a young boy named Ender who finds himself in a world of fear and hate towards an alien race sounds like just another science fiction novel but the plot goes into so much deeper ideas. This is another book I would highly recommend reading before seeing the movie.

A world that is rebuilding after an invasion attempt from an alien race finds itself tipping the scales from being defensive to offensive. Ender, a young man in the esteemed military academy, receives the honor of being enrolled in the officer’s school. Here he accels in his work accomplishing more and more victories until he is promoted to an even more prestigious position. However, this position isn’t all it’s cracked up to be and Ender soon finds his superiors haven’t been entirely honest with him leading him to think deeply about who he is and where his moral compass is pointing him.

I read this book at a great time in my life when I was faced with deciding on what kind of person I wanted to be. Reading Ender’s Game in high school was a happy accident and one that I am going to try to pass on to my son when he gets older. I’ll probably reread it with him and we can go through it together for even more enjoyment.

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The Art of War by Sun Tzu

On By J. Patrick LasherIn Book, Book review, Classic, ReadingLeave a comment

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Though not a very long book, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, or Sunzi, has had a substantial impact on the world since its inception. From military strategy, as the title implies, to business tactics, many people have put its teachings to use in a variety of settings. I am not sure I am one of those people for better or worse.

The Art of War was published in the 5th century BC. Composed of 13 chapters, it was meant to be and is still used as a guide for military tactics in China. Translated into French in 1772 and English in 1910, The Art of War has made it around the world and into the playbooks of many of powerful and influential people. Kind of amazing it was originally written on little bamboo sticks.

I actually listened to The Art of War as an audiobook while I was doing my dishes one afternoon. And that’s about how long this book is. Though I didn’t have any kind of battle or situation in mind other than completing my task of cleaning the kitchen, I honestly don’t think I got a lot out of the book other than whatever your opponent is doing, do the opposite and be ruthless about it. Unless they are being ruthless, than be compassionate. Maybe someday I will go through it again and see if the meaning changes. What are your thoughts?

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The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas

On By J. Patrick LasherIn Book, Book review, Classic, ReadingLeave a comment

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The Three Musketeers (I never really got the name. They primarily use swords. Not muskets) is an amazing adventure tale from Alexandre Dumas. Though very long winded in its original form like The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers has just as much if not more adventure than it’s successor. The Disney adaptation was pretty good as well.

The story of the The Three Musketeers is a coming of age tale of d’Artagnan, a young man looking for adventure in the early 1600’s. After leaving home for Paris, he finds he can’t fulfill his dream of becoming an honored Musketeer. He does meet 3 of the Guards’ more interesting members: Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. The four of them uncover a plot to assassinate the king and go off on an adventure all over France to thwart it.

This is a great story and with many different versions out there, it is easy to find one for all reading levels. I think at this point I have read several starting at a young age and who knows how many times I’ve seen the Disney movie with Charlie Sheen before he went crazy. I would recommend this book to just about anyone.

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The Count of Monte Cristo review

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

On By J. Patrick LasherIn Book, Book review, Classic, Reading1 Comment

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Probably the longest book I have ever read, French writer Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo was well worth the 1,400 plus page marathon. The story, or how-to manual on revenge, follow Edmond Dantes and his life starting at ok, dropping to horrible, and his rise to greatness through the motivation of vengeance. Yes, this book is as epic as it sounds.

Edmond Dantes, a sailor, becomes captain of his ship and is about to marry his beautiful bride, Mercedes. Fernand Mondego, Edmond’s best friend, and Danglars, Edmond’s coworker, are jealous of this and plot to have Edmond, something of an ignorant, charged with treason. While sentenced to a prison island, Edmond befriends Abbe Faria, who teaches him to genius level intelligence which Edmond uses to plot the most elaborate revenge plan ever.

Though this book is quite long I have had no problem reading it twice. The plot and history are so exciting, you can’t wait to see what will happen next or to see if Edmond wins back his beautiful bride, Mercedes. Alexandre Dumas is definitely an author for the ages. I had to read The Three Musketeers after this and it was awesome too.

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The Three Musketeers review