A Crown of Swords by Robert Jordan

A Crown of Swords by Robert Jordan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I re-read this book, and wanted to add more thoughts to my original review.

I'm still plugging away at the Wheel of Time series, and it is taking me a while. Finishing up book 7 was a hard one for me, and it is a little hard to explain why. It was like when I assign a task to one of my kids, and I check in on them, and they seem to be working away at it and at the same time making no progress. This book seemed to be moving along--there were lots of pages with words, and characters were going here and there and doing things--but the plot just didn't progress as much. The big let down for me was the ending. There were two climactic events; the finding of the Bowl of the Winds and the defeat of Sammael. The former came first, and lived up to the promise implied by the build-up before hand, while the latter was anti-climactic and unbelievable at the same time. Rand is going to leap off his sick-bed to go after a villain that has been the focus for almost 3 books now? Really? And there isn't a face-off, an exchange of witty insults, or a mighty struggle between powerful foes? Disappointing.

Another disappointing facet to this story that continues to be a growing theme is the "powerful woman who everyone leaps to obey for no reason." Basically, Jordan is trying to create powerful women as central characters in his story. Great idea. Unfortunately, rather than actually have them be powerful, he has them be bullies. Rather than beat people who need to be beaten, or show actual leadership qualities, they just stand around bossing people around and they stare at people really hard. Lame. And unrealistic. If a Cadsuane or Sorilea were up against a real villain, the villain would laugh at their frosty stares and then murder them. If they gave an insolent youth "the rough side of their tongue" that insolent youth would laugh at them and then continue in their behavior. Why do I know this? Because that is what happens in the real world. Mean people, immature people, and bullies in general don't just change behavior because someone they don't know stares at them. Yet this is such a common occurrence in this series that you'd think Tarmon Gai'don is just going to be a staring contest. Pathetic. What would be a remedy, in my opinion? Actual power. A political edge. Dirt on the person being bullied. Some kind of actual leverage.

So 3 stars for this one. I'm still enjoying the overall journey here, but as with all journeys, some parts are less appealing than others, and that describes this book perfectly.

Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson

Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

While it feels like I just read Alloy of Law, I was surprised to see that it was actually last April… nine months ago! Thankfully, I enjoyed those characters so much that I picked up right where I left off.

Wayne is still awesome, the pace is great, and Sanderson is still capitalizing on a superb setting he has created, and is still developing. I struggled a little with the plot in this one, simply because it hints at a larger conflict, but didn’t give me enough clues to feel like it is going somewhere solid. It feels too muddy. I’m not against a good plot twist, something that Sanderson always delivers (and does again in grand fashion in this one), but give the reader something of a teaser to keep them focused on the next steps. The twist at the end IS the teaser this time, and it is hard to see exactly how that is going to tie in to the bigger plot.

Don’t get me wrong, I know that it will. I trust Brandon Sanderson to provide everything I want in a novel and more, I just think he left me a little TOO much in the dark this time.

I should admit that I might be way out of line here. I finished this while half asleep on an airplane, so perhaps it was all there, and I missed it, but this is where I sit with it today.

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

So at first glance, it may look like I’m cheating with this one. It almost more of a pamphlet than a book. However, if I’m counting the Wheel of Time books one at a time, averaging around 800 pages per book, I’m certainly entitled to a few shorter additions as well.

So as for content, this book is very predictable. Here comes the spoiler: Successful people get up early and have good habits, like exercising, meditating, and religious worship. They do the most important things first.

So now that you know what the entire book says, here is why you should still read it. In its own strange way, written by journalist, it works as a motivational piece. I think it would be impossible to read this and not think about what you do in the morning and set your alarm a little earlier the next day. It is just too direct, and the benefits too appealing. I don’t even know that the author is “selling” the concept, it is just obvious when you hear the data that taking control of your mornings is a good idea. I think most of us would come to that conclusion without reading the book, but we lack motivation. This is the recipe for adding something good in your life, and a great January pick.

Now, while I like good motivation, I can’t give this more than 3 stars. There just isn’t enough there, but I still think you should consider it. It will take less than an hour to read, I promise. I would also suggest following this up with Influencer, a book about making lasting change. The connection there should be obvious.