Red Mars

Kim Stanley Robinson is an American author born in 1952. His Mars trilogy won several science fiction awards: Red Mars won Nebula and British SF awards in 1993, Green Mars won Hugo and Locus awards in 1994 et Blue Mars won Hugo and Locus awards in 1997. Therefore, I was rather confident when I bought Red Mars.

It does not start very well because the first part, which describes festivities in an immense transparent bubble that protects the first city built on the surface of Mars, is confused and unconvincing. There are conflicts between the different minorities living there. But I was relieved when I understood that this was probably the end of the story, because the second part starts the story from the beginning. However, I found the description of the difficult relationships between the first 100 explorers leaving for Mars (fifty men and fifty women: thirty-five Americans, thirty-five Russians and thirty others from different nations) uninteresting and anachronistic. I stopped at page 72 (out of 663).

My mark : -1/4 (could not read)

 

Was 9.99, Now 6.99: A novel

Frédéric Beigbeder has published Was 9.99, Now 6.99: A novel (in French: 99 francs) in 2000. What a shock! It is funny and one learns a lot of things on advertising, although the book was published 9 years ago. The black humour and the cynicism of the author are stunning and one does not feel unharmed when the book is finished. A novel for adults! Wikipedia tells us that Frédéric Beigbeder was born in 1965 and that this was his 4th book.

My mark: 3/4 (very good)

The mark of I:  4/4 (outstanding)

The mark of O: 2/4 (good)

The mark of A: 1/4 (average)

  

Let the great world spin

The last book of Colum McCann, Let the great world spin, published in 2009, is an outstanding book. One should not read the back cover and one must accept to be immersed in the New York of the 70s without understanding, at first, the aim of the author. The beginning (the 3 first pages) is great but, indeed, the reading of the 100 following pages make us wonder if we shall cling on. Then, everything falls into place and one understands little by little what are the chess pieces. From this point, one just enjoys a very good book. Colum McCann has already published several novels. He is an Irishman born in 1965.

(Invited critic)
The mark from A : 4/4 (outstanding)
My mark: 2/4 (good)
 

Tigerlily

The last CD of La Roux (whose title is La Roux) obtained good critics in the specialized press. But it is with the piece Tigerlily that I discovered her. Once you have listened to it twice, it does not leave you anymore. I find it both cute and aggressive. The voice which appears in the middle of the piece sound like the lugubrious voice heard at the end of Thriller of Michael Jackson. Too bad that there is, to my knowledge, no available video. The singer of La Roux, Elly Jackson, is a Londoner and is 21. Tiger Lily is a character from Peter Pan.

My mark: 3/4 (very good)

Badfellas

For those who liked the series The Sopranos, here is a short novel from Tonino Benacquista which takes us right back to the family atmosphere of this TV series. The author is a French-Italian writer and scenarist born in Choisy-le-Roi (France) in 1961, who wrote his first novel in 1985. Badfellas (Malavita in French), which was released in 2004, is funny and easy to read but very well written. In the French version of Amazon, its mark is 4 stars out of 5 (29 customer reviews). A book to read without delay, especially as a sequel was published in 2008, Malavita encore, not translated in French yet.

My mark: 3/4 (very good)
Mark of A: 3/4
Mark of N: 3/4

Updated 26 June 2010
 

Pixar's Up

Up is the last film from Pixar, the company which has created wonderful movies such as Toy story, Finding Nemo, Ratatouille and Wall-E. One goes to see the film to enjoy 3D pictures (this is the case) but this technical aspect is quickly forgotten because one is carried away by the story... A story of love, of speaking dogs (an idea very well exploited), on time and aging, and on the ideals that build a life. I was not the only one to have wet eyes, while enjoying all of it. A film directed by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson. Released in october 2009. Official site. Screenrush pages.

My mark : 3/4 (very good)

 

Boom Boom Pow

This title from the Black Eyed Peas, released on March 30th 2009, sounds a little "catchall", with numerous ruptures and, in the video clip, musicians who play with their images. However, finally, Boom Boom Pow may be one of the hits of summer 2009... It can be heard on the radio, is available on Deezer and the video is broadcasted on TV and on Dailymotion. The band got noticed in 2003 with the hit Let's get retarded. Special mention for the singer/dancer Fergie (Stacy Ferguson).

My mark: 3/4 (very good)