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One Piece: Water Seven Saga

One Piece: Water Seven Saga by Eiichiro Oda (尾田 栄一郎)

I don’t know how else to begin this review other than to say that I am deep into One Piece now. This Saga is the one that solidifies it for me. Eiichiro Oda is an amazing writer and I am a big fan of his work (Just One Piece thus far but there is a lot of it). I don’t intend to imply that prior to this saga I wasn’t fully invested in the series, however it wasn’t until this saga that I realised that my heart was fully into the journey the Straw Hat crew were on and that I wouldn’t be able to put it down until the end.

The Saga opens on the Straw Hat crew heading to their next island and arriving at an island where they encounter a rival pirate crew with a penchant for challenging pirates to a “Davy Back Fight”: A tournament where pirates complete various challenges, with the prizes of winning each challenge being the taking of a member of the apposing crew. This arc is essentially filler, but it is still fun and goofy and brief enough that it isn’t much of a concern.

For the next two islands the Straw Hats visit, the story arc is very much a continuous one. The events in the city of Water Seven serve largely to set up the forthcoming events on Ennies Lobby, what is essentially the World Government Courthouse. The new characters introduced during their time at Water Seven bring a lot of excitement and growth for the world. With new powers, a cyborg, and a mysterious government organisation, the advancement of the world building is certainly felt. The betrayals of two Straw Hats also weigh on the emotions of the reader as Eiichiro forces a thoughtful consideration of what friendship and loyalty truly mean, and the importance of standing up for the people you care about.

The Straw Hats (and allies) siege of Ennies Lobby is a fierce battle against major odds. The sacrifices of their allies to secure the passage of the Straw Hats deeper into the building is a warming expression of trust amidst the severity around them. It also speaks to the personalities of the Straw Hat crew that they are able to so quickly inspire such faith from people they’ve met mere days prior. The display of love the crew shows in defence of their fellow crew member Robin is as heart-warming as her subsequent backstory is heart-wrenching. Her cry for help as her friends stand at attention ready to fight for her is a truly agonising scene as the hope of the moment floods the reader.

I want to comment particularly on Usopp’s development throughout this Saga. When Luffy decides that it is time to give up the Going Merry, it is hard not to feel for Usopp as he attempts to defend the ship he views as a member of the crew. It is understandable to see how Usopp may feel that if the Straw Hat crew so easily gives up the weakest link, that Usopp’s time with the crew will always be on the cusp of being over. It is endearing to see Usopp continue on with his crew, albeit in disguise, in order to fight for Robin alongside them. It is this effort, the whole crew fighting together to ensure that no member is left behind, that enlightens Usopp to trusting in his friends once again, and the final moments of the Saga where Usopp apologises for breaking this trust, that truly bring a tear to the eye.

Eiichiro’s crafting of his writing in this saga is beautiful. The action, and the emotion in every story beat, in every panel of art, is at the best it has been in the entire series. I’m glad I started this series as it has been extremely fun to make my way through, and very easy to invest in the world and characters.

Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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One Piece: Sky Island Saga

One Piece: Sky Island Saga by Eiichiro Oda

Once again, I could not resist jumping right in. I still have another novel I am making my way through on the side but it is really slow going, whilst each chapter of one piece leaves me desperate to jump right in to the next. They are joyous and exciting all the while being emotional and thought-provoking.

This saga of One Piece features a lot less moving around compared to the previous two. In fact they only stop at two islands, and the overall arc for the saga is a lot more prominent than in the previous saga . The first island the Straw Hat crew stops in serves mostly as a prologue to the next island they visit, whilst also setting up the reader with a lot of new interesting context for the world it is set in. This left me desperate to come out the other side of this Saga to see what the implications of this wider world context would be, not to say that I wasn’t still enjoying the Sky Island Saga itself. The first island did also have it’s own emotional story about family and repairing the wrongs of the past which sets up the story and themes to come in the next island.

The majority of the saga happens in Skypeia, an Island in the sky. This story brings an intense new antagonist and his crew of minor antagonists for the Straw Hats to face off against. This arc brings a lot of development for the Straw Hat crew as there is a lot they must overcome in to achieve their goals in this Saga. Each member of the crew gets their own moments of struggle and moments to shine, while the story also continues adding some of those wider world elements that the reader can’t help but latch on to in surety of their later relevance. The antagonist of this arc, Enel, brings a new level of immense power with him through his lightning based Devil Fruit which helps to build a lot of the excitement the reader has for the future Sagas to come.

There is a lot less for me to say about this saga in general, it in part feels set out from the main progression of the One Piece continuity whilst adding a lot of exciting greater contexts for future storylines to come, and the second arc of the saga is in itself an exciting and intense self-contained story. The themes of colonisation and religion leave the reader with a lot to think about. The labour of two opposing peoples first sternly against each other before coming together to overcome their theocratic dictator is a gripping story to read through. It is definitely an arc with a lot that hits personal preference notes for me in terms of the content, and I already have an attachment to Enel as an antagonist (whom I know will not appear again). I even already have a t-shirt featuring Enel in case I need to signal to other nerds. I once again cannot wait to continue diving in to this lovingly crafted fantasy series.

Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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One Piece: Baroque Works Saga

One Piece: Baroque Works Saga by Eiichiro Oda

It took me mere moments to move from the first saga of One Piece immediately into the second. This Saga is similar to the first in that they travel to various islands, each with it’s own story line. The difference that sets this one apart is a consistent storyline threaded through the minor arcs, which comes to head in the final island the crew visits for the saga.

The first arc of the saga is set just at the entrance of the Grand Line, the great stretch of ocean rife with danger and spanning the entire circumference of the earth. The crew meets an old man and the large whale he cares for. The readers journey on the Grand Line is begun with a sorrowful story of abandonment which wraps up with a hopeful departure. This series really wont be just the fun pirate adventure I thought it would be.

The next arc takes the crew to an island of drinking, partying and relaxation. However late in the night it is revealed that the island is actually a secret pirate trap inhabited by solely by bounty hunters. Some of these bounty hunter are also revealed to be members of a criminal organisation called Baroque Works, running operations in the Grand Line. This arc is short and fun and introduces the major plot of the saga. A new temporary crew member is introduced in Princess Vivi, a passionate and caring princess on a mission to save her kingdom from ruin.

The next island the crew stops off at is another short one. It has it’s own fun contained story, but builds towards a confrontation with more of the members of Baroque Works. This arc is just another chance to show some of the struggles, the teamwork, the ingenuity, and the heart of the Straw Hat crew.

A stop over on the next island brings a departure from the major storyline however this arc introduces the newest crew member Chopper, and the story around chopper, including his past and his interaction with the present story. It was beautifully written, and gut-wrenching to the end.

The Baroque Works Saga builds to the final arc set in the kingdom of Arabasta. The Straw Hat crew must help a nation rise up against a manipulative oppressor that has undermined their just ruler, and caused an ill-guided rebellion against them. The plan would leave the kingdom devastated. The intense struggle of the Straw Hat crew, with Luffy in particular having to make a significant increase in his power and abilities to over come his foe, is gripping and exciting. This arc is a testament to Eiichiro’s imagination and his dedication to his craft. The art of the manga steps up a level in this saga too. A personal favourite of mine is that Eiichiro chooses not to waste time with the useless detail, without leaving his panels completely devoid of soul. The action poses, the background settings, the effects, all leave for beautiful pages that build a brilliant fantasy that is difficult not to be drawn into.

I have been having a great time reading One Piece and have found it very hard to put down for very long. I had started another novel right after I finished Babel by R. F. Kuang and I have been slow going through it due to equal parts not being heavily enticed by the content and equal parts being too addicted to reading the next One Piece Chapter. It is a much more thoughtful piece of media than I had initially prejudged that it may be. I look forward to catching up in this series and taking it all the way to the end.

Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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One Piece: East Blue Saga

One Piece: East Blue Saga by Eiichiro Oda (尾田 栄一郎) Okay so this one is really going to reveal the big nerd side of me. I started reading One Piece shortly after the live action Netflix series came out. My social media was suddenly flooded with live action, anime, and manga references that I did not understand but which hooked me in and made me want to find out what was going on. I also tossed up if I would write this review, admittedly I thought it might be better to restrict this blog to the reading I do that might make me look cooler. But what’s the point? It’s a blog about books, I am already clearly not a jock, and screw what you think, so what if I started reading One Piece? I chose to break up my reviews into each Saga as apposed to each chapter release or volume release, as this makes the most sense to me for convenience and also having complete arcs to review. The East Blue Saga is an introduction to the world and the various characters you are about to embark on a long journey with throughout the Manga. It builds the world and it’s sense of character well through short arcs introducing each new member of the Straw Hat crew The first story arc you of the series sets up the main character Monkey D. Luffy and why he sets out to be a pirate. It also introduces Luffy’s first crew member Roronoa Zoro, who at first joins reluctantly but reveals himself to be a immensely loyal friend. This introductory arc show Luffy’s great sense of duty and commitment to what he believes is good, even in the face of an opposing authority. This also introduces the power system within the universe. Devil Fruit, when eaten, grant the consumer a unique power that only they hold, at the cost of their ability to swim. The next story arc takes the two friends to a new island where a new crew member is introduced. Nami, a headstrong woman who is, for the time being, interested only in what benefits her as an individual, and has no interest in joining a team. This arc also introduces an enjoyable villain that sets up the interesting devil fruit vs devil fruit fights to come, and also a taste of the weird and wacky characters this world is full of. This arc also introduces the readers to a heart wrenching story from a side character. Something I know will continue throughout the manga. The following arc takes the now three member strong crew to a new island that introduces them to coward and serial liar Usopp. This story gives a great sense of the themes around overcoming great odds. It was overall a slower arc for me than the previous arcs but was fun nonetheless. This arc also introduces them finally, to their ship, the Going Merry. The next arc introduces the fifth crew member, the Straw Hats cook, a cool and stoic man with a penchant for becoming a blubbering fool around pretty women. This arc also comes with an emotional storyline, and introduces the reader to the massive threats to come when the crew finally enters the Grand Line. The next arc is the one that really hooked me into the series. It is heart breaking and emotional. The five main characters are put to their greatest test as a crew. The individual personalities and drives of each crew member puts them in a situation in which they must each overcome an internal obstacle and work together as a cohesive unit to overcome their enemy. The themes of oppression and control, standing up for what you believe in, and standing up for the people you care about are put on beautiful display laying clear what the rest of the series will embody. The final arc is short and mostly serves to finish off the saga and set up the next one, the crew are headed to the Grandline. This saga hooked me into the series. It is as fun and as exciting as I expected it to be, but what really kept my attention was the emotion it wasn’t afraid to play with and the themes it was willing to touch. This saga was still clearly just an introduction to the world and it has left me eager for what is to come. Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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Footpath Guides: Sydney Inter-War 1915-1940

Footpath Guides: Sydney Inter-War 1915-1940 by Footpath Guides Text and Photography by Jaques Sheard Design and Art Direction by Sonia Post Produced by Dave Roper Here I am again. Already late to posting my next review and the my backlog of completed books growing. It’s a good thing I have a decent memory and I take notes. This one is somewhat of an unconventional book review. This book is a collection of brief descriptions on the historical context and architectural design of various buildings in Sydney that were erected between 1915 and 1940. It includes photos, fun design to the pages, and a map taking you on a route from building to building. I picked this book up from a Museum while on a trip in Sydney, and woke up early one morning to walk the laid out path and read each description as I came to each building. The small paragraphs on each building gave a good feel for the context the building was designed in, and some of the specific design choices made. A sense of the culture of the time in regards to architecture came through strong as you move from building to building. The selection of buildings themselves were beautiful and intriguing, and even the ones I didn’t quite like had a charm to their ugliness. It also included a selection of “Of Note” buildings off the outskirts of the main path that you could take a moment to appreciate along the way. Some of my personal favourites from the selection were the Grace Building, the BMA House, The Railway House, and the State Theatre which was one of the aforementioned “Of Note” buildings. I had a lot of fun doing the walk and reading along the way and this is definitely something I want to try to do again when I visit new cities. Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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The World Atlas Of Coffee

The World Atlas Of Coffee: From Beans To Brewing - Coffees Explored, Explained, And Enjoyed by James Hoffman I tossed up whether or not I would post this. Does a review on what is essentially a coffee table book (no pun intended) really belong here? But then I thought, of course it does. It is a book that I read just like all the others, why would I not review it all the same? I may be alone in this feeling but I love a coffee table book. Great pictures, brief informative text, a potential conversation starter with guests, a way to show off my interests and how well read I am. A coffee table book is great to have on hand to read on occasion as it was something I could pick up and make my way through whenever I had left my book in another room and couldn't muster the energy to get up. I love coffee and James Hoffman is a wonderful and all-knowing voice in the coffee drinking world. When I saw this book about coffee with its attractive and textured cover and Hoffman's name adorning it, I couldn't resist bringing it home. The book details the full process in making coffee. Beginning with processes in growing and harvesting coffee, through processing the fruit into bean, to roasting and brewing the perfect cup. It is informative and intriguing. A dive into the journey the delicious drink you often hold in your hand has gone through to become a liquid in a cup makes it all the more exciting to take another sip. The book then moves to conclude with a long section on the various countries producing the large amounts of the worlds coffee. With coffee so far spread there are a lot of countries to cover, and only time for brief descriptions of that countries history with coffee, the flavour profiles of the beans grown there, and a brief note on the various growing regions of each country mentioned. Hoffman writes with the authority of his experience and delivers information which always hits the mark on what any coffee lover would want to know most. He doesn't shy away from including his own opinions but always makes it clear on what is fact and what isn't, which I appreciate. This is now one of my favourite books to display on my coffee table and I will enjoy revisiting specific information to inform and enjoy the different coffees and beans I engage with in the future. This is a short review but sometimes that is better. I think it's nice to remind ourselves to enjoy whatever it is we read, and that ALL reading is valid reading as long as we love it.

Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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Babel

Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution by R. F. Kuang

This review is long overdue. I started this blog with the intention of committing to it and it has now been about two months since I last posted. I rejoined a short-term work contract and this blog was put on the backburner. One thing I am proud to admit is that I never stopped reading. I am however disappointed in myself that I was so quick to ignore what I set out to do here. I now have a week off between jobs, and am recommitting myself to this blog. I have a lot to catch up on so there should be a quick succession of posts before reaching the more irregular schedule of “however long it takes” before finishing each book. This blog is for myself more than anything, and for my own sake I once again commit to maintaining it, and posting a review with each completed book.

Babel takes place in a Victorian England shrouded in the magic of translation. Words are etched onto bars of silver that then bring their meanings (or lack thereof) into reality. The story follows a boy taken from his home and recently deceased family in Canton by a mysterious English scholar. The boy, Robin Swift, is taken to England, where he is trained and sent to Oxford university to become a translator, someone with the knowledge and ability to use this magic of words for the benefit of the British Empire. Robin becomes fast friends with his cohort, other students taken from their ‘exotic’ homes with their ‘exotic’ languages to become assets to the empires growth and domination through the use of silver.

The novel is ultimately about colonisation and protest. The British Empires control of a world-changing magic gives them dominance over their vassals and enemies alike, and the fulfilment of its own needs comes at the detriment of the world around it. The students of Babel, the translators’ institute of Oxford University, are merely assets. They are a knowledge base of language, taken by the British Empire to fuel it’s magic needs. An almost jarring reality to this world is that it is not so unlike our own. While England’s society heavily depends on it’s use of silverwork in Babel, it only reflects the truth of our own reality, that the western world is built off of the resources of others and that their power was built through colonisation. Kuang first creates characters and settings through which the reader can connect with and become emotionally involved in whilst the horrors of the outside world remain external to the events which the reader and the characters are viewing. This make it ever the more beautiful when Kuang turns it all around and brings the grim to the forefront for a heart-wrenching and tragic tale.

Kuang’s prose was gripping from the offset. She is detailed and attentive in what she chooses to show or not show in every moment of the novel, in what she chooses to make clear to the reader and what she chooses to hide beneath the surface. The footnotes Kuang inserts throughout the novel, historical facts and anecdotes much like you would see in a non-fiction, begin to blur the lines between the historical reality and the fiction of her novel. This all compounds to strengthen the message behind her novel, the foundations that western society is built on are laid bare and undeniable. The novel may be a fiction but the higher thought it invokes in the reader leans only towards what is external to the novel, something every great art piece aims to do.

It is easy for me to say that this may be my new favourite novel. I have always been attracted to fantasy in my reading but have also previously found myself picking out dark academia as my favourites. To see those two genres married into one novel that is beautifully crafted and deeply thought out, it is no wonder that I was so immediately enthralled by it. I plan to continue reading R. F. Kuang’s work and am excited to write about it again. The scholarly tone that Babel is written with is something I hope to engage with more in the future as it is clear to me that it suits my tastes well.

I will leave this review with something that is going to make me sound all too repetitive. I commit myself to writing these reviews as I read. I will not delay in writing them again and upon finishing a novel I will plan an immediate date to give myself time to write and post it. And I suppose another peace of repetition will be the sentence following (with a bit of editing because I didn’t like the way it sounded anymore).

Happy reading folks. Don’t think too hard about the book you’re on right now, just enjoy it.

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Instagram credit: l_reads

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I love supporting local creators, especially when there is such amazing work to choose from, so I wanted to show off some of the books I keep on my shelf that were written by New Zealand authors (and a couple that are still on my To Be Read pile).

If you haven't heard of any of them before, you should definitely check them out, and please ask me about some of them, I love talking about the books I love 😁

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Buying Books and Reading Books and Adding Books to your TBR are all entirely Separate Hobbies.

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Sundial

Sundial by Catriona Ward

From the eerie setting to the chilling descriptions, Sundial is a gripping page turner right through to the end. For anyone that loves a psychological thriller this one is a must-read. The novel follows the character Rob, a wife and mother of two who lives a seemingly idyllic suburban life. Rob knows however, that a normal life for her is a pipe dream. With an abusive husband and a daughter with dark habits, she is lead to taking her eldest out to her childhood home in the desert in an attempt to save her family from her own dark past. The narrative is shrouded in mystery, and while my description barely begins to summarise the true plot of this novel, it is all that is worth saying to save ruining for anyone else what I found a fantastic read. The shifting of perspectives and between timelines from chapter to chapter is blended seamlessly. This also adds to the alluring mystery of the novel as the reader pieces together the events. The story is presented in an interesting way with each character aware of separate pieces of information that the other is unaware of, and creates further intrigue for the reader by withholding further information that the characters are clearly aware of. This leaves the reader wondering what the true intentions and motivations of the characters may be. Ward’s style of writing flowed so well that as it took me through the story, it was hard to remember that I was reading words on a page rather than seeing the events play out before me. I am a self-proclaimed “Massive Horror Fan” reflected in my consumption of horror films, series’, video games, and books, so I am always very happy to find another piece of horror media to fall in love with. After doing some internet adventuring into other works of Catriona Ward, and seeing that she has other well-loved horror novels in her bibliography, I will most definitely be keeping her on my radar for the future. I also noticed that she coincidentally studied at the University of Oxford. A hint at what I may currently be reading perhaps? I actually picked this book out of a mystery box at my local bookshop, wrapped in brown paper and with only a few brief notes on what the book inside was like. The mystery box itself was fun exciting, but how great for me it is that the book I got was also a wonderful surprise. Since I hadn’t yet seen talk of it before opening it up, it is something I most likely would never have otherwise read. I’m again unsure of how to finish a post so I’m just going to copy what I said last time while I work that one out for the future. I’ll try to get better at this but my reviews will likely just devolve into nonsense the more I go on. The choice is yours to continue reading the reviews or not. CTRL+V: Happy reading folks, don’t think too hard about that book you’re reading, just enjoy it.

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I love putting all my trust into my local bookstore and going home with something from their mystery box.

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The Glass Hotel (and an intro to the blog)

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

I have spent now far too long attempting to determine how to start this review as I feel that I should first start with some sort of mention of this being my first post, and a brief explanation of why I am here. I recently found myself very busy within my career and at a loss for any sort of drive to pick up a book. Reading has always been a major part of my life and so this lack of literature began to cast a great big grey cloud over my head. However now, due to unforeseen circumstances and industry dramas (gasp a strike) I am left with a lot more free time, namely a full working days worth. In an effort not to fall into a wallowing pit, I have thrown myself wholeheartedly into household chores and personal wellbeing (physical and mental), and with those now both well underway, I was again able to carve out that important little moment every day where I get to read a book. The purpose of this blog is to act as part journal, part book review page, whereby posting my thoughts and feelings on the books that I read to the internet I can hold myself accountable to never again falling into a bookless slump. But enough of the drivel and on with the review. What a great book to get me out of my slump. This novel was immediately captivating and thought-provoking. The non-linear form of story-telling Mandel uses in this novel is particularly reminiscent of the only other piece of her work that I have read "Station Eleven", a novel which I should note, I loved. The narrative follows multiple perspectives, however at it's heart is a character named Vincent. Through Vincent's experiences, we gain a glimpse into the lives of a diverse set of characters each grappling with their own desires, regrets, and vulnerabilities which are played out over the backdrop of a Ponzi scheme coming to light. For me, the beauty of the novel shines in the knowledge that these disparate events and characters all connect through one strange night at a luxury hotel. This connection is what truly showcases the theme explored in the novel, that seemingly insignificant decisions can have profound implications. Mandel's writing itself invokes a large feeling of mysticism or even thoughts of the supernatural towards the events exhibited within the novel, despite the narrative being entirely grounded in reality. While this atmosphere (or vibe if you will) is largely what captivated my interest and lead to my falling in love with this book, I don't want to say too much on it as I think it is best experienced for yourself to truly understand what I mean by this. As this is now two books by Emily St. John Mandel that I have read and loved from the narrative, to the style of writing, to the atmosphere, I officially consider myself a fan and have already picked up a third book to add to my collection and read sometime in the near future. I suppose this is where I need to sign off. My first review has ended up shorter than I initially imagined, however it has been a couple of weeks since I finished the novel and then decided to work out how to set up and start this blog. I have already finished another book ready to be reviewed. Hopefully the next one features less of the personal notes and more on the novel it is supposed to be about, but I promise nothing. If anyone out there in the void happens to by some coincidence stumble upon this, please feel free to comment, I would love to discuss with other passionate readers any thoughts and feelings you may share or disagree with. Happy reading folks, don't think too hard about that book you're reading, just enjoy it.