Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
T.S.McLellan

T.S.McLellan

Joined January 2019

review
T.S.McLellan
Five Ways to Forgiveness | Ursula K. Le Guin
Pickpick

I wish I had this author's imagination! One of her later works, this is a collection of five loosely related novellas, that try to explore the human condition through different eyes in the far reaches of the universe. She really creates her worlds with belief systems, sociopolitical structures, and complex histories. Still, all these stories or about individuals and their personal relationships. Excellent!

review
T.S.McLellan
A Christmas Carol | Charles Dickens
Pickpick

Probably the most filmed story in cinema, television or stage, how many people have actually read A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost Story of Christmas? With the many great adaptations, it is a different experience to read the author's own words. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book for audio, in plenty of time for the season.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Invisible Man | H.G. Wells
Pickpick

Just finished reading this one for an audio book, and I had quite forgotten how altogether funny it was. The subtitle of this book is "A Grotesque Romance", and I did not recall any romantic involvements. I presume the author used the word as drama, story, etc. Still it reads as well today as when it was first written. A load of fun. My reading should be available for public consumption in about two weeks.

review
T.S.McLellan
Pickpick

Iconic classic, about the internal struggle between good and evil. Once evil is unleashed, it was hard to put the leash back on. I had a lot of fun reading this one. For fun, I decided that Mr. Hyde should be a Scottish Highlander. Available wherever audio books are sold.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Word for World is Forest | Ursula K. Le Guin
Pickpick

Much darker than I remembered it, but I first read this one shortly after she wrote it. I love how she explores the ethnocentric differences between the locals and the Terrans in her stories. In this particular tale, the Earthlings have not evolved at all as the blasted off to the stars to colonize, exploit and subjugate new worlds. This story, perhaps reflective of a mature author, lacks the usual optimism that usually balances out her novels.

review
T.S.McLellan
The People That Time Forgot | EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
Pickpick

Caspak novel number 2. This story follows Bowen Tyler's secretary, Mr. Tom Billings on a harrowing rescue mission to the land that time forgot. I had a lot of fun with this one, reading Tom with the voice of John Wayne. Liberal with Burroughs' signature blend of adventure, dire peril, and romance. It is no wonder that he is a perennial favorite of teenage boys everywhere. Available wherever audio books are sold.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Dispossessed | Ursula K. LeGuin
Pickpick

Another LeGuin masterwork. This story unraveled in multiple timelines, telling a bleak and sobering tale of an anarchist from an anarchic society who was welcomed back into the fold of free market bureaucracy.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Left Hand of Darkness | Ursula K. LeGuin
Pickpick

A masterpiece! This novel of the Hainish recruitment of humanity as found in the Galaxy, deals with culture shock, gender identity, compassion and human decency. Written from various viewpoints, it is fully fleshed out and thoroughly riveting. Hugo award winner, and deservingly so. A must read for any fan of fiction or science fiction.

review
T.S.McLellan
City Of Illusions | Ursula K. LeGuin
Pickpick

In this entry of the Hainish novels, an amnesiac must seek out the"enemy" to discover himself. The main character is apparently a descendant from the Planet of Exile, and must find out about his home and his mission, without revealing any of it to the "enemy". This is the first time I have binge read the Hainish novels, and I am enjoying them immensely.

review
T.S.McLellan
Planet of Exile | Ursula K. LeGuin
Pickpick

On a world where the farborns were abandoned some eight years before, and each year lasts roughly the lifespan of a man, the farborn leader reaches out to the nearest native leader to combine forces against a raiding horde. Old prejudices don't die easily, and they were in for a long winter. I love this author's imagination!

review
T.S.McLellan
Rocannon's World | Ursula K. LeGuin
Pickpick

I am re-reading the Hainish tales of LeGuin, starting with Rocannon's World. I had quite forgotten how much detail she packed into this relatively thin volume. It had adventure, tragedy, menace and redemption, all great ingredients for a good story. What I most enjoy is that it is part of a much larger storyline. LeGuin delivers, as always.

review
T.S.McLellan
Pickpick

A short, easy read, this story was full of action, adventure, romance, unhuman savages, and dinosaurs. The first part is a harrowing sea story, and the rest is a fantasy adventure on a lost continent where people evolve from ape to man in their own lifetime. A fun read, I quite enjoyed creating the audio book.

review
T.S.McLellan
A Princess of Mars | EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
Pickpick

First of a series published over a century ago, this was the start of ERB's literary career, his wonderful imagination and sources of inspiration made him virtually an overnight success. I had a lot of fun reading and publishing this as an audio book.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Mill on the Floss | George Eliot
Mehso-so

I was struck by the writing, the analysis of the motives and reasons for the feelings held by the central characters and their extended family. Ms. Eliot occasionally ignores traditional grammar rules to confide her opinions to the readers, which is a playful way to break the rules. Whilst she created her microcosm of humanity a century and a half ago, it is pertinent today. Alas, it had a tragic ending.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Eye of the Heron | Ursula K. Le Guin
Pickpick

A delightful tale of a group of pacifists on a world run by gangsters. While there is drama and tragedy, it is a tale overall of faith and hope. This is one of my favorite authors of the 20th century.

review
T.S.McLellan
Pickpick

While not as linear as the first book, it was fun to have the familiar characters back. There were several more rabbit folktales, and more events with the new Watership Warren. While this book does not quite stand alone as a novel, it is a very delightful companion to Watership Down.

review
T.S.McLellan
The Moon Maid | EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
Mehso-so

Outside of his various series, this one-off predictably contains adventure, romance, narrow escapes from death, and treacherous villains; all of the hallmarks that ERB is known for and why we continue to read him.

review
T.S.McLellan
Beyond the Farthest Star | EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
Mehso-so

ERB's inspiration seems to be the fascist regime that was taking over Europe when the first half of the story was published in 1941. The hero is an American fighter pilot killed in WWII, who wakes up transported to a world where another fascist regime had all but taken over the planet. He finds himself in the last unconquered nation, and takes up their cause. Nice propaganda piece.

review
T.S.McLellan
Watership Down | Richard Adams
Pickpick

I read this book forty years ago and I hung on to it because I knew I would read it again. I just finished it for the second time, and it is still wonderful.