It's A Question of Space | Clayton C. Anderson

*Image and book provided via NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

Former astronaut Clayton C. Anderson has been answering questions about space since he Earth for a long stay on the ISS. This book is a compilation of questions he's been asked over the years with answers from his perspective.

Review:

If you have ever had questions, or have kids with questions, about some of the more routine tasks in space, Anderson has an answer. This book covers a lot of areas from how to become an astronaut to how to keep yourself clean on the ISS. A lot of the questions were things I would never think to ask, but once they were I thought "oh yeah, how does that work?" Fortunately Anderson is really good about answering them.

Admittedly, there are times when Anderson just doesn't know the answer, but he's very good about directing you to resources or people who would know. Some of the answers required a lot more technical expertise than he had, so he called in his friend Robert Frost who actually worked on those sides of the missions. Anderson also keeps a good sense of humor in a lot of his answers. There were some, to me, ridiculous questions, like what if an astronaut murdered all of his fellow astronauts on the ISS. Anderson actually went through a bit of a scenario of what would be required for the killer to do. All the while he made it clear that, given the rigorous psychological testing astronauts have to go through, he didn't think this would ever actually happen.

I think my biggest issue with this book is the editing. He says that the book is from his writings on Quora and it shows. There are a lot of repeat questions and answers spread throughout the book under different topics. Admittedly some of the questions had multiple questions in them so I can see why they were under different categories and thought to be different questions. I just think it would have been more readable had he consolidated the questions and answers instead of just repeating what was on Quora.

Other than that, though, I did like this book and it did answer a lot of questions I didn't even know I had about space and being an astronaut. 3.5 hoots!

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Rubber Soldiers | Gary Neeleman and Rose Neeleman

*Image and book provided via NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

This book looks at the essential role Brazil played in World War II by providing the rubber that was needed for the war effort.

Review:

The first half of this book was riveting. I had no clue that Brazil was so essential to the war effort. I had no idea how many lives were lost getting that rubber to the United States. Heck, I didn't even know German U-Boats were active in the South Atlantic. It was very educational, and heart-wrenching, relaying the stories of the Rubber Soldiers and the conditions under which they worked. 

The second half of the book however, was almost nothing but the very bureaucracy filled letters that passed between the Brazilian and US governments. These letters are not good for general readers. They were written with politicians and, maybe, reporters in mind. I had to skim through several pages of technical and political lingo just to get to the authors' summaries that were significantly more effective at exposition than the letters. I get that the letters were needed, but they really dragged down the book for me, a non-historian. 

It really upsets me because this book has a very important and under-represented story to tell and point to make. And the first half of the book does that so very well! The problem comes when the authors rely on verbatim copies of the letters and telegraphs. My eyes glazed over quickly and I had to force myself to continue reading. I really feel like the authors were only including the letters to pad the page count. The letters may have been better off being included as an appendix with the authors writing up summaries in the main book. They are talented authors but these letters just kill the book for me.

If you're a history buff or have a very strong interest in the subject, you'll probably enjoy the entire book. If you're a casual reader, like me, whose curiosity was piqued, you'll probably only like the first half of the book. 2.5 hoots.

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Future War | Robert H. Latiff

*Image and book provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

Retired U.S. Air Force major general Robert H. Latiff has written this book to inform the public about current, pending and future technologies used in war. He has also written a plea to the American public to pay attention to these technologies, their uses and users and to debate the possible consequences.

Review:

The first part of this book showed me just how close we are to the military Sci-Fi books I love becoming a lot less Sci-Fi. This both thrilled and terrified me. In the Sci-Fi books, the technologies are already common place and the errors minimized. We're still in the testing phases and the full ramifications are not yet thought through. 

The technologies that we are looking at are amazing developments, if they can be perfected. We've seen videos of amputees controlling robot actions with their mind. There are news stories about technological advances allowing for faster healing. We're even getting closer to being able to delete bad memories. These technologies are amazing. But they're not always good. What are the psychological side effects of knowing that a lost limb can be regrown or replaced? If you don't remember the bad things, even horrors, that you've done, are you still responsible for them? 

There are even questions to consider about robots being brought into war zones. We've already seen in real life how algorithms do not always go as we think they will, as we plan they will. Artificial intelligence is still in rough stages. Being able to beat humans at games is one thing. Being able to make the right call on the battlefield is another. And what about the soldiers who serve alongside these robots? How will it affect their behavior? Their calls?

This book does a wonderful job of presenting the technology, presenting the questions that need to be asked, and giving the common citizen a good place to start their own research and education on the topic. Latiff laments the chasm that's been steadily forming between US Troops and US citizens and pleads for citizens to educate themselves and start closing that gap. After reading this book, I have expanded my daily news topics and will be looking up a number of the books he lists in his notes. 

If you have any interest in the future of technology, the current or future state of warfare, how to support our troops more effectively, this is the book for you. If you have any interest in joining the US Armed Forces, you will want to read this book as well. I highly encourage any and all US citizens to pick this up and learn more about what is involved when politicians talk about sending out our troops.

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Toru: Wayfarer Returns | Stephanie R. Sorensen

*Image and book provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

In an alternate history of 1850's Japan, Toru has returned from two years in the United States where he studied their military tactics, technology and economics. He risks his life by breaking Japan's isolation policy and returning to the shores of Japan so he can teach his fellow countrymen how to build and improve upon American technologies to defend themselves against the force that he knows is coming. 

Review:

This is one of those books that I could not put down. Even when I had to put it away for the sake of work or eating, it was all I could think about! I was so invested in the characters that I told my husband, "if [character name] dies, I'm going to be very mad." I was very much rooting for Toru to win over the Shogun and arm Japan. I was rooting for Masuyo to pave the way for women to be engineers and airship captains, though sometimes I was rooting for her father, Lord Aya, to win just one argument against her. I was especially rooting for Jiro every time he gave himself a promotion. 

While the book description says it's steampunk, the author, herself, agrees that it may not be "true steampunk". Technology is central to the story, but the book is more about societal and personal reactions to sudden changes in technology, as opposed to being about the technology itself. In this, I wouldn't label it as a steampunk novel, but that does not detract from the book, for me.

I greatly appreciated Sorensen's character and world building. I'll be the first to admit that my knowledge of Japanese history is sorely lacking, so her attention to details about the land, the etiquette, etc. were quite helpful to me. Her characters were also so endearing on just about every level and diverse in their attributes. Even allies and best of friends have their own personalities and views. While there is drama and politics in this book, there is a healthy balance of humor as well, right up to the very end. 

This is the first book in a series and, I'll admit, I'm quite interested in seeing where this alternative history goes. I give it 5 hoots and eagerly await the next installment!

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The Martian by Andy Weir

It has been such a long time since I've gotten to say this about a book review: OMG! THIS WAS SO AWESOME! At no time in reading this book did I get bored! Nothing seemed out of place, the book never slowed down, there was always something.

After reading a few other survival stories, I was worried that Mark, main character of The Martian, would fall into the same depression so many other survival story characters do. But Weir definitely knows how engineers think and made Mark more of a "here's a problem, let's fix it" kind of guy, with a great sense of humor! Even when he knows all of NASA and Earth believe him to be dead, he knows he has a chance at survival if he can do this, this and that. He's a great improviser with a strong will to live and keep laughing while doing it. Also the massive amounts of duct tape help.

Weir keeps the pace of this book going pretty quickly by having Mark go through several problems, some preventable, some not. With other authors or books I may have thought the constant trials and tribulations were too much, but the fact that Mark keeps coming back from them with a full set of wits, practicality and drive to survive, keeps the reader from feeling overwhelmed. How can I be overwhelmed by all that's going wrong when the guy going through everything isn't allowing himself to get overwhelmed?

When Mark does get into contact with NASA, his joking personality comes through even stronger. The dialog between Mark and NASA caused many outbursts of laughter on my part. It made the reader really empathize with Mark and want to see him survive. Especially given how much he goes through! And, because of this, The Martian is a real nail-biter, even to the end! 

I loved this book, and I cannot recommend it enough! I'm actually going to start looking for more of Weir's books to read! Though a part of me does want someone like Neil DeGrasse Tyson or Michio Kaku to read it and verify some/all of the science ^^  Overall, I have to give this book 5 Hoots!

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**I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Autumn Fire by Tom Wither

My reaction at the end of Autumn Fire is very similar to my reaction at the end of it's precursor, The Inheritor: There had better be another book in the works!

Autumn Fire picks up where the The Inheritor leaves off. The American East Coast is without power in millions of homes and offices. Aziz is still pulling all the strings and is close to completing his plans. Thompson of the NSA is having issues dealing with the self-imposed guilt from providing incorrect information that cost many lives. Agent Johnson of the FBI is being called back to Saudi Arabia to follow up on the arrest of the man they interrogated. And The Wraiths are stationed in the States to help train National Guardsmen. Then the next attacks hit!

This book hits you with problem after problem in a way that makes you empathize with the feelings of helplessness that the main characters feel. Once that is established, Wither makes sure you also feel their pride when they accomplish something, their relief when they succeed, etc. The characters in Autumn Fire are easy to relate with, even the lesser characters. At one point I was actually yelling because I was worried that one of my favorite characters was going to die.*

Like The Inheritor, Autumn Fire also gives more insight into the workings of Saudi Arabian politics and culture. Little things that we may consider innocent, asking how one's family is doing, are considered rude "Family is an intensely private matter here, spoken of only among other family members."** While other things we consider rude, such as invading a person's personal space, is seen as customary "[t]he last thing he needed now was to appear evasive or give the appearance of having something to hide by backing away..."*** Moreover, it is the establishment of respectful relationships that results in what success the main characters to achieve.

Probably my biggest concern with this book was that there seemed to be significantly more detailed violence than in the first book. This could be because there were more deaths in this book, while The Inheritor had more focus on the actual energy infrastructure, but some of the details about the effects of the specialized Wraith weaponry seemed...excessive. They definitely got the point across about Wraith weapons being more powerful than standard issue weapons. They also served the purpose of showing how dedicated the Jihad's were to continue in spite of these grievous wounds, but it was a bit much for me. The only other problem for me was that, because I received a digital proof and not a final copy, I came across several spelling errors that were distracting from the story, but I trust Turner Publications to have these corrected for the final product.

There were several times, while reading, that I had to tell my husband not to bug me because I did not want to stop reading. The ending itself left me wanting more, hence my reaction stated above. I greatly enjoyed Autumn Fire and wish it well in its upcoming release, September 9, 2014. I also encourage you to pick up your own copy, especially if you have read the first book, The Inheritor. If not, please see my earlier review. All in all, I give Autumn Fire 4 hoots and cannot wait for the next book!

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*Whether (s)he did or not, I will not say. I don't deal in spoilers.
**Page 363 in the digital proof.
***Page 325 in the digital proof.
****This book was provided, in digital format, by Turner Publishing. This does not have an effect on my review.