Monday, March 19, 2012

The first five novels of John Carter of Mars


There are eleven novels in the "Barsoom series" as the John Carter of Mars series is known (Mars is Barsoom in the Martian's language). The books were written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, most famous as the creator of Tarzan. He also created the Pellucidar series (Journey to the Center of the Earth, and so on).

There are plenty of 99 cent versions of the first five novels on offer in the Kindle store, and I decided on one titled John Carter of Mars that had an illustration of a green martian as the cover.

I suppose, because these books are so well-known, at least to a certain segment of the populace, the entity offering these books for sale didn't feel the need to give very much description of them, which is a pity. Only the titles of the five books were listed (and the fact that a glossary of people, places and things is included, but not mentioned, I find puzzling. You're competing with five other rivals - and yes your cover is the best )for all that it doesn't appear when you look at it on the Kindle!) but any other things to differentiate yourself from your competitors would be helpful.

The table of contents is not "hot", so I'll have to read through each book chronologically.

The Barsoom series
1. Princess of Mars February-July 1912, All-Story
2. The Gods of Mars January-May 1913, All-Story
3. The Warlord of Mars December 1913-March 1914, All-Story
4. Thuvia, Maid of Mars April 1916, All-Story Weekly
5. The Chessmen of Mars February-March 1922, Argosy
6. The Master Mind of Mars July 15, 1927, Amazing Stories Annual
7. A Fighting Man of Mars April-September, 1930
8. Swords of Mars November 1934-April 1935
9. Synthetic Men of Mars January-February 1939, Argosy Weekly
10. Llana of Gathol March-October 1941, Amazing Stories
11. John Carter of Mars: John Carter and the Giant of Mars
(by John Coleman Burroughs) January 1941, Amazing Stories

Friday, March 16, 2012

Retro Reivew #37: Hawaii Vacation Blog


REVIEWED BY: Ms. Cairo

MY RECOMMENDATION: YES

AMAZON SUBSCRIPTION PAGE: Hawaii Vacation Blog

WEB ADDRESS: www.blogcatalog.com/blog/explore-hawaii

BLOG DESCRIPTION: An adventure blog to guide you to all the hotspots on the islands of Hawaii. Hop onboard and follow the tracks of the Trailblazer Travel Book authors.

OUR REVIEW: Ah, how I’d love to be in Hawaii right now. It’s not in the cards however, so the Hawaii Vacation Blog is a nice substitute. It’s written by people who actually live in and have traveled throughout all the Hawaiian islands. (Just as a point of interest, the Big Island of Hawaii is not actually the one people think about when they think of Hawaii, that’d be Oahu, on which is located Honolulu. Just in case you don't know that!)

RECENT ARTICLES:
  • Staying on Oahu
  • Guide Me (uninformative title for an entry about the Big Island
  • The Once and Present Place to Be – Mauna Lani Resort
  • Lyon Arboretum – it’s grrreeat!
  • Some enchanted evening article on the Fairmont Orchid Hotel

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Retro Review #36: My Hoofprints: A love affair iwth horses



REVIEWED BY: Ann Currie

MY RECOMMENDATION: YES

AMAZON SUBSCRIPTION PAGE: My Hoofprints: A Love Affair with Horses

WEB ADDRESS: hoofprints.typepad.com

BLOG DESCRIPTION: Get a horse fix on your Kindle! For horse lovers and horse owners alike. Hoofprints will take you to the real world of horses, their people and their dreams!


MY REVIEW: A blog that covers everything horse related from feeding horses to handling manure to exercising to local politics concerning stables to equine health and more. One of the more interesting features is following the release of the blogger's first book, a teen horse novel, titled, Winning Bet. The blog is interesting, informational, and personal.

It is well written with pictures in most posts. It does suffer from my usual complaint infrequent and inconsistent postings. Sometimes she posts two days in succession, sometimes it will be a week between posts or more. I feel certain her readers would be happy with more.

RECENT ARTICLES:

  • Horse operations : Agriculture?
  • Fencing Francas - Tips for Sanity
  • Clipping your cool
  • Stable Land use rules: We're back.
  • Manure happens . . . and it's good stuff


________________________
Ann Currie publishes My Life a Bit South of Normalwww.abitsouthofnormal.com/
and also, Silver Pieces: The Strange and Peculiarstrangeandpeculiarsilver.blogspot.com/

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Retro Review #35: Full Figure Plus


REVIEWED BY: Ann Currie

MY RECOMMENDATION: YES

AMAZON SUBSCRIPTION PAGE: Full Figure Plus

WEB ADDRESS: www.fullfigureplus.com

BLOG DESCRIPTION: Full Figure Plus is dedicated to posting news, links, and relevant information for plus size women and big and tall men.

MY REVIEW: This a full-size blog for the millions of full size women out there. The posts are full of shopping information as well tips on dressing and styles. The posts are updated regularly.

There are some links that cannot be accessed on the Kindle but the entries are not dependent on those links and the valuable content is in the posts. One of the more valuable assets of this blog is its references to and reviews of retailers that offer fashions for this audience. It is refreshing to see a positive fashion blog for the full size woman.

RECENT ARTICLES:
  • Full Figured Weekly Question
  • Trendy Plus Size Fashion from Elvi
  • Charming Shoppes introduces one stop shopping for plus sizes
  • 10 steps to reducing your frustration level when shopping
  • Plus Size Maxi Dresses Just In Time For Spring

Monday, March 5, 2012

Retro Review #34: Ars Technica


REVIEWED BY: Ms. Cairo

MY RECOMMENDATION: YES

AMAZON SUBSCRIPTION PAGE: Ars Technica

WEB ADDRESS: http://arstechnica.com/

BLOG'S DESCRIPTION: Ars Technica offers news and reviews, analysis of technology trends, and expert advice on topics ranging from the most fundamental aspects of technology to the many ways technology is helping us enjoy our world.

MY REVIEW: If you're a gamer of any kind, this is the blog for you. Indeed, despite the blog's description on its Amazon webpage, that does seem to be it focus - the technology of gaming on computers, on ipads and Iphones, and so on.

Even if you're not into gaming, the technology covered here is interesting, and stuff that frankly, any member of a technological society needs to know about. Any gaming technology is also technology that will find its way into the real world eventually, from our movies to how our computers operate.

Check this blog out via the Kindle free two-week tryout, and I think you'll continue your subscription after that.

RECENT ARTICLES:
-The A4 and the A8: secrets of the iPad's brain
-They won't see you coming: the XAI Laser Mouse with LCD
-My oil droplet is smarter than your lab mouse
-Weird Science finds marriage can kill
-Week in gaming: Bad Company 2, Mario Galaxy 2, Steam
-Week in tech: we're all so predictable