Sassy : The Birthday Storm ( book ) … Sharon M Draper

Sassy : The Birthday Storm ( book ) ... Sharon M Draper

A Florida hurricane threatens to ruin Grammy’s birthday celebration. That’s the gist of the plot, but its nature bits; the Storm, the beach, the turtle eggs; are the pleasant parts. Sassy and her Sack; the magical practicality of the latter is probably the most unrealistic element of the story; are rather annoying.

my rating : 3 of 5

2009

Phineas Gage [ A Gruesome But True Story About Brain Science ] ( book ) … John Fleischman

Phineas Gage [ A Gruesome But True Story About Brain Science ] ( book ) ... John Fleischman

This book; a True Story only in the sense most historical biographies are, meaning it’s based on what someone says other people said happened; is compelling at the start. That’s partly because it begins with the Gruesome; Phineas Gage is “world famous” for being cranially impaled by a tamping iron; instead of eventually leading into it.

Once the tale of his Horrible Accident is told, John Fleischman is left stretching the rest of Gage’s otherwise unexceptional life out with what comes across as an extended epilogue. He does so by digressing into detailed medical synopses and Science lessons regarding the Brain, comparing what we “know” now to what they knew back in the 1800s.

my rating : 3 of 5

2002