Cairns

I've arrived at the top of the Dog track! Cairns is a welcome change from the smaller towns (read villages/hamlets) that I've stayed in since leaving Brisy. They even have a small Myer - the Australian equivalent to John Lewis :D

The Dog was on time and schedule, unlike at Airlie beach, where we had to wait 4.5hrs... in the unrelenting heat of that afternoon we really got to know that bus shelter; and each other!

Whilst at Magnetic Island, I was befriended by another stray dog (why do the come to me? :/). I called the number on its collar; the chap at the other end of the line said he was stuck on the mainland and didn't know who else could look for it. Thankfully, a bloke turned up in a ute, asked if I was ok and said he'd take the dog to the local plant nursery (?!). Given that I couldn't do much with said dog, I agreed and called the owner back to inform him. The bloke picked up the beast, hoss'd him onto the flat bed of his ute and drove off; the dog just stood on the back, staring at the world as it went past in a way that only a dog could - CraZy!

The hostel in Cairns (another YHA) is friendly and clean. Alas the reception staff are somewhat ineffectual. I've played pool (and won on a technicality - my opponent potted the black. I myself potted the chalk, which was rather embarrassing). I even got to play with the new Canon 450D digital SLR... mmmm shiny... mmmm quick!

Tomorrow I go on an "Outer Reef Cruise", where we can snorkel and hopefully continue to loaf! (a 6:45am start will preclude this at first).


A Quick Book Review

Flat Earth News (Nick Davies) - Very good: give it a read!
Contest (Matthew Reilly) - Rubbish: don't!

Book Review #3

Another in the occasional series covering the words between covers...

Musicophillia (Oliver Sacks)
I was drawn to the cover of this book some time ago, but didn't get around to buying it. I stumbled upon it once more in a little shop in Crows Nest and out of boredom, bought it as something to further my rather lacklustre musical abilities interests.

You should never judge a book by its cover, and whilst I enjoyed it, the happy-go-lucky typographic joy on the front did not match the heavy prose within. Written in the form of a university dissertation, it discusses the author's research into how music affects the brain, both good and bad. It is filled with heart-warming and saddening case stories of patients he has met, as well as some amusing side-notes on his own personal experiences with music. (One footnote tells of how "Like many medical students in the '60s, I was surviving on large doses of amphetamines and discovered a marked change in my perception of music".) It was these amusing musical anecdotes that kept me hooked through the slower sections of this thick romp through conditions from Alzheimer's to Williams' syndrome (I don't think he covered anything beginning with X, Y or Z, but definitely everything in-between A and W!).

As mentioned, it was a heavy read; both my brain and my index finger were weary after finishing it. Well worth a read, if you want to know just how strongly music affects us all.

Rupert's Adventures in China: How Murdoch lost a fortune and found a wife (Bruce Dover)
Comprising two subjects that are hard to find a balanced and unbiased viewpoint on, Bruce Dover (an ex-News Corp executive) introduces Murdoch to the reader in what appears to be a fairly frank way. He is praised for his successes and his failures are fully documented. It was a pleasant read (although compared to Musicophilia which I had read previously, anything would be an easy read) and the author's style is engaging; I managed to finish it within a week.

The author also paints a fairly frank picture of the Chinese government and its myriad departments and factions. Not knowing that much about the inner workings of Murdoch or the Chinese government, I can't say how true his recollections are, however for the most part, he manages to avoid bitterness towards Murdoch (who fired him) and the Chinese who thwarted his attempts at entry into the lucrative domestic satellite TV market; in 99% of the book, he remains up-beat about Murdoch and summarises the goings on of the government with a level of abstraction.

Worth a read, if only so that you can argue about its findings :)

Book Reviews #2

Another in the occasional series. This time, two in one!

Captain Corelli's Mandolin

I'd heard a snatched few minutes of Captain Corelli's Mandolin on Radio 4 back home and and enjoyed the dry humour although didn't know at the time what I was listening to.

Discovering the book here (76^th place in the Australian Best Read 2007), I only bought it to make up a Buy Three for Two offer. As such, it sat on a pile for some time before being read.

CCM is a story of love and a story of war. I've never laughed and cried so much at a book before; it has rekindled my joy of reading. The writing is sharp and witty, pulling you into a story so complex yet complete that you feel part of it. My only complaint is that I had some very late nights reading it, to ensure that I read beyond the bloody war-based sections and onto the more light-hearted sections focusing on the main characters so I didn't dream of a wartime so horrifically described! If only all books were so impassioned. When I reached the end, there was a lump in my throat and both sadness & happiness combined.

Apparently there was a film made about it. I've not seen it, but I can't imagine that it compares favourably with the book.

In summary, it was absolutely wonderful - I can't recommend it enough!

The Eyre Affair

I can't really give this book the credit it deserves; having read Captain Corelli's Mandolin just before, very little compares.

However the Eyre Affair is an easy read, one where your brain can be switched to standby for the most part. Some clever alternate universe stuff, but with minimal character buildup and a very er, spritely wound-down ending.

Greg's Book Review #1

An occasional series detailing the findings of Greg in the advancement of paper-based distractions.

Neverwhere (by Neil Gaiman) ˜˜˜˜˜
From the cover and blurb on the back, this is a potential winner. Chosen from Dymock's bookshop because the author co-wrote 'Good Omens' with Terry Pratchett, and said book was a pulp-rendered-masterpiece of stupendous proportions, I had high hopes for Neverwhere.

Set in a "London Below London", poorly described stereotypical Victoriana characters go on an unexplained quest after a young girl's family (known for being able to open portals and doors to anywhere) have been killed. The girl - unoriginally named 'Door' - meets a weedy character from the real London who has accidentally 'fallen through the cracks in society' and continues her quest.

Frankly, some of the collective literature I've had the pleasure to co-write with my friends has more excitement and depth. Clearly Gaiman had a word-count to reach and little time to do it. You could see in his writing the way he progressively added to the story rather than planning it out - a simple progression, where the reader only found out what was coming next just before it did. Even the torture scenes lacked Gaiman's usual dark horror (read his Fragile Things to see him do horror properly). They were almost laugh-out-loudly badly written - how could you be scared of something so dire?

In summary: Bleh.