Kendra Shannon

The collection of Napi stories is very interesting. And the introduction includes some very useful context of how the stories were used and developed. The author gives some insight into the character of the “trickster” in Aboriginal story telling and how the listeners interpreted the lessons. But I feel like the author is overly concerned with including every single variation from every tribe and getting the story as close to the original as possible. The very nature of oral story telling is that stories are fluid and change with each teller. I think the book would have felt more natural had the author explained this in the intro and then let the stories speak for themselves.

This is an important read for any soccer fan, male or female. It shows first hand the incredible obstacles female players face as they pursue their dream to play pro. The author speaks with players from around the world who play in leagues around the world and illuminates a wide range of issues in the women's game: money, sexism, motherhood, even religion. The book talks about the struggles of domestic teams, leagues, and national sides. We see the successes and heartbreaks of a diverse group of players. Ultimately it ends with hope for the women's game as we end up in Portland with the Thorns and their fans, a place where pro soccer (men's and women's) has rooted and taken hold in the city.

The author offers memories of growing up in a small farming community that remind me of my own family history (yup, I'm a Mennonite). The most interesting is the end when his family moves to Coaldale, where I grew up, and describes the town in the early 1950s. The stories can be awkwardly long, wordy and unfinished.

The synopsis that I read before reading this book lead me to believe it would be a novel about The Struggles and the IRA. It is not. It's more of a commentary on “revolutionary” culture in England. The characters are simplified, over exaggerated, and one dimensional, which is perhaps the point, but for me it wasn't enjoyable. The only reason I read till the end was to see what conclusions/comments the author was trying to make.

I love listening to the music a book like this describes as I read. With “Our Noise” I found myself discovering a great band I'd never heard of (Lambchop), rediscovering great bands I hadn't listened to for awhile (Polvo, Archers of Loaf) and getting into bands I'd heard of but never got around to listening to (Spoon). I really enjoyed the way the book was laid out as well. The author set the scene with a short background paragraph and then he let the people involved tell the story, interview style. It was fun to read and I loved that so many old photos and posters were included. A great history of great music!

There wasn't any information here that I hadn't already known or experienced, having worked at a record store in that time. But the book is well written and it was nice to have the overview and history of the shift to digital music in one place. The book focused mainly on the artist/label relationship and I would have liked to hear more from music producers and engineers about how their role changed and how they adapted their techniques and studios during this time.