Leon

Having done some meditation and a few attempts at mindfulness, I found this book to be a good way to really learn to be present and not dwell on the past or worry about the future. That's not to say that I'm an expert by any means. I feel this book has given me a start on being in the now and not thinking away the best of every moment. It's not going to be easy to complete this journey, but I already can feel benefits of the little bit of pure presence I have managed to accomplish. One thing that really helps is to apply the concepts during my yoga class. Yoga lends itself very well to the ideas from this book.

This was a great book to help me think about ways to improve my photography. The author covers each aspect of photography in appropriate detail, providing example and exercises to make sure the concept is understood. I found it easy to remember many of the concepts each time I went on a shoot and it shows in the results.

I admit it. I actually liked Wesley on TNG. Probably because I would have killed to be on the real Enterprise (if it were a real space ship) or an actor on the show. And, don't worry Wil, I wasn't looking for a rehash of Star Trek. I knew what the book was about and was interested in how Wil's thoughts on TNG and acting evolved. I enjoyed the story and the way thoughts from the blog were interwoven. It wasn't as much a chronological story as a chronology of thought and emotion. Very enjoyable.

I bought my D500 in Oct 2016 as an upgrade prior to my trip of a lifetime to the Galápagos Islands. I wanted to make sure I understood the camera well enough so it would fade into the background and let me concentrate on my technique. I couldn't have chosen a more perfect book. Thom provides a fair amount of technical detail, which I love. But, even if you're not into the tech that much, it's still valuable. These details make it much easier to understand how the camera behaves. Thom also provides great explanations of the camera's features and when to consider using them. Combining these two aspects of the book, I found it very easy to understand how to set up for the best shots. When things didn't come out as expected, it was easy to review what I had done and make corrections. As a result, I ended up getting far better pictures than I would have otherwise.

This book provides a very interesting view inside Apple. Given the sources cited, it appears to be fairly accurate, but it would be impossible to tell for sure. The authors perspective on Apple products and the company seems pretty balanced. The only thing I'm not sure about are some of the conclusions he draws about the future of the company. He certainly is entitled to express an opinion, but I'm not sure I agree with it. He also portrays his opinion as if it were quite likely and agreed to by other pundits. Still, this was a good read.

I still love the concept behind this series, but the story lines are getting more and more confusing. New characters and new realities are constantly being added. Then, some small connections are being made to help understand how it fits together, but then that's the end of the book. With 10 books in the series all working this way, it sometimes feels like an excuse to charge for pieces of the story.

It took a while to get into this book, but it was worth it. I had trouble dealing with Linden's single-minded introspection at first, but as the story unfolded, it fit. This is similar to how I felt about the beginning of the series. I am enjoying how Donaldson is weaving past, present and future stories together. It forces me to think so I can follow all of the threads of the story. He's also filling in some of the history of the Land.

It was interesting learning the history of Apple and other projects Woz was part of. However, I had trouble with the style of his writing. It read more like he was an enthusiastic teenager boasting to friends. Some of the writing seemed repetitive and almost child-like. This made it difficult for me to take seriously enough to really enjoy. Still, it was worth getting his perspective on Apple and the growth of computer technology.

This book was a lot of fun to read. I haven't read an engaging page-turner like this in a while. It's just the kind of fantasy novel I like and the first person perspective really kept me involved in the story. The author's descriptions of settings, people, and the old photographs made it easy to visualize his world. I'm already diving into the second book.

I really enjoy all of the details of Harry Potter's world. JK Rowling's imagination is remarkable. That being said, this book is really just a collection of writings from Pottermore. They're still worth a read, but some may not feel the need to spend $2.99 for a book form of the same online content.