Sunday, September 4, 2016

Blogging for Books: Punderdome

Blogging for Book: Punderdome


Summary: Punderdome is based on the television show, where players are presented with card that pair two seemingly unrelated topics and players race against the time to create as many puns as they can in order to be awarded the round.

Game is designed for 3 or more players/teams and comes with:

  • 200 double sided cards (white and green)
  • 2 Mystery Prize Envelopes with fill in sheets
  • 2 80 page pads for drafting puns
  • 1 instruction sheet and pun example cards
Players take time being the proctor and choosing a green and a white card to base puns on. Players have 90 seconds (with an opportunity to gain bonus time) to write down puns to present to the proctor, who then determines the winner. Winner of the round is awarded the set of pun cards and the winner of the gain will have collected 10 sets of cards. 

Review: This game is sure to be the center of your next get together and be the perfect conversation starter. Though it was a little slow to get started, it quickly because a blast and you will find yourself looking for puns in everyday situations. You do not need to be an English major to play this game and it is perfect for larger groups.

Friday, August 12, 2016

Blogging for Books: "Unfair: The New Science of Criminal Injustice" by Adam Benforado





Summary:

The author Adam Benforado is an associate professor of law at Drexel University. He uses examples and case studies to explore perception and biological factors as they relate to the criminal justice system and inherent criminal behavior. Through these examples Benforado offers the reader different points of view regarding our every day bias, how they carried over into the legal system and how they bend the ability to render "fair" justice.

Review:

Does disgust have a role in whether someone receives fair treatment? Are there checks and balances to ensure ethical opportunities in determining innocence? Or is it all about getting the conviction, regardless of fault?  These are some of the questions explored by the author.

The examples that Benaforado used dissected the inherent flaws that exist in the legal system because it is does not exist in a vacuum apart from bias.He incorporates how socioeconomic factors, biology and perception all play a role in determining innocence and how these factors play into an individuals actual propensity to commit a crime. Meaning, for example, that poverty and living in a rough neighborhood is an implication of being guilty of something and how the system is tilted in that view.

As a Criminology graduate, many of the themes explored in this book are familiar to me and it read a lot like a classroom lecture. The points were easily understood and the concepts were carried throughout the text. However, I felt like there were parts that were repetitive and one-dimensional. Though many of the points were thought provoking and offered perspective there were also many areas of the book that were just regurgitations of the same historical references that come up in the average Criminology text... which, I guess, should be expected from a professor.

The element that I felt that it was missing was the "where do we go from here?" piece. I felt that this book was relevant, given the current Black Lives Matters movement, but it lacked the passion and outrage for the inbalance in our current social justice system. We see it every day played out int he media where race, affluence, and stature play a role in whether a person is viewed as innocent and how that becomes more pertinent than actual guilt.

I saw where the author was going with biology playing a role in a person's propensity to determine right from wrong, thus their likelihood to commit a crime, as well as how it is ingrained into the systemic flaws of our criminal justice system through bias and emotional responses such remorse, empathy or disgust, but I feel that each issue is so complex that each could have their own book and this was really just an introduction into those topics. This is not to say that I did not enjoy the book but, towards the end, it felt a little flat.

I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.

Saturday, July 9, 2016

Blogging for Books: "The Gap of Time" by Jeanette Winterson

"The Gap of Time" is a modern retelling of Shakespeare's "A Winter's Tale." Though the plot involves the complexities of modern living such as technology, surveillance, and social media the core of the book's issues (love, jealousy, loss, regret, forgiveness, abandonment, and sexuality) are the same.



Though I am not familiar with the play, it was not a problem because Winterson opens the book with summarizing the plot. However, the author does introduce dynamics to the charcters' personalities such as homosexuality, interracial relationships and spousal rape that were not present in the original play. These elements helped to bring a more vivid and relative color to the characters, which made them relatable. This character depth creates a new world where you are turning the pages to discover where the characters end up, even though their fate has already been sealed as it mirrors the original play.

I am not familiar with with Winterson's writing and, though I enjoyed where she took the characters, I felt that there were times that the syntax was confusing and it distracted from the story. I also felt that there times that the dialog from the ethnic characters was forced and heavily fell upon racial stereotypes. The story was full of rich symbolism and vivid detail that help to set the scenes.

In all, this a good quick read, that is perfect for a trip to the beach or day in. Any flaws that I found in the writing or side plots were over shadowed by the fact that plot was interesting and the characters were strong enough to shine through.

I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.