The James Logan Courier

Each week, The Courier spotlights books newly arrived, or expected to arrive, in the James Logan Media Center.

Napoleon by Paul Johnson
Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult (May 9, 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0670030783
ISBN-13: 978-0670030781

From us.penguingroup.com:
The very name, Napoleon Bonaparte, still enthralls. Ever since this towering and terrible genius conquered Europe, he has been endlessly debated, compared, and made an icon. In Napoleon, the great dictator's energy and acumen are matched by those of his biographer, Paul Johnson, whose histories have been lauded as "fresh, readable, provocative . . . wise" (Los Angeles Times). Here Johnson profiles "the grandest possible refutation of those who hold that events are governed by forces, classes, economics, and geography rather than the powerful wills of men and women."

LUNCH:
Teriyaki Beef Dippers with Rice and Vegetables,
Milk, Baby Carrots, Fresh Fruit, Cookie, and Fun Chips

ACTIVITIES:
There is a meeting today at 3 pm in the PE Classroom for any girl interested in playing next fall for the 2007 Girls Golf Team.

Come to the Battle of the Bands this Friday at 4 pm in Colt Court. Lose that ipod - support live music!

Reviewed by Jessica Stewart, Courier Book Editor

The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Modern Library; New Ed edition (March 12, 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0375759239
ISBN-13: 978-0375759239

“No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man’s and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinized and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinize the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe and about their little affairs, serene in the assurance of their empire over matter.”

Beginning with such a statement might be hazardous to many authors as its keen insight and mature language raise the reader’s expectations immediately, but H. G. Wells succeeds in fulfilling these expectations. He is blatantly honest about human nature and the horrors brought about by our arrogant ignorance but his words do not offend as they are so obviously true. I have never been a huge fan of science fiction, dabbling in it a bit here and there every now and then, but I thought this novel might prove to be interesting, and I was proven right. Although the story is about extra terrestrials taking over Earth, it is also one of the more interesting commentaries about the faults and shortcomings of mankind, and the banality of heroism. It is certainly a good read, although sometimes difficult to comprehend without the help of a dictionary.

From wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Melvin Jerome Blanc (May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989) was a prolific American voice actor, performing on radio, in television commercials, and most famously, in hundreds of cartoon shorts for Warner Bros. and Hanna-Barbera during the Golden Age of American animation. He is often regarded as one of the most gifted and influential persons in his field, providing the definitive voices for iconic characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and Barney Rubble among hundreds of others. His talents earned him the nickname, "The Man of a Thousand Voices".

Listen to an episode of the Mel Blanc radio show, free from originaloldradio.com.