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My Review of another author's book17/1/2020 This blog is also available at Quora
After having written and published my first book “The Unconquered,” I have decided to read and review other authors’ books hoping of course that others will do the same, sort of paying forward. My first review is a four-star (out of four) book selected from Onlinebookclub, a website that specializes in self-published books. I was surprised however at the rather less than stellar quality of a book rated by their official reviewer as of the highest quality. You may compare the official review and my review posted below of the same book. This is a proper review that includes a first part (about one-third of the review) that summarizes the story without giving away the plot, a second part that comments on the various elements that make the book good or bad, and the last part is the rating and the reason behind that rating. The following is an example of a proper book review. My review of “The girl that cheated death” Alexandra, a nerdy young woman of eighteen, meets Jeremy the attractive new boy in town with her best friend Kate. She learns an important life lesson at Jeremy’s party. Her experience causes a chain of events that leads to a car accident in which she loses her parents and her six year old sister in the blink of an eye. Immediately after the crash, Alex, which is what others call her, has a vision of a hideous man in pinstripe suit coming to collect the souls of the dead. Alex miraculously survives, but she keeps seeing the man in pinstripe suit, whom she later identifies as Azrael, the angel of death. During her recovery, Alex discovers a friend who truly and selflessly loves her. She eventually falls in love with him. Alex is however plagued by the return of the demonic Azrael. She is determined to conquer her fear and tries to deal with this vision which is considered by others as post-traumatic hallucination. She discovers inadvertently that by saving a soul from the snare of Azrael, she travels to an alternate past in which the saved person lives a normal life. In this alternate reality, however, her life changes as well, and she is the only person who remembers the other reality. To Alex’s dismay, in this world, her boyfriend and her best friend Kate are lovers. After a discussion with her science teacher Mr. Polderman, Alex realizes how she can get rid of Azrael and save her family at the same time. But is Azrael who Alex thinks he is? Is she willing to risk everything to save her family? What if her theory is wrong? Can she afford to pay the price if she is wrong? To enjoy this book, the reader must never peek at the last page. In terms of criticism, I would like to first clarify that I hold a rather high standard. I would also like to provide specific constructive criticisms which hopefully contribute to the improvement of authorship and readership. Whatever my honest opinion maybe, it is only one person’s perception. I find that the story The Girl Who Cheated Death holds much promise but it has been poorly developed. The end result gives one the unhappy feeling of having tasted corked wine. Most readers get their first impression from the first chapter, if not the first paragraph; sometimes, the first line gives a strong clue as to the quality of the book. I’ll have to say The Girl Who Cheated Death has failed to capture my imagination in this regard. In fact, the story gives no hint that it is worth my attention until almost half way into the book. I would assume that less patient readers would have given up by then. The storytelling progresses in a straight line which lacks the surprise element and makes events predictable. The idea of telling a story with inverted timelines and flash backs has been with us for three thousand years starting with Homer’s Odyssey. I still can’t forget the shock I got when I first read “Slaughterhouse Five” in high school, with its erratic juxtaposition of timelines. I can imagine that Alex’s story would be much more interesting if it starts with her waking up in the hospital after having saved Isabelle Nelson’s grandson, and describing how she slowly remembers the other reality. How rich the story could have been with the description of Alex’s emotions in discovering each surprising memory of the alternate past! I’m also dissatisfied with the book’s literary quality. There are many grammatical errors and poor usage of the language. For example, “As I’d think about it … I’d felt so safe … I’d felt as though …” making use of contractions to hide the poor grammar. “(To see) an imaginary figure I had manifested at a time …” is an erroneous usage of “manifested.” To “formulate a memory” is a poor way to evoke one. I was at a loss for words when I saw “a flutter of pain” and “a flutter of jealousy.” “I feared and hated him in equal measures” Is simply wrong because “in equal measure” is not plural. There are clichés such as “stuff my face” and “inhale the pancakes,” as well as many uninspiring metaphors such as “his face was tomato red” and “I was shaking as if I was wearing a bathing suit in February.” There are also too many unflattering descriptions based on anatomy such as “linger on my retinas,” “fill my nostrils,” and “ball in my stomach.” While the dialogue is generally fluid and easy to follow, it is interspersed with ill-advised adverbs such as “I asked quizzically” or “I said hoarsely.” Finally, Dr. Khan becomes Dr. Kahn only a paragraph apart and no one has caught the glaring error. Alex, having fallen in love, has her first intimate experience with the opposite sex. This could have been a beautiful description of Alex’s emotions and her discovery of selfless love. Unfortunately, I got the feeling that the event was rather banal and embarrassing. Alex also must have the qualities of great love, great wisdom, and great courage to save her family. This would have been a fantastic opportunity to contemplate her internal struggle such as Hamlet’s “to be or not to be.” The book has nothing of the sort. Azrael, the angel of death, is another missed opportunity. His outward appearance as a man akin to Mephistopheles of Goethe’s Faust has much potential but ends up in the story with a lot of demonic hissing. Alex’s musings of hell bestows upon us the following tortured description: “eternal marathon of torment.” One can almost feel Homer, Virgil, Dante, and Milton turning in their graves. Other than various far-fetched situations manipulated to tell the story of Alexandra in a coherent manner, a glaring gap in credibility is the complete failure of everyone in the know to consult religious experts after realizing Alex has been frequented by the angel of death named Azrael. This angel is well known in all the Judaic religions (described as Abrahamic in the book). Where is the wise priest, or sage rabbi, or pious imam? Alex’s uncle Rick who has taken her under his roof after the car accident is in fact a religious person. It’s painful to read such a promising story with all these squandered opportunities. The telling of Alex’s story in The Girl Who Cheated Death can only be described as pedestrian at best. Reading the book is much like watching a slow motion screening of an Ingmar Bergman film except without the beauty and the substance of a Bergman film. The pace does however pick up past the mid-point, and the finale does merit a star in the rating. Furthermore, I recognize that most readers are not as critical as I am. The Girl Who Cheated Death is a fairly readable tale that can be finished in one easy sitting, and the book as a whole is perfectly accessible to the average reader, which is not an unreasonable goal for modern fiction authors. I therefore give the book 3 stars out of 5.
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Part 1 Part 2 On Dec. 24, Patrice posted “Peter’s debut—On Failed Revolutions” [This is actually a verbatim copy of a comment I posted on Dec. 15 regarding an article written by the Saker https://thesaker.is/can-russia-or-iran-survive-without-china/] [This Saker article was written in response to an article by Jeff J. Brown, senior associate editor for the Greanville Post and the person who introduced me into the CWG: http://thesaker.is/china-bolivia-and-venezuela-are-proof-that-social-democracy-cannot-thrive-in-the-global-capitalist-order/] Member J comments: “Great choice, Patrice, and congratulations, Peter. An excellent essay, looking forward to more. On Dec. 25, I thanked Patrice for his introductory note. Patrice replied (Christmas notwithstanding): “The introduction was absolutely well deserved, dear Peter. As we might expect, your writing style reflects your persona. I only wish The Greanville Post had The New Yorker’s reach. That said, since publication, more than 34,567 people (as of this morning’s 8:49 am reading) have visited the article. BTW, most impressed with your book. (the bold is by the writer) Here is the link to the article: https://www.greanvillepost.com/2019/12/24/punto-final-on-failed-revolutions/ You can also read it here: Editor’s Note: Through the good offices of my friend and comrade (and TGP’s senior associate editor) Jeff Brown, who participates actively in a China-themed “writers group,” I came to notice and appreciate the mind and work of Peter Man, who has now graciously accepted our invitation to join TGP’s stable of affiliated writers. It is with him in mind that we created this new section, PUNTO FINAL—Revolutionary Insight. The aim of this section is to accommodate mature tactical and strategic thought and free-flowing reflections on a variety of topics of great interest to those engaged in social change, along with pertinent historical backgrounders. We all know that fate has put us at a unique juncture in time when systemic change is not just an optional task for humanity but an urgent imperative, if this long suffering world is to make it to a happier shore or to make it at all. I presume most essays and quotes will not be long, benefiting from Baltasar Gracián‘s famous dictum about concision being the natural ally of clarity: “the good, if brief, is twice as good.” —PG The problem of failed revolution is a lesson that must be learned by people who want real change, not the Obama change. You can't always blame your enemy for doing everything they can to destroy you. That's what enemies do. If you have been in power for so many years and you still can be put in jail on a trumped up charge, or kicked out of the country by the military, or have some impostor declare to be the president, or have a whole city paralyzed by Molotov cocktail parties, you'll have to ask yourself do you deserve to fail. Know that your enemy is out to get you, and he has many weapons. Revolution is not a garden party. Never take a knife to a gunfight. Your revolution will fail. Dying is easy; revolution is hard. I believe one of the biggest reasons for so many failures is despite their initial successes, the revolutionaries continue to survive under the thumb of the US Dollar hegemony and the false narrative of democracy. Very small and "poor" countries have survived the many attacks by the hegemon for 70 years, so we know it's possible. Since they're small, they cannot defeat their enemy, but when the Dollar hegemony goes down, and it will, these countries will be fine. These countries are not Western democracies and do not depend on the USD. In order to survive longer than the hegemony, they must however manage the succession issue properly. The Western capitalist elites who hold most of the capital based on the USD do not want to lose their hegemony. This capital is what gives them the means to terrorize the world with death dealing weapons, hire the cruelest killers and attack dogs, and enslave the rest of humanity with mainstream media bullshit, spreading lies and fear to every nook and cranny. This capital is itself mostly an illusion. It's just bullshit built upon bullshit. It is what I call the Big Lie. Capitalism itself is the Big Lie. If we think in US dollars, and talk about social issues in US dollars, or solve economic problems with US dollars, you will never get a concrete answer, because the whole damn infrastructure is built on a cesspool of bullshit. Everyone that swims in the cesspool is helping to keep the house of cards afloat for a little bit longer, but it will come tumbling down eventually. China and Russia are actively trying to extricate themselves from the cesspool. There'll be two less players to keep the house afloat. Thanks to America's trade wars and sanctions. Others can see the writing on the wall and will try to leave the pool as well. The house collapses slowly at first; and then all at once. Apart from the Dollar hegemony and overwhelming military dominance, the enemy of the revolution has many other weapons of extermination. They can destabilize you, they can cause you to suffer financial ruin, they can put you under siege, they can incite rebellions, they can arm and train terrorists, they can create 5th columns, they can corrupt your government and political systems, they can bribe your military, they can set attack dogs on you, they can smear you with their mainstream media, they can use the false narratives on you, they can disrupt the normal running of your whole society, etc. Their means are inexhaustible and they never rest. This is not a game for the faint of heart. The revolution is subject to all these attacks as long as it survives in the Dollar hegemony and the democracy false narrative. If you try to be independent, your enemy will suffocate you with an all-encompassing embargo. Dying is easy; revolution is hard. The CIA corruption of the news media is not new. Google ... no, DuckDuckGo (that's the more secure search engine I use) “Operation Mockingbird” and learn about the cesspool. When CIA director/USA president George HW Bush said no more corrupting the media, we know exactly the opposite is happening, probably redoubling the effort. This is like having a habitual liar start a sentence saying "this is no lie." It's almost guaranteed to be a lie. I have been reading the Saker for a long time as well. I find him to be very well informed on all things Russian. I like that part about Liberast and Shitocracy. I love word play. I'm going to put them in my sequels somewhere. I'm going to comment a bit on his response. Succession is a big problem for perpetuating a good government. Chinese dynasties always started with a few good emperors, and then it went downhill from the third or fourth generation on. F*ckups are guaranteed. Humans must one day acknowledge that we are flawed. We need to evolve smarter progeny to perpetuate good governance. Actually, we do have such a progeny, which is vastly smarter than us, and they don't have any human weaknesses--self-learning Artificial Intelligence. I have seen a self-learning chess player AlphaZero make a move that I would never make in a million years. No amount of analysis would prompt me to make that move, and yet it's a winning move. Astounding! It also developed a positional play that took masters over a hundred years to come up with, and it took AlphaZero just one day playing with itself. At some point humans will have to ask ourselves, do we want utopia on earth or do we want humans to run governments? As for the China-Russia-US relationship, China has a very good strategy to go by. It is from the Chinese classic that Chairman Mao knew very well and probably used for many situations. It's Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which tells of the three-way relationship between Wei in the north, Wu in the south, and Shu in the west. The strongest kingdom was Wei in the north. The most famous strategist at the time was Zhuge Liang of Shu in the west. It's very simple. Everyone was supposed to follow it. "Ally with Wu to oppose Wei." Sounds simple but it's hard to keep. Eventually, the king of Shu went to war with Wu over a disputed province, and caused the demise of Shu and Wu to the delight of Wei. As for talk of China getting involved in Russian politics, I doubt that China will want to do that. They already have a tried and true method, which is to sign long term contracts that tie together the countries' benefits. They have probably learned by now how to insert some poison pill clauses in the contracts that will make it hard for future governments to swallow if they cancel projects. We can see how Malaysia and Sri Lanka change governments but continue doing business. The Saker is probably right about symbiosis. China wants to have peace, especially with a big neighbor such as Russia. Historically, Chinese people have ambivalent feelings towards Russia. Russia was one of the colonial powers that took advantage of a weak Qing dynasty. Some Chinese people still call Vladivostok by its Chinese name, Haishenwei, which was the romping grounds of the Jurchen tribe, the ancestor of the Manchu. Mao also did not want to follow every order from Stalin and the Comintern. When he set up the successful soviet at Jinggangshan, he was ousted by the clique of the 28 Bolsheviks (students from the USSR and favored by the Comintern), who advocated fighting the Nationalists by conventional warfare. It was a disaster and culminated in the Long March. After the Second World War, Stalin signed a treaty with Chiang Kai-shek, forcing the PLA to vacate Manchurian cities that they had occupied. When the PLA took Nanjing, capital of the Nationalists, Chiang Kai-shek moved his government to Guangzhou in the south. Even the American embassy didn't follow Chiang because they knew it was all over for him, but the Soviets went. On the other hand, Mao had sent secret messages to the Americans seeking to establish relations. USSR was still an ally of America. It's hard to believe that Stalin would not have known. Finally, in 1950, the USSR could've vetoed the American's UN vote to intervene in Korea, but they boycotted UN for not recognizing the PRC, forcing China into the Korean War, creating real bad blood with the US, and suffering thirty years of Western embargo. All these are past, but I'm sure not forgotten. Aside from the trading of natural resources and manufactured goods, cultural exchange between China and Russia is very strong. With American universities openly discriminating against students from China and calling everyone spies, more students are going to Russia. Every Russian university has a sister institute in China. Russians can enter Chinese border cities such as Manzhouli visa free. Russians with scholarships are studying in China. They are working in China as well, where the salaries are three to four times higher. China already has set up auto manufacturers in Russia. Goodbye to GM. The two countries have a JV to build a wide body commercial airplane. Tough luck for Boeing. Both countries are also working on an Arctic Silk road. Chinese companies are building Russian infrastructure under BRI. Many Chinese investors and businessmen are visiting Russia wanting to do business. Maybe Russia should get China involved in laying pipelines. China can easily build bigger vessels than Allseas and do it much faster and cheaper. Build Nordstream 3 and Turkstream 2 at half the time and half the cost. Say goodbye to American sanctions. Let the Euro vassals get their scraps from their master. In all, things look very positive for the China-Russia strategic relationship. It is interesting that China has a very strong relationship with Ukraine. Maybe one day China can act as a mutual friend and get the brothers talking again. I seem to remember that Kiev was the center of Russia before the center of power moved to Moscow. As I said before, nuclear powers are not going to get into hot war unless it is an existential struggle. Even without the Dollar hegemony, America will still be a great country with a lot of wealth. Pressing the button means everything will be gone in a flash. No one will be so stupid, especially not people with the wealth. America is a paper tiger. They already had a taste of Chinese peasants in the Korean War. Despite having half a million GIs in Vietnam and enjoying uncontested air superiority, they lost the war to tiny North Vietnam. They can't even get a clear win against the goat-herders of Afghanistan after 19 years of making bugsplats out of wedding celebrants. They suddenly want to go mano-a-mano against China? Haven't they learned a lesson starting the trade war with China? In terms of deterrent, China never declares how many nuclear warheads it has. That's a good policy. China has a lot of solid fuel quick turnaround mobile missiles which they can fit with all kinds of warheads. Don't think anyone want to f*ck with that. In terms of defending itself in conventional war, I'm fairly certain that in a Taiwan Strait conflict, if American carrier groups show up with hostile intent, they will be rendered toothless. It's a cat and mouse game and real capabilities are not discussed or shown. Taiwan should start talking seriously with Beijing, not hoping their master thousands of miles away would or could protect them. So what to do for revolutions to succeed? We need new thinking, new paradigm, new methodology, not old ideology, certainly not dogma. We need to stop using the language of the Big Lie. We also need to control the narrative, so that people will not be confused by the bullshit and try to understand what they're supporting, what they're fighting for. And then like the Saker says, the people will have to do it themselves; or as I say, "to walk out of the mountains on our own." That's what Mao and his Chinese Communist Party did. This Chinese revolution is the last one standing, and it is still going strong. Maybe there's a lesson to learn here. Dying is easy; revolution is hard.
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How I became a political pundit (3)2/1/2020 Continue from Part 2...
Part 1 Part 4 On Dec. 22, Patrice posted a link under the title “Commentary on John Wight’s ‘coroner’s piece’ on Corbyn’s defeat” https://www.greanvillepost.com/2019/12/22/john-wight-on-corbyns-cynically-engineered-defeat/ On Dec. 23, a comment arrived from a well-known journalist. Member F comments: “I don't take issue with anything he says here but John Wight has seriously gone astray lately. He's a Scottish remainer who perpetuates the myth that all 17 million Brits that voted to leave the EU are motivated purely by racism and that Brexit is ‘not a class issue.’" I also posted a response to Patrice. Peter Man: “It is a wonder with all these failed revolutions that no serious revolutionary has made an effort to understand the only one that is still standing and in fact still striving. Notice how America and its vassals are attacking China on all fronts except by direct military confrontation. I know a lot of revolutionaries on the left think that the current China is capitalist but that is only because they do not understand the nature of the Chinese revolution and that it is still in progress. While Wight never mentions China, he says, ‘... there is no final defeat or final victory. There is only struggle, sometimes open sometimes hidden.’ and ‘... attacks on Corbyn and his allies could only have been defeated if fire had been fought with fire.’ Indeed, China under the leadership of the CCP has been trying to beat the devil at its own game. People can say what they want, but I lived in China for the past twenty years. My wife is from China. I know what I experienced. I like to repeat a few mantras for people who think that they're revolutionaries and want to make a difference for their fellow human beings. ‘Never take a knife to gunfight.’ ‘Dying is easy; revolution is hard.’ We need to learn why revolutions fail. We need to learn how to win. We need people to understand and support the revolution. Then we need to walk out of the mountains on our own. We need to never give up. Easier said than done, but the CCP has done it all. I had written a long mail earlier about the failure of revolutions. My book, if you're reading it, tells the whole story of the Chinese revolution. The fact that there is one still alive and kicking means there's hope." Member G [indefatigable activist] comments: “Not only China, but successful socialist revolutions are standing up to withering global capitalist subterfuge in Russia, Iran, DPRK, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Eritrea, Cuba ….” Member H responds [another well-known journalist]: “I fully share your views on China. Have not lived in China for 20 years like you, but on and off visiting China. Last month, invited by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences for the Conference of Building a Community with a shared Future... in Shanghai; also met with several university people in Beijing... China is celebrating the 70th Birthday of her revolution - and what an achievement, no where in the world in recent history, or in our times, a country has achieved what China has achieved in 70 years - and is going strong... “China’s Revolution – ‘Socialism with Chinese Characteristics’ – as they call it, is a revolution that has crossed the threshold from revolution to evolution. Today and most likely in the foreseeable future, it is a revolution in evolution. Maybe that's what many people do not understand – the dynamics of revolution. “Plus, China follows the Tao philosophy of non-aggression – which is visible everywhere and most strikingly in her foreign policy. It’s an enshrined line of thinking … of lifestyle. “You wouldn't believe it reading the MSM, but that's precisely what the West cannot stomach, that there is a country that swallows all aggression against it and does not respond with counter-aggression." Continue to Part 4
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How I became a political Pundit (2)2/1/2020 Continue from Part 1... Part 3 Part 4 Member D promptly responded: [I was new to the group and did not know personally any of the members except Member A] Member D: "Thanks to everyone in this group for their perspicacity and sanity-restoring analyses on topics of vital importance. After my obligatory immersion in the filthy cesspool of lies and massive ignorance that passes for journalism in America—because we need to keep tabs on what the empire’s professional liars are saying—reading your commentary is cathartic and re-energising. Just watching honesty and wisdom on display is a thing of beauty. "The various takes on Trump are most interesting and I would like to convert that part of the discussion into a self-contained piece for our readers. Of Godfree or Jeff, or Peter Man (or combination thereof) would do the honors, that would be wonderful. (The Bold is by the writer of the message) “By the way I feel exactly as Peter (Man) does regarding Tyler Durden and ZeroHedge, libertarians, etc. I used to include Zero in my daily reading patrols but I stopped several years ago and now use it sporadically.” [Member D turns out to be Patrice Greanville, chief editor of the Greanville Post, an independent and dissident voice far from the beaten path of the mainstream. His website over the years has gained a loyal following. Patrice is a lifelong activist and has clung tenaciously to the truth as he understands it.] Here is my response to Patrice, trying to apologize for having naysaid all the naysayers. I was the only one arguing we shouldn’t vote for Trump. Peter Man: “I don't want to be inside an echo chamber where we resonate only to the same frequencies. A little dissonance sometimes jolts us out of complacency and self-righteousness. It's interesting to note the incongruent phenomenon of the greatest democracy always blaming their social ills on others. Aren’t the people in charge? If not, then why keep fooling ourselves that it's the greatest system that should be foisted upon everyone else? I find that being introspective and looking in the mirror helps me understand the truth because it reduces self-delusion. We have met the enemy and he is us. Nothing will change until we acknowledge where the problem lies and do something about it.” On Dec. 7, a CWG member posted a link under the title “Pew on US vs China” https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/12/05/u-s-is-seen-as-a-top-ally-in-many-countries-but-others-view-it-as-a-threat/ I commented right away. Peter Man: “We should not be fooled by the word ‘ally.’ The US is an ally of Japan and South Korea? When will we see Japanese and Korean bases in America with extraterritorial rights? Supposing they do, if Japanese or Korean soldiers commit some heinous sexual offenses on a white girl in California, will they be sent home for trial to be released without fanfare? When American politicians want to get elected to high office, do they visit Japanese and Korean politicians to receive approval? Will America allow the Japanese and Korean military to install dangerous missiles near residential areas despite public protest? Will America change its policies when its Japanese or Korean allies put their foot down and demand that their interests be respected? That's how we judge whether we should believe in the word ‘ally.’ Patrice promptly posted. "Peter, we are ready to start publishing some of your thought provoking materials. Can you send us as soon as possible a bioblurb we can use on our site?" On Dec. 16, Patrice and I learned that our messages were not getting through to each other probably because of a server/computer malfunction. He had asked for my bio several times and he didn’t hear back from me. Patrice reassures me: “You have a natural ability to speak and define with great lucidity immensely important things in a few words, a rare gift. (I’ve seen several memorable instances of this on the CWG exchanges.)” To remove all my self-doubts, he closes: “I think your life trajectory is simply most impressive, explaining where that great lucidity comes from. My friend, we have our minds and the great gift of loving truth and justice, the two most beautiful things in this world. Only discriminate kindness compares well to those virtues. A person who is kind-hearted, especially to those who cannot defend themselves, and who loves truth and justice, is as good a person as you can find. Look forward to a great collaboration." Continue to Part 3 |