akramer's review
3.0
"They were toast"
This is a fun and quick read. You can really feel the influence Douglas Adams, Alice in Wonderland and The Little Prince had in this story. There are some truly giggle-worthy moments in the book, mostly in the tradition of said influences - nonsense uttered in complete seriousness, and completely mad characters.
However, there were some things that bothered me. First, the book needs more proofing - there is the occasional missing or misspelled word and there are some grammar issues that just need careful tending. The short length of it only emphasizes the few problems.
Secondly, it was lacking in show, not tell and general background information. To this moment, I have no idea how Neville looks like, how old is he, or who he is. Worse yet, one character is described as "about his age and about his height", which tells us nothing. The action scene at the end is also baffling, and I can't picture it. I think quite a few ideas could have been expanded, like the movement in space, for example. The way they are presented now creates holes in the plot and deus-ex-machina moments. It could have been viewed as nonsensical, if it was used more profusely and if the wording was different.
Third, and I'm not a big science geek or anything, but even within the book there were inconsistencies in logic (even the nonsense in Alice had some internal logic to it). I had a few huh?! moments that weren't appeased at all, and some I had to think over and find the logic myself. Something the reader could avoid doing with better showing. Inconsistencies weren't only in logic, but also in story telling - one moment an object is held in place, and the next it moves without it being let go.
I have to be honest, I missed the allegories and the satire until I read some of the other reviews. I may have caught on myself in a 2nd or 3rd reading, but once I read the other reviews it was easy to spot. So catching on late is probably my fault :p.
All in all, although it has its flaws, Doodling is a cute story and a fun, fast read. If it had been longer: 1. Maybe most of the issues would have been resolved and thus it would have received a higher rating, 2. if not, it would have gotten a lower one.
"The roar of the world was like the sound of a hundred rock bands all playing at the same time, only much, much louder"
Received the ebook for free through the summer hop giveaway at Jonathan Gould's blog Dag-Lit Central.
This is a fun and quick read. You can really feel the influence Douglas Adams, Alice in Wonderland and The Little Prince had in this story. There are some truly giggle-worthy moments in the book, mostly in the tradition of said influences - nonsense uttered in complete seriousness, and completely mad characters.
However, there were some things that bothered me. First, the book needs more proofing - there is the occasional missing or misspelled word and there are some grammar issues that just need careful tending. The short length of it only emphasizes the few problems.
Secondly, it was lacking in show, not tell and general background information. To this moment, I have no idea how Neville looks like, how old is he, or who he is. Worse yet, one character is described as "about his age and about his height", which tells us nothing. The action scene at the end is also baffling, and I can't picture it. I think quite a few ideas could have been expanded, like the movement in space, for example. The way they are presented now creates holes in the plot and deus-ex-machina moments. It could have been viewed as nonsensical, if it was used more profusely and if the wording was different.
Third, and I'm not a big science geek or anything, but even within the book there were inconsistencies in logic (even the nonsense in Alice had some internal logic to it). I had a few huh?! moments that weren't appeased at all, and some I had to think over and find the logic myself. Something the reader could avoid doing with better showing. Inconsistencies weren't only in logic, but also in story telling - one moment an object is held in place, and the next it moves without it being let go.
I have to be honest, I missed the allegories and the satire until I read some of the other reviews. I may have caught on myself in a 2nd or 3rd reading, but once I read the other reviews it was easy to spot. So catching on late is probably my fault :p.
All in all, although it has its flaws, Doodling is a cute story and a fun, fast read. If it had been longer: 1. Maybe most of the issues would have been resolved and thus it would have received a higher rating, 2. if not, it would have gotten a lower one.
"The roar of the world was like the sound of a hundred rock bands all playing at the same time, only much, much louder"
Received the ebook for free through the summer hop giveaway at Jonathan Gould's blog Dag-Lit Central.
fenny_42's review
5.0
I was completely drawn in by this cover, it’s both dark and bright, and uses excellent colors.
Doodling is about Neville, a man who has fallen off the earth and is looking for a new home in an asteroid field. He finds many strange people on the asteroids, including a group of people who worship toasters, some cyclists who are endlessly racing, and two party people, who drink dust in champagne bottles.
This book was pretty short — I don’t really know how short, because Kindle only has ‘locations’ and not pages. The plot of the story was very enjoyable, and of course the setting (space) made it all the better. I read it in one sitting, and I wouldn’t recommend it any other way. It’s a quick read and it is very fun.
Like Jonathan Gould suggests, I definitely felt a Hitchhiker’s Guide vibe from this book. A quick romp through space is something everyone can (or should) enjoy. I highly recommend looking into buying and reading this book.
Doodling is about Neville, a man who has fallen off the earth and is looking for a new home in an asteroid field. He finds many strange people on the asteroids, including a group of people who worship toasters, some cyclists who are endlessly racing, and two party people, who drink dust in champagne bottles.
This book was pretty short — I don’t really know how short, because Kindle only has ‘locations’ and not pages. The plot of the story was very enjoyable, and of course the setting (space) made it all the better. I read it in one sitting, and I wouldn’t recommend it any other way. It’s a quick read and it is very fun.
Like Jonathan Gould suggests, I definitely felt a Hitchhiker’s Guide vibe from this book. A quick romp through space is something everyone can (or should) enjoy. I highly recommend looking into buying and reading this book.
abookishaffair's review
4.0
Neville and I could be great friends, I think. He willingly falls off the world because it's moving way too fast. I definitely know where he's coming from. He's thrust into an asteroid belt where there are many other people who have grown tired of the world and are seeking to make their way among the stars.
This novella is wonderful. The characters are really fantastic and each of them represents something that we all deal with in our own life. Look at this book as sort of a fable. There are the toaster people who want nothing more than to have a toaster on their asteroid. There's the party people who want to find just about any occasion to have a party. And then there's Helen who has turned her asteroid into a gorgeous garden and now she must spend all her time watering and tending the garden. Neville is a total go getter! These characters will definitely stick with you for awhile.
This book is perfect for adults who want a great metaphorical story with a little bit of a lesson. This book is magic!
This novella is wonderful. The characters are really fantastic and each of them represents something that we all deal with in our own life. Look at this book as sort of a fable. There are the toaster people who want nothing more than to have a toaster on their asteroid. There's the party people who want to find just about any occasion to have a party. And then there's Helen who has turned her asteroid into a gorgeous garden and now she must spend all her time watering and tending the garden. Neville is a total go getter! These characters will definitely stick with you for awhile.
This book is perfect for adults who want a great metaphorical story with a little bit of a lesson. This book is magic!
pandemoniumpizza's review
4.0
Doodling is a light, fast-paced novella that while seemed to have a humorous element to it, was actually quite deep at its core.
Neville falls off the earth because it is going too fast. From there, he encounters a few little worlds on asteroids created by others who have also fallen off the earth due to it going too fast. I got a few laughs out of some of the goings on.
Of course, all the events point to the idea that sometimes when things get a bit hectic and a bit crazy, it’s a good idea to take time out and focus on something little that makes you happy.
Overall, I would say that Doodling is a really neat little story and I really enjoyed reading it. I liked that it seemed to be a light, funny read but at the heart of its core was a message. It’s definitely worth a read. Not to mention, I also really love the cover. The simplicity of it and the pretty colours just make me absolutely love it.
Neville falls off the earth because it is going too fast. From there, he encounters a few little worlds on asteroids created by others who have also fallen off the earth due to it going too fast. I got a few laughs out of some of the goings on.
Of course, all the events point to the idea that sometimes when things get a bit hectic and a bit crazy, it’s a good idea to take time out and focus on something little that makes you happy.
Overall, I would say that Doodling is a really neat little story and I really enjoyed reading it. I liked that it seemed to be a light, funny read but at the heart of its core was a message. It’s definitely worth a read. Not to mention, I also really love the cover. The simplicity of it and the pretty colours just make me absolutely love it.
chasmofbooks's review
1.0
Honestly, I found Doodling to be a little pointless. Ever heard someone say that Huckleberry Finn is a book with no plot? This is kind of like that. I don't mean to be harsh. The writing was pretty good, I just think Jonathan Gould can do better than this.
I was constantly wondering how old the main character was. At first I thought it was probably somewhere around the age of ten but as the book progressed I became confused. At one point, he went to drink champange (it wasn't really champange, just dirt really) which made me wonder how old he really was. A ten year old wouldn't drink champange.
In Doodling, all of the characters were in space. I'm still wondering how exactly the whole running or bycle think worked in space when they're jumping from astroid to astroid or chasing one. I found the main character's potential untapped and thus found him uninteresting.
Jonathan Gould could do much better if he would just use a better idea.
I was constantly wondering how old the main character was. At first I thought it was probably somewhere around the age of ten but as the book progressed I became confused. At one point, he went to drink champange (it wasn't really champange, just dirt really) which made me wonder how old he really was. A ten year old wouldn't drink champange.
In Doodling, all of the characters were in space. I'm still wondering how exactly the whole running or bycle think worked in space when they're jumping from astroid to astroid or chasing one. I found the main character's potential untapped and thus found him uninteresting.
Jonathan Gould could do much better if he would just use a better idea.
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