My Goodreads Review: Penric and the Shaman

Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Another delightful return to Bujold's World of the Five Gods, though with a somewhat confusing look into how shamanism works in that culture. (I've been told that reading The Hallowed Hunt first might help. I have somehow missed this one, & definitely intend to do that!)

This is very clearly the second in a series, so reading Penric's Demon first will let the reader get the most out of another right-sized fantasy adventure featuring a very young "full-braid divine" and his much more experienced demon. I'm already looking forward to reading the third of this series, now waiting on my Kindle.



View all my reviews

My Goodreads Review: Buddhism for Beginners

Buddhism for Beginners by Thubten Chodron

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm rating this three stars rather than four due to the audio format. It's very well presented, but there is simply too much information in this short book to absorb in audio.

That said, this is a very good introduction to Buddhism for the curious, with an amazing amount of data packed into four hours of listening! It's clear and well-organized, and covers several different traditions. I suspect a hard copy or Kindle edition is the way to go with this one -- it seems intended for reference, as well as for reading straight through.





View all my reviews