User Profile

DigitalRob

DigitalRob@ramblingreaders.org

Joined 1 year, 3 months ago

Father, Husband, Teacher, Geek, Beer Sampler

Was both @MrWsTweets and @DigitalRob on the bird site, but now I'm just one on Mastodon: defcon.social/@digitalrob

EdTech #LEGO #Reader #bookstodon #Geek

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/user/show/1856040-rob Also, DigitalRob on TheStoryGraph: www.thestorygraph.com/

I taught H.S. English for 10 years, moved to teacher support, then to the principalship. Now, I work with a small amazing team to keep our district's technology safe, current, and working.

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DigitalRob's books

Currently Reading

2024 Reading Goal

68% complete! DigitalRob has read 17 of 25 books.

reviewed The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #1)

Richard Osman: The Thursday Murder Club (Paperback, 2021, Penguin Books) 4 stars

Welcome to... THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet …

Great Book! I'll definitely read more.

5 stars

This book is an absolute delight! Richard Osman's cozy mystery charmed me from the start with its clever plot, endearing characters, and witty humor. It follows four retirees in a peaceful village who meet weekly to investigate cold cases. When a real murder happens nearby, they jump at the chance to put their skills to the test.

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron are the heart of this story. Their banter and friendship are a joy to read, and their unique strengths make them a formidable team. Osman's writing is sharp and filled with heartwarming observations about life and aging. The mystery is well-crafted, with twists that kept me guessing until the very end.

Beyond the mystery, this book celebrates friendship, community, and the wisdom of older adults. It's a reminder that it's never too late to find purpose and excitement, and it left me feeling uplifted and entertained. If you're …

reviewed Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman (Arc of a Scythe)

Neal Shusterman: Thunderhead (Hardcover, 2018, Simon & Schuster BFYR) 4 stars

Rowan and Citra take opposite stances on the morality of the scythedom, putting them at …

Wow! What a twist!

4 stars

Thunderhead takes readers on another journey into a world where death has been conquered and Scythes maintain population control through gleaning. While not quite reaching the heights of its predecessor, Thunderhead delivers a captivating narrative with shocking twists that will leave readers reeling.

Citra’s unwavering compassion and dedication to justice clash with the brutal realities of gleaning and the treacherous political landscape of the Scythedom, the one segment of society ungoverned by the Thunderhead. Citra does navigate the surprises of this novel with a wisdom beyond her years.

Rowan, now the elusive Scythe Lucifer, embraces his role as a vigilante, targeting corrupt Scythes who abuse their power. His relentless pursuit of justice leads him down a dark path, blurring the lines between good and evil. I wonder if the Thunderhead did have some influence over the Scythedom if it would have created a role like Scythe Lucifer as a means …

Rick Riordan: The Lost Hero (The Heroes of Olympus #1) (2010) 4 stars

Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up on a school bus …

Great Start: Might be the best use of the lost-memory trope ever

4 stars

Throughout my reading, I wondered when the main story of Jason, Leo, and Piper would intersect with the search for Percy. I wish I’d caught on earlier to the larger picture, but I did manage to put it together before the big reveal toward the end.

Never during this adventure did I think it would be a self-contained story. Despite knowing it’s a five book series, just the text itself makes it clear this is an introduction to new main characters, and they need their own story to avoid being overshadowed by those characters we know and love already.

The new prophecy tells us we’ll be balancing between seven major heroes. Obviously, our new three plus Percy and Annabeth make five, but who will the final two be? Thalia? Grover? Nicco? Someone new? That’s a lot of characters to keep up with. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that the follow-up …

Kashmir Hill: Your Face Belongs to Us (2023, Random House Publishing Group) 4 stars

This Makes the Unforgiving Internet more Permanent

4 stars

The opening of this book is pretty solid for creating suspense on the topic, then Hill moves into the history of facial recognition, which slows the narrative considerably; however, the book is well worth sticking with. Once the author moves into use cases and stories, the danger of ubiquitous facial recognition becomes pretty clear.

One of the reviews I read would like Hill to lean away from politics, particularly because she’s clearly anti-Trump, probably because he’s made it very clear that he’ll use any means necessary to punish his “enemies.”

I don’t have any issues with either the overt or implied integration of politics in this book because the use of facial recognition will be (is?) inherently political. What happens when someone comes into power in the U.S. or another country whose views I don’t agree with?

Whether that person is a local sheriff or the POTUS doesn’t really matter. …