The Bourne Identity

I'm now 50% into the novel. Robert Ludlum is a good writer. The story is complicating and he reveals each piece of information bit by bit to hold your attention. What I can't understand is how his hostage ends up falling in love with him after he rescues her from the mafias. They are now on the run together. Carlos and his men seem to be getting closer to him. I'm not sure if the woman will survive. I didn't watch the movie. But I know Bourne will as there are other books in the series. Let the chase continues...

Finished!

I've come to the end of the journey with the litigators. It's a nice story. David did it all. He saved the firm and his two colleagues. I don't know why I feel sad about the ending. It was a good ending but it left a lingering sad feeling for me. I had a good journey and maybe I want it to go on a bit more. Sigh...

For my next trip, I might visit the Bourne series. Let's see how it goes.Till the next novel.Ta Ta!

The grand finale at the courtroom

I'll make this quick as it's late at night. At chapter 45, I will give David a standing ovation for his performance when he cross examined the last witness. I believe he has earned the respect of his ex-colleague who walked over to tell him who the hung juror blogger is. Bravo David! Wonderful job there! I have 3 more chapters to go but it has to wait till tomorrow night. It's late. I had a hard time putting down the book. Gotta sleep. Bye for now.

Wally and the bottle

In this blog, i will get into Wally's head. Wally is in a sad state. He has gone back to the bottle after staying sober for a whole year. Should we sympathize with him? We know that he dreams of making one big case one day but he is not greedy enough to take more fee than his senior partner or to buy his own private jet like the great Jerry Alisandros. He has a lot of unpaid bills including his last rehab treatment. Poor David has to pay for Wally's treatment at the rehab and he can only afford 10 days of treatment. Wally however got himself and the firm into the krayoxx mess by making promises to clients which he can't keep. He is a risk taker. The big law firm wants to crush them as revenge for making false claims against krayoxx. Wally is getting old and the prospect of facing bankruptcy is not good. Gee...this guy has guts but he is also very silly. How many Wallies are out there in the real world?

David, Helen and Nasty Teeth

And now back to my reading update. Up to this point, the firm Finley and Figg has taken a very hard beating from the Defence team. I hope we have reached rock bottom and maybe it looks like some good luck might finally come along for David, the last standing lawyer. The other 2 partners could not take the stress and abandoned him.

I think there is another message in this story. Attractive women are successful because of their looks. They make it to the top using looks as their weapon. That seems to be what the story conveys when they describe the invincible Defence lawyer Nadine. When David's wife offered to help out as a paralegal, heads from the Defence team turned because she was more taller and better looking than the Defence lawyer Nadine. Ha! I think another message would be: Behind every successful man, is a woman. David's wife is the heroine. She was always his listening ear and she helped him find the nasty teeth case. And now she is here in court as a paralegal to provide some emotional support to him because they both know that the trail was going to be bloody for him. Isn't she sweet? Also...perhaps another story theme is that it's always important to have family support when you have problems. Both Oscar and Wally don't have stable relationships unlike David who is happily married and young. I stopped at the part where David finds the nasty teeth in a store at the patrol station. I'm looking forward to watching the hero pick himself up to save the day. Go David! Go!

The Three Stooges

I have about 12 more chapters to go on The Litigators. The Great Jerry Alisandros has ditched them. We are reaching the part of the story where everything is sliding downhill and the bad guys are closing in. The bad news just keeps coming for Finley and Figg one after another.

I'm reflecting on what is the main theme of this book so far. Is the writer trying to tell us something about greed in the law profession? The big firms are rich and work like slaves. Meanwhile the smaller law firms can only dream of having big cases one day to earn from that one big case that will make them rich and achieve recognition. Is the writer trying to say we should never give up on our dreams? Some lawyers like Wally try too hard and regret later for not being ethical? So far David has been the sensible one compared to Oscar and Wally. I wonder how the small firm is going to get out of their troubles. To be continued.

The Krayoxx Case

I think I'm probably reaching the climax of the story now . There is the smell of blood in the air as the rich tort lawyers make a backfiring discovery about the drug. Meanwhile Wally and the rest are still blissfully looking forward to a possible windfall. They have no idea what is going to come crashing down on them. Wait....except David. He didn't seem too eager about this Krayoxx case. He is more wrapped up with the Burmese clients....which Wally and Oscar weren't interested in from the start.

More on the litigators.

The legal Battle is in progress. Rogan has a dirty plan but a senator on Krayoxx has died from a heart attack and this has caused a frenzy in the media and on the phones of Finley and Figg's. Another hilarious firm meeting has taken place too. They're all like the three stooges but only David here is a very bright kid...I expect a surprise in the story anytime. Or maybe a twist.

Their first mass tort case

So David gets to go to court for the first time and they have to stand against his former law firm. Gasp! Are they going to get fried? And David has found a case of his own with his wife's help.....maybe this will be his savior...

More on David and Wally

The exciting part is now building up. At least that's what i think. David has to answer to his father who is an honorable judge on why he left the big law firm to join a small firm that deals with chasing ambulances, car wrecks and divorces.

Meanwhile Wally has met with a big time trial lawyer who has his own private jet plane. I don't know why I suspect that Jerry might be using him. Is Jerry a crook lawyer?

Here we see the good side of Wally.He is the only one who drank soda in Vegas and all he wants is some decent cash bulk in the bank and not get too greedy like the other lawyers. Owning a plane or trophy wife is not on his list. He's a good guy actually. Even though he employs funny hustling methods on the streets and carry a gun to protect himself....

Krayoxx and the mass tort case

So far the story has been interesting and hilarious. It reminded me a bit of The Rainmaker and a bit of The King of Torts. This is a story about losers who might become winners and it is also about losers achieving their dreams. It's about hope and not giving up easily. I like the spirit and enthusiasm that Wally has even though he can be really sneaky at times. The synergy between David, Wally and Oscar is finally brewing into something. The sharks are out there rushing for a piece of the meat too. How will Finley and Figg get through the race for clients? To be continued...

Oops...

Forgot to publish that one. I just realized it was left as a draft...

David Zinc and how they finally meet

This David is proving to be quite a character. He is still very drunk and too afraid to go home and face reality. I enjoyed chapter 7 very much. This is the part where David stumbles into Finley and Figg and hires himself. Watch or rather, read how in the perfect timing of a car wreck, he convinces Oscar and Wally to see potential in him. It is really hilarious! I loved it!

My reading journey is like a movie playing in my head. I see the characters and see what they see. :-) That was why I said 'watch'. Ok... Time to go. Till the next chapter....That's tomorrow night.

A new reading journey has began...

From today, we'll be blogging about 'The litigators' by John Grisham, one of my favourite writers. The trip begins with getting to know 2 underdog lawyers Oscar and Wally, their secretary Rochelle and another young high flying lawyer David who is suffering from burnout after spending 5 years in big time law firm. I'm now in the middle of chapter 4 and I believe their paths are about to cross soon.

I find it cute that Wally and Oscar are like Laura and Hardy. They bicker a lot and seem to have different personalities. Rochelle is the peacemaker between them. She rules the phone and the cases they get because her bosses are too lazy to do some of their own jobs. Hahaha! How they ended up together is like a joke. Meanwhile, David skips work to drink in a pub. He has had enough of slaving under a law firm where lawyers do not have any personal time for themselves. He has decided to quit! I know people in real life who were like that but they were from other professions.

Then Wally attends a funeral and learns how his client died from taking a pill. I think the exciting part is about to begin. Let's see....to be continued as the journey continues...

The grand finale of Star Wars

I feel sad that my journey with Luke Skywalker and the rebellions have ended. It ended with a sad note because Darth Vader finally turned to the good side but he died right after that. What made him kill the emperor for Luke? Is it because he didn't want his son to die before the emperor? Because he still loved his son after all?

Ok...how is it that Leia suddenly know how to use the force to communicate and feel her brother? And how is it that Han did not question her when he learnt that Luke was her brother and not her love interest? So he just accepted it and gave her a passionate kiss just like that? I ask a lot of questions huh? But the writer's a good writer. He portrayed the story well and close to the movie. I might watch the movies again. There is a note at the end of the story to say we should tweet about what we think of the story. I'd say thumbs up for this book. Get a copy and read it!!

The final battle

I'm now at the final battle scene where the rebels are trying to destroy the death star but Han and his group has not been able to shut down the deflector shield from the moon of Endor. Meanwhile Luke is resisting the urge to pick his light saber up to kill the emperor or Vader. Doing so would mean giving in to the dark side. The last chapter ended with him watching the rebels getting attacked badly and making the decision on whether to kill the emperor. Conflict. What a powerful one this is. So how will it end? I can only find out tomorrow night when I move on to the next chapter.

Inconsistencies in Episode 6

Ah ha! I found some inconsistencies. In the last book, Obiwan claimed that Anakin didn't know that his wife was pregnant and that only Ben and Padme knew about it and that if Anankin knew, he would come for the kids. I thought Anakin knew about the pregnancy and he had dreams of Padme dying from childbirth and he was tricked by the emperor into joining the dark side....He had believed that his wife's life would be spared...

Also uncle Owen wasn't Obiwan's brother. He was Anankin's step brother. Obiwan never knew his family. Jedies were usually raised from a baby in the temple and their only family is the Jedi order....is it just the book that is a mistake? I think after this, I want to watch the movie again.

The Light Saber in Episode 6

After reading the second chapter, I learnt that the writers didn't forget that Luke had lost his light saber in episode 5 after all. His original weapon was his father's but he lost it in a dual with Darth Vader when his hand was cut off.

In The Return of the Jedi, Luke had gone back to Obiwan's home to construct his own light saber from the spare parts found there. He did this before heading to Jabba the Hutt's palace. So how does he even know how to make a light saber? That's not suppose to be relevant in the story I guess. :-) Anyway, let's get back on this journey as Luke rescues his friends from Jabba. Till the next post....

The Jedi Order

I'm now reflecting about what I've read so far based on the 6 Star Wars novels. The Jedi order is like a religious order to me. Their teachings are very interesting. They must clear their minds and not let anger or fear take over them as this will lead them to the dark side. Think about it, in real life, we should not let our emotions take control of us because this may cause us to do something that is regrettable especially when we are hurt or angry. There is something catholic like about their robes and when they greet each other, they say 'may the force be with you'. In our faith, we say 'Peace be with you'.:-)
Jedi cannot get married or have emotional attachments to things. The force....that's something to think about. Is that like Qi or karma or feelings? Interesting. I wonder how the writers got their idea when they created the Jedi order...

Jabba The Hutt

I'm back on Tatooine to follow Luke and his friends to rescue Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt where he being held captive as a frozen statue in the wall. So far the plan seems to be working. Princess Leia has disguised herself as a bounty hunter and she has just unfrozen Han from his prison. But wait! It's not going to be that easy right? The chapter stops there till I get back into the story...(commercial break time?)

Meanwhile let's talk about Jabba the Hutt. He didn't have much of a role in episode 1 but we saw him in the grandstand as Anakin was racing his pod. Maybe they didn't have a voice for his character in that movie.

The writer did a good job describing how Jabba looks like just as in the movies. Repulsive, snakelike skin that is covered in grease...a body with no neck, reptilian yellow slit eyes...no legs but a tapered end that looked like dough...

I can't wait for the part when Princess Leia strangles him with her chains. One by one, Luke's friends are captured and made into slaves...when will Luke step in to kill that beast in the chamber below? Probably when I read the next chapter. Stay tuned....

Luke and Darth Vader

Let's reflect for a moment. I think even though Vader may be evil, he still loves his son. Forget about the part where he cuts Luke's hand off. Anakin's hand was cut off while trying to help Obiwan too. Maybe that was nothing to Vader. But when the emperor declared that Luke must be killed because Luke has the power to kill the emperor, Vader quickly suggests that they make Luke join them instead so that they can be more powerful.

Hang on. Since when did the emperor have prophetic abilities? When Luke and Vader were having a fight in the climax, Vader offered Luke to join him so that they can rule the galaxy together. So Vader has his own plans to get rid of the emperor? Ah...pure evil....

Enough said. I hope to start my reading on The Return of the Jedi soon.

Han Solo, Landon and Chewbecca

I've finally come to the end of the story. It was a great journey. But Han has been frozen and packed away to be sent to Jabba the Hutt by a bounty hunter. Landon now has changed sides and is helping Chewbecca to rescue Han.

So now Luke can read minds? He can sense that Leia has feelings for Han and she misses him. He can't forget the moment he first saw her in the hologram. So he is still in love with her and doesn't know she is his twin sister? Ewww....

I"m now wondering how is Luke going to get a new lightsaber because he lost his weapon when his hand was cut off by Darth Vader and the weapon flew off and he lost it for good. Will the last book mention it? Or will they overlook this and let a lightsaber materialize in his pocket just like that? I'll only find out when I pick up book 6, The Return of the Jedi.

ps: I"ll be taking a break for a week before I read the last book. Till then wait for the next update.

Luke and Yoda

This is so exciting! Luke has finally met Yoda in person and he is receiving his training as a Jedi. I didn't know that Yoda can be so naughty. He rummaged through Luke's supplies and pilfered a lamp. When R2 tried to snatch it, he wrestled R2 for it. I thought Yoda was portrayed as more serious and wiser character in the first three stories. Here, he seems like a mischievous elf. Nothing like that respected teacher we know of.

Meanwhile Han, Leia, Chewbecca and c3p0 are running away with the imperials in hot pursuit. The couple has had their first kiss. Ok, so this means that Leia does not have the hotties for her brother anymore right? Ewww...

The saga continues...every time I read Star wars I get a special feeling. It's a well loved story...but not completely accepted by the younger generation these days. I will update more as I read along. To be continued ...

The Journey Contines

I haven't been updating my progress because I was busy. I'm now 40% into novel. The rebels have been forced to flee planet Hoth as the imperials have come for them. Han still has yet to face Jabba the Hutt as he was stuck with the rebels and Princess Leia. It looks like they have something going on together but Leia has given a passionate kiss on Luke's lips to piss Han off. Ewwww... They don't know they are related yet...but it's gross. So when will they know the truth that they are twins? This is like reading flowers in the attic...the space version....you know,that book by Virginia Andrews...
Anyway, I'm really enjoying this reading journey of star wars. It gives me a warm feeling because I love Star Wars.

Luke and Leia

I've finally finished reading Star Wars 4. Luke has the hots for his sister but he doesn't know they are twins. Still, it is very gross. In the last part of the book, we have Luke not thinking about his future with the Alliance because he is mesmerized by Leia. How gross is that?

Luke as at this point is still unaware that Ben Kenobe is with him spiritually. He thinks he is hearing things. Suddenly the story seems so primitive. But this was the story that drew fans from around the world even years later.

Sadly the new generation of youths are not that taken in by Star Wars as the previous one. I wish that George Lucas would come up with the sequel for the story as well. They should keep it going for the next generation to appreciate Star wars.

I shall say no more. I can't wait to move on to Star Wars 5. To be continued...

Darth Vader

After reading the first three episodes of Star Wars, Darth Vader no longer seems like a regular villain. Instead I feel pity for him because he was tricked into joining the dark side by the evil emperor. He had believed that becoming bad would save the life of his wife Padme Amidala. But he was also very proud and jealous of Obiwan and he had ambitions to be the most powerful Jedi in the galaxy. Perhaps his close friend the chancellor who is now the emperor had something to do with it too. Suddenly I'm looking at episode 4 with a new perspective. The next generation has never believed in the Jedi and they dismiss their power with the force as mere magic. (as seen through the eyes of Hans Solo).

Reading the book is different from watching the movie because you get to read about things that are not mentioned in the movie and it gives you a better understanding of the story. I'm left with a few pages to go to the end of book 4. To be continued in my next entry...

My Reading Journey

Previously I had used this blog to write a story testing and using the snow flake method. The old stuff is still around. I hope to update my entries now with my reading journey as I travel to another world with the characters that I'm following. I hope this blog turns out to be a success...let's see how it goes....