Gods Behaving Badly

In Gods Behaving Badly we find out that the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece are living among humans in a crumbling London house. Their powers aren't what they used to be and they are generally bored with their current existence. We are also introduced to Alice, a mortal cleaning woman, and her friend Neil...also a mortal. They become entangled in the lives of the immortal ones and a classic Greek tale ensues.

This book has been on my "to read" list for while. I've been interested in the Greek gods for years now, pretty much since I saw Disney's Hercules in 8th grade. That is probably why I was a little disappointed in the book overall. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't great. I guess that is just a hazard of building up expectation based on nothing but my own ideas of how things should be.

It took me awhile to get into the book, which always makes me impatient. I generally want books to grab me right off the bat. The first half is interesting enough, but didn't completely catch my attention. I think I just wanted more from the gods and goddesses. They are all pretty one-dimensional since they aree basically the embodiments of what they have power over. For example, Aphrodite (the goddess of love and beauty) isn't much more than a sex-obsessed pretty face.

I also found Alice and Neil to be boring in the beginning, probably because they are both the quiet, mousy types. However, once they are dragged into the business of the gods they start to show a little more personality. Once all the drama and action kicked in, I did find myself reluctant to put the book down, so maybe I did enjoy it more than I think I did. Anway, I guess I'd recommend it for a fun and fluffy read, just don't expect much substance.

3.5/5 Stars

Causing a Scene

Causing a Scene: Extraordinary Pranks in Ordinary Places with Improv Everywhere is an extremely fun book that tells the story of some of Improv Everywhere's pranks. If you've never heard of Improv Everywhere, you should go search for them on YouTube. One you start watching, you won't be able to stop. Some of the pranks are simple and silly while others will make you wonder at the effort and organization that had to have gone into them.

Perhaps one of the best known pranks, and the one I first saw, is the Grand Central Freeze. In it, over 200 of the "agents" froze in various positions in the middle of Grand Central Station and stayed there for 5 minutes. Its amazing to see the dedication of the agents because I know that I would never be able to freeze with all those people walking around and looking at me. The end is always great because everyone simply unfreezes and goes about their business as if nothing strange happened. This is how all of the pranks work; no one ever acknowledges that something out of the ordinary has just occured.

I won't explain the other pranks because it would take forever, but the No Pants Subway ride is a popular one that has spread to numerous other cities. The mp3 experiment is one of my personal favorites and one that I would love to participate in. Having watched the videos first, it was great to read how the missions came together, but it would be just as enjoyable to read about them first and then get to see how everything turned out.

3.5/5 Stars