Entertainment | Daddy Mojo

70 Puzzles You’ll Get Wrong: Insights from Puzzle Me Twice

The subtitle to this puzzle book by Alex Bellos is so true. I’m a relatively clever person so I approached each of the set ups in Puzzle Me Twice with, what I thought was, a calm head and a clear mind….and I got most of them incorrect. I rationalized it by saying that they were incorrect because once I read the correct answer I realized my response was too quick. Had I really taken my time the book would have confirmed to me the genius that I think I am. However, in my self-imposed course of humble pie, I jumped in the rabbit hole of Alex Bellos’ other puzzles and have lowered my genius peg down to humble puzzle novice.

Puzzle Me Twice is jammed with 70 deceivingly easy puzzles you’ll get wrong, but have fun doing them.

This is not the bad puzzle book that you seek

3X World Champ: The Kickboxer’s Wild Journey to Redemption

Men don’t read. I know that’s a gross generalization, but for every guy that reads a book there are probably three or four women that do the same thing, except the guys would brag about having just ‘read a book’. Guys are certainly more attracted to certain writers, like Stephen King, Brad Thor or other authors with last names of Marvel superheroes. 3X World Champ doesn’t have any of those things, yet guys will love this book and their wives will even borrow the book from them and read it before they can.

3X World Champ is non-fiction about a World-Champion kick boxer gone drug runner, to prison inmate and business entrepreneur set in the 80s.

Memoir, auto-biography, discarded script for Miami Vice,

Fantasy Characters & Creatures is a go-to source for monster inspiration

What’s the difference between beast warriors, anthropomorphic insects, zombies, dinosaurs and anthropomorphic food? If you’ve played video games or appreciate the art that goes into them then you know that characters like that have a chasm of difference between them based on their size, weapons, personality, and more. Satoshi Matsuura is a video game character designer whose work is jagged, unique and really stands out when you see it. In Fantasy Characters & Creatures, An Artist’s Sourcebook, Whimsical Beasts, Anthropomorphic Monsters and More! audiences will get to see a collection of over 600 of his creations.

Satoshi Matsuura is a video game character designer who is a template for the industry. Fantasy Characters & Creatures has over 600 of his creatures and his creative process.

A go-to monster primer from a video game designer guru

The Strangest Fish is an odd-joy of an illustrated book

What a simple tale The Strangest Fish is. It will sound familiar to young, read-aloud audiences in elementary school, both in its setting and in its very subtle lesson. A young girl is at the fair with her family when she receives a fish who is happily unaware of the size of its plastic bag aquarium. It’s a beautiful fish that they name October, who quickly outgrows his arrangements. This all sounds familiar, the fish-out-of-water, except those who aren’t like you premise that savvy readers can detect from far away. That’s us too, but before you put this in the same tank with other, less intelligent, classy or interesting books, check out the art.

The Strangest Fish is an illustrated book that charms the status quo on a fish-out-of-water tale that excels due the grand art and timeless story.

One fish, weird fish, catch my interest you

Haruki Murakami Manga Stories 2: a surreal graphic novel mirror

Haruki Murakami is Japan’s best-selling, living author. His books have been translated into over 50 languages, with millions of copies sold worldwide. Haruki Murakami Manga Stories 2: The Second Bakery Attack, Samsa in Love, Thailand are a curious itch. The three short stories in graphic novel form are jarring, visceral, in your face and take a moment to be absorbed. This is a graphic novel in the vein of art, with a surreal story that weaves between metaphors, allegory and absurdity without any warning.

Haruki Murakami Manga Stories 2 are the manga form of three classic short stories from the legendary Japanese author.

art is relative, this is manga art

Despicable Me 4, rote minion and baby hijinks for ages 8-13

Adding a baby to the cast of characters in a sequel is the canary of intellectual property death. The most obvious offender for us is Muppet Babies, but there have been many others. Angel, Murphy Brown, Friends are the first ones that rip off of the top of my head. And while casual fans of those shows or the movies that have hit that creative dearth might struggle to remember the specifics, they can vaguely recall that entry as the one with the baby. Despicable Me 4 is the one with the baby and lest there be anyone who didn’t suspect that’s a major plot point, there’s a baby on Gru’s back on the DVD’s cover. One of the minions is beside him, channeling its best yellow-Men-In-Black impersonation with a ray gun of sort in its gloved-yellow hand.

Despicable Me 4 adds a baby and exposes Gru and co. to a higher standard that doesn’t measure up to previous films.

The sweet spot for 8-11 YO minions, but not past that

The Mad Files Review: Nostalgia and Humor Explored

I bought a Mad Magazine at our local comic book store a couple of years ago. As a teenager, back in the early-to-mid 80’s, I read Mad Magazine quite often. My friends and I would sleep over, share our monthly copies, bring the Mad paperback books we’d collected, read silently and occasionally repeat one of the jokes aloud. My favorite flip-flopped between the art by Sergio Aragones, Spy Vs. Spy, and the Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions segments. If The Mad Files: Writers and Cartoonists on the Magazine that Warped America’s Brain! had a song that played along while you were reading it would be Little River Band and Reminiscing.

The Mad Files, a collection of funny and thought-provoking essays about the genius irreverence of Mad Magazine brings back good love.

Take an essay-bourne trip down Mad Magazine Memory lane

Unlocking the Universe, an irresistible look at the Webb Space Telescope

Not knowing something isn’t always a sign of intelligence because sometimes you just haven’t been exposed to the content. Non-fiction ‘illustrated books’ are a great way to introduce things to young readers when their brains are forming their learning pathways. These books are meant for elementary school ages, but defy what people normally think of when they think of them. More often than not, they’re smarter and operate at a higher perceived level then what people expect. Unlocking the Universe: The Cosmic Discoveries of the Webb Space Telescope is living large in that section of the library now.

Unlocking the Universe offers a mix of reference book smarts, illustrated book ease and the wonders of space to ages seven and up.

Smart, but gets smarter and isn’t pretentious