LibraryGeekAdam's 2011 Challenge Thread

This is my thread where I will post my books of 2011. I am hoping to put up some better numbers than I did in 2010. We will find out. Cheers.

JANUARY BOOKS
1. Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
2. Burning Bridge by John Flanagan
3. Icebound Land by John Flanagan
4. How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu
5. Battle for Skandia by John Flanagan
6. Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
7. Sorcerer of the North by John Flanagan
8. Siege of Macindaw by John Flanagan
9. Erak's Ransom by John Flanagan

FEBRUARY BOOKS
10. Conan and the Songs of the Dead by Joe R. Lansdale
11. The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson
12. The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf
13. Savage Tales of Solomon Kane by Robert E. Howard
14. It Takes a Wizard by Thomas R. Hart
15. Solomon Kane: The Castle of the Devil by Scott Allie
16. Clean by Alejandro Junger

MARCH BOOKS
17. Publishing a Blog with Blogger by Elizabeth Castro
18. Claymore, Volume 1 by Norihiro Yagi
19. Thinking Body, Dancing Mind by Chungliang Al Huang
20. The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate by Ted Chiang
21. Buddha 1: Kapilavastu by Osamu Tezuka

APRIL BOOKS
22. The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
23. Buddha, Volume 2 by Osamu Tezuka
24. Vagabond, Volume 1 by Takehiko Inoue
25. Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
26. The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking
27. The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss
28. The Eternal Champion by Michael Moorcock

MAY BOOKS
29. Grave Peril by Jim Butcher
30. Visions by Michio Kaku

I think I'm going to star you. I loved your introduction and plus, your username just tickles me.

Thanks DragonFreak...if you would like to post your discussion URL I would be happy to follow yours as well.

Ok, you can find my thread right here.

Welcome and good luck for the coming year!

I have the set of these but have yet to read them so I think to start off the year I will start reading the Ranger's Apprentice series. I have the first 6 books and I can get the next 3 from the library. I also plan on mixing some other books in with them as I go due to book groups I belong to.

Welcome to the group!

I really enjoy the Ranger's Apprentice series.

Welcome! BTW, check out our wiki page for our cool group threads...

http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/Groups:75booksin2011

history, syfy, fantasy, sociology (mostly on the male gender and their loss of traditional roles and displacement in society), science, religious studies, Buddhism, manga

Eclectic obviously needs a superlative. I can't think of a single word to describe that list that isn't simply pale and weak-kneed and shaking with ague at trying to keep up.

You might not have red 75 books last year, but please don't call it a failure! You're in the most interesting, chatty, eclectic (!) group of reading freaks on the Internet. No part of that sounds like a failure to me.

Cheers! Looking forward to learning more about books from you this coming year.

Hi Adam. Congrats on graduating! I still have another year to go in my master's program, so I totally get not being able to read as much as you'd like. I barely made it past 30 books in 2010 and probably won't make it much further this year, but this is such a great group and no one seems to care if you make it to 75 or not. Welcome!

Hi, Adam. Got you starred so I can check out your reading this year.

Hi Adam. Welcome to the group. Looking forward to seeing what you'll read. I'm interested in books on Buddhism. I'll be reading a category on meditation books this year.

#10 _debbie_

Hey good luck on your Masters! You going for library science as well?

#12 VioletBramble

Do you find Buddhist books interesting for scholarly reasons or are you a Buddhist if you don't mind me asking? I have been studying the faith for some years now but have never really committed whole heartedly to it. I find my self to be to great of a skeptic but I am working on it as it seems to me to be what matches my personal beliefs.

I really love the Ranger's Apprentice Series so far. I have to admit that I cheated a bit and started early. I was out of town for Christmas and had the first one with me. It was amazing and so were the next two. I am not sure how everyone posts there reads so I will do them as separate posts. Thanks to everyone who is talking in this thread! I miss the discussion and general talking of college.

BOOK #1

The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan.

BOOK #2

The Burning Bridge by John Flanagan.

BOOK #3

The Icebound Land by John Flanagan.

BOOK #4

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu.

I have not finished this yet but I don't have much left, maybe 50 pages. I have to say I did not really care for this book. It was slow and not much really happened in the book. It is much more about the human condition in the future when technology pretty much allows us to do anything we want.

I have finished this book now. It was a very interesting book. There was not much story to it but more philosophizising about time travel and time loops. Interesting points but really kind of pointless if you are looking for a story to read.

Wow! You have made a running start on your reading year, Adam!

#18: I have not heard wonderful things about that book. I think I am going to stay away from it.

>13 librarygeekadam: No, I'm working toward a master's in media psychology and social change. I thought about library science once upon a time though. I used to work for a company where I did a lot of indexing and taxonomy creation. I moved into magazine/journal publishing and later website editing and now am completely in a different field working as a program manager for a non-profit. Oh, the twists our careers throw at us!

Richard was not at all fond of Book#4 either. In fact, I think he had some downright negative things to say when he read it. So I think I'll pass on that one.

#13 - Hi Adam. I'm not a Buddhist. I consider myself a pagan. I practice a paganism that has Hindu and Buddhist elements. I incorporate what works for me and what speaks to me. The "use what works for you and ignore the rest" philosophy. I practice yoga and meditation. Most of my instructors are Buddhists and I've become more interested in Buddhism because of them. I've been reading books on Buddhism for the past three years and I'm considering attending group meditation and classes at the Shambhala center. Have you ever attended classes at a Buddhist center?
I just finished reading Confession of a Buddhist Atheist. The author quickly took vows to become a Buddhist monk and then slowly realized that he was agnostic about the major tenants of Buddhism.

#22 VioletBramble

That's awesome. May inquire into what type of paganism you believe in? I have always been curious about such things and I like your concepts of integrating different beliefs to form one that fits your own life. That is much the same as I have been thinking. My search has lead me to Buddhism because it best fits my personal beliefs but I would love to read about some other more nontraditional beliefs in order to help my discovery of my own beliefs. I have just gotten from the library Rebel Buddha which looks really good. I have not ever attended any classes for I live in a small town where I am probably the own considering Buddhist here. lol

#19 alcottacre

Those books went really fast. They were amazing. I can hardly wait till i get into the next three. Number 7, 8 and 9 I will have to get from the library. I recommend them if you don't mind YA books. They are considered fantasy but there is not magic that I am aware of in them. Its more about perceived magic because of their skills.

Just popping in over here to say hi to the other "library geek" (well the other "self identified by username" library geek I've spotted in this group - goodness knows there's a ton of us (library geeks in general) here and everywhere on LT lol!)

#24: I love the John Flanagan series and have been reading them as fast as my library gets them in. I have one on hold I need to pick up tomorrow as a matter of fact. I am glad to see you are enjoying them too, Adam.

#23 The Rebel Buddha had a two or three day "thing" here in NYC a few months ago. I don't know if it was a seminar, book reading or an "audience" type thing. One of my neighbors had hung posters in the lobby. I had to work so I didn't get a chance to see what it was about. How is the book?
The type of paganism I practice doesn't really have a name. Just a general neo-paganism. I was raised Methodist by an Atheist mother and a Methodist father. I started investigating religions on my own while in high school. I finally decided on an earth centered, mainly goddess worshipping paganism and branched out from there as I was exposed to other practices. I generally celebrate the solstices and equinoxes as my holidays. I know two women who I've taken classes with/from - one has a monthly ritual on the full moon and one has a monthly first quarter moon ritual. I frequently take classes at The Open Center - a holistic learning and world culture center. They host large group rituals for the solstices that are attended by a large number of people.The good thing about being in NYC is that you can always find people who are into the same things that you are into. I also have an altar at home and celebrate holidays or do rituals on my own. The two main Goddesses that I ask for guidance are Kuan Yin, the Chinese Goddess of compassion (Buddhist) and Saraswati, Goddess of knowledge, arts and music (Hindu). I'm also fond of Ganesha, God of strength and fortitude, remover of obstacles (also Hindu). I first became interested in Buddhism while taking classes on meditation to relieve stress from my job. I was impressed by the tradition that if I learn meditation from someone who learned it from someone else who learned it from a "master", then I can say that I learned meditation from that master. My Alexander technique instructor was once the personal assistant to Pema Chodron ( the author and Buddhist nun) and she was the first person to give me instruction on what to do when you enter a Buddhist center: bowing, facing the altar when entering, etc. Let me know if you have questions about any of this - general or specific, I'd be happy to answer.
I see from your profile that you live in Wisconsin. There are 43 Buddhist centers in WI - of course mostly in the large cities. Maybe you could contact the one closest to you, and if distance is an issue, maybe they have classes online. They would probably be open to some type of correspondence.

BOOK #5

Battle for Skandia by John Flanagan

I am really loving these Ranger Apprentice books. They are a lot of fun and read very quickly due to the action and adventure.

BOOK #6

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

This was actually an audiobook. I hope no one objects to that. I have 80 min round commute 3-4 times a week so I sometimes will listen to an audiobook when I get sick of podcasts. The narrator was amazing for this story and it was really good book. It was my first Neil Gaiman book.

I have been perusing around and have seen some things that I liked in other people's threads. I liked them so much that I am going to try and adopt some of them. I am sorry if this gets confusing at all. I see a better way to list the books that I read this year in a single post and just keep editing it as I complete books. That is a lot better method then my current one. The second thing I would like to do is keep track of the movies and music I listen this year. I thought that was a great idea, sorry I forgot who's post I seen it on. My main goal will still be the books. The movies and music do not have a number goal but a goal of simply keeping track of what I watch and listen too. Thank you for the great ideas whoever I stole them from!

#29: This was actually an audiobook. I hope no one objects to that.

Adam, some of us count audiobooks, some of us do not. This is your thread and you make the rules here. We are not the book police :)

The movies and music idea probably came from Sara (saraslibrary).

I've read three Neil Gaiman books in my life. Those are Coraline, The Graveyard Book, and a children's book that my little brother coincidentally brought home one day from the library called The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish. I'm not that big of a Gaiman fan at all.

#30 - When you keep track by adding to the first in the thread, please remember to also add a new message to your thread. Otherwise, it won't come up as having unread messages for those of us who troll through the group that way...

Welcome! I'm going to also skip Book #4 about which I've heard nothing but negative or, at best, ambivalent reviews.

I've read American Gods and unexpectedly adored it. I own Anansi Boys but haven't gotten to it yet. Perhaps this will be the year.

Anansi Boys is one of my two favorite Gaimans--I liked it better than American Gods and found it absolutely charming.

Neil Gaiman's Sandman series is one of my all time favorites, but I also like his short story collections. I remember thinking how cool it was that he hid a short story in his introduction to Smoke and Mirrors.

Of his fiction, I think Stardust is my favorite, but I read it as a series of stories illustrated by Charles Vess (Stardust #1-4).

Thanks for the advice. I'll make sure I make new posts of kind of a review of the books I read and then add them to the 1st post which will be the list.

I am not sure any more if I will do the music movie thing. I guess I will find out when I get to it. I have been watching Stargate SG-1 shows since they are on Netflix Instant right now and have yet to watch a movie in the new year. I also have discovered tWiT.tv and their podcasts so that makes music less a part of my life currently. We will see what happens when I get settled.

I have taken on numerous goals this year. Some of them have started before the new year but one of them is simplifying my life. As a result of this goal I have begun "weeding" garbage out of my house. Papers, magazines, old clothes, and just about everything else that I have not used in the last 6 months. So although my house is looking much better and simpler, it's still kind of a mess from digging out the closets lol.

*looks outside at giant piles of snow* Too early for spring cleaning but I am thoroughly impressed with your "weeding" system. Maybe fairies will come in and do the tidying for you. :D

Here in support of Neil Gaiman! If you didn't like the creep factor in Coraline you might like his lighter collaboration with Terry Pratchett, Good Omens . Also, he wrote a short story collection called M is for Magic, in which he does stories about wildly differing things - there's one called Snow, Glass and Apples which is another take on the Snow White story, but so believable (Written by the Evil Stepmother)!

chiming in on Neil Gaiman (the rock star of authors! that or "Snape's brother" as some friends and I determined after watching his video on the fear of buttons (promo for Coraline) though its probably just the love of black and that marvelous British accent)

anyway - absolutely loved The Graveyard Book, Coraline, Stardust, and Neverwhere

Really just didn't get American Gods - I just didn't get the point of it - but it was still an enjoyable read because its Gaiman - so I do plan to read Anansi Boys anyway (but the one time I was going to go ahead and pick it up, the only copy at the store was messed up)

I've read Fragile Things and Smoke and Mirrors but both had some short stories I would not choose to read - but some great ones in the midst too... (Snow, Glass, Apples is in one of those two as well I think)

and his audio books!! LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! Well except for the point that I get too relaxed and too paying attention to the marvelousness of his voice, that its best on short stories and poems, not full length books (not even Children's books like The Graveyard Book I have an audio book of some children's stories though that is really good - has The Wolves in the Wall on it - plus there's the youtube video of his reading Blueberry Girl which is fabulous too...

I just finished up 3 more of the Ranger Apprentice books. They are a really fast read. I am able to read one in pretty much a day if left uninterrupted and being only part time now gives me lots of time. I read Sorcerer of the North, Siege of Macindaw, and Erak's Ransom. I am currently working on the Kings of Clonmel and a book by Zoran Zivkovic called Steps Through the Mist.

I have not heard of Steps Through the Mist before so I am looking forward to your thoughts on that one, Adam.

Well I slowed down a bit on my early jump. A death in the family and lots of traveling to the funeral and such put a damper on reading. Unfortunately the library books were due and people had holds so I could not renew them. I got through over 100 pages in Kings of Clonmel. It was getting good. Steps through the Mist is a collection of short stories and the first one was amazing. I really liked it. He grabbed you with the first word and didn't let go. I am definitely going to have to get these books back as soon as I can. Sorry I could not offer more of a breakdown.

Since I did not get done with the last two I was working on, I have picked up a couple of other books to work on. I am reading The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson. For some strange reason I get into health books like this. It is a very interesting concept that works well with the philosophy of Move Natural found at www.movnat.com.

The other book I have started and I am loving it is Dali Lama's The Art of Happiness. This is really a fast read and a very intriguing look into the Tibetan Buddhist philosophy.

I am sorry to hear about the death in your family, Adam. My condolences.

I'm a bit tardy in getting round the threads lately, but I wanted to add my sympathies. I'll be keeping you and yours in my thoughts.

Hi There

I'm compiling a list of birthdays of our group members. If you haven't done so already, would you mind stopping by this thread and posting yours.

Thanks.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/105833

Thank you everyone for your support. It is appreciated.

I have just finished my first book of February. Not one I expected to read but I picked it up and didn't put it down. It was the graphic novel Conan and the Songs of the Dead. It was a pretty good read and went really fast. I will have to check out other ones as well for I am a big Conan fan and a huge Robert E. Howard fan.

I am glad to see that your first read of the month was a good one!

Well I just finished The Primal Blueprint and I have to say that I really liked it. I liked it enough and think that perhaps it is not a bunch of fad material, that I am going to give it a go being primal in my diet.

I am a little behind this month in keeping up with the books this month. I had high hopes in January and took of in a flash but have sputtered out a bit. I need to get going again.

#49: You could always have your own personal Readathon to get yourself going again :)

#50 alcottacre

Thats kind of what I did. I put down 2 books since my last posting, so that will help the numbers a bit. Thanks for the suggestion.

I finished Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf which was a continuation of my interest in the Primal Blueprint. The Primal Blueprint I think was better explained, had less restrictions and is more my choice of a lifestyle change than the Paleo Solution.

I also finished Robert E. Howard's Savage Tales of Solomon Kane. I love Robert E. Howard and Solomon Kane is one of my favorite characters ever. I am just disappointed that the movie has not been released in the US yet. Its out in Bluray in the UK. Bummer.

#51: Glad the personal Readathon idea worked for you, Adam!

ETA: I accidentally found this when I was looking for another book: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Robert-E-Howard-Omnibus/Robert-E-Howard/e/2... and this: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Solomon-Kane/Robert-E-Howard/e/2940012581099/?i...

#52 alcattacre

Thanks for the links...those look really cool. I have a complete Conan the Barbarian omnibus. That's on the to read list someday. I just finished a Solomon Kane graphic novel that I will put up later. I have started another read-a-thon this weekend and will post what I accomplish before the end of February. I have about 5 books picked out that I have at one point started but never finished. So it's kind of a closing weekend. I have more than 5 that I have started and not finished, but some of them are far from close to being complete, so I will work on the 5 that are about 100 pages from being done.

Well I managed to put down 3 books today that I have started in the past and just never finished for whatever reason. I read Solomon Kane: The Castle of the Devil which was a graphic novel. It takes the brief beginning of a story Robert E. Howard started but never finished and Scott Allie finishes it. It was pretty good read and the artwork as cool.

The Second book I finished was It Takes a Wizard by Thomas Hart. It is a complete saga of a manga. Manhattan is turned into hell basically by magic and the military sends in the only person to stop the spread of it. The main character is wrapped in mystery relating his relation to the magic and his companion has her own back story as to why she is involved. It was very epic and fun to read. I wouldn't mind seeing it made into a motion picture.

The last book I read today was Clean by Alejandro Junger. The book is about how to detox your body from years of neglect. It's a three week program of mainly drinking your blended meals to encourage your body to remove the toxins being stored in various organs and places in your body. I had read an article about the book in Outside Magazine. The journalist liked it and said he felt great after detoxing and it changed the way he thought about food. Junger recommends detoxing 1-2 times a year in order to keep your system clean. I am going to look at investing some time and interest in detoxing.

Book #17

I finished up Publishing a Blog with Blogger today. I had been reading off and on whenever I had time to monkey around with my blogs. Finally got through with it today. Lots of information in it, and its very easy to follow. Lots of pictures and diagrams to help you get your blog up and running. I have started two blogs if anyone would like to check them out. It would be great to get some people vising them and posting comments and what not.

http://librarygeekadam21.blogspot.com/ is my blog that I run to answer tech questions through the library. I just started it so nothing much has come up,but if you have any questions about tech, feel free to email me and I will see what I can do. It is meant to be more of a beginner's guide to tech. I get so many questions at work like what is a social network, or what is digital television, how to I get a google account and stuff like that. So I thought I would set up a blog to help people answer those more beginner questions.

http://superhumantransformation.blogspot.com/ is my personal blog. This blog was created to follow me in the process of reinventing myself as a superhuman. It may sound weird, but the definition of superhuman is simply above the average. I have a belief that if more people took to the cause of being an above average human, this world would be a better place. This goes for not only in helping other people and being a better human to others, but also being super in your own aspects as well. I study hard in subjects that are unfamiliar to me in order to better my understanding of the world and the universe. I started working out and training my body, mind and spirit in numerous different ways to improve my being. I changed what I ate, stopped settling and started achieving. Things like that. So if you are interested in following me in those regards, that is what this blog is for.

Cheers everyone

Hi! I like your superhuman idea. I'm always reading self-help books on my quest to be a happier, healthier person. I will check out your blog!

Sandy K

I am impressed with both of your blog topics. Good luck with those. I know that having people stopping by and commenting will help motivate you to keep them up; and I would do that except I can hardly keep up reading all the threads I have starred here in LibraryThing. Maybe this weekend I'll find time.

I read another manga, but it was online. There are some wonderful, although I am not entirely sure they are legal, manga readers out there. You don't have to download anything so that makes it easy, especially using the Chrome Browser or Android platform to get the Manga reader app. Then you can just book mark whatever manga you are in and it will return you there as you read all of them in that series. I read the first book in Claymore, volume 1. It was really good and I hope to keep going on it. I have also picked up the anime Bleach and I am thinking maybe I will try the manga as well. We will see.

Book #19

I read the book Thinking Body, Dancing Mind. It is a instruction book on how to maintain a tao mind while performing in athletics. Each chapter is usually a characteristic such as Fear and sometimes a state of mind like Fatigue, not that fear isnt a state of mind. Then the author would prescribe certain tao concepts to help athletes overcome that particular problem. Overall it was an interesting book but by about the 3 chapter, the reader has a pretty good idea on how to visualize, reiterate positive concepts, and practice at the proper level. Don't get me wrong, some of the chapters are different, but many of do have the same basic suggestions in order to improve. Still was a interesting and fast read.

Happy Birthday To You!

Happy Birthday! Enjoy your cupcake with the pretty sprinkles!

Hope you have a great birthday!

Happy birthday!

I think Claymore is one of the best fantasy series out there at the moment you might also want to check out Berserk although Berserk is darker and more gritty. Hope you like Bleach as i think it good however the anime goes into filler arcs to much now a days so the manga might be better if you want to stick only to the main story.

Thanks for the birthday wishes!

Book #20

Yay! I hit book number 20. The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate by Ted Chiang was a very thought provoking book. It takes place in Baghdad and somewhat in Cairo during the times before modern transportation or anything like that. The merchant telling the story meets a well educated man selling wares at the market. After discussing several topics with the man, the man then asks him if he may show him something. The merchant agrees and is shown two rings that were created with Alchemy. They allow the user to go 20 years into the future or 20 years into the past. The Alchemist tells the merchant several stories from others who have used the rings and ultimately the choice lies with the merchant. (KIND OF A SPOILER) The theme of the book however is that the merchant really has no choice in the matter for time is fixed.

Its a pretty short read but it was fun and thought provoking. Very good.

Great review! The book sounds really interesting and the fact that is short is very enticing since I just finished an 800+ tome. :)
Will be adding it to my ever-growing list. Thanks!

Huh. I just went to Amazon to add The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate to my wishlist, and they have two copies: 1 used for $134.95 and one "collectible" for $300.00! Wow.

Try searching EBay. Everything's usually cheaper for a seller that's sensable.

Yeeeaah, maybe at some point, but in fact I use Amazon to keep track of my wishlist (I'm not actually intending to buy the book right now). I just found the ridiculous prices interesting...

Sometimes I find Amazon to be too expensive for my blood at times.

The used books aren't usually sold by Amazon but by outside vendors through Amazon. They must be rare to have such high prices on them. Good luck finding something at a lower price!

Wow I didn't realize the book was so rare. I got it from the library. I see its not even on half.com right now either. Another place you may want to try if you want to get a hold of it is right from Subterranean Press. I know they sell a lot of books directly and a lot of the books are only sold directly.

MOVIE TIME

I title this movie time just because I wanted to let everyone know that this is a movie post and not a book post. I just felt like sharing what I have been watching lately since I haven't been reading much.

I got totally addicted to the Anime Bleach. I think I have posted on that somewhere else recently, but it doesn't change the fact that I wasted a lot of hours on that wonderful show. I am a little irritated with it however. Since the first episode, it has been following a storyline. What happens to the characters now is important for the future of the storyline. Then in the middle of a battle that takes place over several episodes, they will go to a different storyline that does not have anything to do with the main storyline. That is kind of irritating but suddenly the main storyline has just ended! With the main character winning obviously, but suffering significant changes in himself, they go to a totally new story like none of it matters. We are talking the loss of love interests and everything with nothing said about it. I will say however that I have finally caught up with the episodes that are currently airing, so I am hoping that they return eventually to the "main" storyline and pick up where they left off. So that's my Bleach ramble.

I have also decided to go on a Hayao Miyazaki marathon. I am working on getting a hold of every Anime he has ever created and watching them. So far I have 3 down. I watched Howl's Moving Castle which as based off of a book by Dianna Wynne Jones, who sadly passed away this week. That movie was fun but I thought a little slow. Then I watched the Princess Mononoke which I thought was pretty sweet. I really liked it and it has a good environmental message behind it which I favor. Then last night I watched Ponyo. It was cute movie but definitely directed at a much younger age group then the first two. I still have several more to watch but I really enjoy them. The stories are inspirational and the art is fantastic. I highly recommend his movies if you can get a hold of them, which the libraries seem to have most of them.

I have big love for Miyazaki films. Howl's Moving Castle is one of my favourites. I also really like Spirited Away. Hope you continue to enjoy your marathon. :)

I didn't realize that Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and Princess Mononoke were all by Hayao Miyazaki (or if I did at one time I'd forgotten). I really enjoyed all three of those. Ponyo keeps popping up as a recommendation by Netflix, so I'll check that out. Look forward to hearing about the others you see (if you get a chance to post them).

Book #21

I just read a manga by Osamu Tezuka called Buddha 1: Kapilavastu. It is a fictional/historical account of the birth and life of Siddhartha. I believe that there are 8 volumes to this series. The art work is decent, not really my favorite kind of artwork. I know many people like his art. He has done things like Astro Boy if you have seen that cartoon; however, the story is really good. It will be interesting to see how these characters we have met in the first book come to be intertwined with Siddhartha when he grows up. Although the book is 400 pages, it reads insanely fast. It is a manga so its all pictures to begin with but there are numerous pages that are only pictures. I really recommend it and I look forward to reading the next 7.

BOOK #22

The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss.

SPOILER ALERT

I put this spoiler alert here because I am the type of person that spills the beans without meaning too. Everyone is different on how much they want to hear about a book, and I am one that can be told the entire book including the surprise ending and it doesn't bother me. Since it does not bother me, its hard for me to tell when I have went to far for most people. Just beware that I am not going to say exactly how a book ends, but I might divulge information that you find may ruin the book. I don't do it intentionally, it just happens.

I read the first book in the Kingkiller Chronicles so long ago I had trouble remembering exactly what happened. Is all I remembered was that I absolutely loved it. Like in my top 5 favorite books loved it. That was the The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. This book, The Wise Man's Fear, was really good, but I don't think I liked it as much as the first one, and here is why.

Rothfuss spends too much time getting caught up in his world. I dabble in writing so I understand that you get attached to the place you created, but as a reader, unless in book three it becomes obvious, I don't need to know all the mythology and folklore to the world. He spends chapters on having characters just sitting around telling each other stories. Now of course, the underlying theme of the story is...well stories. The main character is Edema Ruh, a traveling group of story tellers and performers. The main character acts out parts he has heard in stories in his real life events making him into a legend. The entire first two books take place over two days of the main character telling his life story to a biographer in an inn. Stories are very important, but I don't think I need these extra stories that do not pertain to the movement of the plot. Again, unless they come back to mean something in the next book.

Now, other than that, the book is extremely well written. The language he uses makes it hard to put the book down. His characters are real and you want to know small details about Kvothe (main character). You can see as the book progresses from what we know about Kvothe, that we are building up to something. He is learning magic, experiencing things that might not matter a lot now, but you can already see how they are shaping his mentality and shaping his future. Although this book was quite a bit slower in spots then the first, it still is a great read although a long 992 pages that weigh a ton. I can hardly wait for the third book. I just hope it doesn't take him another 4+ years to spin this one out like it took him for the second book.

I am 25+ posts behind, so I am not even going to try and catch up at this point. Hopefully, I can keep up with you the rest of the year though!

BOOK #23

Buddha Vol. 2 by Osamu Tezuka

I finished the 2nd volume of the Buddha manga series. It was better then the first I think especially since it actually involved Siddhartha. The first one did not so it was a little confusing as to why you acutally needed to read the first volume. In fact only 2 characters from the first one were even in the second volume and for the briefest of moments, although playing significant roles. I really don't see how it was necessary to know and understand their history for the short role they played in Siddhartha's life. Perhaps later in the series it will become more clear.

BOOK #24

Vagabond, Vol. 1 by Takehiko Inoue

What a fantastic manga! I really loved this first volume and cannot wait to get my hands on the rest in the series. Its a story about a young man who goes off to war in medieval Japan with his best friend. The best friend is not such a bad guy but makes all the wrong decisions and the main character is thought of as a demon because of his love to kill and test his skill with a sword. Yet is the main character constantly doing the honorable thing even though he is the blood thirsty one. Very wonderful art and story.

#81: I will have to look for that series for my oldest daughter. She enjoys manga and is captivated by all things Japanese. Thanks for the recommendation, Adam!

#81 alcottacre

I am glad you like it. I just wanted to let you know that the manga Vagabond is very adult. Killing, sex, nudity, swearing...I just wanted to give you a heads up.

#83: Thanks for the heads up! She is almost 22 though, so it is probably not anything she has not read or heard before.

#84 lol good. Just didn't want someone handing it over to a 10 year old or something without them knowing what it was about. Hope she likes it.

BOOK #25

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

I just finished up Ship Breaker. It is a decent young adult novel taking place in a future where human's left the world in an unstable place due to climate destruction. Huge massive hurricanes blow into the lower US, worse then our history has ever seen. The polar caps are gone and have eliminated the Caribbean Islands making the storms even worse. Fossil fuels have been outlawed making recycling a major profession. That is where we find the main character, Nailer, working on some beach in what remains of the Southern US stripping beached oil tankers for their copper and iron. He lives in a place governed by the strong where the mentality of eye for an eye is the main law. In Nailer's world, you have friends and they are part of your crew who you work with everyday, and then everyone else is your enemy trying to steal you work or your life. One day after a hug "city killer" hurricane, Nailer and his close friend find a wrecked ship that they have not seen before. Inside the ship is gold and silver beyond their dreams. They have found a "lucky strike" and their lives could be forever different...but there is a lone survivor. A young beautiful girl who is still alive and apparently filthy rich. What Nailer ultimately decides to do about the young girl takes him on a journey full of fear and adventure. It takes him to places he had never dreamed of being and tests his courage as well as his honor.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. It was a fast read, as I read most of it in a day and I am a slow reader. The future I found interesting a little scary as I am a supporter of limiting our carbon footprint in the world. The characters were fun and pretty sassy always teasing each other. However, I just feel that there was something missing in the story. I am not sure what yet. Maybe it is just perhaps I have read to many books in the fantasy genre...but something felt missing. So instead of a fab 5 star, I only give it a 3.5 star. A good book that read fast and kept me interested, but missing something to make it great.

I saw Ship Breaker in the store last week and was pleased to see it won the Printz Award and was a runner up for the National Book Award.

BOOK #26

The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking

I see the touchstones did not come up correctly. I am not sure how to change them so I apologize if there is any confusion.

The Grand Design was a somewhat interesting book. I am not a religious person, more of a spiritual person as I have talked about in previous posts; however, the Grand Design left me feeling insulted in a way. I am a big fan of science and everything that it does, and a natural skeptic so in an argument of faith vs reason, I will chose reason 99 out of 100 times. Yet, Hawking and Mlodinow made me feel that they have grown too big for their britches. They made fun of religion and when explaining their theories, felt it necessary to poke fun and make comments that were not really necessary to their argument at the time. However, I should point out that the entire book is an argument against the belief in a higher power. So in a broader application, it made sense for them to argue against a God, but they did so distastefully.

The main reason I have had trouble becoming a religious person is because of arrogance. It is something that I personally disdain. Religions seem to full of arrogance. They feel it is necessary to claim to have the complete understanding of the world based on something that they really have no idea when, how, or who created. Yet they blindly convert or attempt conversion on numerous individuals without really knowing what is out there. Hawking and Mlodinow do the same thing. They belittle others views, claim superior knowledge, and hold in contempt anything that is not their own views. Without opening our hearts and minds to any possibility, we are drastically limiting our capabilities and understanding of the ways of the universe. If you shut down and eliminate a particular view based on predetermined prejudices, then how will you ever know if it will hold water when you are not even willing to test it?

Now, I still do not necessarily believe in a higher power or a God. That is just not my view of the universe, but I do believe that there is something more happening than what Hawking and Mlodinow claim. I have been tampering with the beliefs in Buddhism and I find that many of the Buddhist views and philosophies can fit into modern science fairly easily, in fact Buddhists use modern science as a base to many of their views. This makes this philosophy easier to follow and believe...for me anyway.

BOOK #27

The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss

I was excited to get this book from the library, but it went back pretty fast. I skimmed through it pretty quickly and found three types of advice. The first type is the basic stuff you have been hearing for some time now. The second type is out of this world and I don't believe it for a minute. For example, working out in a gym 4 hours a month is good enough to get a body builder's body. The 3rd type of advice is advice that is flattering only Timothy. Timothy came across to me as a self involved individual. He spent a lot of time talking about how women flocked to him and so forth. Really not my bag. I only put down about a third of this book and then went online to see what the reviews said about it. They were good, unless you read the 1 star reviews on Amazon. Then it all made sense to me. It is said that the first day after the release there were over 1000 5 star reviews. One review claims to have been booted off because he gave it a 1 star review early in the books sales. Now I don't know about this reviewer or anything, but all the 1 stars said the same basic thing...a gimmick to make money. I have to agree.

On a brighter note, I am almost done with a book that has been great so far. Review to come in the next day or so.

I guess the ratings on Amazon aren't totally honest then. Gee! I never woudda guessed!

BOOK #28

The Eternal Champion Michael Moorcock

I finished up the Eternal Champion and really enjoyed it. I will definitely be looking for the next in the series but after exploring this series further on Wikipedia, I see it is an insanely complex series. I am looking forward to it.

BOOK #29

Grave Peril by Jim Butcher

This is the third book in the Dresden Files. I read the other two some time ago and enjoyed them. The thing that kind of bothered me was that they were not really connected at all. Like different tv episodes. This third book, although maybe not as good as the first two, seems to be starting a more continuous story line and I like that. I would like to find out more about Susan and some of the other characters. Still overall, a pretty fun book.

BOOK #30

Visions by Michio Kaku

This was a fun book thought a bit outdated. It was published in 1997 so many of the things that it talks about as happening early in the 21st century are already beginning to happen. I have also been more involved in tech and science lately in my life and have learned quite a bit about what he was talking about, at least in the computer fields. The astronomy, space travel and some of the biology sections were new to me and I found them very interesting. It will be fun to do a bit of research and see where we are according to Kaku's predictions.

Just a side thought...I see a lot of the discussion boards are slowing down in activity. Any particular reason why? I hope it doesn't have anything to do with me...do I smell bad? lol Just curious if anyone wants to let me know. Its not just mine but others I was following as well.

Glad you enjoyed your latest. I don't think you smell. *sniff* Nope, all's good. Could be the better weather that's caused the posting slow down. Just a theory though.

#91: I will have to give The Eternal Champion a try. Thanks for the recommendation, Adam!