Tanglewood Tries for 11 in 11

Last year, I failed horribly at this challenge when I tried to read 10 per category. I saw some people are trying stepped categories, so here's hoping I will be more successful with that. (1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11=66)




1. Classics - Completed
2. Books on Books - Completed
3. The Ancient World
4. Diaries, Journal, Correspondence
5. Around the World
6. Across Time
7. Nautical
8.Dystopia/Post-apocalyptic
9. SF/Fantasy
10. Comics, Graphic Novels - Completed + Bonus
11. YA/Children's - Completed + Bonus

Classics
1. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Simon Armitage, Audio finished 4/5/2011

Books on Books
1. Howards End is on the Landing by Susan Hill finished 1/21/2011
2. The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World finished 1/27/2011

The Ancient World
1.The Epic of Gilgamesh finished 1/26/2011
2.The Landmark Thucydides 10 month group read
3.

Diaries, Journals, Correspondence
1.
2.
3.
4.

Around the World
1.Armand Dussault and Other Poems Canada/ Canadian finished 12/29/2010
2. Major Pettigrew's Last Stand England finished 1/24/2011
3.The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan India finished 4/25/2011
4.
5.

Across Time
1. Matchless by Gregory Maguire finished 1/14/2011
2. The Blind Contessa's New Machine by Carey Wallace finished 4/7/2011
3. Imperium by Robert Harris finished 5/6/2011
4. Pompeii by Robert Harris finished 5/27/2011
5.
6.

Nautical
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Dystopia & Post-apocalyptic
1. Feed by Mira Grant finished 1/4/2011
2. The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi finished 2/11/2011
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

SF/Fantasy
1. The Wild Wood by Charles de Lint finished 1/28/2011
2. The Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip finished 1/29/2011
3. One Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin finished 2/8/2011
4. The Name of the Wind by Patric Rothfuss finished 2/19/2011
5. The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold finished 2/23/2011
6. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin Re-read, finished 3/23/2011
7. Stardust by Neil Gaiman, Audio Listen Re-read, finished 3/29/2011
8. A Tough Guide To Fantasyland by Diana Wynne Jones finished 4/23/2011
9.

Comics, Graphic Novels
1. We Are On Our Own by Miriam Katin finished 1/6/2011
2. Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 finished 1/9/2011
3. Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard finished 1/9/2011
4. Trickster: Native American Tales finished 1/10/2011
5. Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 finished 1/19/2011
6. The Walking Dead: Book One finished 2/18/2011
7. Walking Dead: Book Two finished 2/19/2011
8. The Unsinkable Walker Bean finished 3/5/2011
9. The Best of Mutts finished 3/16/2011
10. The Arrival finished 3/17/2011
____________________________________________________________________
Bonus
11. Chi's Sweet Home Vol. 1, 3, 4 finished 3/19/2011
12. The Last Unicorn finished 3/19/2011
13. Rex: The Saga finished 3/19/2011
14. Chi's Sweet Home Vol. 2,5 finished 3/22/2011
15. The Marvelous Land of Oz finished 4/9/2011
16. Unwritten finished 4/23/2011
17. Fables: Deluxe Edition, Book One finished 4/23/2011
18. Y: The Last Man: Deluxe Edition, Book One finished 4/24/2011
19. Britten and Brulightly finished 5/1/2011

YA/Children's
1.The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness finished 12/28/2010
2.The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness finished 1/1/2011
3.Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness finished 1/7/2011
4.Sapphique by Catherine Fisher finished 1/8/2011
5.The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima finished 1/8/2011
6. Marcello in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork finished 1/13/2011
7. Across the Universe by Beth Revis finished 1/15/2011
8. Zombies vs. Unicorns finished 1/20/2011
9. Ship Breaker finished 1/26/2011
10. The Fire Within by Chris D'Lacy finished 2/1/2011
11. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld finished 2/19/2011
_________________________________________________________________________
Bonus

12. Living Girl Dead by Elizabeth Scott finished 2/19/2011
13. Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce finished 2/20/2011
14. Birthmarked finished 2/25/2011
15. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer finished 2/26/2011
16. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libby Bray finished 3/8/2011
17. Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman finished 3/18/2011
18. The Poison Diaries finished 4/4/2011
19. The Eagle and of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff finished 4/10/2011
20. The Adoration of Jenna Fox finished 4/17/2011

I'm doing a stepped challenge, too. I wasn't sure I could manage 121 books and I thought I'd enjoy the challenge more with less pressure.

You've got some great categories and I'll be interested to see what books you fill them with.

Really like your categories and images. I'm trying for the full whack of 121 books but will be reassessing later in the year.

Found you and have starred the thread! Looking forward to following your reading in 2011.

Lots of categories to keep an eye on here. I look forward to seeing how you fill them up.

Great illustrations!

Thanks for the welcome everyone! I haven't quite figured out what I'm going to about the double posts between the 75 Book Challenge and this one but for now I'll just try to keep them slightly different.


Last year I read a little over 30 books in the YA category, so it's not surprising that my first new entry for 2011, The Knife of Never Letting Go, is also a YA book. I was really tempted to put this in the Dystopia section, but the whole point of this challenge for me is to branch out. We'll see how strong a stance I take at the end of next year if I'm not making my categories, though.

Although I felt the ending was a little abrupt, I loved the book. Dystopian fiction with a talking dog, it doesn't get much better than that (well, maybe with a talking cat). As with much Dystopian fiction, all is not what it seems and young Todd with the help of his dog tries to uncover the truth. I'm impatiently waiting until I can get the next two.

I was supposed to being saving this for my return flight, but I guess that means I'll just have to buy a book at the airport. Tsk, tsk.

I have a little note with the title The Knife of Never Letting Go on my bedstand but couldn't remember why I put it there. I must have seen a comment from you before!

I love your pictures, very good!

#18 It feels like the Chaos Walking trilogy has been on my wishlist for ages but I am trying to be really good at getting my TBR pile down rather than going crazy at the library so they will just have to stay there a little bit longer!

Love the pictures!

I look forward to hearing what you think of Feed!

>21 Bcteagirl: Eeks, it's only January and I'm already getting behind on my reviews. I'll try and get this one done today.

LOl no rush, didn't mean to panic you :P

>23 Bcteagirl: I didn't think you were rushing me ;) I just know what a slippery slope this can be for me. Last year, I got so far behind in doing reviews that I just gave up.



I would describe Feed by Mira Grant as a science fiction novel where the Kelli-Amberlee virus reanimates the dead. One of the interesting aspects of this novel is that everyone is infected with the virus, but they only turn into zombies when the virus emerges from its dormant state. Sometimes someone will just undergo a rare but spontaneous transformation, but mostly is it caused by the transmission of fluids with the active virus. The main characters are a brother and sister who are bloggers (bloggers are now the must trusted new source).

I loved the world building in this story. Everything from why people no longer eat red meat to what it means if someone can turn into a zombie while riding an elevator with you. The next book is coming out in May and I'm really looking forward to it. ****

I just finished We Are On Our Own. It's Miriam Katin's account of how she and her mother had to flee from the Nazis and try to find a safe haven. It also flash forwards to the present to show some of the long term effects of events. It's the small details like a child losing her dog that make his memoir standout.The illustrations were also very interesting, with the art style shifting to reflect different shifts in the plot. **** 1/2

Thanks for the reviews! Feed has been on my wishlist but I hadn't read all the details about it, so I am glad to hear that you liked it :)

I'll try to keep these different than my 75 thread. Also, I'm trying to keep this spoiler free, so no plot points.

First up, The Ask and the Answer this in the second book in the Chaos Walking trilogy. While this book also ends on a cliffhanger, it does in fact come to a satisfying conclusion. I was engaged by the exploration of ideas in this novel. Also, I really enjoyed the introduction of a second narrator. A fast paced read. **** 1/2

Monsters of Men concludes Patrick Ness' trilogy. I loved this book! It's the kind of book where you want to ditch work and just read. Utterly gripping. This book introduces a third narrator, a Spackle, who provides an interesting viewpoint in the story. One warning, it did leave me teary-eyed.****1/2

The prequel The New World by Patrick Ness is a free download from Amazon. It's a short story that describes Viola and her family being selected for the mission and their arrival on the planet. Given the subject, I expected to be more engaged by this short story. ***

Sapphique is the sequel to Catherine Fisher's excellent Incarceron. Incarcern was one of my top five favorite YA reads last year. While Sapphique was a good read, I was disappointed. Maybe it suffered a little being my follow-up read to Monsters of Men, but I think Claudia and Finn just weren't as engaging and sympathetic in this book. The world Catherine Fisher created is an interesting one with a living prison which some of the characters are still trying to escape from and those outside the prison trapped by Protocol, which forbids them from using modern technology. However, the ruthless ruling queen is free to use it to spy on her subjects. FYI, Incarceron is being made into a movie starring, Taylor Lautner, and this summer she is coming out with a new series, Relic Master.***

I enjoyed The Demon King by Cinda William Chima so much that I stayed reading even though the read-a-thon was over. Last year, I read her Weir series and enjoyed it, but I feel this new series, the Seven Realms, is much better.

It is set the queendom of Fells. After the great breaking centuries ago that nearly caused the destruction of the world, wizards have been closely monitored and restricted. It was their power hungry actions that caused the breaking. The wizards are beginning to chaff under these restrictions, though. The High Wizard, councilor to the Queen, is questioning their necessity and rumors are spreading about his particularly close relationship with the Queen.

Raisa, heir to the throne, is trying to resist her mother's request that she marry now at 16. Raisa is my favorite character, strong and engaging. Hans nicknamed Cuffs because of the magical bracelets he wears, is trying to break away from his life of crime but still provide for his family. Once, however, he steals a powerful, magical amulet he is set down a dark path.

This got off to a bit of a slow start for me, but that might be because I was getting tired from the read-a-thon. However, once I was about 95 pages in the story really picked up and was a fast paced read. While there aren't really any plot surprises, this was a fun read and I'm excited for the next book Exiled Queen to come in. ****

The Demon King looks intriguing...onto the TBR list it goes!

Uh-oh, you got me with Incarceron and The Demon King. Thank goodness I already have the Chaos Walking Series on my list!

Chaos Walking, Incarceron and the Seven Realms series' are all on my TBR mountain. You definitely made me want to move them all to the top of the pile but thankfully nothing has been ADDED to the toppling tower! Score! :)

Wow, so many books finished already!! I see you just finished the first Mouse Guard book. Looking forward to your review. I really like this series. The illustrations are beautiful, esp in the second book. I just bought Legends of the Guard. Hopefully I can squeeze it in this year.

>30 christina_reads:, 31, 32
This is why these groups are so dangerous ;) I'm adding more books from other people's thread than I can read. Such a lovely problem to have, though.

>33 VioletBramble:
I ended up finishing Legends of the Guard last night too. There were some really good stories in there, and I enjoyed seeing different artist depict that world. Now, I just have to pick up the Winter volume sometime.

Alright, I'm going to be very bad and just copy this straight from my 75 challenge. New Mantra: I will be good and review books as I read them.



What makes Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 standout are the beautiful illustrations. In this graphic novel, three mice uncover a plot to betray their queen. It has the feel of King Arthur and his knights but with mice. The story is not as strong as the illustrations, but the detail work from the costumes to the mouse villages is amazing. My favorite story is actually the epilogue. ****



Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard is the third book in the series. This book is a series of stories by different artists. The stories are a little uneven, but some were excellent : The Hawk's Mouse and the Fox's Mouse, The Raven, and Crown of Silver/Crown of Gold. The story set up is that the mice are telling tales in an attempt to pay off their pub tab and Petersen illustrates the pub scenes between the stories. Although I missed not seeing more Petersen's artwork, some of the guest artists were fantastic. ****

Now, I just need to get book two Mouse Guard: Winter 1152.



Trickster: Native American Tales, A Graphic Collection is a collection of 21 folktales. It matches Native American storytellers with different artists. The stories explain everything from the stars in the sky to why raccoons waddle. Some of my favorite were Coyote and the Pebbles, Rabbit and the Tug of War, The Wolf and the Mink, Giddy up Wolfie, Puapualenalena, How Wildcat Caught a Turkey, Espun and Grandfather, and Mai and the Cliff-Dwelling Birds (Okay, I really like a lot of these). The artist styles in this collection vary significantly to great effect. Highly recommend for anyone interested in mythology or folktales. ****



Marcelo in the Real World is a young adult fiction novel. The narrator of the story is Marcelo, who has a Asperger's like condition. He is pretty happy with his world; he attends a specialized school and is excited to have just gotten a summer job training Haflinger ponies to work with kids with disabilities. Marcelo's father, however, wants him to leave the sheltered world of Paterson and attend a public high school for his senior year. The two decide on a bet if Paterson gives up working with the Haflinger ponies for the summer and instead works in the mailroom at his father's law firm, Marcelo will get to decide where he spends his summer year. The extra catch, though, is during this summer Marcelo must follow the rules of "the real world." Unfortunately, there are some harsh truths to be learned in the real world.

Marcelo has a very authentic and unique voice. In fact, all of Stork's characters are well developed. A compelling story that I had to finish in one sitting. ****



Gregory Maguire's Matchless is a retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Match Girl." When I found out Maguire had done a retelling of the story, I was very excited. I remember as a little girl sobbing after reading the original. Maguire's retelling does soften the blow, but I felt this story lacked the emotional impact of the original. **1/2

Across the Universe is Beth Revis' stunning debut YA science fiction. Amy and her family have agreed to travel on a Project Arc Ship, Godspeed, to Centauri-Earth. For the 300 year journey, they are cryogenically frozen. However, forty-two years before landing, Amy's cryogentic unit is tapered with and she awakes to strangers. Startling, it seems someone has tried to murder her.

Elder, the lone person Amy's age, can never seem to earn the approval of the leader, Eldest. Although Elder is in training to take over, his predecessor died before he could take command. And Eldest is keeping secrets. Together Amy and Elder try to discover the truth behind Godspeed.

Revis' does an excellent job conveying a sense of claustrophobia in a closed system, particularly for Amy who has lived under real stars. Highly recommended. (Also, it's pretty spiffy that the underside of the dust jacket is a printed blueprint of Godspeed.)

You have totally sold me - Across The Universe is being added to my wishlist!

I really liked Marcelo in the Real World too and I'm glad that you enjoyed Trickster: Native American Tales. Across the Universe is now on my tbr list.

>37 DeltaQueen50: DeltaQueen, I hope you enjoy it. Although if your wishlist is anything like mine, it might take years to get to ;)

>38 avatiakh: Avatiakh, yes thanks for your review of Trickster: Native American Tales since I don't think I would have come across it otherwise.



Before last year, I'd never heard of the Epic of Gilgamesh but then it popped up all over the place from anima to TV shows. Predating the tales of Homer, The Epic of Gilgamesh explores the issues of power, friendship, and mortality.

Part god, part man Gilgamesh is the ruler of Uruk. Power hungry, Gilgamesh has claimed the bride night of every new bride in Uruk. The gods send Enikidu to defeat him, but Gilgamesh overpowers him during a wrestling match. The two become fast friends and perform many great feats, including killing the Bull of Heaven. The gods now fearful of this powerful duo strike down Enkidu. Seeing the death of his friend, Gilgamesh realizes his own mortality. He then sets out on a journey for immortality.

The translation I read was by Andrew George. It has an excellent introduction, as well as a time chart with the political history, intellectual life, and history of the Epic Gilgamesh. Although I was interested in the story of Gilgamesh, I found it difficult to really delve into the story due to the decision to use italics, brackets, and italicized brackets to show where the text for damaged. While it interesting to see how much of the text is missing, it's very jarring with six to fourteen brackets per page. Still, I enjoyed it enough to try another translation (The section where Gilgamesh rebuffs the goddess Ishtar is very funny). In another thread, Lorax recommended the Mitchell translation, so I'm planning on checking that one out.

Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 is Dave Petersen's second volume in his Mouse Guard series. After defeating an attempt to overthrow the queen in the last volume, the Mouse Guard must now route out another traitor and bring back a cure for an injured Mouse Guard.

Again, it is the detailed illustrations not the story that make the Mouse Guard series a standout. The illustrations depicting a snow covered world were particularly stunning. Another nice addition to this series is the introduction of hares as riders for he mice.

A third volume, Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard, an anthology edition is already out, and a new six part mini series is supposed to be published later this year.

The origin of Zombies vs. Unicorns is online debate between Justine Larbalestier and Holly Black as to the superiority of one creature over the other. The debate spurred them on to create an anthology of short stories with Team Zombie vs Team Unicorn battling it out for supremacy. The hilarious bickering between Larbalestier and Black carries on through the book. The anthology has a great line-up of authors and stories that run the gamut of human emotion.

Some of my favorites were:

"Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Alaya Dawn Johnson A Zombie love story, told from the POV of a zombie

"Purity Test" by Naomi Novik This unicorn is tired of wishy-washy 13year virgins, he needs a heroine with some spunk.

"Bougainvillea" by Carrie Ayan In this story, Iza's father has become a tyrant fighting zombies and now she must stand on her own.

"The Care and Feeding of Your Baby Killer Unicorns" by Diana Peterfreund After coming back from near extinction, unicorns are the killers in this story

"Princess Prettypants" by Meg Cabot Last boyfriend a jerk? What you need is a unicorn to even the score.

"Cold Hands" by Cassandra Clarke Another zombie love story. Awww.

Whether you're on Team Zombie or Team Unicorn, this anthology is a lot of fun. Highly recommended.

Howards End is on the Landing is about Susan Hill's decision to read from her own shelves for a year. First off, kudos to her. I would run off shrieking if I had to do this. Last year I tried to read 50 books from my shelves, I managed 5. (I am wildly unrealistic at times). Let me also say this is a dangerous book. I added many, many books to my wishlist while reading this.

Hill's book is more about selecting books to read than the actual reading of them. Along the way she also recounts meeting many famous authors. She also has some really great lines in the book: "There is no reason why most of the books I own but have never actually read should be more or less in one place. They just are. Maybe they quietly gravitate into the sitting room one by one, to sob and huddle together for warmth."

Or when describing how much she dislikes Jane Austen while her daughter fell in love with the BBC's Pride and Prejudice series:"She watched it so many times she knew it by heart and could hardly be deterred from reciting entire scenes for our entertainment, until, like Mary she had delighted us long enough."

As a lover of books on books, I enjoyed taking this journey with her. (Although I do have a quibble about her comment on Folio books, I quite like them and am a reader, thank you.)

In Howards End is on the Landing Susan Hill sets an additional challenge for herself: If she were allowed to only keep 40 books what would they be. I decided it would be kind of fun to create my own list.

1. The Odyssey
2. The Scarlet Letter
3. The Grapes of Wrath
4. Pride and Prejudice
5. Macbeth
6. Shakespeare's Sonnets
7. The Twelve Caesars
8. Leaves of Grass
9. The Little Princess
10. Twice Told Tales
11. & 12 Hans Christian Anderson: The Complete Tales
13. Grimm's Fairy Tales
14. Frankenstein
15. Jamaica Inn
16. The Metamorphoses of Ovid
17. Hiroshige: One Hundred Famous Views of Edo
18. Sense and Sensibility
19. Far From the Madding Crowd
20. The Kindly Ones
21. ShipWrecks
22. Snow Country
23. Madame Bovary
23. The Complete Plays: John M. Synge
24. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
25. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Annotated Edition
26. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
27. Fahrenheit 451
28. Washington Square
29, 30, 31 The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
32. Tennessee Williams: The Plays 1937-1955
33. 110637::Stories: Katherine Mansfield
34. 7554::Great Expectations
35. 883::Dracula
36. 32388::Les Liasons Dangereuses
37. 913::Lolita
38. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
39. 1133624::Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
40. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Well, Faulkner and Willa Cather ended up getting bumped, and I never managed to get in any books on exploration, but I'm actually pretty happy with my list.

#41 I'm definitely on Team Unicorn because all the unicorn stories sound amazing and none of the zombie stories sound like anything I'd want to read. The fact that Naomi Novik has a story in the book means it has to go immediately onto the wish list.
#43 That is an impressive - and slightly intimidating - list of books. I love that a Gaiman graphic novel is up there with all the volumes of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

Last year I tried to read 50 books from my shelves, I managed 5. (I am wildly unrealistic at times).

LOL! That is exactly why I have created a 'Off the Shelf" category - I need the motivation as well. I will steer clear of Howards End is on the Landing only because LT contributes enough to my TBR pile without a book adding to it and possibly burying me under the pile.

I'm not even sure that I'd want to contemplate making a list of 40 books. Congratulations on accomplishing that feat.

@43 -- I'm amazed and impressed that you managed to come up with a list of 40 books! Now I have to figure out what would be on my list. Howards End Is on the Landing sounds like a really interesting book!

Yeah! I found your 11 in 11 list. And it looks like just in the nick of time Howards End is on the Landing is going right on my to-read list! I love the 40 books idea, but I really really don't know if I could narrow it down that far.

I ran across the Mouse Guard website sometime last year. I'll have to take another look now!

And 40 books... I don't think I could. Even if I cheated and loaded up on anthologies...

40 books, nope, I couldn't do it! But read Howard's End Is on The Landing? That I am up for! I've been seeing this book show up on a lot of different threads, and now have succumbed to it's lure.

#42 Great review of Howards End is on the Landing. It's one I really want to read but I'm worried by how much it will add to my TBR pile and how guilty it will make me feel about not reading from said TBR pile.

I couldn't make a list of 40 books. That's why my physical library is so big!

Re: message #49: read 'omnibus' instead of 'anthology'. I blame the cold that both myself and my 5 month old have for that one...

>44 VioletBramble: Kelly despite really liking zombie stories, I ended up team unicorn. My two favorite were Novik's and Peterfreund's. I never read anything by Peterfreund, so I'm going to check out her Rampant.

>45 lkernagh: Ikernaugh. Yeah, it's shameful how many unread books I have. I have managed one from the shelves so far this year. Whoot Whoot!

>46 AHS-Wolfy: AHS-Wolfy. Well, it helps when you have absolutely no intention of being held to it.

>47 christina_reads: Christina, if you like books on books, it is a good one to check out.

>48 lalbro: Hello lalbro! Well, I always like helping to feed someone's TBR list.

>49 antqueen: Antqueen (interesting name by the way), I didn't know about the Mouse Guard website. It seems the next one, The Black Axe, will be a prequel.

>50 DeltaQueen50: DeltaQueen50, Mwahaaa! More books added to someone else's list.

>51 souloftherose: Souloftherose, yes, it was kind of ironic to be reading a book about reading from one shelves while all the while writing down more books that I needed to get. Well, I can make a list of 40, but can I actually pare down my library? Please, I have books stored in my kitchen cupboards ;)

>edit: Sheesh, I really do proofread these before I hit submit.

Yeah, snow day for me! does happy dance with cats



Given that there are 124 reviews for Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, I'm not really going to review it. Like many others, I really enjoyed this charming read. I loved the Major Pettigrew's droll sense of humor but kept hoping someone would bop his son on the head. Highly recommended.



Ship Breaker is a YA novel by Paolo Bacigalupi that has won the Pritz Award. Bacigalupi is also the author of The Windup Girl, which I really need to read now.
In this post-apocalyptic future, the ice caps have melted and left entire cities buried under water and for most people electricity is a thing of the past. This has led to a dystopian society where there are the have-nothings and the have-fabulous wealth. Large portions of the population live in shacks along the new coast and scrap by to get meager amounts of food while the wealthy can afford to breed dog/tiger/men blends, "half-men", with genetically modified loyalty to protect them.

Nailer, the main protagonist, works removing copper from the old sunken hulks along the coast. It's dangerous work that's left him scarred, but he's in constant fear of being replaced by someone smaller and quicker. Home is no refuge for him either. His father is a drunk and drug addict with an abusive temper. But when one of the stunning clipper ships crashes on the coast, Nailer must decide whether to strip it for a fortune or risk it all and help the lone survivor return home and maybe get out this hellhole.

A fast-paced read, I really enjoyed Ship Breaker. I felt the most interesting characters, though, was Tool. I was far more interested in his story than anyone else's. If there is a sequel or companion novel, I hope he will feature prominently in it. Highly recommended.

Yeah, I filled my first category! Alright I'm doing stepped challenge, so it only had two slots, but I'm still doing much better than last year ;)



The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World is a sumptuously photographed edition with three page foldouts. It is fascinating read about the many twists and turns of fate that these libraries suffered. Some of the most interesting that left me wanting to know more were the Mazarine Library, the Vatican Library, and the Monastery of El Escorial. It was especially interesting to learn that at times the purpose of some of these libraries was to withhold knowledge from others or retain texts that they had banned from others. I would love to read more about the Vatican library's habit of seizing texts. For instance, they seized Montaigne's books, including his essays, but allowed him to examine their collection. Highly recommended. *****

Oooo that sounds like a wonderful book :) :)

I've been meaning to pick up one of Bacigalupi's novels too. I've read several of his short stories and enjoyed them quite a bit. Yet another book to add to the wishlist...

You are doing wonderfully well with your challenge, I think you will be an over-achiever this year! :)

Finally caught up on your thread, and I've got Howards End is On the Landing on my shelf to be read this year. (I meant to get to it last year, but you know how that goes!) Thanks for the warning about adding to your TBR list - I should have figured that out already but didn't - and I agree that LT is bad enough.

Have no idea what would be on my 40 list, will have to think about that one...

>56 Bcteagirl: BCteagirl, it really is a beauty.
>57 antqueen: Antqueen, I do want to read his short stories. His world building is very interesting.
>58 DeltaQueen50: DeltaQueen50, thank you!
>59 LauraBrook: LauraBrook, yeah, if I don't get to a book within 2 months of picking it up, it can be years before I'll get to it.

Bad me, I'm just copying from my 75 thread.

The first two up are from my lovely Secret Santa. Score!


The Wild Wood by Charles de Lint

The Wild Wood is the story of Eithnie, a young painter, who has lost her inspiration. Hoping to find her lost vision, she retreats to her cabin in the woods. Once there, strange creatures start appearing in her paintings. The Faerie world needs her help or they will be doomed.

This is the first work of Charles de Lint book that I've read. His opening description of the Eithnie's dream was gripping and utterly captured the feverish nature of dreams. I was really surprised that there is not a sequel, though, although this books certainly stands on its own. I hoped that it would pick up with the next generation. Although I wish somethings had been developed more in this novel, I look forward to reading some of his later books.


The Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip

Nephenthe, abandoned as a baby, is raised by the royal librarians. Talented at translating languages, she stumbles upon a strange book that calls to her. As she deciphers the language of thorns, her future becomes intertwined with that the young queen struggling to maintain control of her queendom.

Beautifully descriptive, I loved this book! Books and magic what more can you ask for?



The Fire Within by Chris D'Lacy is a children's book with a touch of fantasy. A college student becomes a tenant of a mother and her young daughter, who loves squirrels. The family makes their living selling clay dragons and gifts the student with one of his own, helping him discover a hidden talent.

Eh, I was disappointed by this book. I was expecting it to be more about dragons but most of the story actually deals with squirrels. Luckily it has found a new home via Bookmooch.



The One Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is the first book in N.K. Jemisin's fantasy trilogy. When Yeine's mother abdicated the throne to marry her barbarian lover, her route to power was forever cut off. However, after her mother is murdered, Yeine's grandfather unexpectedly names Yeine one of the three heirs to the kingdom. Setting up a deadly three-way power struggle.

I loved the world building and political intrigue, especially that the Gods are real and even enslaved. The enslaved God Nahadoth reminded me, in a good way, a bit of Gaiman's Death character albeit Nahadoth is more pissed off than depressed. I can't wait to get the next book, The Broken Kingdoms.****



In the post-apocalyptic world of Paolo Baigalup's The Windup Girl, most of our natural food sources have been destroyed by viruses. Leaving the calorie companies, feared and hated, powerful enough to take down governments. The novel follows four characters through their struggle to survive in this turbulent environment.

Although I enjoyed this novel and the world building is very detailing and interesting, the characters are less engaging. The only one I really cared about was Emiko, the windup girl, which made it difficult to read about her treatment. I'll read Baigalup's next work, but I much preferred his YA novel, Ship Breaker.

I'm currently reading Leviathan and Name of the Wind and hope to finish them this weekend.

Wow, a really great batch of books. I am planning on reading The Alphabet of Thorn for this Challenge this year sometime. The One Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and The Windup Girl are both on my wishlist, and I am adding The Wild Wood.

ACK! Hit by Book Bullets! I've added The Wild Wood & The Alphabet of Thorn to my wishlist, and The Fire Within to a list of presents to get for my friend. (She has become obsessed with squirrels lately {I think it's a procrastination/avoidance thing to do with her Dissertation} so this sounds like it would be her cup of tea.)

Great little reviews! Reading your post made me miss reading! (Not that I'm not reading, but that whole "life" thing keeps getting in the way of really settling in with a book.)

> 61 DeltaQueen50, I hope you enjoy The Alphabet of Thorn as much as I did.

^62 LauraBrook, mwahaha, the book bullets strike again. If your friend is into squirrels, The Fire Within is certainly for her. (Ah, procrastination. My apartment has not looked as clean since getting my Master's degree.)

I've seen a few good reviews for The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms so far this year and more positivity means onto the wishlist it goes. Thanks for your review. I'll probably end up reading The Windup Girl as well at some point. It seems to be one of those titles that's popping up all over LT.

>64 AHS-Wolfy: LT is very good at breaking down one's resistance.



I've wanted to read the Walking Dead comic series since seeing AMC's show. While I know movies and TV shows often make changes, I was surprised by how far a departure it was. I ended up being thrown off guard a couple of times (there is a lot more death in the comic series).

I really debated whether to get the Walking Dead: Compendium or the separate books. While I think the Compendium is a much better value, I ended up getting the hardcover version of book one for portability and durability. The Walking Dead: Book One includes a couple of extras like character sketches and color cover art (the actual comic is black and white). Book One includes the first 12 issues of the comic while the Compendium includes Books One - Four (issues 1-48). Sadly, since I splurged on the hardcover, it's going to take me a while to get through this series.

The Walking Dead is probably a series I'll be looking into at some point so it's good to see that there are differences with the TV series. I'll likely do the same as you and pick up the hardcover versions.

Kvothe, whom the stories portray as both hero and villain, has retreated into the quiet life of a tavern keep until a traveling chronicler uncovers his true identity and persuades him to share his story. Full of dark foreshadowing, we follow him through his early days when the Chandrian were only creatures of story to when they become a deadly reality to him.

First off, I loved this book! At first I thought it was just going to be a regular fantasy, engaging but nothing special, but once the story within the story began it really kicked into high gear. After a while, I started slowing down my reading, so I wouldn't have so long to wait for the next book, The Wise Man's Fear, which is released March 1st.

All the descriptions of Kvothe's lute playing inspired me to drag my flute out and practice (My neighbors would be cursing Rothfuss' name if they only knew the cause). I've even ordered the hardcover because I know I'll be re-reading this in the future. Since I can't say exactly why I loved this so much, I'll just say Rothfuss is an excellent storyteller.

Wow - you have been busy reading! The Wild Wood sounds like the perfect story for me. Great review!

I have a copy of Windup Girl buried in mount TBR at the moment. I have been considering The Walking Dead since I managed to watch a few of the episodes on tv :P I don't mind depressing post-apocalyptic tales, but gore can sometimes get to me.

>68 lkernagh: I'm looking forward to reading some of his later work, which I think are more developed.

>69 Bcteagirl: Humm, The Walking Dead books are a bit gory, especially book 2. You might want to take a look at them first.

The next five books up are from a read-a-thon over the weekend. I love read-a-thons! With them, I've finished up my YA/Children's category. I'm still going to list and review YA books I read, but I won't include them in my counter. Also, I'm giving up the pretense of writing modified reviews from my 75 thread; I'm copying and pasting away.



In Scott Westerfield's alternative history YA novel, Leviathan, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife are assassinated, leaving behind their son Alek. Although not heir to the Austrian throne, Germany still wants him dead, forcing him to flee in one of his family's walking clanker machines. Meanwhile in the Darwinist British Empire, Deryl dreams of joining the British Air Service and flying in one of their mighty beastie airships, but to do so she must disguise herself as a boy. Together Alek and Deryl will try to prevent an escalating war between the Clanker and Darwinist powers.

I thought the world building was interesting with the fabricated beastie, but I ended up wanting to like it more than I did. I just didn't care about the characters at all. The illustrations by Keith Thompson were a great addition. Although I didn't dislike this book, I think I'll pass on the sequel Behemoth. ***



Margi Preus' Children's book Heart of a Samurai is based on a true story. In 1841, a Japanese fishing boat becomes stranded on a deserted rock island after a storm. While rescued by an American whaling ship, the fishermen are unable to return home. One of the boys, 14 year old Manjiro, natural curiosity earns the attention of the captain. Lacking a son of his own, the captain takes the boy back to his home. Manjiro, thereby, becomes the first Japanese citizen to set foot in America. After living for several years in the U.S., Manjiro sets out to return home with his old compatriots.

I really wish the author had chosen to write this as a non-fiction account. The most interesting parts of the book were the epilogue and historical note, where she talked about the actual Manjiro, who by all accounts led a fascinating life. Many of Manjiro's actual sketches are included in the book. Although a Newbery Honor book, I was left underwhelmed. ***

We only know the narrator of Living Dead Girl as Alice. She has been held captive for the past five years by Ray. If she doesn't comply with his every wish, he threatens to kill her family. Alice knows she is in fact the second Alice. The first was killed when she outgrew her childlike body and turned 15. Now Alice's 15th birthday is fast approaching and Ray wants her to help get a new member for their family.

This was a fast paced, gripping read but too disturbing for me. Originally, I purchased this book after it received some negative comments and was removed from Bitch Magazine's List of 100 YA Books for the Feminist Reader. I hate it when books get pulled from school libraries or otherwise banned and wanted to throw in my support (even if this isn't quite the same thing). It pains me to admit this, but after reading Living Girl Dead I don't see how this got on the list in the first place. It doesn't fit any criteria I have for Feminist Lit. (I no idea why the next book was Sisters Red was cut , though.)



Sisters Red is a YA retelling of Red Riding Hood. Since the attack that left their grandmother dead, sisters Scarlett and Rosie have seen a part of the world hidden from us, werewolves masquerading as men. That attack, which left Scarlett terribly scarred, gave her a new purpose and now she furiously hunts these soulless wolves. Rosie hunts with her sister but yearns for a normal life. Together with Silas, a family friend and woodsman, they will try to stop the next "potential" from turning into a soulless werewolf and try to bring down the wolf clan responsible for their grandmother's death.

Scarlett and Rosie alternate narrating the chapters, giving interesting insight into each character. (At first their voices aren't that different but that eventually changes.) I really enjoyed this retelling. Both the girls are strong and independent but in different ways. These girls don't need anyone to save them - they save others.This is the second title that I got after it was cut from Bitch Magazine's Feminist List. After reading the book, I was really clueless as to why it got cut, so I read up a little bit more up on it. I'm not going to go into the argument against the book, but just say I disagree. Jackson Pearce has a new YA novel, Sweetly, a retelling of Hansel and Gretel, which comes out in August. ****

In Walking Dead: Book Two the choices key characters make leaves you wondering how much of their humanity are they going to have to leave behind to survive. In the circumstances, I didn't necessarily disagree with any of the choices made, but I thought it certainly showed a slow erosion of morals or ethics, especially for Rick. I'm interested to see how the series continues to evolve.

Once a young lord full of ambition and potential, Cazaril was betrayed and sold as a galley slave. Although he escapes, his time in captivity has left his body scarred and broken, as is his spirit. Seeking refuge from a great family he once served, he is drawn into dark plots that threaten those he has sworn to protect.

The Curse of Chalion is the first work of Bujold's that I've read. Thanks for all those recent reviews LT'ers! I thoroughly enjoyed this fantasy. It is a nice blend of court intrigue and magic. Bujold uses the gods as her magic system and while the gods don't walk among the people, they do answer prays, often with a steep price. Poor, downtrodden Cazari was interesting and well-developed, unlike some of the other characters. Although the first in a trilogy, this book comes to a satisfying conclusion.****

Just catching up on the many threads and you are reading a lot of cool books!

@73 I love the Walking dead comic series (not so much the TV series)., it really explores a lot of interesting themes and the loss of morality is a major one throughout. It is dark and there is a lot of violence but I think the black and white art helps to lesson the impact of the gore.

>75 clfisha: Clfisha, thanks for stopping by. I'm looking forward reading more of The Walking Dead series.

Even though my reading drop off a bit last month, I have completed three of my categories! Last year, I failed horribly at this challenge, so I'm excited I might make it.



O'Brien's Birthmarked is set in a dystopian society where there are population problems. Midwives outside the wall must turn over the first three babies a month to the Enclave. Gia, a midwife apprentice, discovers the dark side of the Enclave when her parents are arrested and Gia can find out no information about them.

I enjoyed the worldbuilding (I a soft spot for dystopian/post-apocalyptic fiction). It was also interesting after Sisters Red to read about a another main character that is heavily scarred. The book did lose half a star for some events at the end that I felt weren't logical or least that I didn't buy. (Since the parents get extra rations for giving up their children, there would be a yearly list and it makes no sense that the Enclave would set up Gia as a hero after she flaunted their laws. I think the author just wanted them not to shoot to kill. ) 3.5



Pfeffer's YA novel Life as We Knew It, Miranda's life is like that of your average teen, fights with her mom and getting swamped with homework. At first the impending asteroid heading towards the moon, only means more homework assignments for her. But when the asteroid hits, it has a greater density than expected and knocks the moon out of its orbit. This sets off a chain of catastrophic events that forever change Miranda's world.

Through journal entries, Miranda details the daily struggle for her family to survive. The novel focuses on the daily grind of finding food, water, and heating sources and the strain these place on their family relationship. I was a little put off by her relationship with her girlfriends, one in particular seemed stereotypical. The second novel, The Dead and the Gone, covers the same time period but in NYC with different characters. The third book, This World We Live In picks back up with Miranda and her family. I'm not that interested in the second book, but I plan on reading the third book. 3.5



In Aaron Renier's Children's graphic novel The Unsinkable Walker Bean, Walker Bean grow up listening to his grandfather's fantastic stories of life on the open seas. When his grandfather becomes deathly ill, he asks Walker to return a skull to trench deep in the ocean floor, which is guarded by monstrous sea witches. Along the way, he makes friends with pirates, discovers his mechanical talents, and faces off against his dad.

This was a really fun, light read with beautiful colors and detailed drawings. The two page town panel (pg. 72-73) was especially delightful. It was fun to try to spot all the things happening. I look forward to reading the next book. 3.5

Thanks for the review of the Life as we Knew It series. This book is on my wishlist and it was good to read more about it. I will be looking even harder for a copy now :P

I already have both Sisters Red and Life As We Knew It on my wishlist, so today I am adding Birthmarked. Visiting your thread is like going to the bookstore - so many interesting books here!

>77 Bcteagirl: I hope you like it. It was a fast read.

>78 DeltaQueen50: At least, I was able to hit someone with a book bullet ;)

Horror upon horrors, I have become my parents! Let me explain, it has been a long standing joke in my family that neither of my parents were allowed to go the video store without me because when I was a teen they rented the same movie three times . Each time they would come back saying, "Look what great SF movie we discovered!" They were good natured about it while I danced around them, waving the the movie, and laughing.

Now I've always prided myself on knowing if I've read a book by looking at the cover of a book and knowing if I've read it. (There is one fantasy illustration who throws me off but I can certainly read the first page and know if I've read it). Now I have reached a new low. While I was reading A Great and Terrible Beauty, it reminded me of something I'd read before, but it was a full sixty (sob) pages before I realized that I had read it before. It's only been out for seven years! (And they haven't changed the cover art, I checked). This is what comes from mocking ones parents.

I am too depressed to write a review of this book.

I might have to add Sisters Red to the wishlist. Little Red Riding Hood is probably my favourite fairy tale (I suspect mostly due to the anime Jin-Roh) so I'll be interested to see how this story is played out. Another positive review for The Curse of Chalion cements its place on the wishlist too.

@80
Ha ha ha ha ha! Oh, Tanglewood. What a great story. I'm so sorry you didn't recognize you'd read A Great and Terrible Beauty before, but I'm delighted you posted on it here. (Can you at least give a thumbs up or down on the book?)

Too bad you didn't like Leviathan either. I thought it was good -- not amazing, but good. You're right about the characters. To me, both the main characters seemed like archetypes rather than real individuals.

80: I've been there myself. One thing I've done multiple times is purchase a books in both hardcover and softcover - it's when they change the cover art and the font that gets me and I think "Hey, why don't I already own this, I love this author". Then, when I get home and shelve it I'm shocked, perplexed, embarrassed, and ultimately to shamed to do anything about it so I usually end up giving it away on PBS. *sigh*

At least you did eventually realized you'd read it before. I seem to recall (in some distant crevice of my swiss-cheese-brain) that I've read an entire book before, thinking it was a new-to-me book and then in a coincidence came upon an old book journal of mine, and I'd read it years before! Now that is scary.

> 81 I haven't seen Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade, so I've added it to my Netflix queue.

>82 pammab: I was afraid of doing a full review and being unfair to the book since it's not once I normally would have re-read. I ended up giving it a 3.5. I liked the light blend of historical, romance, and fantasy. I might pick up the next book in the trilogy.

>83 LauraBrook: Thanks for sharing (I think it is very sneaky when publishers change the artwork on us). I don't feel quite so bad now ;)

Jin-Roh rates as one of my top 5 movies of all time. It does get mixed reviews though as the middle section of the film is more introspective compared to the action oriented beginning and ending and slows the pacing down a lot. Hope you enjoy it when you watch it.

This is an adorable collection of paper dolls, clothing, and backdrops to make. There are also plans for making a theatre for your dolls to perform in, an armoire to store their doll clothes in, and a doll mobile. She also includes instructions for designing your own paper dolls. One of the cute projects involves making your own paper doll family portrait. She also explains how to make a stop-motion film with your dolls!

This book is so cute that I can't bring myself to cut it up right now. The author recommends making color copies if you feel that way. In fact, some of the clothes would have to be copied because there are designs on both pages and some of the projects require enlarging. Although I bought this for myself, this would be fun for a family to do together. You can see two cool stop-motion films made with the dolls on the author's website (scroll down a bit) www.theblackapple.typepad.com

Paperdolls! When I was a little girl I loved paperdolls and had quite a collection. My favorites were a couple of celebrity ones I had - Doris Day (with magnetic clothes) and my all time favorite - Dale Evans!

This book looks so cool - I remember loving paper dolls myself, and could spend hours making up stories, changing clothes, etc. Hmmmm, will have to add this to my Amazon wishlist in the hopes that my parents notice it - or, barring that, I'll just break down and buy it for myself!

DeltaQueen50 & LauraBrook, I finally broke down and cut out some of the dolls and clothes. It's really a great way to de-stress. I'm planning on making the clothes armoire this weekend.

Ugh, I am not finishing much right now. The only book I am really into is my re-read of The Game of Thrones. I have six books right now that I've read 1/3 -1/2 and am not motivated to finish. I hope it's just me because I was really excited about some of those books.

I have managed to finish a few books, though. (Okay, all of them have pictures but still!)



The first up is The Best of Mutts by Patrick McDonnell. When I lived in Atlanta, I loved following this comic strip (Why New York Times must you be so snobby about comics?). If you don't know the strip, it features a cat and dog that are best friends. Most of the strips focus on their daily adventures while some urge our adopting animals from shelters and not leaving dogs chained in the yard. This book is a collection of best strips from 1994-2004 selected by the artist. The author introduces each year's strips by talking about shifts in the comic. For instance, in '96 he started designing the Sunday title pages as homages to other artists (some of these are absolutely fantastic). The Sunday comics are reproduced in color in this book. If you love animals, I think this book is a natural fit. Highly recommended. 5.0



The Arrival by Shaun Tan is a wordless graphic novel that tells the story of a man who leaves his young family behind to immigrate to a new land, hoping to bring them over later. Once in his new land he befriends a fantastical creature who aids him in his struggle. The story is told in a fantasy setting and the illustrations are wonderfully detailed and beautiful. The Arrival is heartwarming and one I see myself pulling off the shelf many times to pour over. 4.5



Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman is a very short Children's book illustrated by Brett Helquist. It tells the story off Odd a young Viking boy who's a bit of an outcast. While his life has been trouble, his father died on an expedition and Odd shattered his own leg,he still keeps a strange smile on his face. One day in the forest, though, he encounters a talking bear, fox, and eagle that pull him into the world of the Gods.

I love Neil Gaiman's writing and enjoyed his other Children's books Coraline and The Graveyard Book and even his picture books like The Dangerous Alphabet. This one, though, meh. It was average - characters, world building, plot, etc. Perhaps I would have liked it more if I were a child (there are a lot of rave reviews) but I could only give it 3.5 stars (and I think that .5 is only because I'm a Gaiman fan).

Konami Kanata's manga series Chi's Sweet Home follows the adventures of an adorable kitten, Chi. Volume 1 has Chi getting lost and separated from her mom. She's found by a kind family, but they have to hide her from the super as their building doesn't allow pets. Most of the story involves Chi bonding with her adopted family. Like both Chi and her little boy go through potty training.

********Spoilers Volume 3**********
In this volume, Chi has made friends with an older black cat in the building who acts like an older brother, teaching her the ways of cats. Unfortunately, the super discovers black cat and the family decides to move rather than give up their family member. (I totally teared up when Chi and Black were separated).

*******Spoilers Volume 4**************
Tired of hiding from the super, Chi's family decides to move to a pet friendly building. Chi is thrown into a tizzy by the new place. While she is learning to cope, the family takes her and introduces her to the neighbors on the floor and their pets. (I suspect Black cat will reappear in volume 5 on one of the other floors).
********End of Spoilers*****************

These are done in full color and the illustrations are very expressive. While I don't normally read manga, I'm very taken with this series and already ordered volume 2 and 5 and pre-ordered volume 6 & 7. The plot lines are very simple, but Ms. Kanata really nails cat behavior and pulls at your heartstrings.



A solitary unicorn learns that she may be the last of her kind. Reluctant to leave her forest behind, she still sets out to find what has happened to the others. While most the world is blind to her true nature, she encounters many dangers on her journey and at the end of the road she must face the terrifying Red Bull.

This graphic novel adaption of Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn is illustrated by Renae De Liz and Ray Dillon. Okay, I cried when I read the novel, I cried when I saw the animated movie, and this one had me tearing up too. This condensed version doesn't pack quite the emotional punch of the novel, but it is beautifully illustrated. In the back, there is also an interesting three page interview with Peter Beagle and a two page interview with Peter Gillis, who adapted the novel for this graphic edition, where he talks about shifts in the comic market. 4.0

>86 Tanglewood: The paper doll book brings back memories of childhood. I had several paper dolls, but my favorite set was one that was based on the Barbie family of dolls. There was one for Barbie, Kelly, Skipper, and one other one. My mom used to sing a song called "I'd Rather Have a Paper Dolly I Could Call My Own" to me when I was a child. I couldn't get very far with the lyrics now, but it does bring back memories.

>91 thornton37814: It's been fun hearing about everyone's memories of paper dolls!

In Chi's Sweet Home: Volume 2, Chi continues to adapt to her new home and faces off against a fierce black cat.

*********Spoilers, Volume 5************************
In this volume, Chi is reunited with Black Cat and an Auntie Calico cat says she knows where Chi's kitty mommy is, but by now Chi only has a fuzzy memory of her mom. While looking for her mom, Chi becomes hopelessly lost, but Black Cat comes to the rescue and guides her home.
*********End of Spoilers***************************

I'm continuing to enjoy this charming manga series. Konami Kanata really has her finger on the kitty psyche!

A Game of Thrones is the first volume in George R.R. Martin's excellent A Song of Fire and Ice series. At the heart of this story are the Starks of Winterfell, lords of the bitterly cold northern kingdom. They are loyal to Robert Baratheon king of the seven kingdoms. Baratheon's kingdom is beset from all sides, by supernatural forces beyond the wall, the descendants of the deposed king across the sea, and the great houses within his kingdom. As Eddard Stark seeks to protect his childhood friend, Robert Baratheon, Eddard's own family is drawn into the deadly game of thrones.

Martin is probably my favorite living author, and it was a joy to revisit this world and its characters. I have so many favorite characters in this book Tyrion, Jon Snow, Rob Stark, Eddard Stark, and even Daenerys, but it is the political intrigue that I enjoy the most about these books. I'm glad I finished this right before the start of the HBO series, which looks great, and I hope to re-read the other books before the new July release. 5.0

(As a side note, I highly recommend getting the trade paperback or hardcover to read and not the mass market. The extra white space makes it a much easier read.)

While watching a star fall to earth with the most beautiful girl the village, Tristan swears to bring her back the fallen star if she will grant him his heart's desire. Only the star has fallen beyond the wall and in the land of faerie and there is a beautiful young girl with pale golden hair. As Tristan tries to bring the star back to his village, an evil witch seeks to cut out the star's beating heart and the future rulers of Stormhold seek the stone around her waist.

Previously, I'd read the edition of Stardust illustrated by Charles Vess, which is well worth checking out if you can. Because I was tired of having my reading on the subway interrupted by people hawking their wares, I decided to try out the audio edition narrated by Gaiman himself. Stardust is probably my favorite work by him and his reading is fantastic. At the end of the audio, there is even an interview with him!

Seeing how many people are doing a first quarter recap, I thought I'd do one as well (although everyone else seems so balanced in their reading!).

Best of List
Novel: Room
SF/Fantasy: The Name of the Wind
Young Adult/Children's: The Ask and the Answer, Monsters of Men
Short Stories: Zombies vs. Unicorns
Graphic Novel: Legends of the Guard
Non-Fiction: The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World

Stepped Challenge
1. Classics (0/1)
2. Books on Books (2/2)
3. The Ancient World (1/3)
4. Diaries, Journals, Correspondence (0/4)
5. Around the World (2/5)
6. Across Time (1/6)
7. Nautical (0/7)
8. Comics, Graphic Novels (8/8) + 6 Bonus
9. SF/Fantasy (7/9)
10. Dystopia/Post-apocalyptic (2/10)
11. YA/Children's -(11/11) + 6 Bonus

While I clearly need to work on some of my categories (I'm looking at you Nautical!), I'm doing much better with my reading this year, as last year I only read one book in February and March.

You've read some really interesting books, and certainly added to my wishlist during this first quarter - keep up the good work!

You are making great progress with the challenge. I find it hard to try and balance my reading to fit all my categories. Some categories just draw my attention more than others! Hey, you do have three categories completed so that is impressive.

Thanks DeltaQueen and Ikernagh for the encouragement!




The Poison Diaries by the Dutchess of Northumberland is a faux illustrated diary of an orphaned young boy who is nearly treated as a slave by his apothecary master. When the old apothecary lets the boy into a secret part of the garden, the poison garden, the plants begin talking to the young boy and encouraging him to kill off his master. He resists at first, but the plants slowly begin to work their way on him.

This is beautifully illustrated and filled with fascinating descriptions of poisonous plants. There are all sort of fascinating tidbits, like poisonous Hemlock can be used as an antidote to strychnine poisoning. It's worth it for the illustrations alone but would also be great for anyone with an interest in plants. (Right now it's on sale for $3 at Amazon). 4.0

The Poison Diaries looks good. I love herbology books. I've added it to the amazon wish list.

>100 VioletBramble: The drawings and descriptions of plants and their corruption of the boy are great (the boy's own story is not as fleshed out).



A half-giant of green skin and hair issues a deadly challenge in King Arthur's hall. He calls on the king to strike a blow at the him, the Green Knight, and gain his mighty axe, but should the Green Knight survive then he is allowed to return the blow in one year's time. Honorable Sir Gawain accepts the challenge to protect his king and severs the Green Knight's head. To the horror of the hall, though, the decapitated Green Knight picks up his head and reminds Sir Gawain of his oath. Now Sir Gawain must seek out the magical Green Knight and take his blow.

I read this poem last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. This time I listened to an audio edition, which was recommended by rubarbaru. Hearing it read aloud, really brought out the rolling alliteration and is a great way to experience this work. As a bonus, a reading of the original Middle English is also included after the modern translation (At the beginning there is also an introduction about Simon Armitage's translation). 4.5



The Blind Contessa's New Machine is set in 19th century Italy and centers on the young and beautiful Carolina Fantoni, who is going blind. However, no one believes her except her eccentric neighbor Turri. As her blindness blots out more and more of her world, Carolina finds even her outlets for expression blocked. So that she can communicate with others, Turri invents for her the first typewriter and carbon paper, sparking their affair.

Based on a true story, Turri did indeed build the first typewriter and carbon paper for his blind friend Contessa Carolina Fantoni. It is the descriptions of Carolina slowly losing her sight that are so gripping. The author beautifully conveys Carolina's sense of loss and pangs of grief her father feels at being unable to help her. I was less interested in the love story between Carolina and Turri and instead more captivated by how she dealt with her ever shrinking world, like when her husband locks the backdoor and matter-of-factly withholds the key. A slender novel, I finished this in one sitting. I only wish more was know about the actual Contessa and Turri. 4.0

The Marvelous Land of Oz is the sequel to Eric Shanower's graphic novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. In this story, a young boy Tip escapes the evil witch Mombi, who he has served his whole life, when she confesses she plans to turn him into a statue for her garden. During his escape, he steals some of her magical powder and the newly brought to life Pumpkinhead. On his journey, he meets up with Sawhorse, Woogle-Bug, the Tin-Man, and the Scarecrow. Little does Tip know how this journey will transform him.

I love the original The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and highly recommend the Annotated The Wonderful Wizard of Oz for anyone to read. Despite my love of the first book, I never read any of the later books, so I was really looking forward to this graphic novel adaptation. Sadly, I didn't feel this story had the scope or depth of the first book. I chuckled a couple times along the way, but this just didn't have the magic of the first book for me. I still plan on checking out the third graphic novel they're doing Ozma of Oz, though. 3.5 (FYI, my rating is much lower than others have given.)

Rosemary Sutcliff's YA historical novel The Eagle of the Ninth is set in Roman Britain, and follows a young centurion, Marcus Aquila, and his body slave, Esca, as they try to discover the fate of the 9th Legion that marched into a mist and was never seen again and recover their lost eagle standard and thereby restore some of the legions lost honor. This quest is close to Marcus' heart as his father disappeared with the Legion and a cloud of disapproval hangs over his memory and entire legion as long as the eagle standard remains lost and possible in hostile hands.

I love Roman history and hoped to like this more than I did. Perhaps I entered this Sutcliff's world with too high expectations, but I did enjoy the story and plan to read the next book in the series. I think I would have enjoyed this more if I had read when I was ten or twelve-ish. 3.5

Humph, I couldn't fit three of my recent reads into any of my categories: Love is a Dog from Hell, Horace Walpole's Cat, and Orange is the New Black.



The Adoration of Jenna Fox is a YA science fiction book by Mary E. Pearson. After waking up from a year long coma, Jenna has no memories of her former life. Her parents give her videos to watch for each year of her life, but she is still left with many questions. Why can't she return to school? Why does her grandmother hate her? Why doesn't she have any friends? As the videos begin to spark memories, Jenna realizes her parent are lying to her, but how far do the lies go?

I wouldn't have normally picked this up, but it was highly recommended by someone on LT (of course, now I can't remember who). This was a gripping read, not so much for the mystery of Jenna, which can be untangled pretty early on, but for the relationships between the characters and the very interesting questions raised along the way. 4.0

A Tough Guide to Fantasyland by Diana Wynne Jones gently pokes fun at the fantasy genre. Set up as a travel dictionary, this is a hoot if you read a lot of fantasy. There are a lot of inside jokes (Other Tough Guides: The Tough Guide to Transport in the Multiuniverse -mostly by Telephone Box). I ended up dog-earring (bad, I know) several of my favorite entries. Here's a short excerpt from one of my favorites: Apostrophes . "Few names in Fantasyland are considered complete unless they are interrupted by an apostrophe somewhere in the middle (as in Gna'ash)". While you could read this straight through, I dipped in and out of it. 4.0 (recommended for fantasy fans).



Mike Carey's graphic novel Unwritten, Vol. 1 follows Tommy Taylor. Tommy Taylor was the main character in his dad's phenomenally successful fantasy novels (As if Harry Potter was a real boy, like Christopher Robin). Unfortunately, Tommy's dad has disappeared and Tommy is left making money by appearing at Conventions. But now Tommy's life is being to dangerous parallel his fictional counterpart.

I really enjoyed this story, especially with all the literary allusions. The stories within the stories are very engaging. I was really bummed when this book ended, and I didn't have the next volume. I'm very interested to see where this story goes. 4.0



Fables: Deluxe Edition, Book One collects the first two trade paperback editions (or issues 1-10). The fables have had to flee their native land, and seek refuge in New York City, because the fearsome Adversary has sacked and conquered their lands. Many of the former royalty are now penniless. Snow White, divorced from her philandering ex Prince Charming, runs the Fable government. When her sister, Rose Red, turns up missing and her apartment splattered in blood, the Big Bad Wolf is called in to investigate.

This was another fun read. I love fairy tales, so I enjoyed how Bill Willingham played with them. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series. Unfortunately, only book 2 is out now in the deluxe edition :(



Y: The Last Man: Deluxe Edition, Book One also collect the first two paperback editions. In minutes, all the men and male mammals on the planet are wiped out, all except Yorick and his pet monkey. What caused this massive death toll? A mysterious amulet, the birth of a cloned human, or some other force?

Yup, I enjoyed this one too! I'm curious to see where this series goes next and how it depicts a world without men (And all the books are out, yay).

One word on the deluxe editions, they are printed on nicer paper and are slightly larger, but the binding are still glued. It costs about the same to get the deluxe editions as the two paperbacks, so I think the deluxe editions are the way to go.

Edit: Geesh, how many typos can I make?

Graphic novels are definitely something I wan to look more into in the future. I've already read the first two fables books and eagerly awaiting the third deluxe edition. Y has already piqued my interest and The Unwritten seems to be appearing on a few lists with good comments so looks like I'll have to check into that one as well. Thanks for the comments.

I have been hearing about Y, think I am going to have to add it to my wishlist. I am glad that you liked it!

Wolfy, I'm discovering so many great ones because of LT.

Janice, I hope you like it when you get to it!



The Twentieth Wife is a fictional account of Mehrunnisa rise to empresses in 17th century India. At age eight, Mehrunnisa sights Prince Salim for the first time and vows to marry him and become Empress. As far fetched as that dreams seems to others, Mehrunnisa still holds it close to her heart. Surprisingly, she manages to catch the attention Empress Ruqayya, who runs the Mughal Court's zenana, or imperial harem. Through Rugayya, she learns the about the inner workings of zenana and power struggles within. Prince Salim, however, is impatient to receive to crown and plots to wrest it from his father.

This is another book recommended by a 75er. I enjoyed Mehrunnisa struggles as much as the political intrigue for the crown. This was one of those books were I didn't want to do anything but read. I stayed up late reading it at night and finished it the next morning. I can't wait to read the sequel The Feast of Roses

Spoiler Alert: The second book picks up after Mehrunnisa's wedding to Salim.

I read and loved The Twentieth Wife last year. Simply a great read. The Feast of Roses was very good as well, but I think the author was more constricted as more is known about this time period in Mehrunnisa's life so she had to stick with the known facts, but both books are great historical reads.

Ha! I had just popped over to your 75 list to thank you for recommending this:)

We've been playing "Musical Threads"! I am glad you enjoyed the book tho'.

Britten and Brulightly is a graphic novel by Hannah Berry. Set in bleak and rainy London during the 40's, Private Investigator Fernández Britten has earned the nickname "The Heartbreaker." Tired of dealing with jealous and cheating lovers, he has sworn off all cases except those involving murder. When a wealthy young woman asks him to investigate her fiancé's apparent suicide which she believes was a murder, Britten has no idea what a twisted path the case will lead him down.

Berry's washed-out grayish illustrations wonderfully match the mood of her story. While I don't normally read mysteries, I enjoyed this dark tale though I did find the teabag sidekick a little odd. Despite the dark mood, this is peppered with a few jokes, like Ecuadorian Britten being mistakenly identified as French (like Belgian Poirot). 4.0



Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome by Robert Harris follows the political aspirations of Cicero as told by his slave Tiro (Tiro did write a biography of Cicero but unfortunately it was lost in the Dark Ages). Also, the inventor short hand, Tiro, assists Cicero in his dream of becoming Consul despite his "new man" status, i.e. not of the aristocracy. While working to achieve the highest political rank in Rome, Cicero comes up against some of the most powerful men of the day Pompey, Crassus, and Caesar.

Wow, this is my new favorite read (or listen) of the year! Harris makes Cicero's climb up the political ladder thrilling. Cicero's fighting against shocking levels of corruption makes this a gripping read. For instance, Verres the governor of Sicily would invite himself to a wealthy Sicilian's home and then arrive with wagons and cart off all their goods. Further, to silence his victims he would accuse them of spying and have them crucified. However, Harris doesn't present Cicero as just the champion of the people but as a complicated and ambitious man. I'm dying to get the sequel Conspirata. (Why can't I get my audible credit at the beginning of the month instead of the middle!?)

I listened to the unabridged audio version of Imperium read by Simon Jones. I highly recommend this audio edition as Jones does a fantastic job creating different voices, which is essential given the large cast of characters. I loved the audio so much that I stayed up late at night listening to it instead of using it for my subway commute. 4.5