Ape's 2014 Challenge (2)

Currently reading: Bone in the Throat
Currently playing: Puppeteer





Thread #1 (Books 1-4)



Books: 11
Pages: 3,662

January:
1. On Parole by Akira Yoshimura
2. Prize Fight by Morton Meyers
3. State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
4. The Patron Saint of Plagues by Barth Anderson
5. A Catch in Time by Dalia Roddy

February:
6. Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold
7. Death's Dominion by Simon Clark
8. Rabid by Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy
9. The Good Son by Russel D. McLean
10. Missing Microbes by Martin J. Blaser

March:
11. Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood




Birth Year Challenge: 1 book per month that was published in 1988, the year I was born.

January: On Parole by Akira Yoshimura
February: Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold
March: Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

------------------

Games: 9

January:
1. LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
2. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes
3. Borderlands 2

February:
4. Ni no Kuni
5. DmC: Devil May Cry
6. The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct
7. Bioshock Infinite

March:
8. Beyond Good and Evil
9. Metro: Last Light

Morning, Stephen!

From over on the other thread: That game sounds really good! I'll have to keep an eye out for it.

Hi!

Good morning, Stephen!

I'm here too!

Me three!

Amber: Oh, do you have a Playstation? For some reason I was thinking you had an Xbox (and Wii). Do you have a PSN account? Have I asked you this already? *ahem*

Hi Foggi, Nora, Rachel, and Jim! :)

We have a clunky old PS2, along with an Xbox and a Wii... We don't have a PSN account.

I'm here, you can rest easy, Stephen. Speaking of tea from your last thread, I am addicted to Earl Grey right now. Thinking about trying one of the "Earl Greyer" varieties. I love love love the Bergamot flavor. A close second is Chrysanthemum herbal tea.

Amber: You'll need a PS3 to play Ni no Kuni, I'm afraid! :(

Hi Tamara! I've never had (or seen) Chrysanthemum tea, but I do like Earl Gray. I've only tried one brand's Earl Gray (Twinnings) but it was quite delicious!

In other news, I read a shocking 170 pages yesterday. Granted, it's because I'm reading a thrilling horror novel with big text, but still! I wish I read that much every day, I might actually finish the challenge if I did.

I also read 150 pages yesterday, as well. Sadly, the book I'm reading is 550 pages long, so I'm still not finished with it.

Stephen: Whelp, time to start saving up for an upgrade, then, eh?
And yay for reading! I'm so miserably slow at it this year so far.

Tamara: I humbly suggest Twining's Lady Grey, if you like the Earl.

Happy new thread, Stephen! Enjoy your Thursday!

Happy thread. Still lurking around. :)

Hi Stephen!

*establishes Canadian corner and plops down in chair* Care to bring me a cuppa?

Haiii!

Is Ni No Kuni that Miyazaki game? How is it?

Amber: Haha, is sure sounds like I'm encouraging you to spend a lot of money on video games. LEGO Marvel, Minecraft, and now a whole new system? :P

I'm sure the PS3's will be plummeting in price before long, what with the PS4 release and all.

Hello there, Lori and Melissa! *Smooches*

Micky: Totally! I have 2 types of herbal tea at the moment. "Bengal Spice" which is spicy and tastes like Big Red gum and Cinnamon Apple Spice which, when drank warm with milk, tastes a lot like a drinking an apple pie. :)

Katie: I'm not sure, but according to my cursory google search yes, it absolutely is! Regardless, the story is absolutely wonderful. As much as I love American/Western games and absolutely prefer them over Asian ones, it makes you realize how much better they are at telling a great story - at least in video games. The only American developer I know that can come close to this is probably Naughty Dog.

Speaking of which, gah, I so desperately want to play The Last of Us. I keep waiting for my sister to buy it so I can borrow it when she finishes, but she's waiting for the price to drop and it isn't budging a bit.

5. A Catch in Time by Dalia Roddy



Pages: 551
Rating: 2/5

Horror/Dystopia
Library checkout

For 3 minutes, almost everyone on the planet suddenly fell unconscious - and then awake to devastation. Much of the human population failed to survive the blackout, like pretty much everyone driving on highways. Worse, some of the survivors are...different. Though it would be convenient to say they have some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder, it quickly becomes apparent their malicious behavior is far too severe for such a simple explanation.

Oh, and mutant babies.

Anyway, despite the interesting concept, I was unfortunately let down by the book. The characters don't seem nearly has hysteric as I would be in such a situation, for example. The writer seems to be one of those believers in "Show, don't tell" which oddly has the effect of distancing the reader from what is happening. It's a catastrophic event on a global scale, told from the narrow perspective of a few people, so you never get a feel for the full scope of the situation. It's just a poor choice, in my opinion.

There is also mystic aspect to the blackout that seems terribly awkward whenever it's brought up a survivor who didn't blackout like the others has random revelations that she seems to pull out of thin air, and the whole thing feels vague and cobbled together anyway. Every time it happened I just wanted to groan and scream "Ah! You're making this up!!"

It was a quick and exciting read though, I'll give it that. I devoured huge chunks of it at a time, which is fantastic, but from a technical standpoint it has too many weak spots to justify a better rating than I've given it.

>15 katelisim:: Miyazaki!? Dang, now I *must* have it...

>16 Ape:: Big Red Gum?! Man, I haven't thought of that stuff in ages! Yum!

>17 Ape:: Oh, those are the worst: Hey, what a cool idea for a story! Oh, you've managed to muck it up completely. Great.

Bengal Spice is my favorite.

Amber: Perhaps you should double-check with your fast internet speed that Miyazaki is actually the writer before going off and buying a whole new console. Also, if Tomm asks, I'm totally not responsible for this sudden desire to spend copious amounts of $$$$ on video games. :P

Also, it's the 2nd book in a row I've read like that. Blah!

Nora: Cool! Do you think it tastes like Big Red gum too, or is that just me?

>16 Ape: Mmm, Cinnamon Apple Spice please. My herbal tea collection is usually just peppermint and chamomile (my favourites) so it's fun to mix it up. I keep meaning to get some tins of loose leaf teas from David's Tea but haven't done it yet. When I have regular income again, maybe I'll finally get around to it.

>17 Ape:/20 Bummer about the good idea, poor execution read. I think picking up a book with a person on the cover would solve that problem. ;)

Don't worry, my current book does have a person on the cover...errr, well, a kind-of-person, assuming four-armed humanoids count as people. I think they do!

I haven't ventured into the world of loose leaf tea yet, but at any given time I usually have a box of chai and then 1-3 boxes of who-knows-what. Right now it's Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice, Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice, Bigelow Vanilla Chai, and Tazo Chai. :)

January Summary:

Books: 5
Pages: 1,868

Fiction: 4
Nonfiction: 1

Owned: 3
Library checkout: 2

Stephen; noted your 1988 challenge. Don't know how much it will help but this is a list from my own shelves of stuff I have published that year:

Talking Heads Bennett, Alan
Nervous Conditions Dangarembga, Tsitsi
The Charm School Demille, Nelson
Baumgartner's Bombay Desai, Anita
On the Devil's Court Deuker, Carl
All the Wrong Places Fenton, James
The Sheikh and the Dustbin Fraser, George MacDonald
The Beautiful Screaming of Pigs Galgut, Damon
The Fifth Child Lessing, Doris
The Garlic Ballads Mo Yan
Mother London Moorcock, Michael
Dance Dance Dance Murakami, Haruki
The Satanic Verses Rushdie, Salman
The Unloved Saul, John
Modern World History Sawyer, Ralph
The Man Who Knew Everything Stacey, Tom
Collected Poems 1934-1953 Thomas, Dylan
The House of Stairs Vine, Barbara
The Devil's Arithmetic Yolen, Jane
Socialism Since 1889 Young, James D

Have a great weekend.

A book with mutant babies.... I will pass. Thanks anyways. So what book are you currently reading that has a kind-of person on the cover? The four-armed humanoid mention has caught my curiosity. ;-)

Hello, hello...is anyone home??

>22 Ape: I'll accept that as a person. Mostly because it's you and that's probably the closest we'll get this year. :P

Paul: Thanks! That's a huge help, actually! I've Favorited your post so I can refer back to it in the future. :)

Lori: I'm reading Falling Free, and a picture of the cover can be found up there in post 1.

Jude: Hello! I don't answer the door, so no, nobody is home. :P

Micky: I don't know, I may get desperate with my Birth Year challenge and resort to reading a book with a person on it. I'll feel cheap and dirty for weeks afterward though.

Morning, Stephen!

Good morning, Amber!

Paul: I've checked my library's website and, alas, they only have a single book from that list. I've added The Devil's Arithmetic to the list, though! And I'll keep that posted favorited in case I start using the other library I'm a card-holder for.

Mutant Babies!!!!

ETA: Aren't you glad I always contribute such intellectual statements to your thread?

Well darn.... I was looking forward to a full four-armed humanoid pic, not the image on the cover. ;-)

To my tea buddies, I will try the Lady Grey . . and Stephen, Chrysanthemum is very very similar to Chamomile. If you like Chamomile you'd probably like the other. :)

Bummer about A Catch In Time. There was a show that had a similar premise a few years back but it got cancelled in the first season.

The Beautiful Screaming of Pigs? Well, though sounds interesting....

Hi, Stephen!

>28 Ape: I have a four word rebuttal to that statement: Never Let Me Go. :P

Rachel: Your contributions are not only welcome but strongly encouraged. Also. Mutant puppies. Yeah seriously.

Lori: Haha, sorry to disappoint. :P

Tam: Yeah, I remember the show, but never caught an episode of it.

Hi Terri!

Micky: Yeah, but, ummmm, that wasn't published in 1988, so I don't see what that has to do with what we are talking about. *Feigns confusion*

Also, Micky! I totally had a dream about you last night. You asked me "Why do you always set yourself up to fail?" Hmmmm, good question.

>37 Ape: Enjoying playing dense, are you?

>38 Ape: Hmmm, dream me sounds a bit harsh.

I had a dream last night that I had finished my latest knitting project. Then I woke up and it was definitely not true :-(

*peeks in*

Micky: Dense? What? I don't know what you're talking about. :P

Also, yeah, real-life you isn't harsh at all. Although she did threaten to not visit my thread if I didn't participate in conversations about how sexy men, even though she knows I'm terribly insecure and lacking in self-confience. Hmmmm... ;)

Nora: Aw, I'm sorry! I've had similar dreams where I did something I didn't want to (like go to a family dinner) and then realized that it hadn't actually happened yet and I still had to do it. Bah!

Tam: Hey, stop that! *Blushes* Sheesh, I'm going to have to start wearing a belt or tighter pants around here.

:P

Tighter pants will only encourage the peepers more, Stephen.

(Having a cuppa Almond Chai this morning, which made me think of you.)

Well, after being MIA from LT and everything else that doesn't resemble work, I finally got caught up on your thread only to find that I was a whole thread behind! I'm up-to-date now: tea, mutant babies, 1988, dreams.... that covers it, right? ;)

>42 Ape: I didn't say you had to participate in discussions of sexy men. I just said you're not allowed to disappear from my thread just because some of the aforementioned sexy men show up. That's what non-sequiturs were invented for. :)

Last night's dreams involved Benedict Cumberbatch, Friends (the tv show), and cats. Each in its own distinct dream, to be clear.

Amber: Oh dear... Also, almon chai sounds yummilicious!

Leah: Haha, yeah, I think that's just about everything! :)

MIcky: But if you post sexy men and all people talk about is sexy men for days, then there is nothing for me to do but disappear (to a corner somewere and cry). I think such behavior should be perfectly acceptable!

6. Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold



Pages: 307
Rating: 4/5

Science Fiction
Library Checkout

Birth Year Challenge Book (Published in 1988)

The Cay Project is an attempt to make a superior space engineer by genetically engineering humans to have 4 arms and no legs. They are extremely efficient, not only because their arms allow them to work faster but because they have been designed to survive in Zero Gravity without bone degradation.

The ‘quaddies’ are just reaching maturity, and Leo Graf – a famous space engineer – has been recruited to teach them his craft. After getting over his initial alarmed reaction he quickly realizes that they are very intelligent and attentive students. Unfortunately, it doesn’t take him long to see how poorly they are treated – not as humans but as company property, and Leo has a hard time simply ignoring the fact.

Falling Free is a great story with an important message. It’s not an uncommon one in the science fiction and fantasy genres, but an important one nonetheless. Bujold’s writing is brilliant as well, and she has a great way of making the pages fly by as you’re reading. I pretty much knew what was going to happen from the onset of the novel and yet I found it difficult to put down anyway, which is always a great quality in a book.

The only reason I’m not giving it a higher rating is because the last 2 pages are totally stupid. Totally ridiculously incomprehensively stupid. It’s still a great novel, but I’d like to pretend the last 2 pages didn’t happen. I mean, really. Grr.

>47 Ape: Ok, four hands and half a face does not constitute a person on the cover. :P

Yeah, the ending is ridiculous. I assume you're talking about the romance.

Micky: Okay, does my current read count as a person? *Points to post 1*

Kriti: Yes! It's totally unrealistic. Don't get me wrong, I totally understand quick/short term romance and attraction, but there is a difference between attraction/sex and love, I say! Also, I could have done with a less cliffhanger-y ending, myself.

Of course, authors of long series are notoriously bad at endings, right? :P

#50: Yeah :/ Bujold has a propensity for romance, but it's usually way way way better handled. Also, the quaddies return in Diplomatic Immunity, but that's one of the last books in the series. I think Bujold intended to write a direct sequel to Falling Free but never did – Diplomatic Immunity should answer all your questions, though.

Romance is usually a big turn off for me (as a perpetually single man who is too reclusive and intorverted to talk to the opposite sex, it tends to just make me depressed/self-conscious) but I enjoyed Falling Free, so I won't let that turn me away from the rest of the series. :)

Hey, there....

I also don't like romance in books very much but that's because it's poorly done a lot of the time. Real, stable romance is a lot of hard work and patience, and a lot of books have it end up being instant/magical. Bujold is usually good about portraying it as a part of character growth but not in Falling Free.

The ROMANCE genre is such a fucking lie......mostly poorly written....I don't do Romance because I am not a Romantic..i'm a Realist...don't expect Perfection..

Hi Jude!

Kriti: Great! Hopefully I'll be able to read the rest of the series eventually. I don't know if I'll be able to do it this year because my library doesn't carry them, but Bujold is officially on my radar and I'll be keeping my eye out for her books in the future. :)

Jude: Haha, you have a point. But I suppose that's what Fiction is for, right?

I, of course, can't actually say how closely fictional romance is to actual romance, but it's safe to assume that real romance is a bit less...ahh, sparkly.

Phew...at least I know you're alive....

Romance/Love is a difficult thing...in real life. Romance Novels make light of such....hence, they suck...

Yeah, ascending the misty mountains and slaying the goblin king sounds a lot less difficult. I'll continue avoiding Romance when I can, except in the case of the Vorkosigan series! :)

So! I chose my current read based on my last one. It has a similar concept, except instead of genetically-engineered four-armed...ummm engineers, they are Frankensteinian walking corpses raised from the dead to serve as sentinels of their human masters, of a sort.

So far it's not so great.

>50 Ape: I guess...

I am in the middle of recording The Curse of Chalion to put on my IPOD. I hear such good things about it and the author.

Micky: I was hoping you would say no so I could point out that you are like th antagonists of the books by dehumanizing the poor defenseless quaddies/transients. Unfortunately, it looks like you do indeed have a heart. Curses! :P

Xymon: I've only read the 1 book by her, but I like what I've read so far. :)

>64 Ape: Well, I do enjoy foiling your plans.

Aha! So you are evil after all. I knew it.

Have you not watched a superhero movie? The good guys are always foiling the plans of the bad guys. Duh. ;)

Obviously that's just propaganda, though! :P

Speaking of heroes, how did you enjoy the open world element of LEGO Marvel? Maybe it's just me and my OCD, but I found it ceaselessly addicting.

I honestly haven't been playing it much. It's fun but I've been doing a lot more movie watching and reading than playing video games. I enjoy too many mediums!

Ha! Yeah, I have more time because I don't watch a lot of TV, but it seems every show I like is starting up all at once so now I'm bombarded with it. Chopped, Mythbusters, Best Ink, Face Off, and now The Walking Dead is starting back up. 5 hours a week probably doesn't sound like much to most people but I cannot keep up with all this! Ahh!

At last count, we were up to about 70 some odd shows, Stephen. However, some we are months if not seasons behind because that's just sooo much tv. Some get cut due to stupid story lines or they get canceled, etc. I'd say we probably watch about 20 shows at any given time consistently. Still, it is a lot, especially if I want to read!

Haha, yeah, I'm only watching 5 shows and I'm way behind on Chopped. Argh!

I make up for it in video games, though. I'm putting in 3-5+ hours a day into Ni no Kuni right now, because of how addicting it is. I'm definitely playing a lot more video games than I am reading books at the moment. That will probably change as soon as I finish this one though.

Morning, Stephen!

Now that we've got a tv to which we can connect Netflix, Youtube and Hulu, Tomm and I have a list of about 16 shows that we'd like to get caught up on or even just check out for the first time. It's slow going, though, since most of them are shows that we won't watch before Charlie goes to bed, and by that time we're both pretty knackered ourselves.

In terms of currently airing shows, I keep up with about 6-8. But my list in Netflix is chock full of shows I want to watch as well. Too many good shows, not enough time!

I totally understand, it's hard for me to speak on the subject because it's not like I'm well-versed in the history of television, but it certainly seems as though the quality is a lot better now than it has in the past. I mean, yes, there is still a lot of garbage out there, but scripted shows seem to be better than they ever have, don't you think?

I'm not the best judge on that topic because I also love some classic TV. But I think the greater variety of options - cable, network, and international (I'm looking at you BBC) - means that there's some level of effort to ensure that your content can compete with other content which could arguably lead to an improvement in quality.

That could be true. Just as there are more channels in general than in the past. It's a lot harder to get people's attention when there are more than 4 channels airing television at any given time.

It's hard to find that perfect balance between games and reading and keeping up with shows. Thank goodness for DVR. I'm also a big sports fan so that gets my attention too, but I can read and watch some games at the same time. Next month when the South Park game comes out, I know I am going to invest alot of time into it. I have watched some videos and it looks like it will be fun.

Yep! My sister is a South Park fanatic and she says she'll definitely be buying it, so I'll be borrowing and playing it when she has finished it. To be honest, I'm just excited about a turn-based RPG. As much as I'm loving Ni no Kuni, I really miss games like Final Fantasy 10.

FFIX is my all-time, absolute favorite game in the history of ever.

*sigh*

I haven't played many video games in my life but the Final Fantasy series games were the ones I did play. Love those games!

Amber: Ha! I also really like FFIX, but sadly I don't remember if I finished it or not. I know I got to the 4th disc, but I remember getting stuck at one point and I don't remember if I ever went back to finish it off or not. I still have the game, but I don't have a system to play it on, and I'd have to start it over anyway because I don't have the memory card it was on. :(

Melissa: Yeah, the Final Fantasy games are pretty fantastic. Some of the newer ones are so-so, and I haven't been obsessive about one since FFX. FFXII was alright and I just couldn't get into FFXIII.

7. Death's Dominion by Simon Clark



Pages: 342
Rating: 2/5

Horror
Owned

I chose to read Death's Dominion because it shared a lot of similarities with the book I finished just before. I had just finished Falling Free by Lois Bujold, which was about genetically-engineered humanoids with 4 arms and no legs, design to work efficiently as engineers in space. Their creators look at them from a purely financial point of view, and think of them as nothing more than physical property.

This book has a similar plot, with a horror theme. Humans have begun reanimating the dead to act as servants and protectors. They aren't smelly rotten corpses, and in fact they are physically superior in just about every way imaginable and they have the same level of intellect as any living person, but humanity still sees them as nothing more than monsters. Horrified by their own creations, they have begun to systematically eliminate every 'living' Transient they come across.

Unfortunately, that's where the similarities end. For, while I enjoyed Falling Free, Death's Dominion was pretty much completely terrible. It's terribly repetitious, I honestly can only think of a single book that was more obnoxiously repetitive (and I still get a little murderous when I hear that "Badri said the slippage was minimal"). He really wants you to remember that the Transients can't harm humans and he harps on it constantly. After hearing this a dozen times or more I'm pretty sure I could have pushed Mr. Clark down the nearest flight of stairs. I mean seriously, I kind of got it after the first couple times, thanks...

Anyway, it's pretty stupid. I suggest avoiding it.

>82 Ape:: I think I've play FFIX all the way through at least 4 times. Obsessive? No, of course not! What are you talking about?!

ETA: Yeah, I think I'll pass on DD. Sorry it was so terrible - here's hoping your next one will be much better!

You sound like me with Titan Quest. Off the top of my head, I'm pretty sure I've played through it at least 5 times now. I've also played the first 2 God of War games three times each. :)

Oh, Stephen, you're my kind of guy!

*sending obsessive gaming hugs and hive-fives*

This Valentine's Day card made me think of you... I'm not sure what that says about either of us...

http://www.amazon.com/Never-Find-Valentines-Funny-Greeting/dp/B009MPIJ4S/ref=sr_...

I also regularly replay games a 2nd time just to get 100 percent completion (or the platinum trophy in Sony's trophy system) so yeah, I'm definitely a little obsessive... *twitch*

*Returns hugs and misses high-fives* :D

Valentine's Day is usually a source of depression for me, but that card definitely cheers me up a little.

I now have an XBox account because my new computer requires it in order to play solitaire. Don't ask.

So now I should be able to understand all the video game talk that goes on here. Right?

I have been the same way with my xbox in the past. Right now I am floating at right under the 50% mark overall. I want to raise it to 60% atleast by the end of the year. it means going back and revisiting some older games.

Nora: Nope, you have to have a Playstation Network account to understand the video game talk, sorry. :P

Xymon: Yeah, I can be pretty obsessive about the percentage as well. It irks me when I finish a game and it's below my average. Blargh! Of course, at the end of the day as long as the game is fun that's all that REALLY matters. For example, I've been playing Ni no Kuni for over 2 weeks and I've earned a grand total of 13 trophies. Considering I average over 5 per day, that's pretty terrible. But, it's a pretty amazing game, so I can hardly complain.

(But my inner OCD badger will continue to groan just a little bit)

>83 Ape:

Hello...you actually said a book was "pretty stupid" and i give you props, for that...most people would go all "wussy" and pretend to like the damned thing.....

Yep, definitely didn't like it. I'm probably being generous by giving it a 2-star rating, but it was pretty bad. I own 2 other Simon Clark novels and I'm hoping they are better than that one. I liked Blood Crazy so there is hope...but I think I'll wait awhile before considering reading them.

I finished Ni no Kuni and it was absolutely wonderful! :)

I'm moving on to something new for now, but I'll definitely be returning to it in the near future to play some of the post-clear content.

HA!

>95 Ape:: *snork!* I think there's one for clowns, too.

> 95 - LOL - love it! Happy weekend, Stephen!

There are very few games I've played through multiple times after beating (read: non-save and arcade score-style games don't count). I think it's only been Kingdom Hearts, Psyconauts, Crash Bandicoot, and Portal. . . . yep, I think that's it. Games take me too long -- I only finish 1-5 a year as it is -_-;;

Oooh, I think we have Kingdom Hearts somewhere... I've never played it (it's Tomm's), but I've always been tempted.

Kingdom Hearts is absolutely wonderful! Amber, you should totally play it! I played it because my sister bought it on the PS2, and it was recently re-released on the PS3 and I plan on replaying it in HD sometime in the near future. I'm not as big a fan of the 2nd one simply because I haven't seen as many of the cartoons, but if you are familiar with the more classic Disney films then I can't recommend it highly enough!

Ooh, Disney video game??? *checks library catalogue to see if it's available for Xbox* Sad face. It's not.

I think it may have been a Playstation exclusive, I'm afraid. :( Kingdom Hearts 3 has been announced and I believe it is going to be for the Xbox One, but it's the original Kingdom Hearts that comes with my recommendation.

I would think if they were going to release the 3rd game on Xbox One the would also release the HD collection on Xbox so more people would be inclined to buy it, but I haven't heard anything.

*Pbbbt* At Playstation and Disney.

Ah well. It's not like there's a shortage of media in my life.

Haha, it's okay, I'm totally jealous that Xbox has the Fable and Witcher games, so it all evens out in the end. :)

>82 Ape:. I haven't played all of them, only owning a PS2, but I have watched the walkthroughs for as many as I could. I haven't been thrilled with any of them since FFX myself. The only other video game I ever got into was Dragon Age. Been thinking of watching a Kingdom Hearts walkthrough. :)

Oh yes, I have played both Dragon Age games! In fact, I played the first one twice for the platinum trophy. My sister LOVES role-playing games, so I've played just about every RPG released on the Playstation 3. Dragon Age: Origins is definitely one of the good ones.

Have you looked into Mass Effect at all? It's made by the same people who made Dragon Age (Bioware) but it has a sci-fi theme. It does lean a bit more into the action genre though, and the first one is a bit tough, unfortunately.

In terms of FF games, I have played 3, 9, 10, 10-2, 12, and some of 13. I loved 3, 9, 10, and 10-2. 12 had a great combat system but I wasn't blown away the game overall, and 13 just didn't hold my attention. FFX was the first I played and still remains my favorite. :)

>95 Ape: Oh my lord...i have The Pop-up Book of Nightmares on my shelf!!!

J

>95 Ape:, I think they have clowns listed in that book, one of my friends is deathly, DEATHLY afraid of clowns.

Hi There Stephen!

Jude: Ha! And people have it tagged as a children's book! :P

Tam: My sister's boyfriend is apparently creeped out by clowns. I guess they went to McDonald's one day on some sort of grand re-opening after some remodeling only to find Ronald McDonald was attending. My sister had a great laugh at that.

I'm not afraid of clowns, but I totally understand being creeped out when visiting a place like that. :P

Hi Linda!

Morning, Stephen!
Sunday plans?

Me? Plans? I'll be sitting here alone trying to entertain myself until it's dark enough to justify going to sleep. *Shrug*

Actually, I need to make a library trip soon, so I should probably fill out the application I have sitting here at my desk. I wonder if Maddaddam is out of the New Books section yet. Hmmm.

Have you ever turned in a cover letter and reading resume when submitting your library application? They may be overlooking you because of your experience but a letter about why you are perfect for the job and a clear statement of your wide variety of books read may be just what they need to see your value. I know anything other than the same old application goes a long way to make you memorable.

I have played FF 1, 4, 5, 6, 7 (my personal fav), 8, 9 , 10, 13, and tactics (which my runner up for best one ever made. My favorite RPG though is another PS1 gem, Xenogears. I played that came almost to the end, logging a good 120 hours at least. Then my memory card was stolen and I never could get myself back to that point in the game.
If I had to pick an Xbox rpg, it would be Fable 2. There is just so much to the game it really never ends.

>114 leahbird: That's certainly good advice, but there are so few library positions open, I imagine it might be more worthwhile for Stephen to take a chance and move to a city and get a job at a bookstore. Like I said before, Barnes and Noble is hiring!

Leah: I haven't written a cover letter, but they do leave an open page on the back to write in and I've used that in the past to describe my passion for books, and I've even written the address down for my LibraryThing profile.

Xymon: It seems everybody loves 7, but I haven't played that one. It would be a bummer to get that far in a game and then not be able to finish it! I know my sister had both her Oblivion and Skyrim saves corrupted for various reasons after getting 50-80+ hours into each of them and I know she was quite disheartened by it.

Rachel: I can't exactly move until I have a job, so I can really only look for work within an hour-or-so's drive from my house.

Hi Stephen! I've got so much tea at my house it's insane, I must have at least 20 varieties. One of my favorites is Egyptian Licorice by Yogi. Tastes nothing at all like black licorice (I can't stand the stuff), but it's sweet and a little minty/refreshing somehow. Love that stuff!

Egyptian Licorice, huh? I've seen Yogi teas but I don't think I've seen that, unfortunately!

8. Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus by Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy



Pages: 238
Rating: 4/5

Nonfiction: Science/History (Rabies virus)
Owned

Rabies is an oft-overlooked virus in the western world. Though it has haunted generations of people in movies such as Old Yellar and Cujo, it has become a mythical monster of a sort, something that frightens us in fiction but doesn't actually exist in the real world. This, of course, is a great misconception. Rabies still kills thousands of people every year, and even today it has nearly a 100 percent kill rate. Though a person can be vaccinated shortly after bitten by a rabid animal, even modern science can't save someone once symptoms have set in. To date only a scant few have managed to survive the virus, many of which have suffered debilitating neural damage. It's a pretty scary disease, and it's still commonly found in bats.

Rabid is well-written for the most part, but I have one major issue with it. The authors have a seriously bad habit of spoiling the stories of popular books in their writing. I am usually put off when an author does it once, but this is just ridiculous! I like the book, but the sheer number of spoilers might make me hesitate recommending it to others. It's like going out on a blind date, meeting someone you immediately find attractive, and then halfway through dinner service you embarrassingly discover they suffer from chronic flatulence. That's not to say I won't read more books by them in the future, but I hope they see a doctor about their flatulence soon.

Otherwise it's a fantastic book, really.

Rabies has been one of those things, as you mention, at the peripheral of my life on a farm but still a bit mythical. We've had a few incidents where wildlife on the farm was shot because of extremely suspicious behavior that could have been rabies or a number of other badies you don't want to let flourish, but it was still not something I thought REALLY happened to people anymore.

Then one of my friends got bitten by a rabid SQUIRREL. Seriously. Squirrel fell or jumped out of a tree, landed on his back, ran up to his shoulder, and bit him on the neck. Like a freaking vampire squirrel! Somehow his dad managed to catch and kill the thing before it got away and they took it to UT for brain analysis. When the test came back positive, he had to get the old treatment of 21 shots in the stomach. Horror.

Then a few years ago, I was severely bitten by a cat I was trying to nurse back to health from an unknown illness. What was scary was that the poor dying thing bit me out of reflex and then couldn't let go, it's jaw was virtually locked closed. Any other time I've been bitten by a cat, it's bitten me, let go to reposition, and bitten again. This was teeth straight through the thickest part of my pointer finger and then I had to pry it's jaws open. It was terrible. By the time I made it back from the ER (and my lovely stitches, tetanus shot, and massive antibiotics), the cat was dead. Again, off to UT it went for brain analysis. Luckily for me, it didn't test positive for rabies but they couldn't identify the cause of illness so I got to stay on meds and submit to Dr checks for a good while.

I might have to give Rabid a read.

Thankfully, I don't think the 21 shots in the stomach thing is the case anymore. I believe it's 4 shots in the arm, but then it might be just 1 by now.

My sister was nipped by a chipmunk when she was a kid. I'm not even sure if it broke the skin, but I know she didn't see a doctor or anything about it so I'm thankful it wasn't rabid.

I always think of those videos you see about of people trying to get bats out of their house, usually with their bare hands. I think if we were more conscious of rabies they would definitely be calling an expert.

Due to the media associated with rabies that I mentioned in my review, I'm well aware of rabies in dogs...but if I were ever bitten by a bat in the past I wouldn't have given it a second thought. I'm still not super paranoid, as I'm a pretty big fan of bats and tend to enjoy sitting out on the back lawn watching them flit about in the evening, but if I'm ever bitten by one I think I'll definitely be seeing someone about it.

Also, that cat attack sounds horrifying!

Rabid is a good read, just be aware that whenever you see the title of a book you haven't read it's time to skip forward a few paragraphs. Also, the end is better than the middle.

Ooof, cat bites can be awful, even without rabies - I think people frequently lose fingers and such by amputation as a result. Crazy.

A couple of years ago when we had a bat in the house, Charlie and I half crawled half ran into his room, shut the door and let Tomm deal with it. It seemed like the best thing to do. Ha!

It is six shots, not sure on the location though. Being overseas there is always a big concern over rabies. That is why there is such a big thing about not keeping pets.

We had a bat in the house at my friends house. It was very disoriented and kept flying around wildly. I think they get confused looking for a warm place and then get down into the ventilation ducts or something. Scary stuff, rabies!

Things not to read when you have hypochondriac tendencies. :P

Amber: Haha, that sounds like an effective strategy to me!

Xymon: The United States pretty much mass-vaccinates all pets for rabies. It is very difficult to own a pet and not have it vaccinated, a lot of places give them out for free if you register or have them spayed/neutered.

Tam: They tend to flit about wildly even in the open air, I can imagine they must be quite horrifying confined to a small space!

Also, all this negative talk about bats and rabies is encouraging me to recommend Dark Banquet along with Rabies. It's a book about how awesome things like bats (and leeches) are. :)

I'm glad you liked Rabid :-)
and I felt the same way about the spoilers! Especially because some of them were totally unnecessary to the book. I actually made a list in my review of books/movies that get spoiled. And what was up with all the Bronte spoilers??

Yeah, the spoiler aspect of it was a little bit ridiculous. I know I probably shouldn't care, but it doesn't matter if it's a trashy pulp fiction novel that I'm probably never going to read, I still don't want it spoiled! :)

9. The Good Son by Russel D. McLean



Pages: 240
Rating: 3/5

Fiction: Mystery
Owned

McNee isn't a cop anymore, but he can't turn his back on the call of duty. As a private investigator, he can still chase after wrongdoers and...oh, for crying out loud, do you really care? It's a mystery novel. Someone dies, someone else investigates the death, you wonder who did it and in the end you find out. There is your summary.

As far as mysteries goes, this was less engaging than most for me. I had a hard time being interested in the beginning and a quickly grew a dislike for the macho tough-guy lead character. At 240 pages the mystery aspect lacks depth and falls flat before it can really begin, and it still feels like 15 pages could have been cut out of the end without effecting much.

I admit I am not fond of the genre, but this one isn't even terribly exciting. The only thing saving this from a worse rating is the unveiling of McNee's past, which is the only thing in the book that kept me turning the pages. Still not terribly interesting, though.

>130 Ape: You don't like mysteries so why did you pick it up in the first place? Just curious.

Well, when I bought it I didn't know it was a mystery, exactly. I paid $1 for it at Dollar Tree, so it was one of those I just grabbed because...well, because I'm a book addict, really.

As for why I chose to read it, partially because when I started it I knew I was going to the library in 2 days, so I wanted to read something to fill in that time without being overlong, because I wanted to finish whatever I was reading shortly after making the trip. I knew a 240-page mystery would go quick.

I also try not to be too judgemental of genres in general. I don't like space odysseys, but I read Falling Free earlier and loved it. Just because I don't usually like a genre doesn't mean every book that falls under that category won't be to my liking.

For the most part the only genre I absolutely refuse to read is the romance genre, and that is because it actively depresses me. It has too severe of an effect on my mental and emotional state to just casually pick one up. Any other genre can be found on my bedside table at any given time.

I see. *nods sagely*

Stopping by to wish you a wonderful weekend, Stephen. Interesting observations on genres - like and dislikes. I don't like all mysteries. I tend to gravitate to historical mysteries or mysteries with elements of fantasy and adventure wrapped up in them. Mysteries set in our contemporary times with 'life- like' characters and settings just don't appeal to me.

Micky: Ummm, yep... *Nods awkwardly*

Lori: Thanks! Yeah, I'm also not a fan of contemporary mystery, or certain types of thrillers. I don't like cops/investigators, whether it's set in a small town with the local police or is some sort of international mystery involving the CIA or what have you. I can read classic mysteries like Sherlock Holmes, and I can read thrillers if they have a horror, post-apocalyptic, or military theme...but the vast majority of the genre is unappealing.

I probably should add that the contemporary mysteries I have read are usually set in locations I know rather well and I spend half my time seeing how accurately the writer has presented the town I live in or other such location! I am pretty sure I pick them up for the setting over the genre. ;-)

Ha! I can understand that! That really isn't an option for me though, considering I live in the middle of nowhere. :P

I know there is that popular series of mysteries involving the Amish lifestyle that is out right now that I believe is set in Ohio...but meh, not interested.

Hi stephen I need help completing lego Harry potter years 5-7 please help!!!!!!!

What are you stuck on?

Last 2 levels on 2nd part of year 7 can not complet the hogwarts crests!

I usually find online walkthroughs like this one helpful for getting all the bits I miss.

Thank you micky that was a help!

Crossing genres isn't so bad at times. Sometimes you find those hidden gems and really like them. I am glad I do not go to Doller tree too much I might end up with more myself. Luckily the local libray took away the free book cart that was near the entrance, i was getting way to many from there and most are still on my shelf. My next downfall is the used book store. On valentines day weekend, my wife and i decided to look around. 2 Baskets and $65 later we have three bags full of books and no shelf room for them.

*waves*

Bryony/Micky: Yeah, online guides are a huge help for collectibles like house crests. With modern internet speed you can usually find video guides for them, that show you exactly where all of them are. Since I have slow internet though, I usually have to find a text guide. IGN.com, Gamefaqs.com, and the Playstationtrophies.org forums are usually the places I look. If you have an Xbox, then Xbox360achievements.org will probably work better. :P

I don't know if Xbox360achievements is every going to fix their name or not. Playstationtrophies used to be "PS3trophies.org" but they changed the name to Playstationtrophies once the PS4 was released. I believe the websites are run jointly but for some reason the Xbox site still has the 360 in its name.

Xymon: Haha, speaking of dollar tree, I bought Child 44 there and really liked it, so not all mystery/thrillers are bad! :)

*Waves at Tammers*

Ape, it is now xboxachievements.com. So now it encompasses everything xbox related. And I do love thier walkthroughs better than alot of other places.

Ah, yeah, I see, I just tried it and got redirected to the .com site. Awesome. :)

I don't have anything to add but I'm enjoying the game talk...

Morning, Stephen!

>142 BBGirl55: You're welcome.

*waves at Stephen*

I don't have anything to add and am thoroughly perplexed and bamboozled by the game talk :) I know what XBox is, but that is the extent of my knowledge so I'll just say hiya for now

Goodnight, Amber! :P

*Waves at MIcky*

Hiya, Megan! I'm going to tell all my friends I bamboozled a girl. Hurray! :P

How goes the birth year challenge?

Hi Micky! I've read On Parole and Falling Free and both were quite fantastic. I already have Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood checked out of the library and I'll be starting it as soon as I finish the book I'm reading now for March. :)

Oooh, Atwood. I am very fond of her. I'll be interested to see your comments on that one (although I haven't read it so I have no advance feedback to give).

Yep, I'm aware of your fondness! :) I'll probably finished Missing Microbes tomorrow, so I should be starting it Friday.

Also, I would like to note that so far all of my 1988 books have had people on the cover. Eerie, I know.

Morning, Stephen! Nothing to add, just wanted to wave Hello.

Hi Amber!

In non-book news, I just finished Bioshock Infinite (waiting for the credits to roll through now) and it was unquestionably one of the most amazing games I've played on this generation. Again. As much as I loved the first 2 Bioshock games I really didn't think they could be topped...but Infinite is phenomonal. I know whatever game I play next is going to pale in comparison - ha!

>155 Ape: *suspicious face* Mmm, with a loose definition of people on the cover being anything that might vaguely resemble some part of the human anatomy appearing somewhere on the front of the book?

>158 MickyFine: Or drawings of people. Or animals that were related to people within the last 20 million years. Or things that were made by people. Or things that were touched by people. Or . . .

Nora, if there were a like button for your comment, I'd be all over it. :D

I would like 159 AND 160. Because on LT I would totally be a "Like" whore.

Stephen, I've never played any of the Bioshock games because a) I only have a Wii and I'm pretty sure actual games don't exist for it and b) I play a couple hours of video games a year, but I've watched a friend play a bit of Bioshock and it looked weirdly intriguing. But I have NO IDEA what it's about. I don't like shooter games, is it a shooter game?

God, I feel like someone's 80 year old granny.

Micky/Nora: Awww, c'mon, cut me some slack! I've been making so much progress! :)

Leah: The Bioshock games are something you really have to play from start to finish to really appreciate. Whereas most games use cut scenes and conversations between characters to tell the story, the Bioshock games use audio diaries that you are constantly picking up to build the story, so instead of playing for 30 minutes and getting a 1 minute clip to tell you what is happening you basically get a constant stream of dialogue. It leads to WAY more depth than many other games are able to achieve.

And yeah, they are shooters. Worse, they are first-person shooters, which usually require a bit more skill than their third-person counterparts. I have to say they do a great job of transcending the genre, though. Traditionally shooters are comparable to thrillers in the book world - fast paced but usually lacking in substance. Bioshock definitely rises above the average game in the genre. :)

I finished a game AND a book yesterday, so I was pretty productive. Uhhh, if by 'productive' you mean...'unproductive.' *ahem*

10. Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics is Fueling Our Modern Plagues by Martin J. Blaser



Pages: 220
Rating: 3/5

Nonfiction: Science
Owned (Early Reviewers)

Missing Microbes covers a topic that I have been very interested in lately. You are probably aware of the sudden rise in antibiotic-resistant diseases, as it is covered in the media with increasing frequency. We know (for the most part) that overuse of antibiotics is leading to this resistance, which makes perfect sense. However, Martin Blaser wants to elaborate a bit more on why this is happening, and like any good scientist he thinks his field of study has everything to do with everything.

For the most part, I think his theories are solid. The problem with overusing antibiotics is not only that they create stronger pathogens through natural selection (of a sort), but taking them is like carpet bombing your systems. Broad-spectrum antibiotics kill all life forms, even key microbes required for the human body to function. Blaser fears that constant exposure to antibiotics could lead to the extinction of critical parts of our 'microflora,' which he believes is already resulting in some of the modern plagues we are seeing today, such as obesity, asthma, diabetes, and allergies.

I'm a little skeptical of a lot of the author's claims, but the key argument that antibiotics are being overused is absolutely spot on. Obviously they are necessary for those who are ill, but the idea that healthy people are continuously being exposed to them for no reason, and constantly having their microflora wiped out, seems rather unnecessary, really!

I do wonder why it was never considered that good microbes could also become antibiotic-resistant, but it doesn't change the fact that antibiotics are going to become increasingly less effective the more we are exposed to them, and surely that is reason enough to sensibly restrict them to those who actually need them to fight off infections.

Oh, that one sounds good. But panic-inducing, too. I usually hesitate going to see the doctor for medication even when I *am* sick, hoping that I'll be able to get over it on my own because I don't want to take too many antibiotics (which is a problem when you're prone to bronchitis as I am), so I can't fathom that there are people out there just taking them willy-nilly! Other end of the crazy-train spectrum from those who refuse to give their children vaccinations, I suppose. Sheesh.

We probably have already talked about this, but my memory is awful, so forgive me if I've forgotten whole conversations with you about it: Have you read The Family That Couldn't Sleep?

Great review of Missing Microbes, Stephen! That one now goes on the future 'get from the library' list. I cringe at the overuse of antibiotics and medications that goes on in our society. Reading about the rise of drug-resistant TB is scary stuff.

Happy Friday, Stephen!

Amber: Yeah, it's sort of a double whammy with antibiotic resistance and the refusal to vaccinate. We are really creating a society that is basically a giant, dense collection of highly susceptible individuals.

The worst part is the idea that antibiotics are in food. That every time you eat you could be introducing antibiotics to your system is an absolutely preposterous concept. There are regulations now, but antibiotics are still used heavily in the feed of big farms and small amounts of it are still deemed acceptable in the final product you buy on the shelves.

It's funny, however. Farmers feed antibiotics to their animals daily to make them fatter, but I never really questions WHY they get fatter. The book suggests that it is the destruction of microbes important for digestion that causes the weight gain, which is why populations that regularly eat antibiotic-laden meat also tend to gain weight uncontrollably.

Also, yeah, you did mention that one once, but unfortunately my library doesn't have a copy (or didn't the last time you mentioned it)

Thanks, Lori! Yeah, the whole drug-resistant thing is scary in general. Not only is it scary that all the technological advancements in medicine could essentially wiped out, but we have bigger, more densely-packed cities and quicker world travel now, so not only will old disease of the past potentially re-emerge, but now they can spread faster than ever before. Not good!

February Summary:

Books: 5
Pages: 1,347

Fiction: 3
Nonfiction: 2

Owned: 4
Library Checkout: 1

Very respectable stats, sir. And the cover for The Good Son is pretty.

The page count is a little low, but I'm surprised how many of my own books I'm reading this year. 7 out of 10 books off my own shelves is pretty good for a public library addict like myself! :)

That is pretty impressive. I'm doing the whole random reading thing, but I've pulled a few books of my own off the shelf already this year too. Go us!

I really want to get back to my montly random reading thing using Random.org, but I don't think I can do that with nonfiction right now. I should still probably consider it with fiction though, um, maybe.

I like my approach because it's all books from The List so I'm always getting a book I want to read. It's just a surprise as to which one. With your method I'd be worried I'd end up with a book I really didn't want to read.

Well, I still get to pick what I want, it just encourages me to look in places I might not normally look. With the fiction, it only limits me to authors whose last names start with a specific letter (or 2). :)

I guess that would work. Although, how do you decide which genre to pick from? Or does your library have everything in general fiction?

My library has sections for romance, science fiction/fantasy, mystery, western, and "inspirational," but the rest is all bulked together so I just pick from the general fiction section.

I should note that the mystery section is small, and there is still a ton of mystery novels in the general fiction section. General fiction still makes up a good 75-80+ percent of the fiction section.

>163 Ape: Ugh! I think this is a very important subject matter. It really irritates me when people get antibiotics willly nilly from the doctor. People who really need antibiotics, particularly those who are very young, very old, or compromised immune systems are the ones who should be taking them and benefiting from them. And our food production system for meats and dairy, oy vey. I try very much to only use antibiotics when it is a last resort. Of course, there is something to be said for important microbes/micro flora and healthy diet. People get sick because they don't have enough microflora and then they get sick, take antibiotics because they can't fight off the bacterial infection and it is just a vicious cycle.

Yeah, but it's just like people who compulsively wash their hands - it is so ingrained in our minds that it is a good thing that people don't realize they can overdo it, and that's we've been compulsively consuming antibiotics for several decades now.

@162 Yeah, shooters aren't for me. Otherwise it sounds good and the art is cool, but I just can't do shooters.

@166 Farmers feed antibiotics to fatten animals, especially cows, so they can feed things to cows they aren't biologically designed to consume, such as corn. Corn fattens cows but it also gives them diarrhea. And forcing them into tight quarters on stagnant pasture means illness spreads like wildfire.

Not saying the idea of decreased gut flora causing weight gain isn't happening as well, just that that isn't the reasoning behind the practice.

Was that supposed to be "farmers DON'T feed antibiotics to fatten animals?" Otherwise, I think you agreed with me. :P

They feed antibiotics to facilitate fattening by stopping the runs mostly. What I was saying was that I agree with the outcome you brought up but that the reasoning for using antibiotics wasn't because decreased gut flora makes you fat. I think it's probably doing that but it's an unintended bonus (or problem if you see things from my end of farming).

It sounds like a problem at both ends, if you ask me. :P

>181 Ape: *snork!*

Ugh! I had a really bad day today. I suffered some harsh judgements by a pack of evil Catholic women who told me I'm going to hell and that I'm a worthless human being for not having a job. Gee thanks. :(

Oh, poop. I'm sorry you had to suffer through Catholic heckling. Pay them and their kooky 'christian' ways no mind, mister.

I doubt that very much Ape. You are good in your own way. Social anxiety does not make you a bad person.

Thanks, Amber and Xymon.

I'm hyper-sensitive when it comes to prejudice and try VERY VERY VERY hard to be as neutral as possible in every situation imaginable, be it related to gender, race, sexuality, or spirituality. However, it's really hard not to in this case.

Spirituality is my weak point, however, it's the hardest for me not to be angry and judgemental about, due in large part to the harsh treatments I've experienced at the hands of some of those fanatical maniacs. I've slipped up a few times even here on Librarything, andn have offended at least one person in the past.

With that said, it's really hard not to think that Catholics have the highest concentration of crazy, evil old witches. Call me prejudice if you want, but holy crap man, those women are insane! I feel particularly sorry for all the Catholic men who think they are marrying sweet little Catholic girls only to find out they are lecherous hags.

Ugh!

I can see why they are angry and judgemental all the time though. Having just typed all that, I do feel a little better. ;)

>186 Ape: What makes you think Catholic men are somehow inherently better than Catholic women?

I've never experienced anything like that from Catholic men, personally. It's quite the opposite with atheist. I tend to find that atheist women are more accepting and non-judgemental, whereas the men are just total jerk faces. Myself included. :P

I still think that's a wild generalization to make, about either Catholics or atheists, that half of them are crazy and/or jerks and the other half are completely fine, based on some other unrelated trait.

Here's the thing: those old biddies would still be old biddies regardless of to which religious system they adhere. Mean people are mean people, whether they believe that they're backed by some sort of divine being or no. And nice people are nice people, whether they believe in a Catholic god or follow the teachings of the Buddha or don't believe in any higher power. *shrug*
I'm just sorry that you ran into a gaggle of hags. Ptooey on them, I say, wafer-eaters or no. You're one of the good people, Stephen, and we know it, so don't listen to those who say otherwise.

Yes, what she said.

(waves) Hiya, Stephen! :)

lol @ I could have pushed Mr. Clark down the nearest flight of stairs. Sorry to hear Death's Dominion was so bad. I still have yet to read anything by him, but eventually! (mumbles) I'm such a liar. ;)

Nora: Sorry! Call it reciprocal ill-will. The wretched soul-suckers really got to me. :(

Thanks Amber, and I totally agree. It might be possible that certain types of people gravitate towards certain types of beliefs, but it's probably a small percentage. ...maybe...

Sara: Hi! Blood Crazy was much better than Death's Dominion. Also, you'r not a very good liar if you tell people you lie right after doing it! :P

Good to know. Yeah, I'm a really crappy liar. :P I've got to learn how to lie better.

Wait, now I don't know if you lying or telling the truth... :P

You'll never know, will you? ;)

I...I...ummmm...I DON'T KNOW! :o

Poor, Stephen. I'm really not trying to mess with your head. I'm really not. Or am I? >:)

>190 scaifea: I agree with Amber. Haters gonna hate, as the cool kids might say. Wait, do they still say that? I've never been one, so I'm just guessing anyhow. But sorry you had a rough day, Stephen.

lol @ 199. Such a cute confused face it is. :)

>183 Ape: Say what?!

Listen to Amber >190 scaifea: I am willing to bet that those women have probably never worked - for a pay check - in their lives and have no clue about the current economic situation, the job front and pretty much everything else in between. I speak from experience. My mom has never worked outside of raising the family and gets all of her 'sound' information from talk radio. I love her to bits but I have had more than a few tough conversations with her about the 'realities of life' during my visits home and she now understands - a bit more anyways - about the harsher realities that certain segments of the population don't know about and probably choose to not know about, like the current economic front.

Foggi: Haha, I'm as clueless as you are when it comes to the cool kids. "Haters gonna hate" sounds much more intelligent coming from you, though! :)

Sara: I'm really hoping I don't look like that when I'm in public...

Lori: Sadly, the evil woman is a business owner, and is well-off financially. She was hating on her son (my sister's boyfriend) because he doesn't have a job - because he works at the family business and I guess this doesn't count as a real job, then my sister got included because she doesn't go to church and doesn't have a job either (she also works at the family business.) Then I was included in the hate-storm because I'm worse than both of them combined, not working, not going to church, and no girlfriend at my age! Apparently they are surprised I haven't killed myself already. *Rolls eyes*

Wow, I feel for you and your sister - and your sister's boyfriend! She sounds like one very unhappy women.

Yeah, definitely. Apparently she regularly blows up on people who give her business a bad rating online, and regularly slams her (ex)customers on Facebook. Very unhappy, indeed.

I feel for you, regarding the Catholic aspect..the "personal' is just nasty....and people can be so judgmental...and so "mental"

J

((Stephen)) :( I hate judgmental people. I don't like people who use something (like religion) as an excuse to be nasty, hateful people.

Thanks Jude and Tamara. :)

#203: But if you did, you'd get so many people (mainly women) going, "Aawww!" and petting you on the head. :)

The Queen of Posting Pointless Pics Says:

Really!?!? Maybe I need to practice that face in the mirror.

I can only vouch for the first half of that picture, but I'm inclined to agree. :P

11. Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood



Pages: 447
Rating: 4/5

Fiction: Coming of Age/Feminism
Library Checkout

Elaine lived a nomadic life, as a child. Her father was a entomologist, moving from place to place, so her early childhood is a blur of forests, cheap motels, and living with only as many possessions as she can carry. When her father gets a stable job and they settle down, Elaine gets to go to school for the first time, but she struggles to fit in with the other girls and has to learn the hard way how to act in public around other people her age.

Cat's Eye follows Elane throughout her life and ruminates on the various time periods she experiences first hand. Now a famous painter, her observant nature allows her to analyze the events of the world and her life in a perceptive and illuminating way.

I really liked Cat's Eye. It lacked the punch of some of her other books that I've read, but it still has a lot to say. She focuses on feminism towards the end of the novel and it begins to feel a bit dated and a little hypocritical, but Atwood is a formidable voice when it comes to the subject and I have a tremendous amount of respect for her and what she has to say in her books.

Huh. I don't think I'd even heard of that Atwood before. Glad to hear that you liked it!

Thanks, Amber! It was published in 1988, so it's this month's Birth Year book for me. :)

Cool! I love your birth year book reading idea.

Thanks! (Again). So far the books have been pretty fantastic, so I'm pretty happy with it.

I'm tempted to see what's out there for my birth year. As if I don't have enough lists right now...

Haha! Do you have a master list that lists all your lists?

I have a manila folder stuffed chock full of them...

Oh dear! This is worse than I thought... :P

Perhaps I'll post of photo of the folder over on my thread...
Be prepared...

Yay for liking another Atwood!

I keep steering clear of Atwood but I have to say you make Cat's Eye sound very appealing. Wonderful review, Stephen!

Like Amber, I really enjoy your Birth Year book reads. I like it so much, I am thinking of making a category based on that idea for my 2015 category challenge.

Amber: I'll have to see if I can load it... :P

Micky: Yeah! And Canada plays a major role in this one. Elaine moves about in it when she is young, and later when she becomes a painter she moves from place to place as well to display her art.

Lori: Don't steer clear of her! If I can like her, anyone can! :P

It's a fun challenge, I would certainly encourage more people to try it.

This thread is getting a little picture-heavy, so a new thread is up! :)