Ape's 2014 Challenge (6)

Currently reading: Wolf Moon
Currently playing (PS4): Diablo III
Currently playing (Vita): DanganRonpa: Trigger Happy Havoc



Current library checkouts:
Book: Quesadillas by Juan Pablo Villalobos (Due: Oct. 8)
Music: Deceiver of the Gods by Amon Amarth (Due: Oct. 8)
Game: Need for Speed: Rivals (Due: Oct. 10)


Thread #1 (Books 1-4)
Thread #2 (Books 5-11)
Thread #3 (Books 12-18)
Thread #4 (Books 19-24)
Thread #5 (Books 25-35)


Books: 41
Pages: 11,828

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
12. Bone in the Throat by Anthony Bourdain
13. The Hammer of God by Arthur C. Clarke
14. Divine Misfortune by A. Lee Martinez
15. Cold Plague by Daniel Kalla

April:
16. The Secret Life of Lobsters by Trevor Corson
17. The Book of Ruth by Jane Hamilton
18. Harvest by Jim Crace

May:
19. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
20. The Third Eye by David Knowles
21. The Garlic Ballads by Mo Yan
22. Saucer by Stephen Coonts

June
23. Saucer: The Conquest by Stephen Coonts
24. Saucer: Savage Planet by Stephen Coonts
25. The Gift of Stones by Jim Crace
26. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

July:
27. Strong in the Rain by Lucy Brimingham
28. Epileptic by David B
29. Zodiac by Neal Stephenson
30. How To Survive a Robot Uprising by Daniel H. Wilson
31. How to Build a Robot Army by Daniel H. Wilson
32. Stitches by David Small

August:
33. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
34. Sand and Fire by Tom Young
35. The Changeling Sea by Patricia A. McKillip
36. Crazy by Linda Vigen Phillips

September:
37. Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain by A. Lee Martinez
38. The Arrival by Shaun Tan
39. Spartan by Valerio Massimo Manfredi
40. The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells
41. Quesadillas by Juan Pablo Villalobos



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
April: The Book of Ruth by Jane Hamilton
May: The Garlic Ballads by Mo Yan
June: The Gift of Stones by Jim Crace
July: Zodiac by Neal Stephenson
August: The Changeling Sea by Patricia A. McKillip
September: Spartan by Valerio Massima Manfredi

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

Games: 32

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
10. Puppeteer
11. South Park: The Stick of Truth

April:
12. Prototype 2
13. Infamous: Second Son
14. Soul Sacrifice
15. LittleBigPlanet Vita

May:
16. Dead Space 3
17. Rayman Legends
18. Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon

June:
19. Split/Second
20. Persona 4 Golden
21. Modnation Racers: Road Trip
22. Watch Dogs

July:
23. Spy Hunter
24. Ratchet and Clank 2: Going Commando
25. Trials Fusion

August:
26. LEGO The Hobbit
27. Rainbow Moon
28. The Last of Us
29. Call of Duty: Ghosts
30. Ys: Memories of Celceta

September:
31. Need for Speed: Rivals
32. LittleBigPlanet Karting

New Thread! New Thread!

.... that's about all I have.

*looks around for a safe place to sit down*

Now caught up with your previous thread and sorry to learn that you are suffering with a toothache. I hate toothaches.... I don't deal with pain very well. Here is hoping it is something minor that can be easily addressed.

Hi Lori! Welcome! I'm generally pretty stoic, but tooth pain is no fun. Fortunately I'm feeling pretty alright at the moment, with the help of some Alieve, so hopefully it's just cracked (again) and will heal over the next few days.

In video game console news, things just keep getting worse. I had to request a Call of Duty game from the library (for non-gamers, it's like the Twilight/50 Shades of Gray of the video game industry) and I just realized that my most favoritest game series of all time is now on sale on the Vita for $9.99, but only for 1 weekend. I had that much on my account last week, but after my console was stolen and my account was jeopardized, I quickly spent it on an impulse buy so the thief wouldn't have access to it. Unfortunately, I have no way to get money on my account before the flash sale ends. Blargh!

Since everything is so negative on my thread, I'll mention that I'm really liking the book I'm reading now, and since it's a novel in verse it's going quickly. :)

Happy new thread. Even though I'm still bitter you disturbed my internet sleep yesterday morning. ;)

since it's a novel in verse it's going quickly.

Well, fine. Peak my interest why don't you. ;-)

Looking forward to finding out what novel in verse you are reading, and what you think of it!

Happy new thread, Stephen!

*hums to self while setting up Canadian corner*

Happy reading and playing!

Hi Leah! You know I always do the opposite of what I'm told. :P

Hi Lori! I post what I'm reading in the opening post of my thread. *Points up* It's called Crazy by Linda Vigen Phillips, it's an ER book and I believe it is scheduled to be released in October.

Hi Micky! *Spreads pigs blood all over the white walls of the Canadian Corner* There, see, I can be patriotic. :D

Hi Milessa! Thanks, unfortunately staring at bright screens isn't doing my toothache any good so I haven't been playing much over the past couple days, but hopefully that'll improve soon.

Happy New Thread, Stephen! I hope your tooth gets better soon - I've been there and it's no fun at all.

Hi Stephen! (waves) Sorry to hear about your tooth. That sucks. :( But I'm glad you're liking Crazy. I'll have to look for that one.

>9 Ape: Gross! *moves over to the UK corner to have a cuppa and avoid Stephen's creepiness*

Ooh; am I in the UK corner?

Get that tooth sorted out, Stephen; it'll only get worse otherwise.

>13 humouress: You can be in whatever corner you like, Nina. We're all part of the Commonwealth. :)

Amber: It seems to be better today, so that's good!

Sara: *Waves back* Crazy is kind of girly too, don't tell Micky. :P

Micky: Y'know, with all these corners devoted to various parts of the world you are really just encouraging the whole "America is the center of the universe" mentality. ...thanks for that. :D

Humouress: Fortunately, it DOES seem to be getting better. But you advice is solid, I had an infected tooth a couple years ago and waited 5 days before doing anything about it. That was probably a mistake.

Happy new thread! Hope your tooth feels better soon. Random question are you any good with naming old cartoons?

#15: It looked kind of girly, but I was trying to hold my sexist tongue. ;) And I'd probably read Crazy, too, except isn't it poetry? I have yet to like poetry, except for books by Shel Silverstein or Dr. Seuss.

America IS the center of the universe! What're you going on about? :P

I remember that tooth problem. Was it a few years ago? Wow, time flies. I probably offered then, but do you want me to pull this one out too? ;)

#16: Oh, cartoons! Yay! :) Old to Stephen = anything from the 90's.

#17 do you know anyone on here thats good 80's cartoons?

Some of us are children of the 80's (myself included :), so ask away. I'm sure somebody on this thread will know the cartoon you're looking for. :)

I'm hit or miss on 80's cartoons, but know a decent amount from the combination of hand-me-downs and late night reruns, lol. So as Sara said, ask away :)

Or you could try these sites: 80sCartoons.net and/or 80sCartoons.co.uk. (I'm sure there are more sites out there, but I'm lazy. ;)

It is a cartoon about a boy that befriends a wolf after losing his mother. I was born in the 80's I remember seeing a lot of the early 80's stuff on Saturday morning re runs. Oh so happy days!

Oh, man, that's a tough one. I did a quick google and there are some anime movies involving wolves (mostly in the 90's though). I can't think of any cartoon series involving a motherless boy and his wolf. Sorry. :(

That is OK. I have a friend who has been strugling with this for a couple of days so he decided to pass the buck. He did also mention something about a old woodcarver in the same show.

Hmmm, I don't know it right off. The only wolf shows I can think of were after the 80s. You might try Yahoo Questions--they're surprisingly good with some of these things.

Happy New Thread!! Love your Birth Year Challenge--I'll have to remember that one for next year. Bummer about the tooth--senidng good mojo. : )

Sara: It's a novel in "verse"
Which means the sentences
are cut
into pieces
without rhyme or reason

You could just as easily
type this into
a regular sentence

But apparently
some people feel all fancy and poetic
if they type out their sentences
and then break them into lines.

Yeah, I know, I should write in verse. Obviously I'm amazing at it, as you can see.

Oh, oops, I messed that up, let me try again.

Yeah, I know
I should write
in verse

Obvioulsy I'm amazing at it
as you can see

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

Sara: Yeah, the other tooth was 2 years ago (around Thanksgiving of 2012) so it's been awhile. Unfortunatley, the tooth is better, so you missed your chance to pull it out. :P

Bryony/Katie: Yeah, I'm not at all familiar with cartoon. I was born in 1988, so I mostly grew up with 90's cartoons. Things like Doug and Pepper Anne.

I can't get the page to load on my slow connection, but you could try this page.

Thanks Kim! The Birth Year Challenge is pretty fun, I was worried I wouldn't be able to find enough books to fit but I've been using a larger library that is part of a huge system of libraries, with internet requests, so I've got plenty to choose from. I currently own 3 books published in 1988 so I just need to check out 1 more from the library next month and I'll be able to complete the challenge fine. :)

Pepper Ann, Pepper Ann, much too cool for seventh grade.

That's the one! :)

#24-25: Hmm, nope, a woodcarver doesn't ring any bells either. Sorry again. :) I'm with Katie: maybe Yahoo! or some such site might be able to locate it. Or you could try googling it with various tags. Kind of related, I was able to find an old movie that way yesterday when I was looking for yours (mine was Winds of Change, an animated movie I saw in the 80's and have spent nearly 20 years trying to track down. Go me!). Best of luck! :)

#27: Gotcha! ;)

I flippin'
hate poetry
even though
I know songs are
basically
poetry.

Thanks for explaining Crazy to me all the same. I might skip it now. It seems like those Crank books.

What?? Nooo! Your tooth can't be feeling better now. (pouts, then a light bulb goes off) Candy, Stephen? I've got oodles. (quickly hides his toothbrush, feeling kind of Willy Wonka creepy)

Yep, my tooth feels better. Sorry to disappoint you. :P

Well, today was an unexpectedly exciting day. I got up thinking I was just going to run to the library to pick up some books, but my sister told me this morning that her boyfriend wanted to go to Lancaster to look for a book in a local used Bookstore up there. So of course I was invited, and how could I turn that down??

So, we stopped at the library so I could pick a few items I had on hold, including my next read - Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinster Brain.

Then we hit the bookstore, but they didn't have the book he was looking for. So we went out for pizza and discussed what we would do next. Somehow we ended up deciding to go to near-Columbus and visit a Barnes and Noble. Being a small-town guy who has mostly only visited local bookshops, I was a bit wonderstruck. :P

After browsing for a VERY LONG TIME I ended up coming home with a collection of H.G. Wells novels. I'm counting that as the rest of my Thingaversary books, since I don't have any more money to spend.

Most exciting of all is the fact that my non-reader sister bought 3 books. Three! I'm so proud. :P

I forgot to mention that the small local used bookstore had CATS. 2 of them. There was a little nook in the window where 1 was sleeping, the other one followed my sister about the shop for a minute or 2 and then stretched out across the bargain books section.

>32 Ape: 'I was a bit wonderstruck' I recommend sitting down with a long, cool book.

Three books? Good on ya; it must have been your influence - peer pressure, maybe.

#31: Apology accepted. :P

#32: Fun times! :) I don't think I've read anything by H. G. Wells. I've only seen the movie adaptations of his books. I know, I know. (hangs head) But I'm glad you had an "unexpectedly exciting day." And congrats on putting three books in your sister's bag without her looking. ;)

#33: Yay! Cats! :) I wish more bookstores did that, except I'd probably play with the cats more than I'd look at books.

One of the used bookstores in my home town has cats as well. They're pretty awesome.

Happy you had an awesome day. :)

Humouress: That's the plan! :)

Sara: I've only read The Time Machine, and I've wanted to read more of his books for years, but my library only has 1 other book of his, so I had to snap up the collection when I saw it. Especially since it was only $8 for a big, hefty hardcover edition.

And yes, my sister mostly played with the cats instead of looking at the books.

Micky: Thanks! The cats were awesome...although I must admit the Starbucks in the Barnes and Noble was pretty snazzy as well. :P

36. Crazy by Linda Vigen Phillips



Pages: 308
Rating: 4/5

Fiction
Owned (Early Reviewers book)

Crazy is a novel told in verse about Laura, young girl growing up in the 1960's - a time in which it is taboo to talk about mental illness. As such, she is always coming up with excuses for why her friends can't come to her house and why her mother is always so...absent. But as her mother's illness intensifies and mounting fears that whatever is wrong with her could be hereditary, Laura has no choice but to demand answers from the adults around her who are trying to hard to keep secret what is really wrong with her mom, lest she go crazy herself.

I really liked the book. I've read a novel-in-verse or 2 in the past and they always seem to do a great job of focusing on the emotion of a scene, and this is certainly a good example of that. It also did a great job of demonstrating the confusion and lack of information about mental illness during the time period, and the revelation at the end is both heartbreaking and deeply encouraging. It demonstrates how important it is to be open and honest about such things, regardless of how difficult it is.

Hey again Ape, How R things.

>38 Ape: Hey, a book with a person on the cover! Progress!

Hey Xymon. I've had a string of bad luck - My ps3 was stolen, I had a severe toothache for 3 days, and now I seem to be getting sick. I miss my old youthful invincibility, when I went a solid decade without ever getting sick once, but now I've gotten sick 3 years in a row. *Grumbles like an old geezer*

Foggi: Surely it doesn't count because...ummmm... *Thinks* Because it's an ER book! Yeah! And I had to read it. Against my will. *Nods*

Stephen! You should have saved Crazy for next month so you could participate in the Suicide and Mental Illness theme read. Go post your review over on that thread, too. Or at least post a link to your review on that thread. (Yes, I'm ordering you around.)

http://www.librarything.com/topic/178609

I hope you feel better soon! Hopefully we'll catch each other on yahoo over the weekend. I have a "date" tonight, so we won't be chatting.

I will certainly do that. Should I wait a few days until next month to post it, though?

That sucks, well hopefully it blows over quickly. Have you read any of the Robopocalypse series ? I have both books right now and getting ready to read them back to back

#36: Lucky! :) I love (alive) cat-filled bookstores.

#37: Your library only has one other copy?? Bad library! Bad, bad! :P You were smart in buying a big collection of his work. I hope you like. :)

Well, your sister is pretty cool in my eyes. Cats and books are both pretty darn awesome to me. :)

#38: Loved your review and thumbed you. That does seem like a very deep read. I'm glad you were able to finish it and, more importantly, like it. :)

#41: (snickers @ *Grumbles like an old geezer*) Welcome to geezerdom, my friend. Prune?

#42: I know the message wasn't meant for me, but thanks for posting the link. I might join, maybe. My sister committed suicide in September, so it might be a hard time to read books on it. But then, it might help. Who knows. :)

Xymon: Robopocalypse has been on my radar since shortly after it was released, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. I didn't realize it was part of a series though.

Sara: Are you going to spank my library now? I have very mixed and confusing feeling about this. :P

My sister is pretty cool in my eyes too, but don't let her know I said that.

Thanks for the thumb. It's been awhile for this old geezer.
(Don't take that the wrong way)

*Hugs*

August Summary:

Books: 4
Pages: 1,024

Fiction: 4
Nonfiction: 0

Owned: 2
Library checkout: 2

Video Game Summary

Games: 5

Owned: 1
Library checkout: 1
Borrowed: 3

Playstation Vita: 2
Playstation 3: 0
Playstation 4: 3

Sending you get-well mojo and tooth-be-healed-now thoughts! Love the book buying. HG wells is a good bet. And way to rub off on your book-buying sister. ; )

Thanks, Kim!

I'll be seeing my sister later today. I'll laugh if she has finished her book, she read 140 pages in 1 night the day she started it!! I've been reading my book for 4 days and I'm...ummmm, 117 pages into it. D'oh.

Not only has my sister almost finished her book, she bought 2 more on Amazon over the weekend! :P

It is the first book in a series, the second book Robogenesis was just released a month or so back

#46: I'm confused now, too. Do I spank the building itself? Or the patrons? Or the staff? I don't think my paddle can handle all that spanking.

My lips are sealed about your sister. (zips lips and tosses key) Unless she tortures me. Then it might slip out.

Ha! Even old geezers need a good thumbing every now and then. Ahem. Something tells me we're no longer talking about above-the-waist appendages anymore.

*Hugs back atacha*

lol-ing over #50-51. I should've bet on your sister. What's she into reading?

>49 Berly: >51 Ape: Right. What I meant was, I hope your sister rubs off on you!!

> 54 That doesnt sound any better...lol

Xymon: Okay, thanks! I don't usually like to start series until all the books have been released, so I think I'll wait awhile more. :)

Sara: I'll leave it up to the spanking expert to make that decision. There are above-the-waist appendages? Weird, I've never noticed. :P

My sister likes zombies, horror, apocalypse/dystopia, and YA fantasy, apparently. She didn't tell me the 2 books she ordered from Amazon but when we shopped at Barnes and Noble she bought a collection of Edgar Allen Poe, Three by Jay Posey, and The Kiss of Deception by Mary Pearson.

I really hope you appreciate that link to the Jay Posey book, because it was a nightmare to find. It's weird how you search "Three" in the Librarything search box and you get ALL KINDS OF CRAP except books named Three. One would think that a book called "Three" would come up first, and THEN "The Three Muskateers" would come up. But no. -.- I had to use Google.

Kim: I just want to point out that I read your original post with complete, utter innocence. It was Xymon, not me!

I can't help where my mind gravitates too.

Me either, but that doesn't stop everyone around these parts fixing me with a stern glare. :P

I only get those at home from the wife sometimes,

You have my sympathies.

In other news, my sister ordered another book from Amazon yesterday when I was over for pizza, and she's going to Barnes and Noble again today with her boyfriend. She's out of control! :P

Good grief! Either she's been a closet reader or you've created a book monster. One of the best kind, IMHO.

>56 Ape: By the way, you've heard of arms, right?

Sorry, as a young man I refuse to acknowledge any other appendage. :P

I've definitely created a monster. Hopefully she doesn't hit a bad book and get discouraged though!

In book-related news, I finished Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain, which was quite hilarious. Perhaps I'll get around to reviewing it tomorrow...or over the weekend sometime. :)

I'm starting Divine Misfortune today. Just thought I'd let you know...

Yay! I just finished another book by him (the one mentioned in the post above yours) and really liked that one too.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. :)

37. Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain by A. Lee Martinez



Pages: 293
Rating: 4/5

Humor/Science Fiction

Emperor Mollusk is an evil genius, although he would probably dispute the evil part. Sure, he has conquered a world or two, forced the people of Earth to worship him through mind control, and maybe invented a few doomsday devices in his day. Does that make him evil? Mostly he was just bored, and particularly skilled at conquest, is that a crime?

Now Emperor Mollusk, retired ex-warlord of Terra, faces a new threat. A disembodied brain who is hell-bent on destroying him and his favorite planet. Mollusk isn't super excited about playing the hero, but hey, someone is trying to kill him, and he doesn't have much else to do, so why not?

I've read a couple of books by the author in the past, but this one was particularly hilarious. I loved the antics of Mollusk in particular, who may officially be one of my favorite book characters of all time. I devoured most of the book pretty quickly too, although it did bog down in the latter half as the plot began to feel a bit thin. Nevertheless, I happily read without care because, quite frankly, I didn't care about the plot so much as the dialogue.

If you are a fan of the likes of Christopher Moore and Terry Pratchet, you should really give A. Lee Martinez a try. Though I've only read 3 of this books now, I've loved all of them, and I will definitely be reading more of his work soon.

Whelp, that'll likely be another one for the wishlist, then...

Haha, yeah...

3 great books means I can officially add him to my favorite author list. Now, which one of his books should I read next... :)

38. The Arrival by Shaun Tan



Pages: 124
Rating: 4/5

Graphic Novel
Library checkout

I can say with confidence that this is the single most beautifully illustrated book I have ever read. The drawings are stunning! The story is great too, which is all the more impressive considering it is told without a single word. The artist conveys the difficulties involved with immigrating to a new place in an unique yet totally honest way, and does it with art that is really unrivaled as far as I'm concerned. I've been enthusiastic about art in graphic novels before, but this stuff could really be hung on a wall, it's that good.

If you have any interest at all in the graphic format...or, more importantly, if you have no interest in it at all and have trouble getting into the format, then you should check this one out. Yes, that means EVERYBODY. You can read it in a day, it'll be fine.

TWO books in ONE day!?!??!??!?!!

Well, I finished the Martinez book yesterday, and The Arrival was a 120-page book...with no words... :P

The Arrival has been on my list for yonks. Need to get round to it soon.

It's a good one, Amber!

So, have you made any progress in Divine Misfortune?

Edit: Nevermind, read your thread, I'm glad you are enjoying it! :)

It's hilarious!! I'm so going to print out his bibliography and start reading all of his stuff. So, um, thanks for that.

Haha, well, that makes 2 of us! And...um, you're welcome. :P

You got me with the Martinez book, Stephen!

Bwahahahaha! *Ahem* Errrr, I mean, I hope you like it.

Well, I'm officially bummed out. Y'know the big awesome library system with the cool internet request feature? Well, they updated their website, and it's not loadable on my dial-up, so I can't use it anymore. Hurray.

Or, at least, I THINK it's not working. I can't get it to load on my computer, but I did get it to load on my Vita while tethering off of a wifi hotspot. I'm assuming that means my internet is just too slow, although I could be lucky and it's just that the mobile site loads fine by the regular version is still buggy.

So, does anyone want to test it for me? The website is here. If anyone can get the "My FCDL Account" button to work, or type anything in the search box and get results, let me know. I try to do either of those and get a "page cannot be displayed" error every time.

Y'know the big awesome library system with the cool internet request feature? Well, they updated their website, and it's not loadable on my dial-up, so I can't use it anymore.

OMG.... did they go to a web 2.0 environment? Sorry... went to the site you provided a link to and they have gone web 2.0. My visit to the site does not display a "My FCDL Account" button but typing in a random search item "Hearne" it did give me a search result of all of the Kevin Hearne books in their system. Of course, I cannot judge based on internet as I have high speed but I think it is could be the browser. Maybe all you need to do is change and upgrade your browser? I am currently running Firefox 31.0 at work I am at the cross roads of requiring two web browsers to do my job - one for proprietary web-based information internal to our organization and one that enables me to get the information I need out in WWW.

Hope this info helps.

*Sigh* Thanks for the info, Lori.

I tried it on Google Chrome and could technically get it to load, but it failed and crashed several times for every 1 time I got a page to load so it's basically completely unusable.

Sigh. SIGH.

Well, it was nice while it lasted. -.-

Oh... not good. can't help. Sorry! ;-(

Try going here instead: https://catalog.clcohio.org/Mobile/MyAccount/Logon

For searching: https://catalog.clcohio.org/mobile//Search/Results/?f=a&l=TOM%3d*&s=KW&a...
where you replace the asterisks with your search term

Also, are you using an ad-blocking add-on? Maybe if you can block pictures then the full site will work better.

Both of those give me an instantaneous Page Can't Be Displayed errors, just like when I click them from the website.

Firefox used to have the option to not display picture, which I didn't like because it broke websites, but now that I want to use it I can't seem to find it. Did they remove the option in the newest version?

Okay, I figured out how to remove pictures with Firefox 32.0 and I can KIND OF load it, but it's pretty broken and difficult to navigate. If I can just use it next month for my October theme read I'll be happy enough. That is, until November rolls around and I get re-angry again at the inconvenience.

Re-angry? Love the term. :) But I am seriously sorry to hear the site is giving you attitude. Boo. (hugs) I did visit the link you gave in mss #77, and I was able to load the site ok. No issues on my end, but I was using IE, if that means anything. I don't use Firefox very often. (And I checked out their employment section. No new hires, huh? :( Well, I've got my fingers crossed they'll hire you!)

Backing up to mss #56: I'm glad your sister is as cool as you. :) She has some awesome reads lined up! I'd probably read them all, though I'm not much of an Edgar Allan Poe fan. Go figure. I love horror, but some of his stuff is dull.

And I'll do a run-by spanking at your library; how's that? Anything within arm's reach is fair game. >:) Well, except children, books, and animals, of course.

#68: I think I've tried "reading" that one once before, but I either didn't understand its wordlessness or I was working so I couldn't finish it. Anyway, I'm super early to work today, so I'll go see if we have it on our shelves. Thanks! :) ETA: We don't have it, but I placed a hold on it.

>83 Ape: Would you trust one of us with your login info and we could place the holds for you? Not a great long-term strategy but it'd get you through for now.

Sorry about the whole library/browser thing. So annoying!!!! On to a brighter subject...I love your two book reviews. I really do have to try some more graphic novels.

Sara: She has 9 BOOKS now!! :o

High speed spanking, huh? Maybe we can make a game show out of that.

Also, yay for books without words.

Leah: Of course I would trust you ladies with my login information. Of course, if you had that information you'd also be able to figure out my full name, so if I trusted you, I'm afraid I'd have to kill you. :P

Kim: Thanks! It is annoying, but that has always been my experience with the internet. Websites get bigger and fancier and the number of them I can visit dwindles daily.

Are you able to place a hold using your Vita? (The last handheld I owned was a Gameboy Color, so I'm ridiculously ignorant of any newer). Though, I'm not sure where you were when accessing wifi. . . . I assume it wasn't your home. . . . which wouldn't help much with the Vita thing. Errrrgh. Sorry.

#87: Oh nooos! She's on her way to being a book addict. You've got to stop her! ;)

High speed spanking. Hmm, that gives me wonderfully creepy ideas. I wish I were an inventor, because I'd create the spanking machine booth. Give a quarter; get a spanking. :) I'm sure there's a market for it Denmark. (ETA: I just googled spanking machines and, alas, my million-dollar invention has already been invented. *sigh*)

Katie: I was tethering off my mom's cellphone. I can also access public wifi at the library...which kind of defeats the purpose. :P

Sara: Maybe you can improve the spanking machine with metal studs and nipple twisters.

>87 Ape: I think you're not quite understanding the trust thing.

You may have a point.

I trust the LT ladies understand my paranoia and trust issues by now. :P

>87 Ape: if I trusted you, I'm afraid I'd have to kill you

Either your definitions or your logic is waaaay off, methinks.

My logic is flawless! My conclusions, on the other hand...

>68 Ape:. Yes! I'm a big fan of The Arrival, too. I'm reading/looking at his sketchbook The Bird King now.

Yeah, I really need to check my library to see if they have more of his stuff. :)

Okay, I may need some help, as I always seem to around this time of year. I'm planning my October theme read, and I have 3 out of the 4 books I want to read. I just need help finding a vampire horror novel that is non-sparkly and non-romancey smut. I need the vampires to be horrible monsters, so the book shouldn't be told from the vampire's perspective, and I would really prefer that the main character didn't blow the vampire 10 pages after she meets him, please.

In the past I have read 'Salem's Lot and Midnight Mass, so anything like that would be great. I'm totally okay with campy leisure horror as well. The important thing is that it is dark and scary, with NO SEXY ROMANTIC VAMPIRES. And that it is firmly rooted in the horror genre, not urban fantasy.

I know, it's a tall order, but I'm pretty sure there must be a non-romantic vampire book out there smoewhere. ;)

So, anyone know of anything? I'm somewhat interested in Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin, but it's several hundred pages in length so I'm trying to find an alternative, because I need to fit several books into the month of October and don't want get stuck in a big book for too long.

>97 Ape: Have you read The Historian? I really enjoyed that one.

So not Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story or You Suck: A Love Story or Bite Me: A Love Story? Those are my favorite vampire books, but I'm not a big horror fan so I go for the hilarious twist most times.

I really enjoyed fevre dream. I thought it was an intersting take on vampires. The Historian was good too but very lengthy. I also have read Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Micky: I haven't read The Historian, but considering your aversion to horror I have to ask: Is it scary?

Leah: Haha, although I do want to read those because I love Christopher Moore's books, I won't be reading them during October. :P

Xymon: Abrahama Lincoln: Vampire Hunter could be taken into consideration, though I don't know if the silliness of the Abraham Lincoln connection would distract me from the horror.

Right now I'm leaning towards Blood Red because it's vampires, it's horror, and it takes place on Halloween. :P

I may also need ANY vampire/werewolf/zombie/haunting book from 1988, as I need to satisfy my birth year challenge. I currently own Wolf Moon by Charles de Lint and I'm considering it for my werewolf book, but it's more urban fantasy than horror so I'm not sure.

I also know of Haunted by James Herbert and Empire of Fear by Brian Stableford, both published in 1988, but my library doesn't have Haunted, and Empire of Fear isn't very horror-y.

Dont let the idiotic movie fool you, if you saw it. The book i found very suspensful. It was worth the read and the i even picked up Unholy Night after that. Read this one closer to Christmas if you celebrate it.

Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! :P (pirouettes through Stephen's thread, throwing glitter)

What about Dark Angels: Lesbian Vampire Erotica? No guys get blown in that one, I'm pretty sure. ;) Actually, I'm drawing a blank on this request. I read too many girly/juvenile/smutty vampire books to help. Blood Red does sound good, and all the above suggestions are great! But why no Christopher Moore? I would think his vampire books would be perfect, funny or not. (snickering over the Empire of Fear covers) Oh, 80's! How I love your cheesy covers. Btw, what site was it you could find books published your birth year? I'd like to help out, but I'm not finding it. Good luck either way! :)

*ahem*Twilight*ahem*

ETA: The Queen of the Damned was published in 1988, but I'm not sure if Anne Rice's vampires would interest you. Not very scary stuff. Oh and Necroscope II: Wamphyri, but I'm guessing you need to read it in order, like with The Queen of the Damned, or mass confusion may ensue. Another couple 1988 vampire books: Vampire Hunter D: Mysterious Journey to the North Sea, Those Who Hunt the Night.

>101 Ape: Not like blood and guts horror but atmospheric scary in spots.

Xymon: I'll keep that in mind. :)

Sara: No, no Twilight! Also, no Christopher Moore because I'm supposed to fill my month with dark horror books, and Christopher Moore doesn't fit that category. As for where I find my Birth Year books, you can do that right here. Find a book that was publich in 1988 (like Empire of Fear) and, in the Common Knowledge section, you'll notice the date of publication is a clickable link. Click it, and it'll show you tons of books published that year.

Also, no erotica either. :P

I actually want to read the Necroscope books, they seem interesting, but I won't be able to do that for the theme read unfortunately.

Micky: That's basically what I'm looking for. Unfortunately, the book seems to be even larger than Fevre Dream. D'oh!

Just saying Hi!

No funny. No sex. But must be scary. Well, the 80's definitely had some splatterpunk books, but I'm not sure if they involved vampires. I'll check around.

And thanks for letting me know about the Common Knowledge section. I had clicked on that, but it didn't give me a whole lot. I've noticed a lot of books don't have the CK section filled out.

The Passage, but that one is pretty long. World War Z, but I didn't feel the horror much on that one. Salem's Lot by Stephen King. I never could get into King's books but I know he does horror very well. I've also heard some good things about The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro. Those are the ones I can think of.

Kim: Hi!! :)

Sara: Yes, just like my social life, no funny and no sex. ;)

I used to fill out all the common knowledge of every book I owned and checked out of the library, but I stopped doing that years ago. Perhaps I should start again...

Milissa: I've read The Passage, World War Z, and Salem's Lot and loved all of them! I own The Strain, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to read it because it's a series book, and I don't own the other 2.

Does anyone know if The Strain ends conclusively, or if the trilogy is a continuous storyline?

Maybe the classic Carmilla for your vampire read? I haven't read it yet, but it's on my list. One of the firsts that influenced the genre. I don't know how scary it would be for modern readers though.

Unfortunately, I watch more vampire stories than I read, so I'm not much help :/

No funny and no sex. But what about funny sex? :P

Thank you so much for keeping up on the common knowledge section!! :) I love it when people do that. I try to keep up (which is next to never), but maybe if I got internet again, I might be able to fill some of those gaps.

Glancing through some of the reviews of The Fall (book #2), it looks like it may be a continuous storyline. But I'm just guessing. I haven't read the book or series yet. Those are all excellent recommendations Kassilem gave!

#110: Carmilla might be a good one, too, especially since it's supposed to be a short read. I'm the same way: I watch more vampire movies than read vampire books.

I would've recommended the ever-popular Interview with the Vampire, but I can't imagine it being scary (though the movie made me jump a couple times). I tried reading it several times, but could never get into it.

I'm not sure if you want to count short stories/novellas for your October/1988 reads, but I found out Stephen King's "The Night Flier" (a vampire story) was published in 1988 and is available in Nightmares and Dreamscapes and Prime Evil edited by Douglas E. Winter. Are short stories or novellas something you'd be interested in?

ETA: And what about R. L. Stine? I think he had some cheesy teen books out in the 80's. Your call. :)

Katie: Oh, yes, I think I added that to my "look into this one" list, but haven't done that yet. Noted!

Sara: Nope, no funny sexy in my social life either. :P Thanks for the info regarding The Strain, I didn't want to read the reviews for the following books because of spoilers, so that's a big help.

I was under the impression that Anne Rice invented the sparkly vampire, or am I mistaken? :P

I'll keep the Stephen King novella in mind for the future, as I am now 1 book short for the 1988 challenge now that I had to read Spartan this month, due to the fact that I couldn't get into the library to get one this month.

I haven't read any Rice, but I've seen many of the movie adaptations. From what I have experienced, her vampires never sparkle and do in fact adhere to many of the typical vampire rules. They are, however, usually physically attractive and lust worthy, but they are varied enough to be ruthless killers, dilettantes, or brooding creatures sad about the state of their soul.

Maybe I'm wrong but I think it was definitely Twilight that made sparkles ok in vampire land. Well, ok meaning bankable not palatable.

Naw, Anne Rice liked her male vampires kind of gay; no sparkles.

Leah: I see. I'm still looking for vampires of the viscious monster variety, scratching at the window with fangs bared, etc.

Sara: So, she invented the glittery vampire. Got it. :P

Oh, yeah, I'm sure that's the politically correct term. :P

Hey, if anything can make a vampire even more scary, it's glitter. That stuff is EVIL.

So I'm guessing you pee yourself scared every time you see the Twilight stuff on TV, am I right? ;)

Stopping by with hellos and shockingly, discovering that we are approaching that time of the year. Where did the summer go?!

I have no vampire suggestions for you. Just taking down book titles. ;-)

Sara: I don't know, glitter is EVIL, but sparkly vampires just inspire murderous intent. :P

Lori: Yep, the temperatures have been dipping pretty low in Ohio the past few days so we've had a pretty bitter reminder of the coming season around here. Everyone has been complaining because all people do is complain about the weather (it's too hot, it's too cold, it's too wet, it's too dry, it's too humid, it's too windy, blah blah blah) but I think it's been wonderful. :)

Yeah, Rice's stuff isn't *scary* so I don't think that's what you're looking for. Sorry, I don't have any recommendations, since you've already read Salem's Lot...

>121 Ape: That's so true! No matter what the weather is, everyone complains. It's September! It's supposed to start getting cooler*! It's done that every single September since the dawn of time*. Get over it!

__________________________________

*In the Northern hemisphere.

#121: Maybe murderous intent from straight males. But rape intent from straight girls/gay guys.

Yea, I don't know of any other horror vampire stories. :) When you do pick one, i hope you enjoy it though!

Amber: Yeah, I thought that was the case.

Nora: Yes! I think the issue is that it hit so suddenly, so it FELT colder because we aren't acclimated to it, but seriously, it's not that big of a deal. If this is how whiny and thin-skinned we have become I'm afraid we may be terribly ill-prepared for the coming zombie apocalypse. ;)

Sara: Wait, straight girls want to rape glittery vampires? Why didn't anyone tell me sooner!

Melissa: Thanks! :)

39. Spartan by Valerio Massimo Manfredi



Pages: 314
Rating: 3/5

Historical Fiction (Ancient)
Owned

~~1988 Birth Year Challenge Book~~

This is a frustrating one for me, because this one really should be an amazing book. It's about a Spartan boy born with a deformity, a disfigured leg, that forces his parents to abandon him to the wilderness by Spartan law. He is found and raised by a helot, never knowing that he is of Spartan stock, and grows up in poverty under the oppression of the people who rejected him as a child.

It sounds like a great way to start a novel, right? It is indeed, and it only gets better from there! Unfortunately, the writing just doesn't live up to the concept. It's often dense and lacking in emotion, so I often felt disconnected from the characters, and because it takes place over about 40 years of time important events often feel glossed over and insignificant. It also ended a bit too abruptly for my own liking, and the final passage didn't have nearly as profound an effect on me as it should have.

I really want to like this book more, but despite the great concept it didn't quite live up to my expectations. I read an English translation of the text so maybe that is a contributing factor, but ultimately I can only judge what is in front of me, so unfortunately I have to resort to an average rating.

#126: All the time. We just don't say it out loud. Last time I heard, it was kind of a no-no. :P

Interesting. I know I said glitter was evil, but in light of this information I may have to rethink my position. (If you know what I mean)

What about I am Legend by Richard Matheson (very different than the Will Smith movie) or Those Who Hunt the Night by Barbara Hambly (published in 1988). I know you don't want something from the vampire point of view but Peeps by Scott Westerfeld is great. Vampirism is caused by a parasite and Westerfeld includes descriptions of other parasites throughout.

You'll definitely want to rethink your position. Because wearing glitter might attract buff gay guys who anything but gentle. But then, there are some ladies who're anything but gentle. So good luck to you if/when you decide to be a faux glitter vamp. :) Bring some pepper spray.

Dee: Oh! I had totally forgotten that the book version of I Am Legend is more vampire-y than the movie. I'll look into Peeps as well. :)

Sara: Hmmmm, I may have to rethink my rethought...

Okay, I have an interesting dilemma. Every entry in my Librarything library is a book that I've had my hands on, in a physical sense. Not only do I enter the exact edition that I own, but I also enter the exact edition I check out from a public library, with the exact cover, so if you see it in my library you know it's exactly what I saw as I was reading it.

However, recently I bought a collection of H.G. Wells novels (See above in post 32.) I don't have any intention of reading that 700+ page collection in one go, but instead plan to dip into it and read the novels individually. As I read them, I'd obviously like to post ratings and reviews for each individual books on their specific pages, as well as list here when I'm reading what.

So, it looks like I'm going to have to enter books that I don't technically own or have never actually held. For example, I started The Island of Dr. Moreau yesterday, and in order to list that I'm reading it here I am going to have to enter a random edition.

On the bright side, I don't have to sit there and way for hundreds of images to load in dial-up in order to find the EXACT cover that I'm reading.

Or you could enter the actual book and then list the individual novels and dates that you've read them in the comments...?

I could, but when I finish The Island of Dr. Moreau, for example, I want to be able to review it, to post my review on The Island of Dr. Moreau's page, and I want my rating for that specific book to count to, instead of just rating the collection as a whole when I finish it years from now.

Also, I have Collection set up on my profile listing every book I've read each year, such as "Books Read - 2014." If I do the comment thing, then I can't add The Island of Dr. Moreau to his year's collection.

How about doing both? Too much work?

Also, I have a separate account in which I log my and Charlie's library books, so that books we don't own are kept separate from the ones we do. So maybe that's a possibility, too?

>133 Ape: What I do for that scenario is add the book to my "read but unowned" collection, as if I had gotten it from the library (minus the "library" tag). I add it to my library manually (vs. picking an edition from amazon or overcat) and only enter the information I want (page number, but no ISBN, for example) so it doesn't have junk data from any specific edition.

Amber: I will probably do both once I finish all the books in the collection. I plan to write an overall review for the collection as a whole and post it here on my thread, but when I do that I won't count the collection towards that year. For example, if I read War of the Worlds last, I'd post a review for War of the Worlds and count that as a book read for that year, then post a review for the collection, but I won't add all 700 pages a 2nd time, if that makes sense.

I like my library as an "all books I've read or own" compendium, and I have an "owned" collection to specify the ones I actually have in my possession. :)

Nora: That's perfect! I may need to delete the book from my library and try that. I was going to try to find an edition that had page count that's close to the total within the book I'm reading it from, but The Island of Dr. Moreau is only around 90 pages in the collection, and all the editions I'm finding are in the 120-200 range.

I don't actually have a "read but unowned" collection, but I do enter the "from where" information so I can just mention that it's from the H.G. Wells collection. :)

In other news, I went to air up the tires in my car because I haven't driven it in a week and because of the fluctuatin temperatures I assumed they would be flat, and my brakes locked up a little. So, if I don't post in the next couple of days, you are all welcome to attend my funeral. :P

I have a special collection called "In Omnibuses" where I group the individual stories in each Omnibus. The physical (or digital) complete collection goes into the appropriate collection and gets an aggregate rating after I've finished everything in it.

Ooh, that's perfect too! Yep, I'll definitely do that. :)

In other news, as you can see, I'm home, and alive. But my car is making some SERIOUSLY not-good noises, particularly from the right-front wheel, which is making a horrifying grinding noise as I drive and thumps when I make sharp turns. And there's not much I can do about it. One of my items didn't arrive so I'll probably be heading to the library again in a day or 2, and I need to do some grocery shopping as well, so that should be...exhilarating? *gulp*

>140 leahbird: That's what I do.

>141 Ape: Oh dear. Be safe!

Yay! Funeral! I'll bring the naked chicks to roll around on your grave. :)

Darn. I mean, yay! Stephen made it back in one piece. (Girls, you can go back to the Penthouse now.)

ETA: I'm clueless about the omnibus talk going on, but I'm learning something new. Thanks! :) I may try this with my own omnibuses.

You can tell the naked chicks they don't have to look so diapponted, sheesh. ;)

You just got their hopes up is all. You know how freaky skanks love rolling around on fresh graves. It's like foreplay to them. :P

Perhaps I should make a tshirt that says "Fresh grave" on it?

Good idea. Or boast how well you can play dead, almost like a real corpse. ;) There're some pretty funny t-shirts kind of along those lines:





I could go on and on and on, but my shift's almost over.

Hahaha, the first one is hilarious. :P

Yay I did second year in a row, right before my move too

>140 leahbird: >142 foggidawn: So do I; have a separate collection for 'Individual books in omnibus editions' I mean.

By the way, what's the plural of 'omnibus'. Since it's already a plural? :0)

Drive safely, Stephen. (ETA black humour deleted)

#148: I know; I love that one too. :)

#150: Good question. I was going to say omnibi, but good ol' google says omnibuses.

I think I actually googled it to make sure it wasn't omnibi back when I set up my collection. ;)

:D I like the honesty. I rely a little too heavily on google. It's slowly making me stupider.

The -us to -i rule is silly and stupid so I wholeheartedly embrace Omnibuses and am encouraged that Google agrees. :)

I drove my car again and it is really really not good. I should probably stop driving it...but there is a library sale soon! And I need my theme read books next month. Books are more important than my life, obviously.

>154 Ape: Uh....

I'm not terribly familiar with Canadian slang, but I'll assume that means you agree. :P

'Omnibuses' is correct. It's an already-plural form of the Latin word, omnis, omne, which means "all"; this plural for is the dative plural, which would translate as "for all". So, since you can't make a plural word more plural in its original language, you make it plural in the way that the 'new' language would. Hence, 'omnibuses.' Also, hence, 'bus' and 'buses' in English (which are just shortened versions of 'omnibus' and 'omnibuses,' or, 'vehicles that are 'for all'').

I think "Eh" = "Yes" and "Uh" = "No" or "Sorry." I'm hazy on the last one. I think it's the accent. ;)

(fingers crossed you make it to--and from!--the book sale)

Amber: I'm not convinced you know what you're talking about. :P

(Sarcasm! It's sarcasm!)

Sara: Don't worry, the worst that could happen is that my driver's side wheel will fall off, causing me to swerve into the other lane, leading me face-first into an oncoming semi truck. That's totally survivable. ;)

I just saw something interesting. I am going to be driving right by you soon in a few weeks. So I have been reassigned and will be driving cross country. our first stop is arlington va to see my sister. my aunt is the next stop/ She lives in Hamilton oh. We also want to stop there for my favotite place ever , Jungle Jims....

I have heard of Jungle Jims (my mom has been there) but I've never been there myself. It's too bad my car may not be operational when you are passing through!

40. The Island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. Wells



Pages: 92
Rating: 3/5

Fiction - Science Fiction/Classic
Owned (In Omnibus)

Edward Pendrick is a grateful man. Having survived a sinking ship, he is found sick and near-death by a passing boat, which rescues and resuscitates him. However, upon waking, he finds that some of the people on the boat are rather...odd, and things only get stranger when he comes to stay at a mysterious research facility on an uncharted island. Something is clearly not right with the right with the people that have rescued him, but he hasn't a clue what a gruesome discovery he is about to stumble upon.

While many of H.G. Wells' books have a timeless quality about them, so much so that they continue to be replicated today as is the case with The Time Machine and War of the Worlds, this definitely feels very much from the 1800's. It's quite fantastical, really, and though the content of the book are actually being perpetrated to a MUCH less degree in science today, the method as written is a bit silly, and you have to work at suspending your own disbelief if you want to get the most out of this one.

Despite the dated science, the philosophy is still sound, and I particularly liked what he had to say during the final chapter in the book. Whereas similar books such as Frankestein by Mary Shelley go into more detail, I found Wells' suggestions about religion and humanization through suffering to be curious, to say the least.

I used to go there as a child when i visited my grandparents there. When you get a chance take the trip, you find some of the most unique things there.

Yeah, I've seen pictures. I'm pretty sure it would be my favorite place every if I lived nearby.

Hi Stephykins! Just checking in on my favorite Ohioan. (((HUGS))) and hope you're doing well. Did you already set up your October theme reading thread?

Glad you got through The Island of Doctor Moreau. The movie version...well, you could probably skip it and just watch The Simpsons spoof of it instead. :)

Laura: Hi Laura!! *Smooches*

Well, I do my own October theme read here, where I read 1 book for vampires/zombies/werewolves/ghosts, but I don't have any plans on hosting the group read this year. Hopefully no one expects me to do that, I stepped in last year because Mac and Jim couldn't do it but I assumed they would cover it this time. I certainly don't have anything worthwhile to suggest. *Shrug*

Sara: Haha, obviously they were very true to the original work, I'm pretty sure that scene is taken straight from the book! :P
(Or not...)

Oh, that's right! Duh! I just confused, is all. Carry on!

Of course! TV never lies. ;)

Laura: =P

Sara: I suppose the TV told you that... o.o

So, even though I'm considering chancing the library sale with my potentially hazardous car, I'm afraid my October theme read may be in jeapardy. I was already planning to read my own books for werewolves and ghosts, but I don't really have any options for vampires and zombies. (Yes, I don't have a zombie book.) I do have The Strain for vampires, but now I'm even less encouaged to read it as I most certainly won't be able to get my hands on the rest of the series.

The closest thing I have to zombies is Stranger by Simon Clark, which almost sounds zombie like, except it doesn't.

If you can find it, I read this book recently, Vampires, Zombies, Werewolves and Ghosts: 25 Classic Stories of the Supernatural by Barbara Solomon. It has some old stuff like Conan Doyle and more recent authors like Steven King and Joe Hill.

The TV told me to tell you, "No." :P

Uh oh! Your Halloween reads are fun to follow, too. Well, fingers crossed your car will hold up for the book sale and that you'll find some vampire and zombie books. :)

Xymon: Thanks! I don't read short stories often, but I do have a couple of other horror-themed short story collections so perhaps I should start. :)

Sara: My car is NOT holding up at all, it sounded horrible yesterday, but I'll probably risk it anyway. It's totally worth it! :P

Edit: I do have a zombie video game I'm going to play during October, so at least that's something.

:D The true meaning of a bookaholic--getting to a book sale, but never making it home.

Yay for zombie video games! I say count it. :) Or you could borrow the book I just finished--Horrid Henry and the Zombie Vampire by Francesca Simon--except there were no zombies or vampires. :/ Silly title. Fun kids book, though!

Yes, I'm totally okay with dying in a horrible, catastrophic car crash. So long as it's AFTER the book sale. :P

That's the spirit! ;)

You make it sound like I'm dead already.

You mean you're not? Not that there's anything wrong with that. I accept all manners of, er, non-living people. :P Can I still poke you with a stick?

Only if you buy me dinner first.

Ok, the Stephen and Sara show is getting creepy now...

Wasn't your zombie read last year the beginning of a series? Maybe track down book #2? Or maybe I'm just remembering wrongly. . . .

Other zombie books I can think of: Feed by Miranda, Walking Dead comics by Robert Kirkman, Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry, The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, and there are a ton of recognizable names/titles in a tag search.

Assuming your car is okay and you are able to go *sending good vibes*

There is an HP Lovecraft short story/novella called Herbert West: Reanimator that walks the line of Frankenstein and zombie. It's free online here, if you're interested at all.

Micky: Isn't it always? :P

Katie: My zombie book last year was Blood Crazy, I think. I had enough time to read an alien horror book though, Infected, and that was a series book, but I won't be able to read the 3rd book (or any of the books you listed) because I won't be able to make library trips. I will probably go for the sale, but I can't pick anything up because I won't be able to return them.

Thanks, though!! :)

I actually already had my zombie book picked out. In fact, it was the first book I had picked, I just can't request it now. I was planning to read This Dark Earth.

My original plan was to read:

Werewolf: Wolf Moon
Ghost: The Harrowing
Zombie: This Dark Earth
Vampire: I Am Legend

Now the plan is:

Werewolf: Wolf Moon
Ghost: The Harrowing
Zombie: ???
Vampire: The Strain???

There is always the walking dead...

Maybe your newly bookish sister will return your books for you?

Xymon: Well, as I said, I already had my zombie book picked out, so zombies weren't the issue. And now I'm trying to pick books from my own collection, which unfortunately doesn't include The Walking Dead.

Leah: Did I mention she owns over 20 books now? No, I'm not joking. :P
However, I haven't completely converted her yet. She says she doesn't like libraries because she would rather own the books than borrow them. While I agree with the sentiment, I still think it's blasphemy!! :P

>185 Ape: The way I got converted to the library was by thinking about the library as test-driving the book. I read the book first from the library, and THEN I decide if it's good enough to add to my personal collection.

I'll have to try that one after she reads a bad book. So far, she has loved everything she has read so far, but then, I suppose I was the same way before I became a cynical, judgemental prick. :P

Sounds like your sister has been starved, and is now gobbling down everything in sight.

Does your library have Overdrive (or similar)? Then you can borrow e-books without having to drive over.

ETA to correct spellcheck.

I don't really have any way to read e-books, other than on my computer, which isn't very appealing. :(

It's okay though, I'll read my own books. In fact, I finished a book today, and will be starting my Werewolf book tomorrow.

41. Quesadillas by Juan Pablo Villalobos



Pages: 168
Rating: 3/5

Fiction
Library checkout

Juan Pablo Villalobos is an angry man. He's bitter, resentful, and alarmingly hateful, and in this book he spews forth approximately 170-pages worth of pure negativity. It's a display of pure, unapologetic cynicism...so, what can I say, I find sentiment terribly relatable!

Quesadillas isn't about anything in particular, other than a boy growing up in Mexico in the 1980's, but it's a platform for the author to rant and ramble about how unhappy he was (and presumably still is) with the country he was born into. The class inequality, the political corruption, and ill-stuffed quesadillas are all targets of his rampage, and really, and who can fault a guy for not being happy with quesadillas vacant of the proper amount of cheese, for god's sake!

I admit I know little about Mexican history, and by "little" I mean "none." Living in America, the media only seems to cover scary drug cartels and the ceaseless wave of vile, malevolent, soul-sucking creatures (also known as poor innocent Mexican children trying to escape the scary drug cartels, but hey, you can think of them as vile malevolent soul-suckers if it makes you feel better about yourself.) Despite my ignorance, I do know it is a storied past of inconsistencies and contradictions, and so I can totally understand Villalobos' discontent, even if I'm not knowledgeable about the specific details.

Also, I've been craving cheese quesadillas for days!

Hmmmm, maybe I was thinking of 2yrs ago. . . .

Well, if you don't find anything appropriately themed at the book sale, maybe a stop at the dollar store? You've mentioned grabbing books there before and I know the locations by me definitely are fully Halloween at this point--so it might be worth a shot :)

And yummmmmmmm, quesadillas! It's one of my snack foods; they only take about 20 seconds in the oven!

I've been to Dollar Tree, Dollar General, AND Goodwill recently with my sister for cheap book browsing and didn't see anything (although I think I neglected to mention that I bought East by Edith Pattou for 99 cents) so I'll be hoping the book sale has something good. :)

I would have to look up my Halloween reads for previous years (I'll do that soon anyway when I make my official post about it) but I think I did read Dead City 2-3 years ago, but I read the next 2 books in the series a month or 2 later. :)

>192 Ape: Ooh, I love East! Probably not a surprise, since I generally love all fairy tale retellings.

#179: Cheese quesadillas work for you? :P

#180: And yet you still watch. ;) Kind of like a car accident, huh?

#185: I can totally relate with your sister: I prefer owning than borrowing. Weird, I know. But when I have a craving to flip through a certain book, I don't want to have to wait a week or two to get it or, even worse, find out they no longer have the book.

#190: Yay, you finished a book! :) I probably won't read it, but I do like magical realism.

(fingers still crossed you'll find some good Halloween books)

Foggi: Yeah, I saw your review when I added the book to my library. :) I'm actually not familiar with the original fairy tale, so I should probably look into that before reading the book.

Sara: Oh, yes, absolutely, cheese quesadillas sound delicious. *Cough*withchicken*cough*

Good news! My Playstation 3 has been replaced, and not only that, but my sister was able to download 21 games for me to play, so there is a bit of a video game flood happening in my living room right now.

Although I must say, after playing the Playstation 4 all this time I can really tell how fuzzy the old console is compared to the new one. I knew the PS4 looked super clear and detailed before, but because I was jumping back and forth between the consoles it didn't quite hit me until now. :P

#195-6: Dead fowl flesh with your soured udder juice coming right up! From Taco Bell, no less. :P

All right! I'm glad you're able to enjoy some gaming. :)

Way behind on LT life, but Yay for more games! And I loved reading your Halloween reads. : )

Yay video games!

I still have a hard time seeing much of a difference with HD on my parent's tv, but I suppose that's cause I generally still rock the bulky old CRT.

Sara: Surely vegans are allowed to eat chickens, right? I mean, how can you be sympathetic for such a ridiculous-lookng animal. They obviously deserve to be eaten. :P

Hi Kim! My Halloween reads aren't going to be so great this year as I'm stuck reading from my own collection, but hopefully they won't be too bad.

Katie: Really? My cable has HD and Standard versions of every channel, and I sometime accidentally click the standard version...and dismay! It looks so bad. No texture or detail at all! :o

I won't be able to afford one, but those 4k TVs are pretty exciting, I can't even imagine what video games will look like at that resolution.

I think the problem is I never see them in comparison, side by side. My brain has conformed to the low res. I did use to watch netflix on my laptop, which definitely has better resolution, but summertime Katie could not handle the lap-heater on top of no AC. Wintertime Katie may return to it once the cold air starts leaking into this old house though.

For me, whenever it comes to higher resolution screens, I don't always notice it right away when I upgrade, it's usually when I spend time with the upgraded resolution for months at a time then see something in stardard resolution that I'm like "Oh...wow...that looks awful."

Case and point, video games. When I first got my PS4 I thought the rocks in the background looked beautiful, but I couldn't really see much of a difference other than that. I flipped back and forth between the 2 consoles and there was a noticable difference, but not a major one. But now that I've played the PS4 nonstop since July, I can TOTALLY see the difference going backwards to the PS3.

I guess this is further proof that I'm a pessimist, huh? :P

I saw a curved tv the other day, and I was in awe. The picture was fantastic. TAx season cannot come quick enough.

>203 xymon81: I wonder about those. Do you have to sit straight in front of the tv in order to see the picture? I also wonder if a curved screen would help me with my current TV problem - glare from my windows.

It looks like from what I read that it makes it appear that any angle is good to see and I love the calrity and color pallet that it has.

I was wondering the same thing as Nora, I saw the commercial and it seemed like you would only be able to see half the screen if you were at a hard angle to the side. I haven't seen it in person yet, nor a 4k tv, so I can't say how they compare.

#200: Oh, sure, we can eat chickens; they just can't die in the process. So, yes, vampire chickens: yes, very edible. :P

I mean, how can you be sympathetic for such a ridiculous-lookng animal. They obviously deserve to be eaten. :P

That's what I say about people all the time, but last time I checked it was a no-no. :/ (chews on own foot)

Awww, I personaly don't think you should let social convention stop you from being eaten if you want to. :P

Good news, I was just notified that I won a zombie book in the last ER batch. It's a collection of short stories, and it might not get here in time, but if it DOES get here in time I'll most likely read it for my theme read next month.

I also have 3 horror games lined up. I'm currently playing Diablo III, which isn't scary but has a horror theme, and after that I have a zombie apocalypse game on the Vita (Dead Nation) and the Slenderman game, which I am informed is terrifying and likely to cause psychological damage. Sounds fun! :P

That's what I say! Wait, we're talking two different "eats," aren't we? :P

Congrats on the zombie ER win! :) Which one was it?

Hooray for psychological damage! There's not enough of it nowadays. ;)

I love Slender! We do a "Gaming Theater of Doom" event each year and that was one of the previously featured titles.

Pro-Tip: Play in the darkest room possible while wearing headphones with the volume cranked up. The ambiance adds a ton to it :)

Sara: Dead World Resurrection by Joe McKinney. I read his Dead City trilogy in the past and liked it, so I'm looking forward to that one. :)

Katie: Oh yeah, whenever I play scary games (like Dead Space) I play in a pitch-dark room with the sound way up. The PS4 controller actually has a headphone jack, but I don't know if it wirelessly tranfers all the sound from the game into the headphones or if just plays that sounds that normally come out of the speaker on the controller. Also, it probably wouldn't work on the PS3, which is the console I'll be playing the Slenderman game on. I'll try it just to be sure, though.

September Summary:

Books: 5
Pages: 991

Fiction: 5
Nonfiction: 0

Owned: 2
Library checkout: 3




~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yep, I didn't even make it to 1,000 pages this month. o.o

September Video Game Summary:

Games: 2

Owned: 0
Library checkout: 1
Borrowed: 1

Playstation Vita: 0
Playstation 3: 1
Playstation 4: 1

Do they have a Borrow by Mail service where you live? Here we'll mail stuff (for free) to anyone who lives 5km or more from the library who can't make it in for any reason. I know you're not keen on calling the library to ask about that but if you PM me the library region you deal with I'm totally happy to find out if they do that & what it takes to sign up. Of course my library is super awesome, not every library can be as great as we are.

Well, I don't know Stephen, just trying to help. *throws hands up in despair* ;0)

Seriously though, once you've downloaded an e-book, reading it on your computer isn't too bad, is it?

And I'm so thrilled for you that you're gaming again. Yay. (speaking as a mum who wages constant battles against two little boys who want more screen time) :0)

ETA sorry - I'm in a silly mood

I love the cover for Dead World Resurrection. Yep, no doubt it'll be a good read. :) Too bad you didn't get Sabbatical In The Ohio Methlands. That would've been too weird.

Dee: I'm pretty certain they don't have that, but it does sound amazing. They do have a bookmobile that travles about, but I think they only stop at schools, retirement homes, rec centers, etc.

Humouress: Haha, I know, and it's much appreciated. I'm very difficult to help though, I prefer to just whine and have everyone pity me. :P

While I would definitely prefer that my (nonexistent) kids read, I'd sooner they played video games than watch TV or movies, for sure. Plus, you can totally play with them, assuming you can figure out the increasingly-complex controllers they keep coming out with. :P

Sara: Haha, yeah, I don't think I requested that one. ;)

Okay everyone, it's a little early, but this thread is getting difficult to load, so I'm going to go ahead and post a new thread for my Halloween theme read. You can find it here.

assuming you can figure out the increasingly-complex controllers they keep coming out with.

That too. Apart from the fact that once they get started, I don't get a look in. Or if I do, it's only about a minute before the control gets snatched back with "No, mum, not like that" as though I'm beyond hope.

Ok - off to the new thread.

>219 humouress: I tried to play video games when I was in Minnesota in August. It mostly consisted of an eleven-year-old reminding me what all the extra buttons did... and telling me to follow him. I grew up with controllers that had A and B and a joystick (and I wasn't good at video games then sooo...)

:0)