tapestry100's books in 2009

As I just reached 100 in 08, I'm not going to give myself a specific goal in 09. I'll still try for 100 this year, but I'm looking at it as more of a suggestion, rather than a challenge, especially since I've already set myself up with a rather challenging challenge already for 09. I'm going to try a 9-9-9 challenge this year, based solely on book I already own. We'll see how that goes...

I'm going to keep this in the 50 Book Challenge, only because this is where I started and I like the group around here

Happy reading in 09!

1/99 - 2009

First book of the year! From my LTST.

Castle Waiting by Linda Medley

457 pages / 2006 / 5 stars / Graphic Novel / 1-1-09

What a fantastic tale. While nothing major happens in this story, Castle Waiting leaves you completely fulfilled with its characters and charm. While some of the stories may seem a little familiar, the complete package is a refreshing tale that is composed of several stories connected inside the story, as we learn a little of each character through either their actions at Castle Waiting, or the stories that they tell. The whole thing feels very much like The Canterbury Tales.

The current residents of Castle Waiting are just that; they are waiting. Waiting for a new king to take residence in the castle after the last king was killed while trying to protect his daughter from a fate curiously similar to that of Sleeping Beauty. In the meantime, while they are waiting, they take in any stranger who is seeking refuge there, where we meet Lady Jain, who has a secret all her own about her unborn child. (The story leaves several mysteries unsolved, that I hope will be revealed in later editions.) We also meet Prudence, Patience and Plenty, the last remaining original inhabitants of the castle, the metalsmith Iron Henry, castle steward Rackham Adjutant, castle cook Dinah Lucina and her son Simon, Dr. Fell, Sister Peace of the Solicitines and Chess, the castle knight. Together they create a hodgepodge of a family that comes together and takes care of their own. It's a great story of diversity and how that diversity can bring people together under then most mundane or special ways.

Linda Medley's story left me laughing in several places, and her art is fresh and unencumbered. I'm anxiously awaiting the sequel!

Sounds like an interesting story.

it does sound interesting. I've moved over to the 75 book challenge 2009 group...so look for me there. I'll try and come back later and link to it. But people are harrassing me at work. Apparently its not okay I that I take a lunch break. Very perturbed am I with today.

How dare you think you can take a lunch break!? Don't you know those have been outlawed?

Seriously, tell everyone to bugger off. We get the point that we won't even answer the phones around here if it gets too hectic at lunch.

oh I do but then they sigh and look at their watch and ask when i'm gonna be done...or if they could just ask me a quick question because they are oh so busy. Well I'm busy too and all I want is a few minutes of peace. They all get an uninterrupted lunch...wonder how I got eo be so special that its not allowed.

2/98 - 2009 - For Maria Murnane's Blog Tour

Perfect... on Paper by Maria Murnane

314 pages / 2008 / 4 stars / Fiction (ChickLit) / 1-8-09

OK, I have to admit, even for a guy, I really enjoyed Perfect... on Paper, Maria Murnane's novel of the trials and tribulations of Waverly Bryson, who, in her late 20s, is dumped by her fiancee just weeks before their wedding. What follows is a funny, witty portrait of a modern day woman trying to get back on her feet and in the dating game after such a devastating event in her life.

What I liked best about Perfect... on Paper is that it didn't try to be more than what it is; a light, fluffy book that is all about being brain candy. You don't have to think too much about it (most of the plot is fairly predictable) and the characters don't try to be too deep. I could actually relate to quite a few of the scenes, as I can remember similar situations with my own friends.

It did seem like Murnane couldn't decide exactly what direction she wanted to take the book. It was a little part romantic comedy, a little part family dramedy, a little part office dramedy, but when it all came together, it worked fairly well. The only thing that I would have changed about the book was the length; and I don't even know what I would remove. It just seemed that by 2/3 of the way through, I had a fairly good idea of how things were going to play out and I was just waiting for the ending to come and for Waverly to get her Mr. Right. I'm not saying it was bad, it just seemed a little too played out by the end.

Really, Perfect... on Paper is a satisfying read that really doesn't try to be pretentious or overbearing. It is what it is; just a fun, quick read.

3/97 - 2009
1/9-9-9 - Classics Category/1



Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

159 pages / 1911 (2005) / 4 Stars / Classic / 1-11-2009

Read more here.

4/96 - 2009



The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien

440 pages / 2001 / 5 stars / Fantasy / 1-14-2009 / audiobook

I really can't add anything to any discussion about The Lord of the Rings series that hasn't already probably been said twice before. Grand and epic in it's scope and telling, The Return of the King is the final book in the series. I'm always impressed by the story, but I can't help but always feel that the ending seemed a little too easy for everyone involved. Of course, the emotion that comes through in the story is just as strong as ever, but this latest reading left me wanting more from the ending; something a little more tangible in the evil forces that threaten Middle-Earth. Maybe I have read it one too many times now, but the enigmatic nature of Sauron just seemed a little, well, too enigmatic for me this time. Still, you can't deny that this is one fine piece of fantasy literature.

I have never been able to read Tolkien. I have tried a couple of times but I am lucky if I make it past the first chapter.

Try the audiobooks. Make sure if you do check them out to get the set narrated by Robert Inglis. I don't know if there is another set available or not, but Inglis does a magnificent job! It may seem a little daunting, as just the The Lord of the Rings is 46 CDs total (over 52 hours!), but I think it's worth every minute of the performance.

I read the books years ago, and tried again recently and had the same problem. I've gotten through The Hobbit and the entire The Lord of the Rings this way now, and have enjoyed it so much more. I'm hoping I can find an audiobook version of The Children of Hurin at my library so I can round out my Middle-Earth experience.

5/95 - 2009



Amulet, Book 1: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi

187 pages / 2008 / 4 stars / Graphic Novel / 1-18-2009 / Kristin

You can read my review here.

> try a 9-9-9 challenge this year

First I've heard of this, but it sounds very interesting.

it is interesting Meg...you should try it. Chose 9 categories...read 9 books in each for 2009. =)

6/94 - 2009
2/9-9-9 - Mystery Category/1



The Meaning of Night: A Confession by Michael Cox

608 pages / 2006 / 2.5 Stars / Fiction / 1-23-2009 / Audiobook

Very ambitious but much too long. Very ambitious but much too long. You can read more here.

I love the cover on this one. I look forward to your thoughts.

I can't tell you how disappointed I was in this story. One of the cases where you really can't judge a book on it's cover.

7/93 - 2009
3/9-9-9 - YA Category/1



Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean

310 pages / 2006 / 4 stars / YA / 1-26-2009

In 2004, the Great Ormond Street Hospital (holders of the rights to Peter Pan held an open-call for authors to submit a sample chapter and synopsis for a proposed sequel to Peter Pan, to be published in honor of the centennial of the story in 2006. Geraldine McCaughrean's Peter Pan in Scarlet became the authorized sequel to J.M. Barrie's classic Peter Pan. Picking up the story some years later (but seemingly ignoring the epilogue of the original), all the Darling children have become full-grown grown-ups now. However, they all discover that they have been having dreams of Neverland; dreams so real that they are bringing objects back with them from their dreaming (pistols, cutlasses, etc). Wendy decides that there must be something wrong in Neverland and they all decide to travel back to try to help Peter with whatever is ailing Neverland. Read more here.

8/92 - 2009



The Faery Taile Project: Book One, Red's Tale/Lobo's Tale by Jim C. Hines & Christopher Kastensmidt

100 pages / 2008 / 2 stars / Fantasy-Humor / 1-28-09

Something of an interesting premise, The Faery Taile Project apparently wants to retell fairy tales in something of a witty fashion, and while part of this idea is good, I don't know that this is pulled off all that well. The first book in this series retells the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Told in two sections as a flip book, one half of the book is Lobo's Tale, or the Wolf's story, by Christopher Kastensmidt, and he casts the Wolf as a redneck moron. That's the best that I can come up with. The Wolf blunders through the story, obviously trying to do anything to get Red to pay attention to him, as he is totally smitten with her. The flip side of the book is Red's Tale, by Jim C. Hines. This story is fairly well told (in this story, Red works for the fairy tale mafia and uses the wolf's idiocy to her advantage and we see how the events in Lobo's Tale relate back and forth with her story), but I'm thinking that Kastensmidt wrote his part first, and Hines then had to mold his story to fit, so I think if left to his own devices, Hines could have crafted something really witty with this story, but did the best he could with the story he had to work with. Not something that would lead me to read any more of the books in the "series."

It sucks to hear this as I normally love fairy tale retellings. Thanks for the heads up though.

Yeah, it was a big disappointment. The whole reason I read it is my roomie and I met Jim Hines at an author signing last week, so B picked this up to have it signed. It was a quick read, so I gave it a try last night. Like I say, Hines' part isn't bad, but I think he was working off the already poorly written other story, so did the best he could with what he had. Not something I'd recommend at all.

Fairy tale reworkings either work really well or go really bad I have generally found. Shame this was a not so great one.

Finally got my review of Peter Pan in Scarlet posted.

January Recap

8 Books Read

Castle Waiting by Linda Medley 5 stars
Perfect... on Paper by Maria Murnane 4 stars
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie 4 stars
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien 5 stars (audiobook)
Amulet Book 1 by Kazu Kibuishi 4 stars
The Meaning of Night by Michael Cox 2.5 stars (audiobook)
Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean 4 stars
Lobo's Tale/Red's Tale by Christopher Kastensmidt & Jim C. Hines 2 stars

Total Pages read - 2575

9-9-9 Challenge - 3 Books

Overall, I was really happy with my reading choices for the month of January. I think my favorite book for January was Linda Medley's Castle Waiting. The biggest disappointment for me by far was Michael Cox's The Meaning of Night. If it hadn't been for the fact that I was listening to it as an audiobook, I probably would have given up on it long ago. I'd like to try to tackle more from my 9-9-9 in February, but I have several books that I've received for review over the last couple of weeks that I need to get to, so that may not happen.

9/91 - 2009
4/9-9-9 - YA Category/2



Coraline by Neil Gaiman
162 pages / 2002 (2006) / 4 stars / YA-Fantasy / 2-7-2009

A quick little read, Coraline is Neil Gaiman's first book for children. The book opens with Coraline's family moving into a new home. The house itself is very large, and has been separated into several flats, and in Coraline's she discovers a door that leads to a brick wall. Being an inquisitive child, she's curious about what lies on the other side of the door, but accepts that it's probably just the other side of the house that was closed off to make the flats. How wrong she is. Read more here.

10/90 - 2009
LibraryThing Early Reviewer



The Common Bond by Donigan Merritt
392 pages / 2008 / 3 stars / Fiction / 2-11-09

Unfortunately, I don't have a lot to say about Donigan Merritt's The Common Bond. The story is well constructed and the characters fleshed out nicely, but I had to trudge through this book. The prose in the first chapter was so heavy (I have no other way to describe it) that I almost gave up there, as I was afraid the rest of the book would be the same way. Luckily, I was wrong, but it was still a difficult read for me.

The book revolves around Morgan and Victoria's relationship, or at least the impact their relationship has had on Morgan, as the book opens with Morgan grieving in an alcoholic stupor for the death of Victoria. Victoria did not have a happy childhood and found in Morgan the stability that she needed, but he still wasn't enough for her. After she takes her own life, Morgan returns to Hawaii, to recover and try to reconnect with himself. By the end of the book, he has come around and is beginning to find a new life for himself. However, with such an enigmatic ending, who knows how Morgan's story really ends. And maybe that's the point, but I guess I just like my stories to have something more of a concrete ending to them.

The book is an interesting character study on so many levels; grief, doubt, guilt, love. All in all, I think there are too many conflicting emotions present throughout the book, which I think is what contributed to bogging down the story for me. However, it is still a well written book, and I think for the right reader, this would be a great book.

11/89 - 2009



The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
208 pages / 1993 (2002) / 3 stars / Fable / 2-12-09 / Audiobook

I downloaded this for free from iTunes awhile back as I had read Coelho's The Witch of Portobello and had really enjoyed it. The Alchemist is the story of a boy's journey of discovery, following omens and spiritual messages to discover his destiny. Maybe I'm just reading this at the wrong time, but I didn't get as much from this story as I thought I would. It has had such a grand following, I was feeling really good going into it, but I felt the message was presented a little too up front. Not a bad book, just a bit too didactic for my liking.

Hi, tapestry100!
I am trying to figure out this ipod thing. I don't have one, but my girls do. When you download from itunes, is it read out loud or do you read it off your ipod? Is this the same thing as the podcast that I just learned about? Do you delete it after you are through with it? I am thinking about getting one of those sometime this year. Thanks for any info. :)
--BJ

Hello darling. Look, I found you. Turns out there is a search function within groups. Who knew? (Obviously not me.) And now I will be able to find you from here on out. And that sounded a bit stalker-ish. Hmm.

Anyway, I see that your love affair with Coehlo seems to be cooling a bit. That's a shame. Did you ever read The Devil and Miss Prym? I thought that was one that you had and enjoyed, but perhaps I'm mistaken.

Cheers!

The Devil and Miss Prym seems to like to play tricks on me; like packing itself away in the middle of a move, so that I forget everything that I read and need to begin again.

I accidentally packed it at the beginning of the move, and instead of trying to figure out what box it was it, just left it, knowing I would get back to it eventually. I had enjoyed what I'd read of that, but obviously need to finish it before I can know for sure.

12/88 - 2009



The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

416 pages / 2006 / 5 stars / Fiction / 2-16-2009 / Audiobook

The Thirteenth Tale is one of those rare books that come along, grabs you from the first page, won't let go until the very end, and then leaves you wanting more. Harkening back to Gothic novels such as Jane Eyre, The Thirteenth Tale weaves an incredible spell in its telling, leaving you feeling slightly dazed at its conclusion. Read more here.

I'll be interested in your review. I have heard lots of good things about this book.

I'll get around to writing the review eventually, but this is one of those books that I can't recommend enough, Casp. It's such a magnificently told story. The first time I read it, as soon as I finished it, I wanted to go right back to page one and start it all over again.

13/87 - 2009



Getting Along Famously by Melissa Hellstern

208 pages / 2008 / 3 stars / Non-Fiction / 2-19-2009

To be perfectly honest, the only reason that I picked up this book is because it had Audrey Hepburn on the cover. I think she is fabulous, and I decided that maybe since the book featured Audrey Hepburn on the cover, it couldn't be all that bad, right? Well, luckily I was right. Getting Along Famously is a collection of vignettes about famous friendships. Audrey Hepburn & Sofia Lauren; Julie Andrews & Carol Burnett; Lucille Ball & Vivian Vance to name a few. Each vignette gives a little history on the friendship and each person and includes photos and additional quotes and anecdotes from their lives. A fun little volume, not hard to read at all, but informative all the same.

14/86 - 2009



Within the Fairy Castle: Colleen Moore's Doll House at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago, by Terry Ann R. Neff, photographs by Barbara Karant

127 pages / 1997 / 4 stars / Travel / 2-23-2009

Within the Fairy Castle is a pictorial book about the Fairy Castle exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. As described on the postcard that I also picked up at the Museum when I visited:

The renowned Fairy Castle is one of the most beloved, permanent displays at the Museum of Science and Industry. A gift to the museum from silent-film star Colleen Moore, the castle has appealed to people's imaginations since 1949. The castle was constructed on a scale of one inch to one foot and measures 10 x 8 x 7 feet and features fourteen elaborately decorated rooms.

The book is a simple photographic keepsake, talking about the layout of the castle and including over 100 up-close photographs of the details of each room as well as most of the small artifacts from the castle. It also includes a history of the construction of the Castle, as well as a short biography of Colleen Moore.

It's a nicely designed book, the photographs are clear and the descriptions are well written. A nice keepsake or a great idea for anyone that enjoys doll houses.

And next time you go to see it, I'm going too, darn it! :)

Well, I would hope so since the next time I go will be for the Harry Potter exhibit, and you'll be there too!! :)

Have you ever seen the Thorne miniature rooms at the Art Institute? They're dollhouse-ish (itty bitty rooms from a variety of time periods and countries), and definitely worth a visit if you are in Chicago. As is the rest of the museum.

Love your thread, tapestry! I'll go back to lurking now...

Queen Mary's dollhouse at Windsor Castle in England is also pretty impressive to see. =)

#39 Ditto! I believe the plumbing actually works.

The plumbing works, the books are real miniatures written by top authors of the day, the wine bottles are filled with real wine and the clocks chime on the hour. Its a really cool doll house.

Sounds like the Fairy Castle at the MoSaI too. All the books are real written by the writers, there is real sheet music written by the composers, almost everything in the house is real (including 2000 year old Egyptian sculptures that are 1 inch tall), the plumbing works, the lighting works, but I don't know about the clocks there. These two houses sound like they are about the same idea.

I have only been to Chicago once, but I got to see that dollhouse at the MoSaI. It was amazing. I did not realize there was a book about it. Memories! :)
--BJ

Holy Cow those sound cool.

15/85 - 2009
5/9-9-9 - Classics Category/2



Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
560 pages / 1847 (2006) / 3 stars / Classic - 1001 Books / 2-28-2009 / Audiobook

OK, I'm not going to review this as I can't add anything to what's already been said. I understand the historical significance behind the book and whatnot, but I couldn't help thinking the entire time that I was listening to Jane Eyre that every character around her was such a caricature of themselves and that their characters were so dramatically presented just to make Jane herself seem overtly normal that the story seemed to lose itself for me.

16/84 - 2009



The Believers by Zoë Heller
335 pages / 2009 / 4 stars / Fiction / 2-28-2009 / B&N First Look

I received Zoë Heller's The Believers through Barnes & Noble's First Look program, and not knowing what to expect from the book, I can safely say that I was pleasantly surprised. Heller creates an incredibly interesting, if not a little strained at times, family dynamic and writes a compelling story about belief and what can happen to a family as those beliefs begin to be torn down. You can read more here.

Finally got caught up on my reviews! Scroll above to see my review for The Thirteenth Tale and Getting Along Famously.

that's great....wanna come write mine for me now? lol

I would, but I'm too busy reading right now trying to finish 2 books today! And of course, then I'll have those reviews to write - it's a vicious cycle I tell you!

lol - it really is

i've been reading a lot lately too...that's how I got so far behind in the first place.

17/83 - 2009



Aunt Dimity's Death by Nancy Atherton
244 pages / 1992 / 4 stars / Mystery / 3-1-2009

Lori Shepherd has been living a very lonely life since her mother passed away. Her apartment is meek and shabby, she works with a temp agency, bouncing from one job to the next, wondering where she's going to get the money to pay her ever-growing mountain of bills. all that changes when she receives a letter from the mysterious law firm of Willis & Willis, telling her that she is about to inherit a large estate from Dimity Westwood, but only if she can solve a puzzle hidden in the letters at Dimity's cottage in England. The only problem? Dimity was nothing more than a character in the Aunt Dimity stories that Lori's mother told her as a child. Or was she? Read more here.

Honestly, I go to all the trouble of digging that book out of its stack, and then I have to click and go somewhere else to find out whether you liked it? Hmph. ;)

Well, now that I have indeed clicked -- and what an exhausting ordeal that was, I feel about read to throw my hand against my brow and swoon, honestly -- I see that you thought about it as I did: one of those firsts that worries more about introducing a series than about being interesting itself. That's okay, though, because I agree that one does like the characters.

I need to go have a lie down now. All this clicking has simply drained my energy. :)

You, my dear, have been reading far too many Gothic romances lately if that meager amount of exertion was enough to send you into a swoon. I should think that a healthy dose of something more adventuresome is required!

Fortunately, I just finished the Stepsister Scheme and thus have retrieved my inner She-Ra. :)

I'm taking the month of March off from all other books for my Miss Marple March!

18/82 - 2009
Miss Marple March/1



Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
256 pages / 1930 (2000) / 4 stars / Mystery / 3-6-2009

Murder at the Vicarage is Agatha Christie's first book to star one of her greatest literary creations, the indomitable Miss Jane Marple. Miss Marple may appear to be your typical "little old lady," but her powers of observation, honed from living almost her whole life in the small village of St. Mary Mead and giving her an acute insight into the human condition, prove to the match of everyone in the village, police included, when it comes to solving the murder of Colonel Protheroe. Read more here.

19/81 - 2009
Miss Marple March/2



The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie
224 pages / 1932 (2000) / 3 stars / Mystery / 3-8-2009

The Thirteen Problems is a collection of loosely connected short stories. The first six stories take place as part of The Tuesday Night Club, where a select group of friends come together each week for one to relate some mysterious, "unsolved" tale that only they know the answer to, to see if anyone else can come up with the answer. Each and every time, Miss Marple is able to deduce the answer. The second set of stories take place at a dinner party where Miss Marple is invited at the request of Sir Henry Clithering, who was also part of The Tuesday Night Club and is a retired head of Scotland Yard. Again, Miss Marple reasons her way to the answer of each mystery. The final story takes place some time after the dinner party, when Miss Marple discovers the Sir Clithering is staying in St. Mary Mead, and she enlists his help in solving a mysterious death in the village. Read more here.

"Miss Marple March"!
What a great idea, you get to honor Women's Month and alliteration.
Have fun with your reading.

20/80 - 2009
11/9-9-9 - 1001 Category/2



The 13 Clocks by James Thurber
128 pages / 1992 / 3.5 stars / YA-1001 Books / 3-16-2009

I'm not quite sure what to make of James Thurber's The 13 Clocks. To be honest, the biggest reason that it caught my eye was the introduction by Neil Gaiman. Then I discovered it was on the 1001 Books list, so I thought that it would be worth picking up. And it was; but I just don't know what to think of it. In his introduction, Gaiman says that The 13 Clocks is one of the best books ever written, or something like that. I have to agree that it is a fun book, but calling it one of the best books ever written I think is stretching it a bit far. Read more here.

Posted my review for The 13 Clocks.

21/79 - 2009



Blueberry Girl by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Charles Vess
32 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / Childrens / 3-27-2009

This is a beautiful prayer written by Neil Gaiman for his friend Tori and her soon to be born daughter Tash. It is about empowering her daughter to be her own person, to let her grow and be adventurous and live life to its fullest. The accompanying illustration by Charles Vess are suited perfectly to the story. It is a very quick read, but one that left me smiling. A must-buy book for anyone that you know who is having a daughter.

Have you seen the video for it?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH4lyJWa_84

No, I hadn't seen that - thanks!

22/78 - 2009



The Love Potion Murders in the Museum of Man by Alfred Alcorn
288 pages / 2009 / 2.5 stars / Mystery

I received The Love Potion Murders in the Museum of Man from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. I finished it awhile ago, and have been trying to decide how to write about it. I won't generally read other reviews before I write my own, but I had to double check some of the other reviews on LT to make sure I wasn't the only person who had trouble with the book. I had quite the love/hate relationship with this book. When the story was moving, I found it witty and the mystery had some level of uniqueness to it, but when the book was slow, it was agonizingly slow, to the point where on more than one occasion I had to drag myself through it and convince myself not to put it down for good. However, I can say that I might have to see if I can come across the first book in the series some time, but only if there is absolutely nothing on Mt. TBR that catches my interest first.

I've spent this weekend being holed up at home with Cold 2.0, so I took advantage of it by catching up on all the books that I was in the middle of.

So................

23/77 - 2009
12/9-9-9 - Uncle Tom Challenge Category/1



The Road by Cormac McCarthy
241 pages / 2006 / 5 stars / Fiction / 4-4-2009

An amazing book, Cormac McCarthy's The Road is a story of survival; of surviving when there seems nothing worth surviving for. It is the story of a man and his child, crossing a country burned to ash by the only means possible, the road, neither knowing if they will survive one day to the next, but surviving for each other. And that is when their survival becomes necessary, as they are living for each other. It is a story stark in its telling, stripped down, like the landscape and people that is describes, to the barest and necessary elements. I read it in three sittings, needing to take a couple of days between each reading to take in all the I had.

The story follows a man and his son as they cross the country in search of the coast. They are traveling by the road, carrying all their worldly possessions in a shopping cart. The world has been burned away to ash, the landscape scavenged and looted years before, leaving no food or water. How they have survived this far is amazing. I can tell you that this is a desolate story from the very beginning. The feeling of despair that McCarthy expresses on the page is tangible, making those few moments of hope and happiness for the man and his son truly shine through.

I don't think this is a book for everyone. It's not an easy book to read, but it is a powerful story, ultimately of hope. It's hard to find hope in this story, but I think it's there. It's what made life livable for the man and his son, even when everything else around them made it seem impossible.

(no touchstones seem to be working here)

24/76 - 2009
13/9-9-9 - Non-Fiction Category/2



Behind the Mask... No More by Byron Nease
165 pages / 2008 / 3 stars / Autobiography / 4-5-2009

Behind the Mask... No More is Byron Nease's journey from an abused childhood to accepting himself as a gay, HIV+ adult. Nease has worked on Broadway for many years, in such productions as the revival of Auntie Mame opposite Angela Lansbury to playing Raoul in the Phantom of the Opera at the Pantages Theatre in Toronto. I found Nease's storytelling to be a little jumbled, especially the chapters when he was talking about his family (there were so many of them) but overall, he is able to tell what he wants to tell. Truthfully, my favorite chapter was about his grandmother, when she lived with him during her final years. It was a touching chapter, and you can tell that he really loved his grandmother dearly. I also wish that there was a better time frame in the book. It seemed to jump around some, and the inclusion of years so that we knew when what was happening would have been beneficial. I was impressed with the chapters when he finally comes around to his adult years of living with HIV for so long, and surviving with it. I think it is important for people to know that you can survive the disease, and that more people like Nease need to step forward and remind people of that.

Overall, it is a touching book, written from the heart, and one that, in its own way, is inspirational.

25/75 - 2009



The Book of Ballads by Charles Vess, et al.
179 pages / 2004 / 4 stars / Graphic Novel / 4-5-2009

Charles Vess' The Book of Ballads is a unique collection of Scottish, English and Irish ballads and folktales that have been reimagined into sequential art form with illustrations throughout by Vess and stories rewritten by Neil Gaiman, Charles de Lint, Jane Yolen, Jeff Smith, Emma Bull, Sharyn McCrumb, among other, and with an introduction by Terri Windling. The source ballads and folktales are also presented with each story. It is interesting to see how each author reinterprets the story, either by creating a story that follows the original most faithfully, or taking it and using simply as a guideline to tell his or her own unique story. Vess' illustrations are gorgeous throughout. They really are the main focus of each and every tale. I found myself reading through each tale and then going back and pouring over each page again, simply looking at the art. If you are a fan of either ballads of or Vess' art, you will not be disappointed in this book.

26/74 - 2009



The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie
220 pages / 1942 (2000) / 4 stars / Mystery / 4-4-2009

"Oh ma'am, oh ma'am, there's a body in the library!" And so starts Col. and Mrs. Bantry's day. It seems that the body of a young, platinum blonde girl has shown up in the library, and no one knows how she got there. By the end of the day, there are plenty of suspects, but still no answers. Enter Jane Marple. In typical Miss Marple fashion, she cuts to the quick of the problem and discovers the secrets that everyone is hiding and helps find the killer.

I have to admit, having finished The Thirteen Problems not that long ago, I can say that Christie's strength lies when she is writing a full novel. Her short stories seemed so strained after reading this. The Body in the Library was a fairly easy read, and was quite enjoyable. I also like the fact that Christie does carry over several of the local characters of St. Mary Meade from one story to the next.

27/73 - 2009



X-Men: Endangered Species by Mike Carey, et al.
192 pages / 2008 / 4 stars / Graphic Novel / 4-5-2009

After the events of House of M, there are less than 200 mutants alive in the world, and they are looking at the extinction of their species. The X-Man Beast decides to take it upon himself to find a cure for this problem, crossing boundaries he never thought he'd cross to find that cure.

It is an interesting premise; what lengths would you go to ensure the survival of your species? I think the X-Men comics have been wallowing for some time now, not knowing what direction to go in, but I think the stories and ideas that can come out of this graphic novel are a good starting point.

#69: Oooo thanks for the review! I don't think I've seen Vess' work before, but the idea sounds interesting. Will have to look into getting that one!

>70 tapestry100: Totally agree on Christie. I've tried a couple of her short stories online but they just didn't seem to do it for me. Her novels are much better. Thank you for the great reviews!

ETA: got the number of the msg wrong

The Road sounds really fascinating. I will definitely keep my eye out for it.

#28 - 2009
14/9-9-9 - Uncle Tom Challenge/2

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
218 pages / 1996 / 2 stars / Fiction / 4-9-2009

No review for this one. Truth to tell, I honestly didn't care whether I finished the story or not. I didn't enjoy it, nor did I not enjoy it. It just is what it is.

29/71 - 2009
15/9-9-9 - YA Category/3



The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
392 pages / 2006 / 4 stars / YA / 4-21-2009

OK, this was just a plain fun book. The Lightning Thief is the first installment in Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, which answers the question of what would the Greek gods be doing if they still existed today. Riordan sticks to the "rules and regulations" of the ancient myths, making sure that his story fits in the criteria of how the gods can interact with the real world, as opposed to changing established myths and lore to fit his needs, and I appreciated the story that much more for the effort that he put forth in that regard. You can read my full review here.

30/70 - 2009
16/9-9-9 - Fiction Category/3



Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
290 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / Fiction / 4-29-2009

More later, but an amazing book.

i've been hearing lots of good things on this one. I have the audio on order from library.

31/69 - 2009



The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
304 pages / 2007 / 3 stars / YA / 4-30-2009 / Audiobook

This one felt significantly more rushed than the first, as if Riordan had way too much story to fit into this book, so skimmed right over bits to make it all fit. Not as enjoyable as the first, but still fun all the same. You can read the full review here.

32/68- 2009
18/9-9-9 - SciFi Category/1



The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
416 pages / 2009 / 4.5 stars / Fiction / 5-12-2009

Creepy, creepy book! Books don't usually creep me out like this one did. You can read more about it here.

33/67 - 2009



The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
320 pages / 2007 / 3 stars / YA Fantasy / 5-14-2009

The story is becoming slightly more serious, as Kronos and Luke prepare for their attack on Camp Half-Blood and Olympus. Read my review here.

stop thinking about it too much and just enjoy

Yes no over analyzing its a great brain candy book and lots of fun. I thought didnt mind the pacing.

I know that I am probably overthinking the books, but I am still enjoying them! I've got book 4 all ready to start in the car when I get home from my sisters graduation.

And after reading The Strain, I needed something light and fun so...

Why did it delete my last message...?

#86 You have talent LOL

I think that is a good test of a book if despite the obvious flaws you still enjoy the book and want to read it.

#87 - It's what I get for trying to post from my phone.

And yes, even though I feel that he is rushing his way through some aspects of the book, I'm still really enjoying the series. I just started book 4 in the car last night. (I don't really like how he handles the characters when someone dies - like there is no impact on surviving characters whatsoever - but that may just be me).

And the post that I was trying to start up there ^^ that got erased is...

34/66 - 2009
17/9-9-9 - YA Category/4



Midnight Pearls: A Retelling of "The Little Mermaid" by Debbie Viguié
208 pages / 2006 / 3.5 stars / YA / 5-14-2009

This is part of the Once Upon A Time series, each book retelling a classic fairy tale. This was a clever reworking of The Little Mermaid. You can read more here.

35/65 - 2009
19/9-9-9 - Fiction Category/4



The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
384 pages / 2009 / 3.5 stars / Fiction / 5-19-2009

This was an early reviewer book, and I was so excited to receive it. However, for whatever reason, this book took me FOREVER to read. The first 200 pages just seemed to drag on and on, with not much happening. I'm glad that I stuck with it though, as the story did pick up in the last quarter of the book. You can read more here.

36/64 - 2009
20/9-9-9 - YA Category/5



The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
384 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / YA / 5-25-2009

To be honest, this book shocked me. I'd been hearing nothing but great reviews about it from everyone, and when the online book club that I belong to selected it to read, I was happy to have a reason to pick it up. I didn't really know anything about it, just that everyone kept saying what a powerful book it is. And they aren't wrong. You can read more here.

I haven't seen ONE bad review of The Hunger Games here on LT - it must be a pretty amazing book!

I was kinda holding out till the weekend to read Hunger Games. I started it but knew I would want to read in one sitting and uninterrupted.So i waited, patiently. Patience is now up :)

I just checked and it has an average rating of 4.62! That's pretty impressive.

My review for The Hunger Games is up.

37/63 - 2009
21/9-9-9 -Non-Fiction Category/3



A Guide to the Salem Witchcraft Hysteria of 1692 by David C. Brown
132 pages / 1984 / 3 stars / Non-Fiction / 6-6-2009

A brief history of the Salem Witch Hysteria of 1692, David Brown does a good job of condensing down the happenings and facts into a slim volume that cuts out the extra details and basically gives you a "just the facts" history of that year. Included are also maps of the areas with the pertinent locations marked, so that if you were to visit the area, you could find these locations easily. Also included is a chronology of events, and an additional bibliography for further reading. If you are interested in the events of the Witch Trials and are looking for a quick, easy read about them, this would be for you.

38/62 - 2009



Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
384 pages / 2008 / 3.5 stars / YA / 6-10-2009 / Audiobook

The fourth installment in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series finds Percy and friends in the labyrinth, in search of Daedalus, to try to keep Luke and the forces of Kronos at bay and keeping them from overtaking Camp Half-Blood. I've heard from several people that the first three books of the series are the best, and that the series begins to fall apart with the last two books. I don't agree with this. I think the fourth book has shown the most promise so far, taking on a more serious tone and turning from just a fun, romping read into something a little more serious. Percy begins to see the consequences of his and others choices and actions, and begins to act a little more realistically to the situation at hand. Riordan does still keep the usual levity in the story, though.

As usual, there seemed to be rushed moments in the book. For this book, it seemed to me that the final battle was too rushed, but I feel that way frequently about the final confrontations in YA books. It just always amazes that an entire book can be taken to get to the confrontation, yet the confrontation is over in one single chapter. I guess I just always enjoy the build up to the battle, that when it finally happens, it just happens all too fast.

With only one book to go, Riordan has done a nice job of keeping fewer and fewer plot lines dangling so that I think he'll be able to tie up the story nicely. I'm looking forward to the final installment, but at the same time, as this has been an enjoyable series to read, will be sad to see the story come to an end.

I've really had a hard time coming to terms with how disappointed I am in this book. The Shadow of the Wind remains one of my favorite books, and I was thrilled when I discovered that Zafón had written another book, and even more thrilled when I discovered that it is a prequel of sorts to Wind. Well, that's about as far as my enjoyment of this book has gone.

I've been reading The Angel's Game for the better part of three weeks now, and have not even reached 150 pages. I keep telling myself that it will get better, but as I look at my TBR pile that is growing exponentially, I realize that I just don't have the time or the patience to be able to spare on a poorly written book, regardless of how good the author has been in the past. The story has not moved forward at all, it seems very disjointed and unorganized, and I find that I really don't care how the story is going to end nor what is going to happen to the characters. Hopefully, I'll be able to pick it up again soon, but for the time being, I have far more books that are grabbing my attention right now.

That's too bad tapestry, it's always disappointing to put so much time into a book that just doesn't deliver. Better to move on! The Shadow of the Wind has been on my TBR for a while and I'm glad that one's good, I'll have to remember to stay away from this one!

Remember when I used to read books and post about them in here...?

vaguely...

=P

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Demigod Files by Rick Riordan
160 pages / 2009 / 3 stars / YA / 6-23-09

The Demigod Files was a short, filler book that was released just prior to the release of the fifth and final book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series to whet everyone's appetite for more adventures with their favorite Son of Poseidon. Included in this book are three short stories of Percy's further adventures since the fourth book, (poorly written) "interviews" with some of the main characters, a map of Camp Half-Blood, and some other odds and ends. Overall a cute little interlude in the story, but nothing that actually moves the story along.

#100 I have been having the same problem. I need to catch up on my LT posts too.

#104 - I wish it were a case of catching up on my LT posts. No... the fact remains that I haven't really been reading any books at all lately. I think part of the problem is that I am in need of new glasses. Desperately. I'm hoping to get an appointment to get that taken care of this week. I think it's also because it's summer, and it's always so busy during the summer. I should be finishing a book tonight, and then I've got a long train ride to Chicago on Monday and then back home on Tuesday to read, and then a long weekend again next, so I'm hoping to get caught up al little then.

40/60 - 2009

Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart
278 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / YA Fiction / 6-27-09

I always find it refreshing to discover that a writer who is so gifted in one field of writing can cross so seamlessly into another. I have read Beth Kephart before, who has written some of the most beautiful memoirs I have ever read (Into the Tangle of Friendship and Ghosts in the Garden, among others that I have not had the privilege of reading). She has a way of capturing words and painting a picture with them. If you've never read her memoirs before, go, read her words. You'll understand what I mean.

I recently had discovered that she had made the jump from memoir to young adult novels, but I had not had the opportunity to pick one up yet. When I learned that she was releasing a new book recently, I made it a point that this would be the book that I would pick up, to discover how well she handles herself as a writer of fiction, and I'm am not sorry that I did.

You can read more here.

Well, this is a first tapestry100!~!
I have been lurking and skulking around on LT for 2 years now and until the above post and your review, I have NEVER yet been enticed to read YA. (or at least what I consider YA) I do read young adult classics and H.P.
But this one, Nothing But Ghosts is a must have for me. I am certainly happy I popped by this evening. Thank you so much for that review.
belva

Wow you are busy at the moment.

#107 belva - I hope you enjoy it! If you enjoy it, you may want to check out her memoirs as well.

#109 mandy - Yeah, things have been busy, but I think it's starting to slow down a little!

Thanx for the tip and a happy 4th to you.

Okay, I am intrigued by the Kephart book, Mr. Reviewer, sir. ;)

Am making mental list of books to borrow from you. Mental list is getting heavy. Am remembering that I never borrow books from people because I get too attached. Mental list is suddenly so much lighter!

But seriously, I might actually have to borrow this one.

41/59 - 2009

The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
400 pages / 2009 / 4 stars / YA / 7-7-09 / Audiobook

The final book in the first installment of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, The Last Olympian is where everything that has been building in the previous 4 books comes together at last. I really feel that this is my favorite book of the series. I feel like Riordan finally has a grasp of all of his characters and who they are. You can read more here.

I don't know how I've missed your thread before -- you have a terrific selection of books, and I love your reviews. Nice to find another reader who enjoys children's and YA literature as much as I do. I'll be back!

42/58 - 2009

The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips
287 pages / 2008 / 4.5 stars / Fiction / 7-8-09 / LTER

I will honestly admit up front that the only reason I requested this book from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program is because Fannie Flagg wrote the introduction. The description sounded acceptable, but really, it all came down to Fannie Flagg for me. I love Fannie Flagg and all of her books, and I thought, "Fannie Flagg hasn't written anything in quite awhile now, but at least I'll get to read an introduction by her!" Well, how wrong I was. I not only got an introduction by Fannie Flagg, but I also got a book that is honest, funny, poignant and touching all wrapped up into a story that I won't forget anytime soon. You can read more here.

Great review. I'll be adding that one to my list.

43/57 - 2009



Isis by Douglas Clegg
113 pages / 2009 / 3 stars / Horror / 7-18-09 / ARC release September 29, 2009

A slim little volume whose cover and tag line caught my eye, Isis is apparently a prequel of sorts to his Harrow haunted house saga (which I will admit to having not read, much less heard of). The story is about the Villiers family who has moved to their ancestral home in Cornwall after the father has gone off to war. The family consists of Iris, twins Spencer and Harvey, older brother Lewis (who has gone off to school) and their mother and lunatic grandfather. Iris and Harvey are closest and are rarely seen apart. The estate gardener, Old Marsh, likes to fill their heads with the stories, legends and folktales from around the area; particularly about the burial grounds, or Tombs, of the Villiers family. One such story goes that you musn't make wishes or threats in the Tombs, as the dead will answer you, and then you must pay a debt to the dead. You can read the rest here.

44/56 - 2009



Flawed Dogs: The Year End Leftovers at the Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound by Berkeley Breathed
48 pages / 2003 / 4 stars / Childrens / 7-21-09

The Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound, founded by former Westminster Dog Show judge Heidy Strüdelberg (who was removed from the show when, in a fit of hysteria, realized the error of her ways and named a three-legged streetdog Best in Show), is a refuge for the the unloved, uncared-for dogs of the world. Heidy Strüdelberg's philosophy is "Not for the cut of their coat, but for the content of their character shall we love them!"

You can read the rest here.

45/55 - 2009

Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? by Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert, et al.
128 pages / 2009 / 3 stars / Graphic Novel / 7-21-2009

OK, I'm prepared for the gasps of shock and anger from the appropriate crowd, but honestly, I was really disappointed in this story. Maybe part of the problem is that I am just not that familiar with what is happening in the individual comic book series right now, but I do know that Bruce Wayne has apparently died. Gaiman was asked to write a swan song of sorts for Batman, and Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? is the end result.

Read the rest here.

Wow... I've actually been reading again. What a novel idea.

(See what I did there? With the pun? Witty, aren't I? Anyway.......)

Very good!~! If my computer was not so fouled up I would GIF you for that one; that's just how good it was!~! You are really punny!
"rater",
belva

lol - thanks, belva! =)

46/54 - 2009

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll and Sir John Tenniel
256 pages / 1865/1871 (2008) / 4 stars / Classic / 7-25-09

With all the talk recently about Tim Burton's upcoming version of Alice in Wonderland for Disney, it got me in the mood to reread Lewis Carroll's original. I have read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland numerous times, but only until recently have I reread Through the Looking Glass, as I found a lovely collected edition at my local Barnes & Noble. This edition is particularly nice as it includes the original illustrations by Sir John Tenniel for both volumes.

You can read more here.

I loved Alice when I was a child. I've been thinking I should read those aloud to my girls. Maybe that will be our next selection.

47/53 - 2009

Flawed Dogs, the Novel: The Shocking Raid on Westminster by Berkeley Breathed
216 pages / 2009 / 4 stars / YA / 7-29-09 / ARC

Released September 17, 2009 from Philomel Books

When I heard that Berkeley Breathed was making the jump to novels, I was tickled. I have been a huge fan of Breathed's work for years, back when he was doing the newspaper strip Bloom County. I have followed his characters over the years, from Bloom County to Outland and finally on to Opus. I have picked up his childrens books and am now anxiously awaiting the release of the first volume in a collected edition of his Bloom County newspaper strips.

When I heard about Flawed Dogs, the Novel, I assumed that it was simply an extension of his children's book Flawed Dogs: The Year End Leftovers at the Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound, maybe telling the story of the riot at Westminster that was mentioned in the book. While this is partly true, basically Flawed Dogs, the Novel takes a mirror image of the original story, using characters from the original (mostly the dogs), and slightly altering others (Heidy Strüdelberg, former Westminster judge becomes Heidy McCloud, young niece to Hamish McCloud, owner of McCloud Heavenly Acres, and a famous dog shower in his own time), to make an entirely new and refreshing story of the love between a dog and their human. I firmly believe in the idea that there are "dog people" and "not dog people" out there; dog people have a dog and will understand what this story is all about. Not dog people simply won't get beyond that it's a fun little story.

You can read the rest here.

48/52 - 2009

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback
32 pages / 1997 / 3 stars / Childrens / 7-29-09

Apparently I am the only person on the planet who has not heard of There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. I discovered this quite by chance while at Walt Disney World earlier in the year with my friend C, and he mentioned something about it, and when I told him I had no idea what he was talking about, he started to recite it. Just about every other person on the bus promptly picked up the story as well, leaving me feeling quite baffled that I seemed to have missed such a rite of passage of growing up. A few months later, I was catching up on episodes of Desperate Housewives, and one of the characters mentions it on the show, and at that point I decide that it's a sign that I need to buy this book.

Basically, the premise is an old lady swallows a fly, and then continues to swallow other animals (a spider, a cat, a dog, etc) to deal with the animal that she just previously ate, until she finally eats a horse and dies. Honestly, there is nothing to this story, but the illustrations are fun, with diecuts in every other page, consecutively growing with each animal the woman eats. No great work of genius, but clever all the same.

49/51 - 2009



After by Amy Efaw
353 pages / 2009 / 3.5 stars / YA / 7-31-09 / ARC

Released August 20, 2009 from Viking Books

I received this as an Early Reviewer, and quite frankly can't quite remember requesting it. When I read the line on the inside front page, "Who would leave her baby in the trash to die?", I began to worry that I had received a book that was not going to be to my liking at all. I guess it says something for Amy Efaw's writing that not only did she keep my attention through the entire book, she also held it enough that I finished the book in one sitting!

You can read the rest here.

>#126:
"I don't know why she swallowed the fly.
Perhaps she'll die."

I posted up the reviews for my last couple of books. They're up there^^.

50/50 - 2009

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
321 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / Fiction / 8-15-09

In The Art of Racing in the Rain, Garth Stein takes us on the amazing life's journey of an equally amazing hero, Enzo. Enzo is a dog, and he tells The Art of Racing in the Rain, describing his life from his early years with Denny to his adjustment to family life when Denny marries Eve and they have a daughter, Zoë, through Eve's passing and his final years with Denny and Zoë. The story is so much more involved that this simple synopsis, though. We experience all of Enzo's emotions; his thrills with riding in a race car with Denny, his growing love of the family that he perceives was forced upon him, his struggle to understand the human side of things so that he can be a better dog. Ultimately, the story is about a dog and his love for his human, and how he will do whatever he needs to do for his human to be happy.

You can read more here.

>132 tapestry100: That sounds really good! There are a few chapters in The Story of Edgar Sawtelle (what I'm reading right now) that are told from the perspective of the family's dog and those have been some of my favourite parts so this is one is definitely going on the TBR.

>133 spacepotatoes: - Racing in the Rain really is quite an extraordinary book. I've heard lots of good things about Edgar Sawtelle as well. Eventually I'll be picking that up too.

And I will be picking up Racing in the Rain. It sounds pretty precious to me. I love stories told from the perspective of the animal. Have you ever read Beautiful Joe? It is a wonderful old classic of a dog story.
Take care and thanx for the recx,
belva

I love Beautiful Joe!

>>135 rainpebble: & 136 - Well, if it comes so highly recommended, I'll have to check it out!! Thanks!

David;
I don't think you will be sorry. From my childhood I do believe that Beautiful Joe, The Little Gray Men (by B.B.) (wrong touchstone for that one) and The Black Fawn are my especially favorites. I hope you do get an opportunity to read it at some point in time.
belva

I'll have to check to see if any of my local libraries have any of those.

I'm just about done with Catching Fire. Wow. That's all I have to say for right now.

51/49 - 2009

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
400 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / YA / 8-10-09

Catching Fire, the Second Book of the Hunger Games takes every element from the first book and ups it all several notches. Katniss finds herself at the mercy of President Snow, torn between Gale and Peeta and ultimately placed into a situation she never thought she'd find herself in. And I can't believe that Suzanne Collins has left us hanging like this! Augh!

You can read the rest here.

53/47 - 2009

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
391 pages / 2009 / 3.5 stars / YA / 9-27-09 / ARC released 10-13-2009

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect when I received Hush, Hush. It's not a bad book, not by far, and it caught my interest enough to finish it in two days, but this is definitely a book geared more toward the Twilight series type of fan. This isn't meant as a slight to either Hush, Hush, Twilight or it's fan-base, it's just at the end of the book, I don't feel that I was that vested in any future developments with these characters (there is a sequel in the works, called Crescendo).

You can read the reast here.

Well, just as we saw a boost in production of children's magic fantasy when Harry Potter became popular, I suppose we must expect (and I think have been seeing) a jump in the dark fantasy for teens sub-genre. Of course, this is both a good thing and a bad thing -- when numbers go up, sometimes quality goes down, but bigger numbers also mean more publishing opportunities for brilliant gems that otherwise might not have made it to the shelves. I gather, though, that this is not one of those gems? :)

Actually, it truly was not a bad book. The next Harry Potter? No. The next Twilight? Who can tell. I enjoyed it enough to keep reading it right through the weekend, but as far as the future books in the series? I'll be passing on those, thank you very much.

55/45 - 2009

The Maze Runner by James Dashner
374 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / YA / 10-4-2009 / ARC released 10-6-2009

I've been following James Dashner for awhile now, since I received an advanced reader copy of the first book in his The 13th Reality series The Journal of Curious Letters. I enjoyed it enough, that I tracked down his earlier series, The Jimmy Fincher Saga. There were some definite improvements in his writing from Jimmy Fincher to The 13th Reality, but you could see the potential in each series that there was something more in Dashner that was wanting to get out, something bigger. And I think that The Maze Runner is that something.

From personal request of the author from his blog, I'm going to leave this review as spoiler free as possible, which of course means that I'm not going to be able to say much at all. The story opens with Thomas finding himself in a metal box that seems to be moving, with no memories of his life, his family, even of who he is. He knows his name is Thomas, and beyond that, he remembers very little of his life before waking up in the box. The box deposits him into the Glade, where he is met by a large group of boys who also have no memory prior to waking in the box, just like Thomas. He soon learns the ropes of living in the Glade, where the boys each have assigned jobs such as gardening or tending to the livestock, but the one job that he is most interested in is being a Runner. The Runners have probably the most important job in the Glade; they enter the huge Maze that surrounds the Glade, trying to find a way out, because as far as anyone can tell, there is no escape through the Maze. You can read the rest here.

56/44 - 2009



Dracula, the Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt
411 pages / 2009 / 4.5 stars / Horror / 10-9-2009 / ARC released on Oct 13, 2009

Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt's Dracula, the Un-Dead is the first official sequel to Bram Stoker's original Dracula. Dacre Stoker, a direct descendant of Bram Stoker and Ian Holt, a well-known Dracula historian, have pieced together a sequel based on notes that Bram Stoker had left about characters and plots that were removed from the original book.

I really enjoyed the story, if some of the plot threads seemed rather rushed. Taking place about 20 years after the events in Dracula, all the key players are still alive: Mina and Jonathan Harker are married, if somewhat unhappily, with a son, Quincey (named after Quincey Morris, who lost his life battling Dracula); Jack Seward has gone mad and has fallen more into his morphine addiction; Arthur Holmwood has taken up the title of Lord Godalming and is trying to forget the love of his life, Lucy Westenra; and Van Helsing is an old man now, trying to live long enough to finish his battle against the supernatural. Each of the key players from the original story have a part to play in this continuation, and each has to pay for their mistakes from before, one way or another.

Read the rest here.

You've intrigued me with your cryptic Maze Runner description - adding it to my Bookmooch wishlist, and crossing my fingers for it to become available soon!

57/43 - 2009

Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann
341 pages / 2005 / Mystery / 4.5 stars / 10-14-09

I fell in love with Three Bags Full in it's very first pages. It's a story about Irish sheep who set out on a mission to discover the murderer of their beloved shepherd, George, who has been stabbed through with a spade. It's a story fill with lovable characters; more to point, the sheep, and their thoughts on humans and the way the world works around them and their observations on it all. It's a comedy. It's a mystery. It's a little bit of everything, all rolled into a big, woolly yarn of a tale that is both in turns ingenious, funny and inspiring.

When George's flock discovers his body in the meadow one day, stabbed through with a spade, their initial reaction is panic. But to Miss Maple, the cleverest sheep in all of Glennkill, this is something more than just the death of their shepherd: this is a murder mystery. So, she takes it upon herself to discover the murderer, and eventually she is able to convince the rest of the flock to partake in the mystery as well. George was a kind shepherd and took very good care of his sheep, even reading to them in the evenings, and so they take their knowledge of the human character as they have seen through their stories, and begin on a mission to bring justice to their dear, departed shepherd.

You can read the rest here.

58/42 - 2009

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
48 pages / 1963 / 4 stars / Childrens / 10-17-2009

Not much more can be said for this children's classic tale that hasn't already been said before. I'm almost sure that everyone has read this at one point or another in their lives, and if you haven't, it's worth it. I know that it is the illustrations I remember most from my childhood, and as I read it again in preparation to see the new film version, they all came back to me in a rush of nostalgia! No child's library should be without this book.

Having said that, the film version of Where the Wild Things Are really is a different creature entirely. I'm not sure that young fans of the book today will understand the film; the more that I've thought about the movie over the last couple of days, the more I believe it is the generation of parents of today's children that this movie is made for. We will understand the film so much more than our children will. I've talked to a couple of friends who took their children to see it, and in most cases, the movie scared their children, yet the parents got it. I think it deals with many of the insecurities that we all had as children, being angry and not being understood, not having a clear idea how to deal with love, either giving or taking of it, and now that we are grown, we can look back at our childhoods and understand better what the story is about.

In my opinion, Spike Jonze took Sendak's story and pulled from it all the elements that made it perfect for us as children, and made it into a film that makes us nostalgic for that time of our lives, but as seen through the eyes of our adult selves as we relive those emotions through the cinematic eyes of Max. I still stand behind the idea that the book should belong in every children's library (and perhaps every adult's library, too) but the film should be watched by parents first, before taking their children to see it.

59/41 - 2009

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by Brett Helquist
117 pages / 2009 / 4 stars / YA / 10-18-2009

Neil Gaiman wrote Odd and the Frost Giants for World Book Day in the UK. It is the story of Odd, a Viking child who has had some very bad luck in his short life: his father died, his leg is crushed, his mother remarries a not so kind stepfather, winter seems to never end. In frustration, Odd decides to leave his village and live in the woods. One day, Odd finds himself in the company of a fox, a bear and an eagle, and they have a story to tell Odd; a story that involves Asgard, Midgard, gods and giants, deceit and mischief and cleverness, and Odd finds himself eventually part of their story.

It's a quick tale, and while it doesn't pull the reader into the heart of the story like some of his other books (The Graveyard Book, for instance), Gaiman's writing is still clever, fun and original. If you are a fan of Gaiman's work, I don't think you'll be disappointed in this story.

re Where the Wild Things Are: most reviews of the film I've read seem to agree with you that it is made for parents rather than children. Nevertheless, one of my favourite short-story writers, Dave Eggers, co-wrote the script so I'm looking forward to seeing it!

>152 girlunderglass: I hope you enjoy it! I really liked the film, and think I want to go see it again.

Hang on a minute -- "I really liked the film... I want to go see it again" is NOT what you said when we exited the theater, mister. What changed?

I know that lots of people are talking about the scary factor, which apparently annoys the crap out of Mercer Mayer, but I think that's the same stuff people say when they object to the book -- hello, they are wild things, you know. Of course they are bigger and more in-your-face on screen -- just like a description of a Hungarian Horntail is different than watching a CGI dragon try to eat Harry Potter. I'm not sure why people expected the film to be squishy -- the monsters had fangs and scary faces in the book, so why expect them to be less-than-scary in the film? Unrealistic expectations are the stuff that negative reviews are made of -- isn't that essentially what we were saying the other day, in another context of looking at the same film?

But I do think that the film has some flaws, some legitimate reasons for people not to tout its perfection, that most people seem to be ignoring in favor of the "it's too scary for my kids" argument. (Also, I believe the film is PG -- not G -- so there is a flag right there.)

I do agree, however, that this is a film for us, for our generation (young parents, people in their 30's, etc.). That's typical of the director, Spike Jonze. Nostalgia is a good word for its tone, though the anger and lack-of-control that Max feels isn't limited to us.

I don't know -- maybe I'm just feeling feisty because the reaction of parents and reviewers-who-are-parents seems a little silly. Or maybe I'm babbling. I'll stop now. Sorry to stomp on your thread. ;)

To be honest, I don't remember exactly what I said when we left the theater, so you'll have to refresh my memory on that one, but maybe in thinking on the film since that night, I decided that I wanted to see it again. I do know that of the 3 of us, I was the one that got the most out of the film (I don't remember YOU crying at the end of the movie!). So there. :P

Anyway, I do agree that most people are latching onto the "it's too scary for my kids" aspect of the film, and missing the bigger picture of what the movie is about. No it's not perfect, but neither is the book. (And as a side note that just occurred to me while writing this: What exactly does Mercer Mayer think his characters would look like if made into CGI creatures for the big screen? I just think someone is jealous and bitter...). I think this is one of those films that will end up having a rather distinct line drawn between those that like it and those that don't, and both parties will feel very strongly about their choice. Oh well.

I still liked it and I still think I want to go see it again. :P

No, it wasn't that Mercer Mayer was annoyed at the film (my understanding is that he quite liked it) -- he was annoyed at the people who were talking about how scary it was. (Sorry about my unclear phrasing -- way to go, English major, I know.)

I read in the Shelf Awareness newsletter, and then later in the Newsweek interview they quoted, that, when asked what he would say to those who argued that the film was too scary for kids, Mercer Mayer said "I would tell them to go to hell" -- really, that's what he said.

I think you should read the interview (http://www.newsweek.com/id/216997/page/1), because I just read it and it actually made me reflect on the film a bit more, with perhaps a bit more respect (also, I'm in a better mood today -- Mrs. CrankyPants is out to lunch, apparently). Mayer makes a really good point about the adults who keep complaining about the scariness (better than "go to hell", which I thought was rather good). He says "Grown-ups are afraid for children. It's not children who are afraid." Totally sums it up. But, of course, that's not the blurb that's making the rounds of the blogs right now. :)

So, I guess this is all just to say that, well, if you want to go see it again, I'll go with you. (Feel free to roll your eyes.)

61/39 - 2009

M is for Magic by Neil Gaiman
272 pages / 2007 / 4 stars / YA / 10-27-2009

M is for Magic is a delightfully creepy collection of short stories from Neil Gaiman. These stories are typical Neil Gaiman, and I find that is a phrase that I frequently use about his work, but that's the best way to put it: typical Neil Gaiman. He has a way of writing something that is so fantastical in such a matter-of-fact way that if you were to encounter one of these stories in the real world, you'd feel like it was an everyday occurance, yet special all the same.

The stories are written for a younger audience, so they aren't quite as creepy as they could be, but that isn't saying that these stories aren't creepy and a little dark in their own right. Some of the stories that stuck out the most for me: The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds is a perfect example of Mother Goose meets crime pulp fiction; Don't Ask Jack is a little disturbing in it's vagueness and the secrets the Jack in the Box holds; Sunbird tells the tale of the Epicurian Club and their desire to expand their appetites to the extreme; and The Witch's Headstone was later incorporated into The Graveyard Book. The accompanying illustrations by Teddy Kristiansen are dark and creepy, so they fit in with the rest of the stories perfectly.

I enjoyed M is for Magic, but I'm thinking I should have maybe spaced the stories out a little more instead of reading them all at one time. Once finished, I was left wanting a little more, and I think that's because they are short stories, and I really wanted a little more substance from my latest Gaiman selection. Maybe it's time to move onto one of his novels for an "older" audience, or maybe revisit The Graveyard Book; don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed these stories. Maybe as a bit of advice to other readers, space them out. You'll be able to savour them that much more.

62/38 - 2009

Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories by Lorin Morgan-Richards
68 pages / 2009 / Fiction Short Stories / 5 stars / 10-29-2009

I receive an email not too long ago from Lorin Morgan-Richards wondering if I would mind reviewing his book, Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories. I'm leery of reviewing home-published books; I've received some less that stellar books this way in the past, but I thought I'd at least do a little research and looked the book up on Amazon and LibraryThing. After discovering that it has received 5 stars across the board at both of these sites, I thought I'd go ahead and offer to review it.

Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories is a collection of seven short stories that introduce us to a variety of characters who all live very bizarre lives. For instance, Simon Snootle himself lives in a cistern with some cats, where he fell as a child and his parents never bothered to pull him out, in fear of what else may come up with him; or Mr. Slowbug, who may or may not have discovered that he is forever more going to be a fashion accessory. The stories are quirky and unusual and the accompanying illustrations fit the mood of the stories perfectly. I honestly think that unless you are a fan of the likes of Edward Gorey or Tim Burton, you probably won't get much out of these stories; but the Gorey and Burton fans will love this book.

What makes the volume really shine, however, is the physical book itself; it is handmade! In the author's own words: "...I wanted to make sure I had a personal connection with how each book was created...writing, illustrating, drafting, printing, binding, and pressing each by hand." To say that Lorin Morgan-Richards made a small work of art out his book is an understatement. The book is printed on acid-free paper and bound in a faux-leather cover, and the finished product is a loverly little edition that has a slight quirkiness and imperfection to itself that goes right along with the characters that are held inside it's pages; honestly, I could easily see this sitting on any bookshelf in any store, it is so well presented.

Fans of Gorey and Burton and the like, don't hesitate to pick a copy up for yourself, as I don't think you will be disappointed. Morgan-Richards has created a host of fun characters and has given them a place to live in a beautiful, homemade book. The stories are quick and it won't take you much time at all to finish reading the book, but the overall package and the effort that Morgan-Richards put into his book from start to finish will certainly impress you as it did me.

For more information on Lorin Morgan-Richards or to order a copy of Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories for yourself, visit www.lorinrichards.com.

Yes, I did get an October book -- The Coral Thief -- so there! It may not be Gregory Maguire, but considering you don't even like Gregory Maguire, really, mine is probably better. Ha. :)-

Oh, and I like your review of the Morgan-Richards book. I agree that the quality of the make really was the coolest thing. Someday I'll have to steal it and actually read it though. :)

Well, you don't actually have to steal. I'll just lend it to you sometime. =)

And I don't like Wicked, and since I've read nothing else by him, this gives me a chance to expand my knowledge about his writing. You know if I don't like the book, I'm just going to hand it off to you, so what are you giving me a hard time for? =P I see someone is still feeling sassy since yesterday.... lol

Well, you know, I didn't get to work all my sassiness out. So there are leftovers. :)

The ten Essential Classics from Penguin (which I mentioned yesterday) are here: http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pages/classics/index.html

There, now I am no longer holding out. They had a sweepstakes to win a set, but you might have to sign up for their newsletter for that.

Finally got around to posting my thoughts on M is for Magic. Seems rather uninspred (my review - not the book). Don't take that as an indication of the book being bad; it was actually quite good, but I always feel left wanting something more after reading short stories. The review is up there^^, at post #157.

So, I'm going to see if I can read all three books in Frank Beddor's Looking Glass Wars series today. I have nothing planned to do today, so I thought I'd give it a try. I'll post my progress in the comments as I go along.

I've finished The Looking Glass Wars and Seeing Redd and now I'm on to ArchEnemy!

63/37 - 2009

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
309 pages / 1998 / 4 stars / YA Fantasy / 11-7-2009 / audiobook

The first installment in J.K. Rowling's smash hit Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone introduces us to all the key players and locales that will take part in the series: we meet Harry Potter himself, the boy who lived; Harry's remaining living family, the Dursleys (the worse king of Muggles); Hagrid, Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts; all the other instructors and staff of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts; Harry's best friends, Ron and Hermione; Malfoy, Harry's immediate enemy at Hogwarts; even Voldemort, Harry's archenemy, the dark wizard who tried to kill Harry when Harry was an infant and failed. I could go on about the story and what happens, but I'm sure that most everybody already has an idea of what goes on in the story, either from having read the book or seen the movie. If the only experience that you have with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is from the movie, do yourself and favor and read the book; while the movie is fun and gives you all the basic story, it does leave out some key points and some of the funnier moments from the book. This will be a theme that plays out in all of the movies, and it gets worse as the books become more and more involved.

Having the read the book several times already before, and having finished the series now, I can see the inconsistencies in Rowling's storytelling and structure, but at the same time, knowing what's coming, it's interesting to see where she had been dropping clues to the rest of the story from the very beginning. I also like seeing how she progresses as a writer throughout the series, cleaning up her writing style as the books go on. Also, again still going on the knowledge of what's to come, I had forgotten how refreshing and lighthearted these earlier books are, before the story starts to take on its more darker tones. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the series as a whole, and may even enjoy the later books more than the earlier volumes, but that doesn't change the fact that this was still just a plain fun book.

On a side note, I listened to the audiobook version of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone this time around, as I have never listened to any of the books, and I have to say that I really enjoyed Jim Dale's take on the characters and his telling of the story. It took me awhile to get used to his version of the voices (I'll be honest, I kept waiting to hear the voices more like they were in the movies, but the only one that seemed to match was Hagrid), but once I got into the story and his version of everything, I found it easier and easier to enjoy the audiobook. If you haven't had the pleasure of listening to the audiobook versions of the Harry Potter books before, take a couple of hours and give them a listen. It's worth it.

64/36 - 2009

The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor
358 pages / 2006 / 5 stars / YA Fantasy / 11-7-2009

Thought you knew the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland? Well, think again, because that story was wrong.

The Looking Glass Wars is the first installment of Frank Beddor's clever retelling of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Here we meet Alyss Heart, heir to the throne of Wonderland, where all imagination in the universe is born from. On her seventh birthday, her deranged aunt, Redd Heart, storms Heart Palace, killing Alyss' father and mother, taking control of the kingdom that she feels is rightfully hers. Alyss' mother, Queen Genevieve, sends Alyss away with Hatter Madigan to the Pool of Tears, through which they escape to Earth, but are separated. Meanwhile, General Doppelganger and what few survivors that still back Alyss and White Imagination, begin their counterattacks against Redd and her forces of Black Imagination. Thinking Alyss dead, they called themselves Allyssians in tribute and for 13 years try to overthrow Redd.

During this time, Alyss is marooned on Earth, not knowing how to return to Wonderland and slowly loosing her powers of Imagination, where she is eventually adopted by the Lidells, and eventually she meets Charles Dodgson, who she feels will believe her tale when all others haven't. When he produces the book, Alice's Adventures Underground to her, she then realizes that he was her last hope, and begins to acclimate herself to life forever on Earth. Hatter Madigan eventually discovers here whereabouts and the two return to Wonderland, just in time to help reinvigorate the rebels and their fight against Redd.

The story is incredibly clever, and you will recognize all the characters from Lewis Carroll's stories here, but completely re-imagined. I love how Beddor takes Carroll's stories and completely reworks them into this civil war between the forces of White Imagination and Black Imagination in the first part of the book, then uses Alyss telling Charles Dodgson the story and his reworking this story into Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and then Beddor taking the story even farther from there with Alyss' return to Wonderland and the eventual battle between her and Redd. It's a fast-paced story that moves right along almost immediately in the book and doesn't really let up throughout. Die hard Alice fans may or may not like the changes to the story, but as a huge fan of Carroll's original stories, I can honestly say that I loved these reworkings!

65/10 - 2009

Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor
371 pages / 2007 / 5 stars / YA Fantasy / 11-7-2009

The second installment of The Looking Glass Wars, Seeing Redd opens a mear three months after Alyss Heart reclaimed her throne from her mad Aunt Redd, who along with The Cat flung themselves into the Heart Crystal instead of suffering the humiliation of loosing to her neice. But since the Heart Crystal is the spark of Imagination of the universe, Redd and The Cat find their way back to Earth through rather different means than the usual manner for Wonderlanders, the Pool of Tears.

Finding herself on Earth, Redd discovers a number of Wonderlanders who have taken refuge there, and decides to build her army on Earth, hidden from Alyss, and plans her revenge. Meanwhile back in Wonderland, King Arch, the monarch of Boarderland, is planning his own assault on Wondertropolis, using any means of subterfuge that he finds useful at the moment. Eventually, Redd makes her way back to Wonderland, and finding that she and Arch have similar goals, strike up a precarious alliance. However, Arch has plans of his own that even Redd doesn't know of, in the form of his new weapon WILMA.

Beddor continues to keep the pace fast and exciting in Seeing Redd, just like he did in The Looking Glass Wars. While we've left the similarities of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass behind in the last book, he continues to grow his cast of characters carefully, and each new character is just as imaginative as the last. I continue to be thrilled with this series. It's a fresh take on the Alice mythos and I'll be sad to see the series come to a close with the final volume, ArchEnemy.

66/9 - 2009

ArchEnemy by Frank Beddor

The final chapter in Frank Beddor's The Looking Glass Wars, ArchEnemy is really a satisfying ending to the series. He ties up all the plot lines nicely and doesn't leave too many unanswered questions that may lead to more in the series, even though I wouldn't mind seeing more from Beddor and his take on the Wonderland characters.

King Arch makes his move to take over Wonderland using the best weapon he can come up with, the destruction of imagination as a whole. However, both Alyss and Redd may think differently about his plans. They form a tenuous partnership to help each other overthrow Arch, even though they both understand that either may betray the other when they find the right opportunity. And what role do the caterpillars play in all of this? Whose side are they on after all; their own, or do they actually have the best interest of the Heart Crystal in mind?

I can honestly say that I don't think that Beddor could have done a better job tying up his plot threads, while adding enough new layers to the story to keep this book interesting in it's own right as well as an ending to his story. If Beddor doesn't continue on with his Wonderland characters, I'd like to see what he can come up with next.

67/8 - 2009

The Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire by Ed Brubaker, et al.
312 pages / 2007 / 4 stars / Graphic Novel / 11-11-2009

I've been a little behind on one of my guilty pleasures over the last couple of years, and that's my X-Men comics. I've been reading this series since 1986, and my interest has waxed and waned over the years, but I always inevitably come back to reading the series. I can tell how my reading preferences have changed recently, however, as reading the series in its monthly installment form has not been able to hold my interest at all, so I've instead been picking up the collected story arcs in trade paperback form. Not only is it cheaper in the long run (especially ordering them through Amazon), but it takes up much less space and is easier to organize the volumes on my book shelf.

There is so much back story with the series running for over 40 years now that it's hard to just pick up the series with any issue these days, as well as the fact that most story arcs are written into a 5-6 issue format, knowing that these will be published into a trade paperback form. I can't imagine anyone new trying to figure out what's going on with the characters these days. I've been reading for quite some time now, and I always find myself at a loss when I've taken a break. My other problem is that I have a tendency to jump around quite a bit when I'm reading some of the older but more recent trade paperbacks, so I get a little confused as to the series of events and what happens when.

Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire was one of the bigger events, spanning the course of a year, which in terms of story arc length, I think is rather involved. The story basically picks right up where Deadly Genesis left off, with Vulcan escaping Earth and going on a rampage through the Shi'Ar Empire, in search of the man that he holds responsible for all the wrongs in his life, the Emperor D'Ken. What Vulcan doesn't know is that D'Ken has long since been dethroned and is currently in a catatonic state. Feeling himself responsible for Vulcan's fate, Professor X forms a team of X-Men to go into space to try and capture Vulcan and bring him back to sanity.

There was so much that went on in this issue, it would be tough to get it all into a reasonable blurb, so I'll stop there. Basically, the issue ends with Lilandra deposed, Vulcan crowning himself emperor and half of the X-Men team that went into space is stranded there with the Starjammers, and they decide to stay to try to overthrow Vulcan and reinstate Lilandra as empress. And if none of that makes sense to you, you probably aren't alone. Like I said, so much back story makes it almost impossible to follow the story sometimes!

There was a lot to cram into this storyline, and I think Ed Brubaker did an admirable job, but there were some instances where the story jumped around a little too much, making it hard to follow sometimes. Couple that with the shear number of characters that they tried to add into the mix, and what you end up with is a sometimes overly complex story. The art is good, alternating between Billy Tan and Clayton Henry, but their styles are so disparate, that reading the volume as a whole as opposed to the monthly issues, the differences become immediate. Billy Tan's artwork is so hyper-detailed in some instances that it's hard to follow what exactly is happening in some panels. Overall, however, artistically speaking the volume works well.

68/7 - 2009

Supernovas by Mike Carey, et al.
336 pages / 2007 / 4 stars / Graphic Novel / 11-10-2009

Supernovas brought about some significant changes for the X-Men team that Rogue leads. Cyclops basically gives her full reign to choose a team as she sees fit, and while in the end the team isn't exactly to his liking, she reminds him that he let her choose her own team, and they leave it at that.

The volume is broken into three distinct story arcs, the first dealing with The Children of the Vault, a group of humans that were housed in a time accelerating field, so that in the some-odd years that they were housed in the ship where the machine was located, something like 6,000 years have passed, so they can almost be viewed as a separate species now. They want to keep their existence a secret for the time being, but Sabretooth has discovered them, so they go in pursuit of him, and he eventually turns to the X-Men for help and asylum. The Children of the Vault attack SHIELD and capture Northstar (who SHIELD is trying to rehabilitate) and Aurora, to aid them in attacking the X-Men. The story becomes a little convoluted (a little, some ask?) but ends with The Children of the Vault defeated and the X-Men commandeering their flying barge, the Conquistador.

The next story arc deals with the X-Men trying to get SHIELD to help rehabilitate both Northstar and Aurora, now. In the meantime, Exodus and his Acolytes try to capture the Helicarrier to recreate into a new home for the remaining mutants on the planet. Northstar and Aurora come to their senses long enough to help battle Exodus, and the X-Men are victorious because of their aid. Exodus also learns at this point that there are no more mutants and the possibility of a mutant birth is non-existent due to the Scarlet Witch and the events of House of M. (Confused, yet?)

The final story arc deals with Rogue and her team going after the members of the hospital responsible for dissecting mutants and trying to gene-splice their powers onto regular humans, the ultimate goal of which is to create a "super" human out of Pandemic, a former colleague of Professor X, who sees Rogue and her ability to borrow the powers of people she touches as the next step in his evolution, even though he is human. Lots happens here, but the base result is, Pandemic is defeated (by absorbing Sabretooth's powers, including his healing factor) and Rogue is infected with Strain 88, which causes her powers to fluctuate way out of control, to the point that she will instantly kill anyone who touches her, absorbing all their powers and memories. Meanwhile, Providence is attacked by the Hecatomb, a weapon created by the Shi'Ar to defeat the mummudrai (telepathic parasites). A mummudrai makes its way to Earth, and eventually attaches itself to Cable, in an effort to defeat the Hecatomb, but in the end it is Rogue who saves the day, absorbing all 8 billion minds that compose the Hecatomb and making it vulnerable to an attack from the X-Men. And now Rogue is crazy.

So much happens in this volume, and it does seem to jump around quite a bit, but it is refreshing to see some stories that revolve around some of the more sidelined X-Characters instead of the old standbys. Cyclops, Beast, Wolverine, Emma Frost and such do make an appearance in this volume, but they are as peripheral characters, with most of the action revolving around Rogue's team. Mike Carey keeps the pace non-stop through the volume, almost hectically, leaving the read thrown from one even to the next. It does make the story just fly by, but so much is happening, and again, so many characters are thrown into the mix, that the story almost becomes distracting despite itself.

I'm totally cheating, but I know there is absolutely NO WAY that I am going to be able to reach a 100 book goal by the end of the year, so since I flipped from a 75 to a 100 goal last year, I'm flipping back from a 100 to a 75 goal this year.

69/6 - 2009

The Extremists by Ed Brubaker, et al.

Review coming, eventually.

70/5 - 2009

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
129 pages / 1843 (2003) / 5 stars / Fiction / 11-13-2009

Dickens' perennial Christmas classic about Ebenezer Scrooge and his visits from the ghost of his former partner, Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present, and Christmas Yet to Come and the Christmas lessons Scrooge learns from them. I try to read this every year around the holidays, and it never seems to get old.

There's really not much else to be said about the story that hasn't already been said before, so I'll just leave it at that. One thing that I would like to talk about, however, is the new Disney animated feature film version of A Christmas Carol. As I said previously, I'm very close to this story as I read it every year around the holidays so Disney and Robert Zemeckis had to do a fairly bang up job on the film to impress me, and I have to admit that on almost all accounts, they did. They took very few liberties with the story, sticking very close to the source material for much of the dialogue, and what was added did seem to be necessary. The slightly over-the-top chase sequence with the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come was just that, over-the-top, but I understand the necessity to put something like that into the film. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come sequence is a little on the long side, dark and moody and I can understand why they were trying to lighten the mood for the kids in the audience, but really, it didn't feel like it was a part of the story to me.

The animation is breathtaking, being rendered in complete motion capture 3D CGI. The sweeping, aerial shots of 1840s London were something to behold and the characters themselves were quite believable. Overall, coming from someone who has a great attachment to the book, I can happily say that I was pleasantly pleased with the outcome of the movie.

71/4 - 2009

Blinded by the Light by Mike Carey, et al.

Review coming, eventually.

72/3 - 2009

A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
185 pages / 2009 / 2 stars / Children's Poetry / 11-15-2009

OK, I'm going to come clean. I didn't like A Light in the Attic. At all.

Is everyone over their collective gasp of disbelief? Good. Let me explain.

I don't think I remember ever reading Shel Silverstein as a kid. I mean, I must have, right? Every kid has. But beyond The Giving Tree, I have absolutely no recollection of ever having picked up another book by Silverstein. My sister, on the other hand, loved him as a kid. Somehow, I just skipped over that bit of growing up, I guess. My sister loved him as a kid, and still loves him today as an adult. In fact, she has all of her copies of his books from when she was a kid. So, when I heard they were coming out with this anniversary edition of A Light in the Attic that included several new poems, my first thought was that I needed to get a copy for her for her birthday, and it was being released close to that date. My second thought was that I should also buy a copy for myself. I felt I should have a copy in my library, since everyone just goes on and on about him. For future reference, I'm going to simply read what my sister has, that way I won't feel like I wasted my money.

Now, don't get me wrong. I own The Giving Tree and love it. I reread itperiodically. I's a great little book. I cannot say the same of A Light in the Attic. I know the poems are geared towards kids, and that they are to be taken completely tongue in cheek, but that still hasn't stopped me from wishing I hadn't bought the book. I was actually shocked by the poems that dealt with kids dying (not that I'm so easily shocked by anything, really, but it really did come as a surprise to me) and thought some of them completely distasteful. Of course, to a kid, that sort of thing can be hysterical. I thought the illustrations were amusing, but not much more than that.

So, I think I missed my formative, Shel Silverstein-liking years. I guess to the right kid, these are great, but for my 34-year-old self who has never read them before and hadn't appreciated them as a kid... well, I won't be picking up another sampling any time soon.

Ah, Shel Silverstein. He's great, isn't he?

My husband and I saw the new 3D movie version of A Christmas Carol this past weekend, it was really well done. If reading the book put you in the mood for more holiday-themed things, I'd recommend it!

Actually, I read A Christmas Carol around the holidays every year, so I read it this year a little early in preparation for going to see the movie, and I have to agree that the movie was really well done. I was very impressed! I'm hoping to be able to go see it again before it leaves theaters.

Look at you, Mr. Loads-of-New-Posts! Solid work.

Yeah, that was a good movie -- a pleasant surprise, though now I do feel that I really ought to go back and read the book once more. Literary guilt, if you will. :)

David! You're almost to 75!

=) Thanks for stopping by Meg! It seems like that 75th book is slow in getting read! lol

I'm giving away books!! Click here for a set of J.F. Englert's Bull Moose Dog Run books and here for a copy of James Dashner's The Maze Runner.

Don't forget, I've got 2 giveaways currently on my blog. The first is for a copy of The Maze Runner by James Dashner, and the second is for a set of all 3 of the Bull Moose Dog Run Mysteries by J.F. Englert.

I'm closing up the James Dashner giveaway this Sunday, December 13, so don't forget to stop by to find out all the details about entering. The J.F. Englert giveaway will be open until January 8, 2010, so that Amazon has enough time to get the books in stock.

Good luck!!

Yay books!

Congrats on winning the Dashner, beserene!!

Why, thank you! How delightful -- I'm really looking forward to reading that one! Yay again! :)

75 - 2009

A Dog at Sea by J.F. Englert
256 pages / 2009 / 5 stars / Mystery / 12-22-2009 / ARC

In the latest installment of J.F. Englert's clever Bull Moose Dog Run mystery series, A Dog at Sea, we find our narrator Randolph, an acutely intelligent black Labrador with a penchant for good literature and an expanding waistline, and his human, Harry, on what seems to be a harmless dog-lover's pleasure cruise headed for Curaçao. In reality, the cruise is a useful cover story for their continued search for Imogen, Harry's love and Randolph's true owner. As typically happens with Randolph and Harry, they find themselves involved, through circumstances beyond their control, in a murder mystery and Randolph takes it upon himself to get to the bottom of it all.

After the events of A Dog Among Diplomats when Harry and Randolph discover possible clues to Imogen's whereabouts, they decide to follow the clues to Curaçao to see if they can find her. Using the cruise as a cover for their real purpose, Harry and Randolph also decide to use their time to rest and recuperate. However, this idea is short-lived after what appears to be a suicide on board the ship leads Randolph to think that there is something more going on. Using what limited lines of communication are available to his canine self and the help of Cha Cha the New Yorkie, Randolph helps lead Harry to the necessary clues to help solve the murder in a final whodunit reveal that would have made Dame Christie proud. It is a story of professional ambition (at any cost), unrequited love, corporate sponsored tropical storms and psychotropic doggie treats on the high seas.

I use the word "mystery" loosely here in describing the book. Englert's books are hard to categorize, but since there is a murder mystery in each book, this seems to be the easiest place to shoehorn them. The previous books are so much more than mere "murder mysteries" and A Dog at Sea is no exception. There is also the continuing mystery about Imogen, her whereabouts and the secrets surrounding her past. The books can also be labeled just as easily as comedies; Englert has a knack for creating memorable characters and his sense of humor is the perfect balance of dry wit and downright funny. I found myself laughing out loud through several parts of the book. However, what constantly surprises me in each book, and again A Dog at Sea is no exception, is Randolph's insight into the human condition. From his dog point of view looking out on the people around him, he is able to have a keener perspective on what makes people tick, and those human qualities are reflected back through him; his need for companionship, his feelings of loss and betrayal by Imogen, his loyalty to Harry. It's these very human emotions that Randolph feels that really make the books stand out for me; that in the midst of all the chaos of the murder and the humor sprinkled throughout the book, there are these shining moments of real emotion. I don't know; maybe I'm reading too much into the books, but I honestly feel that J.F. Englert has a really unique and refreshing way of telling Randolph's story and I'm hoping that we'll be able to read more of his adventures in the future.

A Dog at Sea will be released on December 29, 2009 through Dell.

To read more of Randolph's own views on the world, stop by his blog. Also, I'm giving away a set of all three Bull Moose Dog Run books here. And finally, you can read my interview with J.F. Englert from last year here.

Don't forget, I'm giving away books!! Click here for a set of J.F. Englert's Bull Moose Dog Run books. Contest ends January 8, 2010!

Hello! I haven't visited in a while, so I had a lot of catching up to do (scribbling titles madly... your reviews are terrific!) I did gasp at your Shel Silverstein review, but perhaps you're right -- maybe there's a Silverstein window, and if you miss it, you'll never get it. I discovered him in fourth grade, when my teacher read his poems aloud. My kids read him poems nearly every day. We also found copies of him reading his poems aloud at the library -- some poems are even funnier when heard with his lively, croaky voice. Take care!

I was talking with another friend of mine about Silverstein, and she agrees - if you don't get into his stuff when you're a kid, there probably isn't much hope for you as an adult. Ah well.

Goodbye, 2009! You were an OK reading year, although you did have some great highlights. I'm looking forward to 2010. Come follow me here.