Andrea's 2013 Challenge - Part III

My Categories:

1. Door Stoppers (2/2)
Classic books so big you can use 'em to hold the door open

2. The Once and Future King (3/4)
Traditional Aurthurian romances (not modern retellings)

3. Hatchlings (6/6)
Books first published in 2013

4. Just the Facts, Ma'am (8/8)
Nonfiction.

5. Oh, the Horror! (10/10)
Tales of terror, monsters, ghosts, and the apocalypse.

6. Unicorns from Space! (Part I) (10/10)
Science fiction and fantasy.

7. Unicorns from Space! (Part II) (10/10)
Science fiction and fantasy

8. Youth Relived (10/10)
Young adult

9. Auntie Time (10/10)
Picture books read to my baby niece

10. Panel by Panel (10/10)
Comics and graphic novels

11. The Universe in Verse (10/10)
Poetry

12. From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books (10/10)
There are actually about 200 books, since there is also the publicly voted list (with some overlaps). I'm working off the list from 2009, which is posted on my blog.

13. Miscellany (11/10)
The catch-all category for whatever doesn't fit in the above.

* * *

110/110

1. Door Stoppers

Books Completed: (2/2) -- DONE!
1. Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy (***1/2)
2. The Count of Monte Christo, by Alexandre Dumas (****)

Possible Candidates for Next Year:
1001 Arabian Nights
The Three Musketeers
Moby Dick
Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo
Bleak House, by Charles Dickens
War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy
Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Vanity Fair, by William Makepeace Thackeray

2. The Once and Future King

Books Completed: (2/4)
1. Arthurian Romances, by Chrétien de Troyes (****)
2. Le Mort d'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory (DNF)
3. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A New Verse Translation, author unknown, translated by Simon Armitage (****)

Currently Reading:
Parzival and Titurel, by Wolfram von Eschenbach

Possible Candidates:
History of the Kings of Britain by Geoffrey of Monmouth

3. Hatchlings

Books Completed: (6/6) -- Category Finished!!
1. The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door, by Karen Finneyfrock (****)
2. 17 & Gone, by Nova Ren Suma (*****)
3. Paper Valentine, by Brenna Yovanoff (****)
4. The Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman (*****)
5. Dying is My Business, by Nicolas Kaufmann (*****)
6. Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell (****)

Possible Candidates:
Shadowscale, by Rachel Hartman – comes in 2014
This Is How You Die: Stories of the Inscrutable, Infallible, Inescapable Machine of Death

4. Just the Facts, Ma'am

Books Completed: (8/8) -- Category Completed!!
1. The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia, Volume 2: 2000–2010, by Peter Dendle (****)
2. Stuck in the Middle with You: A Memoir of Parenting in Three Genders, by Jennifer Finney Boylan (****)
3. The Orchid Theif: A True Story of Beauty and Obsession (audio book), by Susan Orlean (****)
4. The Little Red Guard: A Family Memoir by Wenguang Huang (****)
5. Wave (audio book), by Sonali Deraniyagala (*****)
6. In Search of Captain Zero: A Surfer's Road Trip Beyond the End of the Road, by Allan Weisbecker (***1/2)
7. Under the Tuscan Sun, by Frances Mayes (****)
8. The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey, by Che Guevera (***1/2)

Currently Reading:

Possible Candidates:
Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo, by Hayden Herrera
Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women, by Geraldine Brooks
The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait, by Frida Kahlo
Kinky Gazpacho: Life, Love & Spain, by Lori Tharps
Death from the Skies!: These Are the Ways the World Will End . . ., by Phillip Plait
From the Land of Green Ghosts: A Burmese Odyssey, by Pascal Khoo Thwe
Quantum: Einstein, Bohr and the Great Debate About the Nature of Reality, by Manjit Kumar
Lipstick Jihad: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America And American in Iran, by Azadeh Moaveni
Saved by Beauty: Adventures of an American Romantic in Iran by Roger Housden

(this is me as a zombie, chewing on A Blackbird Sings)

5. Oh, the Horror!

Books Completed: (10/10)
1. The Talisman, by Stephen King and Peter Straub (***1/2)
2. Rosemary's Baby, by Ira Levin (*****)
3. The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson (****1/2)
4. Horns, by Joe Hill (****)
5. Zone One, by Colson Whitehead (****)
6. The War of the Worlds, by HG Wells (***1/2)
7. A Stir of Echoes, by Richard Matheson (****)
8. American Elsewhere, by Robert Jackson Bennett (*****)
9. Currency of Souls, by Kealan Patrick Burke (***1/2)
10. In the Night Room, by Peter Straub (***)

Possible Candidates:
Let the Right One In, by John Ajvide Lidqvist
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Postman, by David Brin
House of Leaves, by Mark Z. Danielewski
Pontypool Changes Everything, by Tony Burgess

6. Unicorns from Space! (Part I) — DONE!

Books Completed: (10/10)
1. Demon Hunts, by C.E. Murphy (****)
2. Solaris, by Stanislaw Lem (****)
3. Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card (***1/2)
4. Scheherazade's Facade: Fantastical Tales of Gender Bending, Cross-Dressing, and Transformation, edited by Michael M. Jones (****1/2)
5. Pilgrim of the Sky, by Natania Barron (****)
6. The Fountains of Paradise, by Arthur C. Clarke (***)
7. Baba Yaga's Daughter and Other Stories of the Old Races, by C.E. Murphy (****)
8. Hands of Flame, by C.E. Murphy (****)
9. Late Eclipses, by Seanan McGuire (****)
10. Unnatural Creatures, edited by Neil Gaiman (*****)

7. Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

Books Completed: (10/10) -- Category Completed!!
1. Parable of the Sower, by Octavia E Butler (*****)
2. Parable of the Talents, by Octavia E Butler (****)
3. Day Watch, by Sergei Lukyanenko (***1/2)
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams (****)
5. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, by Douglas Adams (***1/2)
6. Life, the Universe and Everything, by Douglas Adams (***1/2)
7. So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, by Douglas Adams (****)
8. Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams (**)
9. The Illustrated Man (audio book), by Ray Bradbury (****)
10. Lucky Bastard, by S.G. Browne (****)

Possible Candidates:
Contact, by Carl Sagan
God Stalk, by P.C. Hodgell
The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, by Jacques Tardi

8. Youth Relived

Books Completed: (9/10) — Finished!!
1. Blood Magic, by Tessa Gratton (****)
2. The Fairy Ring, or Elsie and Frances Fool the World, by Mary Losure (***1/2)
3. The Replacement, by Brenna Yovanoff (*****)
4. The Atlantis Complex, be Eoin Colfer (****)
5. The Space Between, by Brenna Yovanoff (****)
6. The Last Guardian, by Eion Colfer (***1/2)
7. Beauty Queens, by Libba Bray (****)
8. The Outcast Oracle, by Laury A Egan (****)
9. Slice of Cherry, by Dia Reeves (***1/2)
10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky (****)

Possible Candidates:

9. Auntie Time

Books Completed: (10/10) -- Category Finished!!
1. Harry the Dirty Dog, by Gene Zion (*****)
2. The Foot Book, by Dr. Suess (****)
3. On the Night You Were Born, by Nancy Tillman (*****)
4. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carl (*****)
5. Dr. Suess's ABC An Amazing Alphabet Book!, by Dr. Suess (****)
6. No Roses for Harry! by Gene Zion (*****)
7. Shadow by Suzy Lee (*****)
8. Alice in Wonderland: A Color Primer, by Jennifer Adams, art by Alison Oliver (*****)
9. The Eye Book, by Dr. Seuss (writing as Theo LeSieg) (****)
10. Each Peach Plum Pear, by Janet and Allan Ahlberg (*****)

Possible Candidates:
TBA, based on my niece's mood

10. Panel by Panel

Books Completed: (10/10) — Category Finished!!
1. Are You My Mother? A Comic Drama, by Alison Bechdel (****)
2. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, by Alison Bechdel (*****)
3. Tank Girl 1 (Remastered Edition) (Bk. 1), by Jamie Hewlett and Alan Martin (***1/2)
4. Preacher: Gone to Texas, written by Garth Enis, illustrated by Steve Dillon (***)
5. Preacher: Until the End of the World, written by Garth Enis, illustrated by Steve Dillon (****)
6. Anya's Ghost, by Vera Brosgol (*****)
7. Emiko Superstar, written by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Steve Rolston (***1/2)
8. Burnout, written by Rebecca Donner, illustrated by Inaki Miranda (**1/2)
9. Fables, Vol. 13: The Great Fables Crossover, by Bill Willingham (***)
10. Fables, Vol. 14: Witches, by Bill Willingham (****)

Currently Reading/Up Next:

Possible Candidates:
Nylon Road: A Graphic Memoir of Coming of Age in Iran, by Parsua Bashi
Cathedral Child, by Lea Hernandez
The Maxx

11. The Universe in Verse

Books Completed: (10/10) -- FINISHED!!
1. The Game of Boxes, by Catherine Barnett (****)
2. Cedar Toothpick: The Tomboy Dioramas, poetry by Stefan Lorenzutti and art by Laurent Le Deunff (*****)
3. my name on his tongue: poems, by Laila Halaby (****1/2)
4. The Moment of Change: An Anthology of Feminist Speculative Poetry, edited by Rose Lemberg (*****)
5. Park Songs: A Poem/Play, by David Budbill (***1/2)
6. Searching for a Pulse: poems, by Nazifa Islam (***1/2)
7. A Blackbird Sings: a book of short poems, edited Fiona Robyn and Kaspalita Thompson (****)
8. Sister Slam and the Poetic Motormouth Road Trip, by Linda Oatman High (***1/2)
9. Two Mini-Chapooks: 8th Grade Hippie Chic by Marisa Crawford (*****) and No Experiences: Poems by Erin J. Watson (****)
10. Domestic Work: Poems, by Natasha Trethewey (****)

Currently Reading:

Possible Candidates:
TBA

12. From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books

Books Completed: (10/10) — Finished!!
1. Light in August (audio book), by William Faulkner (***)
2. The House of Mirth (audio book), by Edith Wharton (*****) read by Eleanor Bron
3. Kim (audio book), by Ruyard Kipling (***1/2)
4. The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton (****)
5. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (audio book), by Muriel Spark (**1/2)
6. Go Tell it on the Mountain (audio book), by James Baldwin (****)
7. A Passage to India (audio book), by E.M. Forster (***1/2)
8. A Bend In The River, by V.S. Naipaul (***1/2)
9. A Handful of Dust, by Evelyn Waugh (****)
10. Trustee from the Toolroom (audio book), by Nevil Shute (****)

Possible Candidates:
Of Human Bondage, by W. Somerset Maugham ~556 pages
Pale Fire, by Vladimir Nabokov ~315 pages
Point Counter Point, by Aldous Huxley ~432 pages
Native Son, by Richard Right ~359 pages/~15 discs
A HOUSE FOR MR BISWAS, by V.S. Naipaul ~481 pages
THE DEATH OF THE HEART, by Elizabeth Bowen ~418 pages
THE MAGUS by John Fowles ~656 pages
THE SHELTERING SKY by Paul Bowles ~318 pages

13. Miscellany

Books Completed: (9/10)
1. Swamplandia!, by Karen Russell (***1/2)
2. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, by Hunter S. Thompson (****)
3. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (audio book), by Lisa See (***1/2)
4. The Casual Vacancy, by J.K. Rowling (****)
5. Memento Mori, by Murial Spark (****)
6. Fables, Vol. 15: Rose Red, by Bill Willingham (****)
7. Fables, Vol. 16: Super Team, by Bill Willingham (***1/2)
8. Fables, Vol. 17: Inherit the Wind, by Bill Willingham (***1/2)
9. Bunnicula, by Deborah and James Howe (****)
10. How to Kill a Vampire: Fangs in Folklore, Film and Fiction, by Liisa Ladouceur (***1/2)
11. Bleeding Violet, by Dia Reeves (****)

Possible Candidates:
As my mood grabs me

Coming by to drop a comment to not lose my place. :)

I got to review your original pics with this new thread. Way cool!

Welcome, Eva. :)

Heh. Thanks, Mamzel!

* * * *

70. In Search of Captain Zero: A Surfer's Road Trip Beyond the End of the Road, by Allan Weisbecker (***1/2)
Category: Just the Facts, Ma'am

This is a book that I've had on my bookshelf forever, which I picked up because I have a fascination with surfing. I love the idea of it, of standing up on a board and letting a wave carry you. I can imagine the joy of it, can imagine finding what Weisbecker describes as The Glide. (I've only tried it once on a water logged board and it was miserable just trying to just keep the nose of the board above water.)

This book begins with Weisbecker dropping everything and abandoning his home and possessions, except for his surfboards, truck, and dog, and heading south into Mexico. The journey is in part to return to the true surfing life, and in part to find his old friend Christopher, a.k.a. Captain Zero.

Weisbecker is a good writer and he describes wave riding and his travels in Mexico and Central America well enough to make them easy to visualize. His past adventures, including marijuana running, with Christopher are also entertaining and sometimes hilarious.

But as much as I love the idea of the surf experience on the water, I hate the posturing machismo that comes with it, the tendency toward a feeling of ownership over waves (perhaps understandable on crowded waters) and occasional assholery of some dudes. There's also a general attitude toward women of them not being real surfers and only being as something to F*ck that I hate. All of that comes out at points in Weisbecker's interaction with other surfers, as well as his own attitude of elitism. Not to mention, his occasional tendency to be patronizing (or "how cute") in tone when describing the cultures and people he meets down south (not always, but enough for me to notice).

It was a good read and I wasn't bored, but it's not a book I'm enamored with.

Hee hee, the Panel by Panel illustration is great :) Happy new thread!

71. Zone One (audio book), by Colson Whitehead (****)
Category: Oh, the Horror!

Mark Spitz is a survivor. When the Last Night happened and the dead started chowing down on his neighbors, he took to the wilds and lived via a combination of insight and insurmountable luck.

Now humanity is beginning to regain small footholds, fragments of civilization amid the chaos, even if everyone is diagnosed with PASD (post apocalyptic stress disorder). Mark Spitz is working as a sweeper in Zone One (Manhattan island), going from building to building in search of any stragglers the marines left behind. It looks like the world might return to a new normal, with higher ups to repopulate Zone One, once it's cleared.

This book is a vivid, literary and contemplative zombie novel, one that explores what it means to be human in a world of monsters that look like a more decrepit versions of yourself. As Mark Spitz explores the empty streets of Zone One, he flashes back both to the time before Last Night and his time as a survivor in the wild.

This has to be one of the most intelligent zombie novels I've ever read, and while it meanders through the past in poetic nostalgia and metaphoric interpretations of the apocalyptic landscape, it need looses sight of Mark Spitz as a character or the thread of the story. It remains compelling and I found myself caught up in the people he meets, in their own little madnesses. It's at times gross (dead goo and fluids well described) and at times frightening, but always fascinating.

The opinions on Zone One seem to be all over the place - it does sound interesting, though. I'll put it on the Potentials-list for my next zombie-mood. :)

I thought it was very cool. The ending was ambiguous, but not in a way that drove me crazy.

It's not the first part in a new series is it...? I've learned in recent years to be wary. :)

I haven't heard about sequels , so I don't think so.

The lead character should just stay near some water and if he's in danger from the zombies I'm sure he'd be able to just swim away. Does seem to get a few mixed reviews but, like Eva, I think it's one to keep an eye out for.

>24 AHS-Wolfy:
Lol. Well, the lead can't swim, so... But he is quite able to survive.

->24 AHS-Wolfy:
That was a good plan, until I read one book where the zombies kind of solved that....

Hah! Yeah, I've read a couple of books in which the zombies either float or walk along the bottom. ;)

Yes! I have a friend who's always said that he'll be safe because he has a boat, but when I pointed out that they'll just walk on the bottom and climb up the anchor-chain, I swear the man almost started crying. :)

It's Wal-Mart or Target, people, that's it. I'm heading for Target - my local has a great food section too now, so I'll be set. They don't have guns like Wal-Mart, but I'll never be able to fire one straight anyways, and Target has loads of baseball-bats and golf-bats, so I'll be fine. Plus, it's better organized than my local Wal-Mart.

Eva, LOL!

Eva, I've had the same thought! Though we've got Costco, a HUGE warehouse store with everything one needs.

The only flaw I've seen in both our plans is that other people might have similar plans, and thus there might be competition. Here's hoping there's a firearms section and that we get there first!

I am glad I am not the only thats planned for the zombie apocalypse..... its a hot lunch time topic here. I for one am avoiding all supermarkets and malls intitially. I haven't started planning by apocalypse emergency bag list either oh no. Anywaay book bullet taken!

->30 andreablythe:
Costco is a great option too and has fewer entries (i.e. fewer weaknesses) but my local is too far away. :)

->31 clfisha:
One good thing about living in earthquake country: it means you have at least the minimum to survive the trip to wherever you plan to camp out. I know I have a softball bat somewhere too. Fingers Xed!

Still working on my plans for zombie survival, I do wish I had a handy castle with a moat nearby. Anyway, I am adding Zone One to my wishlist.

My friend found this t-shirt that says "The hardest part of the Zombie apocalypse will be pretending I'm not excited".Eactly! Right I am off to take up cricket..

>33 DeltaQueen50:
Indeed a castle and moat would be very handy. Though none are nearby me either.

>34 clfisha:
Hah! I've seen that shirt too. Love it. I've also seen some cricket bats that would be ideal for zombie slaying. ;)

* ***

In other news I'm off to Venice Italy today, so expect more pictures in your future. :D

Molto bene! Have a great time!

Have fun! Always wanted to go to Venice, can't wait to see pictures.

Hope you have a great time in Venice. Pictures, please!!

Venice... I am so jealous. Have a fantastic time! Like Eva said ^... pictures, please!

Buon viaggio!

Hey, guys, I'm back!

Venice!

I loved Venice. It's a small city and I've never seen anything else like it in any of my travels. There were an unusual number of tourists while I was there (according to the locals), and this was mainly due to some new cruise ships that had come it. (The cruise ship, huge monstrosities, are so jarring to see sailing through the main canal, their bulk erasing the cityscape behind them.) But the tourists all stick to the main tourist areas, and it's not hard to get away from them, as only a street or two will lead away from the swarms to quiet cobblestone avenues.

In fact, one of my favorite things about the city was getting blissfully lost. The city is like a giant maze with no streets crossing the city in a straight line. To cross from one side of the city to the other I would just pick streets at random and see where it lead me, letting them twist me this way and that, until I began to circle back or they dead ended at a teal-green canal. I might sit at the steps leading down to the water and watch a nearby boat, tied up to a 12 inch wide "dock" bob gently. And then I'd move on to another corner, tunnel, nook to discover. (It was in this way that I discovered the Ca' Pesaro modern art museum, which had a lot of fantastic pieces and a great Asian art collection.)

I also checked out the main sights, including St. Mark's Square (including the Basilica and a tour of the government building, the Bridge of Sighs (not romantic, as it was really named for the sighs of prisoners being secretly transported to the prison), Rialto Bridge and other well known areas.













I would LOVE to return to Venice. Maybe just stay a month or more there and sketch and write poetry and wander here and there.

.

Florence

I did not fall in love with Florence. I can't fully explain why, but it was kind of dirty and crowded (also unexpectedly high levels of tourists for the season), which contributed to the feeling, I suppose. I also feel that Italy in general is a place to travel with someone, someone to linger over leisurely meals and share a bottle of wine. Ultimately, I guess I just didn't resonate on some fundamental level or I wasn't in the right headset (I actually think I love Mexico City far more, based on my experience of both cities this year).

I mean, don't get me wrong, there are ridiculous amounts of stunning art and architecture throughout the city, so much in fact that its' actually really overwhelming. There were some really fantastic moments -- I loved seeing Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" and "Spring" paintings, as well as other masters, at the Uffizzi Gallery (also ridiculously crowded), seeing Michelangelo's David, and exploring the archeological museum and both of the Medici family palaces.

Plus, I bought myself a gorgeous black Italian leather jacket from a little shop near the main market and I feel no guilt at all about spending that kind of money. So worth it.

Below are pics taken around and from inside El Duomo (it kind of takes your breath away when you turn a street corner and suddenly see this stunning cathedral).







So, yeah, the trip was really great, even the work conference. But I'm so glad to be home and be able to relax and try to put my life back in order after my trip. :)

Gorgeous pictures, I have always dreamt of going to Venice so I certainly envy you that. It would be lovely if you someday got the opportunity to have a couple of months there to wander and write.

Wow! Lovely pictures. Did you have gelato?

>42 DeltaQueen50:
It would be a dream. :)

>43 rabbitprincess:
Oh, yes. I had many a gelato. :D

.

72. Under the Tuscan Sun, by Frances Mayes (****)
Category: Just the Facts

This a memoir of home renovation, excellent food, and an abiding love for Tuscany. Frances describes the area in shades and textures, in rich smells and flavors. It's a book of pleasures, of enjoyment of hard work on a project you love, making it enjoyable no matter the frustrations or compilations that happen along the way. She makes the region come alive to the point I could smell the heat on the hillsides amid the hot summer. As a book for lovers of renovations, for good food and for Italy, the book is just about perfect.

The movie, btw, has little relation to the book, except by name. The focus of the movie on recovering from divorce and finding a new home for oneself, is almost nonexistent in the book (with the divorce mentioned only in passing). And small moments from the book become major scenes or plot points in the movie. It's an interesting movie adaptation, creating a very Hollywood story of growth. It's a good movie, but should not be taken as a measure of what the book might be.

Fantastic photos! Thanks for sharing them, even if they caused me to want to book a ticket immediately. :) I love wandering around a new city without map - you just find so many cool things that won't be in any guide book. Yes, Florence will cause culture overload! :)

Lovely pictures! Glad you had such a great time (I really want to to go to Venice now). I loved Florence but it was manic when I went there (June time I think) so wondering away was a must. Mind you I am happy anywhere with wine, cheese and ice cream!

Jealous!

>45 -Eva-:
Thanks! I don't usually do that too much in bigger cities where getting lost can be a problem, but in smaller ones like Venice, it's perfect. :)

>46 clfisha:
Yes! Wine, cheese and ice cream are always good things! :D

>47 mamzel:
Sorry for the Green. I hear it fades in 5-7 days. ;)

* * * *

72. Day Watch, by Sergei Lukyanenko (***1/2)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

The sequel to Night Watch (which I quite enjoyed) continues to explore the world of the Others, which is split into "Dark" and "Light", two factions that have been at unstable peace for centuries with each other for centuries. The Day Watch (operated by the Dark) watches over the day and polices the forces of Light, making sure they follow the laws of the treaty. Like the first book, Day Watch is split into three novellas, each interconnected so that they form a complete overarching story.

I didn't like Day Watch as much as I liked the first book, and this was probably because I didn't connect with the characters as much. The first story in the book follows a young Dark witch, who loses her powers and is sent to a children's camp to recuperate. There she unknowingly falls in love with a young man who turns out to be a Light Other with tragic consequences. I thought this story was fine, though the witch didn't seem entirely a complete character. Her attraction to this young man was awkward, suddenly making her a giggling girl instead of the powerful cynical witch she was. The sex scene was equally awkward.

The second story beings with a man who has forgotten his identity. He discovers he has powers and begins to follow a plan he doesn't fully understand. Again, I couldn't quite connect with this character and his constant referencing all he doesn't know, but I guess I'll follow my inner instincts got to be very tedious. If Anton (the main character from Night Watch) hadn't shown up halfway through the story, I might not have wanted to keep going with it.

The third and final story features Anton, who along with a Dark Other, is sent to follow a group of men who are to be tried for their actions in the second story. Because Anton is one of the main characters in this story, I was able to follow it eagerly and keep entertained.

It was clear with this second book that the author wanted to explore the POV of the Dark Others, but didn't quite connect with them, which made it hard for the readers to connect with them. This probably explains why he returned to Anton's POV halfway through the book, which immediately made it more interesting. The book concluded well, and ultimately I enjoyed it. Since Anton is the main character of the next two books in the series, I'm interested to keep reading.

74. Alice in Wonderland: A Color Primer, by Jennifer Adams, art by Alison Oliver (*****)
Category: Auntie Time

This is an adorable little color primer based on Alice in Wonderland with bright, fun artwork. It kind of loosely tells the story, in the sense that it progresses from one iconic moment in the book to another. If you love Alice, you're likely to buy this for your kid. It's supercute and my niece seems to love it.

Apparently this is part of a series of color primers, all based on classic literature, which is awesome. I'm curious to see what else they have.

@48, the third book, The Twilight Watch, features Anton as the main protagonist so should be more to your liking once again.

>50 AHS-Wolfy:
Ah, that's good to know. :)

75. The War of the Worlds, by HG Wells (***1/2)
Category: Oh, the Horror!

This classic tale of aliens landing on Earth for the purpose of destruction and colonization is an entertaining adventure yarn, which sets the stage for many future apocalyptic/horror stories. The main character records events after they happened and describes the landing of the Martians and their octopus-like bodies and tripod machines of destruction. There is escape, thousands of desperate and fleeing survivors swarming the roads, with scavenging and chaotic behavior. There are the empty ravaged landscapes, full of corpses and empty destroyed buildings and a sense of lonely desolation in the heart of a man who believe he may be the only survivor. In a sense, it's very similar to apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic tales that are told today with the exception of horse-drawn carriages and trains instead of automobiles and cell phones as the backdrop. It's a quick read and very entertaining, and it's easy to see why it became a classic.

Now, I'm interested in finding a radio show version to listen to, especially due to all the mass panic stories from when the show was first aired. :)

76. A Stir of Echoes, by Richard Matheson (****)
Category: Oh, the Horror!

During a party one night, Tom Wallace agrees to be hypnotized. But what was supposed to just be a party trick, actually opens a door in his mind, granting him telepathic abilities. He begins to see into the dark, frightening corners of his neighbors otherwise outwardly safe and orderly lives. As his headaches grow along with his perception and his behavior becomes more erratic, his new gifts begin to threaten the stability of his own family, while some darker secret lies just beneath the surface.

This is an easy read and a really enjoyable book. It's tied to its late '50s era, but this is not terribly of putting and it translates fairly well. I think Matheson did a great job portraying both Tom (frightened but curious) and his wife (it must be so terrifying to see someone you love go through this and not know if they are sane or not or how to help them). I would definitely recommend this for some light reading, and while it touches the horror genre, it's not terribly frightening.

As a footnote, I also really love the movie version with Kevin Bacon. They do change parts of the plot and make different connections, but it's a damn good adaptation.

Oh I really like the film, I am now going to have to check out the book! Curses.

>54 clfisha:
It's worth a read. One of those rare cases, though, where I might actually like the movie better (maybe because I was exposed to it first).

* * * *

77. The Eye Book, by Dr. Seuss (writing as Theo LeSieg) (****)
Category: Auntie Time

My Review: A cute book in which a red-headed boy and his rabbit pal explore all the interesting things they can see with their eyes, from colors to people. The art is not the typical Suess style, but it's cute.

My Nieces Review: Since she brought it over to me and sat quietly in my lap as I read, I'd say she's rather fond of it. According to my sister, it one of the books she asks to be read all the time. :)

#52 Congratulations on the 75!

The War of the Worlds is an apocalyptic classic in the true sense of the word, and to think it was published in the 19th century!

>56 PiyushC:
Thanks!

It really is amazing. It's like the grandfather of the apocalypse novel. Though the true source of apocalyptic stories comes from religious and myth sources, I'm sure.

78. American Elsewhere, by Robert Jackson Bennett (*****)
Category: Oh, the Horror!
Note: This was an ARC received through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.

Wink, New Mexico is a small town unlike any other. On the outside, it is perfect -- white houses with white picket fences and lawns perfectly cropped and green despite the desert sun. Yet beneath the surface are secrets, strange occurs few in the night, places one does not go, shadows into which one does not look.

When Mona finds out she has inherited a home from her mother, she travels to Wink to learn more about the woman she barely knew. As she looks into her mother's past, Mona begins to be drawn into the weird and dangerous world of Wink, a world the could cost her more than her life.

I pretty much loved this book from chapter one, when three men drag a less than human man out of a house and leave him to be destroyed by a powerful and terrible creature. The mystery and frightening wonder of that act drew me in immediately. And each new creature was introduced, all odd and frightening and fabulous, I was drawn in all the more. The tales unfolded like fairy tales, with the creatures you don't follow into the woods and the "agreements" made for peace and safety.

I loved Mona. She was cynical, smart, complicated, persistent, wounded, and generally kick ass. She doesn't pick up on all the weirdness right away, but in her defense the people of Wink expend a considerable amount of effort in pretending everything is normal. But once confronted with this reality, she handles it with aplomb and a big ass gun.

I also love how all the villains are interesting and frightening, each the hero of their own story. In fact, the author does so well crafting these characters that I actually pitied even the worst of them. Creating sympathy for characters you are meant (and do at times) hate is a neat trick.

There wasn't a single character that I didn't find interesting to read about, not one I didn't want to learn more about. I adore this story and how it all comes together, unfolding in layers with a good mix of tension and just the right amount of blood splatter. And I as I read the final lines, I didn't even want to put it down; I held onto it, hugging it to my chest, fighting the urge to read it again.

Ach, I had just cleared American Elsewhere off my wishlist in an attempt to make it more manageable. Back on it goes, I guess... :)

Oh no book bullet! I had been doing so well.

#57 Agreed. All the major religions have an apocalyptic situation in their literature, The Holy Bible probably has the most vivid of the scenarios - the four horsemen, the beast rising out of the sea, the biblical plagues, quite dramatic! I love it!

>59 -Eva-:-60
Well, I suppose I can temper that a little bit by saying that I've seen other reviews that were less glowing, so the book doesn't seem to as work as well for every one. But for me, it was the perfect book at the right time.

>61 PiyushC:
Indeed. The Bible has quite a few stories that are vivid and great to just read as stories, especially revelations, but also the old testament. I keep telling myself that I'm going to do a "Sciptures" category one year, in which I would read the Holy Bible, the Koran, the Bagvad Gita, and other such scriptures, but never seem to get around to it.

Isn't it funny how different books work with different people. I really did not care for American Elsewhere when I read it, but I definitely think I was in the minority.

>63 DeltaQueen50:
I read a few reviews that were more moderate than mine, so I didn't expect to love it like I did. The reading experience reminded me a but of how I fell in love with some of the bulky Stephen King books in hight school, like It or The Stand, both with lots of characters and thick (as in pages) stories. Though, I think Bennett has a better writing style than King.

#62 I have been planning to do the same - but one book a year, I have even procured copies of the three books, but I don't seem to be able to get around to it either.

>65 PiyushC:
One a year sounds like a much more practical plan.

79. Go Tell it on the Mountain (audio book), by James Baldwin (****)
Category: From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books

It's hard to sum up Go Tell it on the Mountain, which is in part about 14 year old John Grimes and his rough home life, how he longs to escape the path his preacher father walked and find another kind of living that still escapes sin. It's also about John's the spiritual awakening one night while nearby his father, mother, and aunt each say their own prayers and remember their own lives.

Religion is a major theme of this book; it's at the periphery of every scene and sometimes right out front. It brushes against the Christian faith, sits with it, lives in it, while at the same time showing some of the hypocrisy of those who preach it.

The novel unfolds somewhat like a poem, in that it doesn't follow a straight linear thread. Rather it relies on image, tone, and symbolism as it moves from scene to scene. The language is lyrical and vivid, thick with emotion, and like a poem I had to sit with it for a moment and try to absorb what I could. It's a book I'll return to again, to read and see what else I might discover.

Highly recommended.

* * * *

80. Each Peach Plum Pear, by Janet and Allan Ahlberg (*****)
Category: Auntie Time — Category Completed!!

My Review: This adorable picture book doesn't quite tell a story, but introduces several popular nursery rhyme characters. One of the fun things about this is that it is a look/find book, which encourages kids to interact by having them find the characters hidden in the illustrations. An adorable book.

My Niece's Review: At just over one years old, baby is a bit young to do the look/see aspect of the book. But if I pointed a character out to her, she would look at me, at the character, then at me again.

Of course, everything is "dog" right now. So reading the story went something like this:
"Look, baby, it's Tom Thumb."
"Dahg."
"See, there's Mother Hubbard."
"Dahg."
"Ooooh, a witch!"
"Dahg."

^ Adorable!

That's so cute!!!

>68 lkernagh:-69
She is the love of my life!

81. Le Mort d'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory (DNF)
Category: The Once and Future King

I know Le Mort d'Arthur is supposed to be a great classic and the definitive Arthur, but damn it, I'm 377 pages in and I can't do it anymore. It is just too much of the same flipping story over and over and over and over again. And not just the same story (knight jousts with knight), but almost the same exact wording with each battle.

The only thing to have sparked my interest in about 200 pages was this line: "The King Arthur overtook her a false lady and sorceress, and with the same sword he smite off her head, and the Lady of the Lake took up her head and hung it up by the hair to her saddle-bow." THAT is pretty damn awesome, but it's also just one line out of all those 200 pages, and it made me long for a Lady of the Lake story, not more and more of these knights smacking each other around and talking about how knightly and courtly they are because they are big strong men who can politely knock another guy off a horse.

I am so wonderfully wroth at this book that I'm about to come at all of these damn knights like thunder and smote them down with their own damn lances. (PS. If I never see the words "wroth", "smote", or "came together like thunder" again, it will be too soon.) Seriously, don't these guys have anything better to do than run around the forests or hang out a bridges and joust with each other? Isn't there farming or something to be done? Anything? Please? I mean, I'll read about the wheat in the fields at this point.

Did I also mention that it's over 900 pages? Well, it is, and apparently this is the SHORT version. The other version is in like three volumes or something. Since it's getting the point that I'm starting to hate Arthur and his knights, I need to just put in the towel and read something — anything — else for a while.

Right now, I'm really looking forward to rereading Simon Armitag's translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, because I need something to remind me why I used to love Arthurian stories so much.

@ 71 -- In college, a friend of mine had to read that for a class, and she kept saying, "I wish Arthur would hurry up and mort!"

>72 christina_reads:
LOL! Oh goodness, yes, I feel your friend on that one!

Makes me glad we read only part of that one in my King Arthur course!

I was going to protest that I don't remember it being hard at all and then I looked at my copy and realized it's an abridged retelling. Well, that explains that. :)

>74 rabbitprincess:
I think if I was reading it in well spaced out chunks, instead of trying to finish it all in one go, I might have been able to handle it better.

>75 -Eva-:
Abridged retelling? I'm there. But after a looooong break. ;)

82. The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey, by Ernesto "Che" Guevera (***1/2)
Category: Just the Facts, Ma'am -- Category Completed!!

As a young man, Che Guevara and friend Alberto Granado decided to travel by motor cycle from Buenos Aires, Argentina, up through Chile to the United States. They manage on the bike for a while, then on foot and hitching, all the while surviving on the good will of others for sustenance. They work a bit, visit several leprosy clinics, and witness quite a bit of poverty along the way.

Che's travel diary if this trips shows his young man's point of view. It's honest and frank and often quite funny. It also hints at the beginnings of his revolutionary spirit, which would eventually lead him to joining the revolution with Fidel Castro in Cuba and would eventually make him a worldwide symbol of that same revolutionary spirit.

.............

So that's four categories down and nine categories to go. I've got 18 books left to read and it's going to be a stretch for me to get there. It will probably be a photo finish.

Good luck!

The motorcycle diaries is one of those books on my "I will read one day when I have read all the more exciting books on my wishlist". It may never happen!

>78 clfisha:
Thanks! I'll need it!

The Motorcycle Diaries was entertaining enough and a fairly quick read, but it wasn't a must read by any means. So no problem on putting it off.

I was just looking at my numbers again and realized that I miscalculated. I have to read 28 books to finish by the end of the year. Yowsa and yikes.

Hum, 28 books in 51 days is do-able... any really short ones that you can read that would fit your challenge?

>81 lkernagh:
Well, two of them have to be graphic novels and two are poetry, all of which can be read quickly. I've also got the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books, which are all short and I think I can polish those off over the course of a week.

So, yeah, it's doable, I suppose. Though I am in the midst of two writing challenges, National Novel Writing Month, in which I am supposed to write 50,000 words and a blogging challenge in which I'm supposed to write a new post everyday.

This is all making for a very interesting month.

Lots of BB from the Horror, Zone One seems really interesting. Good luck for the end of your challenge !

Italy is a dream of mine but it's not on top of the destination at home. The photos are great :)

>83 electrice:
I hope you enjoy Zone One. And thanks for the luck. I'll need it.

Good luck with your writing and reading, Andrea. I would for sure be looking at more Graphic Novels to help fill in your 28 books needed.

I am sure work will give you emergency leave to read loads of books! (note to self never run my own company. "oh you are late because you had to finish your book? oh that's fine! err.. could you lend me it?")

>85 DeltaQueen50:
Thanks! Graphic novels is a great idea. I only have two slots left in my GN category, but there's room for some in the miscellany category.

>86 clfisha:
LOL!
Imagine the "business meetings" that dissolve into book talks!

->86 clfisha:
You'd be a great boss!! I'd work for you in a heartbeat!

>88 -Eva-: Hear, Hear :)

83. Dying is My Business, by Nicolas Kaufmann (*****)
Category: Hatchlings

“Coming back from the dad feels less like a miracle than like waking up with the world’s most debilitating hangover.”

Dear Mr. Kaufmann,

First you invade my dream with creepy pictures. Now this.

I had plans, you know. I had things to do. But no, you had to provide me with the awesome that is Dying is My Business. Now my laundry remains unfolded. Stacks of papers and other detritus continue to clutter my shelves. All the words I planned to write remain unwritten. And I'm can't seem to rub the glue from my eyes, as I try to recover from the hours of sleep I lost last night in the desperate need to finish reading.

I was absorbed by the story from page one, when Trent wakes from being shot and killed yet again with another dried out husk of a body nearby. The trade off for his return to life is that someone else must die. As an apparent side effect of his condition, Trent has also lost all of his memories beyond one year before. He's been taken in by Underwood, a twisted and violent crime boss, who exploits his abilities and sends him out to "collect" various things. Trent's latest assignment to collect a mysterious box quickly leads him into a new understanding of the world, a world that includes magic, gargoyles, and a whole slew of things most people never knew existed.

Having an amnesiac main character can potentially be annoying, if not handled well. But Trent as a character is spot on. His loss of self and personal history has caused him to be cynical and fatalistic in understandable ways. He longs for the truth about his past without becoming tedious or whiny, and it's easy to see how Underwood could have drawn him in by promising those truths. Trent is sometimes protagonist, sometimes antagonist, and sometimes both. He carries a great level of guilt for the lives he's taken and the crimes he's committed, making for a conflicted and fascinating character.

Now, can I just take a moment express my love for Bethany? This diminutive, spright-like young woman with a passion for the rules, a troubled past, and vest full of charms that will lay you on your ass has won my heart. She is hard edged, intelligent, honest, and kind. She is, in a phrase, many kinds of awesome.

And then there is poor, poor Thompson Thornton (Whoops. Knew I was getting it wrong). My heart is all asunder from his hopeful bravery and ability to crack jokes in the face of his tragedy.

I have love for all the characters really, even the nasty ones. Underwood and his cronies are cruel and unsettling in the most delightful ways. The Black Knight is destructive, powerful, and greedy for power. I shiver at the thought of ever meeting anyone of them in a dark alley.

Last night, I could not stop reading. I turned page after page, ignoring the episodes of Big Bang Theory my roommate turned on and loosing — as I mentioned — much sleep. I continued reading even as my friend began to turn of all the lights in the house, leaving only a single lamp behind my head to illuminate the pages.

Upon finally reaching the end, I began to flail. "No!" I cried, waking my roommate from her deep slumber. "Why?! Why is it over? I need more book! Why isn't there more book?!"



You're ending gave me chills, and I find myself awash with feels, saddened and maddened that it's over. How can it be over, when I want so much to keep reading, to know what happens next, to know the fates of the characters I've come to love?

Why would you do this to me, Mr. Kaufmann? What am I supposed to do with my life now?

This had better be the beginning of a series with the second book to come in the near future. Because if I do not have the sequel soon, I will be forced find a way to flay you in a manner that would make Underwood grin.

Sincerely, you're humble reader,

Andrea

What a great review! The publishers should use that in an ad - I'd buy the book with that kind of enthusiasm supporting it.

Well, that one's clearly going on the wishlist!

When you use No-Face in a review then how can I resist a BB. Sounds like a good one though.

Awesome review!

Thumbed and book bullet lodged firmly within brain.

Heh. Thanks, everyone. I had a lot of fun writing this review. :)

I've just learned from the author that book two, DIE AND STAY DEAD, will be coming out in October 2014. HOW WILL I WAIT THAT LONG??

>93 AHS-Wolfy:
No-Face is a favorite of mine, too. Finding the gif made me want to watch the movie all over again. :)

I was reaching for my pen to add this book to my wishlist just from looking at the cover! Then I read your fantastic review. This book is going to the head of the line.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did Judy. :)

Catching up - and placing so many thumbs I feel like some cartoon octopus. Zone one sounds great. American Elsewhere sounds even better. And then comes your love letter to Dying is my business. That goodness the Arthur book was crap, at least!

I am also racing to the finish line, but 28 books I wouldn't even dare to attempt. I have nine to go - one of which being Wolf Hall - at it feels steep enough. Then again, I don't have your pace of stamina. Let's clink glasses on new year's eve when we wrap up, eh?

Sorry about all the BBs, Anders!

Honestly, I don't know that I even have that level of stamina. Lol. But I will be very happy to clink a virtual champagne glass with upon the new year.

84. A Passage to India (audio book), by E.M. Forster (***1/2)
Category: From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books

In brief: When Mrs. Moore and Miss Quested travel to India, they hope to seek out the real India. Mrs. Moore makes friends with an Indian doctor Aziz. In an effort to show the two women hospitality, Aziz takes them on a journey to visit some local caves, which results in Miss Quested accusing Aziz of attacking her.

The fascinating thing about this novel is how Forster shows racism as systematic. The British come to India with the best of intentions, with the aim of treating everyone with respect and politeness, if not complete equality. But as they spend more time in the country, the pressures of white society slowly molds them into that racism in order to fit in with the "right kind" of people.

Forster presents the points of view of many people, including Aziz, the two women he befriends, and many others both white and Indian alike. He presents a each character as complex, with varying and contradicting thoughts and desires housed in entirely one body, and most everyone came off as sympathetic in one degree or another.

I think he did fairly well with the Indian characters and their culture, though I suspect that even as he was making them interesting and sympathetic, he also accidentally slipped in stereotypes and misunderstandings.

A Room with a View is one of my favorite books ever, but this one was more hit and miss. I did not love A Passage to India nearly as much, but it was enjoyable and interesting. I'd say it's a toss up.

How could I not add Dying is My Business to the BB !? But I'll possibly wait for the second book in the series as I don't want to suffer the same symptoms :)

>102 electrice:
Totally understandable. I'm still processing the withdrawal. Kaufmann does have other books I could seek out and read, plus his novella Chasing the Dragon was also quite fantastic. It's a stand alone and would offer a nice sampling of his writing style, if you want a taste before next October.

Thanks for the tip :)

85. A Bend In The River, by V.S. Naipaul (***1/2)
Category: From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books

When faced with potential calamity in his hometown on the East Coast of Africa, an Indian man uproots his existence and travels to a remote African village situated at the bend in the river. There he becomes a shop keeper and over the course of many years weathers the tides of poverty, prosperity, and political fluctuation that affect the town.

The story is the kind of life is lifelike tales in which a character sits at the center of events without having much impact on them. The main character is thoughtful and pondering. He contemplates the life he's chosen, the shifting political poles, and his personal interactions with a kind of emotional distance.

I'd say this book was good, interesting, and worth a read, but it's not one that drew any passion from me either for the language or the story.

How was the reader of A Passage to India?

The reader was Sam Dastor and he did an excellent job.

Great - that's the version they have on Audible. On the wishlist it goes!

I'll be interested to see what you think!

#105 My thoughts on A Bend in the River were quite similar to yours. Quite interesting, well written, but lacking any permanent impact.

86. Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell (****)
Category: Hatchlings Category Completed! (8 cats left!)

I bought Eleanor & Park in support of the author due to a censorship controversy that happened, in which parents in Minnesota convinced a local school district, county board, and local library board to cancel Rainbow Rowell's reading and speaking events, because they believe the book to be obscene.

I am ridiculously glad I bought this book, because it turned out to be one of my favorite books this year. It's an incredibly funny and sweet love story between two outcast teenagers. The rub for these parents, I suppose, is that Rowell approached the story with honesty, the teenagers are intimate (but not overtly so) and cuss as a direct result of the abuse and bullying they witness. Rowell is an author who doesn't pull punches, but she does so skillfully to reveal truth and offer hope in bleak circumstances.

Park is something of an outcast. He's not tormented by the other kids because of being "grandfathered" into the community as one of the locals, but he still doesn't quite fit in. He doesn't meet his dad's standards of being manly or his school's standards of being cool, so he kind of floats in an in between place of not being friendless while also being rather lonely.

Eleanor moves back in with her mom, brothers, sister, and abusive stepdad after having been kicked out of the house for a year. The loneliness of having been excluded of her family life has left its mark on her and she feels like an outsider in her own home. Desperate to not be abandoned again, she does her best fit within her step father's rules, while also avoiding him. At school, her sense of exclusion is continued with bullying from the popular kids, who continually call her names and harass her.

Eleanor and Park meet as she climbs the bus for the first time on the way to school. The bus has its own rules and hierarchies, into which Eleanor does not fit and it leaves her standing in the aisle as the bus jolts into motion. Park's first intention to is to leave her hanging like the rest, but he scoots aside and lets Eleanor sit with him. What starts out as indifference grows into friendship as the two begin sharing and exchanging music and comics, then as their friendship blooms into trust it becomes love.

I loved Rowell's writing style, which was clean and occasionally poetic. ("His eyes were so green, they could turn carbon dioxide into oxygen.") And I love how she structured the story, with it being told from both Eleanor and Park's point of views. This allowed for one part of the conflict to exist in misunderstandings in the way we perceive ourselves and how we think people perceive us. Neither Park nor Eleanor are mind readers and so often presume the negative (he must hate me, she must be embarrassed by my, he must think I'm fat), when the reality is that the thing one is most embarrassed by is one of the things the other loves most.

The way the relationship grows and changes and becomes slowly more intimate throughout the novel is touching and funny and sad. It's really a great read and one I would recommend to anyone who likes romance, even if it's the YA variety.

YAY, you liked Eleanor & Park! It's one of my top reads for the year, too. I've really loved all of Rainbow Rowell's books so far.

>112 christina_reads:
Christina,
It was such a great book! I'm glad to hear her other books are good, too. I've been considering Fangirl for a while. Now I'm definitely going to have to read it. :D

Making note of Rainbow Rowell (very memorable name) to add to my list.

I have to say, it always get my back up when books get subjected to censorship because one or two people have an issue with a book and manage to force their point of view onto others, causing books to be pulled from library shelves, removed from class curriculum, and in the case of Rainbow Rowell, even manage to have her speaking appearances cancelled.

Some people have waaaaay too much time on their hands, and too narrow a focus on reality, but I was both raised and formally educated to understand and appreciate that everyone is entitled to their opinions, as frustrating as that it can be when only the vocal minority appears to be voicing an opinion. I will step down off my soap box now.

Lovely review of Eleanor & Park, Andrea!

Great review - thumbing! I too get irritated when people contest books over being too honest - are they not aware of just how aware their children are? Reason alone, I think, to read it. :)

>114 DeltaQueen50:
It's a great name and it's her real, legal name, too!

>115 lkernagh:-116
Yeah, it always makes me want to break out the boxing gloves in defense of the written word, too.

Half the time I don't even think it's about the kids. People say it's about the kids, but there's more to it, like a feeling of power and control.

87. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A New Verse Translation, author unknown, translated by Simon Armitage (****)
Category: The Once and Future King

During holiday festivities in King Arthur's court, a mysterious green knight appears with a challenge: any knight of Arthur's court may strike the green knight a blow, and the green knight will return the strike in a year's time. The only knight brave enough to face the challenge is young Gawain, who indeed strikes the green knight, chopping off his head. Unperturbed, the green knight picks up his head and tells Gawain to find him in a year's time in order to receive the return blow.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, written by an unknown fourteenth-century poet, is my favorite of the classic Arthurian tales (so far). The story is vivid and full of gorgeous contrasts, love and death and trust and renewal. The story unfolds with good pacing and entertaining adventures with true courtly manners, all without being redundant or dull (as some unnamed fourteenth-century Arthurian romances can be).

Armitage's translation from the Middle English focuses on the alliterative and poetic structure of the original, rather than being a literal translation. The Middle English version appears on the left hand page with the Modern version on the right, so the reader can compare and see the differences. For the most part his version is surprisingly readable with beautiful phrases and imagery, though in some cases it strays into being a bit too modern (at one point Arthur is described as "keeping his cool"), which can be jarring. My second reading was just as enjoyable as the first, and I would love to add it to my library.

However, since Arimitage's is only the only translation I've read, I'm very curious about trying a more literal translation. Apparently, even J.R.R. Tolkien did a translation, and I'd love to read that.

For audio book lovers, I highly recommend the audio version of Armitage's translation, which is read by Bill Wallis. He does an amazing job highlighting the alliterative aspects of the text, while making it easy to follow. Once the Modern English translation is finished, Wallis then does an amazing reading of the original Middle English version of the book. It's amazing to hear and I found myself understanding more than I thought I would. Fantastic.

88. Domestic Work: Poems, by Natasha Trethewey (****)
Category: The Universe in Verse

Trethewey's collection of poems draws on history, bringing the the past to the present. Inspired by old photographs and bits of her family history, she writes lovely narrative poems that capture a moment, illustrating the twirl of a women's skirt of a perfect nostalgic moment. Fantastic collection.

89. Slice of Cherry, by Dia Reeves (***1/2)
Category: Youth Relived

As the Bonesaw Killer's daughters and with their daddy on deathrow, sisters Kit and Fancy Cordelle are shunned by the people of their small town Portero, Texas and that's the way they like it. When a young man breaks into their home, they capture him and tie him up in their father's basement. What begins as a game of cutting the young man open and stitching back together, soon becomes a satisfying killing spree as the girls take out their desire for bloodshed on those they think deserve it. Things get really interesting when Fancy finds a door into a doorway into another world, opening onto her happy place, where anything is possible and the girls can kill without getting caught.

I was looking for a YA novel with strong horror themes, something unsettling and frightening but with kids in high school or younger. Fantasy romances, like Twilight or Shiver, though they contain vampires and werewolves, creatures born from horror, don't count as their point is the love story, not to frighten. My searching lead me to Dia Reeves and her Portero novels, and when I saw Slice of Cherry on the library bookshelf, I couldn't resist picking it up.

Bloody and unsettling from page one, it seemed like just the book for me, one clearly comfortable in the realm of horror. This love of gore and splatter was combined with the story of two sisters, learning to have lives of their own after having only each other, also firmly settling the story in YA. I read through this book quickly, and at some points had trouble putting it down to eat or sleep.

Portero is a fascinating little town with all its invisible doorways for people to stumble through and never return, not to mention the monsters that make it through into the town and tend to leave a string of corpses and pools of blood in the downtown center. The cacklers in the woods are a particularly creepy creature, which laugh as they hunt and have large smiling mouths with lots and lots of teeth.

I'd say this biggest flaw is that I had a hard time connecting with the characters. Perhaps it's because it's from the point of view of two killers, who see other human beings as worthless and just waiting to be victims. It's hard to pull off sympathy for the ruthless and I'm not sure Reeves entirely managed it.

Also, it seemed that almost everyone in the story was far too accepting of the murders. Yes, the girls were getting rid of bad people (mostly), but it was still a kind of slaughter and everyone in town seemed to be okay with it, even cheering them on (of course, these are Porterenes and it's a very strange town and the people are kind of used to seeing blood and body parts). It seems a little variation in the reactions would have been better, so that it didn't come off as one note personalities. I may be grateful to someone who got rid of someone beating on me, but I'd also be wary and frightened, too, especially if they came back splattered with blood. So, I don't think sending the message that murder is hunky-dory as long as you're killing bad people is a good thing.

That said, it was an entertaining story and I'm curious to read more by Reeves. So I'll probably go ahead and pick up the first book in the series (Slice of Cherry is book two).

That sounds like quite the book, one that I think I would like to investigate.

>121 DeltaQueen50:
I'm curious what you'll think of it.

* * *

90. Two Mini-Chapooks: 8th Grade Hippie Chic by Marisa Crawford (*****) and No Experiences: Poems by Erin J. Watson (****)



8th Grade Hippie Chic

When you French-kissed the class president on the school trip to Boston and we wore yellow feathers in our hair, and I dropped my beaded red velour bag into the harbor, it opened up a crack of light for me."
-- from 8th Grade Hippie Chick

This chapbook of inter connected prose poems calls on the ghosts of memory and youth, unveiling the pain and joy of friendship and young love. Each poem captures a moment with more fluidity than a photograph and opens up the wounds and intimacies of friendship with all it's music and play and clothing and crushes.

Marisa draws on the small things ("I was wearing a silver ring that said, 'Imagine' on it."), on the little details ("A closet full of Beatles shirts. Tie-dye. A hot pink aura.") to open up aches and joys. Presented in short paragraphs of text, her words flow over one another to reveal the wider inner world of being young girls. Reading this book, I found myself nostalgic for days and ways that were not my own, longing for a youth that was at once so similar and yet vastly different from my own.

I adore this little stitched book as much as I adored Marisa's first collection of poems, The Haunted House, which touches on similar themes. I may be biased, since I know Marisa from when we worked at Aunt Lute Books together and I consider her a friend. But she has such a unique voice and her words pluck a cord inside me and resonate with my inner girlhood, and I can't wait to read more of her work. I wish her many future successes.

***



No Experiences: Poems

"What is a poem after all? you say.
Maybe it is a kind of possessing
a heap of rocks, a buoy or anything"
-- from No Experiences

This collection of 24 short poems by Erin Watson began as a playful response to the randomly wise ravings of a popular spam horse, @Horse_ebooks on twitter. The spam horse account spewed phrases that revealed hidden poetry. For each of these poems, Erin took one spam tweet and built a poem around it, posting each one online. Later she kickstarter funded a physical chapbook of the poetry, which is how I discovered the project (and spam horse).

Coming from an experimental project as it did, Erin's poetry is playful and surprising, each short line taking unexpected twists and turns. The poems are thick with layered images and meaning and they're the kind of poems that fill up the small space they encompass. They're poems to sit with and consider the many possible meanings of, they're poems to read over and over again, to giggle at, to enjoy.

As a side note, it was revealed recently that Horse_ebooks was not a spambot but a performance art project by Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief. Many people who followed the span horse felt betrayed by this news.

I asked how Erin felt about this, and this was her wonderful response:

"Yeah. I've been thinking about it a lot today: like, why does it feel a little duplicitous that something wonderful was someone's wonderful creation instead of a weird mistake? I don't know, mostly I'm grateful that I got to inhabit a moment where it seemed real and make a thing with the means available. Everyone should make their own weirdness in the world."

I'm glad she got to inhabit this moment, too and that it allowed me to read and discover her poetry. I also hope she's still avidly writing and that she will release more of her words into the world soon.

92. Fables, Vol. 13: The Great Fables Crossover, by Bill Willingham and multiple illustrators (***)
Category: Panel by Panel

Jack Horner was exiled from the Fables community ages ago and soon began appearing in his own spin off series Jack of Fables (which I haven't read). This volume shows the crossover of the Fables series and the Jack of Fables and I was kind of meh about it. The story was too wacky to me (though seeing Bigby as a cute, pissed off little girl was priceless) and I wasn't in love with much of the art. Also, Jack is such an epic douche that I had a hard time reading any scene in which he appeared. If this is what the Jack of Fables series is like, then I have no interest in it.

92. Fables, Vol. 14: Witches, by Bill Willingham and multiple illustrators (****)
Category: Panel by Panel -- Category Finished!! (six more to go)

Much more to my taste! The Dark Man continues to wreak havoc and the witches of Fabletown begin to plot a way to defeat him with Frau Totenkinder disappearing on a mysterious mission. Meanwhile, political turmoil on the Farm, where the Fables of Fabletown have escaped as refugees, continues to grow more chaotic.

93. Fables, Vol. 15: Rose Red, by Bill Willingham and multiple illustrators (****1/2)
Category: Miscellany

Rose Red has to find her way out of her depression in order to regain control of the Farm and the fantastic awesome that is the witch Frau Totenkinder enacts a plan to defeat the Dark Man. I really, really love Rose Red and I loved learning more about why her relationship with her sister Snow White is so screwed up. Fantastic continuation of the story, and I liked most of the art in this one.

94. Fables, Vol. 16: Super Team, by Bill Willingham and multiple illustrators (***1/2)
Category: Miscellany

The Fables make plans for a desperate mission to defeat the Dark Man. On the whole this was a good installment, though the ending felt a bit like a deus ex machina. It wasn't really, but it seemed a lot of build up for how it turned out.

95. Fables, Vol. 17: Inherit the Wind, by Bill Willingham and multiple illustrators (***1/2)
Category: Miscellany

In the aftermath of the last adventures, the story turns to several dissimilar storylines with Bufkin, Rose Red, and the Bigby Wolf family each having their own adventures. Because it's a bunch of stories, it comes off as a bit disjointed. Still great reading and it left me with a few cliff hangers that have me wanting to read more.

Glad you're enjoying the Fables reads and still want to read more. Bodes well for my own reading of the series as I've not reached that point yet.

>124 AHS-Wolfy:
A large part of it is that I still just like the characters so much, even though there are low points in the plot sometimes.

96. A Handful of Dust, by Evelyn Waugh (****)
Category: . From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books

A story of selfishness and cruelty, as Mrs Last begins to have an affair with a financially broke young man. She thinks of nothing of having the affair and then of funding the relationship by asking for alimony from a hoped for divorce, even if it means demanding her husband, Tony Last, to sell his beloved house to pay for it. In response, Tony decides to take an ill-fated trip to the Amazon.

After reading, I put down the book and thought, "Wow. I don't even know how to respond to this." I still don't really, beyond a general sense of enjoyment. The story unfolds in crisp straightforward prose that doesn't linger on emotional reasoning. It's never really clear why characters make the decisions they make (except maybe in the case of Tony); they just simply announce they want to do something and then do it. I wouldn't say that I liked any of the characters, but the scenes were often funny and the book was an easy read. Also, Tony Last's fate was so terrifying as to actually give me chills. It was totally unexpected and really made the book something more than just a wryly humorous story about marriage and divorce. I'm still thinking about it.

@ 126 -- Yes, CHILLS at Tony's fate in A Handful of Dust! It's such a dark comedy, emphasis on the "dark"!

>127 christina_reads:
Very dark! I didn't expect it to be quite so dark. Now I'm curious to read more by Evelyn Waugh to see if other books have the same tone.

Dark comedy sounds good. I should move Scoop up the tbr list.

>129 AHS-Wolfy:
I've been looking at his other books, trying to decide if I should try something else by Waugh and Scoop was at the top of the list.

97. Trustee from the Toolroom (audio book), by Nevil Shute (****)
Category: From the Modern Library's 100 Best Books -- Category Finished!!

Keith Stewart is a simple man, who has retired to follow his passion of making miniature functioning engines and machinery. He makes a small sum of money writing about these engineering projects for a magazine called the Miniature Mechanic. Living with his wife, who works in a local shop to help support them, he couldn't be happier.

Things become complicated, however, when Keith's sister and husband die in a ship wreck on a small island off Tahiti, leaving their young daughter in his care. Now as trustee for the girl, he finds himself making a journey across the world by plane and boat to ensure her inheritance.

This is a fairly simple and straightforward adventure/travel story in which the difficulties of money and distance put Keith into a position of stepping out of his comfortable home and into the big world. He approaches these adventures with an honest manner and a continued fascination for how things work, drawing interest and sympathy from those he meets. One of the wonderful things about this story is how unaware Keith was of his affect in the world. As a small man making small machines in his basement and writing about it, he never knew how far his articles traveled or the impact they had on his readers. It's this far reaching impact on others that ultimately saves him in the end and it's wonderful to read.

Yay, completed category! Also, the more I hear about Nevil Shute's other work, the more I need to read some of it!

>132 rabbitprincess:
I would definitely read more by Neville Shute. I recommend giving his books a try.

*****

98. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chboski (****)
Category: Youth Relived -- Another Category Finished!! Just four more to go!

One day Charlie begins to write semi-anonymous letters a person he's never met in the hopes of connecting with someone. He leaves no return address and leaves out most names, but begins to relate his story as he begins his first year of high school.

The writing style isn't particularly poetic, but expresses the honest tone of voice of a teenage boy, who rambles in his letters about his home, family and new friends. The story explores a variety of situations and issues, from trust and first love to the darker realms of homophobia, rape, abortion, suicide. It sounds like a dark book when you list them all out like that, but the story also has humor and joy as well.

Some of these issues are mentioned quickly, then the characters move on or change the subject. It means that every issue isn't delved into, but I think that's okay in the sense that this is how people will often relate to problems, even intense ones, in that they try to change the subject or to forget (especially if it didn't happen to them personally).

I love Sam and Patrick, but sweet friends who accept Charlie despite the fact that he's a bit odd. And I like that relationships are imperfect and messy and that the story isn't all about true love. But it is about moment of friendship and coming together and reaching that youthful place of feeling infinite. All in all, I feel it's a very emotionally honest book.

99. Bunnicula, by Deborah and James Howe (****)
Category: Miscellany

When the Monroe family brings home a new rabbit as a pet, but with its suspicious sleep and eating habits, is this rabbit perhaps more than he seems?

I bought this today as a gift for a young family member. She's into RL Stine books and I remembered reading this as a kid. I loved it at the time, so I couldn't resist buying it for her (I just hope she likes it, even though it's not as scary as Stine). After bringing the book home, I also couldn't resist rereading it while it was in front of me.

Being a middle grade book, it took no time at all to read. I remember it being creepier when I read it and the story definitely stuck with me over the years. It wasn't overly scary and tends more toward the humorous, as it's told by a good hearted dog. Very cute and funny. It stood up surprisingly well after all these years.

You are making great progress towards finishing your challenge, Andrea!

Awwww Bunnicula!

Re Nevil Shute, I've read On the Beach, which was brilliant, and have Pied Piper waiting patiently in the stacks.

I've not read A Handful of Dust yet, but the ending of the film gave me proper chills!

>135 lkernagh:
Thanks!

>136 rabbitprincess:
On the Beach looks great! Definitely a TBR, especially because of the apocalyptic undertones.

>137 -Eva-:
I'm curious about the film now. It has some great actors in it.

* * * *

100. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams (****)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

Arthur Dent is just an ordinary guy whose house is going to be torn down to make room for a bypass to be built. This upsets him very much, even though he doesn't realize this is the least of his problems, because the Earth is about to be torn down to make room for a hyperspatial express.

Lucky for him, his good friend Ford Prefect is an alien from a planet near Betelgeuse, who is also in possession of the most amazing book every written, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and manages to get them both the planet just in time for Arthur to meet all sorts of other oddities, like two headed Galactic Presidents and really depressed robots an ships that are powered by Improbability Drives.

I have to say I enjoyed this book far more on my second reading. It's wacky and fun and I didn't care about the fact that there is virtually now development of the characters or deep emotional impact about anything. The entire point of this thing is to be wacky and fun and slightly (or a lot) nonsensical and Douglas achieves just that with the dry, witty flair that only Douglas Adams (or maybe Terry Pratchet) can manage.

* *

I'm working my way through the Hitchhiker's guide books that I own. If I finish these by the end of the weekend, then I'll be in a good position to complete the challenge by the end of the year. Woohoo. :)

I have a soft spot for Nevil Shute, even if he did write the most depressing book ever On The Beach and tends to have an airplane fixation!

I admit I love Hitchikers but only really the radio scripts (which I err read)... and the old BBC TV show. I don't think I have ever managed to finish the 3rd book.

Good luck though

>139 clfisha:
He was fixated on airplanes and mechanical devices in Trustee for the Toolroom, too. I don't know whether to be excited or wary of the accolade "most depressing book ever". ;)

I've slowed down a bit during the third book, but I'm still enjoying the Hitchiker's series.


*****

101. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, by Douglas Adams (***1/2)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

The (not so) intrepid space travelers Arthur Dent, Ford Perfect, Zaphod Beeblebrox, Trillian, and Marvin the Depressed Robot find them selves quite hungry after their recent adventures and go looking the perfect place to eat in space. Along the way, they get distracted by Zaphod's erased memories, which are driving him to complete a mission so secret even he doesn't remember it.

Much more of the same gags and pseudo-dangers with our characters stumbling about the wacky galaxy, not really sure what they're doing or why they're there have the time. Still quite entertaining.

*

102. Life, the Universe and Everything, by Douglas Adams (****)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

The people of Krikkit have been sheltered from the knowledge of the existence of the universe all their lives. When a spaceship crash lands on their planet and alerts them to it's existence, they decide the universe will have to go. The only thing that can stop the destruction of the universe are Slartibartfast and once again Arthur Dent, Ford Perfect, Zaphod Beeblebrox, Trillian, and Marvin the Depressed Robot.

I really like that Arthur is a stronger character in this one. He doesn't do nearly as much standing around with his mouth hanging open, shocked at the wacky, strange, odd, bizarre universe with which he's presented (which isn't to say that he doesn't do any shocked jaw flapping, just not as much). He also learns how to fly and stands up for himself on a couple of occasions.

Trillian is also given an opportunity to prove she's awesome, which we normally don't get to see because she tends to stand in the background being quiet most of the time.

The potential risks of the entire universe being destroyed also made this one more interesting for me. So, despite the continuation of the same gags, I rather enjoyed it.

Ah I think it was the cricket bit that put me off the 3rd one.

Alan Rickman provided the voice for Marvin in the series and I can still hear him complaining. I enjoyed both the books and the series.

>141 clfisha:
Why the cricket bit? A big fan of cricket?

>142 mamzel:
I bet Alan Rickman would be a wonderful Marvin! Makes me want to go looking for the series on CD (if they have it).

#143 The book is not based on cricket, there is a brief scene on a cricket field, which I thought was quite humorous, like the rest of his works. Though I would guess him to be a cricket fan, after all, the game originated in England and is played and popular in many commonwealth countries.

>144 PiyushC:
Thanks, PiyushC. However, I know it's not based on cricket. I was merely asking clfisha why the crickit bit put her off the book.

I had a cricket adversion when young, I expect I started to get grumpy about that point. Really I suspect I should retry!

103. So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, by Douglas Adams (****)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

Adams begins this fourth book in the series by contradicting events in the previous books. The Earth, which was destroyed in book one, has for an unexplained reason reappeared in the universe, and in fact, it is as though it was never destroyed at all. Arthur Dent is eager to return to Earth and the life he had, and along the way he meets Fenchurch, a woman who remembers the destruction of the world while she was on it. She is sure it took place, even though everyone else on the planet is convinced it was mass hysteria.

This book was a lot quieter than all the other books with less wackiness cropping up all the time, and I think the story was better for it. The story of Arthur and Fenchurch was rather wonderful and when moments of the strange came in it fitted nicely. And it's the only one that had a satisfactory ending, as far as I'm concerned. This is my favorite in the series.

104. Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams (**)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

More varying and extreme contradictions here in regards to previous books. Only Arthurt Dent and Ford Prefect remain themselves in the story, and with the exception of Ford's mad escape from The Hitchhiker's Guide offices, I was rather bored with the story. Most of what I loved about the rest of the books is gone. Combine that with the ending, and I just about hated it.

I gave Mostly Harmless a higher rating than you did, but then you enjoyed So Long and Thanks for All the Fish more than I did so on the whole we balance out ;) The first will probably always be my favourite. I still go back to it and read random chapters on occasion.

Alan Rickman was Marvin in the 2005 movie with Martin Freeman as Arthur. Martin did a great job as Arthur but overall I prefer the 1981 miniseries starring Simon Jones and David Dixon (who IS Ford Prefect to me). The cheesy special effects and sets add to its charm ;)

Are the Hitchhicker books a first time read for you or a re-read, Andrea? I loved the books and the TV series when they came out but that was such a long, long time ago, I may be able to dip back into the books and enjoy them all over again!

>148 rabbitprincess:
Oh, yeah! I forgot that was Rickman in the movie and Martin Freeman was fantastic as everyman Arthur. I still need to see the miniseries though. Sounds like it's a good watch.

>149 lkernagh:
The first book was a reread, all the rest were new. I noticed with the first book that I liked it much more the second time around, so I recommend a rereading. :)

105. The Illustrated Man (audio book), by Ray Bradbury (****)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II)

The Illustrated Man is a collection if short science fiction stories (very) loosely connected by a frame story, involving an illustrated man, whose tattoos tell stories of the future. Each of the stories in the book is one of the tales painted on this man's body. Like many collections of stories, there are hits and misses. Here are a few that stood out for me.

"Kaleidoscope" is the kind of story that makes me fall in love with Bradbury. This story of a rocket exploding sending the astronauts scattered through space and the final words they share with each other is beautifully written and so, so haunting.

"The Other Foot" is interesting. In this tale, Mars is first populated by black people. The memory of all the horrors they left behind are brought to the surface when a white man is about to arrive in a rocket for the first time after 20 years. It's particularly interesting in the fact that is was written before the civil rights movement, and was one of the few (or only) scifi stories in which black characters were center stage. Being are product of its era, the story is still problematic, as well explained in this blog post. Still Bradbury was trying to consider a different point of view in a time when most writers wouldn't have bothered.

"The Long Rain," in which a group of astronauts crash land on Venus with it's never ceasing rains, really showcases Bradbury's abilities in description. He makes the constant pounding incessant rain come alive, so much so you can almost feel it on your own skin.

"The Rocket Man" is lovely in how earth-bound it is, focusing on the wife and son who have to wait while the father of the house travels the stars. It has all the longing and loss and loneliness of any family story, especially when one member is always away traveling and how each family member makes up for lost time when he returns.

"The Exiles" calls on one of Bradbury's favorite gripes -- censorship. In this tale, the ghosts of literary figures, such as Edgar Allan Poe and William Shakespeare, have been called up by their own book, the tales and stories burned and destroyed by humanity, and they are surviving on mars. A strange story, but one I can't help but have an affection for.

In the "The Fox and the Forrest," a couple living in a future totalitarian state attempt to escape via time travel into the past. Great story that really has you routing for the couple.

"The City" was terrifying. Literally gave me chills. A team lands on a planet in which the sleeping city that has waited a millennia begins to wake with terrible purpose.

As a frame story, "The Illustrated Man" is rather weak and isn't necessary. Though as the final tale in the collection, about a man seeking to save his livelihood and marriage by becoming a tattooed man for the carnivale is excellent and has a perfect ending.

----------------------
I picked up Parzival and Titurel, by Wolfram von Eschenbach in an attempt to finish my Arthurian category, but only got a page in before quitting. I'd still like to read it, but it's too poetically dense for me to handle right now.

Actually I'm just going to close down the Arthurian category unfinished. I'll just read an extra miscellany book instead.

I keep meaning to try The Illustrated Man, I think there is enough there to entice me to do so!

I read this book many decades ago and still remember "The Long Rain."

>152 clfisha:
Do it! There are some fantastic stories in there. :)

>153 mamzel:
Bradbury does have a way of writing memorable stories. I remembered stories from The Martian Chronicles for over a decade, too.

* * *

106. Currency of Souls, by Kealan Patrick Burke (***1/2)
Category: Oh, the Horror!

Currency of Souls puts its own unique spin on the idea of making deals with the devil. A motley group of people living in a near-dead town meet every week at Eddie's Tavern, where a preacher gives them instructions by the local preacher to drive and kill sinners in order to make up for their own sins. But when the usual plan goes wrong, and the group tries to break free of their burden, events quickly spiral out of control.

This is a fast paced read and while each character might not be likeable, at least they are interesting. The sheriff, Tom, is the main focus and he's troubled by his inability to handle much of anything and his general feeling of helplessness. But as he tries to fight his own way free, while also saving his son, he begins to take necessary action.

The devil character is interesting, because he is not really a devil and religiously speaking it's hard to tell where he stands, though he does make deals and more often than not the deals are not to the benefit of those who come to him.

As I said, this was a fast read and I enjoyed it. Though there were aspects that I'm still not clear on and I'm uncomfortable with an aspect of the story that I can't really talk about without giving anything away. Regardless, it's worth a read.

107. How to Kill a Vampire: Fangs in Folklore, Film and Fiction, by Liisa Ladouceur (***)
Category: Miscellany

Exploring the slaying of vampires in folklore, history, books, and movies, this book takes a pop culture tone to it's discussion and tends to focus on the most popular and well known vampire tales, including Dracula, Nosferatu, Lost Boys, and other well known versions. While the book did teach me some new things, such as historical accounts of vampire killings (mostly just the mutilating of corpses) and the fact that sunlight was only introduced as a weapon in the movies, I feel this is an entry level book. I personally would have preferred a more in-depth look at vampire mythology and the weapons used to destroy the creatures.

* * *

108. Lucky Bastard, by S.G. Browne (****)
Category: Unicorns from Space! (Part II) -- Category Finished!!!

Nick Monday works as a private detective in order to cover his identity as a luck poacher. He can steal luck from the fortunate with just a shake of the hand and then sell it on the black market. But things get sticky and he quickly finds himself warding off heiresses and gangsters and federal agents in one mishap after the next.

Browne plays off the idea of the noir novel in a fun, fast-paced satire. Even though Nick describes himself as more "over easy than hard boiled", he's still an anti-hero, someone who doesn't think twice about stripping someone of the good luck they were born with or screwing over some innocent bystander. There are also dangerous femme fatale and red herrings and twists and turns. A really enjoyable book.

* * *

109. In the Night Room, by Peter Straub (***)
Category: Oh, the Horror! -- Category Finished!!!

I've generally enjoyed Peter Straub's books, but In the Night Room was a strange read, and I'm not sure what I think about it. Apparently, it's a sequel to the Bram Stoker winning novel lost boy lost girl, which I haven't read and this book makes reference to the first on several occasions. I think I might have done better to read them in order, though the structure is so unusual that I'm not sure about that.

The story followed Tim Underhill, a writer of dark tales filled with murder and suspense, who begins to received strange messages from the dead, and Willey Patrick, a writer of young adult novels, who is about to wed a dark and dangerous man. The tale alternates back and forth between the two and then slowly brings them together in a rather strange way. I'm not sure what else to add without including spoilers.

I can see what people might love this book, and I can also see why others might hate it. The structure and the tone evoke both possibilities. I'm settled somewhere uncomfortably in the middle, and I'm not sure which way to lean.

* * *

110. Bleeding Violet, by Dia Reeves (****)
Category: Miscellany -- Category Finished!!!

Hanna runs away from her aunt to find her mom in the small town of Portero, Texas. There she hopes to receive the love and affection she lost when her father died, but is met by anger and hostility from her mother. In addition, she finds herself in the strangest and deadliest towns, one in which everyone wears black and nobody balks at death, because in a town full of hidden doors to other realms that might release monsters at any minute, death is no big deal.

Hanna is an interesting character, who wears nothing but purple (in honor of her father). Troubled with a disorder that causes her to hallucinate, she takes in the strangeness far better than most outsiders. She's also desperate for love and will almost anything to get her mother to accept and love her. She tries to gain acceptance from the few friends she makes in Portero, but nothing compares to her aching need for her mother's affection.

I'm struck again (having also read the sequel, Slice of Cherry) with how interesting a town Portero is, where it seems anything can happen. The monsters that appear are frightening and unique -- not a one of them a standard vampire or werewolf. It puts a fun spin on things with plenty of blood and gore.

* * *

Woohoo! I finished! I even have a couple of days left, enough to possibly finish a bonus book!

Congrats on completing your challenge!

Hey congrats! Wallow in your freedom and have a great new years eve!

Congratulations! 110 books, that's nothing to sneer at!

CONGRATULATIONS, Andrea..... I knew you could do it!

Congrats on completing your challenge! I hope to be right behind you...

Thanks, guys! :D

OMG that picture. Cracking up at my desk right now!

Wohoo! Congratulations om finishing! Just caught up with your december and firmly belive Portero is a place I need to visit. Funny to read about the cacklers btw, they sound just like the "gigglers" I dreamed up for one of my early, stranded attempts at writing fantasy :)

Also, a reread of Hitchhiker's Guide sounds like something I need to do at some point. I've read the series like four times, but now it must be twenty years ago.

Congratulations on finishing!!! Love the Cookie Monster picture :D

I started reading The Disobedience of Water by Sena Jeter Nasland as my bonus book, because it's short. It wasn't until I read the third short story, "In the Free State" (which is disturbing and not in a good way), I realized I've read this collection before. Since I didn't love the book the first time around (the stories weren't memorBle) and I'm not loving it this time around, I'm just going to quit and put this one immediately in the donate pile. It wasn't a terrible book as I recall, just not great either. So that's it. All 2013 reading officially done!

Book stats to come soon.

>162 christina_reads:
BOOKS! GOOD! NOM NOM NOM NOM!

>163 GingerbreadMan:
Hey, Anders! I hope your enjoy the Portero books. I'll also be rereading the Hitchhiker books in the future. They seem to be even more enjoyable on the reread.

>164 rabbitprincess:
Thanks!

STATS: Total Books Read = 100, of which
67 were Fiction (a mix of scifi, fantasy, horror, and classics)
9 were Nonfiction
13 were Comics/Graphic Novels
11 were Poetry
11 were Audio Books
1 was DNF (read enough to count it, but didn't actually finish)

A separate stat is the number of Picture Books Read Aloud to My Niece. I reviewed 10 as part of this challenge, but I've actually read her far more than that. For example, on Monday alone, I read her 7 books in a row. So the actually number is probably triple or quadruple what I've publicly reviewed.

Best Reads in 2013



The Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman
Dying is My Business, by Nicolas Kaufmann
The House of Mirth (audio book), by Edith Wharton
Rosemary's Baby, by Ira Levin
The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson
American Elsewhere, by Robert Jackson Bennett
Parable of the Sower, by Octavia E Butler
The Replacement, by Brenna Yovanoff
17 & Gone, by Nova Ren Suma
Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell

Best Science Fiction Book
Parable of the Sower was a reread and I loved this apocalyptic world and the survivors who wander through it just as much the second time around as I did the first.

Runner Up: Even with all the techno babble, Solaris by Stanislaw Lem was compelling.

Best Fantasy Book
I think my love for Dying is My Business can be best summed up by my review. Click through for flailing, squeals of joy.

Best Horror Novel
Rosemary's Baby just about blew my mind. On the surface, it's almost not a horror story. It reads like a literary tale of a couple dealing with the challenges of creating a home for themselves, and yet, the thread of threat is subtly there throughout. It's amazing.

Best YA Novel
Though there are three great YA novels in my best of list, I think I'll go with Eleanor & Park for my top. It's just such a sweet story of young love between awkward teenagers.

Best Short Story Collection
I really enjoyed Scheherazade's Facade: Fantastical Tales of Gender Bending, Cross-Dressing, and Transformation, edited by Michael M. Jones. The stories are consistently good throughout and explore many aspects of gender while telling entertaining speculative tales.

Best Graphic Novel
Alison Bechdel presents a moving portrait of her young years in Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, a story as much about her father and his eventual suicide. The mix of literature and cultural references, along with the structure makes this a fantastic read.

Runner Up: Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol is a fantastic ghost story, which is scary and well told.

Best Poetry Book
The Moment of Change: An Anthology of Feminist Speculative Poetry, edited by Rose Lemberg was by far my favorite poetry read this year. It was a fantastic mix of poetry and voices, all with the speculative spin that I love.

Runner Up: Domestic Work: Poems, by Natasha Trethewey

Best Poetry Chapbook
8th Grade Hippie Chic by Marisa Crawford is a lovely exploration of youth with moments of hurt and humor. Highly recommended.

Best Nonfiction Book
The Little Red Guard: A Family Memoir by Wenguang Huang told the story of a family torn between honoring their grandmother's wishes for a proper, traditional burial and respecting the new communist system, which requires cremation. This painted an honest look at family life and was a fascinating look at Chinese culture in a state of transition.

Best Audio Book
Eleanor Bron's reading of The House of Mirth is spot on. She hit the perfect tone for the story, which contributed to it also winning the honorary award of Book that Made Me Weep in the Front Seat of My Car.

Great summary! Very happy I have Parable of the sower on my list for this year!

#166 Very nice categorisation and presentation of your best books, House of Mirth was one of my top reads as well, when I read it in 2012, I think. There are quite a few books in your top of the year list that are in my TBR.

>167 GingerbreadMan:
Awesome! Can't wait to see what you think!

>168 PiyushC:
Thank you! Well, hopefully I get to see your thoughts on some of these books. :)

Great round-up! Belated congrats on finishing to you as well - I owe a few of those, it seems. :)

Thanks, Eva!

mumble moan.. puts Parable of the Sower on the wishlist since I seem to have missed it.. mumle too many books etc..

Great round up cant believe I missed it!

Sorry, Claire! ;)
But Parable of the Sower is worth it, I promise!