Roni ncats' Reads for 2009: the Third

At 80 books and 250 messages, it's time to move on to a new thread.
My last thread is here

Found you again, Roni and have you starred!

Got you (to the sadness of my wishlist)

opps..let me try again!

Starred ya!

#81 Scout's Progress* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller

Stasia mentioned she was reading this, which was all I needed to pull it off the shelf and reread it myself. I DO enjoy the Liaden books! This book is a prequel to the main series of 5 books, starting with Agent of Change and ending with I Dare. This book and Local Custom are the stories, romances really, of the parents of the main protagonists and clan of the main series, but the culture of Liad and of pilots and spaceship and of clashes with other cultures (namely Earth) interplay throughout the books, making them most satisfying. I think I will go read the true prequels, Crystal Soldier and Crystal Dragon, which are in the distant past, about a thousand years, and explain how Liad came to be. I've only read them one and a half times and don't recall it all. Not as good a story as these 7 if I recall correctly, but still a worthwhile read.

#7

Which is the first of this series? Not sure which I'd be supposed to start with from your post (I'm probably being daft and a little stupid!).

I've starred you again, Roni. Congratulations on reading 81 books so far this year!

Jenny, I personally would start in the publication order, which means beginning with Agent of Change, but I am really interested in Stasia's response to Scout's Progress as the first book she's read. Sorry, my post was musings rather than any sort of organized guide to the books, so you aren't daft at all, just not a mind-reader!

Liaden books:

Main series:
Agent of Change
Conflict of Honors
Carpe Diem
Plan B
I Dare

Prequels to Characters in Main series (parents of Val Con and Shan:
Local Custom
Scout's Progress
Ideally, these two should be read in order, as LC precedes and leads into SP. I think they are richer after reading at least the first three above, because you then have so much of the culture and so many references to the characters involved, you are dying to find out more.

Prequels to the creation of Liad and the Code (1000 years earlier):
Crystal Soldier
Crystal Dragon
Read these after all the above. They are weaker on their own and of most interest to those already steeped in Liaden culture.

Standalone story set in main series universe:
Balance of Trade
Just a good story.

Prequels to the situation at the end of I Dare--read after that book or later.
Fledgling just published
Saltation not yet out

Edited to correct touchstones.

Thank you very much for the clarification. I shall look forward to starting with Agent of Change then!

The Companions looks really interesting--I'll be sure to search for it at the library! Also, Scout's Progress looks good, but I'll make sure to start with Agent of Change.

#82 Crystal Soldier* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller
#83 Crystal Dragon* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller

The main series Liaden books are riddled with quotes from Cantra yos Phelium and with references to her and Jela and Jela's tree. These are the books that provide the backstory--who they were, why they were important, how the components of our present universe were set in place originally. I would not start with these books, but for those who appreciate clan Korval and the Liaden universe, these are important stories to be savored fully.

#84 Local Custom* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller

The other half of the stories of the parents of the characters in the main series. Can't read about Daav's finding his lifemate without giving Er Thom equal time! Can I tear myself away and get back to new books? Stay tuned to find out.

I wish my local library had all of the books in that series, but they have only 3 and they are not consecutive novels.

It's late, but I was interested in your review of the Sheri Tepper book; I think last year I read a book of hers called Beauty that I thought was fantastic, but extremely disturbing. I want to make sure I'm in a resilient mood before I read another one, but The Companions sounds good.

Beauty is on the high end of Tepper's disturbing books. I don't think there is another one quite as disturbing. The Companions will not be disturbing at all, I should think.

#85 Plan B* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller
#86 I Dare* by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller
#87 The Dark is Rising* by Susan Cooper

I owe reviews on all of these, I know. I've been reading instead. Now I'm re-reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to compare it to the movie I saw the other week. So far happy with the changes made in the movie.

Went by Borders today, and they had three tables full of clearance books for $1 apiece. I got 25 books, including the book thief, A Great and Terrible Beauty, books 3-7 of the Edge Chronicles series, 2 copies each of The Giver and Gathering Blue, Flora's Dare, Wildwood Dancing, Kidnapped, Where the Red Fern Grows, Thursday Next: First Among Sequels, Flush, No Limits by Michael Phelps (of interest since he has learning disabilities), and 2 fantasies new to me, Noman and the Navigator. Fourteen hardbacks and 11 paperbacks in all--I haven't named them all. What a bargain, huh? My school is going to be so happy!

Great haul, Roni!

WOW!
What incredible finds. The Book Thief is one of my favorite reads of 2009.

Cha ching - You hit the jackpot, Roni!

#88 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* by J. K. Rowling

Since I went to the movie a couple of weeks ago BEFORE re-reading the book, I had to come back and read it to find out what was missing in the movie. I have to say, and I think this is a first, that I think the movie did an EXCELLENT job of getting all that was essential to the story, and sometimes in a much more streamlined version. It still helps to have read the book, I think--otherwise the glimpses of Tonks and Fenrir and the like would be pretty meaningless, but they are THERE, and it doesn't get in the way of the story.

Mild spoilers for the movie--much less Quidditch, we don't see Tonks but once, the Ministry of Magic and Bill and Fleur are excised, a number of features are shifted or altered slightly, but in a way that makes the movie flow. A minor change but a good example--in the first chapter of the book, there is a major info dump when Snape justifies himself to Bella, fairly lengthy, but in the movie, the scene concentrates on the essential action rather that the extra info.

I think this is a hopeful sign for the last two movies.

Surprised at your reaction, I'm still ranting about how much I disliked it compared to the book!!!

At least someone liked it. Lol

I'm back, Roni, and it certainly looks like you've been busy! I've added Agent of Change to my wishlist so I can start reading that series... I love Sheri Tepper, but I haven't read anything of hers in years, and I don't think I've ever read The Companions, but it goes on the pile too!

Where did you rant, Jenny? I went back and looked in your thread and didn't see it. What didn't you like? (And don't say EVERYTHING!)

http://www.librarything.com/topic/68916

post #35, #37, #41

I think I also ranted on someone else's thread but I will never remember whose! Also been ranting in person to people for days

Thanks for the links, Jenny. I don't wander over into that group too much (too big!) and missed it all, but enjoyed reading all those reactions to the movie.

I bought 42 books this week. 25 of them cost me $25 (dollar table at Borders had an unbelievable selection--see post #18 above) and 11 more of them cost me 11¢ (library sale). 4 of the others were 10% off (Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore) and one of the two other Borders books was $3. So I only paid full price for one book. Trust me--this was an exceptional week!

Also finally got a copy of The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt from Bookmooch this week--I forget who recommended this YA earlier this year, was it you, Linda? or Stasia?--but I enjoyed it and I'm passing it on in a Shakespeare package to my nephew for his birthday.

#89 The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt

This middle-school set book is funny and enjoyable, with a knowledge of Shakespeare adding exponentially to the mix.

What.A.Haul. And what a bargain! I can never find bargoons like that at Chapters' sales (the Canuck version of Borders).

#28: I did not recommend The Wednesday Wars, Roni. As a matter of fact, I will be reading it in the next couple of days. Maybe it was Linda?

Great haul! I had good luck at the bookstore this weekend too :0) I got 13 books for $30. They where all $2 except one that was $7. I love new books!

#90 I veered off course to read Matilda's Wedding by Betty Neels, on of the one cent books I picked up at the library sale. One of my guilty reading secrets is that I read a lot of Harlequins in the mid-70s in my mid-20s. That was plenty, and has lasted me for the last 35 years in great part, but I ended up with nearly complete collections of Betty Neels and Essie Summers. With Neels, the ones I am missing are the new ones, late 90's on, and this is one of those. Hers are all about non-pretty girls who are often undervalued or put upon by their families, although not always, who always fall in love with a tall, fair doctor, often from the Netherlands although with lecturing or a practice in England. The girls are often nurses, but if they aren't, they are no-nonsense competent people who help out. The author was a former nurse who married a Dutch doctor (surprise!) and kept writing variations on the theme for up to 130 some books. What can I say?

#91 Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton. This is for a reading group, chosen by a member who wanted pure froth for August, and this book certainly delivers. Supernatural romance on the light side for the most part, although there are a couple of casualties in the course of the story. The heroine owns a yarn shop and teaches knitting, hence the punny title. A fun, quick read, but nothing more.

It seems like I've finished something else since I last posted, but I can't figure out what. I'm still working on Stars in my Pockets Like Grains of Sand by Samuel R. Delany, which is awesome, and both Bird by Bird recommended by BDB and The Drunkard's Walk (was that you, Doc Neutron?) have come in from the library as well and are pulling at my attention, and my mooched copy of Ex Libris just came in today, and I started back to work today, so I am overly distracted!!!

Move Ex Libris up in the stack, Roni!

Oh, Bird by Bird and Ex Libris at the same time? Sounds heavenly...

Missed your new thread also but now I'm caught up. I hope you enjoy Bird by Bird as much as I did!

Hi Roni

I found you -- my hubby says I'm a master at "not noticing!" LOL I don't know how I missed that link. I was probably overwhelmed by the "ticker" bar. :-D

I was so relieved that I was only 34 posts behind (some of the threads I've had to catch up on were humongous--but also I had missed them for months!) and then I got to post #10. Thirteen science fiction books to add to my TBR in one fell swoop! It boggles the mind--and they will have to wait til next year because I'm already way over-booked in scifi/fantasy this year and I just bought a copy of Cordelia's Honor. I finally saw a copy with a cover I could live with. :-) Right now I'm reading Dune--recommended by my older son, years ago.

I haven't had a chance to see the movie, Half-Blood Prince--I hope it will still be in the theaters when I get home. I was interested in your observations. I've heard from others that they think this movie did a good job of capturing the novel. I've been very careful not to reread the book this year so I could judge the movie on its own merits. After I see the movie I think I'll reread the entire series to get ready for the last 2 movies--hopefully they won't make us wait too long in between them!

Ex Libris is a wonderful book. I'm looking for Bird by Bird because I've seen so many good remarks about it on LT.

Oh, oh, oh, read Cordelia's Honor as soon as you finish Dune!!! You know that's one of my top favorites.

I haven't read dune for probably 20 years, although I've probably read it 5 or 6 times overall--the me back then enjoyed it a lot.

You can start with just Agent of Change and Conflict of Honors, that's only two books. Then if you love them, you'll need the next 3 right away.

Glad you found me--I've missed you!

But...but...Roni! There's no ticker thingie! Help!

You are so correct, Richard. The last ticker was in the message in the last thread that had the link to this one and distracted Carolyn. Here's an updated one.

#39: The pellet with the poison's in the vessel with the pestle; the chalice from the palace has the brew that is true!

L> 39 & 40: LOL! Or rather giggling between squeaks and coughs because I have no voice tonight. I can't remember where that phrase comes from, tiffin, but it's perfect! Can't wait to hear what Richard has to say--he never lets me down! ;-)

#41: Bonnie, it is from an old Danny Kaye film, The Court Jester.

I can hear his voice! You all are so clever!

Ah, but the chalice from the palace gets broken!!!

So look to the flagon with the dragon which has the pellet with the poison...

We watched that movie up at the cabin this year on Movie Night. At first the kids were looking at me like "you have got to be kidding us!" All the credits at the beginning instead of the end, the dated cinematography, the actors that none of them recognized...

By halfway through, they were holding their sides in laughter. For days they were muttering some permutation on, "The Duchess dove at the Duke just when the Duke dove at the Doge. Now the Duke ducked, the Doge dodged, and the Duchess didn’t."

Hah! One for the Neanderthals, Tad! hehe

I love the lines from that movie! Thanks for sharing them. I've enjoyed the discussion.

I've slowed down, since I just finished my first week back at school--the week before the students return! And I'm in the middle of course preparation for the university course I teach in the fall. Due to budget cutbacks, I am team-teaching with one of the professors instead of doing it on my own (for twice the money) as usual. So the coordinating increases the workload while decreasing my pay. So be it.

#92 This was recommended by someone, perhaps Susan? The Hunter's Moon by O. R. Melling is another one of those fusions of modern-day life with faery, with teen protagonists. However, this one is lifted out of the ordinary by several factors. First, it takes place in Ireland. Although this is NOT uncommon, the author is a resident of Ireland and has a BA in Celtic Studies and Philosophy and an M.A. in Medieval Irish History. Therefore, the geography and descriptions of countryside all over the island as well as the use of mythology is uncommonly accurate. This doesn't guarantee good writing, but in this case, the writing integrates it well into the story of two 16-year old cousins setting off for an adventure around Ireland. Another factor is the intelligence and assertive character that the main viewpoint character, Gwen, develops through her travails. The girls are not passive victims but active participants in their destiny. All in all, I find this a very readable and enjoyable YA novel.

The Hunter's Moon--I wanted to find out more about this book and it sounds wonderful. This is the correct touchstone (I tested it) if LT doesn't mess with it when I press submit!

I like your review--you should post it to the main page! It was your review that made me want to read it. I love stories like this that are written by someone who actually has knowledge of the original folklore.

ETA Yup! LT strikes again!

For some reason, the touchstone for the second book, The Summer King, actually goes to the Hunter's Moon page.

Wow, Zoe! How did you figure that out? That is bizarre.

Well, the correct touchstone was there when I posted the book, but there's no touchstone now for either your or my post, Carolyn. Thanks, Zoe. I went and posted my review, so it is there now. Thanks, Carolyn, too for your kind words.

Thumbs up for the review!

#47: I have that one on the way to me from PBS. Glad to see it is a good one!

It is definitely bizarre. I noticed when I read the second book, and tried to get a touchstone for it.

Congratulations for your hot review listed on this mornings home page!

I've been meaning to read the rest of the books in Melling's series... here's hoping they're as enjoyable as the first one!

Thanks, Linda--I missed it completely because it was gone when I looked today.

I see there are at least 3 more in this series, Faith, so hopefully they are. I found this in the library, but it doesn't have any of the rest, nor does PBS or BookMooch. And it looks like this author started writing in the mid-80s, even though this particular series is 2006-2009.

#93 Thirteen Orphans by Jane Lindskold

There are some of Lindskold's books that I absolutely love, and others that I am meh about. I love the two books of the Athanor series, Changer and Legends Walking, as well as Child of a Rainless Year. I was much less appreciative of her Wolf series, although to be fair I only made it through the first one, and The Buried Pyramid. So when I saw this in the bookstore, in paperback, the question was, which group would it fall into?

In case you are thinking this book is about 13 parentless children, think again. No actual orphans--the term refers to something completely different that comes out in the book as you read along. I found the magic system fascinating, and the action carried me along so that I read all 500 pages in one day. Not great literature by any means, but I found the characters appealing and the story entertaining. It ends at a stopping point, but not at the end of the story, and I see that the sequel has just come out in hardback this month. Very readable.

#58: OK, adding the Lindskold books to Planet TBR, although my local library does not have a single one of them. What is wrong with those people? lol

VERY belatedly: I really liked the HBP movie too - completely agree with your "catching the essentials" verdict. But then, I watched the film having not read the book since before Deathly Hallows came out; I can well imagine that if I'd been watching straight after reading, I would have reacted in much the same way as I did after OotP (outrage and fury). lunacat, you had a bit of a rant on my thread too so that might be where you were thinking of...

#60

Hehe, I think I had a rant in a LOT of places. Don't get me started again.... ;)

#58: Thanks for this review! I had listened to an interview with Lindskold on a podcast back when this book first came out & it sounded really interesting. Then I forgot about it and could not remember the title. I haven't read anything by Lindskold yet, but this one sounds like one I might like.

#94 Ex Libris by Anne Fadiman

This has been reviewed by many others. A surprisingly small book of her essays on books, quite enjoyable. I got half-way through Bird by Bird before it was due back at the library, and I couldn't renew it because there's only one copy and someone had requested it. I did, however, read from the chapter on Perfectionism to my 5-6 Special Ed Class, which has several students notorious for getting frustrated because their writing "has to be perfect". But when I had to take Bird by Bird back, there was Into the Beautiful North waiting for me, which I am looking forward to.

#95 Greenwitch by Susan Cooper

Read for our group discussion on Tuesday. When I first read this book, many years ago, after the perfection of The Dark is Rising, I was disappointed. But I have mellowed, and have come to think this book as essential to the series, and a marvelous evocation of Jane's voice and the Wild Magic. Certainly it wraps up loose ends left at the end of Over Sea, Under Stone and moves us along the quest, but it also sets the stage for the later books in essential ways.

>64 ronincats: I think I'm the only person I know that has always loved this book, possibly best out of the whole series. For me, the character development for Jane, and her relationship with the Greenwitch particularly, were utterly absorbing and really moving. After you all started your Dark-is-Rising group reads, I had to re-read it and was relieved to discover I still felt the same about it now at (mumble) years as I did at 11.

Flossie

I, too, really liked Greenwitch--and partly because that is the book where I finally appreciated Jane. That book was pivotal to the series in many ways. I was sorry that it was so short. I, unfortunately, didn't even know about this series until my grown son gave it to me for Christmas about 5 years ago. (He didn't even chide me for not knowing about it when he was a child!) So I'm not surprised that you still appreciate it as an adult. :-) Isn't the best children's literature appealing to most adults that love to read?

>65 FlossieT:: I didn't participate in that group read, but I've read Greenwitch several times. I think it's my second favorite after The Dark is Rising. It also reminds of Lucy Boston's books...I'm not sure why unless it's the whole "animated vegetation" thing. ;-)

Here's the latest quiz making the rounds--this one is actually quite fun. Here you go:

Using only books you have read this year (2009), answer these questions. Try not to repeat a book title.

Describe yourself:
Fit at Fifty and Beyond (Ha, I wish!)

How do you feel:
So Many Books, So Little Time

Describe where you currently live:
A City of Bells

If you could go anywhere, where would you go:
The Blue Hills or Uncharted Stars

Your favorite form of transportation:
Crystal Dragon

Your best friend is:
Igraine the Brave or Matilda

You and your friends are:
The Companions or Zombies of the Gene Pool, take your choice!

What’s the weather like:
Fairest

You fear:
A Curse Dark as Gold

What is the best advice you have to give:
I Dare!

Thought for the day:
No More Dead Dogs

How I would like to die:
Over Sea, Under Stone

My soul’s present condition:
Deepest Roots

That's a good one. I'm not sure my reading list has as much potential, but we'll see:

Describe yourself:
Twice Shy

How do you feel:
The Village Spinster

Describe where you currently live:
Rainbows End

If you could go anywhere, where would you go:
Hotel Paradise

Your favorite form of transportation:
MIss Chartley's Guided Tour (a stretch, here)

Your best friend is:
Arabella or Beth or A Woman Named Solitude

You and your friends are:
Bimbos of the Death Sun

What’s the weather like:
Sunshine

You fear:
Crocodile on the Sandbank

What is the best advice you have to give:
Bring Down the Sun or possibly To Kill a Mockingbird

Thought for the day:
They'd Rather Be Right

How I would like to die:
The Dragon Rises

My soul’s present condition:
Spin

ETA correct touchstones

Nice one, Chris.

Got this one from Tad's page:

Back to business:

#96 Fledgling by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller

I nearly committed authoricide when, at the very end of I Dare!, after a very satisfactory conclusion, a brand new character arrives on the scene with a "kind of a problem". In the last paragraphs, literally, of the book! It would have been ruled justifiable homicide, surely.

However, at several years remove, I am glad I didn't carry through because Lee and Miller are now writing the backstory of this character, and that means more Liaden Universe novels!! 2 so far, with at least one more to come, and this is the first to be published. I followed it being written online chapter by chapter, but still was amazed by how smoothly it all flowed in the final product!

Theo is a young teen, growing up on the world of Delgado. The views we get of society on Delgado are fascinating, by the way. Theo runs afoul of social mores as she seeks to gain control over her maturing body, while at the same time she is emotionally off-balance because her mother Kamele has moved out of the only home Theo has ever known and away from her onagrata into the sterile environment of the Wall at the University for political reasons. When a problem crops up at the university that requires off-world travel, Kamele takes Theo with her to keep her safe from the overly intrusive societal mandates on Delgado. On this trip, Theo matures and finds herself, while her mother ferrets out a Department spy, and her father, back on Delgado, seeks to locate the source of an off-world conspiracy that could destroy Delgado as they know it. A worthy addition to the Liaden Universe. There is one scene where an apprentice on the ship on which they travel is apologizing to Kamele that is absolutely priceless!! Definitely recommended! Understanding is deepened if the prior series is read first, but enjoyment should not be affected if it is not.

I got

I took this one awhile ago and got...

So Roni, thanks to your recommendations in fantasy fiction (all of which I've enjoyed):

Okay -- just 74 messages behind, but I enjoyed the last of your other thread -- how'd I miss your stuff ALL SUMMER LONG? Glad to be back.

Glad to have you!

Not been getting a lot of reading done, because I've had reports to write for work, plus class preparation for my college course. But I'm in the middle of The Drunkard's Walk and Into the Beautiful North.

The Drunkard's Walk Into the Beautiful North should be the title of a book. Or an event we could all join in ;)

#77 luna

If it doesn't cool down here pretty soon I will definitely want to join that event! :-)

# 76 roni

I just bought Drunkard's Walk a couple of months ago. I will be very anxious to read your review. No hurry, though--I can't possibly get to in before November!

#28...

I am currently reading The Wednesday Wars. It is by far one of the best books I've read this year. I see that you also enjoyed it.

Alaskabookworm (Linda) highly recommended it as well!

It is a gem (a bunch of emeralds, diamonds and rubies all together.)

Yes, I enjoyed The Wednesday Wars, it was a great YA read, Linda.

#97 The Drunkard's Walk: How randomness rules our lives by Leonard Mlodinow was recommended by drneutron last month. As a school psychologist, probability and statistics are integral to the interpretation of data that definitely DOES affect the lives of others. This book was an entertaining history and overview of the development of the math underlying both probability and its child statistics, and a cautionary tale as to how we make decisions based on the evidence around us. I agree with Jim; this should be required reading in every statistics course, and I will be strongly recommending it to my school psychology students.

Sounds like Drunkard's Walk should be moved up the TBR pile! I'm putting it on the "short shelf" for reading after October. Thanks for the review.

Thanks for your review of book#97. I'd add it to the list, but it is already there. I'm particularly drawn to the math/probability part of the book.

#98 The Talisman Ring by Georgette Heyer

One of her earlier books, set in the late Georgian era, this book shows Heyer's skill in making characters come alive as well as her sense of humor.

I'm looking forward to having time to reread a Georgette Heyer book, again. She Is succh fun!

I am reading The Wood Wife for Halloween reading and thought of you, realizing I hadn't read your thread in a couple of weeks. Arghhh! I thought I starred ya but you had no stars upon thars and I lost ya. Hunted you down. Glad to be reading your stuff again.

HI Mac

I love the phrase from The Sneeches. It is such a wonderful book!

Hey, Mac, glad to have you back on board!

Yep, I shall be bumping The Drunkard's Walk up my TBR pile too following your comments (also spied it over at drneutron's thread)!

I had just gotten a copy of Ella Enchanted through BookMooch when I read Stasia's review this week, so I read it last night for some light fare after The Drunkard's Walk. It was a quick, light, well-handled, and enjoyable read, a Newbery Honor book.

So that was # 99, and tonight I finished #100.

Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley

Read, of course, because of the comments of LTers. A small book, quite enjoyable and light in tone--I think it appeals to us not only because of the picture of the countryside and its people, but mostly because of the palpable love of books that permeates it. Thanks to all who brought it to my attention!

Congratulations on hitting 100, Roni!!

Good job, Roni! Appropriate choice for #100, I think!

I've heard other people talk about this book before but skipped over it because of the title and cover. You said just enough to pique my interest and put it on my wish list. Thanks! Congrats on getting to 100!

Thanks, all. I'm behind where I was last year, though, and may not make it to 150 again.

So, this is educator advantage week at Borders, 30% off, and here is what I picked up this week.
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
the Knife of Never letting Go
Here, There Be Dragons
The Adoration of Jenna Fox
Graceling
Book 1 of The Edge Chronicles
The Queen of Attolia
The King of Attolia
Foundation by Mercedes Lackey
AND the brand new Septimus Heap book, Syren.

And, except for the Septimus Heap book, all of these are because of recommendations by my fellow LTers. Thanks to you all!

Can I stay home from work next week?

I read The Adoration of Jenna Fox just in the past week or so, also on an LT recommendation, and enjoyed it. I also liked Graceling when I read it (on an LT recommendation again!) last year. Good choices!

I've never been able to get beyond the title of Here, There Be Dragons to consider actually picking up the book, though.

I've got Here, There Be Dragons and Graceling on the tbr pile, and have also read the first of The Edge Chronicles so I thoroughly approve of your haul!!

I'll stay home from work if you do ;)

New books - fun! Now we are all waiting breathlessly for your reviews :)

You have my permission to stay home from work :) Do you think you could call in dead or something?

BTW - I am anxious for the report on Syren. I have read the rest of the series, but my local library does not have that one in yet.

Ah, Stasia, I hope that life has settled down for you! I really missed your weekly posting on my thread between August 25 and September 25, and am happy to see you resume it!!!

I will read Syren soon and give you a report.

I just read Syren, and have just posted my review. I loved it - but there are some new ideas introduced - one of which I was not quite sure about, so will wait to see what others think about it.

#99: I have been surfing through, Roni, be assured, I just have not said anything.

#100: Thanks for the input, sirfurboy.

I'm avoiding reading your thread, Stephen, until I read Syren, but it's just been pushed back by the new Terry Pratchett book, Unseen Academicals. It's the next to last day of Educator Advantage week at Borders, and the first day of release, so I made ANOTHER trip to Borders to pick it up at 30% off, and also just happened to see (and buy) the new Karen Armstrong book, The Case for God. Now I just need to start READING instead of farming and playing on the computer!

Chiming in and giving The Adoration of Jenna Fox ten stars out of ten! I'm anxious to learn of your thoughts and comments regarding this book.

Isn't LT great, we get to learn about such interesting books which leads to more interesting books..which leads to more...more...more.

You really made quite a haul with your 30% off!

And, congratulations on reaching 100!

>102 ronincats: looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Unseen Academicals, Roni! I finished it on Friday night and it's the first Discworld novel I've read in YEARS.

Also can't wait to see what you make of The Knife of Never Letting Go. And, in fact, The Adoration of Jenna Fox, which similarly I keep hearing a LOT about, and am interested to gather a range of opinions on.

ETA: completely forgot to say that I originally posted with the intention of adding my congratulations on your 100! But then got distracted by Pratchett...

>102 ronincats:: I'm saving Unseen Academicals for that first weekend when the bitter cold strikes. I'll light a fire, curl up with it and tell my kids to leave dad alone!

AAiii, you have much more self-control than I do, Tad!!! I'm about 2/3 of the way through it.

#101 Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett

OMG! I don't want to gush. The first two books Pratchett wrote set in Discworld were parodies of the fantasy genre. Very shallow in most ways, although entertaining. His writing gets more and more dense as it goes along, giving us characters we grow to love. Vimes, Rincewind, and Death each have only a cameo role in this book, but we see a lot more of Vetinari and Ridcully and Ponder Stibbons, and we have 4 new characters to get to know and appreciate. Also some plot red herrings set up to distract us from the main plot. And it all folds in upon itself, and culminates, or does it, in the end. I'll never read LOTR with the same mindset again, ever...

#107

Damn you. I was resisting till then. You are a curse, I tell you.

>108 lunacat:
Ah, but at the rate I've been reading lately, not nearly the curse that Stasia and ilk are!

>104 FlossieT:
Flossie, I have to hear what you thought of it. Here's a discussion thread
here

I am not a curse! lol

#107 oooh, a much more enthusiastic review! ;)

#102 The Grey King* by Susan Cooper

A re-read for the Dark is Rising series group read. This is the 4th book in the series. I have trouble approaching it always because there is some true tragedy in the story that I find painful, but it is another beautifully written book. The descriptions of the Welsh countryside by themselves are well worth it, and the story is compelling.

#112: I agree and cannot wait for the next one!

#107 I love this! :)

I just bought my copy of Unseen Academicals yesterday, but I haven't had a chance to start reading it yet. Lucky for me I have some extra free time this weekend set aside Just For It :)

#103 Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea

I stalled out in the middle of this, not so much due to the story itself, although it was where they were stuck in Tijuana, but due to other pressures on my time. Then it became due at the library, so I picked it up again and finished it. There were many parts of this I really enjoyed, especially the episodes taking place here in San Diego, where the neighborhoods were so familiar to me. The characters are well-drawn, and many of the incidental characters are still drawn in enough detail to "hook" you into the story. For me, the last part of the book seems almost too hurried. Even though I enjoyed the drive from San Diego to the midwest over a route I have traveled many times, it seemed to happen very quickly relative to the rest of the book, and the ending seemed almost anticlimactic. But I did enjoy it and recommend it.

#116: I have that one sitting in my house somewhere to read. Hopefully, I will find it one of these days!

Stasia

During the holiday break in December - January, I really need to get my books in order. This obession is out of control. There are books everywhere. I think I have 30 from the library. And, I want to read them all, but can only keep them for three weeks. Oh my!

#118: I refuse to discuss the state of my books - it is beyond ridiculous! And library books - I have out at present 71, so I know exactly how you feel about wanting to read them all!

My TBRs have moved beyond the piles on the back of the couch in my office, under the book shelves, have overflowed the tower space in my computer desk, and now have filled a complete box in addition. Film at 11.
Where do I go now?

Ceiling?

>119 alcottacre:: You need a "drive-thru" kind of library, Stasia! I can't imagine hauling that many books back and forth from the library.

#122: I did not check them all out at the same time, so at least my back has not broken under the strain :)

#104 Syren by Angie Sage

I've spent too much time on the computer and not enough reading lately. (Those farms and the cafe can eat up your TIME!!) But after a slow start, I finished Syren in a rush on Friday. It started slowly because the book follows directly upon the conclusion of Queste, and since I hadn't reread Queste in preparation and it had been a year since it came out, so it took me several chapters to pick up all the various plot threads and characters.

But once I did, it was another thoroughly enjoyable adventure. This continues to be a very original children's fantasy series, with interesting characters. It's almost like a cross between Lemony Snicket (the villains) and Harry Potter (the protagonists), without in any way being derivative of either.

#120 I spent some time recently packing away into a closet 12 beer boxes of books from my TBR shelves that I haven't gotten to in the last few years. I also took them off my LibraryThing's To Read collection and removed the TBR tag. Now I am down to "only" 397 TBR books. On a positive note, all books are now on shelves instead of piles and baskets and I feel a lot more organized. Now, if I could read a book a day and didn't buy any books in a year, I could finish them in 13 months. However, not buy more books? Not happening!

I'll have to move The Adoration of Jenna Fox onto my TBR list. I have it in my HS Media Center and can check it out. I am not a Pratchett fan largely because I just don't get British humor. I'm giving Unseen Academicals a pass.

I will have to say that I love the Liaden books and reread them frequently. They were among the first books I bought for my Kindle so that I could carrry the whole bunch with me. Baen books has the ebooks for very reasonable prices. The others I bought immediately for my Kindle were the Miles Vorkosigan books by Lois McMaster Bujold.

I'm currently reading Flesh and Fire after overdosing on YAs recently.

#124 - I really enjoyed the first book Magyk but haven't read the others so it's good to know that the series is continuing well. I'll eventually get round to reading them.

>124 ronincats: oh dear, there you go: "cross between Lemony Snicket and Harry Potter". argh. I bought the first 3 books in the series for the kids because they looked like fun (and because the eldest had loved Araminta Spook) and now I'm going to have to read them. Bother.

Kathy, if I got a Kindle, I would immediately load it with Liaden books, Bujold's books, and P. C. Hodgell's Kencyriath books for my frequent rereads. Any time I am stuck, one of those books will get me going again.

Kerry, I thought the third book was a bit weak, but these last two are quite good again, so you will have to just belly up to the bar and read the whole series!!

Rachael, it won't be a terrible ordeal. ;-) Besides, it's GOOD to know what your children are reading.

#124: I am glad to know that Syren lives up to the rest of the series. Now if only my local library would get a copy!

#127 me too. the "cross between lemony snicket and harry potter" bit, not the kids bit ;)

>128 ronincats: TOO TRUE.... just had massive wake-up call on this front re eldest child's reading and need to pull my socks up a looooong way.

Well, Kittybee inspired me to pick up Foundation - Mercedes Lackey from the unfinished pile this weekend--I was already a third of the way through it when I set it aside for another book a couple of weeks ago. And as always with her books, it was a quick read. It was interesting to see the beginnings of the Collegium schools per se, but after a while, basically retelling the same story (abused youngster becomes a Herald and has a significant role to play in saving society as we know it) begins to pall. And Lackey has forgotten how to tell a story in one book, if she ever knew how. Still, a light and mostly enjoyable read. Although for the same basic storyline, I still prefer her first Valdemar trilogy, starting with Arrows of the Queen.

I have never read anything by Mercedes Lackey, Roni. Is there anything of hers that you especially recommend?

My problem with Lackey was that, after the first Valdemar trilogy, they started to blur into an indistiguishable mass. They all felt like "been here, done that" so I stopped reading them. Maybe I need to retry them, I don't know.

I like a lot of Lackey's work but it does tend to get a little repititious in theme. I agree that the first Valdemar trilogy starting with Arrows of the Queen is best. It is a good place to start reading her. I keep looking for the book that should come after Foundation. I should check her website to see what is happening there. I see her newest book is an Arthurian fantasy.

#106 Silver on the Tree - Susan Cooper

This re-read is for our group discussion starting Sunday, the last of the 5-book The Dark is Rising series. I took it very slowly, just a chapter or two a night, to savor it the better. I love the climax, but as with LOTR, the aftermath leaves me wistful. Real life does that a lot.

Tad, I agree that the Valdemar books eventually became "an indistinguishable mass". I really enjoyed the first trilogy and I also enjoyed the Vows and Honor series (Oathbound, Oathbreakers, Oathblood). I never really liked the Bardic books. Her Elemental Masters books are just fair. I did like her early Diana Tregarde books. Her retelling of the Beauty and the Beast story in early San Francisco is one I enjoy a lot, and it is a singleton--I'd think you would enjoy The Fire Rose, Stasia.

#137: Thanks, Roni. I will look for that one.

I agree that Lackey's first Arrows of the Queen Valdemar trilogy is the best. I also love the Vanyel trilogy (Magic's Pawn, Magic's Price, Magic's Promise), which were the first fantasy books I read with a gay hero. By the Sword is another favorite and Kerowyn is one of my favorite fantasy heroines of all time.

I also second The Fire Rose by Lackey. However, I tried the later books in the Elemental Masters series but didn't like them at all, as Lackey re-vamped her world building and how the 'element magic' worked and I didn't think it was as interesting.

#107 Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones

This has to be a re-read--the book has been on my bookshelf for at least 10 years, probably longer, but I didn't remember the story at all. There are so many interpretations of the Tam Lin ballad out there--Tam Lin - Susan Cooper, Tam Lin - Pamela Dean, The Perilous Gard - Elizabeth Marie Pope, Winter Rose - Patricia McKillip, Blood and Iron - Elizabeth Bear--and those are just the ones in my library.

DWJ has placed the story in a modern setting and woven a mystery through it. Over three-fourths of the book is flashbacks as the Hero struggles to recapture her memories and figure out what is going on in time to take critical action. The characterizations are masterful and well-developed, especially within Polly's family. While this will be neither my favorite Tam Lin story (Pope has that) nor my favorite DWJ, it was very enjoyable and I'm glad to have spent the time reading it.

Will look out for The Perilous Gard then! I love the Tam Lin story. And Fire and Hemlock.

Drat! Don't you hate it when this happens? I picked up a copy of Divine by Mistake by P.C. Cast at Borders, just to see what it was all about, since it has become quite a series and the premise seemed entertaining. I got about two chapters into it and realized I had already read it, some time in the dim past. Obviously I had not kept it--after a good start it devolved into pretty stock fare. And I was going to return it, but there is the tiniest of little tears along the bottom cover--evidently one of the kittens had his claws out as he clambered up onto the table. Drat!

Rachael, Elizabeth Marie Pope wrote just two books. One is The Perilous Gard, which is a Tam Lin book set in the Elizabethan era, and the other, The Sherwood Ring, is a fantasy set in the American Revolution. The first book was written in the mid-70s and the second in the mid-50s. She died in 1992. It is to our everlasting regret that she wrote no more.

Fire and Hemlock and The Perilous Gard--- two of my favorite books of all time!!!

According to LT I have a copy of The Perilous Guard in one of my numerous boxes of books so will have to have a hunt for it.
I keep getting the Diana Wynne Jone's titles mixed up - I know I've read both Hexwood and Fire and Hemlock but can't recall details of either book so it's obviously time for a reread and then I should catch up on some of her more recent work which I still haven't got round to reading.

Just tried to add The Perilous Guard to my wishlist, only to discover it's already there... Right, Bookmooch...

Actually, I just ordered The Perilous Gard from Amazon. I know I read it but I don't have a copy. I also don't remember much of it. It must have been in one of my school libraries. I loved The Sherwood Ring and have a copy of that one. I haven't read it for years but is has never been part of a shelf purge. I still have memories of how much I enjoyed that one. Both are definitely worthy of being sought out and read.

Another two book author that I really miss is Ann Fairbairn. To the best of my knowledge, she only wrote two books -- Five Smooth Stones and That Man Cartright. The first is about the civil rights movement in the American South and the second is about the Chicano fight for unionization in California. I love the characters in That Man Cartright and read the book at least once a year.

#108 A Wizard in Mind by Christopher Stasheff

When The Warlock in Spite of Himself came out in 1969, I loved it. It mixed science fiction with paranormal, had great human characters, and I loved the world-building and the off-beat sense of humor. Stasheff went on to write a whole series on this premise, but never quite lived up to the first book in my mind. I haven't read him in quite a while, and thought I'd start with this book, the first in a related series featuring the original protagonist's son.

Magnus is striking out on his own, unwilling to work for S.C.E.N.T. as his father has for so long, yet with his own sense of mission and responsibility. He finds a planet that looks like a good match, and runs into some difficulties along the way. The book switches from his viewpoint at the beginning to that of a local young man, as events unfold. While there certainly was action, and the goals are similar to the original books, either the premise is getting old, OR, 40 years later, I'm just not the same reader who enjoyed these so much. I'm guessing the latter. They are a great adventure series for teens and twenties, but I would only recommend the first book to the rest of you--and I DO still recommend The Warlock in Spite of Himself.

>149 ronincats:: Like you, I didn't enjoy any of the sequels...and I tried some of the Magnus books...as much as the original. I wondered if I had just changed but I went back and re-read The Wizard in Spite of Himself a few years ago and still enjoyed it. I wouldn't exactly call him a One Hit Wonder but there's a little of that going on, I think.

I was disappointed this last week. I had suggested The Adoration of Jenna Fox for a small reading group that has been meeting virtually monthly for about 10 years, focus on women and speculative fiction. I really enjoyed the book, and thought, great, this will be a great discussion! And half the group (2) who are children's librarians, first comments out of their mouths were they had forgotten how didactic YA fiction was. Bummer!

#109 The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
I enjoyed it. I liked the flow, the interspersal of poetry and other emotive text, and even if certain elements were presented pretty overtly, I didn't think they overwhelmed the story.

>151 ronincats: I bet you could get a group together here for a discussion of The Adoration of Jenna Fox. What were the particular didactic elements that the children's librarians objected to? I thought there was still a lot of room for conflicting viewpoints about what the right approach should be.

I have not yet read The Adoration of Jenna Fox but am now more anxious than ever to get to it. Now if only my local library would get a copy!

I very nearly couldn't find my own thread! I can't believe I haven't posted for nearly a full month! And even less that I have finished only one book in that time. What can I say--it has been a busy time. But school is out for three weeks, the college course I taught this semester, the gifts to family have all been wrapped and mailed, and all I have left is Christmas cards and cleaning house. And reading, lots of reading hopefully.

The book I just finished is an ER book, one I requested because I had it in mind for a good friend.

#110 Singing God's Work: The Inspirational Music, People and Stories of the Harlem Gospel Choir by Allen Bailey with Penelope Holt.

This is an interesting book. Allen Bailey has had an amazing life. His recount of his life from a tenement in Harlem to his current age of around 70 and over 20 years as the director of the Harlem Gospel Choir cannot be mistaken as great literature but has interest just because of the variety of work he has done and the panoply of notable persons with whom his life has come into contact. Bailey's voice is straightforward and pragmatic. He recounts both highly emotional events and everyday happenings with much the same tone. Part of this is due to the episodic structure of the chapters, moving from present to past and back to present. We do not get much introspection or a wide view (there is a chapter on his experiences with racism as a black man with a white wife, yet no nod to what his wife, deeply immersed in managing the Harlem Gospel Choir around the world, might have experienced, and not a single picture of her in the photos of Allen and the choir with many famous people. Yet his pride in his accomplishments and his greater drive to promote his choir and accomplish their charitable purposes shine through. Recommended to any who have an interest in this group, gospel or soul music, or Harlem as a venue for music in the last half century.

Chiming in on the discussions regarding The Adoration of Jenna Fox to say that it is one of my top five books of 2009. I think it is marvelous!

#111-114 Finally got to squeeze in a little Christmas reading, A Regency Christmas I, II, III and IX. The earliest books are the strongest, with the latter stories getting more and more fantastical and even ridiculous. Still, a light holiday read.

Okay, here's my year-end summary.

First of all, I fell about 40 books short of last year's total, finishing the year with 114 books. Blame Facebook and Farmville and Farm Town and Cafe World and their ilk!!

69 New reads
45 Re-reads

103 fiction
10 nonfiction
1 poetry

38 speculative fiction (science fiction and fantasy)
37 children's and YA books, many of which are also SF
17 regency romances
2 humor
1 mystery
6 general fiction

Okay, I'm off by two there, but not OCD enough to go back and find the discrepancy--close enuf!!

Best new reads: Unseen Academicals, The Graveyard Book, and The Companions.

Best re-reads: The Dark is Rising series

Happy New Year, everyone! It's finally time to go over to the 2010 thread and start reading.

Happy New Year, Roni! Love the summary.

Great summary, Roni. I'm going to borrow your idea of separating Poetry from nonfiction. It makes much more sense to do that.

Happy New Year!

haha, when I tried to do stats for my year's reading I could never make it add up right either - I just gave up. But your 09 reading looks like a lot of fun. Happy New Year!

A great year in reading, Roni! Not only did we manage to finish the same number of books, but you really added a ton to my wishlist, too. I can't wait to see what you read in 2010!

P.S.- I loved The Adoration of Jenna Fox, as well, and didn't find it didactic in the least.