tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670156983298641252024-03-13T10:46:13.110-07:00Cerulean Paper"I was working on a proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back in again." Oscar Wildecerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.comBlogger85125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-9388106853655736132012-05-11T23:24:00.000-07:002012-05-11T23:24:46.739-07:00November & December 2011100. Important Artifacts and Personal Property from the Collection of Lenore Doolan and Harold Morris. Including Books, Street Fashion, And Jewelry. Saturday, 14 February 2009, New York by Leanne Shapton<br />
This is amazing! The story of a whole relationship from meeting to break-up told in objects. Excellent experimental fiction.<br />
<br />
101. Black Bird. Vol 8<br />
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102. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs<br />
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103. Comfort Me With Apples: More Adventures at the Table by Ruth Reichl<br />
Great writing, memoir with food. Excellent.<br />
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104. The Orphan Tales: In the Night Garden by Cathrynne Valente<br />
Valente is amazing. This is a novel in the Arabian Night's style. Each piece is exquisite unto itself, I didn't even care when I sometimes lost the overall plot arch.<br />
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105. The Secret History by Donna Tartt<br />
Very well written, a delightfully sinister novel set in a hyper exclusive college...<br />
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106. Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl<br />
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107. Brusel: Cities of the Fantastic by Schuiten & Peeters<br />
Picked up for the fantastic art, plot was a bit odd...art was <i>really</i> amazing.<br />
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108. Habibi by Craig Thompson<br />
Graphic Novel Genius in action, beautiful, tragic, ultimately inspiring.<br />
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109. Yotsuba&! Vol 10.<br />
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110. The Fire Rose by Mercedes Lackey (re)<br />
Held up really well in re-reading. Beasty & the Beast with way more magic set... and fun historical details.cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-57432408918572015152012-05-11T22:55:00.000-07:002012-05-11T22:55:12.214-07:00October 2011 Readings86. Discover of Witches by Deborah Harkness<br />
I was into the academic side but I'm more than over the supernatural romances. Cliff-hanger ending, & probably won't bother with the sequel.<br />
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87. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen<br />
Loving Sarah Addison Allen, read-like-Alice Hoffman.<br />
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88. Secret Lives of Dress by Erin McKean<br />
Fun, chicklit, but not silly enough to make me feel bad for having put time into it. Imagine a vintage dress shop with a file of short stories, one for each dress. Wouldn't that be worth trying to preserve? :)<br />
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89. Yotsuba&! Vol. 7 by Kiyohiko Azuma<br />
Seriously love this manga.<br />
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90. The Commoner by John Burnham Schwartz<br />
Fictional autobiography of the commoner who became the queen of japan after meeting the crown prince at a tennis match.<br />
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91. Yotsuba&! Vol. 8<br />
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92. Yotsuba&! Vol. 9<br />
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93. Amphigorey: Fifteen books by Edward Gorey<br />
I should make a point to read Gorey at least every October.<br />
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94. Always a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough<br />
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95. The City & the City by Chine Mieville<br />
Excellent! A mystery between two city that aren't quite in the same reality! Amazing, particularly for city/culture junkies.<br />
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96. Bread Alone by Judith Ryan Hendricks<br />
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97. Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol<br />
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98. Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Fredrik Peeters<br />
One of the best memoirs or graphic novels I've read. Recommend to Craig Thompson fans. What if the love of your life was HIV positive?<br />
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99. The Clockwork Girl by O'Reilly & Hanva<br />
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<br />cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-83569009135736269112011-10-05T19:25:00.000-07:002011-11-19T14:51:53.304-08:00September Reading<b>81. Gullstruck Island by Frances Hardinge</b> (also published under the title "<b>Lost Conspiracy</b>")<br />
Written for children I suppose, but that's never stopped me. Great World & Culture building. Also about a girl always livign in her sister's shadow stepping up to save the day.)<br />
More on the awesome world building: The Lost are psychics who have the ability to leave their bodies and check on goings-on far away from their physical selves. (When they are young they can have trouble finding their way back into their bodies hence "Lost.") The tribe these psychics occur in is native to an island with three (or more?) volcanoes of various levels of activity. The island has been colonized by generations by a civilization bogged down in formality & protocol with very little practical knowledge of how the tribe, the Lost, or the volcanoes really operate, but they depend heavily on the Lost for settlement to settlement communication. So what happens when there are no Lost, or maybe only one?<br />
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<b>82. Stuff Hipsters Hate by Ehrich & Barty</b><br />
...I might be a hipster. This was a great lesson for me in taking myself less seriously. Also revealed many interesting insights on the hipster male, of which the dishing-on was primarily laid.<br />
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<b>83. Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (audiobooked)</b><br />
A mystery for bibliophiles. What lengths would a person go to for their favorite author whose books are being quietly, secretly being collected an destroyed? Full of wonderfully turned quotes about life, love & the power of a good book.<br />
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<b>84. The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen</b> (audiobooked)<br />
Another amazing & eventually sweet little novel. She has a running theme of not fitting-in in small town settings, but different every time. Also as always, mostly realistic but with just a smidge of magic.<br />
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<b>85. Castle Waiting. Vol 2. by Linda Medley</b><br />
The adventures of the motley crew at more about the castle itself which really is acting almost as a character it is so active. While this is appropriate for children there are some jokes hidden for older readers without getting scandalous. If you liked Princess Bride this will be up your alley!cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-67321871964219342422011-09-19T19:28:00.000-07:002011-09-19T19:28:26.024-07:00August Reading<b>71. Fables. Vol 15: Rose Red</b><br />
Fables has sort of lost momentum for me, but I'm not giving up on it yet. In their favor someone did apparently hear me cussing about Rose Red turning into Sleeping Beauty...<br />
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<b>72. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen</b><br />
Another frothy tale from Sara Addison Allen, sweet and a bit chick lit. but with so very much heart. Also addresses how living in a small town can make it hard to grow out of your former selves.<br />
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<b>73. The Sweetness a the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley</b> (re)<br />
Re-read this to help out at a book group. I thought being a mystery I might not enjoy the re-read as much as the first reading, but it held up very well. & Flavia the 11-year-old, poison obsessed sleuth is still absolutely fabulous. (Although YA appropriate, don't count this book out post-YA-ers.)<br />
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<b>74. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel</b><br />
Historical fiction biography of Thomas Cromwell. Mostly my reading on Henry VIII's court has been decidedly queen-centric, this was an interesting shift in point of view.<br />
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<b>75. The Stories of Ibis by Hiroshi Yamamoto </b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">For me this was very sci-fi, I tend more toward fantasy. Set in the future when humans are nomadic tribes & the dominate civilization is that of robots. But this is so much more than a human vs. robots plot; this was some of the most thought-provoking futuristic fiction I've read in a few years. The short stories told within the plot line of the novel were extremely well-crafted in their own right, any one of them was outstanding on it's own, but they built on each other... I was impressed by the portrayal of how cultures are informed through their stories, possibly one of the best examples of this I've read. (So good I made my library buy it just so I could Staff Pick it.)</span><br />
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<b>76. Beastly by Alex Flinn</b><br />
Audio-booked. Sweet, YA rewrite of Beauty & the Beast. I did try to read it first but got bogged down in the open scene in a chat room with way too much webspeak for my poor little brain to handle, luckily this does not carry on for the majority of the book. Mostly I picked this up because of all the nice teens who are reading it...<br />
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<b>77. The Virgin Project by Kevin Boze & Stasia Kato</b> (now Stasia Burrington)<br />
I picked this up because I came across the art of <a href="http://stasiab.wordpress.com/gallery-3/">Stasia Burrington</a> (& the lady herself) at <a href="http://www.firstthursdayseattle.com/">Seattle Art Walk </a>in <a href="http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/Planning/CityDesign/What_We_Do/Outreach/Folio/DPDS_007487.asp">Occidental Park</a> a few months ago. I have since become a raving fan of her illustration. Raving. (& she has an <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/stasiab">Etsy shop</a>.)<br />
....And this was an interesting project. Admittedly the art was less amazing than I had expected, but it is much earlier work & there are crumbs of the charm & heart that she has so greatly developed now. The stories are amazing, strange, tragic, wonderful and so many other things. I highly recommend it.<br />
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<b>78. The Virgin Project 2 by Kevin Boze & Stasia Kato</b><br />
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<b>79. Tokyo on Foot: Travels in the City's Most Colorful Neighborhoods by Florent Chavouet</b><br />
This was a bright, fun little travel journal. It is exactly a beautiful sketch book of a guy in Tokyo. If you will be disappointed by a lack of plot arc this is not for you, but if you like little details & noticing them & the kind of people that do notice them, than it is.<br />
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<b>80. A Very Long Engagement by Sebastien Japrisot (re)</b><br />
I realized I did not remember this well enough to reference in conversation & was shamed. It held up extremely well to re-reading. If there is a great long list somewhere amazing war novels then this should be on it, because of what has to say about the pettiness of humans and the astounding lengths we go for love.<br />
<br />cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-29730271333766012052011-08-20T12:59:00.000-07:002011-08-20T12:59:42.309-07:00July Readings<strong>55. Palimpsest by Catherynne M. V<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">alente</span></strong><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 14px;"> S</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 14px;">ucked my heart out with amazing writing style & imagery, I had to make sure she'd written more so I could chill on rationing pages to make it last... but is difficult to recommend generally.... I think it would be particularly enjoyed by people who are really into urban spaces on a philosophical level if they can manage not to be offended a shared dream STD. you've been warned....</span></span><br />
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<strong>56. Nathaniel Fludd Beastologist: Book One- Flight of the Phoenix by R.L. LaFevers </strong><br />
Cute little fantasy orphan coming-of-age novel for the elementary set particularly for fans of James & the Giant Peach, but less demanding than Dahl generally is. I'd be interested to see how this series develops.<br />
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<strong>57. Your Pinkie is More Powerful T<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">han Your Thumb :And 333 Other Surprising Facts That Will Make You Wealthier, Healthier and Smarter Than Everyone Else by Mark DiVincenzo </span></strong><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Delightful collection of recent science trivia.</span><br />
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</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>58. Library Wars 1: Love & War by Kiiro Yumi </strong></span><br />
General<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> concept: the </span>government<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> has taken up heavy censorship that can only be stopped by an active military force within the library system, excellent. On the other hand this is </span>definitely<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sh%C5%8Djo_manga" style="font-family: inherit;">shojo</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">, in content & labeled as such. There is an </span>awful<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> lot of the main character bemoaning a mystery crush and a teacher who seems harsh. I might read the next volume...</span><br />
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</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>59. Black Bird 6 by Kanoko Sakurakoji</strong> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The romance between a special human girl & the leader of a demon clan continues. Jealousy is a major theme in this volume, again handled on a very shojo level.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>60. Black Bird 7 by Kanoko Sakurakoji </strong></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>61. Mouse Guard, Winter 1152 by David Peterson </strong></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">A great little graphic novel, perfect for Redwall fans.</span><br />
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<strong>62. Castle Waiting by Linda Medley </strong><br />
A great graphic novel. I think this was a cataloged as juvenile, but it isn't too light for adult reading. This would be good for fans of the Princess Bride, and for fans of the Fables series though much lighter in tone. Also this is a graphic novel that is weights in as a 472 page hardcover so there is none of that volume-over-before-it's-gained-momentum issue that less lengthy comics are prone to. It did take me well into the first chapter to be sold on this and then I was hooked. Very much looking forward to the next installment.<br />
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<strong>63. Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin </strong><br />
This book broke my heart. High-functioning, preteen boy in the Autism spectrum, getting through the days... read it.<br />
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<strong>64.Ship Breaker by Paulo Bacigalupi </strong><br />
Action adventure, good as an audiobook. Lowly peasant saves snotty princess who gets less snotty, in a future where all the resources we have are the trash we dropped at the bottom of the oceans when we didn't need it. An interesting vision of where our global choices will put individuals in years to come, lots of great hard-boiled characters.<br />
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<strong>65. Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen </strong><br />
Audiobooked. I picked this up because it was recommended to me by someone very dear. I probably wouldn't have picked it up otherwise as the form is a little bit "Chick-Lit," but sometimes that can be exactly the right thing. These are not extraordinary lives, but they are women with tough stuff in their souls, and that reminds me of the tough stuff in my soul & of she who recommended it. That is what makes this worth reading. Might be good for fans of Alice Hoffman, lighter magical element, less dire generally.<br />
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<strong>66. Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal </strong><br />
Jane Austen fans rejoice! Now with Magic! The temptation to go out and buy this for my seven favorite Austen fans after the first ten pages was high. (Saved only by being so ill I could barely convince myself to stand up...)<br />
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<strong>67. Wither (The Chemical Garden Trilogy) by Lauren DeStefano</strong><br />
I'm a sucker for dystopian futures. Humanity thought it could wipe out all diseases associated with old age & did but in the next generation all the girls die at twenty, all the boys at twenty-five. Social order rewrite. Polygamous social politics... Would recommend to fans of <u>Matched</u> by Ally Condie.<br />
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<strong>68. Ooku: The Inner Chambers, vol. 5. by Fumi Yoshinaga </strong><br />
The alter-history of Japan continues...<br />
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<strong>69. BoneShaker by Kate Milford</strong><br />
A great juv. novel set in 1914 Mid-West. Tomboy girl. Machinery, automatons. Sketchy traveling sales folk. Magic. It was wonderful!<br />
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<strong>70. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente</strong><br />
Fans of Alice in Wonderland take note! This is one of the best fairy tales I've read in an awfully long time. I think it would be great for a child but it also has metaphor and life lessons that will appeal to adults of the right persuasion. I rationed myself on this book to make it last as long as it could. cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-28155159640121142172011-07-10T21:35:00.000-07:002011-07-10T21:35:21.137-07:00June readings50. How to Kill a Rock Star by Tiffanie DeBartolo (Another great modern love story by DeBartolo, God-Shaped Hole...Dream for An Insomniac... these are not romance novels in a genre sense, these are romantic in a gut-wrenching, gambling with your soul sense. It feels way more accurate to me.)<br />
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51. The Girl in the Flammable Skirt: Stories by Aimee Bender (Bender blows my mind. These stories are nothing like real life, they are so far beyond reality, past reality, twists of reality. Amazing, bend your mind, stretch it.)<br />
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52. The Bed of Procrustes: Philosophical & Practical Aphorisms by Nassim Nicholas Taleb (Some great quotables in this, not all agreeable but much to provoke thought & some laughter.)<br />
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53. Oh No She Didn't: The Top 100 Style Mistakes Women Make And How to Avoid Them by Clinton Kelly (Not high literature by any means, but a bit funny if you're in the mood for the very lightest of reading with a sprinkle of snark.)<br />
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54. Death: a User's Guide by Tom Hickman ( A<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 14px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 14px;">fun survey of death culture in many nations and throughout history. The writing was humorous without being discourteous to any particular view. It was a book that didn't care how long I took a break from it, worked on it off and on without any loss of enjoyment or educational value.)</span></span>cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-12306661933000024382011-07-07T07:48:00.000-07:002011-07-10T21:35:56.242-07:00May Readings<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">46. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (re)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">47. Love Comes First: Poems by Erica Jong </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">48. A Rare and Curious Gift by Pauline Holstock (This was another case of maybe I should have just let it go half way through. In trying to take pictures of a whole Renaissance art community attention got spread so thin I started merging similar old-guy painter characters. On the other hand she was pretty amazing at showing how very, very differently an action can be interpreted depending on which character is viewing it, the extreme tint our own point of view puts on the story we believe we're living in. This could be described as a tragic clash of points of view. I wish she'd just stuck to the names of the artists she was basing it on, or at least put the historical note at the beginning...I spent way too much time trying to figure out if she was referring to who I thought she was. She was.)<br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">49. The Girl Who Played with Fire (re)</div>cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-56979847006072004292011-07-07T07:37:00.000-07:002011-07-07T07:37:32.862-07:00April readings43. The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C. W. Gortner (Quite good. Historical fiction lovers take note. A nice "bad guy" side of the story; I bet you'll feel for her by the end.)<br />
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44. Best New Poets 2008: 50 Poems From Emerging Writers. edited by Mark Strand. (Came up in a search for Mark Strand, just enough good one to make me wade through the dross.)<br />
<br />
45. Green by Jay Lake (About half way through this I felt like the author got more interested in world-culture building than in his characters. By half way I wanted to know exactly how big an emotional time bomb, & how deadly a ninja, the main character would turn out to be. Maybe he felt a sudden need to really sell it as sci-fi fantasy rather than a novel set in an alternate history of the world... really enjoyed the first half, might have let it go if I'd had a long-awaited hold in.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-75760054383208406822011-06-19T19:10:00.000-07:002011-06-19T19:10:31.280-07:00March Reading (so late, I know)23. A Red Herring Without Mustard: A Flavia de Luce Novel by Alan Bradley<br />
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24. Emma, Vol. 8 (These have sort of lost momentum for me. I had to get Volume 6 through ILL, and the waiting sort of got me out of the story. Also at this point the author is following Emma's supporting characters, and I just don't care about them nearly as much, but I like a certain amount of comic book reading in my life, so...)<br />
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25. Emma, Vol. 9<br />
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26. Fried Butter: A Food Memoir by Abe Opincar (There is a sensuality to the style of writers who relate strongly to food that I really get into, this was a great example of that. See also Reckless Appetites: a Culinary Romance by Jacqueline Deval & Crescent by Diana Abu-Jaber.)<br />
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27. So, Now You Know... : A Compendium of Completely Useless Information by Harry Bright & Harlan Briscoe (Exactly what it sounds like, a nice, humorous, light read.)<br />
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28. Paris in Mind, edited by Jennifer Lee (Been reading this off & on for over a year. Reading about Paris is good for a particular kind of melancholy, but causes another when overdosed.)<br />
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29. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan (Another wonderful collaboration between this two favorite YA authors. Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist also not to be missed, but avoid the film at all costs. *shudder*)<br />
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30. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia &Margaret Stohl (Did this as an audiobook. Having a the guy's point of view in a romance with a paranormal was interesting. I'm pretty much burned out on the YA paranormal romances, probably wouldn't have finished this if it hadn't been an audiobook.)<br />
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31. This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson (I've been working on this off and on for a couple months. Great cure for a crisis of faith cause by bureaucracy.)<br />
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32. Other People's Rejection Letters, edited by Bill Shapiro (At first I was amused by this book, but by the end it just was horribly depressing.)<br />
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33. Fables 14: Witches (I almost didn't get this. The previous volume relied varily on a character I hate, and was just plain tedious, but Fable seems to be back on track and it's nice to seem some of the characters who have been at war for so long finally com into some small happinesses. I am however still considering this series on probation.)<br />
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34. Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier (Interesting merge of vampire mythos & the Twelve Dancing Princes, with a strong dose of Transylvanian historical novel, good cure for the common YA paranormal romance.)<br />
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35. Love is a Four-Legged Word by Kandy Shepard (Not proud of this. This novel took -10 off my street cred as a reader, but if you want to read something that takes no effort whatsoever...)<br />
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36. And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman (I love this lady, this is a personal journal with illustrations with meditations on the historical figures in early U.S. history & whatever else crosses her mind.)<br />
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37. We Could Almost Eat Outside: An Appreciation of Life's Small Pleasures by Phillippe Delerm (A pleasant collection of musing a small, nice daily things.)<br />
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38. Our Paris; Sketches from Memory by Edmund White & Hubert Sorin (This is like hanging out with your gay best friend bragging about his wonderful life in Paris, don't be jealous, be happy for him. Sweet for his delight in their daily life & a guilty pleasure of being the one dished-to in gossip rather than the one dished-on. For a more literary-minded version of Edmund White's Paris check out The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris.<br />
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39. Frenzy by Francesca Lia Block (I boycotted this for a while because it is sad to see an author I admire as much as I do Francesca Lia Block give in to the YA paranormal romance genre, not once, but twice. This does however bring interesting material to the table, female werewolf protagonist, also racial prejudices, and small-town small-mindedness. While this is by no means Block's best work, or even in her top five, if you aren't familiar with her you won't miss the difference.)<br />
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40. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (This was fun & mischievous read. YA. Kind of made me want to go pull large-scale overly-intellectual pranks.)<br />
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41. Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer, edited by Robert Swartwood (I love this. I wanted to hand it to everyone! It's so wonderfully compact and so interesting and satisfy, I only with their were more books like this. See also the Six Word Memoir books. Excellent!)<br />
<br />
42. Incarceron by Catherine Fisher (Audiobooked. This got be through a lot of commuting. And I can think of teens I would recommend it to. Intriguing world theory, a country that used to have extremely advanced technology gave it up by royal decree, and now lives in a Georgian high-court world of politics & protocal, the ever hanging threat & mystery of a massive inescapable prison that's physical location is a mystery. The characters didn't hold me through the book and I knew it was going to be a cliff-hanger ending long before it arrived which made the end seem needlessly drawn out... but might give the sequel a shot, we'll see...)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-51719380110115788402011-02-09T22:21:00.000-08:002011-03-16T19:48:08.243-07:00February Readings11. Emma. Vol 6. (Kudos to ILL for getting this for me.)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />12. The Vanishing Act of Esme <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">Lennox</span> by Maggie <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">O'Farrell</span> (<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Audiobooked</span>. Not sure if I would have read this but it was a good listen. I liked the shifting point of view between the adult granddaughter & the elderly sisters, one of who has been in a mental institute for 60 years, the other with dementia. I like how she used the later two characters to explore internal coping mechanisms. And I liked the adult grand daughter, maybe not liked exactly, but she made a lot of sense to me, her choices & shifting point of view.)<br /><br /><br /><br />13. 77 Love Sonnets by Garrison Keillor (This is not mushy love poetry, it isn't even all poetry about romantic love, but it is poetry about loving life & living loves, if that makes any sense. I can't think of anyone I wouldn't hand this to if they were at all open to poetry.)<br /><br /><br /><br />14. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick (Another entry to the YA-supernatural-doomed-love genre. the twist is that it fallen angels rather than vampires & the heroine has a a more developed sense of self-preservation than Bella. not bad. only recommending to people who haven't seen past the Twilight glitter entirely yet.)<br /><br />15. Lover's Dictionary: a novel by David <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">Levithan</span> (Genius <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">Levithan</span> strikes again. Nobody else I'm aware of is writing such good prose about what love is, the frothy as well as the gritty. And I'm a sucker for fiction with footnotes or in a encyclopedic format so this is doubly good.)<br /><br />16. Emma Vol. 7 by <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">Karu</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">Mori</span><br /><br />17. They Call Me Naughty Lola:Personal Ads from the London Review of Books. edited by David Rose (I didn't like this quite as much as the sequel, <em>Sexually, I'm More of a Switzerland,</em> but I might just have not been so in the mood for it. It didn't seem so sad before.)<br /><br />18. It all changed in an instant: more Six Word Memoirs by authors Famous & Obscure, edited by Smith Magazine (I love this series!)<br /><br />19. The Strange Affair of the Spring Heeled Jack by Mark <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">Hodder</span> (<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">Steampuck</span> mystery, it this becomes a series I'd check out the next one. The premise was odd, but it is <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-error">steampunk</span> is it pretty much has to be. Burton & Swinburne were hilarious once they got together, I'd have enjoyed it more if that had happened sooner.)<br /><br />20. The Book of Eleven: An Itemized Collection of Brain Lint by Amy <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">Krouse</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-error">Rosenthal</span> (She's had me hooked since <em>Encyclopedia of An Ordinary Life. </em>This wasn't as good as that, but I laughed some.)<br /><br />21. Revolution by Jennifer <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-error">Donnelly</span> (Really, really good! Punk smart <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-error">Brooklynite</span> falls into revolutionary Paris, really great soundtrack if you recognize the songs they mention.)<br /><br />22. How Did You Get This Number: essays by Sloane <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_14" class="blsp-spelling-error">Crosley</span> (Not exactly humor, but not not funny, odd, but good odd. I will read anything she puts her name to, I like the way she thinks.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-44733694064133246572011-02-09T21:56:00.000-08:002011-02-10T20:49:21.238-08:00January Readings1. Sexually, I'm More of a Switzerland: More Personal Ads from the London Review of Books. Edited by David Rose. (Hilarious & sweet. Perfect for when you might feel like the oddest crayon in the box. Will put a hold on the first one. Thanks to J. for handing it to me.)<br /><br /><br /><br />2. House of Dolls by Francesca Lia Block (My favorite <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">rockstar</span> author takes a crack at kids books... It's okay, but it's no Dangerous Angels.)<br /><br /><br /><br />3. All Things Alice by Linda Sunshine (Cute little book of Lewis Carroll quotes with masses of vintage illustrations.)<br /><br /><br /><br />4. Almost French by Sarah <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Turnbull</span> (Memoir. It was interesting to see Paris from the point of view of an outsider trying to make a life there & that kept me in it even though I was not enthralled by her writing style.)<br /><br /><br /><br />5. Dandelion Fire: Book 2 of the 100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson (I really enjoyed 100 Cupboards but in its trilogy I found myself just barely keeping track of the multiple characters roaming <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">separately</span> and by the end I just didn't care anymore. Have not put the third on hold.)<br /><br /><br /><br />6. Matched by Alley <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">Condie</span> (Very cool. Utopia/<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">dystopia</span>/futuristic. What is you lived in a society that found your perfect mate for you? What if it was wrong? Fans of Hunger Games, Brave New World, 1984... anyway, it's great fun. Question authority, read poetry.)<br /><br /><br /><br />7. Walks with Men: fiction by Anne <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">Beattie</span><br /><br /><br /><br />8. The Frozen Thames by <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">Helem</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">Humphreys</span> (A collection of short stories that take place on or around the Thames at various times when it was frozen. Interesting meditation on cold, ice, celebration, life in <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">London</span> over a long period of time in snapshots of lives.)<br /><br /><br /><br />9. Baby, Remember My Name: An Anthology of New Queer Girl Writing. Edited by Michelle Tea. (My favorite was "Homo Marriage <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-error">Redux</span>" by Zoe <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">Whittal</span>. Some fun stuff, some sad stuff, some strange stuff, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">that's</span> how anthologies go.)<br /><br /><br /><br />10. Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-error">Lish</span> McBride (I got through this because I liked the main character, but I'm a little critical of bringing this many kind of magical people into a reality (werewolves, necromancers, witches & more) <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-error">theres</span> a certain point where it just feels like someone pulled out a myth dictionary and started opening it at random & tossing out types. I think there were also parts that were supposed to be funny (idea <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_14" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">propagated</span> by Sherman <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_15" class="blsp-spelling-error">Alexie</span> quote on cover) that just weren't my kind of funny.... Not hating, but it wasn't quite for me.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-70571941610119252372011-02-04T22:34:00.001-08:002011-02-04T22:34:52.728-08:00A good breakfast better include tea <p>A short survey of my breakfast for Plinkyness, the usual, the ideal...</p><br /> <p><strong>tea</strong><br /> Tea is warm & I'm always cold in the morning. It's enough caffeine to get me moving without the overpoweringness of coffee. It's gentle, & mornings seem so harsh.</p> <br /> <p><strong>protein & carb</strong><br /> Usually this is eggs & toast for me, but I greatly prefer having a noodle+tofu dish left over from the night before. Leftover phad thai or #17 from the pho shop is fantastic.</p> <br /> <p><strong>vitamins</strong><br /> I don't really like my little collection of moring pills, often make me gag a little, but the multi, rosemary, cranberry, flax seed oil, & allergy tablet keep my body happier than it is without them. If I don't take them after breakfast it just isn't going to happen. </p> <br /><p style="clear: left; width: 100%; margin: 10px 0; padding: 0;" class="plinky_badge_rid:42759"> <a href="http://www.plinky.com/mini/reroute/42759"> <img src="http://www.plinky.com/proxy/badge?id=42759" style="border: 0; padding-right: 4px; vertical-align: middle;" alt="Powered by Plinky" title="Powered by Plinky" /> </a></p>cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-55973748434037695472011-02-04T22:15:00.001-08:002011-02-04T22:15:21.344-08:00I can't say 'no' to books<p> <img style="border: 0;" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/120/284184160_da1e76b75f.jpg" /> <small style="display:block"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/44124484443@N01/284184160">weekend book binding</a> </small></p><p> I can't not give book recommendations. If someone asks me I have to answer & sometimes I tell people about books when they don't really feel like listening. <br /><br/><br /><br/>I can't say no to greatly discounted dk yarn in blacks and or blues, espcially if machine washable or has any silk content. <br /><br/><br /><br/>...beach glass, sweet & sour "chicken," Heath or Skor bars, salads that include pear & walnuts...<br /><br/><br /><br/>....chai, earl grey, jasmine tea, anything in the antique shop with lace that fits me at all...<br /><br/><br /><br/>....my department manager, anyone crying on the phone, little kids reading books that remind me of anything I read as a kid (I just start jumping through hoops like its my job; it might be my job)...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...dogs-- they want petting & I'm their girl--<br /><br/><br /><br/>...boxes of book donations, even when everything on top looks trashy, & they smell a little heinous, there could be something really cool at the bottom, some Anne Sexton, or T.S. Eliot, or anything!<br /><br/><br /><br/>...wicked old dictionaries with beautiful curly typeface, even if the binding is dead the pages come home to become endpapers & other things...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...papercrafts, cut out constructables or origami, decoupage or bookmarks left by other people in library books...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...blank books of a roughly paperback size with sewn bindings & creamy paper...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...black pens with real ink (not Bics), hard tips, thin unbroken lines...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...very thin tipped paint brushes, neither weak nor too stiff, even though I already own more of these then I'll likely ever use up...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...double sided tape in handheld dispensers & glue in purse-sized quanities...<br /><br/><br /><br/>...shiny blue things...</p><p style="clear: left; width: 100%; margin: 10px 0; padding: 0;" class="plinky_badge_rid:42758"> <a href="http://www.plinky.com/mini/reroute/42758"> <img src="http://www.plinky.com/proxy/badge?id=42758" style="border: 0; padding-right: 4px; vertical-align: middle;" alt="Powered by Plinky" title="Powered by Plinky" /> </a></p>cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-43626925128551507512011-01-22T20:10:00.000-08:002011-01-22T21:52:37.690-08:00Best of 2010 Book ListSo, the great recap of the year. No particular order...<br /><br /><br /><p><a href="http://boutique.lacocotte.net/images/covers/0767928881.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 341px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://boutique.lacocotte.net/images/covers/0767928881.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious--and Perplexing -- City by David Lebovitz (This was a fun little foodie's biography as a Paris transplant. Great for getting great gritty daily city details & the otherness of being a cultural transplant.)</p><p><br /></p><a href="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1421527472.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1421527472.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Ooku: The Inner Chambers. by Fumi Yoshinaga.(series. manga. fantastic alter-history. Good enough that I got her entire early series, Antique Bakery, through ILL. Looking forward to anything she does in the future.)<br /><br /><a href="http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/1892391457.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 326px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/1892391457.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Portable Childhoods: Stories by Ellen Klages (Wonderful fantasy short stories of a similar vein as Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things, only found because Gaiman did the introduction. She should be better known.)<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.aureliesheehan.com/images/Anxietyjpeg-210-exp.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 210px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 334px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.aureliesheehan.com/images/Anxietyjpeg-210-exp.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The Anxiety of Everyday Objects by Aurelie Sheehan (Wonderfully written. The adventures of whimsical dreamer in an office job. You can relate? Excellent.)<br /><br /><a href="http://static.letsbuyit.com/filer/images/uk/products/original/210/25/the-broken-teaglass-21025784.jpeg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 347px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://static.letsbuyit.com/filer/images/uk/products/original/210/25/the-broken-teaglass-21025784.jpeg" /></a><br /><br />The Broken Teaglass by Emily Arsenault (A fun little mystery in a dictionary office. A treat for etymology geeks. Found by using that Amazon Recommends thing at the bottom of the page for Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie.)<br /><br /><a href="http://kpl.lib.mo.us/content_uploads/sweetness-at-the-bottom-of-the-pie.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 332px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://kpl.lib.mo.us/content_uploads/sweetness-at-the-bottom-of-the-pie.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie: a Flavia De Luce Mystery by Alan Bradley (Flavia has definately joined Witch Baby & Lisbeth Salander on my list of Fictional Rolemodels. She may be eleven but she's a chemistry genius with a knack for poisons, oh but she's the good guy/gal. I don't read a ton of mysteries but I can imagine resisting any bit of snooping Flavia might let me tag along for. Waiting for the third Flavia book in Feb 2011.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.starkinsider.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/the_girl_with_the_dragon_tattoo-large.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 335px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.starkinsider.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/the_girl_with_the_dragon_tattoo-large.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br />The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larrson (The original title in Swedish translates to "Men Who Hate Women," and although fitting in many ways I would probably not have read this if that had been the title in english. I love this book and the main female character even if she is only sparsely characterized early in the book. She was instantly added to my fictional rolemodels. Not for the faint of heart; well worth the time.)<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51cYvfpa4SL.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 326px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51cYvfpa4SL.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger (This is a picture book look graphic novel. Very different style graphicly from Three Incestous Sisters and the Adventuress, and not as thematically difficult as the former & Her Fearful Symmetry. This is a the perfect bedtime story for bibliophiles in general, bibliophiles who work in libraries in particular.)<br /><br /><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41c%2BLy7urTL._SL500_AA300_.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41c%2BLy7urTL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The Magicians by Lev Grossman (If Harry Potter were written for adults then it would be The Magicians. Excellent, also the mechanism of the magic system were way more likely than in the Potter-verse. Followed this up with Grossman's Codex, same main character for all purposes so is prbably standing in for Grossman himself, but I kind of like him so I didn't mind. Feel free to hit Codex instead if you'd rather paly with old books than magic.)<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://wordswithoutborders.org/images/uploads/A_Novel_Bookstore_1.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 160px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 252px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://wordswithoutborders.org/images/uploads/A_Novel_Bookstore_1.jpg" /></a><br /><br />A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse' (I love this book! I made pages of notes on things to read, and there's some really lovely quotes on the importance of good books. It's a book about books, a mystery, a love story. Little bit of a slow start but well worth it. Sort of want to mail this to almost everyone I know.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-29490274512620208182011-01-06T19:52:00.000-08:002011-01-22T20:18:49.801-08:00Dec. 2010168. I am neurotic (and so are you) by Lianne Kong (Fans of PostSecret check this out.)<br /><br />169. Emma 1 by Kaori Mori (Manga in 1800's England. Brainy maid meets gentleman, love & caste conflict.)<br />170. Emma 2<br />171. Emma 3<br /><br />172. Scott Pilgrim's Fines Hour (Vol. 6) by Bryan O'Malley (I'm so done with this series.)<br /><br />173. Eisenstaedt on Eisenstaedt (Photos & his notes. Amazing.)<br /><br />174.Emma 4<br /><br />175. A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse' (I love this book! I made pages of notes on things to read, and there's some really lovely quotes on the importance of good books. It's a book about books, a mystery, a love story. Little bit of a slow start but well worth it.)<br /><br />176. Emma 5<br /><br />177. Flight, Vol 4.<br /><br />178. The Manual of Detection by Jedediah Berry (If you liked the Thursday Next novels this will be right up your alley. Mystery novel with carnivals and in-dreaming scenes.)<br /><br />179. The Blind Contessa's New Machine by Carey Wallace (Quite good. Wasn''t sure where it was going, but I liked it.)<br /><br />180. Time Stops for No Mouse by Michael Hoeye (Audiobooked. A fun little adventure with mouse characters. Delightful.)<br /><br />181. The Gospel According to Coco Chanel: Life Lessons from the World Most Elegant Woman by Karen Karbo (Sort of Coco Chanel biography crossed with a self-help book. Great fun.)<br /><br />182. 100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson. (Excellent world-in-the-wall fantasy without feeling like a Narnia rehash. Looking forward to the rest of the trilogy.)<br /><br />183. Some Girls: My Life in a Harem by Jilliam Lauren (Writing style was so-so but I stuck with it for the content.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-87170189527044853782011-01-06T18:41:00.000-08:002011-01-22T20:19:19.268-08:00Nov. 2010157. Space: Japanese Design Solutions of Compact Living by Michael Freeman<br /><br />158. Possession by A. S. Byatt (re) (Audiobooked. A.S. Byatt is amazing, and the writing styles of the writer characters are excellently crafted, also really great depiction of the Joy of Research.)<br /><br />159. The Magicians by Lev Grossman (If Harry Potter were written for adults then it would be The Magicians. Excellent, also the mechanism of the magic system were way more likely than in the Potter-verse.)<br /><br />160. Something Missing: a novel by Mathew Dick (Excellent first novel. Told by a burgler who burgles the same people for years & never gets caught, find out how. Wonderful character building, recommending to anyone who will listen.)<br /><br />161. Koko Be Good by Jen Wang (Loved the art style, but confused by Koko, but I think I was supposed to be...)<br /><br />162. Once A Witch by Carolyn MacCullough (Pretty good YA novel with a cute play on inheriting magic & feeling like a sub-par member of your family or community, interesting theory of magic object mechanics. Will likely read the sequel.)<br /><br />163. A Man Without A Country by Kurt Vonnegut (Read this, it's good for you, but you'll like it too.)<br /><br />164. Muse & Reverie: A Newford Collection by Charles de Lint. (Three cheers for Newford Collections! No one does fantasy like De Lint.)<br /><br />165. Avatars, Book One: So This Is How It Ends by Tui T. Sutherland (Started as a great post-apocalyptic teen novel, but the end got silly and by the time it was over I didn't even care that it had a cliff-hanger ending & the library doesn't have the sequel.)<br /><br />166. Codex: a novel by Lev Grossman (Another exploration of the Joy of Research, also video game & rare books. Pretty much the same main character at <em>The Magicians</em>, but I like him okay so I'm alright with it. I will be watching out for Grossman's books in the future.)<br /><br />167. How Proust Can Change Your Life by Alain de Botton (Not an easy read but I do love Proust quotes, also trying for some self-improvement, not sure it worked.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-67492609757015815842011-01-06T17:26:00.000-08:002011-01-22T20:19:43.328-08:00Oct. 2010140. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger (This is a picture book look graphic novel. Very different style graphicly from <em>Three Incestous Sisters</em> and the <em>Adventuress, </em>and not as thematically difficult as the former &<em> Her Fearful Symmetry</em>. This is a the perfect bedtime story for bibliophiles in general, bibliophiles who work in libraries in particular.)<br /><br />141. The Octonauts & the Only Lonely Monster by <a href="http://meomi.com/">Meomi</a><br /><br />142. The Octonauts & the Sea of Shade by <a href="http://meomi.com/">Meomi</a><br /><br />143. The Octonauts & the Great Ghost Reef by <a href="http://meomi.com/">Meomi</a><br /><br />(<a href="http://meomi.com/">Meomi</a> is a delightful art company. I (heart) them, they make me smile.)<br /><br />144. Four Word Self Help: Simple Wisdom for Complex Lives by <a href="http://www.37days.typepad.com/">Patti Digh </a>(Given more shelf space in my life I would definately want to own this book. Beautiful art & very good for the soul.)<br /><br />145. You are one-third daffodil and other facts to amaze, amuse, and astound. compiled by Tom Nuttal (This is was delightful, great for a couple days with a short attention-span.)<br /><br />146. Ooku: The Inner Chambers, Vol. 4. by Fumi Yoshinaga (Still loving this series.)<br /><br />147. Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan (This was actually quite sweet--but no toothache--& had some great quotable lines. Save yourself from the movie, don't see it before or after, or ever.)<br /><br />148. The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel by Diana Gabaldon & Hoang Nguyen. (I keep thinking I'm done giving Gabaldon chances, but I did really enjoy the first few Outlander books. Really this is <em>Outlander</em> minus any classiness I may have internally-imposed on it.)<br /><br />149. At Home in Japan: A Foreign Woman's Journey of Discovery by Rebecca Otawa (Because this was the travelogue of someone who wasn't just a traveler but actually transplanted for life. Way more detailed than any similar book about living in Japan, also rural which is a whole other world from city-dewelling or non-modern, most of my previous reading have been one or the other.)<br /><br />150. The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender (Who else could sell a story concept of being able to taste the emotions of the person who prepared your food = awesome. See also <em>Willful Creatures: stories</em>.)<br /><br />151. How They Met And Other Stories by David Levithan (Very sweet, but not a toothache.)<br /><br />152. You Know Where to Find Me by Rachel Cohn (Great YA novel about the effects of a suicide on those left behind, also interesting sidenotes of the politics of Washington D.C. as a stateless state, and I feel for the main character. Well done.)<br /><br />153. The Character of Rain by Amelie Nothomb (re) (Insert love letter to Amelie Nothomb here.)<br /><br />154. Loving Sabotage by Amelie Nothomb (re) (Insert love letter to Amelie Nothomb here.)<br /><br />155. Japanese Style by Sarah Lonsdale (Little pop culture overview.)<br /><br />156. The Life of Hunger by Amelie Nothomb (re) (Insert love letter to Amelie Nothomb here.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-37190225433485076422011-01-06T17:14:00.000-08:002011-01-22T20:20:09.020-08:00Sept. 2010 (cont.)136. Antique Bakery Vol. 4.<br /><br />137. Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman. (I love this book! Took pages of notes on things to read. Will probably definately re-read.)<br /><br />138. The Physic Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (Audiobooked. I wasn't expecting this to be all that good, and while not something I'll recommend for years to come, it does do a great job of portraying the Joy of Reseach, at least as well as <em>People of the Book</em>.)<br /><br />139. Kushiel's Dart (re). (I seem to be good to reread this about yearly, but I probably wouldn't have at this point if I hadn't just rebound a discarded paperback of it. Pretty successful rebinding if I do say so myself.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-11559726644086893622010-10-05T19:42:00.001-07:002011-01-22T20:20:37.352-08:00What I Miss About Childhood<p><img style="BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; BORDER-RIGHT: 0px" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4060/4291413264_a73a24c387.jpg" /> <small style="DISPLAY: block"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/16230215@N08/4291413264">Time Flies</a> </small></p><p>The thing I miss about childhood was having hours and hours of time where I wasn't accountable to anyone. I was a latchkey kid who had three or four hours of unsupervised time at home every afternoon before either of my parents got home. I used to read a whole book in a day, and do projects that took up the floor in a whole room. I didn't notice time passing until the room would suddenly grow dark as the sun fell. I miss the books and the pojects. I miss knowing that nothing would interupt what I was doing and how deeply I was doing it, whatever it was. The art project or the world in the book would be my whole world. And that was happiness.<br /><br /><br /><br />As an adult I don't make up for it very well, I have consolations, but they are consolations, make no mistakes. Days out by myself, stolen moments reading in locked bathrooms. I try to schedual time for projects but they aren't priorities, not compared with people I care about, a job I believe in. And because I can't turn away the things I give priorty there is little time for the little projects and stories to really saturate my soul. </p><p style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 10px 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; WIDTH: 100%; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; CLEAR: left; PADDING-TOP: 0px" class="plinky_badge_rid:34932"><a href="http://www.plinky.com/mini/reroute/34932"><img style="BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-TOP: 0px; BORDER-RIGHT: 0px" title="Powered by Plinky" alt="Powered by Plinky" src="http://www.plinky.com/proxy/badge?id=34932" /> </a></p>cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-769911887516813122010-09-18T12:23:00.001-07:002010-09-18T12:23:54.653-07:00Saturday question: worst injury received& inflicted?cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-41731172235102337322010-09-15T19:27:00.000-07:002010-09-15T20:50:54.031-07:0088. Ooku: the Inner Chanbers. vol. 2. by Fumi Yoshinaga<br /><br />89. Ooku: the Inner Chambers. Vol 3. by Fumi Yoshinaga<br /><br />90. Dreaming of Dior by Charlotta Smith, ill. by Grant Cowan (A bunch of nice little stories matched with amazing illlustrations of the dresses the women of the stories wore.)<br /><br />91. Spendor by Anna Godberson<br /><br />92. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell<br /><br />93. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larrson (The original title in Swedish translates to "Men Who Hate Women," and although fitting in many ways I would probably not have read this if that had been the title in english. I love this book and the main female character even if she is only sparsely characterized early in the book. She was instantly added to my fictional rolemodels. Not for the faint of heart; well worth the time.)<br /><br />94. By The Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead by Julie Ann Peters<br /><br />95. Scott Pilgrim (vol 5.) vs. The Universe by Bryan Lee O'Malley<br /><br />96. The Good Body by Eve Ensler<br /><br />97. Angelography by Danielle Trussoni<br /><br />98. Chobits. 1. by Clamp<br /><br />99. Britten & Bulightly: a graphic novel by Hannah Berry<br /><br />100. French Milk by Lucy Knisley (a fun sketchbook travel journal of paris. full of all those little details that make a reality.)<br /><br />101. The Meaning of Herbs: Myth, Language & Lore by Gretchen Scoble & Ann Field<br /><br />102. Chobits. 2. by Clamp<br /><br />103. Chobits 3 by Clamp<br /><br />104. Design Your Life: The Pleasures & Perils of Everyday Things by Ellen & Julia Lupton (recommended by JB. A series of fun little essays about the every day things that generally go unnoticed because of how common they are. instills a lingering tendancy to thing about why things like toasters and bras look the way they do. wonderful.)<br /><br />105. Show Me How: 500 Things You SHould Know: Instructions for life from the everday to the exotic by Derek Fagerstrom, Lauren Smith & the Show Me team. (A wonderful full-color manual on a wonderful array of things. well worth a thourough browse.)<br /><br />106. Antique Bakery 1. by Fumi Yoshinaga (an earlier comic by the creater of Ooku. the antic of three guys running a french bakery in Japan. romance hijinks between gay & straight characters, the mysteries of personal histories. not as well thought out as Ooku but not inteded to be.)<br /><br />107. The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha (a delightful list of things that will make you smile no matter what mood you were in when you opened it.)<br /><br />108. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larrson<br /><br />109. This is Water: Some Thoughts Delivered on a Signifigant Occasion About Living a Compassionate Life by David Foster Wallace (The speech everyone should get at soem point, or many points, in their life.)<br /><br />110. Heroes: Saving Charlie: The Untold Story of Hiro & Charlie by Aury Wallington<br /><br />111. the Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson<br /><br />112. The Arrival by Shaun Tan (re) (Easily & by miles my favorite book about the immegrant experience. no preaching, no whining, just honest & compassion inducing. Apropriate for a human of any age, readign level or lack there of, no words.)<br /><br />113. Chobits 4 by Clamp<br /><br />114. Chobits 5 by Clamp<br /><br />115. Chobits 6 by Clamp<br /><br />116. M is for Magic by Neil Gaiman. (a little disappointing because so many of the stories have appeared in other collections, nothing against the stories themselves. Neil is always a Magician of the highest order.)<br /><br />117. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie: a Flavia De Luce Mystery by Alan Bradley (Flavia has definately joined Witch Baby & Lisbeth Salander on my list of Fictional Rolemodels. She may be eleven but she's a chemistry genius with a knack for poisons, oh but she's the good guy/gal. I don't read a ton of mysteries but I can imagine resisting any bit of snooping Flavia might let me tag along for.)<br /><br />118. The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag: a Flavia De Luce Mystery by Alan Bradley (No more Flavia until February 2011, very sad.)<br /><br />119. Lulu Meets God & Doubts Him: A Novel by Danielle Ganeck (The title is the title of painting that is the lust-point for most of the characters in this book. not a bad book, but I probably wouldn't have finished it if I hadn't been missing New York at the moment & mourning the wait for Flavia, Lisbeth & manga.)<br /><br />120. The Broken Teaglass by Emily Arsenault (A fun little mystery in a dictionary office. A treat for etymology geeks. Found by using that Amazon Recommends thing at the bottom of the page for Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie.)<br /><br />121. Chobits 8 by Clamp<br /><br />122. The New Yorker Book of Literary Cartoons<br /><br />123. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (the third in the Hunger Games trilogy. go read them if you have not. thanks to AR for the recommendation.)<br /><br />124. Alice in the Country of Hearts. 1. by Soumei Hoshino & Quinrose. (not wonderful, haven't looked to see if there is or will be a sequel, so I guess I don't care. getting kind of tired of people trying to re-write Carroll's mythos, I liked it the way it was.)<br /><br />125. Skim by Mariko Tamaki & Jilliam Tamaki (graphic novel, first love, the first time you don't tell your best friend the whole truth, being different. very well done.)<br /><br />126. Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons (re) (still hilarous.)<br /><br />127. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (re) (I still love this book, its language and its characters so much... it's very tempting to carry it about like a talisman as I used to with Dangerous Angels.)<br /><br />128. Time's Magpie: A Walk in Prague by Myla Goldberg (a nice little travelogue, keen details from an authoress who seems to be interested in the same kind of little details of culture & curiousity that I would have been. a nice littel respite from the daily.)<br /><br />129. Black Bird 1 by Kanoko Sakurakoji (a girl who can see demons finds out that her first love was a demon & that now that she is sixteen she is the most desired bride of every demon ever. very ramntic drama with a bit of magic. silly fun escapism.)<br /><br />130. Black Bird 2<br /><br />131. Black Bird 3<br /><br />132. Black Bird 4<br /><br />133. Black Bird 5<br /><br />134. Antique Bakery 2<br /><br />135. Antique Bakery 3 (Long term mystery building. I'll read something that isn't a comic again soon, really.)cerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-79387934614665391822010-09-12T19:18:00.001-07:002010-09-12T19:18:18.761-07:00Testingcerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-68743395145110156512010-06-27T19:20:00.000-07:002010-06-29T18:31:51.575-07:00the great catching up...47. Tongue by Kyuang Ran Jo (An excellently written tale of food, sorrow & revenge.)<br /><br />48. Twitter Wit<br /><br />49. Enchanted Dreams by Nancy Madore<br /><br />50. Red Carpet Rose by Pat Brady<br /><br />51. Garden of the Perverse edited by Sage Vivant & M. Christian<br /><br />52. Illustration Now edited by Julius Wiedeman<br /><br />53. Paris Changing: Revisiting Eugene Ateget's Paris by Christopher Rauschenberg<br /><br />54. Philip Marlowe's Guide to Life by Raymond Chandler (Words of wisdom from the master of the tough call.)<br /><br />55. Steamed: a Steampunk Romance by Katie MacAlister (Kept expecting it to get better, silly me.)<br /><br />56. Best American Erotica 2005<br /><br />57. The Proof of the Honey by Salwa Al Neimi (A study of Middle Eastern feelings towards the erotic from an insider.)<br /><br />58. Mr. Darcy's Diary by Amanda Grange (A nice Pride & Prejudice novel from Darcy's side, carefully kept to original tones & word choice.)<br /><br />59. A Touch of Deadly by Charlaine Harris (Brain-junk fun)<br /><br />60. Rose is Rose: Right on the Lips by Pat Brady<br /><br />61. Best American Erotica 2004<br /><br />62. Love Poems by Nikki Giovanni<br /><br />63. Fables 13: the Great Fables Crossover (the most disappointing volume in the otherwise fantastic Fables series)<br /><br />64. The World According to Twitter by David Pogue & his 500,000 Followers<br /><br />65. The Anxiety of Everyday Objects by Aurelie Sheehan (Wonderfully written. The adventures of whimsical dreamer in an office job. Excellent.)<br /><br />66. Best American Erotica 2008<br /><br /><br />67. Autobiography of a Geisha by Sayo Masuda<br /><br /><br />68. Yellow Dog by Charles de Lint<br /><br /><br />69. Portable Childhoods: Stories by Ellen Klages (Wonderful fantasy short stories of a similar vein as Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things.)<br /><br />70. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder (Pretty good fantasy. Death sentence traded for a food tasting job, interesting scenario, but the main character wasn't enticing enough to get me through the sequel.)<br /><br /><br />71. The Bad Girl's Guide to Getting What You Want by Cameron Tuttle<br /><br />72. The Wild Things by Dave Eggars (Pretty close to the movie, very emotionally dense.)<br /><br /><br />73. Instructions by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Charles Vess (Everything you need to know about how to live is in fairy tales, instruction manual by extract. Excellent.)<br /><br />74. Blueberry Girl by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Charles Vess<br /><br /><br />75. The Year of Yes by Maria Dahvana Headley<br /><br /><br />76. Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan<br /><br /><br />77. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher (Why would a teen girl commit suicide? What drives us to the bottom? What would you do if you got there? Excellent, not an upper. Strong argument for the importance of all actions, no matter how small a decision might appear to be.)<br /><br />78. Demo by Brian Wood & Becky Cloonan (graphic novel) (A bunch of awesome short stories about extraordinary people.)<br /><br /><br />79. Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn<br /><br />80. Shrimp by Rachel Cohn (sequel to Gingerbread)<br /><br />81. Cupcake by Rachel Cohn (finishing the trilogy)<br /><br />82. Luxe by Anna Godbersen (1899 NYC. betrothals, scandals, secrets...first in quartet.)<br /><br />83. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer (Not as good as the main Twilight books, it exists for the obsessed, more so than I. Luckily short.)<br /><br />84. Herotica 5<br /><br />85. Ooku: The Inner Chambers. Vol. 1. by Fumi Yoshinaga. (Alterna-history. What if a disease killed off 75% of teen males in ancient Japan & kept doing so for centuries? How would it change culture, state infrastructure & interpersonal relationships? Excellent adult manga.)<br /><br />86. Rumors by Anne Godbersen (The Luxe quartet continues.)<br /><br />87. Envy by Anne Godbersencerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-8612174226756432272010-04-05T16:23:00.000-07:002010-06-27T19:19:43.913-07:00a lot of reading can happen when you're out sick (nothing too strenuous though)37. Rose is Rose: 15th Anniversary Collection by Pat Brady<br /><br /><br /><br />38. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />39. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />40. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />41. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />42. The Big Bento Boy of Unuseless Japanese Inventions by Kenji Kawakami<br /><br /><br /><br />43. Nightmares & Fairy Tales: Once Upon a Time... by Serena Valentino & FSc (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />44. Tokyo: a certain style, text & photos by Kyoichoi Tsuzuki<br /><br /><br /><br />45. Nightmares & Fairy Tales: Beautiful Beasts by Serena Valentino & FSc (re)<br /><br /><br /><br />46. Rose is Rose: Running on Alter Ego by Pat Bradycerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-267015698329864125.post-45015432486679934282010-03-23T16:14:00.000-07:002011-01-22T20:21:55.868-08:0030. The Teahouse Fire by Ellis Avery (This was a very engaging autobiography-style portrait of Japan as it was opening to the west, of the evolution of <em>gaijin</em> [foreigner] from the differences in cultural etiquette, and how a traditional art form updated itself to remain relevant in changing times.)<br /><br />31. A Year in Japan by Kate J. Williamson (A delightful volume of wonderfully executed watercolors and observations.)<br /><br />32. Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto (Two novella, engaging & sparse writing style.)<br /><br />33. Stitches: a memoir by David Small (Tragic, moving, inspiring. The terror of a childhood made of secrets.)<br /><br />34. The Floating World by Cynthia Gralla (Toyko's entertainment world in the '90s with amazing descriptions of the power of dance and feeling admired, heart-wrenching narration of anorexia.)<br /><br />35. Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne (re) (As good as it was in elementary school, probably better. "Whole Story" edition was an added entertainment.)<br /><br />36. High-Spirited Rose is Rose by Pat Bradycerulean paperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06388735826803997831noreply@blogger.com1