tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983963784315481072024-03-12T22:40:41.854-04:00dorkTASTIC!A compendium of all things dork.Rabbithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00053464563559713235noreply@blogger.comBlogger191125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-502333570190994192013-12-08T21:54:00.001-05:002013-12-09T00:30:32.497-05:00Trying to reach 52 booksTry as I might, it doesn't look like I'll make it to 52 books this year. I will continue from where I left off:<br />
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35. <i>Foundation - </i>Isaac Asimov (282 Pages) <b>B- </b>(September 1-13)<br />
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This was a book club selection. <b>Foundation</b> is the first book in a series that Isaac Asimov wrote for decades. The concept is incredible and I loved the first half of this book. In the future there is an empire and a super smart "psycho-historian" has used his knowledge of human psychology to predict the end of this empire. He uses his status to get a bunch of scientists and peers to be transferred off the capital planet to the far reaches of the universe in order to position themselves to survive the downfall of this empire. The next chapter takes place a few hundred years later and the downfall has happened and this group of intellectuals are on the outskirts, but as was predicted a war is brewing, but since this small community contains the smartest people in the galaxy they are able to use their smarts to show how valuable they are to all of the warring parties. <br />
From here the book lost me. Asimov uses a series of improbably "coincidences" that show this group of scientists predict almost to the day when conflicts would arise that would put their community at risk and he always had a way for them to thrive because of the threat. All in all, the book had great promise, but it did not leave me open to reading the next chapter in the series since this one book became redundant quickly that I couldn't imagine he had much else to say. But with all of these faults, this book did lead itself to one of the better book club discussions of the year.<br />
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36. <i>The Shining - </i> Stephen King (658 Pages) <b>B </b>(September 14- September 25)<br />
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This was a very heavy Stephen King year for me. But with the sequel to The Shining coming out at the end of September, I wanted to re-read the original horror classic. There's not much to write about here. Most people know the movie and the book is very similar (no matter how much King feels they are different). This was the first time I had this book since 1995 so it was almost like reading it for the first time. It was a very fast read for such a long book. I found the King telegraphed a lot of what was to come too early in the book. Maybe the audience of 1977 needed more padding to the shocking events that eventually took place in Jack's possession/downfall, but it felt like he was warning the reader for 400 pages that something bad was going to happen and then there were 250 pages of some bad stuff, but even that was kind of tame by today's standards. (Read Joe Hill's NOS4A2 if you want to read some truly disturbing parent/child destruction). <br />
The final page had a very poignant paragraph about grief that I look hope to remember whenever I am in a situation where I am grieving for someone and I will recommend it to anyone. It could help put things into perspective.<br />
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37. <i>Doctor Sleep - </i>Stephen King (531 Pages) <b>B </b>(September 26-October 9)<br />
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This is a difficult book to review. It picks up right where the original ended and we follow Danny Torrence through childhood into adulthood in the first 50 pages where he makes many of the same mistakes as his father and succumbs to alcoholism as well until we witness his "rock-bottom moment". From there he attempts to pick up the pieces of his life and moves to a small town in Vermont where he joins AA, gets a day job and then the book becomes its own.<br />
The book is very well written including the trials and tribulations one goes through as an alcoholic and going through the 12 steps. As always, King excels at writing children and the character of Abra is one of the best he's ever written. Her relationship with her parents as well as Danny is just perfect and I loved almost everything about her (except for the forced reveal about her heritage).<br />
I almost wish this wasn't a sequel to a popular classic because a) King doesn't need the money and b) the parts that he tried to "sequelize" feel forced. Most especially with the location of the climactic finale as well as a cheesy reveal near the end. And my biggest criticism lies in the villain(s) in this book. A story really is only as good as its villains and these villains are simply not very scary or threatening. Maybe I expect better from the self-proclaimed "Master Storyteller", but the True Knot felt like they could be defeated by almost anyone and that shouldn't be the case. <br />
This book still gets a positive recommendation for the simple fact that while reading it I was so into the book one day that I actually missed 2 subway stops on my way home and had to backtrack from near the end of the F Line. If a book can draw you in to the point that you don't only miss your stop by another one after that, I must have enjoyed it.<br />
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38. <i>What the Family Needed - </i>Steven Amsterdam (272 Pages) <b>D+ </b>(October 10-October 15)<br />
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I really didn't enjoy this book. The premise was following a particular family throughout their entire life. One member of the family apparently had the ability to grant each member of the family a super power for a period of time. It begins with him as a 5 year old and he asks his cousin if she would rather be able to fly or be invisible. She responds invisible and then wakes up with the ability to become so if she wants to. This leads to her sneaking away and catching her father as a drunk and in an affair. The next chapter skips ahead until they are all older and her brother has the ability to fly. He can't get a job and thinks about revealing this power for financial gain. The chapter ends with him showing his wife. He jumps out the window to her horror and it ends so you are unsure if he fell to his death or actually can fly.<br />
This was the problem I had with the book. I'm pretty sure all of the "powers" these family members had were actually metaphors for how they were able to deal with their situations around them and not actual "super powers", but it was such a lazy premise and wasn't written in a satisfying way that I wanted to just stop reading the book. In the end I finished it, but could never really get into the voice of the characters.<br />
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39. <i>A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - </i>Betty Smith (493 Pages) <b>A- </b>(October 16- October 29)<br />
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A book like this is why I joined a book club in the first place. This is a Classic American Novel that I would never have read in another situation. I had no idea what it was about but just didn't care. This was assigned by my friend Ed and I just fell in love with it from page one. The struggles of this low-income family in the early 20th century Brooklyn was beautiful, endearing and touching. Frances Nolan is a wonderful narrator who painted her corner of Brooklyn perfectly. I can now understand what it must have been like living in New York City in that time period. Doing anything for some money to make ends meet just so your family has the possibility of bettering themselves is something that rings true today. I simply loved everything about this book. My only criticism is it was a little long and could have been edited down a bit. But on the other end, I was sad when it ended. Such a sweet story, with great characters that will be with me forever. My mother also told me the movie is great so I look forward to watching that some day.<br />
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40. <i>Invisible Cities - </i>Italo Calvino (165 pages) <b>C </b>(October 30- November 1)<br />
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This is the second Calvino book I've read. His books aren't stories so much as they are exercises in writing technique. This has chapter after chapter describing fictional (?) cities all over the world. It is interspersed with Marco Polo talking with Kublai Khan. Are all of these cities places Marco Polo has visited and he is telling Khan about them? Are these even real places or is Polo pulling a 1001 Nights to tell of the most amazing city day in and day out so Khan doesn't kill him? How can these cities talk about modern inventions like electricity and light bulbs/televisions if Polo is describing them? Are they all just one city that keeps getting described in different ways? <br />
This is a little too artistic for me. Although I appreciate books being well written, I prefer them to have an entertaining story that makes me think. How will the character get out of this situation? Books about relationships to people that I can relate to myself. <br />
One funny story about this is when I checked it out from the library the guy behind the counter told me it's his "favorite book". So if you ever want to talk to the hipster librarian dude on 23rd and 7th, just bring up this book and he may have more insightful things to say than yours truly.<br />
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41. <i>Falling Man </i>- Don Delilo (265 Pages) <b>C </b>(November 5- November 6)<br />
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I feel bad giving a "bad review" to a book about a difficult subject, but I was mostly bored by this. It's obviously a personal story about the writer trying to deal with the 9/11 tragedy, but I could not get into this book too much. It may be Delillo's writing just isn't for me since I attempted his tome "Underworld" earlier this year and stopped reading 150 pages in because I just didn't care and couldn't imagine reading 600 more pages of something like that. <br />
I tried this one because I have interest in 9/11 due to being a New Yorker and actually being in Tower 1 when the first plane hit so these stories do interest me. But the fallout that these people went through just didn't resonate with me. I can understand how a traumatic situation can have personal repercussions, but this book just didn't do it for me. <br />
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42. <i>Drive </i> - James Sallis (176 Pages) <b>D </b>(November 7-November 11)<br />
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I saw the movie with Ryan Gossling and enjoyed it then saw this book in the library. It is a pure noir novel with an unnamed narrator and him going through life as a driver for films while making money on the side as get away driver for criminals. The movie actually fleshed out some of the stories better than the book. The novel kept everything very distant like the narrator himself. It was very heavy-handed and didn't provide the reader with a flow to the story. I barely understood what was going on and if I hadn't seen the movie I would've been completely confused.<br />
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43. <i>John Dies at the End - </i>David Wong (466 Pages) <b>D+ </b>(November 12- November 24)<br />
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This book has great reviews but I'm not really sure why. It is a horror/comedy in the vein of Shaun of the Dead. The story revolves around two loser friends that take a strange drug called Say Sauce. The drug basically gives them access to an alternate dimension and allows them to read minds and just know all sorts of things. But that alternate dimension may be hell breaking into our world. It is very long and confusing and written like the author has the worst case of ADD ever. <br />
The imagination behind the story is great, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired. From my research after reading the book, it seems the author used to write for Cracked.com and I guess that makes sense. The humor is there but it reads like a first book with little to no future for the author. I could never fully get into the book and found myself feeling forced to finish it. <br />
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44. <i>I Wear the Black Hat - </i>Chuck Klosterman (200 Pages) <b>B+ </b>(November 25-November 27)<br />
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I was getting tired of Klosterman's style of essays about pop culture, but this one at least had a theme. He wrote about villains in the world. Everyone from OJ Simpson to Bernie Goetz. He wrote about if Batman was real and how he would be perceived by the media and society. <br />
I also feel like since we are similar in age, we have many of the same view points. He had a chapter about how when he was younger he adamantly hated certain celebrities and rock bands, but now that he is older he just doesn't have the energy anymore to hate (a point of view that I've noticed about myself lately). He writes how he used to actively HATE the band <i>The Eagles. </i>But now that he's older, he realizes they are just a group of people that figured out how to make a living playing music. As consumers, we really shouldn't hate or love any of these people, but we all put these celebrities in these categories of "we like them or hate them" without ever knowing them. <br />
Klosterman writes intelligently about these media villains and he didn't use too many of his writing "tricks" that get on my nerves of talking about things that are "Important" or how they "Matter" too much. He often falls back on these lazy categories without really ever explaining what makes someone like Andrew Dice Clay "Matter". If you ever read one of his books, this previous paragraph will make more sense to someone that has never read a Klosterman book. But in the end, this was a fun book about things that actually interest me no matter how much none of them actually "Matter".<br />
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45. <i>Floating City - </i>Sudhir Venkatesh (278 Pages) <b>B+</b> (November 30-December 5)<br />
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Our latest Book Club selection that I look forward to the discussion we will have soon. This is a non-fiction book about a Columbia University sociology professor that is interested in the "underground economy" of New York City. From 1997-2007 he befriended criminals (mostly drug dealers and prostitutes) to see how the community exists. He found out there are many blurred lines between the upper class and lower class. <br />
Because many of the characters in this book had regular "day jobs" while at night they were drug runners, prostitutes or pimps it made me look at everyone I passed in the city in a different light. How many of the women dressed up in regular clothes going to work on the subway may have been paid for last night's "Date" they went on? How many of the bartenders in I've gotten drinks from have a deal with the women in the corner booth to send over prospective clients? <br />
Like with many of these "non-fiction" books, I have a hard time believing it all. He claims everything he wrote was true, but I was literally living in the East Village while these stories were happening around me and I find it surprising that there was a huge latina prostitution ring trying to break into the young, rich, "white world". It is definitely a book worth reading, but the question remains how specialized was his sample set of data? If what Venkatesh says is true, then it seems at least one friend of mine has slept with a potential employer in order to get a job. I find this hard to believe, but I guess anything is possible. <br />
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-50403716517397060182013-09-01T10:42:00.000-04:002013-09-01T21:46:34.363-04:00Catching up on all of my books27. <i>The Ocean at the End of the Lane </i>- Neil Gaiman (181 Pages) - <b>B- </b>(July 4-July 9)<br />
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I love Neil Gaiman, but this newest book of his fell flat for me. The book is more of a myth/fable than anything else and it reminded me a lot of his older novel, <i>Coraline.</i><br />
The biggest problem for me in this book is that I didn't quite understand the villain in the story. I didn't quite know her motivation.<br />
But as much as I didn't enjoy this, it is still writeen like a Neil Gaiman book, which means the prose is beautiful, and it has some great images and some of his recurring motifs like the ever-present mother/maiden/crone triad which is so present in <i>Sandman</i><br />
On top of all of that, the final chapter was a beautiful, touching close to this world where Gaiman reflects back. I may not read this book again, but I will definitely re-read that final chapter.<br />
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28. <i>Christine - </i>Stephen King (503 Pages) - <b>C+ </b>(Jul 10-Jul 22)<br />
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I have been trying to read all of Stephen King's novels for years. I knew it would eventually happen, and no I have done it (although I didn't finish <i>The Tommyknockers</i>, but that is a story for another day). <i>Christine </i>was the last one on my list of King's book, and I think the reason why I slept on it was because I felt it was too long to tell this story. After reading it, I agree with my assessment. The book is good, and well written but it is obvious King was trying to change his voice with this one. Besides not being set in his typical Maine small town, I don't feel like King knew what he wanted this book to be really. Was it a ghost story? Was it a story about the troubles of growing up as an outsider? An allegory for addiction? (since King was dealing with his troubles pretty strongly around this time) <br />
Obviously it is all of these, but because of this and the changing narrator, this book had some problems for me. Much like <i>Salem's Lot</i>, the characters had a very soap opera feel to them. <br />
I feel the book would have worked better if it didn't use the previous owner's ghost as much as just let the car have the evil soul. The explanation and the imagery of Roland LeBay's rotting corpse in the car didn't read well to me. <br />
But my long endeavor is now over, so that means I can now look forward to re-reading my favorite Stephen King books and continue reading his new novels as they come out (<i>Dr. Sleep </i>comes out at the end of the month!!!)<br />
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29. <i>This is How You Lose Her - </i>Junot Diaz (213 Pages) - <b>D (</b>July 24-July 31)<br />
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I loved Diaz's previous novel <i>A Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao</i>, which I read a few years ago and heard this book was a loose sequel focusing on some of the fringe characters from that book. But I absolutely hated this book. I hated the writing style how each chapter you did not know who the narrator was for a long time, or what time frame of their lives this was. <br />
The structure is a character tells a story about a lover they had and how/why they broke up. This is fine, but no one really ever learned anything from the relationships. The execution felt flat, and it doesn't help that the main character, Yunior, is really not likable at all. Diaz continued his trademark "spanglish" writing style and pop-culture references, but neither added much to the story this time. I was highly disappointed in this book and it made me question why I enjoyed his previous novel so much.<br />
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30. <i>Countdown City: The Last Policeman Volume II - </i>Ben H.Winters (320 Pages) - <b>C- </b>(Aug 4-Aug 14)<br />
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Another book club selection: This time as the sequel to a new trilogy that is being released (which happens to be written by one of our member's family members). This book continues the story of Henry who is a policeman in a near-future world where NASA knows an asteroid is due to hit earth in about 45 days.<br />
As society continues to fall apart with people deciding to drink, drug and screw their way until the apocalypse, this one man seems to be one of the few people that cares about other people and doing the right thing. So when an old friend asks him to find her husband who didn't come home one night, he decides to try to find this man which leads to bigger issues. <br />
The premise of this story is much better than the execution. The author seems to focus this story around his main character Henry, but the biggest issue is that Henry is not a likable, or interesting character. Almost everyone else in the story is more interesting than him which is this book's greatest flaw. <br />
The reader wants to know a lot more about what is happening to society and the bigger scale, but the author decides to keep everything focused on Henry and his minor problems. I will continue to finish this trilogy, and he is setting up some really great questions.<br />
In my opinion there is a great premise that he is not telling but he could in a future trilogy: Assume everyone thinks the world is going to end in 6 months and people leave their spouses, drink, do drugs, stop paying their credit, use up all of our resources etc, and then the asteroid DOESN'T hit. How does a world rebuild a society? Society seems to have broken down so much in this world that it seems like it is unfixable, and things may be better off if the world really does come to an end.<br />
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31. <i>Inferno - </i>Dan Brown (590 Pages) - <b>B </b>(Aug 15-Aug 23)<br />
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This is the latest book starring Robert Langdon from <i>The Davinci Code </i>and<i> Angels and Demons.</i> In this book, Langdon uses his knowledge of Italian art and the writings of Dante to try and save the world from a mad man.<br />
Dan Brown has a very hokey way of writing and all of his books do follow a structure, but damn if they aren't fun books.<br />
What also impresses me is how the author is able to put in some really serious issues in his book and tell a fun story around it so you do not realize you have just digested a pretty strong "fact".<br />
In <i>DaVinci Code</i> he famously put a new spin on the church and some of its basic teachings that had The Vatican very angry at him. This book warns the reader about the very real problem that is threatening the human race of overpopulation and how we are consuming far too many resources than we have. <br />
But he tells this story in such a fun caper that most people will think it is not as threatening as I feel it actually is. <br />
Also, this novel did not have the typical "happy ending" that you would expect which surprised me and made me wonder how he's going to continue in this series.<br />
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32. <i>The Abstinence Teacher - </i>Tom Perrotta (260 Pages) - <b>B </b>(Aug 24-Aug 29)<br />
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About a month ago, my neighbors were having an estate sale and I saw this book. I have read most of Perrotta's other novels and couldn't pass up the $1 price tag this novel had. I just finished it and I feel very similar to this book as I have to Perrotta's other novels: It was quite good, but a little heavy handed at times.<br />
This novel tells the story of a small town health teacher that is very liberal in her teachings, trying to preach safe sex who is forced to install a new policy of abstinence due to a strong Christian minority who has gotten the school board to change their itinerary.<br />
The story also follows a born again soccer coach who she battles with our main character because he wants to have prayer after games which she is against. <br />
I love Perrotta's writing style, and he is able to suck you into these characters problems and fears and hopes better than many. And although I (obviously) agree with Perrotta's opinion on this subject, I felt it was heavily forced down the reader's throat which turned me off. But this is a very good book and I think it strongly shows both sides of the argument.<br />
Much like another book by Tom Perrotta that I recently read, <i>The Leftovers</i>, this book has a weak ending, but does leave the reader hoping for more with these characters which I guess is a good thing, as frustrating as it might be.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-32995275610360168032013-08-31T10:28:00.002-04:002013-09-01T21:46:56.306-04:00Haven't Posted in MONTHS...I apologize to my constant reader since I have not had the time to write in the past few months. But just because I haven't been writing, does not mean I haven't been reading. So without much further ado, I will try to recap my reading, and I will try and keep it short because there were a lot.<br />
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21. <i>Oracle Night</i> - Paul Auster (256 Pages) - <b>B- </b>(May 22-May 28)<br />
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Another book club selection by our newest member. I have read a few Paul Auster books in the past and they are all good, but for some reason they are not memorable. I think it has something to do with having that dream-like quality that Murakami books have, but with less substance behind them. <br />
This novel is a writer's novel. By that, I mean it is about writers and about the process of writing. It makes sense that Paul Auster is known for his short stories and novellas, because this book almost feels like a bunch of short stories put together into one cohesive novel. Because of that, it is sometimes disjointed and goes from one scene to the next with some of the stories not having a true ending, but that is all incorporated decently into the story. The book in the end is about happiness with oneself and your relationship.<br />
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22. <i>Downtown Owl - </i>Chuck Klosterman (275 Pages) - <b>C </b>(May 29-June 5)<br />
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This is a difficult book to review. I have read every book Chuck Klosterman has written now (although he has a new non-fiction book out that I have not read yet). He is mostly known for his non-fiction work discussing pop-culture, or some sort of world issue comparing them to pop-culture. He has written stories about the real meaning behind <i>Saved By the Bell</i> or which album tells the story of 9/11 the best (he feels it is <i>Kid A</i> even though Kid A came out a few weeks before September 11). <br />
But that is the thing about this novel (and Klosterman's writing) that gets kind of annoying. He is prone to seemingly-profound statements like "Life is rarely about what happened, it's mostly about what we think happened". He seems to always write a sentence that will negate itself by the end of that sentence, and this is supposed to make his comments seem deep. After 6 books, I think I'm getting tired of this type of writing and his insistence of what things are "important". <br />
This book was a novel focusing mostly on 3 very different characters: A high school football player, an teacher in his school and an old man that has lived in this same small town his entire life. This follows them from Summer until Winter and their lives in this small town. Klosterman has some great ideas, but I think his execution has become tired. The only problem is, I often think like him too, so I keep coming back to reading his books even though I can recognize and see his writing patterns from a mile away. I actually have started getting angry when he uses one of his over-used "opposite sentences" because I have started to notice how lazy that writing is. I'll let you know since I'm sure I'll read his next book sometime. Probably sooner rather than later.<br />
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23. <i>Bossypants - </i>Tina Fey (267 Pages) - <b>C </b>(June 6- June 8)<br />
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This book did very little for me. I know it got great reviews and I really love Tina Fey, but as a book I found it just boring. I guess that was kind of the point. Tina Fey has become popular and famous from playing the "every-woman". This book solidifies just that: She is a normal girl, who grew up in a normal family. She just decided that she wanted to have a different career as a comedian. She worked really hard at it and through a series of luck an being smart and funny, she succeeded.<br />
I think this book was almost too sheepishly written. Tina Fey's biggest career move was playing Sarah Palin which elevated her career from SNL cast member/actress for 30 Rock. Instead of Tina really flaunting it, she writes how since she had dark hair too, and could put on glasses and a wig to look like Sarah Palin, she was lucky to be in a position to parody her. <br />
Instead of giving herself credit as a writer of a clever, funny show like 30 Rock, she gives a lot of the credit to Alec Baldwin simply being in it because he was a star. The book has very few laughs, but it does show that hard work and perseverance sometimes actually pays off.<br />
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24. <i>Joyland - </i> Stephen King (283 Pages) - <b>A- </b>(June 9-June 12)<br />
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Everyone knows I'm a Stephen King fan. This is true. But I can be very fair in reviewing his writing, I think (as a few books later will show). I think everything King has written is very good, but I grade them on a scale against each other. Even a bad Stephen King book is fun to read, but I can recognize if they aren't so good sometimes. This is why I can honestly say <i>Joyland </i>is a great book!<br />
About 10 years ago, Stephen King retired. Then he wrote a silly, pulpy novel about a dead body that washes ashore a small beach town called <i>The Colorado Kid</i>. It wasn't his best, but it because a TV show called Haven. His retirement has not stuck, and every now and again he writes another pulp novel. <i>Joyland </i>was the second one published this year. <br />
The story follows a high school kid that is working at a carnival during the summer. It is more of a coming-of-age story like <i>Stand By Me</i> (aka <i>The Body)</i> and without giving anything away, it is really good. In my opinion, King really can write some of the best characters and Devin is a great every-man that has a touching story to tell. <br />
Like many of King's books, his ending isn't great but it is still a worth-while ride any reader would enjoy, even non-King fans.<br />
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25. <i>Salem's Lot - </i>Stephen King (653 Pages) - <b>B- </b>(June 13-June 27)<br />
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I told you I can be objective when reviewing Stephen King. This book is just not his best. I read <i>Salem's Lot</i> years ago in college or high school. Even back then, I didn't think it was very good. But I wanted to re-read it because I read recently that Stephen King loves it. Also, since I'm kind of in the middle of a re-read of the Dark Tower, and have just re-read book 4, this is where <i>Salem's Lot</i> kind of fits into that story.<br />
On the second read, I realized what the problem with this book is. The first half is actually really, really good. Ben Mears comes home to the small town he grew up in to write a novel using inspiration from the scary, haunted house he remembers on the top of the hill. How King establishes the characters is a little hokey, but still strong considering this is his second novel. I loved how there were chapters told from the perspective of the town itself, as if Salem's Lot is a character in the story.<br />
The problems arise when the vampires come more to the forefront and the ending of storming the house is a by-the-numbers horror/action story. However, an amazing thing is happening. As I'm writing this review on the last day of August and trying to make it seem hokey and silly and not that good (which is all true), I am having fond memories of this story that I read back in June.<br />
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26. <i>Decline and Fall - </i>Evelyn Waugh - (200 Pages) - <b>D </b>(June 28-Jul 3)<br />
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This was a book club selection that I have absolutely nothing to say about it. Not even anything good or bad. Just nothing at all. The book followed a weak character that went through his life very passively even going to prison for something he did not do. <br />
The book is supposed to be a comedy, but it didn't do much for me. <br />
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(...To be Continued...)<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-25749943131562677812013-05-27T23:05:00.001-04:002013-05-28T09:11:14.900-04:00I keep reading, but can't find time to write about it (Part 2)<br />
16. <i>Special Topics in Calamity Physics - </i>Marisha Pessl (514 Pages) - <b>B+ - (</b>April 15-25)<br />
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I always go to the library and keep renting all of these books, but then I realized there are many books that I own, but have never read. In trying to read all of the books that I actually own I saw this book on my shelf. I'm pretty sure Aubrey bought it one day, and after being sent <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailycandy.com%2Feverywhere%2Froundup%2Fflash.jsp%23%2F101-books-we-cant-live-without%2F&h=0AQFOwZsk">this link</a> by my friend <a href="http://confessionsofafatgirl.typepad.com/">AJ (who writes a better blog than this one)</a> I saw <i>Special Topics</i> on this list and on my bookshelf and decided to read it. <br />
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The plot centers on a very smart high school student named Blue. She has a habit of referencing novels by mentioning something and then saying the title of the book, the author and the year of its publication. For example, this book had a similar feel to <i>Secret History </i>(Donna Tartt, 1992). Blue moves to a new town and befriends the cool clique who every Sunday meet up at their film history teacher's house and hang out. During her Senior year, Blue deals with all of the typical High School shenanigans with prom, and jealousy, and the death of your favorite teacher and conniving parents.<br />
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It is pretty obvious that this was Marisha Pessl's virgin novel because of the writing style. It comes across as extremely obnoxious, but after you get used to it, I really found myself to enjoy the writing and felt that it fit with the story she wrote. Lastly, the final chapter was one of the most fun ways to end the book, and it was something that has never been done in any other novel I've ever read. She gives a multiple choice quiz about the entire story and it made me think back about the entire novel.<br />
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17. <i>Alex Cross, Run - </i>James Patterson (407 Pages) - <b>C </b>- (April 26-April 29)<br />
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I have an addiction to these novels. I have written about it before, but it is the truth. I continue to read about the adventures of Alex Cross and I barely enjoy it. The stories hardly progress and they are always pretty much the same. This time, there are two stories going on at once. Two killers that are working together (as the flip-side of the same coin), and another murderer that is out to get Alex Cross himself for personal reasons. <br />
Alex has to juggle family, the two killers and trying to adopt a foster daughter all at the same time. There is absolutely nothing more to write about this. The Alex Cross books are fun, but you know what you're getting when you read them.<br />
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18. <i>The Leftovers - </i>Tom Perrotta (355 Pages) - <b>B- </b>(April 30-May 6)<br />
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I read an article that the creator of <i>Lost</i> (Damon Littleoff) was trying to get this novel to become a new HBO television series. Since I am a fan of HBO and Damon Littleoff, I decided to read this book before it 19came on the air so I knew the premise and to decide if it would be worthwhile. I have also read a few of Tom Perrotta's novels and mostly enjoy his work, so I found this in the library and knocked it out.<br />
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The premise of the story is on a random day in October, approximately 2% of the population of the planet simply disappears at the same time. They literally are there one moment and then they are gone. The people have absolutely no connection. Some are religious, some are not, the Pope does disappear, but many Cardinals and other religious leaders do not. This novel centers on a small town and mostly about one family and how this phenomenon affects them. How can students continue going to school if they could disappear tomorrow? Will relationships continue to last? These are some of the questions that come up.<br />
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The premise for this story was quite good, but I'm not sure about the execution. Although this book seems to have more questions than answers, this is not a bad thing necessarily. The book is written well and he really shows many different reactions to the situation through few characters, but the best part is how if all of these stories can come from one family and one small town, you can start to extrapolate that and realize exponentially how many stories there could be from this premise.<br />
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19. <i>The Rules of Attraction - </i>Brett Easton Ellis (283 Pages) - <b>B </b>(May 7-8)<br />
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A book about college-life that I had read when I was in college. Since then, I have seen the movie that was made around 2002 more times that I can count, but was curious if I could still relate to this in my mid 30s, and to see if I still liked it.<br />
The answer is: Yes. <br />
Ellis paints the picture of a bunch of young kids that all do not know who they are or what they want out of life and out of each other. Basically, he writes teenagers perfectly. <br />
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This book is not for the faint. This is chock full of drugs, rape, bad decisions, lies and lies about the lies. The staccato writing style keeps the reader feeling like they are 5 steps behind the characters, when really the characters are 10 steps behind themselves. <br />
It is an amazing story about the excess of the 80s, that I can only imagine is pertinent today and should be required reading as tales of caution for parents of kids going to college, and read as a how-to-guide/cautionary tale for anyone about to go to college.<br />
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20. <i>NOS4A2 - </i>Joe Hill (692 Pages) - <b>A- </b>(May 9-21)<br />
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The Son of the Master of Horror is picking up where his father continues to go. Joe Hill is the son of Stephen King and I have been looking forward to his new novel for quite some time. This book was released on April 30th and I started reading it as soon as it was delivered to me from Amazon. <br />
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This is a large, fun, scary novel that I enjoyed from beginning to end. The only reason I was skeptical of the book during the first 50 pages or so was from the title, i expected a typical vampire novel, and this book is not that at all. Instead this is almost another Stephen King novel about parallel dimensions and being able to create worlds within yourself and able to draw people into those worlds. <br />
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Joe Hill is a young author who has yet to leave me unfulfilled in the three novels, Graphic Novel and his book of short stories. This novel follows Vic McQueen through her entire life. From 8 year old dreamer to 40 year old mother and substance abuser. She is one of the more fleshed out characters I have read in some time and someone I am going to miss now that the book is over. <br />
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Anyone looking for a good, fun, scary summertime read needs to read this book. It is often intense and difficult to put down, much like any great book. With this, book, two new Stephen King novels, and an Neil Gaiman novel ready for release, there will be a lot more reading that I hope to accomplish this year.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-39549406673518660822013-05-27T22:09:00.004-04:002013-05-28T09:11:28.634-04:00I keep reading, but can't find time to write about it (Part 1)11. <i>Veronica Decides to Die - </i>Paulo Coelho (210 Pages) - <b>B- (</b>March 14-18)<br />
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Obviously anyone that knows me knows I enjoy to read. Since I only read on the subway on my way to work, my co-workers are always quick with a suggestion on things that I should read. If a co-worker gives me a book, I make it a point to read it as quickly as possible. Being someone that often loans out my books to others , I know what it's like when someone may want it back after loaning it out. I feel if someone feels the need to give me a book and I accept it, it is my duty to read it, give it back and give that person an assessment of the book. In this case, my co-worker Val gave me Paulo Coelho's book about living in a psychiatric ward and the story of of the fictitious Veronika. <br />
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Veronika tries to kill herself by taking too many pills. She fails, but the pills have taken their toll on her heart and now the doctors expect her to die within 2 weeks. How does she feel about life now knowing that there is a definite expiration date? That is the story of this book. Paulo Coelho's most famous book is <i>The Alchemist</i> which was a book club suggestion a few years ago. I feel similar to this book as I did with that. The ideas that are presented in the book are great (I can understand why someone may read this book and find it "deep"), however I find the writing to be formulaic and obvious. This may have a great deal to do with the fact hat the book was originally written in Portuguese and some of the nuance may have been lost in translation, but it doesn't change my opinion. However, anyone having a crisis of faith and feeling depressed, I could recommend this book. As long as that person is not an English teacher.<br />
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12. <i>American Pastoral - </i>Philip Roth (~432 Pages) - <b>C - (</b>March 19-April 3)<br />
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The latest book club pick by my friend Ed. In trying to not spend my entire paycheck on books, someone gave me a PDF of this book and I was able to read it on my iPad. The biggest problem is this PDF as a lot of typos, spacing issues and no chapter breaks. This made reading quite a chore and definitely contributed greatly to my lack of enjoyment.<br />
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However, even with a clean copy, I'm not sure how much I would have enjoyed this book. It is obvious that Philip Roth is able to write, but like many authors in their later years, he would benefit from a good editor. There was a lot of repetition of ideas, plot points and scenes replayed again and again. Also, the story was kind of all over the place.<br />
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It starts with an old man going back to his High School Reunion and remembering the coolest guy/best athlete in his home town before WWII. The story eventually changes narrators to that athlete, named The Swede in the late 60s. The book follows his life and after his daughter blows up the local general store in protest of the Vietnam War. The Swede's life spirals out of control from this and it takes its toll on his family.<br />
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In comparison to Jonathan Frazen's <i>Freedom, </i>these stories are quite similar, but this shows how writing style, and editing can make a reader feel very different about very similar novels.<br />
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13. <i>Slowness - </i>Milan Kundera (155 Pages) <b>- C- - (</b>April 4-5)<br />
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A forgettable novel, by a great author. Kundera literally takes a chapter in the book to break narration and to write as himself about how it would be funny to write a novel where the entire book is 100% nonsense. I think that was him telling the reader to just go along for the ride. All of the narrations are quite sexual in nature (it is Kundera after all), and I did laugh out lout at two scenes in the book, but for the most part I barely remember reading this just two months later.<br />
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This was another short book that I saw in the library and decided to read because of this challenge I have given myself. I'm glad I read it since it only took 2 days, but otherwise anyone reading this can skip this book and read <i>Unbearable Lightness of Being </i>instead.<br />
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14. <i>Coyote Blue - </i>Christopher Moore (303 Pages) - <b>C - (</b>April 6-11)<br />
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I have read a number of Christopher Moore's books and the last one I read (<i>Sacre Bleu) </i>was quite good. So when I was over my friend Bridget's upstate house and saw another of his books just sitting in her mostly-empty house, I just started to read it during a quiet weekend upstate. <br />
There is nothing good or bad about this book. It is just another of his style of quirky books this time mostly about Native American culture. In this book a young man had left the reservation some time ago, and now a Native American spirit-god has come to find him to help him find happiness.<br />
Christopher Moore is a fun writer who has a similar vibe to Tom Robbins. His books are always fun, and this one does not disappoint in the fun department, it just wasn't his best and in the end was quite forgettable.<br />
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15. <i>Femme - </i>Bill Pronzini (175 Pages) -<b>D+ - (</b>April 12-14)<br />
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Once again, my way of cheating with the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. I saw a short book in the library and rented it. This book looked like a typical detective noir book, and it didn't disappoint, but it didn't add anything. <br />
This is a straight up detective story whose twist isn't much of a twist. It's written in the old Sam Spade - style of short sentences and even shorter plot. The dame is evil. Or is she? <br />
Not much to write about here. It was a quick, fun read, but the third forgettable novel in a row.<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-4281302998955073302013-03-17T09:38:00.001-04:002013-05-28T09:11:40.813-04:00I'm on a roll this year2013 is shaping up to be a heavy reading year. Not only have I been reading a ton of comic books and prose novels, but my list of books is growing quickly with 4 novels waiting in the wings for me which i hope to complete before month-end.<br />
This post will update my progress along with a brief recap, rating and an aside as to how it came to pass that I read that book The numbering system starts at 5 because that is the fifth book I have read this year on my goal to 52 (which seems possible, but unlikely)<br />
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5. <i>This is Water: Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life - </i>David Foster Wallace (137 Pages) - <b>B</b><br />
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This is simply a publication of a graduation speech the author David Foster Wallace gave in 2005 at Kenyan College (which I have no idea where that is). To be honest, I picked this book up as a cheat in my 52 books contest. It was a speech with a few sentences on each page. Having only read some Wallace articles in the past and enjoying them, but never reading a novel I wanted to try some more of his work out. This was one of those speeches that tells you to enjoy life and stop and smell the roses a times. Don't get stressed out by the guy that cut you off on the highway, because you don't know their situation. Maybe that guy's wife is at the surgery and he's trying his hardest to get there. It's a great way of looking at the world and worth a read. <a href="http://grahamteach.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/This-Is-Water.pdf">Anyone can read the speech here</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Something interesting happened later: I had the book on my desk at work and a coworker came over and looked it over. She asked what it was and I gave a brief synopsis, then she asked if she could read it. Obviously, I obliged and she took it. Five minutes later she frantically ran over to me to inquire about something that was stamped on the title page of the book. Someone had stamped in red ink "THE AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK COMMITTED SUICIDE". I don't know if the library did that or a patron, and although it is true I'm curious as to why it was there. This bothered my coworker very much, since the theme of the speech is to not get carried away by life and to be compassionate. It's obviously a "Do as I say, not as I do" book since Wallace couldn't handle it. It's pretty obvious that this must have been something that the author had a problem with in his entire life which he eventually succumbed to<br />My question to my loyal reader is: Does the an author's ideas or his actions matter more? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;">6. </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;">Marvel Comics: The Untold Story - </i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;">Sean Howe (432 Pages) - </span><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;">B+</b><a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTB7EtPHydZWzckqtj68lWJluLukjhWhQKmfJBNhYpz9drF7HbB8Qb" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTB7EtPHydZWzckqtj68lWJluLukjhWhQKmfJBNhYpz9drF7HbB8Qb" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Newsflash: I like comic books. There are two type of people in the world DC people and Marvel people, and I've been a Marvel Zombie since I was 10 years old. This heavily researched, in depth book tells the true accounts of the stories behind the story-tellers. All of the drug use, backstabbing, power plays and disputes in who created what, and ownership rights. Ownership of property is the largest issue in this book and going back to Ayn Rand's theory that if you create it, you should fully own it vs. what the US government says of contracts how one can create a character (like Spider-Man), but not own that character because you signed a contract that says anything you write belongs to Marvel Comics as an institution. It's a question I go back and forth on myself because I like to think if I was to create something that resonated with millions of people, then I would reap the benefits for my ideas and my hard work. But because I work for a popular company, the only reason anyone ever heard my ideas was because they published my book that had a built-in audience who were able to find my idea because they published hundreds of thousands of copies of my idea without me putting up any money. It's a very difficult concept and I'm not sure there is a 100% correct answer. It really is a collaboration, and until we get a fair compensation policy for all, it will always be a problem. In every industry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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6a. <b> </b><i>Fables - Cubs in Toyland </i><br />
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I will continue reading Fables until it goes ends its run. The characters are always wonderfully written and I care about them all. The last few books, however feel like the story is treading water a little. It seems to have become just another comic book where the characters get into situations, fight back and prevail. What keeps Fables apart is that there are often casualties since the cast of characters is so large, losing one or even 10 characters is not a problem.<br />
This story was more of a horror tale than anything else, like a classic Borthers Grimm story. It was an enjoyable read, but in the end it was forgettable.<br />
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6b. <i>The Unwritten: Volumes 1-4</i></div>
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I had read <i>The Unwritten</i> volumes 1 and 2 when they came out about 2 years ago and enjoyed it. While I was feeding my friend Jason's cat while he was away, I noticed that Jason had volumes 1-4. I leafed through volume 1 and realized I barely remembered it and didn't remember volume 2 at all. I stole all 4 of his books and read them in a few days. What a fantastic, imaginative story this is turning out to be. Tommy Taylor (think Harry Potter) was a beloved children's book. The author of the books had a son, named Thomas Taylor, and he makes a living going around as "The Real Tommy" but as a 20 something young man, he hates this life. </div>
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What the book eventually reveals is that the characters in all popular novels are real. Or at least have their own world where you can go. Tommy begins his adventure through stories that leads to him meeting Captain Ahab from Moby Dick, Frankenstein's monster and a slew of other characters. Tommy is pursued throughout popular fiction because his father may have hidden some secrets of the universe in him that an occult group is trying to protect or get for themselves. </div>
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Since it is an ongoing series, I am not sure where they are going yet, but this is becoming a great book about the nature of stories and what they mean. Also, people have to be more well-read than me in order to catch all of the literary references in any given issue. This is one of those comic books that you give to an English<br />
teacher if they are against comic books, and to ask them if this is not literature itself.</div>
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7. <i>The Sirens of Titan - </i>Kurt Vonnegut (326 Pages) - <b>B+</b><br />
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The more Vonnegut I read, the more I like him. The best thing about Kurt Vonnegut is that while you are reading one of his books, you are aware that you are reading a Vonnegut book because no one else writes like him. The imagination, humor, and big ideas that he had were uncontested. The structure of his books are almost like a joke. He sets up the characters normally, starts throwing some strange situations at them, and he ends his books perfectly with a punchline that makes you laugh, and makes you think.<br />
This novel (his second written in 1959) was chosen by the previously mentioned Jason as our latest book club endeavor. The concepts in the book are small-scale: It only tells the story of why human civilization exists and was orchestrated by external forces. (Oh yeah, for religious nuts and people that think humanity is the point of the universe, you won't be happy with this reasoning)<br />
There is nothing I can write here that will make any difference to anyone. If you want to read a book that is funny and odd and imaginative read this book or any of his others. If not, go read James Patterson.<br />
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8. <i>Merry Christmas, Alex Cross - </i>James Patterson (323 Pages) - <b>C-</b><br />
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"My name is Mitch, and I have a reading problem". That's the only defense I have for continuing to read the Alex Cross books by James Patterson. While reading them, I recognize the terrible writing. I can see the twists coming from a mile away. I know Alex Cross is going to catch the bad guy and go home to his ever-growing family, but when I see it on the library rack I also know I'm going to knock out a 300 page book in 2 days and there is something about that that makes me happy.<br />
I will continue to read the awful adventures of Alex Cross until they stop being published. And since the newest one was just published again, I know there will be another Alex Cross book on this list before the year's over. <br />
Oh yeah: In this one, Alex Cross solves TWO cases, not just one. That's why it's different.<br />
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9. <i>In The Miso Soup - </i>Ryu Murakami (180 Pages) - <b>C</b><br />
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Whenever I go to the library I always pass by to see if there are any books by Haruki Murakami whose writing I love. A few years ago, I picked up <i>Pierced</i> by Ryu Murakami. It was basically Japanese torture-porn, but as a horror fan, I enjoyed it. I picked up this one too (as a short novel, it helps padding my 52 books as well) and it was more of the same. <br />
This story is really not very good and I'm not sure the point the author is trying to make. The violence comes out of nowhere and although he tries to explain why the characters behave like they do, I never felt he succeeded. Murakami wanted to write a book about violence and about the Japanese sex industry in the mid 90s, so he combined those two things. He brought in a crazy American for the violence (probably saying something about violence in America) and having an innocent travel agent to the brothels of Tokyo act as the pie-eyed innocent. It never fully worked for me. But we need to have bad books in the world to truly appreciate the good ones.<br />
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10. <i>The Night Circus - </i>Erin Morgenstern (387 Pages) - <b>A</b><br />
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While reading this book the only word that continued to pop into my head was "Beautiful". This book was just that. The writing, the mystery, the love of the story is just dripping off the page. A few people (all women) have told me to read this book, and I pretty much dismissed them. Not knowing anything about it, I figured it was a "chick-book", and maybe I'd get around to it. Thankfully the library had it one day and on a whim I picked it up. <br />
I cannot even describe what it is that I loved so much about it. In the end, it just comes down to the writing style. This book was written in such a way that I couldn't help but continue reading. Who are all these characters? How do they come together? What is the mysterious contest about? All of that is great, but in the end it is the way the tale is told that is the true main character. The only other book that gave off an aura like this book while being read is Neil Gaiman's <i>Sandman</i>. <br />
There is nothing I want to write about this book out of fear that someone could stumble upon this blog and have any of it ruined. Just go in and know that I was hooked by page 10 when a character finds out he has an 4 year old daughter and he gains custody after the mother died. He looks at this little 4 year old and says to her "You're going to be interesting" and I was hooked. It set the tone of the entire novel, and it never was a disappointment. <br />
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10a - For the sake of completion: I have also read a bunch of other comic books this year, but not much to write about on these: <i>The New Avengers: Book 1; Essential X-Men Volume 10, Anya's Ghost, Thor/IronMan - God Complex, Thor - Vissionaries Walter Simonson Volume 1</i></div>
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-42727396262284330682013-02-24T23:20:00.002-05:002013-02-24T23:20:53.173-05:00It's Oscar NightAs I sit here watching the newest Oscars, I figure now is as good a time as any to update this blog not with my continue collection of books that I have been reading, but instead of my first love: The Movies.<br />
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I don't really post much about movies much these days, mostly because I have been less into them then in the past, but there was a time when that was all I cared about. Confession: I always hoped to work in the movies, but the lack of talent, determination and guts pretty much put a stop into that. But I applied to Miramax and Lions Gate out of school and didn't get the gig. Although it's never too late, the chances seem less and less likely as I get older. <br />
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But I must say in the past month, I have been on quite a streak of watching a ton of movies. Some good, many bad. This is going to be a quick checklist and update of all movies I've seen in no real order since I don't have a list like I do my books.<br />
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Turner Classic Movies have been playing the Oscar movies as they do every year and I have been DVRing them as they catch my interest. I woke up this morning and watched the 1980 movie <i>The Stunt Man</i>. I have always heard this was a great satire and a quirky, fun movie. After watching it, I think it doesn't hold up. It seems to be a satire/commentary on the Vietnam War as well as Hollywood, but either the jokes were lost on me or they simply were lost in time. I found it terribly acted and more boring than anything else. I was shocked that Barbara Hershey used to be cute though. That was a pleasant surprise.<br />
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Last night I threw on the movie <i>Looper. </i>The premise is actually much better than the movie turned out to be. Joseph Gordon Levitt plays a younger Bruce Willis that is assigned to kill himself and other criminals from the future. Everything seemed like it was going to be really cool, but the movie took a left turn at Alburquerque and changed directions. <br />
Where it went was still a fun movie, it just seemed like a different movie than the one that was marketed and that I signed up for. <br />
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Another classic movie that I had never seen before this weekend. <i>Guess Who's Coming to Dinner </i>was a great movie, made even better by the behind the scenes trivia about how Spencer Tracy dies just 17 days after filming this movie and how Katharine Hepburn never watched this.<br />
Honestly, I understand the history that comes with this movie and 100% admit that Sidney Poitier killed it in this role. He was powerful and amazing and although he never showed any humor, the integrity his character has is inspiring. Even though I don't think it's in my nature to ever be that serious and "manly" about anything, it was an amazing performance.<br />
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I watched <i>Singin' In The Rain </i>last week during a movie marathon with Aubrey. It was my first time watching this ever. I was shocked at how much fun and how many of the songs I had already known. It was definitely a fun movie to watch and much funnier than I expected it to be. <br />
On top of that, I have an awful habit of going to the TRIVIA section of IMDB after every movie that I watch. This one had some of the best trivia about how much the cast and crew hated Gene Kelly. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045152/trivia?ref_=tt_trv_trv">Feel free to read them all here.</a><br />
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Also, who knew how cute Princess Leia's mother was?<br />
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I will probably always be a sucker for good High School movies and <i>The Perks f Being A Wallflower </i>is one of the better ones I've seen in some time. It perfectly captures the alienation that everyone feels as a teenager and the solace that we all turn to in our friends and into music. No outcast ever looks like the actors in this movie, but you have to take that bit with a slight grain of salt, (after all it is still a Hollywood movie) but the content is 100% accurate.<br />
There was a slight twist in the movie that, having never read the book, completely surprised me but was impressed by how a first-time director perfectly made the tonal shift and looking back at the film, even gave hints of the twist throughout the first three-quarters. <br />
And the soundtrack was virtually perfect.<br />
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This movie may have hit a little too close to home considering what I've been up to the past oh... 8 years or so. But this was mostly a cute movie with some likable actors. <br />
Although the movie did go on a little too long, I guess it kind of makes sense in a movie called <i>The Five Year Engagement</i>, and the point is these two characters found every excuse possible to prolong or just not get married that there was bound to be some treading of water. <br />
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Is there anything better than going into a movie that you have no expectations of that turns out to be a damn good time? <i>21 Jump Street </i>is a remake of a terrible TV show that I watched virtually every episode of. I watched it because people told me it was fun, and I was shocked that everyone that said so was right. I am shocked that I find Jonah Hill to be funny and he seems to make great career choices. Between this movie and <i>The Sitter</i>which is on HBO everyday, I have to say I am becoming a fan of the guy. Not to mention his insanely funny cameo in <i>Django Unchained</i> which may be the funniest scene of any movie of the year.<br />
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Another movie that may not be on anyone's radar, but is worth the 85 minutes of your time. I found <i>Safety Not Guaranteed</i> to be a clever, fun movie. I don't want to give anything away in this mini-review. But this is currently available on Netflix Streaming and will say anyone that likes Aubrey Plaza on <i>Parks and Recreations </i>and quirky sci-fi comedies like <i>Bubba Ho-Tep</i> will probably enjoy this. I found myself smiling throughout.<br />
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My parents saw <i>Beasts of the Southern Wild</i> about a year ago and couldn't stop talking about it.<i> </i> Not only were they impressed with the little actress, but they were impressed by the young director as well who is from a town close to where I grew up. He hosted a Q&A with my parents after the screening and they came away as fans to the point that my dad even made a bet on the young 9 year old actress in Vegas for her to win the Oscar at 500-1. So I'm rooting for her tonight.<br />
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I watched the movie a few weeks ago and enjoyed it, but probably not as much as them. I mostly loved the music and am rooting for the score of <i>Beasts</i> to take home Oscar gold today since that is what jumped out the most to me.<br />
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Maybe I'm a harsher critic on movies that seem to get glowing reviews from everyone, but I didn't love <i>Argo. </i> Don't get me wrong, it was a well made, well acted movie about an interesting true story that I had no knowledge of before watching it. But my biggest problem was how convenient all the close-calls the all of the hostages and Fed agents/Hollywood actors. After the fourth time I started getting annoyed and found it played out.<br />
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My favorite part of the entire movie was the first two seconds where they showed the old Warner Brothers logo to make the movie feel more 70s:. It made me feel like a kid going to the movies for a split second.<br />
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Probably the best movie I saw this year, I actually saw back near the end of 2012. I've loved Tarantino since the first time I saw <i>Reservoir Dogs </i>when I was 15 years old. Although this isn't his best, <i>Django Unchained</i> is quintessential Tarantino, showing his love for dialogue, his respect for the history of cinema, and his over-all joy that he is able to pump into his movies, no matter how difficult the topic he is presenting may be. <br />
Tarantino gets a ton of honors and awards for his scripts, but I've been mostly impressed by his directing in his last few movies. No one builds tension better in their movies then Tarantino. I will never forget an old quote of his when he was talking about what he considers a great movie. It's simple: When you're watching the movie you forget that you are living, you forget you're breathing. You are just in the movie.<br />
I often notice that I forget everything the first time I am watching a Tarantino movie. Some of his scenes are so intense that nothing else matters. Also, I'm hopeful that Christoph Waltz continues to show up in everything Tarantino does since he steals every scene he's in.<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-45857815005807700252013-02-13T00:00:00.001-05:002013-05-28T09:11:53.998-04:00More books get read2. <b>Gone Girl - </b>Gillian Flynn (419 Pages) - <b>B</b><br />
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My constant reader knows that I am in a book club and joined it about 4 years ago. We try to read about 10 books a year, but last year we hit a sort of rough patch. The books we picked were not well liked and although we always have fun when we get together, the book aspect of the book club has sputtered a bit. <br />
This time I decided to revitalize our book club by picking a popular age turner that I was sure I would read eventually. I had heard that this book was getting a lot of buzz and chose this for our next read. We met last week and my fellow readers seemed to hate this tale of a missing wife more than I expected.<br />
I agree it was hokey at times, and virtually all of the characters were deplorable and unlikable, but I found it mostly fun, albeit mostly unbelievable. Aubrey had the best insight to me about how since both of the main characters were writers, the author kind of cheated and used them to try and show off her writing style. Gillian Flynn definitely was trying to showcase her ability to write such different styles and even cheated a little by offering more than two narrators, but I don't want to ruin the fun of this book here. No matter what you may think of the book, no one can dispute that it's a fun read.<br />
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2a. <b>Creatures of the Night - </b>Neil Gaiman/Michael Zulli<br />
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I'm pretty sure I've mentioned how much I love Neil Gaiman (and I may say it again before this post is over). But not only do I love Neil Gaiman's writing, but I really do. Not only do I love his writing, but I especially love his comic book writing. This short book took two of his short stories and had the amazing Michael Zulli illustrate it. He is the same man that illustrated the final few issues of <i>Sandman </i>which made me more excited to read this. <br />
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These stories were typical Gaiman. beautiful prose describing a typical "day in the life" that ended up really being about the battle of good and evil featuring animals (in this case a cat) and their role in protecting their human masters. I wonder why this book struck a chord with me?<br />
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3. <b>Inside a Dog </b><i>- </i>Alexandra Horowitz (302 Pages) - <b>C+</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Renly</td></tr>
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My life changed forever back in April. After 30 years of hoping and wanting one I "adopted my new best friend" and got an amazing, shelter dog who I eventually named Renly. <br />
Anyone that has met Renly will agree that I got beyond lucky with a first dog. He is well trained, sweet, quiet and simply of the most loving animals I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. Granted, I am biased, but it's also a fact. <br />
In order to better understand all of the strange things Renly does on a daily basis, I saw this book in the bookstore and decided to pick it up. It's written by a dog psychologist who has spent years watching and studying dogs in order to better understand why they do the things they do. My only problem with the book is that it seems the book was more written for people that have never had a dog then those that do. Once in a while there was some insight and I especially enjoyed the history lesson of how these wolves eventually became domesticated and (d)evolved to being the dogs that we have living in our homes from the wild animals they used to be, but otherwise the book was filled with common observations that me as a dog-owner for less than a year have figured out. <br />
I'm happy I read the book because I have a little bit of a better understanding of why my dog my lick my face until it's raw, or attempt to bury a bone I give him in the couch until his nose bleeds, but mostly I just want to enjoy the amazing base fun that Renly provides me. (And I'll take the doggy kisses when they come, even if the book tells me he's just waiting for me to vomit up food for him like a mother of a pack).<br />
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4. <b>Stardust</b> - Neil Gaiman (285 Pages) <b>B-</b><br />
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Remember when I said there would be more Gaiman in this list? Well, I've read almost all of his books, but I had not read this novel although I had seen the movie. I don't know why it had taken me so long to read this. Maybe it was the Faerie aspect that kept me away since that was always the part of <i>Sandman</i> that I didn't love. And even after watching and enjoying the movie, I still never got around to reading the book. Now that the novel has reached its 20th anniversary, a new version was released, so I just bought it. <br />
This was not his finest story, but still had all of the classic Gaiman elements. This is a very simple fairy tale quite similar in tone and content to <i>The Princess Bride</i>. <br />
It's a sweet story, but since this was originally published as a graphic novel, I think it reads better in that style than in the classic prose that this version came in. This seemed like it was forced into more description that I'm sure came across better with Charles Vess' drawings in the original. One day I will update with my comparison of the two versions. Until then, I'm off to the library to pick up more books.<br />
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-13915471389591955972013-01-12T14:30:00.001-05:002013-05-28T09:12:02.755-04:00It Gets Better: Reading in 2013After a lackluster end of the year I am hoping that 2013 will be filled with more enjoyable reads. It's not like everything has to be amazing, after all, how can one appreciate all the great reads if there aren't a few clunkers from time to time. I find that bad reads go in phases, as do good ones. In order to gear up to some good reads, I went back to what my mainstays: Comic Books.<br />
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1) <i>Prelude to Schism - </i>Paul Jenkins - C<br />
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I love the X-Men. They are the books that stuck with me as a child they sucked me into the world of comic books which led to a life-long love (and a depletion of my back account). I can't fully explain what it is that I love, but after years of not reading comics, they seem to be the books that excite me and bring me back to the fold. Keeping up with the industry, I know some huge storylines have come and gone that I have missed out on due to not reading monthly books anymore (otherwise I wouldn't be able to afford.....anything else so I quit cold turkey about 8 years ago). On Christmas morning, I was feeling nostalgic and wanting to catch up with my old friends. I went on Amazon and found out all the books that have come out since I last read these. When I tallied up how much the books would cost, it was about $140 on Amazon. To the NY Public Library Website I went instead and reserved these books. The first was the Prelude to the Schism storyline. After reading it, I'm very happy I didn't plop down $8 on this book. It was a great character study on the main power players: Cyclops, Professor X, Wolverine and Magneto, but absolutely nothing happened in the book. It was a prelude to the story that will shake up the X-Universe, but that is all. I'm glad I read it, but more glad I read it for free.<br />
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2) <i>Powers: The Definitive Hardcover Volume 2</i>: Brian Michael Bendis & Michael Avon Oeming - <b>B+</b><br />
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While in the library picking up X-Men, I saw this on the shelf. I've read this book when it came out in single issues back in 2002-2003 since this is a collection of about 12 issues (or a year's worth of books). <br />
Powers is a fantastic story, told by a great writer. The series follows a police partnership made up of an ex-superhero (think Superman if Superman lost his powers and was human and became a cop) who investigate homicides involving Superheroes in a world where there are tons (much like a world in the popular movie <i>The Incredibles</i>). <br />
Having read this book in a different format 10 years ago, this was a quick re-read and made me remember how much I love Bendis and his writing as well as this book. I am very behind in what is going in in this world, and would love to catch up since these books are still being released and I have faith that they continue to come out at the same quality.<br />
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3) Science Dog - Robert Kirkman & Cory Walker - B<b>+</b><br />
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This was also on the shelf and seeing the name Robert Kirkman made me remember that Science Dog was the comic book read by the comic book character <i>Invincible</i> in Kirkman's superhero book. I decided to read the one-shot book and it was one of the best written out time-travel tales that I've read since <i>The Time Traveler's Wife</i>. Kirkman perfectly explained the idea of paradoxes and parallel universes by making Science Dog continue to go further back in time in order to fix his mistakes. The tragedy of him doing all this to save his friends and one aspect of himself, while putting himself into exile was told so perfectly and this book reminded me of how amazing the medium of comic books can tell a story that is difficult to tell in any other version. Kirkman continues to write some of the most tragic books with a ton of heart. I'm sticking with <i>Invincible</i> for the long haul and will check out the side-stories like this when they come to me.<br />
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4) <i>The Walking Dead Volume 17: Something To Fear - </i>Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard & Cliff Rathburn - <b>A-</b></div>
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I've been reading The Walking Dead since issue 50 came out about 3 years ago. I heard "the guy that directed <i>Shawshank Redemption" </i>was adapting a comic book for TV that was written by Robert Kirkman. I had already been a fan of <i>Invincible</i>, but hadn't read <i>The Walking Dead</i> since I wasn't the biggest fan of the zombie genre. But when I heard the TV should would be coming out, I bought the Compendium of the first 48 issues collected in one book and devoured it in a very short time. I even wrote a post about it <a href="http://dork-tastic.blogspot.com/2010/08/zombies-vs-vampires.html">here</a>.</div>
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Since I read those 48 issues so quickly, I couldn't wait 4 years until the next compendium came out, and instead started buying the paperbacks that bundle up story arcs of 6 issues every 6 months. </div>
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That means I have read volumes 9-17 now on their own and this one was by far the most difficult. The series (TV and book) is known for ensuring that no one is safe and main characters (or who we perceive to be the main characters) are often killed off in some of the most disturbing fashions I've ever read. This book took the cake. The intensity and sadness I felt while reading this book on the subway one morning was intense. During the climactic scene, I literally went cold and paused before turning the page to find out what was going to happen. I actually felt like I was going to throw up, it disturbed me that much. (And if you know me, that's saying a lot. NOTHING bothers me - to a fault). </div>
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The fact that a book and a (black and white) comic book at that can cause such a physical reaction in someone impressed me as a reader, but bothered me as a fan. I wasn't happy about what happened in the book, but at the same time it has made me filled with more anticipation for the next issue in June or so. If you like horror (and more psychological horror than gore, although there is plenty of that too), read this book! You may not thank me because you may have nightmares, but you won't be able to stop reading.</div>
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5) <i>Freedom </i>- Jonathan Franzen (562 Pages) - <b>A</b></div>
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I hate validating Oprah, but damn was this book fantastic. </div>
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I read Franzen's more famous novel <i>The Corrections</i> years ago, and liked it, but at this point only remember it was "about a dysfunctional family". I had heard mixed reviews about this book and thought I'd get to it when I get to it. </div>
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My friend Ed had said that he had just read it and was enjoying it and then it just happened to be sitting there in the library staring at me. As you know from my last post, I was reading some horrible books and wanted to start off 2013 with at least something more engaging so this book got checked out. Immediately, I was sucked in.</div>
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The first chapter tells almost then entire history of this family in a very quick synopsis about a mother, father and two children and how they lived in this small town in Minnesota while hinting that there was potentially something wrong under their perfect exterior. </div>
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The next chapter now jumps to a first person "autobiography" of the mother of that family, Patty. She writes about her childhood and going to college and her boyfriends. Most of what she writes about is very normal. A young girl learning about herself and love and meeting her eventual husband. And I could not get enough. When a writer is a good, you can't help but keep turning the pages, and Franzen is better than good. He tells a story in such an even, simple tone that it is easy to follow even when he is throwing out some big ideas (like the real problem with the Environment that no one really wants to talk about).</div>
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From there on out, each chapter is told from a different character's perspective: Patty's son Joey (a strong individual trying not to live in his father's shadow), her husband Walter (a liberal lawyer and stronger feminist than most women), her husband's best friend Richard Katz (a wannabe Rock star/anti-feminist). The scope of the book is really Patty's entire life since she is the main character of this novel and shows the achievements and mistakes she makes in this life. </div>
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Thinking now about the title of the book, I think the entire thought is about what Freedom means to any one person on an individual basis. Freedom is really the thing we all want the most in life, freedom to love who you want, to live in a country where everyone and everything is free to live its life to their utmost happiness, and how each person's idea of freedom may actually be the opposite of someone else (especially those they love the most). </div>
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Lastly, the thing I realized about myself while reading this book is I may be the world's biggest voyeur. I wish I could explain why the lives of this family was so entertaining to me, but I can't. This is the type of book I feel I could have kept reading forever. It's not that these characters were so likable or interesting. In fact, it may be the exact opposite. But they were real people. I found myself able to relate to all of them on different levels, but enjoy each of their stories equally. </div>
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2013 is starting off right. This book in the annals, along with a series of books lines up and waiting for me to read. I hope to keep this blog updated more often and potentially hit my goal of 52 books in 52 weeks once again. I'm already behind the curve, but I'll give up quantity for quality every single time.</div>
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-84932984867274270322013-01-10T23:46:00.000-05:002013-05-28T09:12:17.857-04:00End of 2012 Book Post - Warning: It got uglyAfter 2011's amazing year of reading 55 books throughout the year (not counting comic books) I thought 2012 would just keep rolling and I would read some more great books. However, with some misjudgements and some questionable book club choices, it ended up being just a mediocre year of books. Of course there were some great books that were read like <i>1Q84</i> and learning about Ann Pratchet but overall I was a little disappointed with my choices in 2012. None more so than the final month...<br />
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1) <i>Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde - </i>Robert Louis Stephenson (92 Pages) - <b>C</b></div>
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For my constant reader, you will remember that while walking my dog Renly a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon someone throwing away a ton of books. Since I had never read <i>Dr. Jekyll </i>and remembering how much I enjoyed <i>Frankenstein</i> earlier in the year, I thought I should read more classics. </div>
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The book was very short and only took two days to read so it wasn't totally bad. The biggest problem(s) I had was that it was just forgettable. </div>
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I was stricken by how different the book was then I expected it to be. I know the basic story (as most people that are aware of any pop-culture), but the actual book was more boring that what I expected. I remember reading that The Hulk was based on the concept of this book, so was surprised to read that the evil embodiment that was Mr. Hyde was SMALLER than the normal, good-natured Dr. Jeckyll. I thought it was a smart concept that the reason for Hyde being smaller was because he represented the evil side of Jekyll, and since the doctor was not a bad man, only the smaller, evil side of him remained behind to become Mr. Hyde. I also thought it was funny, given the time the book was written, that people seemed to be scared of science and what they don't understand. The science of the book seemed laughable at times, but again that was a product of the times.</div>
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2) <i>Breed - </i>Chase Novak (310 Pages) - <b>D</b></div>
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Wow! Don't trust the blurbs!</div>
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I have been jonesing for a Stephen King book. More specifically I have wanted to reread his vampire novel <i>Salem's Lot</i> since I didn't like it much when I read it, but since his son Joe Hill appears to have a vampire novel coming out soon, I wanted to compare/contrast them in my head. But I don't have that book, and instead was in the library and came across this book with a blurb on the cover from Mr. King saying how much he loved it. In my mind, if it's good enough for Stevie, it's good enough for me, so I rented the book. Oops!</div>
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The story focused on a married couple that was having difficulty getting pregnant so they go to Slovakia (or Slovenia) for an experimental procedure and long story short: something supernatural happens to them and their children. </div>
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Jump ahead 10 years, and now they twins that were born from this procedure are scared of their parents and run away from home, but the parents use their preternatural abilities to try and find their children.</div>
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I may even be making this book sound better than it even was, and I know I'm doing nothing. I researched the author after and found out this is a pseudonym of some guy that actually writes romance books and he was trying to branch out into horror and knew his audience shouldn't be reading this. In my mind, no one should! The only bits I enjoyed was a since most of the book takes place in New York City, I enjoyed the local flashes. The biggest problem as a New Yorker was that it felt like it was written by someone that had never lived in New York, but instead just wrote it while looking at a google map of Manhattan. </div>
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I read this book, so you don't have to. You're welcome.</div>
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3) <i>Damned - </i>Chuck Palahniuk (247) - <b>D+</b></div>
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I've read almost every book Chuck Palahniuk has written, and with <i>Damned</i>, I may have read my final book of his. It's not that the book was bad, in fact by the time I got to the end I was actually smiling and giggling a little at it, but for the first 200 pages or so I found myself asking myself "what's the point of this book?"</div>
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It was a comedy that wasn't funny. It was an homage to <i>Are You There God, It's me Margaret</i> while being the story about a 13 year old girl living in hell by opening every chapter with "Are you there Satan, it's me Madison..."</div>
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There were some parts of the book that I understood his social commentary: Since hell is the invention of Christians, only the truly devout Christians go to Heaven and are bored. Otherwise, everyone else is stuck in Hell including Ghandi and Socrates. I also laughed at the realization that everyone in Hell has to have a job and Madison gets the job as a telemarketer that only calls people during dinner was funny, until I thought about how outdated the concept of telemarketing is in the cell-phone age.</div>
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I was bored by the descriptions of Hell and the rivers of blood and perpetually ever-filling oceans of semen and mucus. I just couldn't figure out the real point of the book, and since this is the 2nd or 3rd Palahniuk book that I decided to read by my own volition and have not enjoyed, or did not finish I think I've decided that I either "grew out" of his writing style or he's gotten worse. I hope it's the 2nd option, but either way, nothing can take away the enjoyment I got from <i>Fight Club </i>and <i>Invisible Monsters</i> which I remember as being great books. But it's also possible that with all of the reading I've been doing over the past 13 years since I first read <i>Fight Club</i>, my tastes in writing may have changed. Maybe I'm even *gasp* growing up! Probably not. But maybe.</div>
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4) <i>Geek Love</i> - Katherine Dunn (347 Pages) - C-</div>
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This is a difficult book for me to review. It was our latest Book Club selection and I had a hard time ever getting into this book. The main issue is that Aubrey and I had one copy and I worked around her (slower) reading style. I started the book, then while at page 90 or so, I handed it to her. She leaped in front of me before taking a break and giving it back to me. I bypassed her and then gave it back before finishing up.</div>
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With all of these stutters, I had a hard time finding the "voice" of the novel and the narrator in an already unconventional and strange book.</div>
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The other thing was that I was surprised about how many similarities this book had stylistically to <i>Damned</i> and other Chuck Pahlahniuk books just with a female touch. It had the similarities of seeming to be shocking for the sake of being shocking and having numerous quirky/strange characters.</div>
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The story of the book is even very strange. It centers on a family of circus performers. The parents owned the sideshow and decided to use drugs and (potentially) incest in order to create their family of freaks. If the babies were born normal, they were immediately aborted, the ones that lived on were the freaks. These include Siamese twins, a hunchbacked albino (our narrator), a boy with flippers instead of arms and legs with delusions of grandeur and a seemingly normal boy named Chick where something invisible makes him special. And this is just where the oddness begins. </div>
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Dunn also has a writing style which does not mesh well with my reading style. In my opinion she over-wrote this book with flowery words to describe the insanity that was going on in this circus, but that was more distracting than anything else. </div>
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That concluded my 2012 reading. Now that that is over, I am hopeful that 2013 will be even better. So far this year is proving to be a good one, but that is a post for another day...</div>
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-77957047474687064902012-12-01T12:27:00.001-05:002013-05-28T09:12:29.786-04:00Quarterly Book Post<br />
My last post was in August and I have been too busy working at my actual job and not reading as much, but here is the update of the books I've been reading:<br />
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1) <i>The Life of Pi - </i>Yann Martel (318 pages) - B-<br />
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I read this book a few years ago and was completely blown away by it. I absolutely loved it, and this book was even one of those books that was talked about so much that it helped me and a few friends to decide to start a book club. <br />
I decided to re-read it because of the new movie version that is coming out and I had also found my copy somewhere randomly. So, I read the book in under a week and as much as I loved it the first time I read it, the second time I was a a little underwhelmed.<br />
Maybe it's because of knowing the ending and that not being as much of a HOLYSHIT moment the second time, but for some reason it felt much more cold on a second read-through. <br />
I would love to discuss this with someone else, but after reading it this second time I have less excitement about seeing the movie version (also because I don't really love anything Ang Lee has ever done except The Ice Storm). <br />
I also got Yann Martel's second novel on audio book, and reading this a second time made me decide that I probably won't be listening to it anytime soon, especially since the reviews for that book are pretty terrible.<br />
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2) <i>The Eye of the World - </i>Robert Jordan (782 pages) - C-<br />
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<i>The Wheel of Time</i> is one of the most well-loved fantasy series ever written. People talk about it like a better version of <i>Lord of the Rings</i>. Now, surprisingly, I'm not a HUGE fantasy fan. But, when I read <i>The Song of Ice and Fire</i> series last year, I absolutely loved it and thought maybe I like fantasy more than I originally thought. One thing that has kept me away from this series is that it is 15 books long, and each one being about 1,000 pages each, so it is a little intimidating. (It also doens't help things that the author died before finishing, and they had to get someone to ghost-write the ending)<br />
I had a good friend start this series and he was on book five last I talked to him and he was enjoying it, and then while in Arizona my soon-to-be mother-in-law had the book lying around. She gave it to me to read, so I thought I'd give it a whirl. The book had its moments of fun, but for the most part I was disappointed. The characters weren't that fleshed out and the story was more childish than I was expecting. I hear the books get better, and I will probably at least try book two eventually, but so far I'm not sure if this series is for me. <br />
I am very excited to write that last line and post it here, just in case this series becomes my favorite and I end up going to <i>Wheel of Time</i> conventions, this will be etched on the internets.<br />
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3) <i>The Last Policeman - </i>Ben H. Winters (316 Pages) - B<br />
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This was our latest Book Club book chosen by my friend Michael. This book has become pretty popular and the best part is the author is Michael's Brother-In-Law. Since the reviews were good, we chose to read this book.<br />
This book has an honor of being one of the 10 or so books that I read in one day. I had gotten the book right before we were supposed to meet for our book club and I only had a little bit of time to knock it out before and Aubrey had to read it too. After my trip to work and reading over lunch then coming home, I was on page 180. Aubrey was going out that night so I opened the book and just kept reading. It's a lot of fun reading an entire book in one sitting. It is a different experience, and this book was a very simple story, told in a conversational tone that I was able to keep reading. Also, since it's a mystery, it makes you want to keep reading.<br />
The story takes place in the near future and NASA has found out that there is a comet heading towards earth and will hit within the next year and they are preparing for all life on earth to be killed. As a result, all of society has changed and broken down. Some people are killing themselves to go out on their terms, while others are looking to live out their last days to the fullest.<br />
The main character is a cop who is the policeman called in on a suicide. But he starts investigating this suicide because something doesn't add up and he thinks it may be murder. The bigger question is: So what? Even if it is murder, who cares? The world is ending soon anyway. Those are the questions that plague Hank and us as readers.<br />
The best thing about this, is the author actually Skyped into our book club meeting to join our discussion for about a half-hour since he is married to Michael's sister. He was a super-nice guy and very personable and excited that we were reading and discussing his book. This book is the first in a trilogy that I'm sure I'll be reading when they come out.<br />
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4) <i>1Q84 - </i>Haruki Murakami (925 pages) - A-<br />
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I was so excited to read this book and it did not disappoint. I've read a bunch of Murakami books and they are always so strange and visceral that I get excited whenever I start a new one. Hearing that this book was a smash in Japan and knowing it employs all his usual themes and the fact that it was about 1000 pages of insanity made me even more excited to read it, but had to find the right time.<br />
I went to the library a week before my birthday wanting to have an awesome book ready for that time. My only problem is I didn't anticipate not only the page count, but the weight of the book. There were times that I wanted to read more of the book, but it was not an easy read. <br />
Describing the plot is pretty much impossible, but the book follows two seemingly unconnected stories throughout, with two unconnected narrators: Tengo and Aomame. These two characters are living completely separate lives and the chapters flip back and forth between what's going on with both of them. As you keep reading, you recognize some small parallels between them and as you keep reading the lines of the stories are on a path that seem like an eventual convergence. Both stories deal with the mundane and the weird at the exact same time. I had times when I looked more forward to one character than the other, but in the end this entire novel was an amazing example of slow build up with great writing that I almost never wanted it to end. There was a large section of this book where a character literally does nothing but sit in an apartment alone, and I was completely absorbed. I love Murakmi's writing (I've probably written that a few times in these past few paragraphs, but it's true) that it takes all my will power to not run out and buy all his books and just read him. But I still have a good amount of his books still to read, and on top of that, there is the fact that the man is still alive and writing and I'm hopeful that we can expect more of these strange dream-novels in the future.<br />
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5) <i>Sacre Bleu </i>- Christopher Moore (403 pages) - B+<br />
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Christopher Moore is hit or miss for me, but even his bad novels have some elements of fun attached to them. He is a fun writer that actually has some thoughts behind his idiocity. The back of this book called Christopher Moore the "Impatient reader's Tom Robbins" and I think that is one of the best descriptions of his writing I could come up with.<br />
This book is a little different than his normal modern day tale, but it still has his stamp of humor included. Sacre Bleu takes place in the late 1800s Paris and it starts with the murder of Vincent Van Gogh (not the suicide). From there we meet some of his peers including Degas, Monet, Manet and Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. <br />
The main character is a fictitious baker that wants to be a painter named Lucien. The book is kind of all over the place, but Moore is able to take some facts and shoe-horn them into this story of the color blue and its importance in history. It also explains why all the great impressionists died of syphilis in a very comical way. <br />
I am not a huge art fan, but this was a fun book that even a novice like me could understand. He also interspersed some pictures of the artwork in question which helped explain some of what was being described in the book. <br />
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6) <i>Ransom - </i>Jay McInerney (279 pages) - B (NOTE: this is not the version I read)<br />
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While walking my dog last week I cam upon a bunch of boxes filled with books outside someone's home. Naturally, I stopped and went through these boxes and pulled out about five books that I decided I needed. Besides <i>The Cat in the Hat</i> <i>Comes Back, </i> this is the first I have read of that group.<br />
I had read a few other Jay McInerney books and have liked most that I have read (and I still have the theory that him and Brett Easton Ellis are actually the same person, but that's besides the point).<br />
This novel follows a 20 year oldish guy named Christopher Ransom. Ransom lives in Japan after fleeing America and his family after having some major disagreements with his father. He comes to Japan eventually and we learn he has a high moral code and is seriously training in Karate. He is very dedicated and rarely does anything but train. <br />
The story is intercut with stories of Ransom back in the states and with a character defining trip he took in Pakistan and Afghanistan before making his way to Japan around 1975. Now it's 1977 and he's training and it seems like he's changed his life in penance for something in his past. Along with the Yakuza and a few other Americans that Ransom is friends with along with a Vietnam refugee and his Karate class mates, this book really was strange and fun and sad all at once. Not bad for other people's garbage.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-50006442844684011612012-08-11T10:11:00.001-04:002013-05-28T09:12:42.466-04:00Yet Another Book Post<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It is the first week of August, and since my last post in June, I have read five really good books, one not so good and a few great comic books. For those that care, here they are:<br />
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1) <i>Devil In The White City - </i>Erik Larson (396 pages) - B<br />
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This seems to be one of those books that everyone you know has read. It is marketed as being a "Non-Fiction book that reads like a Fictional one". That seems to be what everyone says about it. I disagree. For me it is a non-fiction book that reads like a pretty well-written non-fiction book. So don't believe the people that say that.<br />
BUT, the book is quite good. It's not great, and there are parts that are boring as sin, but the plot of the book follows two separate trails: 1) The trials and tribulations of the city of Chicago trying to build and put on the greatest World's Fair in history with minimal time and no ideas as to how to make it as great as the previous World's Fair in Paris which introduced the Eiffel Tower. 2) While this is going on, there is a charismatic business man that has the unfortunate hobby of killing young, single women in a house that he built with specific intentions of carrying out his plan.<br />
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Parts of this book are great and hearing about the history of Chicago, and by extension America, at the turn of the Century when America was trying to claim its dominance on the world-stage are fun to read about. The famous and influential people that went to this World's Fair seem impressive, but my biggest problem with the book is that the two story-lines only had a loose connection and didn't tie together as well as I would have preferred, or how they probably would have had this book been Fiction.<br />
This book also had that strange sub-culture that seems to happen with some books: I actually got stopped on the street and around the city at least six times from strangers who were very enthusiastic that I was reading this book since they seemed to love it. This happens rarely with books, but when it does, I find it interesting that this book affects some people so much that they have to stop me and let me know they too have read that book and enjoyed it. I wonder why that seems acceptable for some and not others. Not that I mind, but it's an interesting phenomenon.<br />
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2) <i>The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest - </i>Steig Larsson (655) - B+<br />
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There have been a bunch of books on my list for a while that I hadn't gotten around to for various reasons that I was able to catch up on this month (I guess that's what summer is for) and this was one of them. I have been excited to read the concluding book in this trilogy for a while and since I had some time I decided to finally go for it.<br />
The first 100 pages or so, I thought I made a mistake. Maybe it had been too long since I read the last one (almost two years), or maybe this one just wasn't as good since the author died soon after he finished writing it. <br />
But once a pseudo-main character was shockingly (to me) killed off, the book really picked up speed. It ended up being another great page-turner and a pretty good conclusion to this trilogy. <br />
I'm sad we will never get another story about Lisbeth Salander since she will truly go down in the annals along with other great literary characters/anti-heroes. My only problem with the entire series is whenever a new woman is introduced it is really just a matter of time before they are in bed with Mikhail and it gets to be kind of stupid.<br />
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3) <i>The Color Purple - </i>Alice Walker (288) - B+<br />
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I have always read more than the average person, but when I graduated college I specifically started reading a lot in order to continue by education on a personal basis. This meant reading anything and everything I could get my hands on including all of the books that I didn't read in High School that most people did. <i>The Color Purple</i> was always on that list of books. Side note: I remember seeing the movie version of this story in the theater when it came out with my mother. She has a famous story that while walking to the car I told her "That's how you feel about your sister" and she started crying. (yeah, I was a damn cute kid).<br />
While at my neice's 3rd birthday party in January, I saw this book in a "give a book-take a book library" and took it. This summer I finally got around to reading it after having not seen the movie probably since the mid-80s and barely remembered the plot.<br />
My initial thoughts was how graphic it was since I know many students read this book in Junior High School and I think I would not have been mature enough to deal with many of the issues of incest, bisexuality and abuse (I barely am now). <br />
My other critique is that although I understand the writing style was done on purpose to show the differences in education between Celie and Nettie, and it was executed flawlessly, I get annoyed by writing styles that take how people talk and translate them into broken english. I understand that this technique must be well-respected (Mark Twain did it with Huck Finn) and literary people must loe it, but I like to read good writing. <br />
However, even with these small critiques, this was a beautiful story about strength and love. I also have to say, I was a little surprised by the happy ending. I haven't spoken to an English Teacher about this, but I'm wondering if the last chapter may have been made up in Celie's head in order to cope better with her sister's death and instead she made up the last chapter of Nettie eventually coming home. But maybe I'm just jaded.<br />
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4)<i> The Walking Dead: The Rise of The Governor - </i>Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga (308) - D+ <br />
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I'm a huge fan of the comic book <i>The Walking Dead</i>. I also enjoy the TV show it is based on, although probably a little less than the average viewer since I feel the source material is so much better. So when I was in the bookstore and saw this novel about a lost chapter in the Walking Dead universe, I thought it could be fun. I was wrong.<br />
The book is slow, and boring. I saw the "twist" on page 2 and had to wait 300 pages for the pay off. I understand that a bit of the point of this book was to show how boring this world can be at times. There are no people and once you find shelter from the zombies you can get into a monotony that can drive you crazy. But that doesn't make for interesting reading.<br />
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This book also was supposed to be the story of how The Governor got to where he was when we met him in the comic book as one of the most sadistic characters I've ever read about and this book did not show that at all. Instead it was a bout a weak character and how he eventually came into his own a little bit, but this book really didn't go far enough.<br />
I have heard there is a sequel out now to this book showing more how the Governor became "The Governor" that we know, but after reading this book and its style, I am not that excited to give it a whirl.<br />
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5) <i>Destiny of the Republic - </i>Candice Millard (260) B-<br />
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Another Non-Fiction book (I've read a ton this year) was selected as my latest Book Club offering. This was an account of the president selected in the 1880 election and his assassination.<br />
I have to say, I was not excited about reading this book at all. I didn't care and just picked it up at the library and tried to burn through it as quickly as possible. It ended up being a well-written, great story about a historical figure that I knew nothing about and seemed to be someone that may have been good for our country, had he had more time to make a difference.<br />
I was mostly taken aback by all of the changes our country has gone through in 130 years (I write this as I watch Mitt Romney choose his running mate on TV). I was mostly amazed how well-spoken and eloquent our leaders used to be while today they seem to have to dumb their speaking down in order to seem more like the masses.<br />
There are written testaments to James Garfield's fear at being the president, his desires to make changes and differences that are better written than most novels I read. By that, I was impressed.<br />
This book also had a lot of similarities in tone to <i>Devil in the White City</i> with how famous people were a factor in his shooting and recovery. How Alexander Graham Bell and Joseph Lister tried to help him but the common practices of the time did not make their "new" science as attractive as what was being done to him.<br />
This is a book not only for History buffs (although it helps), but for anyone that is curious about America and how things used to be.<br />
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6) <i>Fables: Inherit The Wind - </i>Bill Willingham & Mark Buckingham<br />
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The latest trade paperback in the wonderful Fables comic book. I have even gotten my friend Bridget (who has never read a comic in her life prior to this) to hunger for the next chapter.<br />
This one is mostly a bridge book and focuses mostly on the fall-out from the death of a major character last book and who will take over that character's roll.<br />
This is not the greatest of the Fables books out there and reads more like the calm before the newest storm to hit our lovable cast of characters. But it is still a great book, with great characters and art. I look forward to the next installment once again.<br />
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7) <i>Locke and Key: Clockworks - </i>Joe Hill & Gabriel Rodriguez<br />
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I can't believe there is only going to be one more installment of this book after this one. Joe Hill has created a world (and numerous keys) that I get happy to read about every time.<br />
This chapter took us into the past to understand how and why many of the keys were made. This told the history of Dodge and the demon. We also got to fill in a lot of the missing pieces and got answers to some mysteries that I never really expected to learn about, mostly about the kids father, and his group of friends from when he was a kid.<br />
It also gave explanations as to why the house and the keys seem only to reveal themselves to the youngest children.<br />
Right when I finished reading this book I wanted to go back and start over from the first book and absorb everything that happened. But I may wait to do that until just before reading the final chapter in six months time.<br />
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8) <i>Bel Canto - </i>Ann Patchett (318) B+/A-<br />
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My co-worker gave me the book <i>Run</i> by this author earlier in the year and I really enjoyed it. I did some research on Ann Pratchett and found out Bel Canto was her "best" book according to most. It sounded interesting, so that same co-worker brought in this book for me. I finished it yesterday and agree that it is amazing. <br />
Again, I can't explain why this book is so good. But it all comes down to how strong of a writer Ann Pratchett is. <br />
The story follows a Japanese business man that gets invited to a nameless South American country that wants his business to invest in them. To goad him into coming, the government hires his favorite opera singer to sing for him knowing he can't resist. A bunch of militants hear about his and decide to crash the party in order to kidnap the president who is supposed to be there. Unfortunately for the militants, the president decides not to show up because he wants to watch his favorite soap opera that night.<br />
Instead, the militants decide to keep the entire party hostage instead of the president.<br />
What follows is an amazing situation where hostages and kidnappers are together for months and must learn to live and love together. It is a beautiful story made even more beautiful by the writing. I think I can recommend this book for virtually anyone. But I cannot say why I enjoy it as much as I did.<br />
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MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-49938900257400015162012-06-22T00:23:00.000-04:002012-06-24T19:56:45.648-04:00Mid-Year Update on What I've Been ReadingIt's unfortunate that I've been extremely busy at work and training my new dog that I have no time to watch TV, or go to movies. But I have been listening to tons of music (blog to follow), and still reading a good amount. The last book I wrote about was a <i>Life</i> by Keith Richards which I finished in early April. Since then I have read 8 new books. I will update them here:<br />
1) <i>Animal's People - </i>Indra Sinha<i> </i>(366 pages) - D+<br />
Not much for me to write about this book<a href="https://encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkHh8FLXjEJjaOGpNo5IkK7PCHwrqfw3ubn_oxb3h6KVoc249i" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkHh8FLXjEJjaOGpNo5IkK7PCHwrqfw3ubn_oxb3h6KVoc249i" width="320" /></a>. It was the latest book club book and I'm not saying it was bad, but it happened to come into my life when I wanted to read many other things, and I had to read this. It never grabbed me. I didn't care about the main character, I could not get into his voice and all I kept thinking while reading it is that I didn't want to read it. I tried my best to enjoy it, but it just wasn't for me at that point in my life and that's unfortunate since it had a chance to be good. Sometimes your mood really has a bigger affect on how you enjoy a book than you'd like and I think this time it was me and not the book. <br />
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2) <i>Run - </i>Ann Patchett (296 Pages) B+<br />
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This book was almost the opposite as the previous one. Here's the back-story to this book. My co-worker started talking to me about an author and I was kind of tuning her out as she mentioned she would let me borrow her copy of it. I said OK, not thinking she would actually follow through. When she brought the book, I felt bad since I was not excited to read it based on the description. I saw how short it was and decided to just try and knock it out as quickly as possible.<br />
To my surprise, the book was just amazing. I cannot really explain why it was so good. It is not the type of book I would normally read, but the writing was so engaging and the characters were all so endearing that I couldn't put it down.<br />
The book follows an ex-Senator from Massachusetts (think a less famous Kennedy) who adopted two black brothers when they were children. The story unfolds that sheds light on those brothers now that they are young men and their history that they didn't even know about.<br />
I was so surprised by this book and its description of a less-than-normal family that it made me want to read more of Ann Patchett's books and I think I will since I've read all of her books are this good. I would say she reminded me a lot of John Irving, but without all the strange sexuality that always seems to run underneath his writing. I cannot stress how pleasantly surprised I was by this and think all my readers should give her a try. I may even suggest <i>Bel Canto </i>as my next book club suggestion.<br />
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3) <i>Wizard and Glass - </i> Stephen King (699 Pages) - A<br />
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Stephen King's epic Dark Tower story is one of my most favorite things ever written. I started a re-read of the series about 18 months ago when Stephen King announced that he was going to be returning to this series.<br />
Some history: Stephen King wrote a 7 book series and completed the story, but found later on that he had more to write of the characters he created. He announced he was going to write a new book that would basically be book 4.5 and would fit between some of the other books. We already know how the story ends, and this will not change the ending, but new stories are new stories. I decided to reread the series in preparation (for the 4th time...).<br />
I was actually dreading this book. This book goes back and tells the story of the main character when he was a young man and does not really progress the story as a whole much. The only problem: <b>This may be the best book Stephen King has ever written. </b> This is not an opinion. He has gotten much acclaim for this book, but it is very inaccessible to the novice reader since it is sandwiched exactly in the middle of this series. No one wants to read JUST book 4 of a seven book series (but they could and would be a little confused, but very happy). And no one wants to read three books just to get to this book (even though they should since books 1-3 are DAMN good.<br />
Well, this was the fourth time I've read this book, and was as engaged as all the others times. The story of this book is a simple star-crossed-lovers tale, but told so well that it can really be recommended for anyone. I implore anyone to read this book and to tell me "I don't like Stephen King". This is not a horror book. It is a simple, beautiful love story that anyone can relate to.<br />
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4) <i>The Wind Through The Keyhole - </i>Stephen King (307 pages) - B+<br />
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I read <i>Wizard and Glass</i> because the newest one (book 4.5 as described above) finally came out. It has been 7 years (I think) since there was a new Dark Tower book and I was very excited. I am giving this book a B+, and I admit that is a high ranking for this book. I would give anything that even mentions Roland a B, and returning to visit some old friends of mine, and read new stories of theirs was great.<br />
That said, this book was not great. It was boring at times and the majority of it was a retelling of a "classic children's tale" from Mid-World.<br />
It was still good, and fun. But I would have preferred more time with the original Ka-Tet then to read about the new hero of this book.<br />
My hope is that Stephen King finds his way back to this world a few more times so we can have more stories featuring some of my favorite characters ever. If this book was just a start of more stories from Mid-World, I would be ecstatic. Either way: The tower is closer........<br />
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5) <i>The Devotion of Suspect X - </i>Keigo Higashino (440 pages) - B-<br />
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My friend Alice gave me this book at a party at her house. She had just read it and thought I would enjoy it. Nothing makes me happier than someone reading a book, thinking about me and giving it to me. As you can tell by this blog post alone, I will always try and read the book no matter what it is.<br />
This is another type of book that I never would have read. I don't read many Japanese authors, and this is not a very famous book here in America. But, I have to say I didn't love it.<br />
It was definitely a page-turner and a very quick read. But I think I've read many books in a similar vein as this and this one didn't really bring anything new to the table. <br />
Also, the writing style was very simple (admittedly, this could have a lot to do with the translation) and spelled out and the twists weren't very twisty since they were very slow to develop so you could see where they were going.<br />
But in the end, I enjoyed the book for what it was.<br />
<br />
6) <i>Frankenstein - </i>Mary Shelley (256 pages) - B+<br />
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At our last book club meeting we all agreed to read a "Classic" next. Someone finally decided on <i>Frankenstein. </i>I had always wanted to read this book, but for whatever reason never pulled the trigger.<br />
I read this on my phone (which I do not really enjoy, but it was free), but I cannot believe how much I loved this book.<br />
I can't give it an A grade simply because of some of the slow parts it had and I had a few parts where I was bored.<br />
But, the writing of this book is absolutely beautiful. I enjoyed the style of the multiple narrations and really loved the eloquence of The Monster.<br />
Of course, being someone that consumes pop-culture, the only Frankenstein I knew was from the movies. My only question after reading this book is: How could they get that iteration from the novel I just read??? It barely resembled the story we all know.<br />
This was a story about the responsibility one has to their off-springs/creations. And a struggle of like and what we are all owed/deserve. The book really was nothing like what I was expecting or could fathom.<br />
A few years ago, I read <i>Dracula</i> and although that wasn't what I expected either, it had most of the same ingredients. Not so with this this gorgeous novel that I look forward to rereading in the future.<br />
<br />
7) <i>Under The Banner of Heaven - </i>Jon Krakauer (365 Pages) - B<br />
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I was up at my friend Bridget's house reading Frankenstein and saw I only had a few pages left. She had a bookshelf of books just sitting there. I grabbed this one since I just bought tickets to the musical <i>The Book of Mormon</i> and am fascinated by most religions and how people can blindly follow a set of arbitrary rules on how to live their lives. Also, since there is a chance our next President may be of this faith, I figured I should at least be relatively knowledgeable about what he believes in.<br />
I grabbed this book also since I have read a few other Krakauer books and enjoyed them. <i>Under the Banner of Heaven </i>tells the history of the Mormon church as well some of the more recent controversies that have plagued it.<br />
The book itself has some slow parts (as most non-fiction accounts do), but it is an interesting assessment of the struggles the Mormon people have had and how they have grown over just about 150 years.<br />
Of course this book is skewed to paint the Mormons in a less than favorable light, but some of the facts are purely fantastic. The only thing I believe about Mormonism is that Joseph Smith was probably one of the most personable and charismatic people to have ever lived to have pulled off what he did. Much like L. Ron Hubbard, he seems to have simply created a story that tapped into something and got people to believe him. It seems crazy to a rational person, but these influential people are around all the time and always are able to gain followers, for good or for bad.<br />
<br />
8) <i>The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Grove</i> - Christopher Moore (320 Pages) - B+<br />
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I've read a few of Christopher Moore's books and enjoyed them, but after the last one I read I thought I was done with him. I thought of him as a wannabe Tom Robbins. I still think this, but since the odds of me getting another Tom Robbins book are slim, I figure he may be what the doctor ordered from time to time.<br />
I found this book in my office while we were moving. It was in the "give-a-book, take-a-book" section and I grabbed it while we were moving. I think it came to me just at the right time. I needed a book like this after all the non-fiction I've been reading in order to just make me giggle and get excited to see how silly/stupid the next page could get.<br />
The story revolves around a small town where an ageless monster shows up at a time when everyone is susceptible to its charms. The characters include, but are not limited to a Dude Lebowski type, an aging ex B-Movie star, a Blues musician, a dog, a psychiatrist, and a pharmacist obsessed with aquatic life.<br />
I do not want to give anything else away for anyone that wants to read this. But it really was one of the funnier books I've read in quite some time. If you're in the mood for something really ridiculous, give it a try.<br />
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</tbody></table>MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-11544082487966981592012-06-10T21:29:00.001-04:002012-06-24T19:57:01.742-04:00New Batman Plot?I've been reading comic books pretty regularly for over 20 years. Now that they've become kind of mainstream with the popularity of Avengers and the awaited conclusion to the newest Batman trilogy I feel vindicated in my love for "kiddy books".<br />
<br />
But something that is kind of fun for a comic fan is to try and figure out how the stories are going to be adopted before they even come out. Like comic fans and non-fans, I enjoyed Batman Begins and The Dark Knight and now the last chapter is being released in a few months and although the studio has released some teasers about the story, they have been pretty secretive about what the story is actually about. I figured this would be a fun place to put my guestimate about what we are all in store for with one of the biggest movies of the year a month before it comes out.<br />
<br />
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From what I can tell, this story seems like it is going to be a combination of the classic Batman stories Knightfall and No Man's Land.<br />
<br />
In the comics during Knightfall, a new villain named Bane broke all of Batman's villains out of prison and exhausted Batman by making him fight all of his old villains and exhausting him before breaking in to The Bat Cave and fighting Batman himself and beating him by breaking his back, but not killing him. This forced Batman to find a replacement for a while as he recovered and then eventually coming back and beating Bane and the new Batman who went a little overboard with his new power.<br />
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<br />
<br />
A few years later, there was another epic storyline in the comics called No Man's Land which showed a huge earthquake hit Gotham City and the city was so crime-savaged and the damages became so expensive that the US government decided to let Gotham City exist on its own and they declared Marshall Law and blew up all the bridges going to and fro Gotham City and Batman and his co-horts (Robin, Huntress, Batgirl etc) were the only people to keep order.<br />
<br />
If my guess is correct from what they are showing in the trailers the movie will start with Batman being on the run from the law after the events of The Dark Knight, but although he's a vigilante in the shadows, he has a pretty strong grasp on the crime element in Gotham City and crime is not a huge problem in Gotham anymore since all criminals fear Batman.<br />
I expect Bane to come to Gotham City early in the movie with a challenge to himself to find and beat Batman. Bane is a character that enjoys challenges to perfect himself since he is a criminal genius as well as a drug addict who is addicted to a steroid called Venom.<br />
I believe within the first hour of the movie, Bane will fight Batman and beat him, most likely because Batman has not had a big challenge in some time, and in this fight Bane with break Batman's back and claim Gotham City as now his instead of Batmans.<br />
<br />
The next half-hour of the movie will feature Bruce Wayne and Alfred trying to figure out if he will ever walk again and Batman dealing with his fear of Bane while we also see Bane take over and raise up a new Underworld.<br />
<br />
Eventually there will be an earthquake which will force Marshall Law on Gotham City and this will also force Batman to come out of retirement and face his fear of Bane.<br />
<br />
This is of course a rough outline and I am not sure of how Catwoman will fit in. (Will she be a lackey of Bane, or someone that is out for her own? My guess is the latter) Also, the studio is heavily hinting that Batman may die at the end of this movie. I think it's possible this will be true, but not in the way that they are hinting. I think what may happen is Batman will beat Bane somehow (most likely by turning his Venom feed against him in some way and making him OD), but then the movie will end followed by a flash into the future of showing an old man Bruce Wayne living in a utopian Gotham City that he helped create with Batman's form of protection. This way we will see an old man at peace with what he did for the first time and he will die old and in peace.<br />
<br />
This is at least all that I would like to see, and understand I may be way off.<br />
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If I'm close, or wrong, I am excited for this movie and am hopeful that it will be entertaining either way.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-14088438302901613022012-04-11T07:34:00.001-04:002012-06-24T19:57:26.991-04:00What Have I been reading in 2012?As my loyal reader knows, I was on quite a reading kick in 2011. I
challenged myself to read 52 books in 52 weeks and surpassed my
expectation by reading 54 instead and starting my 55th before
year-end.<br />
So far this year, I have not been as active on the
reading circuit mostly because I have been working a ton and generally
busy with living (mostly all good things). But since I'm not dead, I
am still reading some books and now that the first quarter is up and at
this time last year I had already consumed 16 books, I am happy to
report I am on pace to read half of my output from last year and have
finished 8 books as of yesterday. Surprisingly, many of them have been
Non-Fiction. They will be listed below with commentary followed by my
reasons for reading this book at this time:<br />
<br />
1) Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell (306 Pages) - <b>B+</b><br />
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I
have now read all of Gladwell's books. I am always amazed by his
ability to take mundane statistical analysis and compose them in an
interesting and engaging narrative. He explains certain aspects of
society that make perfect sense after his explanation but I had never
thought about in that way before. This book explains how and why
certain successful people became so good at their craft and happened to
be at the right place and the right time to innovate, excel and change
our world. He comes up with a 10,000 hour theory, where if you do
something for 10,000 hours you will become an expert at it. This
includes such skills as playing an instrument, sport, writing computer
code and flying a plane. This theory explains how people were able to
put in those 10,000 hours in niche industries (like computer coding in
the early 1970s) and as a result had the unique ability to be
pre-qualified for those industries when they exploded. It also explains
why certain stereotypes of people exist, where they came from and why
they may, in fact, be true. Over all, this was a fun, engaging book
that makes you feel better about yourself for not being as successful as
you wish you were simply by saying you weren't in the right place at
the right time.<br />
<br />
This book came to me by my friend Bridget just bringing it over for me and Aubrey to enjoy. <br />
<br />
<br />
2) Ready Player One - Ernest Cline (374 Pages) - <b>A-</b><br />
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This
is a book written by a nerd for nerds. This novel takes place in a
future society where a Mark Zuckerberg/Steve Jobs type creates this
fictional on-line game that becomes more popular than the real world
called the OASIS. Think about it as an online World of
Warcraft/Facebook place where everyone goes to school, socializes and
does their shopping. As a result, the rest of the country has kind of
gone to hell since everyone is always online instead of living. But
this creator dies and creates a contest where whoever can figure out
where to find an EGG that he hid somewhere in the OASIS, they will
inherit his entire fortune. The twist is this creator was a product of
the 1980s and everything has to do with old movies, music video games
and basic 1980s pop culture. This makes all of society obsessed with
that decade since everyone in the world is trying to crack this code to
win this contest. It sounds insane, and it is, but this book was truly
the most fun I've had reading in a while. It was engaging and because I
got most of the references, it felt familiar. Ernest Cline is not the
best writer, but he obviously loves his pop culture. He made this book
which could have been insanely confusing into something that I can
honestly recommend to anyone of my generation.<br />
<br />
I actively
searched for this book since I had read about it on a number of message
boards and websites. I reserved it at the library and when it was made
available to me, I devoured this relatively large novel in days. <br />
<br />
<br />
3) The Social Animal - David Brooks (376 Pages) - <b>D</b><br />
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Sometimes
it's easier to review and to discuss books that you hate more than what
you like. To tell what's good, I would have to give away a plot that I
would genuinely like other people to be surprised by and enjoy. This
book was a selection for my Book Club and I could not have hated
anything more. The concepts were very similar to what was discussed in
Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, but the presentation and the writing was
the main difference. David Brooks decided to tell a Non-Fiction book
through the narrative of a fictitious couple and how they went through
life together. This decision was obnoxious and did not add to the
story. He spent so much time explaining what these people did and their
careers but there was no point to their story. The book would have
been better (and shorter) if he took these fictitious people away and
just explained the science and social differences between people. I
could write more, but that would mean giving David Brooks more time than
he deserves. I hated this book with a passion.<br />
<br />
This was a book club book that I had to read.... Unfortunately <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
4) 11/22/63 - Stephen King (850 Pages) - <b>A-</b><br />
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After
the disaster of the Social Animal, I was excited to read the newest
Stephen King novel about a man who travels back in time to stop Lee
Harvey Oswald from killing John F. Kennedy. As everyone knows, I am a
rabid Stephen King fan, but I truly believe this book is one that anyone
can enjoy. It is not a horror book at all, and although the plot
revolves around this Science Fiction plot, it is really more about the
characters and about a man living out of time and making the most of
it.<br />
There is a sweetness to Stephen King's writing lately and
although I do not want to ruin anything with this book for anyone that
wants to read it, I will warn you there is an undertow of sadness within
this book.<br />
<br />
I got this book as a Christmakah present
from Aubrey. It was only a matter of time before I found I had the 2-3
weeks required free to read this book. Once I started hearing positive
reviews for it, I knew this book would be the cure to my Social Animal
blues <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
5) The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemingway (251 Pages) - <b>C+</b><br />
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<br />
My friend Bridget is in the process of reading all of Hemingway's novels
as a challenge to herself this year. I was interested in reading him
too since I am not as well versed in the classics as I probably should
be.<br />
or the most part, I was not very impressed with this book.
It reminded me of the Great Gatsby which makes sense since it was
written around the same time and Hemingway and Fitzgerald were friends.
But the basic plot of spoiled rich kids traveling around Europe because
they're disassociated from The Great War and their place in the world
just seems very shallow. (Yes, I understand how that sounds coming from
a Blog who's sole purpose is to share ones insights, but I do not have
any delusions of being considered a Hemingway).<br />
Overall, I was
kind of bored by the book and although I realize I probably am missing a
ton of symbolism and impressive writing style, I can't say I enjoyed
this book much and instead was thinking about when it would be over.<br />
<br />
I
almost read this before reading 11/22/63, but Stephen King always wins
out. I tried this afterwards. I'm curious if most books after a King
book pale in comparison. Simply because for me, he is one of the best
in the field. This will have to be pondered over as I continue reading
Stephen King (Including next month's Wind Through The Keyhole) <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
6) Steve Jobs - Walter Isaacson (571 Pages) - <b>A</b><br />
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</a>I then read the Biography of Steve Jobs. This book impressed
me more than I expected. Although he seemed to have been a difficult
person to work with, it was inspiring to read about someone who had a
vision that most others disagreed with and used his influence and drive
to create a product line that he thought was the correct way. His idea
of closing off his computer systems went against the "Hackers Code"
where they wanted an open source where people could poke around and
innovate, but it turned out to be a better business model than almost
all others.<br />
There was a lot I didn't know about Steve Jobs
before this book and this book also opened up the idea of reading
Biographies to me, which I never really considered before. As long as
the character in question is interesting, I am excited to read more
biographies, including some by Walter Isaacson since he also wrote well
respected ones on Albert Einstein and Benjamin Franklin.<br />
<br />
I
got this book for Aubrey for Christmakah. She had yet to read it and I
decided to be the guinea pig. Also, I was curious to know more about
Steve Jobs since I only knew the bare minimum of anecdotes. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
7) Kill Alex Cross - James Patterson (365 Pages) - <b>C+</b><br />
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<br />
As
I've written before on this blog, I have read all the Alex Cross
novels. They are not so much good, as they are fun and easy reads. I
guess I'm stuck coming back to every one of these (since I've already
invested 18 books of this character). I will always be curious about
what will happen next to my favorite DC Police-Man/FBI Agent. I will
always be curious about if Nana Mama will ever die, and what may happen
to his kids or his friend Sampson.<br />
<br />
<br />
This book follows about three distinct story-lines that actually
did not really converge, but instead one was wrapped up well, one
appears to lead into the next book and develop a new major villain in
the series and one establishes something new for the Cross family.<br />
<br />
<br />
These books are like Soap Operas to me, and everyone loves a good Soap Opera.<br />
<br />
<br />
8) Life - Keith Richards (550 Pages) - <b>B</b><br />
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<br />
<br />
Aubrey's sister left this book at our house and since I am open
to biographies now, I decided to try my hand at an autobiography. I
would not consider myself a Rolling Stones fan. I firmly park my car in
The Beatles garage, but after reading the book and loading up my ipod
with Stones CDs while reading, I feel I understand the band much more.
The Stones were an English band copying what they were hearing coming
out of America, mostly the Chicago and Southern Blues scene. Keith
Richards is a true guitarist and musician vs. The Beatles who are more
pop-oriented and song-writers.<br />
Reading the book is a lot like
what I would imagine being with Keith Richards would be like. Fun, a
little disjointed with stories jumping around from one thing to the
other with only a loose narrative, but interesting.<br />
<br />
If you only know The Rolling Stones hits like Start Me Up and
Satisfaction, then that's really only scraping the surface of the band.
They really thrive at their simple blues which are backed by Richards's
strong guitar skills. Since I play a little guitar and this book also appealed to me by him
explaining how he learned, and his migration over to 5-stringed Open G
tuning and why he felt that helped him develop his and The Stones
distinct sound over time.<br />
<br />
I was not expecting to read this book at this time, but it
dropped into my hands and although it may be a little long, I was glad
to have read it.<br />
<br />
<br />
I am now caught up in my readings through April 10, 2012. I am now reading another Book Club book that I am not excited about, but will muscle through so I can get to some others I'm more more excited about, as well as some that I'm not that were recommended to me by people that I trust. <br />
We will see what happens throughout the rest of the year.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-63384021803243464582012-04-06T19:01:00.004-04:002012-06-24T19:57:13.121-04:00My Private Concert For MyselfI don't know how to write about music. How can one express in words the feeling you get from a great song? And how can you explain in words what distinguishes a good song from a bad one? I have never been able to say why I like a song or a band. But I do have bands that I love and I understand not many people like everything I do so for me music is a very private thing. And since I rarely have time to really listen to music, it is rare for me to really rock out and enjoy music fully. I have found that the times that this is most likely to happen is during solo road trips where I can listen to whatever I choose and scream (mind you not "sing") along with my stereo. <br />
This most recently happened in the last weekend of February when I had a chance to drive by myself from my house in Vermont back home to Queens. It started out during a pseudo-blizzard in the middle of the mountain when I decided to brave the elements and try and get home to my beautiful girlfriend. The first thirty minutes of this drive is through the mountains and were frankly quite scary. It was a white-out and I couldn't see more than 20 feet in front of me. The roads were windy through the mountains and I wasn't even paying attention to what was on my ipod. After 45 minutes of driving I finally reached the highway and the snow stopped almost at the exact moment that this song came on randomly from my 1000+ loaded songs:<br />
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This started off my private 3 hour concert.<br />
<br />
Below I will list a selection of the set list that happened in my car. If you can, please feel free to picture me screaming at the top of my lungs to all of these songs. As I write the set-list, I will warn you 1) it is possible you do not know many of these songs, and if you do, it is quite possible you don't know these specific songs by this band. For example: Not many people know the song "It's Late" by Queen, but it has all the elements of a classic Queen song, but for whatever reason it is not as popular as some of their worse songs. 2) I will simply list the songs as they come, and perhaps add an anecdote from time to time if I feel the need. 3) I just got into the band My Chemical Romance. I think they are actually pretty good. But do not know them very well. However, on this specific trip, they were my ipod's favorite band. That said, I was happy when they came on because since I don't know the songs very well, but do like them, when they came on I was able to get a much-needed reprieve from my singing work-out.<br />
<br />
The set list was (<i>with my notes in italics</i>):<br />
1) It's Late - Queen<br />
2) Little Acorns - White Stripes<br />
3) Land of Gold - Shawn Smith<br />
4) Skylines and Turnstiles - My Chemical Romance <br />
5) Luna Park - ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of the Dead -<i> Here's another band that really should be a lot bigger than they are. They have been making some great music for over a decade and everytime I listen to them (which isn't often) I am surprised by how good they are. I recommend them for anyone.</i><br />
6) Go To The Mirror - The Who - <i>Yeah, I like The Who! So shoot me!</i><br />
7) Seen Your Video - The Replacements<br />
<i>8) </i>Ashes to Ashes - Faith No More - <i>What an amazing song!!!! Faith No More is just an amazing band. Oh yeah, I forgot to say, this set list got a little heavy....</i> <br />
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<i> </i>9) To Live is to Die - Metallica - <i>Surprisingly, I have JUST started to get into Metallica recently. I always thought they just weren't for me. </i><br />
10) New Cannonball Blues - TV On The Radio - <i>Their new album has not quite grabbed me like their first and third did. They may be an every-other album band for me. We'll see.</i><br />
11) Communication Breakdown - Led Zeppelin - <i>This is where the wheels started to come off of my road trip. I think I was going horse by now, but I was only in Springfield Massachusetts with a lot more road to cover. This song made me go 90 MPH. Sometimes you forget how good some songs are.</i><br />
12) Guns of Summer - Coheed & Combria<br />
13) Southern Girls - Cheap Trick - <i>Another Great band that I am just getting into again (like The Rolling Stones)</i><br />
14) Ghost Woman Blues - The Low Anthem<br />
15) You - TV On The Radio<br />
16) At Least That's What You Said - Wilco<br />
17) Pop Is Dead - Radiohead<br />
18) Palo Alto - Radiohead - <i>Do you sometimes kill bands for yourself for a while? I go in phases where I listen to a certain band for days/weeks on end until I am sick of them. This happened for me with Radiohead last summer and as a result, I only have a few unreleased tracks of theirs on my ipod. Don't worry, I'll come back. I always come back to my greatest loves</i><br />
19) Try It On - Interpol - <i>When I'm in the mood for Interpol they are amazing. When I'm not, I can barely listen to 20 seconds of their stuff. I've been into them lately though.</i><br />
20) We're All Gonna Die - Slash <i>- He has a new solo CD with different singers. I'm not going to say it's good, but I can listen to slash do anything, so I know my judgement is skewed.</i><br />
21) Keep Your Heart - TV On The Radio<br />
22) Fields of Coal - ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of the Dead -- <i>This song sounds like an updated Irish Drinking Song. And I think this may be the song that caused me to get back into my concert after a few songs where things looked like they were slowing up: </i><br />
23) Take a Bow - Muse - <i>Over the last 2 years, I think Muse has been my absolute favorite band. They always seem to shock me. This song never really grabbed me fully until this night while driving. It is a great driving song the way it builds up and sucks you in.</i><br />
<i>Take a listen:</i><i> </i><br />
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24) What is and What Should Never Be - Led Zeppelin<br />
25) JellyBelly - Smashing Pumpkins<br />
26) I'm One - The Who<br />
27) 48 - Sunny Day Real Estate<br />
28) 47 - Sunny Day Real Estate - <i>I swear on all that is holy that my ipod decided to randomly play these two songs back to back out of all of the 1000+ songs loaded on it. I need to understand the logic that Apple put into their products because sometimes it's just insane. How many times have I been thinking of a specific song and then it comes on next? I can't even count. </i><br />
29) Rock & Roll - Led Zeppelin - <i>One of the absolute greatest songs ever recorded. And really, a perfect title to a perfect song. I listened to the studio version, but this is pretty good too:</i><br />
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30) We Are The Waiting - Green Day - <i>A song that gets better the louder you play it.</i><br />
31) Guiding Light - Muse<br />
32) Rhythm and Soul - Spoon- <i>Another great band that only gets credit in Indie circles</i><br />
33) We Almost Lost Detroit - Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr - <i>A band that I picked up at the library simply because their name made me laugh. But I was pleasantly surprised by their music</i><br />
34) Exogenesis: Symphony Part 2 - Muse - <i>At the end of their most recent album, Muse included what they call a three part symphony to close out the album. Yes it is amazing. Hauntingly beautiful and amazing. It's amazing that this is a three piece band. Feel free to listen to the entire thing: <a href="http://youtu.be/YEH98_Ha2aA">http://youtu.be/YEH98_Ha2aA</a> </i><br />
35) If I needed Someone - The Beatles<br />
36) Lies Of The Beautiful People - Sixx AM<br />
37) Got To Get You Into My Life - The Beatles - <i>Another band that I have recently killed for myself, but started listening to Rubber Soul and Revolver instead of the staples of Abbey Road and Sgt. Peppers. This helps keep things fresh.</i><br />
38) Glorious - Muse - <i>Yes, I love them!</i><br />
39) Exhausted - Foo Fighters<br />
40) Faded Beauty Queens - The Thrills<br />
41) A Quick One While He's Away - Green Day<br />
<br />
This concluded my Road Trip. I was riding a natural high that is difficult to reproduce. I hope even one person in this world decides to try some or all of these songs out for themselves. I know it's my dumb taste in music, but I truly think these are great bands and some great music. Given: They're not all home runs, but most are.<br />
<br />
Enjoy. And I hope to be writing more than just this one post.MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-82471383476199714182011-12-06T23:36:00.001-05:002012-06-24T19:57:36.018-04:00How did I choose to Read books 32-52??<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A while back I started a post not just reviewing books (since anyone can review a book), but instead explaining how I came to read those specific books. I will now finish that for the remaining books I read this year. Starting at book #32:<br />
<br />
<br />
32. <i>A Game of Thrones</i>- George RR Martin 809 Pages -- A<br />
I loved the HBO show. On a whim I bought the books on Amazon when I saw a deal where they were selling the books for approximately $20 for the first four books. I wasn't sure I'd like the books, but I figured why not. I guess you can tell, I liked them. If anyone's looking to read these themselves I recommend this cheap set: http://www.amazon.com/Books-Thrones-Clash-Kings-Swords/dp/B005CC0CMC/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1323232864&sr=8-22<br />
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33. <i>A Clash of Kings - </i>George RR Martin 969 Pages - A<br />
I didn't expect to jump right into this second book in the series. I thought I would space them out and take my time, but that's not really my style I guess. I couldn't help myself. I had to know what was going to happen to the characters. Especially since reading the first book was a lot like just watching the TV show again which I had just watched a few months prior.<br />
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34. <i>Shopgirl - </i>Steve Martin 130 Pages -- B+<br />
Earlier in the year, I read <i>An Object of Beauty</i>, Steve Martin's newest novel about a young woman. I happened to be in my laundry room and saw his earlier novel from about 10 years ago covering a similar subject matter. I had seen the movie, but didn't remember it. The book was good and smart, but I'm happy he expanded the themes of his newest novel.<br />
<br />
35. <i>A Storm of Swords -- </i>George RR Martin 1,128 Pages -- A+<br />
I read a short book, but couldn't stay away from the world George Martin has sucked me into. I went back after a short hiatus and am happy I did so since this was the best book I read this year, and one of the best books I've ever read in my life.<br />
<br />
36. <i>No Country For Old Men - </i>Cormac McCarthy 309 Pages --C+<br />
I found this in my laundry room when I found Shopgirl. I don't get Cormac McCarthy. After reading this and The Road, I have officially decided he's not for me.<br />
<br />
37. <i>The Big Sleep - </i>Raymond Chandler 230 Pages-- B-<br />
This was my book club book, so I ordered it from the library and read it quickly so I could run back to my world of Dragons, Direwolves and Kingslaying.<br />
<br />
38. <i>A Feast For Crows -- </i>George RR Martin 976 Pages -- A<br />
I could only stay away for one book before reading the final book in the set that I bought. I thought I would save it, but I couldn't.<br />
<br />
39. <i>A Dance With Dragons -- </i>George RR Martin 959 Pages -- A<br />
I went out with my friend Mike and he told me he had the book and said since he was a little behind me he wouldn't get to it for a few weeks. If I could promise to read it, and give it back within 3 weeks I could have it. So I jumped at the opportunity to catch up with all the other fans and then to dive into the websites for theorizing.<br />
<br />
40. <i>The Postmortal -- </i>Drew Magary 365 Pages -- B+<br />
The newest book club book had to be read. While walking through the rough aisles of Comicon, I happened to see that the book that was assigned was being sold at the nerd-haven. Without thinking, I bought the book just so I had it<br />
<br />
41. <i>The Tao of Pooh -- </i>Benjamin Hoff 158 Pages -- B-<br />
One weekend I went over my friend Evan's house. He is a fellow lover of books and had a sweeping bookshelf of books that I was interested in reading. I told him about my challenge and he mentioned that he was sure he had a ton of short, good books. The next few books on this list come from Evan's shelf.<br />
<br />
42. <i>After The Quake -- </i>Haruki Murakami 145 Pages -- A-<br />
I got Evan into Murakami when I read <i>The Wind-up Bird Chronicles. </i>Since then, we have both read a few of his books. Evan had this one so I stole it before even he had read it.<br />
<br />
43. <i>The House on Mango Street -- </i>Sandra Cisneros 110 Pages -- C<br />
While going through Evan's books, Aubrey asked if she could borrow this one. He said OK. I decided to read the book simply because it was in my apartment and it was short. It bored me.<br />
<br />
44. <i>Techno Pulp - </i>Arty Nelson 203 Pages -- C-<br />
Evan recommended this book saying he enjoyed it while he was traveling through Europe when he was 20. I can see why it may have appealed to him, but reading it as a 34 year old, I couldn't relate as well. But it fit my length criteria. And the only good thing is I read it on the day my nephew was born.<br />
<br />
45. <i>Son of Neptune -- </i>Rick Riordan 513 Pages -- C+<br />
I've read all of Rick Riordan's Demi-god series of books. My brother works for Disney publishing and this is one of his biggest sellers. My brother gave this book to me and since they are quick, fun page-turners I decided to read it. And I was getting sick of reading short books.<br />
<br />
46. <i>Black Swan Green -- </i>David Mitchell 294 Pages -- B-<br />
Evan gave me this book. David Mitchell is an author that he is in love with and I find to be very smart and very good. This was not his crowning achievement (for that read <i>Cloud Atlas)</i>.<br />
<br />
47. <i>Bodega Dreams -- </i>Ernesto Quionez 213 Pages -- B+<br />
Another book that Evan recommended to me. I had no expectations of this book which is a retelling of <i>The Great Gatsby </i>but in present-day Spanish Harlem. I was pleasantly surprised by this story and how well the story was told in today's day.<br />
<br />
48. <i>Miracle on the 17th Green -- </i>James Patterson 195 Pages -- B<br />
This summer I really got into golf. This book was a book about golf by an Author who I have read at least 10 novels by. I know he's a short read, and this was about golf. I saw it on the library shelf and figured I would knock it out in a day. I was right (I read it on the Friday after Thanksgiving), I just wasn't expecting to enjoy this sappy, predictable melodrama as much as I did.<br />
<br />
49. <i>The Curious Case of Benjamin Button -- </i>F. Scott Fitzgerald 63 pages-- C-<br />
I had seen the movie, but I had just read <i>Bodega Dreams</i> and didn't want to re-read <i>Gatsby. </i>But I figured Fitzgerald deserved some respect. I saw it in the library and it was only 3pages long with pictures. It took 45 minutes to read. Oh yeah--- It's also one of the rare instances where the book is better and longer than the movie. And I didn't really like the movie.<br />
<br />
50.<i> Piercing - </i>Ryu Murakami 185 Pages -- B+<br />
Ryu Mrakami's books are always next to Hiraku Murakami in the library. I've always been interested in what I see and heart his books were good, but disturbing. After reading this one, I agree. He's like the Japanese Chuck Palahniuk and that's a good thing.<br />
<br />
51. <i>While Mortals Sleep -- </i>Kurt Vonnegut 255 Pages -- C+<br />
Saw this in the libraray and being someone that needs to read everything by an author, this series of unpublished short stories by the man needed to be read. So I grabbed it off the shelf.<br />
<br />
52. <i>The Visible Man -- </i>Chuck Kloserman 225 Pages -<br />
The first book I read this year was <i>Eating the Dinosaur </i>by Chuck Klosterman. I have never read his fiction before, but saw it in the library and thought there was something fitting about reading my 52nd book of the year by the same author that I read the first by. I'm glad I read this book. Although I'm getting sick of Klosterman's style and his obsession with what "matters and means" and if something is "important" <a href="http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7319858/the-people-hate-tim-tebow">(Seriously!!! Read anything he writes and check out how many times he uses those words Like This Article)</a><br />
<br />
<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-40660567909441281322011-12-06T23:17:00.001-05:002012-06-24T19:57:48.021-04:0052 Books in 52 Weeks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm sorry to my loyal reader. But I've been busy. It has been over 2 months since my last post, but I was a man on a mission. In the beginning of the year I attempted to read 52 books in 52 weeks. I was on a great pace and then I decided to read the Game of Thrones novels which are approximately 1000 pages each and there were five of them.<br />
Well, I finished that, but when I did I realized I had only read 39 books and there were about 12 weeks left. That meant I had to read 14 books in that time period. So I decided to "cheat". Of course, I made up the rules, but I decided to try and only read "short" books. Now this doesn't mean there is anything wrong with a short book vs. a long book, but I normally don't plan my reading this way. But even though I wanted to read shorter books, this does not mean there was not a ton of quality in these books, nor does it mean these were not books I didn't want to read. I just chose not to read some books that are longer than some that are shorter. For example: I'm sure if I wasn't trying to complete this challenge, I would have read the newest Stephen King book by now, but since it is about 1100 pages long, I felt it could wait. The best part is that I finished a little early. I will most likely read about 55 books this year instead of the 52 I expected to read.<br />
So now: 18,032 pages later, an average page count of 346.77 pages later, please humor me and take a look at all the books I read this year. The books breakdown as 41 Fiction Novels, 8 Non-Fiction and 3 collections of short stoies: Included is the approximate date it was read (the month), the page count and the letter grade I would give as a rating from A-F.<br />
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Enjoy:<br />
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<td class="xl22" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt; width: 43pt;" width="57">Number</td>
<td class="xl22" style="width: 230pt;" width="306">Book</td>
<td class="xl22" style="width: 95pt;" width="126">Author</td>
<td class="xl22" style="width: 35pt;" width="46">Pages</td>
<td class="xl22" style="width: 36pt;" width="48">Rating</td>
<td class="xl22" style="width: 38pt;" width="50">Date</td>
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<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">1</td>
<td class="xl25">Eating The Dinosaur - </td>
<td class="xl26">Chuck Klosterman</td>
<td class="xl23">270</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Jan-11</td>
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<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">2</td>
<td class="xl25">Catching Fire - </td>
<td class="xl26">Suzanne Collins</td>
<td class="xl23">391</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Jan-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">3</td>
<td class="xl25">Full Dark, No Stars - </td>
<td class="xl26">Stephen King</td>
<td class="xl23">368</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Jan-11</td>
</tr>
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<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">4</td>
<td class="xl25">Endurance:
Shakleton's Incredible Voyage - </td>
<td class="xl26">Alfred Lansing</td>
<td class="xl23">280</td>
<td class="xl23">A-</td>
<td class="xl24">Jan-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">5</td>
<td class="xl25">Mockingjay - </td>
<td class="xl26">Suzanne Collins</td>
<td class="xl23">290</td>
<td class="xl23">B-</td>
<td class="xl24">Feb-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">6</td>
<td class="xl25">The Vintage Caper - </td>
<td class="xl26">Peter Mayle</td>
<td class="xl23">225</td>
<td class="xl23">C-</td>
<td class="xl24">Feb-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">7</td>
<td class="xl25">Brains: A Zombie
Memoir - </td>
<td class="xl26">Robin Becker</td>
<td class="xl23">182</td>
<td class="xl23">C</td>
<td class="xl24">Feb-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">8</td>
<td class="xl25">As God Commands - </td>
<td class="xl23">Niccolo Ammaniti</td>
<td class="xl23">405</td>
<td class="xl23">A </td>
<td class="xl24">Feb-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">9</td>
<td class="xl25">Never Let Me Go - </td>
<td class="xl26">Kazou Ishiguro</td>
<td class="xl23">288</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">10</td>
<td class="xl25">Mr. Funny Pants - </td>
<td class="xl26">Michael Showalter</td>
<td class="xl23">250</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">11</td>
<td class="xl25">The Book Thief - </td>
<td class="xl26">Markus Zusak</td>
<td class="xl23">550</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">12</td>
<td class="xl25">Cross Fire - </td>
<td class="xl26">James Patterson</td>
<td class="xl23">350</td>
<td class="xl23">C</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">13</td>
<td class="xl25">The Big Short - </td>
<td class="xl26">Michael Lewis</td>
<td class="xl23">266</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">14</td>
<td class="xl25">South of the
Border, West of the Sun - </td>
<td class="xl26">Haruki Murakami</td>
<td class="xl23">213</td>
<td class="xl23">A</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">15</td>
<td class="xl25">The
Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
- </td>
<td class="xl26">Mark Haddon</td>
<td class="xl23">225</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">16</td>
<td class="xl25">On Writing - </td>
<td class="xl26">Stephen King</td>
<td class="xl23">300</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Mar-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">17</td>
<td class="xl25">Zombie Spaceship
Wasteland - </td>
<td class="xl26">Patton Oswalt</td>
<td class="xl23">191</td>
<td class="xl23">D+</td>
<td class="xl24">Apr-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">18</td>
<td class="xl25">Everything
Is Going To Kill Everybody - </td>
<td class="xl26">Robert Brockway</td>
<td class="xl23">260</td>
<td class="xl23">C-</td>
<td class="xl24">Apr-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">19</td>
<td class="xl25">House of Leaves - </td>
<td class="xl26">Mark Z. Danielewski</td>
<td class="xl23">710</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Apr-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">20</td>
<td class="xl25">20th Century Ghosts - </td>
<td class="xl26">Joe Hill</td>
<td class="xl23">310</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">May-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">21</td>
<td class="xl25">Jar City
- </td>
<td class="xl26">Arnaldur Indridason</td>
<td class="xl23">285</td>
<td class="xl23">D </td>
<td class="xl24">May-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">22</td>
<td class="xl25">The Day I Turned
Uncool - </td>
<td class="xl26">Dan Zevin</td>
<td class="xl23">172</td>
<td class="xl23">C+</td>
<td class="xl24">May-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">23</td>
<td class="xl25">Flatland
- </td>
<td class="xl26">Edwin A. Abbott</td>
<td class="xl23">118</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">May-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">24</td>
<td class="xl25">Room
- </td>
<td class="xl26">Emma Donoghue</td>
<td class="xl23">322</td>
<td class="xl23">A-</td>
<td class="xl24">May-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">25</td>
<td class="xl25">A Visit From The Goon
Squad - </td>
<td class="xl26">Jennifer Egan</td>
<td class="xl23">342</td>
<td class="xl23">A</td>
<td class="xl24">Jun-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">26</td>
<td class="xl25">Super Sad True Love
Story - </td>
<td class="xl26">Gary Shteyngart</td>
<td class="xl23">332</td>
<td class="xl23">A-</td>
<td class="xl24">Jun-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">27</td>
<td class="xl25">The Red Pyramid - </td>
<td class="xl26">Rick Riordan</td>
<td class="xl23">516</td>
<td class="xl23">C+</td>
<td class="xl24">Jun-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">28</td>
<td class="xl25">The Throne of Fire - </td>
<td class="xl26">Rick Riordan</td>
<td class="xl23">450</td>
<td class="xl23">C</td>
<td class="xl24">Jun-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">29</td>
<td class="xl25">An Object Of Beauty - </td>
<td class="xl26">Stever Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">293</td>
<td class="xl23">A-</td>
<td class="xl24">Jul-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">30</td>
<td class="xl25">Tell-All - </td>
<td class="xl26">Chuck Palahniuk</td>
<td class="xl23">179</td>
<td class="xl23">D+</td>
<td class="xl24">Jul-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">31</td>
<td class="xl25">The Imperfectionists - </td>
<td class="xl26">Tom Rachman</td>
<td class="xl23">265</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Jul-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">32</td>
<td class="xl25">A Game of Thrones - </td>
<td class="xl26">George R.R. Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">809</td>
<td class="xl23">A</td>
<td class="xl24">Jul-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">33</td>
<td class="xl25">A Clash of Kings - </td>
<td class="xl26">George R.R. Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">969</td>
<td class="xl23">A</td>
<td class="xl24">Aug-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">34</td>
<td class="xl25">Shopgirl - </td>
<td class="xl26">Steve Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">130</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Aug-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">35</td>
<td class="xl25">A Storm of Swords - </td>
<td class="xl26">George R.R. Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">1128</td>
<td class="xl23">A+</td>
<td class="xl24">Sep-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">36</td>
<td class="xl25">No Country For Old Men -</td>
<td class="xl26">Cormac McCarthy</td>
<td class="xl23">309</td>
<td class="xl23">C+</td>
<td class="xl24">Sep-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">37</td>
<td class="xl25">The Big Sleep - </td>
<td class="xl26">Raymond Chandler</td>
<td class="xl23">230</td>
<td class="xl23">B-</td>
<td class="xl24">Sep-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">38</td>
<td class="xl25">A Feast For Crows - </td>
<td class="xl26">George R.R. Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">976</td>
<td class="xl23">A</td>
<td class="xl24">Sep-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">39</td>
<td class="xl25">A Dance With Dragons - </td>
<td class="xl26">George R.R. Martin</td>
<td class="xl23">959</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Oct-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">40</td>
<td class="xl25">The Postmortal - </td>
<td class="xl26">Drew Magary</td>
<td class="xl23">365</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Oct-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">41</td>
<td class="xl25">Tao of Pooh - </td>
<td class="xl26">Benjamin Hoff</td>
<td class="xl23">158</td>
<td class="xl23">B-</td>
<td class="xl24">Oct-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">42</td>
<td class="xl25">After The Quake - </td>
<td class="xl26">Haruki Murakami</td>
<td class="xl23">145</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Oct-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">43</td>
<td class="xl25">The House on Mango Street
- </td>
<td class="xl23">Sandra Cisneros</td>
<td class="xl23">110</td>
<td class="xl23">C</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">44</td>
<td class="xl25">Techno Pulp - </td>
<td class="xl23">Arty Nelson </td>
<td class="xl23">203</td>
<td class="xl23">C-</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">45</td>
<td class="xl25">Son of Neptune - </td>
<td class="xl23">Rick Riordan</td>
<td class="xl23">513</td>
<td class="xl23">C</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">46</td>
<td class="xl25">Black Swan Green - </td>
<td class="xl23">David Mitchell</td>
<td class="xl23">294</td>
<td class="xl23">B-</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">47</td>
<td class="xl25">Bodega Dreams - </td>
<td class="xl23">Enersto Quinonez</td>
<td class="xl23">213</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">48</td>
<td class="xl25">Miracle on the 17th Green
- </td>
<td class="xl23">James Patterson</td>
<td class="xl23">195</td>
<td class="xl23">B</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">49</td>
<td class="xl25">The Curious
Case of Benjamin Button - </td>
<td class="xl23">F. Scott Fitzgerald</td>
<td class="xl23">63</td>
<td class="xl23">C-</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">50</td>
<td class="xl25">Piercing - </td>
<td class="xl23">Ryu Murakami</td>
<td class="xl23">185</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Nov-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">51</td>
<td class="xl25">While Mortals Sleep - </td>
<td class="xl23">Kurt Vonnegut</td>
<td class="xl23">255</td>
<td class="xl23">C+</td>
<td class="xl24">Dec-11</td>
</tr>
<tr height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">
<td class="xl23" height="17" style="height: 12.75pt;">52</td>
<td class="xl25">The Visible Man</td>
<td class="xl23">Chuck Klosterman</td>
<td class="xl23">225</td>
<td class="xl23">B+</td>
<td class="xl24">Dec-11</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-31793717522422451722011-10-04T22:21:00.004-04:002011-10-25T19:56:18.541-04:00Charlie Kaufman tells a story<script type="text/javascript">
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<br />
Roger Ebert tweeted this story little story that Charlie Kaufman wrote: <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/oct/03/charlie-kaufman-how-to-write">http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/oct/03/charlie-kaufman-how-to-write</a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTY5NzUyNjYxM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMDM1NDg0._V1._SY314_CR11,0,214,314_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTY5NzUyNjYxM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMDM1NDg0._V1._SY314_CR11,0,214,314_.jpg" /></a></div><br />
It made me think about him. Like most people, I first was exposed to Charlie Kaufman when <i>Being John Malkovich</i> came out in 1999. Retroactively, it seems that I've been a fan since <i>Get A Life</i>. But I really liked this little story he wrote about himself. Two things I liked about it:<br />
a) I really like the exercise. Much like in his movies, he was able to break down a simple concept that I never even thought of and make it thought provoking. He seems to be the king of deconstruction a story which is what he did when thinking about the difference in how you tell a story the first time vs. the hundredth.<br />
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b) I was really surprised by how simply his story was told. What I mean is, I really liked how the words he used were simple, direct and to the point.<br />
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I looked him up on IMDB after reading this article and realized he hasn't done anything in three years and has nothing in the works. Hopefully Charlie Kaufman will work on something soon, because so fare all of his movies have been different, smart and fun. Those are three things that are very tough to merge, but he seems to find a way to make it happen whenever he writes something new. MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-82251774313485844342011-09-29T23:51:00.002-04:002011-09-29T23:51:49.420-04:00Song of Ice and Fire<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56lWYIT4pqpJphBFi8KVIwdu2bVBLuHTNeNFDS4RYe3pw-67KXeGB50ijtk7z5_QKsqDE5UsPJfKL7fRz685l6EmtTQ-P12YX1OKuDT0qDN0ausAMMGmQojFKXczU24ML1HnnrJrPE-E/s1600/Rhaegar+vs+Robert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56lWYIT4pqpJphBFi8KVIwdu2bVBLuHTNeNFDS4RYe3pw-67KXeGB50ijtk7z5_QKsqDE5UsPJfKL7fRz685l6EmtTQ-P12YX1OKuDT0qDN0ausAMMGmQojFKXczU24ML1HnnrJrPE-E/s400/Rhaegar+vs+Robert.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
I began my journey into Westeros on July 19th and now 73 days and 3,882 pages later I have caught up on the first 4 books of the series by George RR Martin. I have not been this caught up and addicted to a series of books since the first time I read through the Stephen King's Dark Tower series or watching the first few seasons of LOST. There is really nothing I can say about the plot and story because telling anything will give away too much. <br />
The only thing I will write here is for people like me that enjoyed the HBO TV show and are worried that the remaining books/seasons of the show can't be as good as that first one I will say that after reading the rest book 1 really was just set-up and the tip of the iceberg for what comes next.<br />
<br />
I'm impressed by how the books are written because Martin has a way of writing that almost makes every chapter a cliff-hanger with enormous cliff-hangers at the end of each novel. I know I've also mentioned this before on this blog, but I love how I cannot predict anything. Everytime I think I have an idea of the direction the story is headed something happens that makes the story go in the complete other way.<br />
<br />
These are some of the most fleshed-out characters of anything I've ever read (I know they better be after almost 4,000 pages), but no one is really a villain or a hero. In fact, after four books, I still am not sure who the overall VILLAIN of the series is going to be (like Sauron is in LOTR or the Crimson King is in Dark Tower), or how the story can ever end. Some of my favorite characters were introduced midway through book 2 and didn't even last until the end because of one of the other reasons I love this series: No one seems to be safe. The main characters change from chapter to chapter and they are not lacking interesting people.<br />
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I am ecstatic that there is a fifth book already available, while at the same time I am already dreading the waiting that will come between book 5 and book 6, especially since there was a 6 year hiatus between book 4 and book 5. What will this mean for me over the next few years? Besides disappointment, I think there may be a chance I will have to read other fantasy series that I've stayed away from in the past due a) being overwhelmed and b) thinking I wouldn't enjoy it. If anyone has any recommendations of things I should be reading, please pass it on.<br />
<br />
Next up, getting back to my goal of finishing 52 books this year. I am now up to 28 books. So that means I have 12 weeks to read 14 books. I know I can do it if I cheat and read some short books (and I probably will), but I really like my way of picking up books as they come to me and there are some great, long books coming out soon including Stephen King's new 1000 page tome. That along with Book 5 of this series, it's going to be tight. Wish me luck, but in the meantime please read these books. I need more people to discuss this with.<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-33600340081621560962011-09-18T21:45:00.002-04:002011-09-18T21:46:05.022-04:00Best of the Week Mid-September<a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTyfqQHD_pRsJJhLa_uPyCWeeBeSIFeALrU0x-k5Swlsp9enJVQ7g" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTyfqQHD_pRsJJhLa_uPyCWeeBeSIFeALrU0x-k5Swlsp9enJVQ7g" /></a><b>Best Movie I Saw: </b>Now that summer is ending and Netflix is super-expensive and quickly shrinking my portfolio, I have decided to get back to using it again. Over the last few weeks I've been watching a movie a week on Neflix and most have been pretty good. My two newest additions to my personal library has been <i>Paul </i>and <i>Super.</i><br />
Much like how <i>Shaun of the Dead</i> was a love-letter to Zombie films, and <i>Hot Fuzz</i> was dedicated to the buddy-cop flicks of the 1980s, this one was an homage to the two types of films: The early films of Steven Spielberg and the alien movies of the 1980s. This had many shout-outs to some classic movies like<i> Raiders of the Lost Ark, Aliens </i>and (of course) <i>E.T.</i> <i>Paul </i>is a silly alien movie, but if you're looking for something funny you could do much worse.<br />
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<a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcREERNdRuKUUZ_KEuMuwNYGutBNEnUD1Fzn1K6uNc32F5j7GTnN" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcREERNdRuKUUZ_KEuMuwNYGutBNEnUD1Fzn1K6uNc32F5j7GTnN" width="200" /></a>Both <i>Paul </i>and <i>Super</i> are "comic book movies", but neither have ever been comic books, but they will both be loved by people that enjoy that genre. <i>Paul </i>even had the beginning and ending of the movie take place at the comic book Mecca that is San Diego's Comicon. While <i>Super</i> takes a concept that is becoming popular of someone with no training, or powers deciding to become a superhero for all the wrong reasons. The thing that makes <i>Super</i> different is its realistic violence. Rainn Wilson stars as a guy that has some serious problems, and after a traumatic event decides to become a Batman type of superhero but with literally no means or skill. It leads to some pretty sick outcomes, but you should not expect anything else from a writer-director that got started with the Troma studio. <br />
<b>Best TV Show I Saw: </b>Since I cannot think of anything off the top of my head that I've seen lately, I can only assume the best thing I saw on TV was the return of the NFL. I'm so happy you're back football. I missed you.<br />
<a href="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRWZfUHhop23Vk8oKUOqtAnZBCPgVc4hcG-xrHUfRAJWu4Q15Z0" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRWZfUHhop23Vk8oKUOqtAnZBCPgVc4hcG-xrHUfRAJWu4Q15Z0" width="130" /></a><b>Best Thing I Read: </b>Once again I'm on a reading kick. This week the best thing I read though was easily the newest collection of <i>Locke & Key</i> entitled <i>Keys to the Kingdom. </i>Joe Hill continues the story of the Locke kids and their struggle against the Dark Lady. This issue really was probably the best one yet since the stakes get even higher especially with the latest cliff-hanger where this story ends. The highlight though (besides the amazing conclusion) was the one chapter showing the month of February where each page correlated to one day of the 28 days that hath February. I'm surprised no one has ever done this in a comic book before since comic books have 30 pages normally. In the thousands of comics I've read in my life I can't believe I never thought of that and no one else had done it either.<br />
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<b>I also read: </b><i>No Country For Old Men </i>by Cormac McCarthy. I guess he's not a writer for me. I read <i>The Road</i> a few years ago and I know that people love it, but I didn't get it. I thought it was a badly written post-apocalyptic story that I've read hundreds of times before. <i>No Country</i> was a little better, but I really do not like his writing style. McCarthy writes in a very simplistic was that must be nice for people that don't read much, but there is no description. McCarthy just writes "He did this and He did that...." it gets very repetitious and I found it boring. Then he also chooses to not write with any quotation marks when his characters are talking. It makes for a confusing read at times when you're not sure who is speaking or if it is dialogue or just narration.<br />
The story itself is fine and I really liked the ending of the book which was different than the movie. But the writing style was such a turn off that I've basically decided no matter how good people say any of this other books may be, I will just figure like his other books, it's just not for me.<br />
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<b>Best Thing I Heard: </b>Aubrey did a great thing the other day. She bought tickets to the band <i>The National</i>. We both were pretty huge fans of their previous CD and especially the song <i>Fake Empire. </i>We saw that the band was going to be playing The Beacon Theater in December and before going to that show we figured we should have their most recent CD, High Violet, which was released last year. We listened to the CD on a road-trip this weekend about 3 times. It is surprisingly great. I am not good about explaining style of music, but lately I'm most interested in music that has songs that build. Songs that start slow or deconstructed that build up until they reach an apex of sound. Other bands that I love that seem to have this style are <i>Muse, Radiohead, Airborne Toxic Event and Secret Machines</i> Songs like this one really make me happy and now I'm even more excited for this show in December. As always: My recommendation is to play this VERY LOUD:<br />
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-58204982822264630602011-09-05T22:00:00.002-04:002011-09-05T22:01:50.281-04:00Best of the Week - First Week of SeptemberConstant Reader.<br />
It has been a few weeks since my last update, but so I will catch you up on what I've been enjoying these past few weeks.<br />
I survived the Hurricane and loved every second of it, and with summer winding down, I'm looking forward to football and hopefully some better TV. Although, for more of an update into what has been taking up most of my time, be sure to check out my other blog chronicling the adventures of the house Aubrey and I are still renovating <a href="http://kitsch-en-nightmare.blogspot.com/">here</a><br />
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<b>Best TV show I saw:</b><br />
<a href="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSWZCbcGTJ66K1pXZa20tLU26fpJRvKA17XwCHVMUrgJ0y_N7OA" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSWZCbcGTJ66K1pXZa20tLU26fpJRvKA17XwCHVMUrgJ0y_N7OA" /></a>This season of <i>Louie </i>has been absolutely extraordinary. The episode where he went to Afghanistan was a great tribute to our soldiers as well as a fun little reminder of how animals can bring people together. If you're not watching this show, you made an error.<br />
Also, while I was waiting out the storm of Hurricane Irene at my friends Bridget and Chris's apartment I got to talking about <i>Game of Thrones</i>. Since they had never seen it and we really had no where to go and nothing else to do, we turned on the first episode which was available on HBO On Demand. Long story short - we watched all ten episodes together back to back. What a great series this was and as you all know I've been reading the books and was able to understand everything much better this time around as well as see some seeds planted in the show that I did not catch the first time through.<br />
<b>Other shows I've been enjoying: </b><i>True Blood, </i>and <i>Weeds </i>are still not great, but have been better this season. <i>Curb Your Enthusiasm </i>has also been particularly solid this year as well with yesterday's Bill Buckner episode being my favorite over the past few weeks.<br />
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<a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSHgmz0Zys7MO4Q3DvZISTnkv3hJa4KSxFIjQo-ZvCyDPA03Phk" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSHgmz0Zys7MO4Q3DvZISTnkv3hJa4KSxFIjQo-ZvCyDPA03Phk" /></a><b>Best Movie I saw:</b> No contest here. I watched a movie that I knew nothing about and was absolutely overjoyed with. <i>The Adjustment Bureau </i>with Matt Damon was a fun Science Fiction story that was really well acted and crafted. Some additional reasons I loved this movie: It takes place in New York City and really uses the city better than most movies. Additionally, I loved that they were accurate as to where the people were. For example, if someone is walking up 24th street, the come to Madison Square Park right after that. Then if they turn downtown, the next street is 23rd and then 22nd. I can't tell you how many times I watch a movie and places don't line up and I hate it. The only negative was knowing that the building Matt Damon lives in is the office building I actually work in on 24th and Madison, so I know for sure that there are no apartments in there. But because it made sense for the story, I allowed that minor "adjustment" to the story. <b> </b><br />
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<b>I also watched: </b><i>Cedar Rapids </i>which had some funny parts.<br />
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Also, and as I type this I am finishing up the <i>Star Trek </i>movie marathon that Cinemax played today during labor day. I watched almost all of the following movies today (with some omissions for running and eating): <i>Star Trek II, III, IV, V, VI and VIII (First Contact) - </i>which is just ending now.<br />
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<a href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRNgnGwzwv_hW8iu4P1eQjkzjy4-oyxpdxPQLqy0D2uKulncPSXPg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSy1dIpf829YkNIbifPd14w_Ye3kO8s9ZeH9y5A-yQdN1TH4vb9" /></a><b>Best Book I read: </b>I knew my herculean task of reading <i>The Song of Ice and Fire</i> would slow me up and consume my life, and I was right. I am currently on page 800/1150 of book three of that series entitled <i>A Storm of Swords</i>. This is so far the best of the books with so much happening that I could never have predicted. I have heard that the series loses a bit of its luster after this book, but I am so enraptured by these characters that I don't care. Just keep telling me their story and I will keep reading. Again, I will not give anything away about these books, but if anyone is planning on being stranded on a deserted island for a while, it would be a smart idea to bring these books along. They will keep you entertained for a long time.<br />
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<b>Best thing I heard: </b>I'm going to cheat here, but I went to a friend's house and watched the documentary <i>Malfunkshun</i>: <i>The Andrew Wood Story. </i>For those that don't know, Andrew Wood was a major player in the Seattle music scene (that I am a huge fan of) in the 80s into the 90s. He was the lead singer of the band Malfunkshun as well as Mother Love Bone. He tragically died in 1990 and the key song-writers in his band went on to form Pearl Jam. This documentary compiles old footage as well as recent interviews with such people as Chris Cornell from Soundgarden (who was Wood's roommate), his brothers, mother and friends. The documentary was put together with love and honors his memory while telling his fans about Wood's battles with addiction. The movie was great and it really almost made me fall in love with his voice all over again. A tragic tale about a tragic soul and if you were a fan of Mother Love Bone, a necessary addition to your DVD collection. The Disc also comes with two CDs of B-Sides and older demos by Andrew Wood and his various bands throughout the years. <br />
<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-90577863104854514002011-08-25T21:22:00.002-04:002011-08-25T21:34:22.112-04:00What's wrong with you TV????
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<br />I was looking over this year's television schedule and I realized, I don't think I'm going to be adding any more new shows to my DVR. This has everything to do with two factors: 1) I find that if I don't get "into" a show, I never really care and therefore never miss it once it goes away. 2) I love to be entertained, and everything I'm seeing looks cookie cutter and not that great.
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<br />Then I find out that a comic book that I absolutely LOVE had a pilot made based on it. You can watch that pilot here:
<br /><a href="http://io9.com/5834214/watch-the-trailer-for-locke--key-the-beautiful-horror-series-that-never-was">http://io9.com/5834214/watch-the-trailer-for-locke--key-the-beautiful-horror-series-that-never-was</a>
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<br />This book is written by the fantastic, up and coming writer Joe Hill (aka Stephen King's son, but we don't even NEED to mention that -- but it helps). There are currently approximately 30 issues of this comic book, but each issue I have read has multiple layers and needs more than one read through to fully understand and grasp everything. He is building a mythology where a small book in the back of a panel comes back 20 issues later to play a very important piece in the lives of the Locke family.
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<br />The story is simple: A teacher is attacked and murdered by a crazy student and the rest of the family but the patriarch moves back to their father's old house in a small town in Maine. While there, the kids discover that the house has numerous keys that allow the user of the keys to open doors into other worlds, and other fantastic possibilities. Each book seems to introduce us to a new key and a new piece into the mystery as to why their father was murdered. Could it be because of the strange woman that lives at the bottom of the well?
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<br />Needless to say, I love this series and this TV show looked very similar to the movie and definitely seemed to capture its heart. But Fox passed on it. I'm not sure why, but it seems that I will never see Locke and Key on the small screen or large. But since Hill and his artist <span class="st">Gabriel Rodriguez have promised a concluding end to this series, I will at least always have the show in my head. But the attached trailer really makes me upset about the possibilities.
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<br />Below are some examples of the great art of the series too:
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-35441191110602623412011-08-20T20:16:00.009-04:002011-08-21T00:39:29.307-04:00Best of the Week -MIddle of August<span style="font-weight: bold;">Best Book I Read</span>:
<br /><a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNT1xZx1nEjEzZj0nN0bt4LrfwX3EJol8yrtsUxCBrJan675MAOg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 155px; height: 238px;" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNT1xZx1nEjEzZj0nN0bt4LrfwX3EJol8yrtsUxCBrJan675MAOg" alt="" border="0" /></a>- I took a slight break from my <span style="font-style: italic;">Song of Ice and Fire </span>books. Last weekend I was in the laundry room and I saw that someone left Steve Martin's <span style="font-style: italic;">Shopgirl</span>. Since I really enjoyed <span style="font-style: italic;">An Object of Beauty</span>, I picked it up and decided to read it. <span style="font-style: italic;">Shopgirl</span> tells the story of a 28 year old woman who is trying to find her place in LA. She meets and dates an man twice her age and learns a lot about herself. But the story is not the highlight of this short novella, it is Martin's writing. His descriptive writing sets a mood to the story that is part dark humor but exceptionally descriptive. Everyone should give this book a chance and I have officially decided to read anything Steve Martin releases.
<br />And for the record: I saw the movie probably about 5 years ago and fell asleep. Do not judge this book by that movie. The movie did not have the narration.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I also read: </span>A Graphic Novel published by DC's Vertigo imprint called <span style="font-style: italic;">Daytripper</span> by twin brothers Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon. This was my choice for my book club and thought it would be interesting to have people that do not normally read comic books read one. I have been in this book club for almost two years and it is made up of people whose opinion about books I have learned to respect and wanted to know what they thought about this. The club is made up of comic book readers and non-readers alike and thought those that don't read comics would have some great input. The meeting is tomorrow, and look forward to the results but I have to admit I was not super-excited about my pick after reading it.
<br />I have read some great comics in the last few years but decided to not pick something I had read in the past. The story follows a man who is a writer of obituaries and the gimmick of the novel is it tells 10 different stories in his life when he might have died and ends with his obit. I am not 100% sure of the point of the book and what it was trying to say about life. I need to think about that before tomorrow's meeting, but the gimmick became too gimmicky for me near the end which upset me.
<br />As for the GRAPHIC part of the novel, the art was quite beautiful It also used some fun techniques of showing more then telling which I'm sure we will discuss tomorrow. Until then I will leave this before my re-read of the book before tomorrow's meeting.
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<br />I may not blog about books for a while since I have found my way back to Westernos reading part three of <span style="font-style: italic;">Song of Ice and Fire</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Best Movie I Saw</span>:
<br /><a href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS0yM9amrDuN_MPEdLQC3m9dSCipyIuRmYZsmPYSWVDHgTfCHBV"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 303px; height: 166px;" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS0yM9amrDuN_MPEdLQC3m9dSCipyIuRmYZsmPYSWVDHgTfCHBV" alt="" border="0" /></a>Heading out to see <span style="font-style: italic;">Captain America </span>now, but saw the decent <span style="font-style: italic;">Source Code</span> this week. The ending didn't make much sense, but it was a fun little movie that was reminiscent of a really good Quantum Leap episode for the tech age. I thought it actually would make more sense as a TV show than a movie with that strange, tacked on ending.<span style="font-style: italic;">
<br /></span>Visually, the movie was quite amazing since Duncan Jones I think has some talent, but ultimately it was flawed. Also, I like Dunkin Donuts and their coffee, but the product placement was absolutely distracting and just annoying.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span>
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<br />I also watched: </span>Netflix had <span style="font-style: italic;">Moonstruck </span>available on streaming. I had never seen it, and was pleasantly disappointed in it. For over 20 years I avoided this movie because it never called to me for whatever reason. Turns out, it's just not for me. I watched it and was mostly bored by it. It also felt dated and I just didn't see the point.
<br />- I also was in a bad mood on Monday and in order to pick up my spirits I watched for the 8th time or so Louis CK's stand up special that is available for streaming on Netflix: <span style="font-style: italic;">Chewed Up. </span>This may be the funniest hours of comedy I've ever seen. In the past it has caused such uncontrollable laughter on my part that I spilled more than once on my couch and floor when I realized I was going to spill a second time and sat on the floor to not ruin my couch any more than it already was.
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<br />MitchyMitchyMitchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09375203102056463035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-898396378431548107.post-30994174385557891172011-08-12T23:50:00.003-04:002011-08-21T00:36:34.189-04:00Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Novels<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="data:image/jpg;base64,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" 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<br />NPR has release the "Best" Sci-Fi/Fantasy novels ever. Of the list <a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139085843/your-picks-top-100-science-fiction-fantasy-books">(which you can access here)</a>, I have read 26 of them and am in the middle of reading the 27th with <span style="font-style: italic;">The Song of Ice and Fire</span>. I find it strange and confusing that sometimes they choose entire series as one book like <span style="font-style: italic;">Lord of the Rings<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span>while others they just include one book like <span style="font-style: italic;">Dune</span> even though there is an entire series of <span style="font-style: italic;">Dune</span> books.
<br />I can't quite figure out their criteria, but for those that want to take a look please take a look at the list, or just look below for a list with no descriptions:
<br />
<br />For those curious, books in <span style="font-weight: bold;">BOLD</span> I have seen. Books with an (m) after them I have seen the movie, so have a pretty basic idea of the premise
<br /><p style="font-weight: bold;">1.<em> The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy</em>, by J.R.R. Tolkien</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">2.<em> The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy</em>, by Douglas Adams</p> <p>3.<em> Ender's Game</em>, by Orson Scott Card</p> <p>4.<em> The Dune Chronicles</em>, by Frank Herbert</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">5.<em> A Song Of Ice And Fire Series</em>, by George R. R. Martin - (reading...)
<br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">6.<em> 1984</em>, by George Orwell</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">7.<em> Fahrenheit 451</em>, by Ray Bradbury</p> <p>8.<em> The Foundation Trilogy</em>, by Isaac Asimov</p> <p>9<span style="font-weight: bold;">. </span><em style="font-weight: bold;">Brave New World</em><span style="font-weight: bold;">, by Aldous Huxley</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">10.<em> American Gods</em>, by Neil Gaiman</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">11.<em> The Princess Bride</em>, by William Goldman</p> <p>12.<em> The Wheel Of Time Series</em>, by Robert Jordan</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">13.<em> Animal Farm</em>, by George Orwell</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">14.<em> Neuromancer</em>, by William Gibson</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">15.<em> Watchmen</em>, by Alan Moore</p> <p style="font-style: italic;">16.<em> I, Robot</em>, by Isaac Asimov - (m)
<br /></p> <p>17.<em> Stranger In A Strange Land</em>, by Robert Heinlein</p> <p>18.<em> The Kingkiller Chronicles</em>, by Patrick Rothfuss</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">19.<em> Slaughterhouse-Five</em>, by Kurt Vonnegut</p> <p>20.<em> Frankenstein</em>, by Mary Shelley (m)
<br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">21.<em> Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?</em>, by Philip K. Dick</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">22.<em> The Handmaid's Tale</em>, by Margaret Atwood</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">23.<em> The Dark Tower Series</em>, by Stephen King</p> <p>24.<em> 2001: A Space Odyssey</em>, by Arthur C. Clarke - (m)
<br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">25.<em> The Stand</em>, by Stephen King</p> <p>26.<em> Snow Crash</em>, by Neal Stephenson</p> <p>27.<em> The Martian Chronicles</em>, by Ray Bradbury</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">28.<em> Cat's Cradle</em>, by Kurt Vonnegut</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">29.<em> The Sandman Series</em>, by Neil Gaiman</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">30.<em> A Clockwork Orange</em>, by Anthony Burgess</p> <p>31.<em> Starship Troopers</em>, by Robert Heinlein - (m)
<br /></p> <p>32.<em> Watership Down</em>, by Richard Adams - (m)
<br /></p> <p>33.<em> Dragonflight</em>, by Anne McCaffrey</p> <p>34.<em> The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress</em>, by Robert Heinlein</p> <p>35.<em> A Canticle For Leibowitz</em>, by Walter M. Miller</p> <p>36.<em> The Time Machine</em>, by H.G. Wells - (m)
<br /></p> <p>37.<em> 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea</em>, by Jules Verne - (m)
<br /></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">38.<em> Flowers For Algernon</em>, by Daniel Keys</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">39.<em> The War Of The Worlds</em>, by H.G. Wells</p> <p>40.<em> The Chronicles Of Amber</em>, by Roger Zelazny</p> <p>41.<em> The Belgariad</em>, by David Eddings</p> <p>42.<em> The Mists Of Avalon</em>, by Marion Zimmer Bradley</p> <p>43.<em> The Mistborn Series</em>, by Brandon Sanderson</p> <p>44.<em> Ringworld</em>, by Larry Niven</p> <p>45.<em> The Left Hand Of Darkness</em>, by Ursula K. LeGuin</p> <p>46.<em> The Silmarillion</em>, by J.R.R. Tolkien</p> <p>47.<em> The Once And Future King</em>, by T.H. White</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">48.<em> Neverwhere</em>, by Neil Gaiman</p> <p>49.<em> Childhood's End</em>, by Arthur C. Clarke</p> <p>50.<em> Contact</em>, by Carl Sagan -(m)
<br /></p> <p>51.<em> The Hyperion Cantos</em>, by Dan Simmons</p> <p>52.<em> Stardust</em>, by Neil Gaiman 0 (m)
<br /></p> <p>53.<em> Cryptonomicon</em>, by Neal Stephenson</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">54.<em> World War Z</em>, by Max Brooks</p> <p>55.<em> The Last Unicorn</em>, by Peter S. Beagle -(m)
<br /></p> <p>56.<em> The Forever War</em>, by Joe Haldeman</p> <p>57.<em> Small Gods</em>, by Terry Pratchett</p> <p>58.<em> The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever</em>, by Stephen R. Donaldson</p> <p>59.<em> The Vorkosigan Saga</em>, by Lois McMaster Bujold</p> <p>60.<em> Going Postal</em>, by Terry Pratchett</p> <p>61.<em> The Mote In God's Eye</em>, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle</p> <p>62.<em> The Sword Of Truth</em>, by Terry Goodkind</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">63.<em> The Road</em>, by Cormac McCarthy</p> <p>64.<em> Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell</em>, by Susanna Clarke</p> <p>65.<em> I Am Legend</em>, by Richard Matheson - (m)
<br /></p> <p>66.<em> The Riftwar Saga</em>, by Raymond E. Feist</p> <p>67.<em> The Shannara Trilogy</em>, by Terry Brooks</p> <p>68.<em> The Conan The Barbarian Series</em>, by R.E. Howard</p> <p>69.<em> The Farseer Trilogy</em>, by Robin Hobb</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">70.<em> The Time Traveler's Wife</em>, by Audrey Niffenegger</p> <p>71.<em> The Way Of Kings</em>, by Brandon Sanderson</p> <p>72.<em> A Journey To The Center Of The Earth</em>, by Jules Verne -(m)
<br /></p> <p>73.<em> The Legend Of Drizzt Series</em>, by R.A. Salvatore</p> <p>74.<em> Old Man's War</em>, by John Scalzi</p> <p>75.<em> The Diamond Age</em>, by Neil Stephenson</p> <p>76.<em> Rendezvous With Rama</em>, by Arthur C. Clarke</p> <p>77.<em> The Kushiel's Legacy Series</em>, by Jacqueline Carey</p> <p>78.<em> The Dispossessed</em>, by Ursula K. LeGuin</p> <p>79.<em> Something Wicked This Way Comes</em>, by Ray Bradbury</p> <p>80.<em> Wicked</em>, by Gregory Maguire</p> <p>81.<em> The Malazan Book Of The Fallen Series</em>, by Steven Erikson</p> <p>82.<em> The Eyre Affair</em>, by Jasper Fforde</p> <p>83.<em> The Culture Series</em>, by Iain M. Banks</p> <p>84.<em> The Crystal Cave</em>, by Mary Stewart</p> <p>85.<em> Anathem</em>, by Neal Stephenson</p> <p>86.<em> The Codex Alera Series</em>, by Jim Butcher</p> <p>87.<em> The Book Of The New Sun</em>, by Gene Wolfe</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">88.<em> The Thrawn Trilogy</em>, by Timothy Zahn</p> <p>89.<em> The Outlander Series</em>, by Diana Gabaldan</p> <p>90.<em> The Elric Saga</em>, by Michael Moorcock</p> <p>91.<em> The Illustrated Man</em>, by Ray Bradbury</p> <p>92.<em> Sunshine</em>, by Robin McKinley</p> <p>93.<em> A Fire Upon The Deep</em>, by Vernor Vinge</p> <p>94.<em> The Caves Of Steel</em>, by Isaac Asimov</p> <p>95<em>. The Mars Trilogy</em>, by Kim Stanley Robinson</p> <p>96<em>. Lucifer's Hammer</em>, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle</p> <p>97.<em> Doomsday Book</em>, by Connie Willis</p> <p>98.<em> Perdido Street</em><em> Station</em>, by China Mieville</p> <p>99.<em> The Xanth Series</em>, by Piers Anthony<em></em></p> <p>100.<em> The Space Trilogy</em>, by C.S. Lewis</p>
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