I never know whether to count graphic novels toward the reading list, but I usually don't, so I'll just keep that trend going. Anyway, I read a really cute one tonight called Breaking Up. It's by some YA author I've never heard of, and features a pretty typical YA plot involving four friends torn asunder by popularity and boys, but the art was done by Christine Norrie (of Hopeless Savages fame) and really elevates the story.
I also got this Cute Book, which made me think of Stef for so many reasons, and some other great comics, including the four new issues of Castle Waiting, which I am so excited is back in regular publication!
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
heroes
So the Israeli chick was finally introduced tonight! Not that you'd know it from the actress--in her first scene, she was totally unaccented, and in the second she sounded Scottish. I actually have mixed feelings about her character--on the one hand, her mythic heroic matriarchal lineage is just so cliche, but on the other hand, it is pretty comic book-y.
And anyway, it's always nice to see a Stan Lee cameo.
And anyway, it's always nice to see a Stan Lee cameo.
2007 book 20
Tove Jansson's The Summer Book
Jansson, best known for the Moomin comics, apparently also wrote some novels. This seems to be the most popular; translations are still in print. It consists of a series of small stories about a moody little girl and her aging grandmother who spend the summer together on a small island in Finland. They encounter all sorts of nature--Jansson's descriptions of the water are especially nice--and, of course, themselves. Or whatever. Really a nice read.
Jansson, best known for the Moomin comics, apparently also wrote some novels. This seems to be the most popular; translations are still in print. It consists of a series of small stories about a moody little girl and her aging grandmother who spend the summer together on a small island in Finland. They encounter all sorts of nature--Jansson's descriptions of the water are especially nice--and, of course, themselves. Or whatever. Really a nice read.
Friday, February 16, 2007
2007 book 19
I came back from vacation with a pretty wicked cold, so I've been all lazy and stuff and hadn't been reading (plus reading is more fun when you're doing it on a pool chair). I am due for more cold meds now, so this will be brief.
David Long's The Inhabited World
It's about a guy who killed himself and has been hanging around his old house in a sort of purgatory for ten years. As he watches its latest inhabitant try to make a change in her own life, the story of his slowly unfolds. Pretty good stuff--I read it in one sitting. A-.
David Long's The Inhabited World
It's about a guy who killed himself and has been hanging around his old house in a sort of purgatory for ten years. As he watches its latest inhabitant try to make a change in her own life, the story of his slowly unfolds. Pretty good stuff--I read it in one sitting. A-.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
2007 book 18
Ian Sansom's The Case of the Missing Books: A Mobile Library Mystery
My mom--an avid mystery reader--suggested I read this, since the main character is a Jewish librarian. Hee. Anyway, this is the coziest of coziest mysteries, a slapstick fish-out-of-water comedy of errors, featuring Israel Armstong, a Londoner who comes to a small town in Ireland to be their librarian. He has several problems with his new situation, not least of which is that all the books are missing. Oh no! Apparently this is going to be the first book in a series, and there are plenty of characters and small-town intrigues for latter books. Anyway, it was really cute. A-.
My mom--an avid mystery reader--suggested I read this, since the main character is a Jewish librarian. Hee. Anyway, this is the coziest of coziest mysteries, a slapstick fish-out-of-water comedy of errors, featuring Israel Armstong, a Londoner who comes to a small town in Ireland to be their librarian. He has several problems with his new situation, not least of which is that all the books are missing. Oh no! Apparently this is going to be the first book in a series, and there are plenty of characters and small-town intrigues for latter books. Anyway, it was really cute. A-.
2006 books 14, 15, 16, 17
As you all well know, my favorite thing about vacations is getting lots of reading done! Which I managed to do once again, even though I actually drove here and didn't have that valuable waiting-around-in-airports reading time.
Calvin Baker's Dominion
Actually, that Gary Nash book I read for class a couple weeks ago turned out to be pretty good backround reading for this historical novel, which centers on a freed slave in the early 1700s, as he tries to build a life for himself and his family. There are brief interludes of the supernatural, but on the whole this is a novel about family, homesteads, and the Revolutionary War. A.
Lisa Unger's Beautiful Lies and Slivers of Truth
These suspense/mystery novels focus on a young New Yorker named Ridley Jones, who in the first one finds herself caught up in a search for her identity that quickly takes some sinister turns (the big surprise ending--which didn't quite work for me--was actually ruined by a review I read of the sequel, so if you want to remain unspoiled, avoid the media, or whatever). The sequel is more of the same, pretty much. There are a few false notes--a little too much New York name-brand dropping, which was distracting from the main thrust of the story, and some poorly written love scenes (I don't like the phrase "silky hardness", even if it is just referring to abs. It's a little romance novel-y)--but on the whole these were engaging stories, perfect for reading while working on my tan. B for both.
Helen Oyeyemi's The Icarus Girl
This reread is our next library book discussion book; it mainly deals with a lonely and troubled young half-Nigerian, half-British girl who discovers her new friend isn't who she thought she was. This almost made my top books list of 2004 (I think it was 2004) but was beaten out by Diana Evans' 26a, which has some similar themes without as many of the supernatural elements. Still, it's really riveting--A.
I'll be back home tomorrow, at which point I'll upload photos and catch up on email.
Calvin Baker's Dominion
Actually, that Gary Nash book I read for class a couple weeks ago turned out to be pretty good backround reading for this historical novel, which centers on a freed slave in the early 1700s, as he tries to build a life for himself and his family. There are brief interludes of the supernatural, but on the whole this is a novel about family, homesteads, and the Revolutionary War. A.
Lisa Unger's Beautiful Lies and Slivers of Truth
These suspense/mystery novels focus on a young New Yorker named Ridley Jones, who in the first one finds herself caught up in a search for her identity that quickly takes some sinister turns (the big surprise ending--which didn't quite work for me--was actually ruined by a review I read of the sequel, so if you want to remain unspoiled, avoid the media, or whatever). The sequel is more of the same, pretty much. There are a few false notes--a little too much New York name-brand dropping, which was distracting from the main thrust of the story, and some poorly written love scenes (I don't like the phrase "silky hardness", even if it is just referring to abs. It's a little romance novel-y)--but on the whole these were engaging stories, perfect for reading while working on my tan. B for both.
Helen Oyeyemi's The Icarus Girl
This reread is our next library book discussion book; it mainly deals with a lonely and troubled young half-Nigerian, half-British girl who discovers her new friend isn't who she thought she was. This almost made my top books list of 2004 (I think it was 2004) but was beaten out by Diana Evans' 26a, which has some similar themes without as many of the supernatural elements. Still, it's really riveting--A.
I'll be back home tomorrow, at which point I'll upload photos and catch up on email.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Multimedia message
I made vegan cupcakes for class tomorrow--my new favorite thing may be tiny cupcakes! These are chocolate with an amazingly tasty vegan frosting (the secret is maple syrup).
2006 book 13
John Lawrence and Robert Jewett's The Myth of the American Superhero
I have to give a presentation on this in class tomorrow, and I'm tired of articulating my thoughts. It's a good look at American mythology as expressed in pop culture (especially movies), for the curious.
I have to give a presentation on this in class tomorrow, and I'm tired of articulating my thoughts. It's a good look at American mythology as expressed in pop culture (especially movies), for the curious.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
aline kominsky-crumb
Here's a link to a podcast thingie with Aline-Kominsky Crumb! A couple excerpts from her comics can also be found at the link; the one about the nose job was featured prominently in my master's paper.
Monday, February 05, 2007
chabon in pittsburgh
Michael Chabon (along with his wife, Ayelet Waldman) is speaking in Pittsburgh tonight! Apparently professional book reviewers have already received review copies of The Yiddish Policeman's Union--I am of course seething with jealousy. I wanna read it NOW!
Sorry for the radio silence this weekend--Saturday was movie night (All About my Mother and Psycho Beach Party really work as a double feature) and Sunday featured Super Bowl shenanigans (I forced my hosts to put the Puppy Bowl on picture-in-picture, and then left at the start of the third quarter so I could better watch the puppies and kitty halftime show. C'mon, you know I don't care about football unless one of the, like, three teams I sort of care about are involved). Oh, I also spent most of the rest of my time this weekend napping and/or watching "The Vicar of Dibley" from Netflix, so I didn't get much reading done.
Oh, now what the heck! Why didn't anyone tell me Chabon was starting his NY Times novel-serialization project last weekend??
Sorry for the radio silence this weekend--Saturday was movie night (All About my Mother and Psycho Beach Party really work as a double feature) and Sunday featured Super Bowl shenanigans (I forced my hosts to put the Puppy Bowl on picture-in-picture, and then left at the start of the third quarter so I could better watch the puppies and kitty halftime show. C'mon, you know I don't care about football unless one of the, like, three teams I sort of care about are involved). Oh, I also spent most of the rest of my time this weekend napping and/or watching "The Vicar of Dibley" from Netflix, so I didn't get much reading done.
Oh, now what the heck! Why didn't anyone tell me Chabon was starting his NY Times novel-serialization project last weekend??
Friday, February 02, 2007
happy groundhog's day!
When I was a little girl growing up in Pittsburgh, a classmate's grandparents lived in Punxsutawney, and every year on groundhog's day, her grandmother brought us groundhog cookies, and every year I agonized over whether or not it was rude to take off the raisin eye before I ate one. (I hate raisins.) I think someday I'll make groundhog day cookies, and use chocolate chips for their adorable beady little eyes!
Speaking of baked goods, a (male) co-worker, upon eating one of my cupcakes, just told me that the man who finally catches me will be a very fat man. That's very sweet . . . I think.
PS. I am wearing these shoes today. HOT.
Speaking of baked goods, a (male) co-worker, upon eating one of my cupcakes, just told me that the man who finally catches me will be a very fat man. That's very sweet . . . I think.
PS. I am wearing these shoes today. HOT.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
2007 book 12
David Waldstreicher's In the Midst of Perpetual Fetes: The Making of American Nationalism, 1776-1820
Clearly this was another book for class, and it was the most boring read to date! I dunno, you'd think a book about how national celebrations helped form American identity would be interesting, but Waldstreicher is really into making grand sweeping statements and then quoting really boring historical figures, and never makes the history come alive, and never tells any fun or silly stories (one or two would have livened things up, and certainly stories about the fourth of July can be fun). On the other hand, who am I to criticize some dude who's tenured at Yale? His historicity is really sound, but he's the most boring writer EVER. Also, he very rarely mentions religion, and since I read this for a religion class, I was a little muddled.
Clearly this was another book for class, and it was the most boring read to date! I dunno, you'd think a book about how national celebrations helped form American identity would be interesting, but Waldstreicher is really into making grand sweeping statements and then quoting really boring historical figures, and never makes the history come alive, and never tells any fun or silly stories (one or two would have livened things up, and certainly stories about the fourth of July can be fun). On the other hand, who am I to criticize some dude who's tenured at Yale? His historicity is really sound, but he's the most boring writer EVER. Also, he very rarely mentions religion, and since I read this for a religion class, I was a little muddled.
flickr
So this morning I got a letter from flickr informing me I have to use a Yahoo ID to sign into the site now. I was sad to no longer be a special "Old Skool" member, but I actually have a Yahoo ID (though I don't use Yahoo for email, I do use the ID for groups and such, and everything just comes to my gmail account anyway) so I figured, whatever. But now I'm seeing all sorts of internet furor about this change, including comments that we're losing our flickr names! I like being wordnerdy and I don't want to be boring ark131! Flickr has been down for me all day, so I've been unable to verify that annoying things are going on.
Anyone else have any information or thoughts on this?
Anyone else have any information or thoughts on this?
Monday, January 29, 2007
Multimedia message
John and i just realized that there is a buzzcocks song in an aarp commercial
(I sent that message from my phone--to clarify, I kept seeing that AARP commercial and knew I knew the song, but couldn't place it, and then it played before Yo La Tengo came on last night and John said something about the Buzzcocks, and it all clicked into place! I have nothing negative to say about the Buzzcocks shilling for AARP--it's an honest paycheck, and I'd rather hear a song I like play repeatedly on a commercial than some crappy jingle that gets stuck in my head for like a week.)
(I sent that message from my phone--to clarify, I kept seeing that AARP commercial and knew I knew the song, but couldn't place it, and then it played before Yo La Tengo came on last night and John said something about the Buzzcocks, and it all clicked into place! I have nothing negative to say about the Buzzcocks shilling for AARP--it's an honest paycheck, and I'd rather hear a song I like play repeatedly on a commercial than some crappy jingle that gets stuck in my head for like a week.)
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Saturday, January 27, 2007
2007 book 11
Vendela Vida's Let the Northen Lights Erase your Name
This novel is about a young woman named Clarissa whose father has just died; after his funeral, she discovers he wasn't really her father. She travels to Finland to attempt to track her birth father down and learn more about her vanished mother's previous life. I didn't have strong feelings about this one way or the other--at parts I couldn't tell if the protagonist was supposed to be having even more of a nervous breakdown than she already was, or if Vida just likes to use dramatic sentences. Either way, it's a quick read and I did actually like the ending. B+.
This novel is about a young woman named Clarissa whose father has just died; after his funeral, she discovers he wasn't really her father. She travels to Finland to attempt to track her birth father down and learn more about her vanished mother's previous life. I didn't have strong feelings about this one way or the other--at parts I couldn't tell if the protagonist was supposed to be having even more of a nervous breakdown than she already was, or if Vida just likes to use dramatic sentences. Either way, it's a quick read and I did actually like the ending. B+.
Friday, January 26, 2007
pan's labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth finally opened here, so of course we had to go see it opening night! I was glad that Pinky had mentioned it was "brutal", so we weren't expecting some sweet little fairy tale land. More of a dark, muddy fairy tale land in the midst of Spanish battlefields in 1944. At any rate, 2/3 of us loooved it and hope it wins all its Oscars; the final 1/3 wasn't into it at all, but as we pointed out, he didn't have to come see it with us, and this certainly wasn't any darker than Children of Men (which he apparently liked for its action sequences).
Next time we're seeing a comedy, after all this!
Oh, but here's something funny. We of course just had our book discussion group on The Namesake this week, and there was a poster for the movie version that's coming out this spring, so we were chatting about that as the lights went down . . . and the very first preview was for The Namesake! It looks excellent. The trailer actually made me cry, which shamefully was not a first.
Next time we're seeing a comedy, after all this!
Oh, but here's something funny. We of course just had our book discussion group on The Namesake this week, and there was a poster for the movie version that's coming out this spring, so we were chatting about that as the lights went down . . . and the very first preview was for The Namesake! It looks excellent. The trailer actually made me cry, which shamefully was not a first.
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