So, even though I said I wouldn’t post about any of my Stephen King reading this week, I can’t help it.
As the Tower-ite’s beloved Jake Chambers puts it: I’ve completely lost my shit and am going nineteen over Stephen King, The Dark Tower, and the whole friggin’ SK Universe. Derry, Castle Rock, Juniper Hill, Shawshank, Midworld, Endworld, ALL OF IT!
And that’s all I’m going to say about that! For now…
Today, in honor of my reading of The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, I have posted my review of the first book in the series, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I read the book in April, so I can’t believe that I never got around to posting a review. I absolutely loved it!
So, check out my review as I read the next book in the series!
(By the way, my full-time reading is going excellently! I finished Dragonfly in Amber yesterday and got a quarter of the way through the amazing Song of Susannah!)
There’s been a dark cloud hanging over my house for the last week. I haven’t really felt up to sharing about it, nor do I entirely feel comfortable sharing now. Yet, I want to say something here, especially since it might come up in the future. Don’t worry, this post won’t be all doom and gloom.
Last Friday, Jesse and I found out that one of our good friends was brutally murdered by his ex-wife’s boyfriend. His five-year-old son, of whom he had full custody, is said to be safe, presumably with the ex-wife, but I’m hoping he’s with his grandmother. We learned, and are still learning, the details of what happened to our friend via out-of-state newspapers. Seeing horrific details in print, that describe atrocious actions done to one of your good friends, is surreal to say the least.
Needless to say, Jesse and I are trying to figure out how to cope with our emotions. These aren’t the typical feelings of sadness and loss that derive from losing a friend to a motorcycle accident (which is what Jesse first assumed had happened when he heard about the death). No, hopefully, eventually, those will be the sole emotions remaining. What Jesse (and I, to a lesser extent) is dealing with is extreme, “I want to rip him apart”, anger. Because a great injustice has been dealt to our friend, a very caring and kind person who was the best dad anyone could ask for. And how awful is it going to be for his little boy, having to grow up under these gruesome and unfair events? So, we’re angry, confused, and starting to come out of the shock.
Eventually, there will be a fund set up for his son, and when that goes into effect, you will probably see something about it here. Because, I figure, the only thing to do in this situation, the only way to get past the hate and anger, is to combat it with love. I think I read that over at Lucy’s Football last week, which was definitely well-timed in my situation. So, I’m going to do whatever I can to help that little boy who was so loved and cared for by his father. I’ll probably ask you all to help in whatever way you can as well. Until then, Jesse and I are coping, trying to find some sense of normalcy.
Here’s a song for Brando and his son by Flogging Molly, a favorite of Brando’s:
—-**—-Here is where I transition awkwardly to how I am coping.—-**—-
It’s been very hot in San Diego this week, so I haven’t felt up to doing much of anything. We don’t have AC in our house, nor do most people in SD, because, for the majority of the year, we don’t need it. But, I definitely wouldn’t have minded it this week. So, I’ve been eating popsicles and raw veggies, drinking lots of iced tea, and reading books. I finished The Return of the King this week (I was sad to say goodbye to my friends when it was all over), and have worked my way through about half of Diana Gabaldon’s Dragonfly in Amber, the second book in the Outlander series. Hopefully, I’ll have that finished by next week. Then, I’ll be returning to The Dark Tower series, to finish what I started in January. The Wolves of the Calla is what I’ve got next (one of my favorites in the series).
So here’s something out in left field that I started last night: writing a really crappy YA paranormal romance. Yesterday, my friend Pat invited me to “Book Club”, a group he and another friend started on Facebook. The purpose of Book Club? Reading, analyzing, and writing crappy tween books. Right now, Pat is working on a teen romance between a human girl and a wraith boy. Apparently, it’s tough being a wraith in high school-it’s hard to stay focused. You know, fellow LotR-reading friends, what I imagine…the Nazgul king meets Eowyn on the fields of Pellenor.
She takes her helmet off, and the wraith falls madly in love on the spot.
He sheathes his sword, pulls Eowyn up on his mount, and flies off to his hidden nest up near Mount Doom. After weeks of being holed up with the king, Eowyn starts to notice a softer side to him, and one day realizes that she has fallen madly in love. The love of the wraith and the princess…
Artwork by TAD RVA- tadrva.blogspot.com
coming to a Kindle near you.
I can’t wait to see what happens in Pat’s story…it’s definitely going to be absurd. I, on the other hand, started my story last night by pulling out my handy-dandy Field Guide to Demons book, using a random number generator to choose a page number, and selecting a paranormal love interest based upon the page I came up with. So, I’m writing a tragic love story centering around a human boy and a nixie! There will be a love triangle and my story will be heavily ripping off Edith Wharton’s Age of Innocence. That’s how it’s done, right? Surprisingly, based upon my struggle with the first 400 words, writing crap is hard!
My nixie wears more clothes and falls in love with the star of the swim team!
Of course, the best way to cope in times of sadness is through retail therapy.
Joking.
But, I have been utilizing my own type of retail therapy. You know that I’m not talking about shoe shopping, right? You guys know me better than that. Nope, I’ve been indulging in book-buying of course! Here are some of the books I’ve picked up this week via thrift stores, used bookstores, and Amazon.
For my Kindle:
Shadow Show: All New Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury by various awesome authors
as recommended by Heather at Between the Covers
The Girl Next Door by Jack Ketchum
Hopefully, I’ll be able to read this in October. We’ll see.
From a local thrift store:
Two John Irving novels: A Widow for One Year and The Cider House Rules
and Microserfs by Douglas Coupland, author of my ’90s favorite Generation X.
Grand Total: less than $4!
Then the most exciting purchase from the used bookstore:
A first edition of The Drawing of the Three! With all of the pictures! Only $20!
I’m now one book away from having all of the Dark Tower pictures, (remember when I bitched about that?). I just need The Gunslinger for a complete set!
So, I think next week I will be back to “back to normal”. That means at least three posts from me, lots of reading, and my normal amount of tweeting (which is usually <5 per day). This weekend, I’ll engage in my planned inspired adventure of watching local LARPing for next week’s Return of the King-Inspired Adventures post, which will either appear on Monday or Thursday.
And, this is how I’m dealing. Am I doing it right? Is there a right way to mourn? I figure that the best way to deal is to get back to doing what I normally do. And do as much good as I can for that little boy who is left behind.
As always, thank you friends for all of your support and caring. It never ceases to amaze me how kind people can be.
• Wizard and Glass by Stephen King
• Paperback: 668 pages
• Publisher: Plume, 2003 (originally published in 1997)
• ISBN: 0452284724
• Genre: Fantasy/Horror
• Recommended For: Any reader of the Dark Tower series (you have to read this one to continue on); anyone who wants to read a Stephen King romance (75% of the book is romance!).
Quick Review: Two stories in one. The ongoing story of the Dark Tower ka-tet continues in Wizard and Glass and is awesome. Unfortunately, this story only constitutes 25% of the book. The other 75% of the novel is Roland’s back story, and this story is lackluster to say the least. But, you’ve got to get through it to continue on with the ka-tet and the genius that is the Dark Tower series. So, I recommend you read Wizard and Glass.
Overall, the book receives a 72% or 3.6 stars. This score has been calculated by rating the two different sections of the book: the present-time plot and the flashback plot. See critique and analysis below for a full explanation of the score and the corresponding rubrics.
How I Got Here: The Waste Lands ends on a MAJOR cliffhanger, and Wizard and Glass picks up right where it left off. This book satisfies tasks for The Dark Tower Challenge and The Stephen King project.
The Book: Goodreads’ Synopsis
Roland and his band have narrowly escaped the city of Lud and boarded Blaine, a train that will take them to, of all places, Kansas, where the ghost city of Topeka has been depopulated by a superflu and where, alongside Interstate 70, an emerald palace rises enchantingly. Before Roland and the companions of his ka-tet continue along the Path of the Beam, Roland must tell his companions the tale that defines him both as a man and hero, a long-ago romance of witchery and evil, of the beautiful, unforgettable Susan Delgado, of the Big Coffin Hunters and Rhea of the Coos. And when his tale is finished, Roland confronts a man who goes by many names, a man who “darkles and tincts” and who holds perhaps the key to the Dark Tower.
My Analysis and Critique:
Ahh…Wizard and Glass. Was I so eager for all things Dark Tower the first time, or am I just not interested in flashbacks? Am I so jaded when it comes to first love? Or do I only care about my precious ka-tet of Roland, Eddie, Susannah, Jake, and Oy? I don’t remember disliking this book or trudging through it the first time I read it, but this second time, seven years later, I struggled. Not with all, but the majority. Let me break it down…
Wizard and Glass can be broken into two very unequal parts. There’s 25% of the book that covers our main Dark Tower characters: Roland, Eddie, Jake, Susannah, and Oy. The book begins with them and their ongoing predicament aboard Blaine the Mono and their few subsequent adventures. Then, Roland and the gang take a seat (literally) in the middle of the road and Roland finally tells the ka-tet the story of his first love and his first real challenge as a bona fide gunslinger in the small town of Mejis. This flashback portion of the novel takes up exactly 75% of the novel. The remaining bits of the 25% of present-set story arc show what happens to the ka-tet after they finish their story-time with Roland. This is a measly 52 pages more. While the present-day story of the ka-tet is, as always, very strong, it very quickly gets overshadowed by the “Susan story”, the not-so-interesting flashback to Roland’s youth that is mainly told via Susan (his one true love)’s perspective (how Roland knows her perspective so well is unknown, and unfortunate for the readers).
Because this novel is really two stories in one, and one is very strong while the other is weak, I made a difficult decision, one that I sometimes make as a teacher grading student essays and stories. I decided to critique this novel in two parts instead of as a whole. So, I completed two rubrics: one for the present-day story of the ka-tet and one for the flashback story of Susan and Roland. I then gave each portion its due based upon the percentage of the book it occupies. Thus, the grade for the flashback story counts for 75% of the overall grade, while the grade for the present-day story counts for 25% of the overall grade. Here are the rubrics: The Present-Day Story: Wizard and Glass_present Rubric and The Flashback Story: Wizard and Glass_past
and here are the calculations and overall grade:
The Present-Day Story earns a 96% and provides 24 points to the overall grade out of 100.
The Flashback Story earns a 64% and provides 48 points to the overall grade out of 100.
Therefore, Wizard and Glass earns 72 points out of 100, or 3.6 stars.
So, now let me explain a few points for and against these two parts of the novel.
The Present-Day Story: This book starts off with thrills and chills. Blaine the Mono (the creepiest train that ever was) is tormenting our ka-tet on a suicide mission, forcing our gang to try to come up with a riddle that Blaine can’t solve. Unfortunately, Blaine knows every riddle there ever was. This opening plot was just jaw-dropping “wow!” and the characterization was perfect, every member’s riddles fit them perfectly and their interactions with the ultimate bad guy Blaine were so fitting for their individual personalities. The climax of this scene was a fist in the air, Arsenio Hall-style “Whoo-whoo-whoo!”. So, exciting!
The plot goes on to reveal new twists and connectivity between the Dark Tower plot and other King works (namely, The Stand), which this constant reader always loves. The themes were solid and intriguing, it was super-addictive, and the setting came alive. Everything was as solid as The Waste Lands. Then, Roland had to go and ruin it all.
The Flashback Story: I really am interested in Roland’s back story. What happened to all of the other gunslingers? What was he like before he was so cold and stoic? What does it exactly mean that “the world has moved on”? Moved on from what?
You learn a bit about this in the flashback story, but not enough. Mostly, you learn what it’s like to be a girl whored off to a knuckle-cracking old man in Mid-World, and how much it sucks when you’re secretly in love with a dashing 14-year-old gunslinger from the Camelot-like barony of Gilead. Too much Susan! I don’t hate Susan, but I didn’t really want her story. Well, I didn’t want it from her point of view. I wanted Roland’s story! The plot was not exactly light in the flashback (there are definitely some intense, gruesome scenes), but it wasn’t strong either. The characterization was lackluster because the reader didn’t get to know the truly interesting characters as well as they might’ve liked, but really got to know Susan. The supporting cast was very strong–I loved all of the chapters that focused upon the tension between the three young gunslingers (Roland, Alain, and Cuthbert) and their nemeses, the Coffin Hunters. Plus, the setting of Mejis did truly come alive. Yet, if I had a choice, I would NOT re-read this portion of the book again. It did very little for me, and did not sate my appetite for more answers about the world of the gunslingers. I’ll check out the graphic novels for this and hope I get the story I really want.
Back to the Present Day Story: After the long story of Susan, I just really wasn’t feeling it anymore. I think that the remaining pages of Wizard and Glass were solid again, but I wasn’t as engaged with the plot anymore. The mood was gone. This is unfortunate, but hopefully I’ll be all amped up to be back with the ka-tet again when I begin reading The Wind through the Keyhole, the latest Dark Tower novel, next!
Links:
Hi all! I was absent here and on the Twitterverse for the last couple of days as I had a whirlwind in-laws weekend! My husband’s uncle from Illinois was in town, my mother-in-law had a birthday, and it was, of course, Easter, so I’ve been celebrating all over the place in San Diego! I didn’t get much reading done this weekend, but it’s been a few days since I checked in here with my current reads, what with all of my Hemingway posts, so today will be a great time to discuss what I’m up to, reading-wise.
I am currently reading multiple books: one wayyyy harder than I thought, one that isn’t as gripping as I like, and the rest are graphic novels, so whatever.
First, the Chaucer…
So, my Classics goal for April is to read The Canterbury Tales. Now, I thought that I had read The Canterbury Tales in college. I was wrong. I read “The General Prologue”, “The Miller’s Tale”, “The Wife of Bath’s Tale”, and “The Friar’s Tale”. And, I think that I read them translated.
Well, that’s not the major endeavor I am setting on right now at all! In fact, I must admit that I am intimidated!!! This book is hard! It’s a little easier than reading Catullus in Latin, but a lot harder than reading Shakespeare. It gets easier with every paragraph I read, as I’m starting to translate some of the words on my own (i.e. I recognize now that “eek” means “also” and “aventure” means “chance”), and if I read it aloud I can figure out what Chaucer is getting at. However, I am reading the footnotes and appendices ravenously to where it takes me about five minutes to read one page of poetry. Here are the opening lines of “The General Prologue”:
When that Aprill with his shoures soot
The droghte of March hath perced to the roote,
And bathed every veine in swich licour
Of which vertu engendred is the flour,
Whan Zephirus eek with his sweete breeth
Ispired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halve cours yronne,
And smale foweles maken melodye,
That slepen al the night with open eye-
So priketh hem nature in hir corages-
That longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,
And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes,
To ferne halwes, kouth in sondry londes;
And specially from every shires ende
Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende,
The holy blissful martyr for to seke
That hem hath holpen whan that they were seeke.
Here’s my translation:
When April with his sweet showers has pierced the drought of March to the root,
and has bathed every plant in such liquid,
by whose power engendered is the flower,
Also, when the West Wind has breathed his sweet breath on every wood and field,
the tender shoots of plants, and the young sun has completed his half course in Aries,
and small birds make melody,
Nature so pricks them in their hearts,
that they sleep all night with an open eye,
and folks long to go on pilgrimages,
and these pilgrims go to seek strange countries for far-off shrines,
renowned in various lands;
and especially from every shire’s end
from England to Canterbury they go,
They go to seek the holy blissful martyr (St. Thomas a Becket),
who had helped them when they were sick.
Using the footnotes closely, that’s my translation, although there are definitely parts I’m still not sure on (are the birds sleeping with one eye open or is it the pilgrims? I’m guessing it’s the pilgrims, since they’re so excited.). It’s actually easier to translate Latin verse, as you always know what each modifier is being applied to, thanks to the endings of words.
So, this book is tough. Why am I reading this toughie? Well, I’ll discuss that on another day. I’ve set up a reading schedule so that I can finish it by the end of April (How cool is it that I’m reading it in April [the same time as the pilgrims are leaving for Canterbury]? Complete accident!):
As you can see, I can only handle about 30-40 pages per day with this book, which usually equates to one pilgrim’s tale per day. So, this should take me right to the last day of April! Wish me luck! While it’s hard, I have read one excellent story (“The Miller’s Tale”). It seems that gross-out humor has been popular for a very long time–this one is rife with gross-out humor!
So, there’s my Old World reading—now, lets discuss my Mid World reading.
I’m now in book 4 of the Dark Tower series–Wizard and Glass. The cliff-hanger ending of The Waste Lands has now been resolved, and now I’m reading the flashback chapters that tell of Roland’s youth and first love. While I don’t hate these flashback chapters as much as my blogging buddy SJ, they are quite a let-down after all of the excitement of Blaine the Mono, and the curiousities the ka-tet finds in Topeka. But, I am interested in Roland’s past, and I do want to know how Roland’s world has moved on. While his flashback doesn’t really reveal this, it does show what civilized people were like in his world. Which is interesting.
I also want to get some revelation on how Roland started on his quest and how all of the other gunslingers died, so I am also reading the graphic novel series in concordance with the novel. For this reason, Wizard and Glass will probably take a lot longer to finish than the other books, as I think that I will read all of the graphic novels before picking up with Roland’s present day story. Thus, when his flashback chapters end, I’ll continue to read on with the graphic novels. Maybe I’ll get some questions answered that way. In addition, I’m going to read “The Little Sisters of Eluria“, a short story contained in King’s Everything’s Eventual, so that I can get a peek at Roland on his quest before the start of The Gunslinger. I’m doing a lot of backtracking!
But, that’s okay, as The Wind through the Keyhole doesn’t come out until the last week of April, so I have time! I think I pre-ordered it already, so it should be on my doorstep on its release date!
Ah, a reader’s work is never done!
• The Waste Lands by Stephen King
• Paperback: 588 pages
• Publisher: Signet, 2003 (originally published in 1991)
• ISBN: 0451210867
• Genre: Fantasy/Horror
• Recommended For: Any serious Stephen King fan who wants to truly understand the Stephen King universe via reading the Dark Tower series; fans of fantasy.
Quick Review: Earns a 98 %, or 4.9 stars out of 5. Check out my rubric for my detailed assessment. The Waste Lands Rubric
Simply put, this book (the third in the series) is amazing! If you have tried to read The Dark Tower series and couldn’t get into it, I’m guessing that you didn’t get this far. Keep going!
How I Got Here: It was next. It should be noted that this, and all of the Dark Tower series, is a re-read for me. I first read the series in 2004-2005. This book satisfies tasks for The Dark Tower Challenge and The Stephen King Project.
The Book: Goodreads’ Synopsis
Roland, the last gunslinger, moves ever closer to the Dark Tower of his dreams and nightmares as he travels through city and country in Mid-World – a macabre world that is a twisted image of our own. With him are those he has drawn to this world: street-smart Eddie and courageous, wheelchair-bound Susannah.
Ahead of him are mind-bending revelations about who and what is driving him. Against him is arrayed a swelling legion of foes-both more and less than human…
My Analysis and Critique:
When you love a book as much as I loved this one, the review is either very easy to write, or very hard. I’ll do my best to write well. Sometimes the best writing is simple, so I’ll keep it simple.
Simply put, this book (the third in the series) is amazing! If you have tried to read the Dark Tower series and couldn’t get into it, I’m guessing that you didn’t get this far. Keep going! Although I loved The Gunslinger and The Drawing of the Three, neither are as good as The Waste Lands. Yet, they are definitely essential for building the back story leading to this action-packed thriller/horror/fantasy novel.
So much happens in this book, and I don’t know how to discuss it without giving spoilers (ugh, I hate the limitations caused by spoilers!). The plot is quick, yet full, loaded with world-building, mystery, and suspense. The characters are fully-functioning and developed–I have completely fallen in love with the Ka-tet of Eddie, Roland, Jake, and, of course, the billy-bumbler Oy (Susannah still needs room to grow, but I remember loving her in book 5, so I’ll give it time). The themes have grown huge in this novel–I have questions about other dimensions, nuclear holocaust, time travel, cross-textual themes, and so much more that I can’t even explain. This book makes one think and question.
The Waste Lands is the point where my Dark Tower addiction begins. I can’t get enough of the connectivity between the Dark Tower series and King’s other novels, and this is where it really begins (fans of The Stand–if you want more Randall Flagg, you’ve gotta read this series!). I love the mystery of The Beams, the legends behind the Guardians of The Beams, the horrors of a world devastated by some sort of nuclear disaster (you know when King writes it, it results in some seriously frightening mutants), and the thrills I get when Jake is in danger (twice in this book). And then there’s Blaine. Blaine the pain.
Hopefully, I’ve sold you. Read the Dark Tower series. Read it so that you can read The Waste Lands. You won’t be sorry.
Review Bonus Features:
Soundtrack to the Book (the drums heard throughout the novel):
Links:
Wow, this week went by slowly!
It’s finally the weekend, and it couldn’t have come any slower. This was one of those weeks where it went by so slowly that I almost feel that it should be next week by now.
But, the week is over now, and I have a lot of bookish things on my radar that I wanted to share.
Currently, I am still reading The Waste Lands by Stephen King. While it’s hard to put down when I’m reading it, in the last couple of days, I haven’t been able to squeeze in time to read! So, I’m hoping that I can get some reading done this weekend, although it’s unlikely that it will happen because I’m gearing up for…
Mad Men! The two-hour season premiere airs tomorrow and I can’t wait! I will be writing about all things Mad Men tomorrow, and will probably re-watch most of season 4 on Netflix all day before the premiere. I am in love with this show–I consider it to be the most consistent, well-developed series on television to date. I can’t wait to see what’s going on with my favorite characters in this new season! How many of you are as excited as I am?!
Also, I mentioned it earlier this week, but now it’s official–Dewey’s Readathon is back! Sign-ups are here! I have officially signed up to read for 24 hours on April 21st, and I hope you will too. I know my buddy Kyle at A Reader’s Pensieve is doing it, but I’m urging the rest of you to set aside the day to do it as well! And, YOU DON’T HAVE TO GO FOR THE FULL 24 HOURS! (I’m looking at you SJ) Just sign up and read for however long you can go! It’s about all of us setting aside a bit of time to read as a community. We can update our reading progress on our blogs or over on Twitter and root each other on. I enjoyed reading alongside Jillian, of A Room of One’s Own, during the last readathon–we checked in with other through the wee hours, and at the witching hour of 3:00 a.m., when you’re reading a super-creepy book like The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer, it’s really nice to know someone else is out there still reading as well. It’s just a very cozy feeling, knowing that you’re reading alongside (virtually) with the rest of your community. Just consider it, please?!
Another bookish event on my radar is Suvudu’s Cage Match 2012 event. Basically, characters from some of the best science fiction and fantasy titles are pitted against each other in a fight to the finish. Participants for this event have included Tyrion Lannister, Zaphod Beeblebrox, The Wicked Witch, Lady Jessica, Bast, and Mr. Wednesday (to name only a few). Check out the round 3 bracket here. The event is almost over (I found out about it on Wednesday, but it’s been going on all month!), but I’m enjoying reading the recaps of the past matches. So far, Zaphod Beeblebrox, Anomander Rake, Moiraine Damodred, Kelsier, Mr. Wednesday, Granny Weatherwax, Kylar Stern, and Erevis Cale are still in it. I’m only familiar with Zaphod and Wednesday, but the cool thing about this event is that it provides me with exposure to characters whom I might want to read about in their respective sci-fi and fantasy titles. Plus, it’s just a lot of fun for fans. I recommend you all check it out!
Finally, I signed up a few weeks ago, but the event has officially started, so I’ll announce now that I am going to take part in The Sarah Addison Allen Challenge hosted by Quirky Girls Read. For those of you who don’t know who Allen is, she writes lovely magical realism novels that always take place in North Carolina and always have something to do with delicious food. When I was in a reading rut last year, I picked up a copy of Allen’s Garden Spells simply for the lovely book cover, and I was surprised to find that I loved it. Her imagery and tone is like drinking an ice-cold Arnold Palmer on a hot summer day. So, for this challenge, I will read all four of Allen’s books in April, and, on the weekend, I will cook or bake something inspired by the story I read. For example, for The Girl Who Chased the Moon, I will bake Hummingbird Cake, as that’s one of the main character’s specialties. I believe that Allen even provides a recipe on her website. It’s gonna be delicious!
This will be my last week of teaching before a month-long Spring Break. So, if I’m not consistent in posting this week, just know that I’ll be a constant presence in April! I can’t wait!
I just started re-reading The Waste Lands, book 3 in the Dark Tower series by Stephen King, and I’m loving it (of course), but I’m also a little bummed.
I miss my pictures!
I think that the first time I read this book, about seven or eight years ago, I read the hardcover. With all of the awesome illustrations. Now, I’m just reading some crummy, mass-marketed paperback with a picture of a skull-faced train on the cover.
Not good enough!
I realized this when I read a description of Mir, the giant cyborg bear, and had an image in my head that I knew wasn’t placed there from reading the description. I was picturing this:
Pretty awesome, right?
But, that awesome picture isn’t there for me now. I have to use my rotten imagination. Boo.
Just check out some of the amazing illustrations that I’m missing out on:
At least, I know that all of my next books in the series are all illustrated (I think that I checked out books 1-3 from the library, and bought all of books 4-7 myself). But, man. I didn’t realize how much I loved the art until it was missing!
How do you feel about book art? Do you think art, such as the above images, really adds to the novel, or is it a far second in importance? There’s some really trippy art in Wizard and Glass, so I can waver on my opinion probably next month (although, I love Dave McKean’s work with Gaiman!).
Spring is here, and I’ve already started my spring reading, but I’m pretty excited because Spring Break is right around the corner, and, being a teacher at a year-round school, I get the entire month of April off! That’s a whole lot of time for reading and blogging! Last year, I read 28 books during Spring Break. Woot! So, here are ten of the books that I’m most looking forward to reading in the spring.
1. Re-reads of The Dark Tower series–Wizard and Glass, The Wolves of the Calla, and The Dark Tower graphic novel series
I’m trying to read a book per month from this series, and these are the books slated to be read before June!
2. The Wind through the Keyhole by Stephen King
To be released in late April, I can’t wait to see what was going on with the Ka-Tet that was so important that King had to release an entirely new novel to fit between Wizard and Glass and The Wolves of the Calla. This ought to be good!
3. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer and/or The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy
These are both very long books, and I can’t yet decide which one I want to read for my classic in April. The Canterbury Tales is a re-read, but it can be very difficult. The Forsyte Saga is long, but very engaging, something that might be more useful in the hot summer months. Not sure yet, but I know that I’ll enjoy both.
4. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley or The Iliad by Homer
Again,
I can’t decide which one I want to read in May. The Iliad can be difficult, so it all depends upon how much brain power I have available in May. I’m not even sure that I want to read Brave New World, but it is certainly easier than The Iliad.
5. Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris
Man, the Sookie books have been disappointing in the last two years, but that doesn’t mean I’m giving up on the series. I always read the new book in May, and this year won’t be any different. I have to see what’s going on in Bon Temps.
6. Insurgent by Veronica Roth
I read Divergent in December, and liked it. I can’t turn my back on a series…I’ll see what happens next.
7. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides or The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
One or both of these will be read in the spring. Don’t know yet which one it will be.
8. Re-reads of The Walking Dead graphic novel series by Robert Kirkman
I need to refresh my memory on this series, and then pick up where I left off with the comics! Last time I read, I was at a major cliffhanger! It’s been months since I left off.
9. Continued reading of Locke & Key graphic novel series by Joe Hill
I only read the first three volumes in February, and I loved them. I need to keep going before I forget, like I did with The Walking Dead!
10. Continued reading of The Portable Dorothy Parker
I’ll probably be reading this all year, but that doesn’t mean I’m not always looking forward to the next short story, poem, or essay offered in this collection.
Free air conditioning--all year long!
It’s another cold, wet, blustery day here in San Diego! One of the perks of being in San Diego is that there really isn’t any reason to have a high energy bill. The weather typically is moderate, so no need for AC in the summer and no need for heat in the winter. However, on days and nights like this, with a house full of wide door jambs and such, it’s not too different from camping. You can feel the wind blowing in right through the cracks of the walls! That makes for a chilly house (but great on a hot, windy summer day)! So, I’m all bundled up in the house in my robe, scarf, long johns, wool socks and sweater. We San Diegans can be wusses about temperature changes, I know! But, it would be ridiculous to try to heat up this old, drafty house with no insulation whatsoever. So, we bundle up!
So, the fanfare may commence…I finished The Wise Man’s Fear relatively early (9:00 p.m.) last night! It was so good! If you missed them, I wrote readathon posts on Friday and Saturday, each with reading updates and reflection (and silly videos). Today, I will write my review (to post tomorrow) and begin reading The Waste Lands in continuance of The Dark Tower Reading Challenge (and The Stephen King project). I also need to read a classic for March still, and while I was planning on reading The Forsyte Saga for this month, it’s a hefty book and March is almost over! So, I’m going to push that off until I have a lot of free reading time (Spring Break in April or summer vacation in August). Instead, I think my classic will be A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway. My sister has urged me to read it, and the little bits I’ve skimmed while flipping through have shown it to be a very interesting book. So, I’m excited to start that up this week! I hope it counts for some of my challenges…
What else has been going on? Well, I’ve been having an internal debate on whether or not I should accept books for review. I’ve been getting approaches by authors about reading and reviewing their books, and I am skeptical to say the least. I don’t like being given something to read. It’s like someone throwing themself at you. I’m all about the chase. I want to find the perfect book for right now, and read it on my own time. Plus, I’m a horrible snob when it comes to what I read. It sounds pretentious, but I don’t read bad books. I just don’t. Or, if I do, I’m doing it on purpose. I can be in the mood for fluffy crap, but, even then, I seek it out. I seek my crap carefully. Plus, there’s the whole problem with my dislike of contemporary fiction. It’s a struggle for me to even read the Pulitzer winners for the Insatiable Booksluts’ Award-Winning Challenge, and those are award-winners!
So, after careful consideration, and the seeking out of advice from two book bloggers I greatly admire, and finally, after reading this article from the Los Angeles Review of Books, I have decided that I am not accepting books for review at this time. I will place this in my Contact page to avoid further consideration. I’ve just got too many good books of my own choosing to read, and I read enough sucky writing from my students–I don’t need to read potentially sucky books in my free time! So, if you’re looking for reviews of the newest upcoming novels, Adventures in Borkdom isn’t the place! Sorry!
Some really good news…Dewey’s Readathon is returning in April! I participated in my first Dewey back in October, and I had a blast! I read for the full 24 hours, ripped through 4.5 books, and participated in the challenges! If you’re looking for a good time, I urge you to sign up when the official linky becomes available (I’ll let you know when it does)! It could be a like a big fun sleepover, where we are all reading together and blogging and tweeting and rooting each other on! It could be so fun!!! It’ll take place April 21st, the third Saturday in April. Please, friends, set aside the date and sign up! IT COULD BE SO MUCH FUN!!!
Finally, I’ll be tuning in to tonight’s season finale of The Walking Dead! I was very happy when Shane died in the last episode (though, I wish it had been Carl who shot him. He could’ve done that when he was creeping around and saw Shane pointing a gun at his Dad. That would’ve been a huge turning point for Carl’s character! Of course, I’m assuming Carl was there to see the scene between Shane and Rick.), and I’m hoping to see some of Hershel’s red-shirt kids bite the big one tonight. And, if they’re not going to give T-Dog any sort of purpose, he could die too. If we played a drinking game where we drank everytime T-Dog appeared in an episode, we would be negative-drunk. He needs a purpose if he’s going to take up a valuable space on our survivor squad–there are too many stronger characters who could take his place! I’m crossing my fingers that one of those awesome characters will appear in tonight’s finale and set up an awesome new season in the Fall!
A rare sighting of T-Dog...
So, that’s what I’m up to. How ’bout you?
Adventures in Borkdom 