63. Train Man – Nakano Hitori
In the time it took me to look something up, I forgot what I’d intended to say in the rest of this post. See you next year.
Funny feeling.
62. Room – Emma Donoghue
Okay, so Room had been on my reading list for months, and I actually finished it a couple of weeks ago. I just hadn’t gotten around to posting. 
I was sorta morbidly curious about this book after reading a review or maybe article sometime earlier this year. I started reading and it was fascinating and disturbing all at once. I ended up sneaking peeks to the middle or so after about twenty pages. I realized that there was no way I could finish this book if there wasn’t going to be some sort of happy-ish ending. And there was, worry not. It was ultimately satisfying, despite not sharing all the answers, or not telling us the full story in the end. It’s from the boy’s perspective, so it would be out of place to go too in depth on the aftermath and public reaction. The glimpses we got were enough.
I haven’t been reading much else, despite the several library books I’ve got sitting on my pile here. School has started piling up, and it’s crunch time. I’ve been in the midst of applying/enrolling to a private university, I’ve got a research paper and exams in one class, and I’m behind on a few projects in my drawing class. At least this is one more little tick mark I can check off of my to-do list.
In other exciting news, my first freelance work hit the web today. Yay!
Slowly losing my mind…
60. Gods Behaving Badly – Marie Phillips
61. One for the Money – Janet Evanovich
Earlier today I had a weird flashback of a book that I’d read recently, and since I’ve been keeping track of my books for the last two years, I thought it’d be easy to look over the lists and find it. But it wasn’t there. Either I’d forgotten to record it, or I’d read it sometime in 2009, in which case my sense of “recent” is somewhat flawed. Strange how memory works.
Anyway, #60 was nice, a bit slow to get going, but interesting. The pacing is a bit unusual, in that the start of what we’d traditionally consider the Hero’s Journey doesn’t occur until about the mid-way point. I heard there was a movie adaptation in the works, and I’ll bet you anything they’ll move the start of the Quest to the beginning, like audiences are used to.
I’ve had #61 for quite some time, and it wasn’t until I saw the trailer for that movie last weekend that reminded me I should get going on it. It was a bit darker and more disturbing than I expected, especially if you’re comparing it to the trailer, but I’ll gladly continue with the series for a bit. I’m reading book 2, and picked up 4 and 5 a few days ago.
October >:[
59. Some Like it Hot-Buttered – Jeffrey Cohen
So, I’ve pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I’m probably not going to hit my vaguely defined goal of 100 books per year. That’s okay! I’ve decided it’s quality over quantity that matters, and I’m way more interested in reading stuff that won’t make me want to bang my head against the wall. Luckily, #59 is anything but a wallbanger. Jeffrey Cohen is genuinely funny and I wonder why it took me so long to start reading this book, because it’d been sitting on my pile for months, like so many books have. There’s not enough of this sort of humor around — I’m not even sure how exactly to describe it — and I think I’m going to make it a point to search for more like it.
Anyway, since it’s October, most of my classes have pretty much kicked into high gear. I’m currently stalling on a critical website review for history that’s due tomorrow morning. Yesterday and this morning I managed to finish several pieces that were due in drawing today. And I’m currently a bit ahead on my Japanese homework. Two weeks in, it’s still pretty simple stuff, but I’m sure things will get more interesting soon.
Also, October is officially the month where life tends to crap on me. Most of the low points in my life occurred in October (which is why I can’t figure out why my seasonal depression usually sets in in March…), and I just can’t wait to find out what the universe has in store this year.
So freaking hot in here.
58. What’s a Ghoul to Do? – Victoria Laurie
This one’s been finished and on the board for awhile now. I’m currently slacking on the four or so books I’ve got open at the moment. ^^;
In related news, I finally caved and made a Goodreads account, so I’m going to be keeping track of stuff there too.
Overall, I liked #58, but there were just a handful of things that kept me from loving it. I don’t want to get into it now. Summer’s in it’s last gasp, and it’s ridiculously hot in my room. I’m now desperate to log off and go somewhere else.
Are titles really necessary now?
55. A Taste of the Nightlife – Sarah Zettel
56. Book Girl and the Suicidal Mime – Mizuki Nomura
57. The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya – Nagaru Tanigawa
At this rate, it’s not looking likely I’ll hit the 100 books goal that I’d set and surpassed last year. That’s okay. Quality, not quantity is always nicer.
This time around, it’s a library book and a couple of light novels that I’d been sitting on for several months. I’m trying to stay away from the library for awhile, so I can get through the stuff that I have lying around. I’ve been reading less lately, since I’ve gotten back into anime and am watching several of spring and summer’s simulcasts, as well as catching up on older shows too. Plus, fall semester’s started, and I’ve resolved to actually put in some effort this time around. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this here before, but I’m planning to transfer by spring.
In addition to school and hobbies, I’ve also got some freelance sorta work going on, so I’m going to be busy, which is new and different. I look forward to it.
The creeper’s gonna steal our stuff again! :0
52. Hello, Gorgeous! – MaryJanice Davidson
53. Scared Stiff – Annelise Ryan
54. Drop Dead Gorgeous – MaryJanice Davidson
Last year, after a couple of authors found my blog, I resolved to be more careful of what I said here, because I’m really not out to offend anyone. Let’s forget that promise for a mo. WHAT HAPPENED to MJD!?! I’ve read some of her other books, and then the cyborg series came up in my queue, and OH MY GOD. Is this seriously the same author? Heavy on dialogue, light on EVERYTHING ELSE that makes a book enjoyable and worth reading. Plot’s barely there, no depth, characters are paper dolls. The action just moves right along with no regard for what came before or after, and I sat there bewildered as these characters just bounced around like brainless puppets on strings. I regret spending $2 on each book. I regret even more giving them to a friend last Christmas before I’d pre-screened them. God, I hope she doesn’t hate me.
Luckily, I cleansed my palate with more Mattie Winston. Oh jeez, the Humiliation Conga that poor woman goes through in these books. Normally I cringe if I have to watch or read about someone being so soundly humiliated, but the situations here are SO outside of reality that it just becomes awesome. I refer to the Cottage Cheese Incident, for example. I desperately hope my library put in an order for the next one, coming out in a couple of weeks.
Just watched a cheesy movie.
51. To Sketch a Thief – Sharon Pape
#51 is another one of those books that I think I could use as a gateway drug for my friend who doesn’t read cozies. This one’s all about dog people. She’d love it. Good book, and I’m a little worried because there’s been no news or indication of further books in the series. Nothing. And the overarching mystery still hasn’t been solved. 😦 I could see it wrapping up neatly in a third and final book, but for now I’ll keep my ear to the ground. Ground being the author’s and publisher’s websites.
In happier news, I have a new obsession. 😀 I was finally able to watch Mozart l’Opéra Rock, with the help of a very generous superfan on Livejournal. I’d spent the last week or so with the soundtrack on repeat, so it SINGS ME TO SLEEP. ❤ It almost makes me want to switch my required-for-transfer foreign language classes from Spanish to French, but I know I’d never be able to wrap my tongue around the wacky pronunciations. I stumble over English plenty, I don’t need to try a language where things aren’t said the way they’re spelled. ^^;
But anyway, anyway! I’ve watched it through twice now (plus extra viewings for the good bits -_~), and I’ve begun my stealth campaign to get other members of my family into it. And maybe one of my friends who’s not opposed to musicals. Muhuhu.
Oh, the cheesy movie mentioned above was The Librarian: Return to King Solomon’s Mines.
Place Je passe
49. Ink Flamingos – Karen E. Olson
50. Eat, Slay, Love – Jesse Petersen
I don’t know what the title means, but it’s the name of the song I was listening to a moment ago. And oh hey, halfway mark! A couple of months late, but I’ve got a stack of books that should be quick reads, so maybe I’ll catch up. No telling, because I’ve gotten way back into anime, and have spent a lot of time wading through my pile of shame, as well as keeping up with simulcasts.
The above two books are both conclusions to series that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. Ink Flamingos ended in a really great place for Brett, and she really deserves it after all the traumatic crap she went through, especially in IF. And I was reading Ms. Olson’s blog on why it’s the last book, and she’s right- there’s only so many times you can solve a murder if you’re not specifically in the murder solving business.
I was a left a little bit out to dry by the ending of ESL. I would have liked an epilogue, or something, so we’d know how things in that world are resolved. Then I thought about it some more and realized: this is not a story about a zombie apocalypse; this is a story about Sarah and David in the zombie apocalypse, and their story is done. ….I wouldn’t say no to more novels or short stories set in that world, though. 🙂
I’m always a little scared to read the end of a series because of the Tethercat Principle, but I was overall satisfied that the characters can go on without me looking over their shoulders.
Something something lyrics I can’t remember
47. City of Flowers – Mary Hoffman
48. City of Secrets – Mary Hoffman
I’ve had City of Secrets sitting on my desk for several months now, and I finally got around to rereading Flowers and starting on the the new one. New to me, at least… I just found out there’s two more to be looking out for! 🙂
….And oh crap, I just got back from Borders and didn’t even think to look for book 5. Heh. I guess I had other things on my mind. I picked up a few mystery novels I was missing from my collection, and a few new and continuing manga volumes.
The World Religions class I was in ended today. I thought I had more to say about that, but it seems I don’t.
Anyway, back to City of Secrets. It’s the first new Stravaganza book I’ve read since the last one came out back in….wow, 2005? No wonder I couldn’t remember much of what happened in COF. Anyway, while I loved visiting Talia again, I felt that this book was less impactful in that it didn’t seem to have much importance in the overarching plot. The di Chimici scheme, and then they get foiled. Again. That’s about it. I didn’t care much for Matt, either, because he’s such a Debbie Downer on himself until the very end when he suddenly decides he has confidence after all. I found the other three protagonists to be way more interesting than him, more like actual characters rather than reader stand-ins.
Let’s hope the magic returns in City of Ships. 🙂
Goober Golf 