2014 goal...accomplished!

I have already finished my 2014 reading goal.  Instead of spending my holidays reading, I used my time off to weed out my TBR, my home library, AND my ebooks.  I whittled my TBR down from 800+ to 420.  And added my ebook titles to my TBR.  I'm pretty proud of that.  I have a little bit more space on my bookshelves and my hard drive now.  And I plan to only buy books I have already read and plan to reread in the future.  So now my 2014 reading goal is to read from my TBR and my home library.  I can be flexible enough to include titles that I don't have yet but I need to focus on reading what I already have.

And now that I've done all that, I can sit pack and read.

Read on,
Paula

BTT: Dinner Party; and Peer Pressure

Dinner Party (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Which three authors would you invite to a dinner party (they can be dead)?
2. Why?
3. Would they get along?

I can only think of two authors.  I would invite Robert J. Sawyer and Kerry Greenwood because I love their books.  It's hard to know what people you have never met would be like as dinner guests though.  I've met Rob Sawyer and he seems like a genuinely nice, polite, gracious man.  From what I have read from her bio, I imagine that Kerry Greenwood would be a fascinating person to learn more about.


Peer Pressure (from Booking Through Thursday)

Have you ever felt pressured to read something because 'everyone else' was reading it?  Have you ever given in and read the book(s) in question or do you resist?  If you are a reviewer, etc, do you feel it's your duty to keep up on current trends?

Everyone keeps telling me to read the "Hunger Games" series by Suzanne Collins.  And now that the series is being made into movies, it's being recommended again.  I wouldn't say I've felt pressured to read anything.  Titles are highly suggested by the people in my life and I choose whether or not to follow through on it.  Even if the suggestion comes with a certain force or urgency, it is still my decision in the end.  Having read the synopsis of the books, I have no interest in reading the "Hunger Games" series.  But here is the tricky part with this particular suggestion.  My sister-in-law made my interest in it go up a little when she said that Katniss is a strong female character.  But having heard other not-so-strong-female comments from other friends, my interest is now gone.

Of all the 'it' books that have been recommended to me, I can't think of any that I have given in to reading unless I was already interested in it.  Apparently, I am a resister.

I am not a professional reviewer; I do this all for my own enjoyment (and hopefully yours if you are reading this) so I have no professional obligation to keep up with trends.  And when trends coincide with my interests, I can balk.  For example, "The Fault in our Stars" by John Green.  It was on my TBR before it became a bestseller.  Now that it's all the rage, I have decided to read it later when the hoopla dies down.  And no, I won't be seeing the movie.

Read on,
Paula

Books and food

I have 6 days off for the christmas holidays and I chose two books with winter themes to enjoy during my time off.  I picked "The Snow Child" by Eowyn Ivey and "August Frost" by Monique Roffey.   I heard about "The Snow Child" from an episode of The Readers podcast and I read a brief baldness-focused synopsis of Roffey's "Sun Dog" (the original title of the book) in "The Novel Cure" by Ella Berthoud and Susan Elderkin.

In "The Snow Child", Mabel and Jack are a childless couple living in the wilderness of 1920s Alaska.  The descriptions of Mabel's life in their homestead made me feel grateful for my own skills with cooking and baking.  Reading about the pioneer experience in this book made me want so much to go off and bake my own bread.

The main character, August, in "August Frost" works in a London deli.  Descriptions of the varieties of cheese, meats, salads, and condiments in the deli and of August's forays in the local food market make me want to go discover new foods.  I had never heard of such a thing as coconut marmalade until I read it in this book.  Perhaps I will try making my own.

I like cookbooks that include a personal story.  I bought myself a copy of "The Healthy Gluten-Free Life" by Tammy Credicott, not only because I want to try almost every recipe in the book but also because of the personal notes that are included with each recipe and the story of their gluten-free home business, The Celiac Maniac.  I am thinking about also getting a copy of her "Make-Ahead Paleo".  Also on my TBR are "Life Is Meals: A Food Lover's Book of Days" by James Salter, "Odd Bits: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal" by Jennifer McLagen and "Cooking With Jamie" by Jamie Oliver.

Read (and eat) on,
Paula

Keeping track of my books

After much consideration, I decided to give up my Shelfari account.  Since Goodreads and Shelfari are both owned by Amazon now, it seemed even more redundant.  And I'm still using Library Thing to keep track of just the books I own.  I have only one friend who uses Shelfari (hence the reason I joined) and she doesn't use it or read very often.  I have more friends and more activity on Goodreads.

It's taking me a while to get used to adding titles to my TBR and recording books I've read in only one place.  And since I have the Goodreads app, this is so much more convenient and easy.

And as the holidays approach, I am looking forward to some uninterrupted reading time.

I have come to the realization that I am an in-the-moment reader.  I want to read what takes my fancy right now.  I believe this is why my 2013 goal of reading books from my home library didn't pan out so well.  Because my books have been there for quite some time and the longer that a title has been on my TBR, the less likely I am to get around to reading it.  So my 2014 goal is to weed both my home library and my TBR of items I doubt I will ever read.  The ones that don't have enough of a draw to entice me to actually pick them up.  Once I have done that, I will endeavour to truly read a minimum of one book from either my home library or my TBR.  And then I will continue to read by whim the rest of the time.

Read on,

Paula

BTT: The Knights of the Round Table; and Fantasy Anyone?

The Knights of the Round Table (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Do you enjoy reading the legends of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table?

2. How long ago did you read them?

3. Will you ever read more of them or re-read any that you've read before?

Surprisingly, I have never read them.  This is one of the instances where what I know about them is based on movies and references to the stories I've read elsewhere.  I'm not sure why the legends don't interest me.  I have read other historical fiction, other legends, and I have a Robin Hood retelling on my TBR.  I just have no interest in seeking them out.  *shrug*

Fantasy Anyone? (from Booking Through Thursday)

Roger Zelazny’s Amber series, J.R.R. Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings, David Eddings’ Belgariad, and Stephen R. Donaldson’s Thomas Covenant trilogies, are all classic examples of fantasy. None of them are books either of my parents would ever consider reading. I’ve devoured them all… And more.

1. Do you like to read fantasy?

2. What’s your favorite (or least favorite if you don’t like the genre) thing about reading fantasy?

3. Do you prefer regular people placed in alternate realities, like the Thomas Covenant stories and the Amber books, or do you prefer the whole world to come from the author’s imagination? Or something else?

4. Do you have a favorite author or theme that you go back to again and again?

I used to read a lot of fantasy when I was a teenager but not so much anymore.  I choose my reading based on plot and themes more than genre now.

I like fantasy for the non-realistic aspects, the things you can't write about in general realistic fiction, like shapeshifters and magic.  I also find that fantasy has stronger characters, perhaps because of the journey/quest they must take on.

The Harry Potter series were set in an alternate reality and I loved the series very much.  Middle Earth of the Lord of the Rings series came from Tolkien's imagination and I enjoyed the series enough to read all three books.  I have no preference as to the setting.

I have enjoyed a lot of fantasy books that feature witchcraft as an acceptable aspect of normal life.  I like fantasy books with strong female characters and a little romance thrown in.

Fantasy series I have liked/loved:

*Parasol Proctectorate - Gail Carriger

*All Souls Trilogy - Deborah Harkness

*Jane Jameson - Molly Harper

*Jane True - Nicole Peeler

*Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences - Philippa Ballantine

*Rogue Angel - Alex Archer

*Witches of Eileanan - Kate Forsyth

*Cemetary of Lost Books - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

*Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling

*Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan

Read on,

Paula

BTT: Celebrate Freedom

Celebrate Freedom (from Booking Through Thursday):

I bought a sweatshirt for my husband some years ago that says, “Celebrate freedom. Read a banned book.” The shirt then goes on to list ten books that were currently banned somewhere in these United States. Here are a few examples: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, The Call of the Wild by Jack London, and Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell.

1. Have you ever knowingly read a banned book?
2. Have you read any of the books I listed above?
3. Knowing that the above books have been banned, would you read them now? Why?

I have knowingly read banned books.  Every year we have Freedom To Read week in our library.  Last year, I deliberately read "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee during Freedom To Read week...and loved it so much.

I have read "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger...and didn't like it.  Maybe because I was an adult when I read it, I just didn't get what the hype was all about.

I wouldn't read the other titles listed.  Not because they are banned but because they don't appeal to me.  I don't decide to read a book based on whether or not it is a banned book (with the exception of "To Kill A Mockingbird" last year).  Knowing that a book is banned or challenged doesn't make them more appealing to me.  I read what I want to read regardless of what other people think of it.  Although talking about books we've read is a social activity and one I enjoy, reading is a very personal and private activity.  What books you love or hate (or ban) will not necessarily be the same books I love or hate.  That is the reason why I don't believe in banning books.  Just because you find something offensive about a book doesn't mean I will.  I think people ban books because they are afraid that other people will emulate whatever it is that makes them uncomfortable about the book...which is silly.  Most people don't read fiction books as though they were instruction manuals.  For example, the Harry Potter series.  People banned that because of witchcraft.  Really?  If you ban it for that reason alone, you are proclaiming your belief that magic and witchcraft are real.  In our predominantly Christian-based Western society, I find that ironic.  I read and loved the series but that didn't make me want to become a Wiccan.  If reading the Harry Potter series made kids want to do magic and cast spells, in my non-magic-believing opinion I imagine that wouldn't last long when nothing happened.  And depending on the age of the kids who read it, they probably knew enough about the real world to be able to tell the difference between fiction and reality.  But in the end, I firmly believe that the people who ban books are the people who don't know how to do their job as parents*.  If you know how to talk to your child about what they read, then they can read anything because they will know they can talk to you about the stuff that confuses or upsets them and you can talk to them about the stuff that makes you uncomfortable.

Banned books I have read (from the ALA's 2000-2009 Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books list):
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
Harry Potter series - J.K. Rowling
And Tango Makes Three - Justin Richardson & Peter Parnell
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck (assigned reading in high school)
Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut (assigned reading in high school)
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle
Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret - Judy Blume

*The ALA 1990-1999 Top 100 Banned/Challenged Book list has "What's Happening To My Body? Book For Girls: A Growing-Up Guide For Parents & Daughters" and "What's Happening To My Body? Book For Boys: A Growing-Up Guide For Parents & Sons", both by Lynda Madaras.  I could rant about that but I won't.

Read on,
Paula

BTT: Children's books

Children's books (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. As an adult, do you own children’s books?
2. If you do, do you still read them even when there are no children around?
3. What were your favorites as a child? Now?

Yes, I may be an adult but I do own children's books.  I own some from when I was a kid and some I have bought as an adult.  I think the best children's book writers are the ones that can write books that appeal to all ages.

Since I am a child-free woman, I read all of my children's books without children around...unless I am at the library where there are children in the vicinity.

As a child, one of my favourite stories was "The Five Chinese Brothers" by Claire Hutchet Bishop from the 10-book Collier's Junior Classics set.  I also loved a lot of the Golden Books series and the Barbapapa series.

Now, as an adult, I like the Scaredy Squirrel series by Melanie Watt.  I love Oliver Jeffers (especially "The Heart and the Bottle"), Nick Bland and Nicholas Oldland.  I loved the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling and enjoyed the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan.  And I've previously mentioned the Neil Flambé series by Kevin Sylvester.  I don't read a lot of children's books now unless the cover art or title strikes my fancy.  But working acquisitions and cataloguing in a public library means I have more exposure to them than some.

Read on,
Paula

"Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline

Synopsis:

It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. 

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune--and remarkable power--to whoever can unlock them. 

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday's riddles are based in the pop culture he loved--that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday's icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes's oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig. 

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle. 

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt--among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life--and love--in the real world he's always been so desperate to escape. 

A world at stake. 

A quest for the ultimate prize. 

Are you ready?

My review:

I first heard about this book on The Readers podcast.  I listened to it again after having read the book and I firmly agree with all of the points Simon and Gav make.

Before I began reading the book, I was worried that I wouldn't get the pop culture references.  Although I belong to the demographic of children of the 80s, my family was poor and we lived in so small a town that it couldn't even be called a town.  I lived a rather sheltered and backwater childhood.  I think most of the references to 80s pop culture that I understand are mostly ones I know about from later in life.  Although we had a Commodore 64, that wasn't until the 90s.  I think our family and myself have been the opposite of early-adopters.  Even though we wanted those things when we were kids, we couldn't afford them and so I think we've just gotten used to having to wait until most of the hype has died down before we get it, if we do at all.  The time in one's life when most people tend to become gamers, I was too poor and never had the opportunity for that obsession to grow.  Although it is set in a gamer environment, it's not so over my head as to be inaccessible.  Most of the video game-related references were lost on me simply because I'm not a gamer.  And sadly, "Ghosts 'N Goblins" and "Frogger" were never mentioned.  So I just assumed that, aside from OASIS, all of the games, TV shows, and movies were real.  And, frankly, I just can't be bothered to actually check if that's true.  Whether they are or are not real is just irrelevant.  And aside from the video game-specific references, my fears about the book were allayed when I read the definitive reference to the movie "The Last Starfighter".

Getting sidetracked by rereading BBW romances for a few days, I feared that I would lose interest in "Ready Player One".  But luckily once I picked it up again, I was sucked back into it.

I was able to connect with Wade's character, mostly because of growing up poor, being good at school, and experiencing unrequited love.  And it was easy to root for him and keep reading just to see what would happen next.  There's a lot about the futuristic world and OASIS to be described but there is enough of the plot and character development interwoven with it that there's never too much of one aspect.  The quick pacing of the story was great even with the exposition.  The three main questions I had were "Will he or won't he win the contest?", "No matter who wins the contest, what will happen after?", and "Will Wade and Art3mis end up together or not?"  And I am happy with the way those questions were answered.

It was a great book that I thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend to anyone.  Because it is a quest novel, it is difficult for me to be interested in rereading it once I know how it ends.  I really liked the book a lot but I won't be keeping the copy that has been hovering on my bookshelves since I bought it.  But if you are a gamer and/or a geek, you should definitely add it to your own bookshelves.

Read on,

Paula

BTT: Come Again?

Come Again? (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. What author that you remember having read does the best character development?

2. What book/series do you think is that author's shining work with regards to character development?

3. What was (were) your favorite character(s) in that book or series?

4. Do you ever find yourself really liking a character in a book that you're certain you would never be friends with in real life?

5. Do you ever re-read a book to visit a character because you miss him/her?

I have a hard time answering question #1 without it intermingling with question #2.  To me, picking an author who does the best character development is based on the book or series in which their best character development appears.  So my answer to question #1 is Kerry Greenwood and question #2 is her Corinna Chapman series.  Each of the main characters in this series are vivid people and that is an aspect of the reason why I love the series.

My favourite characters in the series are Corinna Chapman, her lover Daniel Cohen, and her cats.  Yes, even her cats are characters.  Although I do not have any cats to compare (damn allergies), Kerry Greenwood is very good at capturing cat behaviour and attitude in her writing.

In this series, I like the character of Jason Wallace, Corinna's ex-junkie apprentice.  I'm not sure of his age but he comes across as a late-teens, early-twenties young man.  I find him fascinating.  And we would never be friends in real life because I would probably lose my patience with him.

My answer to question #5 is an absolute YES!  In fact, I am eagerly awaiting the next installment in the Corinna Chapman series (due out any day, if her website is anything to go by) and I will probably re-read the six books in the series before I get my copy of the newest one.  I have also re-read L.M. Montgomery's "The Blue Castle" and Markus Zusak's "I Am The Messenger" because I missed the characters.

Read on,
Paula

Reading revival

I'm not sure what stole most of my love of reading earlier this year...but thankfully it was only temporary.  I would like to thank the prettybooks website and the literary podcasts The Readers, Adventures With Words, and Book Riot for reviving my biblioholism.

I'm doing very poorly on my GoodReads challenge of reading 150 books.  It is November and I've only read 84 books so far.  Although I know I won't make it to my goal, I am okay with that.  Despite my book slump, I've still managed to read a fair number of books.  I currently have a few on the go at the same time.  And I am re-excited about a few I meant to read earlier in the year but didn't get around to.

My other goal for 2013 was to read more books from my own collection.  So far that goal has practically fizzled and died.  However, I finished Judging A Book By Its Lover by Lauren Leto earlier this month and it is from my collection.  So I plan to revive this goal.  I've decided that if I read more of my own collection and don't like the book, I will give it a new life by donating it somewhere and therefore making more room on my bookshelves for books I truly want to have there.  Although I love looking at pictures of large book collections and wish for my own collection to grow, I am aiming to have more of the ones I've read and loved and fewer of the ones from my TBR.  Since I started out 2013 with similarly lofty goals, we'll see how this goal works out.

Read on,
Paula

My reading is evolving

I have not been reading nearly as much this year as I had intended.  I'm also planning to purge my personal library because my reading tastes are changing and some of the books I own no longer interest me.

This is the first year that I've had any reading goals (1. Read from my home library and 2. Read 150 books) and neither one is going well.  I have not been reading as much as I usually do and so what seemed like an attainable goal is floundering.  And because of my shifting tastes, I have not been reading much from my personal library either.

Reading has always been a major part of my life and will continue to be.  However, considering the changes I'm making in my personal life (new hobbies!), I have made the decision to stop focusing on the number of books I read in a year.  I will continue to keep track of the books I do read, I just won't let myself get caught up in the competitive nature of reading goals.  Although Good Reads will allow me to change my goal (even though we're eight months along), I would rather not do that.  I know I will fail to reach the full 150 but I have managed to make it halfway so far.  And the year isn't over yet.

As for purging my home library, I haven't set a date to do it yet and I have other home projects (refinishing an end table) that will take priority.  And purging my home library will also have the benefit of making room on my literally overflowing bookshelves.  I will be giving the purged books to book-loving friends or donating them to either of the two libraries I work at...so at least I'll know they are going to find a good home.  And a recent episode of Books on the Nightstand talked about readers being or not being collectors.  I am just choosing to be a far pickier collector.  I will continue to buy the books I absolutely love.  I just won't buy many books without reading them first.  My post-purge home library will contain mostly just the books I adore and a few that I'm really eager to read.  Personal libraries reflect the person to whom they belong; as I am evolving, so must my personal library.

Read on,
Paula

Creating an inspirational library

I have read four inspiring, life-changing books so far this year.  Three within the last two months.  They have been so inspiring that I want to create a separate collection within my home library specifically for these books and any I read in the future.  As you will see from my list, inspiring books do not always have to be non-fiction.  I would include these titles in my inspirational library:

*"Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead" by Brené Brown
=I was deeply moved by both of her TED Talks, which motivated me to read this book.  I am now contemplating reading her other books as well.  A lot of the concepts she talks about in "Daring Greatly" really struck home for me and I will endeavour to build my shame resilience skills.  I also plan to reread it right away so I can absorb it even more the second time around.

*"Half The Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" by Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn
=It is nearly impossible to feel bad about myself when I am so unbelievable lucky compared to other women in the world.  Comparing my life to others in my own country means that I am living just barely above the poverty line; comparing my life to others in the world means that I am living a lavish and lucky life full of privilege and abundance.

*"Calling In 'The One': 7 Weeks to Attract the Love of Your Life" by Katherine Woodward Thomas
=Although this is technically a "Law of Attraction" relationship book, I have made the most psychological progress from reading this book.  I have dealt with issues I never even knew I had.  Essentially, you are supposed to do that in order to prepare yourself for the love of your life.  For me, regardless of whether or not I ever find the love of my life, I will forever be grateful for the positive changes I am making in my life for myself.

*"The Heart and the Bottle" by Oliver Jeffers
=This may be a picture book but I bawled my eyes out in the bookstore when I read it.  It's one of those books that may seem like it's written for children but it speaks deeply to me as an adult and about re-learning to have a sense of wonder about the world.  Also, this is not the first book I've read by Oliver Jeffers because I love his illustrations.

*You can read my review of "The Blue Castle" by L.M. Montgomery, which I read in 2012.

*"I Am The Messenger" by Markus Zusak (read in 2005)
=A young adult novel about connection and not having to be great to do good.  The first truly inspiring book I ever read!

BTT: Detective qualities; and Coffee table books

Detective qualities (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Do you enjoy reading mysteries?
2. What's your favourite kind of mystery?
3. Do you like plenty of blood and guts, or do you prefer the details to be left to the reader's imagination?
4. Do you prefer mystery stories based in the author's time or in previous centuries?
5. Do you prefer mysteries based in your own country, or in distant lands?
6. Do you like to figure out the solution, or do you allow yourself to be carried away with the story?

I am very, VERY picky about what mystery books I read.  As I've mentioned before (and will continue to do so until I take my last breath), I LOVE the Corinna Chapman series by Kerry Greenwood (btw, new book expected in October...still awaiting news).  I like what I call 'intellectual mysteries' like Dan Brown's Robert Langdon series and Kerry Greenwood's Corinna Chapman series where the focus is mostly on solving the mystery and is adventurous but there isn't a lot of blood and gore.  I loved the National Treasure movies so I have the books (Gates Family mysteries by Catherine Hapka) on my TBR.  I have read some of the book-themed 'cozy mysteries' but I find them too fluffy for my tastes.

I have no preferences as to time period or locations.  I read "Blind Justice" by Bruce Alexander, which is the first in the Sir John Fielding mysteries, set in 18th-century London and the age of the Bow Street Runners.  I also have "Crocodile on the Sandbank" by Elizabeth Peters (first in the Amelia Peabody series) on my TBR and I've heard that that series is set predominantly in Egypt.  The Corinna Chapman series is set in Australia.  As long as the book is well-written, I'm usually capable of getting into it no matter what time period or location it is set in.

To the best of my knowledge, I have never solved the mystery before the end of the book.  I do try sometimes but I don't put too much effort into it, generally just enjoying the story.  I do like being surprised by an ending, but I hope for all the various plot threads to come together in the end.


Coffee Table Books (from Booking Through Thursday) 
1. Do you have any coffee table books?
2. Do you have one or two, or would you say you have a collection of them?
3. Do you keep them on your coffee table?  If not, where?
4. What are they about?
5. Have you read them?  All of them?  None?  Why?

I live in too small of an apartment to have a coffee table but if I did have one, I would have coffee table books.  It is because of the size of coffee table books that I don't buy them...yet.  If I have enough time when browsing in a physical bookstore, I eventually get to browse the coffee table book section.  I would like to buy coffee table books about astronomy, nature photography, travel photography, and tattoos.  I would love to have "The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World" by Jacques Bosser.  I would read them but in small snippets at a time.  But I think that the main appeal of coffee table books is the illustrations and photographs.

Read on,
Paula

Terry Fallis visit

Terry Fallis came to do an author talk at our library on July 4, 2013.  Having read "Up and Down" as a nominee for this year's Evergreen Award, I was so excited to meet him.  I was equally excited to get him to sign my copy of the book, which he did shortly before this photo was taken.

I found "Up and Down" to be very humorous.  I now know that that is because Terry Fallis is a humorous kind of guy.  Very witty.

He talked about the intricate engineering-oriented way he writes his novels, how he was inspired as a child watching the moon landing in 1969.  He talked about the plot of "Up and Down" and how he met with Marc Garneau (Canada's first astronaut and current Liberal Party politician) to make sure his story was accurate.

When talking about how he got his first novel published, he said that he posted it as a free podcast.  And he has continued to do so with his subsequent novels.  When I got home, I rushed to my computer and downloaded all of his books.  I briefly listened to the first track and discovered that his voice sounds much deeper in the audio than it does in person.  Listening to Mr. Fallis read part of "Up and Down" at the author talk reconfirmed my firm belief that authors are the best people to read their work aloud.  They know the work and characters far better than anyone else and can give the reading an inflection that no one else can.

Politics in general do not interest me, especially in my reading.  Having read the synopses of Fallis' first two books, "The Best Laid Plans" and "The High Road", I wasn't interested in reading political fiction no matter how humorous it might be.  However, hearing how other audience members had enjoyed the first two books and how much my friend laughed when she read "The Best Laid Plans", I now plan to read/listen to them.

I recorded the author talk on my BlackBerry and I was impressed with how effective it was.  My phone, sitting on a chair ten feet from the author, picked up not only his talk but also the questions and comments from the audience members as well.  I forgot to ask Mr. Fallis for permission to post the audio and so regretfully will not being doing so.

I greatly enjoyed Terry Fallis' author talk.  I loved the behind-the-scenes trivia about his life, his writing, and the book.  He was very entertaining and informative.  During our personal meeting, I found out that Mr. Fallis will be attending this year's The Word on the Street festival in Toronto, and has done so for many years.  I have attended for the last three years but have not met him before.  I intend to seek him out when I'm there this year and I look forward to seeing him again.

Read on,
Paula

BTT: Series

Series (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Do you read books that are part of a series?
2. Do you collect all the books in the series before starting?
3. What if the series is brand new, and the only book that's been published so far is Book 1?
4. As subsequent books in the series are published, do you go back and re-read the preceding books?

The answer to the first question is a definitive 'yes'.  I particularly love reading series because you get a more in-depth view of the characters and their world.  I have repeatedly mentioned my love and adoration for Kerry Greenwood's Corinna Chapman series.  I am waiting with bated breath for the latest one to be announced; her website says it should be published this coming October.  I am also eagerly awaiting the third in Deborah Harkness' All  Souls Trilogy.  I just read the last book in Nicole Peeler's Jane True series.  I have read all three series by Robert J. Sawyer (Quintaglio Ascension; Neanderthal Parallax; and WWW).  I loved J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series.

I am generally a picky reader so I will get only one or two books in the series to read before I judge whether I like it or not.  I've read five of the nineteen books in Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher series.  They are cozy reads and I intend to read the rest eventually but I find the series formulaic and not nearly as good as her Corinna Chapman series.  I liked the first in the Rogue Angel series by Alex Archer [pseudonym] and intend to read more.

I have no qualms about reading a brand new series, even if only the first book has been published.  That's how I fell in love with Deborah Harkness' All Souls Trilogy.  The waiting/anticipation for the next books is good because it amps up your excitement but this can also have the disadvantage of amping it so high that the book doesn't meet your expectations.

I generally do not reread the preceding books in a series unless it has been so long that I vaguely remember what happened in the last one.  I reread Kerry Greenwood's Corinna Chapman series at least once a year, if not more.  I might reread "Cooking The Books" before the next one comes out.

The fourth in Dan Brown's Robert Langdon series, "Inferno" just came out in May.  I haven't read it yet but it's on my TBR.  Although the Robert Langdon books are a series, I have found that they are also standalones; you can read them out of order.

I've also read books in series by:
*Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy)
*V.C. Andrews (Landry, Casteel and Cutler series)
*Nick Bantock (Griffin & Sabine)
*Jack Canfield (Chicken soup for the soul)
*Laura Childs (Scrapbooking mysteries)
*John Dunning (Cliff Janeway)
*Helen Fielding (Bridget Jones...and I just discovered #3 comes out in October!!!)
*Molly Harper (Jane Jameson)
*Lucy and Stephen Hawking (George)
*Sable Hunter (Hell Yeah!)
*E.L. James (Fifty Shades)
*Susan Kaye (Frederick Wentworth, Captain)
*Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic)
*Lissa Matthews (Simple Need)
*James McGee (Matthew Hawkwood)
*Stephenie Meyer (Twilight)
*Beth Pattillo (Jane Austen)
*Lincoln Peirce (Big Nate)
*Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians)
*Nora Roberts (Key Trilogy)
*Alexander McCall Smith (44 Scotland Street)
*Jeff Smith (Bone graphic novels)
*Kevin Sylvester (Neil Flambé)
*J.R.R. Tolkien (Lord of the Rings)
*Angela Verdenius (Big Girls Lovin' Trilogy and its spin-offs)
*Mélanie Watt (Scaredy Squirrel...and I just discovered the next one comes out in August!!!)
*Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Cemetery of Forgotten Books)
*Sevens series by seven different authors

Read on,
Paula

BTT: How many?

How many? (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. How many books do you read in a week? Month? Year?

2. What's the best book or series you've read so far this year?

3. What's the worst book you read this year? Did you finish it?

How many books I read fluctuates based on the length of the book I'm reading, how much I like it, and how much free time I have.  So far, last year was a record-breaking year for me.  According to Goodreads, I read 242 books last year.  Granted, last year I was reading a lot of ebooks, which tend to be more novellas and short stories than full-length novels and non-fiction books.  This year, I'm not reading as many ebooks and am trying to read from my own library.  So far, the latter is not working out well, unless you count reading books I've newly bought.  Goodreads has a reading challenge where you set your own goal for the year.  This year my goal is 150...not as high as last year but reasonably attainable (I read 124 in 2011).  It's fun to see the little gauge on the challenge creep closer to the end.  Whether I'm successful or not, I know that I won't do it again.  I find it too stressful, especially because Goodreads tells you if you are ahead or behind schedule.  I'm currently behind schedule even though I was ahead of schedule for most of the year.  Now I'm getting anxious.  And now that I'm working more hours at work, I have less free time than last year for reading.

I have a tie for the best (fiction) book I've read so far this year.  "Dust and Shadow" by Lyndsay Faye versus "Up and Down" by Terry Fallis.  I just can't make up my mind yet.  Both have their strong qualities that make it hard for me to pick just one.  But the best (non-fiction) book I've read this year is "The Unapologetic Fat Girl's Guide To Exercise and Other Incendiary Acts" by Hanne Blank.  I highly recommend it to anyone who is overweight, no matter how fit you already are.  (Yes,  you can be both fat and fit!)

I would have to say that "The Boy in the Dress" by David Walliams is the worst book I've read this year.  I did finish it but I was intensely disappointed.  You can read the un-review I wrote about it.  Basically, it was nothing like what I expected.

Read on,
Paula

"Neil Flambé and the Marco Polo Murders" by Kevin Sylvester

Synopsis: Neil Flambé may be fourteen years old, but he’s also a world-renowned chef. Patrons pay top dollar and wait months for reservations at his tiny boutique restaurant. But Neil is more than a fantastic cook—he solves crime too. Ever since he used his kitchen know-how and keen sense of smell to acquit a man of murder, he’s been helping Police Inspector Sean Nakamura crack case after case.
But when some of the best chefs in town turn up dead, the crime scenes turn culinary. Police are stumped, and the only clues are the scents of mysterious spices and a journal that may have belonged to…Marco Polo? Neil must find a way to connect the past with the present and solve the murders—or he could end up as the prime suspect!

My review:
It was the illustrations and the 14-year-old chef main character that appealed to me.  Being a redhead, I enjoyed reading about a redhead, even if he is a pompous and arrogant teenager.  The only thing I didn't like about "Neil Flambé and the Marco Polo Murders" is that I kept wondering if this were the first book in the series or not.  It is, but I kept doubting it.  The reason for this is that there were vague references to events that happened in the past as if this were not the first book in the series.  Eventually I clued in that the vague references would be fleshed out later in the book with more detail.
I like the historical aspects about Marco Polo, his journeys in Asia, and Kublai Kahn.  I don't know how much of it is fact or fiction but I enjoyed it anyway.  That might entice readers to seek out more information about the explorer and his travels.  This book was a quick read and I look forward to seeing how the series develops.  So far there are four books in the series and the third one (Neil Flambé and the Crusader's Curse) was nominated for this year's Forest of Reading Silver Birch Award.  That's how I found out about the series.

Read on,
Paula

"The Roots of Desire" by Marion Roach

Synopsis: Part history, part cultural commentary, part memoir, The Roots of Desire is a witty and entertaining investigation into what it means to be a redhead. 
A redhead rarely goes unnoticed in a crowded room. From Judas Iscariot to Botticelli's Venus to Julianne Moore, redheads have been worshipped, idealized, fetishized, feared, and condemned, leaving their mark on us and our culture. Such is the power of what is actually a genetic mutation, and in The Roots of Desire, Marion Roach takes a fascinating look at the science behind hair color and the roles redheads have played over time. She discovers that in Greek mythology, redheads become vampires after they die; Hitler banned intermarriage with redheads for fear of producing "deviant offspring"; women with red hair were burned as witches during the Inquisition; in Hollywood, female redheads are considered sexy while male redheads are considered a hard sell; and in the nineteenth century, it was popular belief that redheads were the strongest scented of all women, smelling of amber and violets. Redheads have been stereotyped, marginalized, sought after, and made to function as everything from a political statement to a symbol of human carnality. A redhead herself, Roach brings candor and brilliant insight to the complicated and revealing history of redheads, making this a stand-out narrative and an essential tool in understanding the mechanics and phenomenon of red hair.

My review:
As a natural redhead, I was drawn to a book about this rare trait.  Approximately 4% of the world's population are natural redheads.  I enjoyed learning about the cultural and historical ways that redhead has been viewed.  One of the interesting things I learned from this book is that there are a lot more historically prominent redheads like Cleopatra and Henry VIII.  And yet the media do not portray them as such.  The iconic image of Cleopatra is Elizabeth Taylor and her long black hair.  The modern version of King Henry VIII is Jonathan Rhys Meyers and his brown hair.

I also enjoyed reading the genetics of red hair so that I now understand how my two dark-haired parents had two red-haired children.  Growing up, people had a love-hate relationship with the colour of my hair: the adults loved it and the kids hated it.  Having been picked on in school because of my red hair (there were three of us out of 300 students), I knew why Anne of Green Gables would try to dye her hair.  This being my first encounter with the idea of changing my hair colour, I was just as traumatized when hers turned green.  Although I wanted to change my hair colour to fit in, I never tried because I was afraid it would turn green.  But now, red hair is so acceptable that it's the top colour of hair dye sold in North America.  As an adult, I love my hair colour and no longer want to dye it.

If you are a redhead or know and love a redhead, I would recommend this book.

And I'm adding "attend Redhead Day" to my bucket list.

Read on,
Paula

Reassessing the books I liked ; Abusive relationships in fiction

I've read and liked the Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey series.  And now I don't.  Once the negative aspects of the main characters' relationships were pointed out to me, I no longer liked the books.

After reading more about abusive relationships in romance literature, I'm realizing that I do not read romances as deeply as I do other literature.  When it comes to romance literature, I read them as fluff and do not invest as emotionally or intellectually in them.

Because the knight-in-shining-armour theme is so prevalent, I will say that most women like it when the man protects them.  They like to feel safe, knowing that the man will save them.  The Twilight series takes this theme too far.  Yes, it's a fantasy series and probably wouldn't get away with half of the stuff it does if it were not fantasy.  The amount of danger that Bella is always in, therefore needing to be protected and saved, (I hope) is unrealistic even when you take away the fantasy element.  

I am not interested in BDSM and so I have no interest in a relationship like the one in Fifty Shades.  I also am not a submissive and would not tolerate a relationship where I must do everything I'm told or be punished.  That's what my father was like and I'm glad I'm now an adult.  But even those in the BDSM lifestyle are not impressed with the series: Sophie Morgan, author of "Diary of a Submissive" wrote an article for the Guardian).

If you Google "Twilight" or "Fifty Shades of Grey" with "abusive relationship" you get a lot of results, many of which are well written.  I highly recommend "The Trouble With Prince Charming Or He Who Trespassed Against Us".

And so now I've been rereading other romance books I've loved and reassessing them.  Call me naive or cynical but I just don't believe the "in love forever within days" storylines.  Although the rest of the story and the writing may be very good, it is this instantly-in-love aspect that I can't agree with.

Read on,
Paula

"Let's Pretend This Never Happened" by Jenny Lawson

Synopsis: Jenny Lawson realized that the most mortifying moments of our lives—the ones we’d like to pretend never happened—are in fact the ones that define us. In the #1 New York Times bestseller, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson takes readers on a hilarious journey recalling her bizarre upbringing in rural Texas, her devastatingly awkward high school years, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband, Victor. Chapters include: “Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel”; “A Series of Angry Post-It Notes to My Husband”; “My Vagina Is Fine. Thanks for Asking”; “And Then I Snuck a Dead Cuban Alligator on an Airplane.” Pictures with captions (no one would believe these things without proof) accompany the text.

My review: WARNING: Do not eat while you are reading this book!  It may cause you to choke on your food from laughing too hard.

I would say that this is the funniest book I've read so far.

This book made me feel so much better about myself and my life.  Because I am not as insane as the author.  My life is not as insane as the author's life.

Some of the scenarios depicted in this book would NEVER happen to me.  Like the snake thing.  Because no amount of money, begging, or love could convince me to go anywhere near the subject of one of my biggest phobias.  Same goes with spiders.  Seriously, some of the things Jenny describes in her book made me truly grateful for where and how I live.  I don't have to deal with a lot of the things she has.  My own life has not lacked drama but none of it to the scale that Jenny has dealt with.  Reading this book made me appreciate my own individuality and my life's current lack of drama.  My family is bland in comparison to hers so I have no right to complain.

I'm sure a lot of the things she writes about in her book were not funny at the time she was living it.  But she has written about them in a way that shows that she seems to be one of those people who can laugh off things once their over.  It's a good way to live and I'm working on being able to do that myself.  Despite some harrowing experiences, her "mostly true memoir" is pretty damn funny.  I laughed and snickered and chuckled a lot while reading this book.  I would totally recommend you read this book if you're feeling down or unhappy with your life.  Oh, and spoiler alert: she owns that mouse on the cover of the book.

Read on,
Paula

Dealing with squeamish content

A coworker and I were discussing the impact that language and writing style can have on your enjoyment of a book.  I also find that language and writing style impact what I can tolerate reading.

I am a squeamish person with a healthy imagination, therefore I can't watch horror movies.  However, because of the language and writing style, I had no problem reading the graphic details of the experiences of a burn victim in "The Gargoyle" by Andrew Davidson.  And I mean graphic.  The details of what happens to your skin when it burns, the medical process of trying to heal a burn victim.  Yeah, so grateful that isn't me.  But it's because of the writing style, the somewhat-detached tone of voice of the main character, that allows me to read it.

The same goes for "The Resurrectionist" by James McGee.  The book is about the history of the study of anatomy.  Therefore, there's dissection and the digging up of dead bodies.  And I (the squeamish person) found it to be the most fascinating and enjoyable book of the whole Matthew Hawkwood series.

I don't like to read murder mysteries/police procedurals for this squeamish reason.  The few that I have read have not had the language and writing style necessary for me to distance myself from the graphic content.  I also intentionally avoid them to happily maintain my naiveté.

Read on,
Paula

Ebook happy dance

It took two years but my BlackBerry Curve 9300 is finally compatible with my library's OverDrive software.  As long as the books I download are epubs, I can read them.  I did a happy dance yesterday when it all worked out...despite my phone model being on the incompatible list.  But considering the size of the screen on my phone, I'll do my searching on my computer instead of wasting my monthly bandwidth limit on searching for titles that may or may not be available.

Yes, yet another way for me to access more books.  Dangerous...

Read on,
Paula

BTT: Format

Format (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Do you prefer to read hard cover or paperback books?

2. Why?

3. Do you read books in the other format anyway?

I will read any format.  Hardcover, paperback, ebook...whatever way I can get my hands on a book, I'll read it.  I have no preference because both formats have their advantages and disadvantages.  Paperbacks are generally lighter and floppier for laying on a table to read without holding them; but they get so easily damaged transporting between work and home.  They are flimsier.  Hardcovers are sturdier, more durable, and retain their shape the longest.  When it comes to buying books for my personal library, I prefer hardcovers because they hold up to wear and tear and aging better than a paperback.  They last longer.

Read on,

Paula

BTT: Buy, Borrow, or Trade

Buy, Borrow, or Trade (from Booking Through Thursday)

1. Do you buy the books you read, or do you borrow them from the library or from friends or from somewhere else?

2. Do you prefer new or used books?

3. If you buy them, do you keep them?

4. If you don't keep them, how long do you hold on to them before letting them go?  What do you do with them?

I mostly borrow books from the two libraries I work at.  75% of the books I buy are ones I've already read and loved.  These days I'm finding that the ones I buy that I haven't previously read turn out to be unsatisfactory and so I'm going to focus my book-buying on books I know I want to keep.

I prefer to buy new books just because they are more beautiful to me than used.  I liked buying from Better World Books because of their low prices, free shipping, and charity support but I prefer not to get former library books.  I don't mind buying used if the condition is to my liking.

Since I tend mainly to buy books I've already read and loved, I buy them with the intention of keeping them.  I want to reread them at some point in the future.

If I don't like a book I've bought that I have not previously read, I donate them to one of the two libraries I work for, I offer them to friends who may like them, or I send them to Better World Books.  I try to give them a new home as soon as possible so that they aren't cluttering up my house or my bookshelves.

Read on,
Paula

ABC meme

An ABC meme from bookgirl's nightstand:
Name books you liked, one for as many letters of the alphabet as you can come up with.

All My Friends Are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufman
The Broken Teaglass by Emily Arsenault
Carving The Light by Sue A. Maynard
The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer
Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn
Factoring Humanity by Robert J. Sawyer
The Giant's House by Elizabeth McCracken
Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
I Wish I Had A Red Dress by Pearl Cleage
Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
The Library At Night by Alberto Manguel
Mary, Called Magdalene by Margaret George
No One You Know by Michelle Richmond
On The Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves
Phoenix Rising (Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences #1) by Philippa Ballantine
Quirkyalone: A Manifesto For Uncompromising Romantics by Sasha Cagen
The Resurrectionist (Matthew Hawkwood #2) by James McGee
The Spiritualist by Megan Chance
The Tea House on Mulberry Street by Sharon Owens
The Unapologetic Fat Girl's Guide To Exercise And Other Incendiary Acts by Hanne Blank
The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz
Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen
X (?)
Year Zero by Rob Reid
Z (?)

Read on,
Paula