Book Log – Stardust

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Stardust by Neil Gaiman

This is the first book I’ve read that was culled from our Little Free (Monster) Library out front of our house.

Looking it up on Amazon just now, I see that it’s a movie from 2007 with a bunch of movie stars in it… Robert DeNiro, Claire Danes, bunch of others.  I had never heard of it, but the visuals look pretty spectacular.

But, the book.

The book is a very Neil Gaimenesque wonky tale with plenty of eccentricity.  If Gaimen does anything well, it’s invent new fantasy elements.

In fact, my only issue with this book is that it feels like a clever bunch of fantasy elements strung together on a thin plot.  The ideas are entertaining and stick with you… perhaps that’s enough to call it a good book.

An ordinary town called Wall is near a wall between the fairy land and the regular old world.  A boy is with a parent from each side is raised on the dull side, then begins a quest for a girl’s love through the never traveled fairy land.  And fantasy elements ensue.

It’s a good read, and I’m passing it on to my son, so he can read it before we watch the movie.

Doctor Who and Old Faces

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SPOILERS WARNING

In the 50th special, we see Tom Baker as the curator of the museum, having an odd conversation with Matt Smith at the end, where Baker’s similarity to the Doctor’s earlier incarnation is heavily alluded to.

It’s odd, and I had chalked it up to bad writing for the sake of making some jokes. It didn’t make sense that he would be visiting himself in Baker’s incarnation as an old man, as he never got that old to my knowledge.

But one thing the Curator says is that in the future, the Doctor will be seeing some old, familiar faces.

Then, in Deep Breath, Peter Capaldi implies that he gets his new faces from somewhere. In one sense, it’s to explain the fact that Peter Capaldi has been in Doctor Who before (as well as Torchwood).

But what if it is a way of getting former Doctors to make cameos? If every regeneration gets the appearance from a real, other person, then all the actors portraying the Doctor can come back as that original person, just aged.

Just thinkin’.

Book Log – The Blood of Flowers

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The Blood of Flowers: A Novel by Anita Amirrezvani

I actually finished this quite a while back. I got it for a neighborhood book club, but never actually went to the book club meeting.

I really enjoyed this book on a 17th century Persian rug maker. I never know how accurate this period novels are, but it certainly immersed me in some kind of world, regardless of how true it was.

It’s got a great female protagonist, strong writing, humor, sensuality… good stuff.

Shoulda’ gone to the book club meeting.

Book Log – Americanah

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Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I picked up this novel at Malaprop’s bookstore in Asheville, NC, thanks to their “blind date with a bookseller (‘s recommended book)”. The store wraps books in brown, plain wrapper and an employee covers the front in adjectives describing the book. So, if you like the adjectives, you buy the book. title unseen.

It’s a great idea, because it can expose you to something you might not have picked up otherwise.

I certainly wouldn’t have picked up Americanah. A novel about young Nigerians coming to America? Not my typical fare.

But, a mostly enjoyable read. Adichie writes well, and the book moves quickly. It’s an entertaining glimpse into a world I know nothing about, and probably will never see.

But I ran up against a prejudice I have, and I felt a bit betrayed by the main protagonists, and the ending. Fair warning, I’m doing spoilers here.

There’s a point in the book where a protagonist goes in search of stories where a married person leaves their decent and kind spouse for another, truer love and everything turns out great. She doesn’t find it. I think that’s largely because it’s not an inspirational or even sympathetic story. It’s the main reason why Sleepless In Seattle sucked, and I say this as a big fan of Hanks and Ryan.

It’s a shame when a marriage of decent people falls apart. I understand that someone can realize they made a mistake in marrying too rashly, or for the wrong reasons. And perhaps divorce is the correct thing to do, even if it means the spouse is hurt in the process. Perhaps that’s better than a life of pretense and lies, and hopefully everyone is better off in the end.

But it falls flat as a story. In David Copperfield (and again… spoilers, but seriously, the book is over a hundred years old… read it), Dickens has to kill off the unsuitable spouse to make the story work. In Jane Eyre, the unsuitable spouse is batshit crazy, and commits suicide, and for good measure the other spouse tries valiantly to save them and get injured in the process, before marrying a truer love.

So, I enjoyed the ride of Americanah, but it kind of went off the rails for me at the end.

Maybe the flaw is in me, and not the book. Maybe this book is a bold choice reflecting real life situations that should be explored and considered.

I guess we’ll see how we look at it in another 100 years.

The Elusive Electric Car

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TNSTAAFL.

I got excited recently by articles proclaiming the Free Electric Nissan Leaf.

It’s not the first time I’ve gotten excited over an electric vehicle. I’ve been window shopping them for years, even putting down a pre-order deposit on an electric motorcycle that never happened.

I should have jumped on the Corbin Sparrow, the three wheeled goofy looking car that was $15k, but only $10 with the $5k tax credit. I was only used to paying $1-2k for a car at the time, I couldn’t psychologically make the jump.

But the articles I’d read said, $199/mo lease, and a $5000 tax credit, and whamm-o, free car!

That’s simple math showing 5000/24 months = $204-$199 = $5/month I’m paid to drive a car!

That got me to take a test drive. But the numbers the deal threw down were, of course, in reality and not in my dream world.

On the website, for a Leaf S model (basic model)…
$199/month for a THREE year lease, plus…
$1999 down payment.
Georgia one time ad valorem tax – $1800.
Dealer fees – I think this was around $700.

Added up, that comes out to $324/mo for three years. The actual quote they gave me was $370/month, so there was some more stuff in there that I’m missing. Probably extra for the car mats.

$138/mo reduction for the tax credit over 3 years, so that’s $231/month. Not “free”.

But, maybe it’s a *savings* from my current car situation?

A lease has maintenance included. I have about $75/month budgeted for maintenance for my car.

You’re not paying for gas, though you do have to pay for electricity. According to the Nissan website, when I put in my 15 mile/day driving patterns, along with the 30 MPG I get in Atlanta traffic, I will save about $35/month in energy costs.

I have about $2000 left on my Toyota Yaris to pay it off. Over three years, that amortizes to $55/month.

Insurance for the Leaf would go up by $250/year, or $20.80/mo.

So, differential costing:

Leaf
Lease/payment – +$231
Energy – +$0
Maintenance – +$0
Insurance +$21
Monthly taxes/reg/emissions – +$0
_______________
$252/mo

Yaris
Lease/Payment – +$55
Energy – +$35
Maintenance – +$75
Insurance +$0
Monthly taxes/reg/emissions – +$14
_____________
$179/mo

Difference – $73/month.

A guy can pack a lot of livin’ in $73/month. Or at least, a lot of pizzas.

Book Log – More Baths Less Talking

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More Baths Less Talking by Nick Hornby

Somewhere, a few months back, I discovered that Nick Hornby had restarted his “Stuff I’m Reading” column in the Believer magazine. I had loved his column so much that I had bought all three collections, and subscribed to the Believer magazine, even though I couldn’t slog through a single other article in any of the issues.

I felt, though, that someone should have told me the column was back. I mean, it restarted FOUR years ago. If Amazon hadn’t recommended the latest compilation (May 2010-Dec 2011), it would have slipped by.

Which leads me to a sort-of-anxiety attack… what ELSE is there out there that I’m missing? I’ve mentioned before that I’m overwhelmed by the vast number of books out there, the smallish percentage that are worthwhile reads, and the even tinier percentage that I would be blown away by– how am I going to find them? I have neither the time nor money to read the first chapters of thousands of books and toss them away if they don’t meet standards. It just seems hopeless.

But, ironically, the cause of my distress is also a cure, or at least a treatment. I’ve got a list of books that Nick Hornby likes, and if history is any guide, I shall find a great deal of them enjoyable as well. True, he’s never pushed Cryptonomicon, and I don’t think I got The Lonely Protagonist from him. Or did I? Looking back at my log, I see I don’t know where Polygamist comes from… it just showed up on my Amazon Wish List.

But, he did get me into Charles Dickens. Granted, the whole world tells us to get into Dickens all the time, but it took the author of High Fidelity to take the recommendation seriously.

Most amazingly, several of his recommendations are book that I, via Stacey, already owned. Let the Great World Spin, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks… Not things I would have picked up on my own. Nor would Stacey, in fact, but thank goodness for her book club. And Nick Hornby.

Apparently, I need to check in on Muriel Sparks, and also a biography of Dickens by Claire Tomalin. So, I’ve got all that to look forward to.

In honor of the “Stuff I’m Reading” column:

Books Bought:
The Blood of Flowers: A Novel by Amirrezvani, Anita
Peter and the Shadow Thieves (Peter and the Starcatchers) by Barry, Dave
The Wee Free Men: A Story of Discworld by Terry Pratchett (repurchase)

Books Reading:
Blink by Malcom Gladwell
Doctor Who: Who-ology by Cavan Scott
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Omnibus, Vol. 1 by Joss Whedon

Book Log – Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase

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Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud

I’m a big fan of Stroud’s Bartimaeus series, and he doesn’t disappoint with this new one.

Yes, yes, it’s a young adult novel. In my defense, I bought it at Little Shop of Stories as a bedtime read-aloud that both kids might enjoy, but then read a little bit to see if it was any good… and never put it down.

Stroud is a sharp writer with a sense of humor and a talent for character and atmosphere. Picture this book as a kind of dark Encyclopedia Brown meets Ghostbusters.

The story takes place in an alternate history where 40 years previously, ghosts suddenly became prevalent and dangerous. The only people who can detect, track and therefore bust the ghosts are certain children with abilities. Ghost extermination agencies have cropped up, typically led by an adult who used to have the gift and staffed by children agents.

Lockwood & Co are different, in that they are an independent agency run by three kids, two boys and a girl. You might roll your eyes at the Harry Potter/Percy Jackson 2-boys-and-a-girl-against-the-supernatural-without-much-adult-assistance, but the story and style is so different and well done that neither of my eyes ever rolled once throughout.

The Screaming Staircase is the first of a series… I plan to be on line as each installment comes out.

Book Log – Legitimacy

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Legitimacy: The Vanilla Cycle: Volume One by M.H. Van Keuren

Long time readers of this blog (which would be me) will have a mild case of deja-vu in the sense that I already wrote a book log about Legitimacy.

However, that was the special, early draft, print-it-out-and-staple-it-chapter-by-chapter reading.  THIS reading was done with a real, gosh-darn book with binding and everything.  Also, a really nice drawing of a lemur on the cover that really tied it all together.

I don’t know exactly how much was cut, but it felt tighter, smoother.  I enjoyed reading it a second time even better.  If only all books would get better the more you read them.  Perhaps more authors could release new editions every few years so we could read them all over again.  A reboot of literature, per say.

Or they can just keep writing new stuff.  I’m good either way.

So, check it out.  Discover a new author.  There’s supposed to be more volumes coming, so don’t fall behind…

Legitimacy @ Amazon.

Also, a lighter sci-fi by M.H. : Rhubarb @ Amazon

 

 

 

 

Book Log Review – 2013

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Books read in 2004: 21
Books read in 2005: 28
Books read in 2006: 40
Books read in 2007: 30
Books read in 2008: 41
Books read in 2009: 22
Books read in 2010: 44
Books read in 2011: 28
Books read in 2012: 31
Books read in 2013: 8

Eight. 8. A paltry ocho books.

And I didn’t even log 6 of those in a timely manner.

Perhaps it’s out of embarrassment at the poor showing, quantity-wise, of literature consumed this year.  Was it the new job?  Financial turbulence?  What on earth was wrong with me this year?

Am I becoming a… a non-reader?

Maybe it was poor choices.  My bookshelf has 8 or 9 books that I acquired and then just went… bleh.

Money Ball?  What on earth besides the $3 price tag at the Decatur Book Festival led me to think I would want to read about baseball?  Even the statistics of baseball?

World War Z?  I never had an interest in zombies.  To make matters worse, I actually bought this book when it first came out, when I was in an airport.  I read a few chapters, wasn’t impressed, and then lost it before I got home.  For some reason, I impulse bought it again this year at a Barnes and Noble only because I had lost it, not because I actually wanted to read it.  And so it sits, on the Not Read Yet shelf, waiting for the “zombie mood” to strike.

Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls, by David Sedaris?  This one is almost read.  I’ve read everything David Sedaris has written, and most of it multiple times.  But, for some reason, I can’t get into this one.  Am I burned out on Sedaris?  I never thought I’d see the day.

But, stepping back, the best we can do is pull up our socks, look ourselves squarely in the mirror and say, “2014.  That’s going to be the good one.”

On the positive front, most of what I did read, I enjoyed very much.  Looking at it objectively, there is a lot that is, shall we say, below my reading level.  But I am not ashamed.  I am not afraid to say I am entertained by the simpler things in life. Much.

The first couple I posted about individually, the rest I’ll note my comments here, in the yearly round up…

1. Wintersmith (Discworld), by Terry Pratchett

A fine Discworld/Tiffany Aching novel.  I haven’t been able to drum up interest in these with the kids.  Not sure why.

2. The Beggar King: A Hangman’s Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch

This may be the book that put me off my game.  I borrowed it from the Amazon Lending Library, and for some reason read it all the way through.  I can’t fathom why now.  Maybe it was all I had handy?  Maybe I was drunk?  There’s no telling.

But it is telling that this is the last book that I wrote an individual post about.  After that, I just … stopped.  Which is a shame, because the rest of the stuff I dove into was pretty good.

3. The Complete Wizard of Oz Collection (With Active Table of Contents), by Baum, L. Frank (purchased March 16, 2013 – Kindle)

I won’t claim to have read all of these. But I knocked out quite a few.  They are interesting in the fact that you get sucked in, but when the story ends, I kind of go… what was the point of all that?  What just happened?  And why?

There is also a lot of time and detail spent describing the process and decoration of celebrating random things in Oz.  Every story ended with a celebration, and the preparations for the celebration and everyone congratulating themselves for pages and pages.

But I am not the target market, so I shall give them a pass.

4. Dodger by Pratchett, Terry (purchased June 9, 2013 – Kindle)

This is a nice little imagined story of a “real” Artful Dodger, who inspires Charles Dickens to write the well-known character.  Like everything Pratchett writes, it’s a delightful and engaging story that doesn’t tax the brain overmuch.  A nice departure from his Discworld books.

5. The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (Discworld) by Pratchett, Terry (purchased July 14, 2013 – Kindle)

I enjoyed this young adult Discworld saga about some Rats of Nimh style rats and a likewise-enhanced cat.  Also, a dumb kid who isn’t necessarily so dumb.

I tried to read it aloud to my two young adults, but they sort of lost interest. I don’t think it works very well as a read-aloud book, but it’s as witty as any of the other Discworld stories.

6. Off to Be the Wizard by Meyer, Scott (purchased August 16, 2013 – Kindle)

This one is what I’ll call my surprise hit of 2013… I’ll admit I bought it sort-of out of sympathy/support for the author of one of the Webcomics I follow (Basic Instructions). It’s a funny webcomic, but I didn’t really expect that he could necessarily make the leap to full blown novel.

But, man, was I wrong. I won’t give much away when I say in the first chapter, an amateur hacker discovers a file on the website of a major corporation that has information about him. If he changes some of the information, the changes translate to real life. A simple, amusing premise, that is then well-executed into a fun and rollicking story. I would love to actually see another in a series.

Worth your time, I say.

7. What I’d Say to the Martians: And Other Veiled Threats by Handey, Jack (purchased September 24, 2013 – Kindle)

I did not know Jack Handey of Saturday Night Live was a real person. Turns out he is, and he writes really funny essay/stories. Check it out.

8. The True Meaning of Smekday by Rex, Adam – In process (library book)

This was a nice end of the year discovery.  It’s a book for the younger set, ideally in the 7-13 age group, I think, but I really enjoyed it.  It’s well written, funny, and has a strong 11 year old female protagonist.

The kids and I read a bit each night for weeks, and we all enjoyed it quite a bit.

The premise is that our narrator/heroine Gratuity (or Tip to her friends) is writing an essay on The True Meaning of Smekday.  Smekday is what they renamed Christmas after the alien invasion of the Boov.  And so it goes from there.

This book was hard to find.  It was never in stock in any brick-and-mortar store I went into, and I couldn’t even special order it at my favorite brick-and-mortar, Little Shop of Stories.  In the end, I got it from the library.  After the kids and I read it, we immediately ordered it from Amazon as a Smekday present for my son’s friend, who will surely appreciate it.

It was originally recommended by one of my Facebook acquaintances, and I can’t thank him enough.  In fact, I need to thank him *at all*.

If you have a kid in that age range, or know one that you like a lot, especially a girl but not excluding boys, find a way to get a copy of this book in their hands.

We’re in the middle of reading the Adam Rex “Cold Cereal” trilogy, which is just as brilliant and well written.