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Tue, Jul. 14th, 2009, 06:58 am
Good news for Harry Potter fans. Not only does the sixth movie open on Wednesday, but ABC will air a one-hour documentary chronicling a year in the life of author J.K. Rowling first shown in the UK in 2007 on Thursday night. Details here: http://www.examiner.com/x-3859-Hart John Tue, Jul. 14th, 2009, 06:17 am
 Zoe's Tale by John ScalziMy rating: 3 of 5 stars This is basically Scalzi's previous novel, The Last Colony, told from the main character's daughter's point of view. I thought it was very funny, and answered a lot of questions I had about a couple of plot points in The Last Colony. I read it really quickly; it was fun since I knew the story. Scalzi handles the personality of a teenager pretty well. I enjoyed this one as much (or a tad bit more) as The Last Colony. Modern sci fi at its best! View all my reviews >> Current Mood:
 groggyMon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 06:28 pm
Interview with the Vampire is the story of a life as dictated by the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac to a human (referred to throughout the book simply as 'the boy'). Louis recalls such things as his human years on a plantation in New Orleans, his encounter with the vampire Lestat, and various escapades that eventually lead him around the world, as well as his philosophical musings and conversations with the boy. Overall, I enjoyed this book. I especially liked comparing and contrasting Louis, Lestat, and Claudia. I thought them to be well-developed characters and became attached to each one of them. Her writing is very descriptive (at some points, a little over-the-top even) and gives a fantastic mental picture. It was just the right amount of gothic for my taste: not so terrifying it'd give me nightmares, but dark all the same. Come to think of it, it was dark in the literal sense as well, seeing the vampires sleep during the day and burn in the sunlight... My only complaints: (a) There were times when I wasn't sure how/why the plot twisted as it did or how the characters got themselves into a particular situation. When that happened, I'd have to backtrack and reread a couple of paragraphs to set me straight again. Perhaps it was just a scattered brain on my part. (b) It seemed at times like Rice was complimenting her own writing via the boy. There were parts when he was literally on the edge of his seat begging Louis to go on telling the story. I'm sure if I were in his place I'd be enthralled as well, but I sort of disliked that aspect all the same. I found Interview with the Vampire to definitely be a good read and would recommend it. I have now requested The Vampire Lestat from the library and hope to get it soon. I'm looking forward to reading it; I found Lestat to be rather charming and he's such a contrast to Louis. It will be interesting to see how them compare. Mon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 01:52 pm
Current Mood:
 happyMon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 11:34 am
Title: The Perfect Poison (Book 6 of the Arcane Society Series)Author: Amanda Quick Genre: Fiction Pages: 340 (HB) Length of time to read: 2 days
SETTING: Late Victorian England
Recommended By: My best friend recommended this author to me years ago; I started reading this series when it began.
Review: I liked this book, the characters, the setting and the plot. They all made for a good story. These books are not deep, they are fun to read though. I thought it was written well enough and perfect to read while laying around in the summer.
Plagued by rumors that she poisoned her fiancé, Lucinda Bromley manages to live on the fringes of polite society, tending her beloved plants—and occasionally consulting on a murder investigation. For the notorious botanist possesses a unique talent: she can detect almost any type of poison, especially ones that have their origins in the botanical kingdom. Sun, Jul. 12th, 2009, 06:56 pm
I’ve been reading the requirements to the entrants for library school and have noticed that a lot of them say that they require a 2.8 or 3.0 in the last 60 credits. Does this mean they don’t look at your first 60 credits or do they just assume that they were good since you were taking easier classes? In my case I have above a 3.0 in my last 60 but my first 60 are really low, like 2.2. I do well in my major classes just not in obscure classes that I know I’ll never need again. Will this hurt me? Will my last 60 be the most important? My combined gpa will probably be around 2.7 which is why I like them concentrating on just the last 60. Thanks Sun, Jul. 12th, 2009, 08:02 pm
Hi! I have recently decided to change my education goals and have just started looking into a library science career. What undergrad degree has been the most helpful (mine is chemistry at the moment)? I have no experience working in a library what would be a good position to go after now with no degree?? Thank you for your advice! Mon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 08:37 am
 Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne FadimanMy reviewrating: 5 of 5 stars My friend subconsciously suggested this book to me after a conversation we had about finding treasures hidden in books. She had just purchased a book for her husband, used book (the best kind), and within its pages she found a treasure trove of items left by the former owner(s). It sparked me to tell her how wonderful I thought that was, and how I loved finding notes scribbled in the margins of books. That's when she told me about Ex Libris. This book may be sub-titled Confessions of A Common Reader, but it's really a love story to the author's love of reading and books passed down to her, almost genetically, from her parents. The book is a quick read, although it took me several weeks to finish it. I loved savoring her words, although, I must confess, I needed a dictionary for most of them. Maybe it was the sentiment. The idea that books are precious. The book is a collection of Anne Fadiman's essays about words, writing, reading (books and mail order catalogs). So you can read an essay a day or a couple of essays a night like I did. My favorite essays were "Never Do That to a Book," "The Catalogical Imperative" because I love mail-order catalogs too, and "Secondhand Prose". In "Secondhand Prose" she talks about her 42nd Birthday gift from her husband: a trip to a specific used book store where she and her husband came home with 19 pounds of books. This is me at the Friends of the Library Book Sale. I'll push and prod, earn blisters from carrying bags and sacks into which I can drop my finds, and they are finds. Fadiman writes: You may prefer Veuve Clicquot for your birthday, but give me (actually, you can't, because George {her husband} beat you to it) a nine-dollar 1929 edition of Vincent Starrett's Penny Wise and Book Foolish, a tender paean to book collecting that contains the following sentence: "Every new search is a voyage to the Indies, a quests for buried treasure, a journey to the end of the rainbow; and whether or not at the end there shall be turned up a pot of gold or merely a delightful volume, there are always wonders along the way." I love used book stores because not only will you never know what book you might find that you can't live without, but you never know who else found that book and left a little piece of themselves behind. It's a romantic notion that not everyone prescribes to. Over the weekend I talked with a friend who absolutely hates bent spines, dog eared pages, and margin notes. We're actually trading a book - Jane Austen's Persuasion - because she can't stand the writing the previous owner left in the margins and I can't bear not to have it. So I will buy her a new book to trade for the old just to catch a glimpse of what the other woman wrote (and I don't mean Austen). This is a book for people who absolutely love to read. Not only that, it's about books, food, other people who love books, children who love books, how to get your kids to love books without being a self-help guide. It's a journey of Anne Fadiman's life long voyage with books. It's beautifully written and a treasure. Maybe someday I'll find it in a used book store with all the things I wanted to write in the margins. For now I must return this prize to the library where they don't appreciate good, personalize margin notes. Maybe I'll slip in a scrap of paper declaring my love for this book...who knows. View all my reviews. Mon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 08:35 am
 Small Favor by Jim ButcherMy reviewrating: 4 of 5 stars Another Dresden file down, and I'm finally closer to being up-to-date with the books. Much better than White Night. The Denarians are back and this time they mean I read and listened to this book which is why it seemed to take me forever to get through it. It explained more about the Denarians, about the Knights of the Cross, and Marcone's personal one-woman security force Gard (hint: she's referred to in a Wagner song...heh, you'll love it when you get to that part of the book!) It's all out war this time. Marcone's gone missing. Oh and Luccio's back. She's still struggling with raging teenage hormone's, and Harry finally gets his hormones to wake up some with her. Another good read for the Dresden Files, and it was good to see some of the former characters back in action...However, this book does not end blissfully. There are some tragedies, and it'll be interesting to see what happens. Harry now has two Swords. One was offered, and the person declined it saying he/she already had a job. I still think he/she will end up with a sword at some point, but what is Harry going to do with two now? Now the hubby and I are on to Turn Coat, but this time the two of us are listening to it together instead. It's a shame we don't have a road trip coming up... View all my reviews. Mon, Jul. 13th, 2009, 06:55 am
Today, I am reviewing James Patterson's newest, SWIMSUIT, over at the book blog. The inside book flap boasts that it's the "scariest and most satisfying James Patterson novel since KISS THE GIRLS." But does it live up to the hype? Here are my thoughts: http://www.examiner.com/x-3859-Hart  John Sun, Jul. 12th, 2009, 05:41 pm
 The Homeless Moon (2008)Written by: Michael J. DeLuca, Jason S. Ridler, Scott H. Andrews, Erin Hoffman, Justin Howe Genre: Short Stories Pages: 43 (Chapbook) This is a rather odd review for me to write. For starters, if you click on the title of the chapbook, you'll find out rather quickly that you can read this chapbook for free, online. Or, if you must have a print copy (and if they have any LEFT from 2008), you can pay for the shipping and they'll send you one. So that's one reason this is, in short, an odd review. The other, more important reason this is an ODD REVIEW is that I know every single one of these writers. All of them were my classmates at the Odyssey Writing Workshop in 2005, and one of them was my roommate! Consider that a warning of sorts in terms of how objective I'll be. I've read their work before, so there's a tendency to want to compare their stories to what I've read before, especially if I've critiqued the story in the chapbook. However, I'll give my honest opinion, but my official rating is going to be odd. Since all of my ratings are essentially based on my purchasing of the material, well, you can see how the current ratings don't apply. The premise: I didn't recognize a discernible theme holding the stories of this first chapbook together. The only connecting factor is that the writers attended Odyssey 2005, and have formed a kind of group. Is it a critique group? I don't know, to be honest. But they call their online blog "The Homeless Moon" and decided to put together a chapbook to showcase their fiction. This chapbook they handed out at ReaderCon 2008. There are three stories I'd label as fantasy, one I'd label as science fiction, and one that simply defies genre of all kinds. So really, there's no premise to this: it's just a batch of short fiction. :) My Rating No Rating: this was free for me, and it's free for you too, because you can download it from the website as a PDF. Just go here to download not just this first chapbook, but the second too! In terms of summarizing, I can objectively and safely say that the writing in each of the stories is very strong, and each story is unique to its author. Critiques for the chapbook as a whole include wishing there was a unified theme (I was kind of hoping all of the stories would relate to the moon, but at least two did), and I also noticed a number of formatting errors, where lines weren't indented correctly, and I recall noticing a number of typos as well. But you know what? The chapbook is free, so who am I to complain? The stories are enjoyable, though not all of them sat well with me. I love the DeLuca the best, and that story alone is worth reading the chapbook. If you're a mythology buff, I dare you not to fall in love with Hoffman's story as well. The Homeless Moon writers are definitely making their mark on genre fiction (it's not a huge mark, not yet, but wait, one day!), so getting a chance to sample their work for free is more than worth it. The chapbook is only 43 pages, and doesn't take that much time to read at all. So read it. And enjoy. Review style: I will review each story individually, though I reserve the right to use the term "review" loosely. Will there be spoilers? I'll speak in generalities the best I can, focus more on the technique and the ideas driving the story rather than any specifics. So if you want a story-by-story review, just click the link below to go to my LJ. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. The Homeless Moon Chapbook Happy Reading! Sun, Jul. 12th, 2009, 04:30 pm
( Secret Identity ) Sun, Jul. 12th, 2009, 09:03 am
All the Colours of Darkness by Peter Robinson, 2008, 403 pages. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, 1932, 237 pages. The First Century after Beatrice by Amin Maalouf, 1992, 192 pages. ( reviews under the cut ) Sat, Jul. 11th, 2009, 05:39 pm
 Scarlet (2009)Written by: Jordan Summers Genre: Paranormal Romance Pages: 292 (Mass Market Paperback) The premise: after the events of Red, Gina Santiago has settled in the town of Nuria with her werewolf boyfriend, Morgan. She's trying to control her own abilities, but can't, which makes her an outcast in the town of Others. It makes her job of forming a Nurian tactical team even more difficult, but everything goes to hell when Morgan is called away on an important but personal mission he won't tell anyone about but Gina. Now, Gina has to run a town of people that resent her, and what's worse, someone REALLY has it in for her: dead bodies start piling up, and all the evidence points to her. She's got to find a way to clear her name and get Morgan back before something far worse happens. Waste of Time & Money: yes, it was that bad. What I loved about the first book, Red, wasn't even remotely present in this book, and so much about the plot and character motivations seemed contrived, not an organic part of character, setting, or story. The romance was obnoxiously labeled as love when it was obviously lust, and Gina is not the same character from before, which is frustrating as hell, because I don't want to read about a moping heroine trying to cope with her missing boyfriend (wait, isn't that what New Moon is about?). Too many POVs litter the landscape of 292 pages, and the story is nothing if not predictable. Certainly, it's a transition to the third and final book in the trilogy, Crimson, but I have no interest in reading forward, this book bothered me so much. I would've stopped reading if it hadn't been such a FAST read, and frankly, I wish I had. There's a scene towards the end that reminds me of what I've heard my romance-reading friends complain about: you know the trope where the "hero" rapes the heroine, and until the rape scene, she hates him but suddenly loves him because the "rape" is so good? No, that specific scene is NOT in this book, but there's a scene that very much reminds me of that trope. Consider that a warning to those readers who are fed up with rape or anything alluding to it in genre fiction. At any rate, if you enjoyed the first book for its gritty horror elements and solid, tough-as-nails heroine, don't bother with this one, because neither element is present. Don't get me wrong, there are points in the book where it TRIES to bring those elements back, but not enough and far too late. Save yourself and skip this one, or if you must read it, I'd try borrowing it from somewhere. Review style: stream of conscious, with spoilers. It's taken me six days to actually sit down and review this book, and yet I still feel the need to rant. So if you're up to it, click the link below to my journal for the full review. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. REVIEW: Jordan Summer's SCARLET Sat, Jul. 11th, 2009, 12:12 pm
Thu, Jul. 9th, 2009, 10:52 pm
Thu, Jul. 9th, 2009, 10:29 am
Programming:
Networking (Web technology sub-field):
I appreciate your feedback! Thu, Jul. 9th, 2009, 12:14 am
May and June were months in which I got delirious with vampires. I started off with Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles series. The books which I read are : - Interview with the Vampire - The Vampire Lestat - The Queen of the Damned - The Tale of the Body Thief - Memnoch The Devil - The Vampire Armand - Merrick - Blood and Gold Among these the ones which I liked the most were The Vampire Lestat and The Queen of the Damned. The others are good reads nonetheless. After the 8th book I decided I needed a break from blood and fangs and the first book I chanced upon was I Am Legend by Richard Mathieson. And guess what, I got stuck with vampires again. In the book, the entire human race is affected by a plague that turns them into vampire like creatures. The protagonist is Robert Neville who is immune to this virus. Mathieson weaves a tense and riveting horror story and I especially liked the twist in the end. The utter despair and loneliness of Neville, who believes he is probably the last man on earth, really strikes a chord within you. I also read Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C Clarke and also another Anne Rice novel, Ramses the Damned. Ramses the Damned wasn’t impressive and it seemed rushed and pointless. Current Mood:
 calmWed, Jul. 8th, 2009, 05:04 pm
dose any one have any advice for when this happens in the future? I know people get very sensitive when there children are involved. Out side of working at my University library this is my first Library job and I want to do well so when I apply to the MLS program I can have good references, but even my supervisor treats me like a little kid. On top looking like I'm still in high school being white makes look like I don't belong even more. HELP!!! Wed, Jul. 8th, 2009, 12:26 pm
Title: Among the ShadowsAuthor: LM Montgomery Genre: YA Fiction Pages: 295 (PB) Length of time to read: 1 day
These nineteen fascinating stories are unlike any others L.M. Montgomery ever wrote. Filled with strange and supernatural occurrences, they are peopled with drunkards, embezzlers, and thieves: A woman confesses to murder after she has passed away. . . . A righteous deacon gets a taste of his own bitter medicine. . . . An amateur photographer records a dark deed. . . . The ghost of a woman's sweetheart comes to bid her good-bye. . . . Somber, dark, and brooding, these intriguing stories suggest that love really can last beyond death and that poetic justice does exist. Each of these wonderful tales is full of the strength of Montgomery's own inner resources. I loved reading this author when I was a kid, and still enjoy the ones I own, so I thought I would give this collection a chance...even though I don't like short stories :)
Review: This is a collection of short stories, I do not like short stories very much. I don't feel like i can connect to the characters that well. The story I liked the best in this collection-Some Fools and a Saint- is one of the longest ones in the book. I liked most of the stories ok, they are suposed to be dark...I didn't get that, but I guess back when she wrote them, thay might have been. If you are a girl, like I was who related so well to Anne, Emily, and all her other heroines...check this out, so you can say you read it, but then reread one of your favorites :-) |
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