The Librarian Writer

Spooky helping me write Many things happened to me in 2012, some good, some bad. But the one that affected me the most was the passing of my beloved cat, Spooky. She was 17 years old and had a failing liver. I was hoping she'd make it through the holiday season, but she didn't. I got her from a shelter when I was living in Phoenix. She was a wee thing, an elegant tuxedo cat with a dribble of milk down her chin. She jumped on all fours, clinging to the gate that separated us, and meowed. I knew she was trouble, and I knew she was mine. I named her Spooky because I was a huge fan of The X-Files and because she spooked easily. Loud noises, strangers, pretty much anything had her skittering to a hidey-hole. She loved to burrow under blankets and I'd create "caves" for her. She loved high places, even though she didn't know how she'd get down. She loved to cuddle in the crook of my arm. She'd lick my nose to let me know she was happy. I...

Happy holidays, everyone! I've got some book reviews to catch up on and some screenwriting news to share, but that's all going to wait until the New Year. Have a fabulous holiday season with your family and friends!  And my gift to you are these singing penguins. Bonus Video: San Francisco Jingle Penguins

"I'd make a kick-ass beauty queen." November was a good reading month for graphic novels. I read Cardboard by Doug TenNapel, and a review is forthcoming, but let me tell you now, it is fantastic! I also read Tune: Vanishing Point by Derek Kirk Kim. Another review forthcoming, and again, it's fantastic. ( But a head's up, it is for older teens and adults. ) In audiobook news, I listened to Beauty Queens by the versatile Libba Bray. She narrates the audiobook, which includes 20 or so different characters. And while her British accents could use some work, there is very little to quibble over in this amazing and hilarious recording ( another head's up as this is also for older teens and adults. ) The audiobook includes an author Q & A portion, so keep listening after the credits. Beauty Queens book trailer with the lovely Libba Bray:

Title: Long Lankin Author: Lindsey Barraclough Publisher: Candlewick Publication Date: July 10, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0763658083 464 pp. ARC provided by publisher I started reading this book just before Halloween, right when I was in the mood for a good scare. Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough tells the story of Cora and her sister Mimi. They are sent to live with their crochety Auntie Ida in an isolated English village. There are secrets afoot and a supernatural force that the children unwittingly unleash. The writing is spookily atmospheric about Auntie Ida's crumbling house and the dangerous moors that surround it. The author also goes to great lengths to create the post-war England setting with details about things from cricket games to laundry soap. She alternative chapters between Cora and the village boy she meets, Roger, and sometimes even Ida gets a chapter of her own. Each chapter brings some new insight or twist and it's brilliantly done. My one qu...

"Damn, I feel sorry for Death." I know this entry is long overdue. Been busy, busy with all sort of projects (more about that later). But in October (remember way back then?) , I did manage to finish Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein ( book review here ) and I started Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough (book review pending). I also listened to the audiobook of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Narrated by Death, it's the story of a young German girl during World War II. And it's a bit awkward crying your eyes out while you're stopped at a light. Hard to explain to the car next to you that this story is just so ... no word adequately explains the punch to the solar plexus this book delivers. But I do have a bonus video of Markus Zusak explaining how the book came to be. Bonus video: Markus Zusak talks about The Book Thief Happy reading!

As I've mentioned before on the blog, I'm a Neil Gaiman fan . And you should be, too. So here's some free, cool stuff to get you started. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Neil Gaiman's award-winning Coraline , you can enjoy listening to the entire novel, one chapter at a time, as read Neil, Lemony Snicket, Adam Rex, Holly Black, and other famous authors. Coraline is the story of a young girl who moves into a ramshackle house and discovers a doorway to an alternate reality that's a little too perfect. There's a talking cat and a witch, but this ain't Narnia. If that's not enough awesome for you, Neil is offering a free download of his short story, " Click-Clack the Rattlebag ," as performed by Neil, on Audible.com. Plus, Audible will donate $1 for each free download to DonorsChoose.org if you dowload by October 31. And Neil also started All Hallow's Read , which is a new Halloween tradition where you give someone a scary b...

Title: Code Name Verity Author: Elizabeth Wein Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children Publication Date: May 15, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-1423152194 352 pp. Reading copy via library Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein has gotten so much buzz since it was published that it took me awhile to get my hands on a copy. It's the story of two young women during World War II, one a pilot and the other a spy, who crash in occupied France. It's ultimately the story of their friendship, the kind of friendship that only the best of best friends have. But I have to tell you, when I started reading it, there was some WTF is going on? The narrative is broken into two parts and the first part belongs to the spy, who goes by many names, including Verity. She's supposed to write out spy information for the Nazis who have captured her and instead she writes how she and Maddie, the pilot, met and became friends. This narrative includes all the standard conventions of a novel, inclu...

Dude, where's my clone? September was waaay too hot to be called autumn. It was Summer, Part 2: Seriously, How Hot Is It? While trying to stay cool, I did start a couple of new books. I'm almost done with Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein, which is just as good as the hype. I also started another book which shall remain nameless because I'm going to abandon it. I'm more than 200 pages in, so I definitely gave it a chance. But the character has failed to engage me and I just don't care what happens next. That's such a bummer when a book fails to connect. But I did listen to some really awesome audiobooks. Yeah, I know some people don't consider listening to audiobooks "reading," but it gives me the chance to consume more books. I listened to Legend by Marie Lu and An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. But the real stand-out for me was The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer and performed by Raul Esparza. Raul Esparza is a Broa...

Title: The Hallowed Ones Author: Laura Bickle Publisher: Graphia Publication Date: September 25, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0547859262 320 pp. ARC provided by publisher I picked up this ARC at the ALA Conference this summer because the premise is so wildly unique. There's all this Amish romance out there, but I'd never -- EVER -- seen Amish horror before. It would either be brilliant or a bust. It's bloody brilliant. Laura Bickle introduces readers to Katie, a young Amish woman who's looking forward to Rumspringa , that time when Amish teenagers leave their sheltered community and go among the "English." She fantasizes about going to the movies and wearing blue jeans. But she expects she'll return after Rumspringa and marry Elijah, the boy next door and her best friend. While the Amish community is strict, Katie has small rebellions like reading comic books at the drug store in town and drinking Coke. But Katie knows that her biggest flaw ...

Title : Bushman Lives! Author : Daniel Pinkwater Publisher : Houghton Mifflin Books for Children Publication Date : October 9, 2012 ISBN-13 : 978-0547385396 256 pp. ARC provided by publisher Bushman Lives! is the latest book by Daniel Pinkwater and in case you've missed it, he's been serializing the novel for the past year, one chapter a week. But if you want to read the entire novel at once, it's slated to be published next month. Bushman Lives ! takes place in 1960's Chicago, but except for the lack of cell phones and the Internet, it doesn't read as a historical piece. It does, however, read as a quirky piece, which one would expect from Daniel Pinkwater. Harold Knishke and his friend Geets are fans of the dearly departed gorilla known as Bushman. They greet each other with "Bushman lives!", sort as a secret code to each other and to people that they meet. It's the start of summer vacation and Harold has no real plans for the summ...

Title: Send Me a Sign Author: Tiffany Schmidt Publisher: Walker Childrens Publication Date: October 2, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0802728401 384 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley I chose this title mostly because it was available on Netgalley when I needed something to read. I didn't know anything about it beforehand and I thought I'd give it chapter or two. Well, I read the whole thing. It's a good, solid read by debut author Tiffany Schmidt . Send Me a Sign centers on Mia, a happy, popular girl about to go into her senior year. So when she's diagnosed with leukemia, she's determined to keep her life as normal as possible. Even if that means not telling anyone about her cancer. All Mia succeeds in doing is alienate her friends, including the one friend she does trust enough to tell, cute boy-next-door Gyver. There were times when I wanted to throttle Mia, who is so deep in denial that she makes some seriously misguided choices. But I can also unde...

"I'd change my name to Lola."  Oh, August, with your heat and humidity, I can't say I'm sorry to say good-bye to you. It was a pretty good reading month, though. I read Send Me a Sign by Tiffany Schmidt (review pending) and I'm almost finished with Amish-meets-vampires horrorfest The Hallowed Ones by Laura Bickle. I also got onto the audiobook bandwagon. They are the perfect antidote to road rage during my commute. For starters, I listened to Jesse Eisenberg do a good job as Cassel in Holly Black's White Cat. I also listened to What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen . It's a nominated Teens' Top Ten book, and I can see why. The books centers on McLean, a girl whose parents have gone through a bitter divorce and who recreates herself each time she moves into a new town with her dad. Until the one town where she ends up having to be herself. Whoever that is. Bonus video: Sarah Dessen talks about What Happened to Goodbye Happy ...

Title: Butter Author: Erin Jade Lange Publisher: Bloomsbury Publication Date: September 4, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-1599907802 304 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley "Butter" is the nickname of a teenage boy who pushes the scale past 400 lbs. He goes to high school in a wealthy suburb of Phoenix where he's invisible. Even though he's there, bigger than life, so to speak, everyone deals with him by pretending he doesn't exist. Until one day, he becomes the center of (unwelcome) attention. And Butter's response is to put up a website called ButtersLastMeal.com where he promises to eat himself to death live on the Internet. Instead of the disgust, or even indifference, he was expecting, Butter finds himself becoming part of the "in" crowd as they take bets on whether or not he goes through with it. This is an amazing debut by Erin Jade Lange, who creates beautifully flawed characters, starting with Butter. Butter has a hilarious voice...

Thanks to everyone who stopped by my blog during the ALA Swag Giveaway ! An especially big thanks to everyone who helped spread the word! The winners have been chosen via Random.org and they are: LizGotauco JenBax star_chaser76 Congratulations, winners! You will be receiving an email shortly from me requesting your address.

In case you haven't heard about it, there's an awesome online conference called WriteOnCon . First of all, it's FREE! While most conferences cost several hundred dollars just for registration, let alone airfare and hotel, WriteOnCon costs nothing. All you have to do is register and you're in. Easy peasy. And then there are the Ninja Agents. You leave your query or first pages online for feedback from other conferencees, but you never know when one of the Ninja Agents might leave feedback ... or even a request! If that's not enough awesome for you, then there are the real-time chats with agents, editors, and authors. If you can't be there in real-time, all the chats are archived. It all starts tomorrow, August 13, as the forums open for submissions. This is a great time to test the waters on your picture book, MG, or YA manuscript. August 14 and August 15 are jam-packed with all the great chats, starting from 6 a.m. EST and going on until 9 p.m. EST. ...

"This is why I don't fall down holes." Oh, summer, why are your lazy days so ... not? Summer has been busy, busy, busy and finding time to read has been hard, hard, hard. I'm still working on Cory Doctorow's Little Brother . Still working on Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird . Still working on The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. There were a couple of books that I started and then abandoned. One was too boring and the other was too gritty (after 200 pages in and more and more awful things happen to the protagonist, I couldn't take it anymore). But I did read Butter by Erin Jade Lange (review forthcoming) and Bushman Lives! by Daniel Pinkwater (review also forthcoming). I also had time to squeeze in the delightful graphic novel Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol. Anya is a high school student who wants to fit in and is perpetually embarrassed by her immigrant family. She has only one (crappy) friend and a crush on a popular boy. Then she fa...

Hey, it's my first giveaway! I made the rounds at the ALA exhibit hall last month and picked up plenty of advanced reading copies. So I'm sharing the bounty. I'll be choosing not one, but THREE lucky people to choose a book. I'm keeping the rules simple. Contests that give X amount of points for tweeting or following or liking and then expect you to keep track of how many points you have end up hurting my head. So just leave a comment below with your email address and your top pick, plus a back-up pick, out of the seven choices. That's it. (If you still want to tweet or follow or whatnot, then you are made of awesome.) You have until 11:59 pm PST on August 18, 2012 to enter. The three winners will be chosen using Random.org. Please make sure to leave an e-mail address with your comment. Sorry, but U.S. entries only. Up for grabs are: Choke by Diana Lopez A Beautiful Lie by Ifran Master My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher The ...

Title: Innocent Darkness Author: Suzanne Lazear Publisher: Flux Publication Date: August 8, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0738732480 408 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley Sometimes you wish a book was as good as its cover. While the cover for Suzanne Lazear's Innocent Darkness is dazzling, the book is less so. Noli is a young mechanically-minded woman living in early 20th century Los Angeles. This is an alternative universe where steampunk is crossed with fairies. The fairy Otherworld needs to sacrifice a girl with Spark once every seven years to survive. The last sacrifice was botched and so the Queen's hunstman, Kevighn Silver, must find an extra-Sparky girl to repair the damage. Noli doesn't realize that her best friend/next-door-neighbor/love interest V is an exiled fae prince who has been protecting her since she is an extra-Sparky girl. When Noli gets into trouble one too many times for her mechanical shenanigans, she gets sent to a school for wayward girls....

"I'm glad I'm off the grid." --> June turned out to be a month of middles. I finished reading Innocent Darkness by Suzanne Lazear (review pending), but mostly got to the middle of other books I’m reading. I did finish A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but that hardly counts because it’s a novella. And now I’m in the middle of The Sign of Four . I’m in the middle of Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. This book is one that I come to every now and then for inspiration rather than something I want to barrel right through. I’m in the middle of Little Brother by Cory Doctorow. I downloaded this title ages ago when I found it was available for free , but never got around to reading it. I did finally get around to transferring it from my computer to my Nook, so hopefully I’ll finish it soon(ish).   Here's a bonus video of Cory talking about Little Brother :

Title: The Little Woods Author: McCormick Templeman Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Publication Date: July 10, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0375869433 336 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley I was looking forward to a good YA mystery when I chose The Little Woods by McCormick Templeman. The protagonist, Cally Wood, decides to go to hoity-toity boarding school St. Bede's Academy because her sister disappeared there years before. Maybe Cally's looking for closure. Maybe she's looking for answers. She's definitely going to find trouble. Cally has a great voice that pulled me in right away. Snark is de rigueur for YA novels these days, but Cally's voice wasn't just snark. There was real wit in her observations about the school, her new classmates, and herself. But that, unfortunately, isn't enough to carry the novel. The actual mystery is predictable and while I kept hoping for some creepy suspense to crawl in from the woods, it didn't materialize. ...

The blank page. White space. Just there. Staring at you. Waiting. For you. The writer is the one with the words, the one who has the drive to sit down and fill up the blank page. With something. Anything. Doesn't have to be good. Not that first draft. It just has to be. And oh, there's the rub. Sometimes when I write, I have an idea, a thought, maybe even a line, that compels me to put it down. Whether that blossoms into something else, like an actual story, is another matter. But it all starts with getting words on the page. I'm not going to know if that's a story worth pursuing unless I get words on the page. I don't know if that's a story I can fix unless I get words on the page. There are various tricks I use to get words on the page. Rewards are good. Especially cupcakes. National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo to those in the know) was a really great kick in the pants to get words on the page (even though, nearly three ...

Every year the literary world loses great authors, but somehow it seems unfairly cruel to lose both Maurice Sendak and Ray Bradbury so close to each other. Both have been banned numerous times. Both are icons in their genres. Both will be deeply missed because their books were so deeply loved. Books are precious to people because they become friends. Friends who cheer you, challenge you, and invite you into their worlds. You don't want to see your friends hurt. That's why there should be outrage when a book is banned. That's why Fahrenheit 451 means so much to people, as a moral tale of it-could-happen-here, or as some people may think, it's-already-happening. To take away books is to take away friends, good friends, best friends. The ebook revolution threatens some people who love the physical heft of a "real" book. I'm more pragmatic. It's not the format that matters, digital or paper. It's the content. It's the ideas and character...

"Mr. Holmes is kind of hawt." May has been a super busy month, so I haven't been able to get that much reading in. I did finish The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks , which is remarkable and important and everyone should read it. I started the YA mystery The Little Woods by McCormick Templeman, which has been enjoyable so far. I also started A Study in Scarlet , the first of the Sherlock Holmes tales by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I never read any Sherlock before, but I've loved the many incarnations in films and television, especially the version portrayed by Jeremy Brett . But, of course, the latest incarnation is the best. ( No, Robert Downey, Jr., that isn't you. ) I'm talking about the Steven Moffat produced Sherlock series on BBC and PBS. This is a modern, sexy, oh-so-smart adaptation of the detective in the deerstalker hat. Benedict Cumberbatch is spot-on as the brilliantly mercurial Sherlock Holmes, but it's Martin Freeman as the long-suf...

Title: Something Like Normal Author: Trish Doller Publisher: Bloomsbury   Publication Date: June 19, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-1599908441 224 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley Every once in awhile, I'll read a book that's so damn good, I wish I'd written it. Last year, that book was Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys. This year, it's Something Like Normal by Trish Doller . Something Like Normal centers on Travis, a 19-year-old Marine who's on leave from a tour in Afghanistan. He comes home to Florida to face a family that's falling apart, a girl who hates his guts, and post-traumatic stress from the ambush that killed his best friend. Travis has a voice that's dead-on for a young guy who has lived through more than his years should allow. He's sarcastic, mad, sad, and as funny as hell. He's tries to do the right thing, but doesn't always succeed. He's one of the most well-rounded male characters I've read in YA literat...

So much has already been written about the fearless brilliance of Maurice Sendak. For example, Neil Gaiman wrote this heartfelt tribute about his hero. And he wrote another one , too. Maurice Sendak seemed to care as much about fame as he did controversy. He did what he did and didn't care much what people thought about it, good or bad. Lucky for us, his work was remarkable. Even iconic. And always honest. So honest that some people feel his books are dangerous, telling children things they shouldn't know. What Maurice Sendak realized was that children already know these things. He was a picture book master that will never a equaled. He will be missed, but librarians, teachers, and parents will ensure that he is not forgotten. Below are three videos that celebrate Maurice Sendak and his work. The first video is Part 1 of the interview Stephen Colbert did with Maurice Sendak. It is hilarious. The second video is President Obama reading Where the Wild Things Are t...

This summer, massive numbers of librarians (what's the collective noun for librarians? A catalog of librarians?) will congregate in Anaheim for the annual American Library Association summer conference. And I will be among them (at least for one day). I've been encouraging my writer friends, especially children's writer friends, to go. They don't have to sit through seminars like Using Your Library to Crowdsource (I made that one up) , but there are cool things for non-librarians. For 25 buckeroos, non-ALA members can get an Exhibit Hall Pass. For people who love books, it's an exhibit hall of squee. Some of the authors currently scheduled to be there are Libba Bray, Daniel Handler, Paolo Bacigalupi, Marla Frazee, Mo Willems, Sherman Alexie, Jon Scieszka, Eve Bunting, Cornelia Funke, Jack Gantos, Brian Selznick, Maggie Stiefvater, David Shannon, and Patrick McDonnell. There are over 400 authors coming to the Exhibit Hall, so there's bound to b...

"No one better touch my cells!" Oh, April, why have you flown by so quickly? It seems as though I was just settling into you and now we must say good-bye. I did get a good amount reading in, though. I read A Breath of Eyre by Eve Marie Mont and Something Like Normal by Trish Doller (review pending). I even finished reading Peter Pan (remember, Project Gutenberg is a goldmine for free public domain ebooks). And I like to mix up my fiction reading with some nonfiction. I finally started reading Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott (all writers should read this) and I'm about halfway through The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot . I love me some good science books, especially when they're so amazingly written like The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks . I'm constantly interrupting my husband as I read to tell him what I've just learned. Plus there's the heartbreaking human story behind it all. Can't wait to finish reading it! The...

Title: A Breath of Eyre Author: Eve Marie Mont   Publisher: KTeen   Publication Date: March 27, 2012   ISBN-13: 978-0758269485 352 pp. Purchased ebook via bn.com I was totally excited about Eve Marie Mont's debut YA novel, A Breath of Eyre . Jane Eyre is one of my favorite novels, but I'm okay with taking liberties with it. Jasper Fforde has a ton of fun riffing on it in The Eyre Affair . A Breath of Eyre is getting a lot of love with positive reviews, including a starred review from Kirkus. But I got to tell you, I didn't feel the love so much. Emma is a quiet, lonely girl at an exclusive prep school. She's the scholarship kid, so she keeps under the radar to steer clear of the mean girls. Her mother died when she was young, and she feels disconnected from her father and step-mother. She crushes on her English teacher and thinks cute boy Gray, whom she has known since she was little, is equally out of reach. She doesn't have any friends except ...

Title: Welcome, Caller, This Is Chloe Author: Shelley Coriell Publisher: Amulet Books Publication Date: May 1, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-1419701917 320 pp.   ARC from publisher via Netgalley --> When I chose Welcome, Caller, This Is Chloe , I thought it would a fun piece of fluff about a girl who worked at her high school radio station. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the novel is so much more than that. Chloe is a gregarious, popular girl at her school and her humorous voice comes through the narration in pitch-perfect style. But Chloe isn’t having a good time right now.  Her two BFFs have turned their backs on her for a perceived slight and they’ve gone so far as to spread a terrible rumor about her. Her junior year project has been rejected and she’s forced to help the struggling radio station with promotions. And Chloe’s family life is a war zone as her independent grandmother refuses any help, even though her Parkinson’s disease is get...

"Maybe I should learn archery..." Here we are at March already. Wow. Let's take a moment for the end of the first quarter of 2012. *moment* Alrighty, then. March was a big reading month for me, mostly due to The Hunger Games . I read the first book last year, but I plowed through Catching Fire and Mockingjay this month before I saw the movie. (I intended to write a blog post about the movie last week, but it was a totes cray-cray week. Short review: I had some problems with it, but I mostly liked it.) Also in March, I read and reviewed Someone Else's Life by Katie Dale . I recently finished Welcome Caller, This Is Chloe by Shelley Coriell (review pending). That seems like a lot of reading to me. I've got A Breath of Eyre by Eve Marie Mont and Something Like Normal by Trish Doller queued up on the nook and rarin' to go. And with that, I'll leave you with this video of the original The Hunger Games book trailer :

Title: Someone Else's Life Author: Katie Dale Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers Publication Date: February 14, 2012 ISBN-13: 978-0385740654 464 pp. ARC from publisher via Netgalley I was really intrigued by this book. The basic plot starts with Rosie, a young woman in England, who watches her mother Trudie slowly die from Huntington's disease. What's worse for Rosie is that Huntington's disease is hereditary and she has a 50/50 chance of getting it. Except a secret is finally revealed ... Rosie is not Trudie's daughter. She was switched at birth with a girl named Holly. Rosie tracks down her real family in the United States, but the repercussions, especially for Holly, are life-altering. I liked Rosie, a lot. She was believable in all her fears and doubts and missteps. I did not, however, like Holly. Holly has every right to be freaked out and miserable, but she comes off as unstable. There were certain scenes where her actions and/or r...

I'm in the middle of revising the outline of the screenplay I'm working on and blanking on a blog topic. I thought maybe I'd write about my new Pinterest obsession. Or how much I can't wait to see The Hunger Games movie. Or even more random cat videos. But then I saw this video that I thought was hilarious. Finally, young adult books are getting a little respect. Because young adult novels can save the economy! Obama's Young Adult Novel Plan : Of course, writing isn't as easy it looks. Although some people refuse to believe that. So You Want to Write a Novel: But if you've got writer's block, you can always use the people around you for inspiration. George Lucas in Love: Happy writing!

"This Mr. Dickens has a promising future." February may have been a short month (even with the extra day), but I got some good reading in! I read and reviewed Cinder by Marissa Meyer for the 2012 Debut Author Challenge. Lots of fun, that one. In other reading news, Charles Dickens' 200th birthday was February 7 and I finally finished Bleak House ! Yes! (Four years and 881 pages later.) Much like Desmond on Lost , my goal is to read all of Dickens' books before I die. (Except I have already read Our Mutual Friend . Hey, I was an English major.) Next on my Dickens bucket list is The Old Curiosity Shop . Don't know when I'm going to start it, definitely don't know when I'll finish it, but I will. And I'll more than likely get it from Project Gutenberg . Never heard of Project Gutenberg? Well, they are completely made of awesome. They have nearly 40,000 public domain works available for FREE. As in FREE. These are downloadable books ava...

Title : Cinder Author : Marissa Meyer Publisher : Feiwel & Friends Publication Date : January 3, 2012 ISBN-13 : 978-0312641894 400 pp. Reading copy via local library With one of the most eye-catching covers in awhile, coupled with an awesome concept, Cinder was high on my list of must-reads for 2012. I'm happy to report that it's just as fun as I thought it would be. Cinder takes the Cinderella story and makes it a fractured fairy tale by setting it in a far-flung future. In that world, Cinder is a cyborg mechanic living in New Beijing while a plague sweeps Earth. The only hope of a cure comes from a kingdom on the moon that's run by an evil queen. The queen wants to marry Prince Kai to form an alliance that will eventually make her the ruler of both the moon and Earth. Prince Kai desperately wants to help his people, but after he meets Cinder, he can't stop thinking about her. The fun of the book is seeing how Marissa Meyer plays with the trappin...

Tomorrow night is the season two finale of Downton Abbey , the PBS Masterpiece Classic series that has women (and many men) swooning over Edwardian dresses and upstairs/downstairs intrigue. The basic story is that the titular grand house belongs to Lord Grantham, who has the misfortune to have three daughters instead of a son who can inherit Downton Abbey (see Pride and Prejudice for a further discussion on entitled estates). The heir, a cousin one of the daughters is set to marry, dies on the Titanic. The next heir is discovered to be a young lawyer named Matthew, who seems rather embarrassed that he's meant to be the next Lord Grantham. As the family learns to deal with Matthew, there's also all sorts of shenanigans with the servants, some directly dealing with the family and some not. In case you didn't know, Downton Abbey is the brainchild of Julian Fellowes, the writer of the brilliant Gosford Park . Downton Abbey stars a bevy of British actors with posh acce...