Crystal Moon

I've been wanting more aesthetically pleasing bookshelves (or at least something different from the norm) and my mom was kind enough to buy me this! It's small, but I like it!

( Books! )

So far, this year hasn't been the best for me in terms of new books. I don't know if writers are just getting better at writing summaries on the back covers, or if I've just become less discriminatory in my buying habits, but it's just not been working well. Part of the problem might simply be that last year was an extraordinary good year. Not only did I read a lot of enjoyable books, but there were a goodly number of five-star, take-on-a-desert-island finds as well. Gone With the Wind, The Last Unicorn, The Mists of Avalon...these and a fair amount of others really impacted me for the better. So far I've only had one new five-star ranking, and that was for a phenomenal translation of the Tao Te Ching. The thing is, not only have I not been finding new OMG!AMAZING books, not only have a lot of them been simply mediocre, a large handful have been just plain bad. (I'll be saving these for another entry where I can just whine.) So, to counteract all this depression, I've started re-reading.

Project Gutenberg has been invaluable in this respect. I started using it on my lunch break at work, and it's been really enjoyable. I don't like to do nothing when I eat, but I also dislike reading physical books. Not only is it awkward, but I don't want to risk getting sauces or grease on the paper. The computer, obviously, works perfectly. I initially convinced myself it was just a good idea to re-read things, because I would be doing it so choppily (only about 30 minutes a day, five days a week) and it would be hard to get into something new anyway. As it turns out, this is just what I needed. I started out with my second favorite book in existence, Pride and Prejudice. Every time I read it, I realize that I've forgotten how wonderful and funny and just truly enjoyable it is. As much as I love watching the movies and drooling over Colin Firth, there is a charm that never gets fully transmitted from paper to screen. I'm currently working my way through Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and will probably move directly on to Through the Looking Glass. Alice has always been one of my favorite stories - the madness is so incredibly fascinating! - and anyone who has known me for a while will acknowledge my unadulterated love for the Cheshire Cat.

But without a doubt, my favorite re-read thus far is of a novel I first read in middle school and have dearly loved ever since - a Star Trek novel entitled Time For Yesterday, by A.C. Crispin. This is the second in a duology that spins off an episode where Spock and McCoy are accidentally transported to a planet's past, during its ice age. While there, they meet a woman who was wrongly exiled there, and Spock, who has reverted to a more primative mind-set, falls in love with her. Crispin creates an original character named Zar, who is supposedly the result of this union. Without a doubt, this woman shows an understanding of the Vulcan mind and spirit only second to Leonard Nimoy himself. She allows Spock to care for his son without being overly emotional, to show pride in his accomplishments, and to truly become a father to a boy he once proclaimed an unfortunate accident. By today's standards, Zar might be considered a Gary Stu, but Crispin managed to fit him into the world as seamlessly as if he'd always been there, and my love for him and his relationship with Spock has only grown over the years.

I've met many people who believe that re-reading is a waste of time. While I do try to limit myself in this, if for no other reason than because there are so many books out there I haven't read and need to, but sometimes I just find myself needing to go home. Hopefully I'll get better at finding good books again soon, but for now, I'm content to curl up with some old friends.

Are there any books you return to over and over again at times like this?

(x-posted to livejournal)

I managed to get through five books this month, along with my daily Bible readings. My reviews got a little long winded this time, so I'm cutting them to save my poor readers.

( Book reviews for February )

This isn't really a review per say, as it's a kid's book, but I wanted to put it down anyway. I read Chris Van Allsburg's Jumanji about a week ago, which is something I've wanted to do ever since the movie came out (how ever many years ago *that* was). See, I'm a total purist when it comes to movies based on books, wherein I will absolutely NOT watch the movie until I have read the book. The only exception I consciously made was for Lord of the Rings, mainly because I've now tried I think four times to get through Fellowship, and while I get a little further each time, I come nowhere near the end. Or even the middle. Tolkein is just not my friend.

I digress.

Anyway, I can now watch Jumanji with a clear conscious, but what I really wanted to point out here was the style of pictures in the book. For those of you who've read it, did you notice that no human faces are shown in the book except those of the two main children? The parents are cut off at the neck, and all other characters are shown from behind, or from a distance too far to make out any features. I found this so charming, as though it's a way for the illustrator to reinforce that the only characters that matter are those two children. I might even take it one step further to say that perhaps it meant that they were the only two *real* characters in the book, and that everyone else was imaginary or didn't belong in their world. (I can say this about the adults, because they would never believe the story of the game, and adults just generally are seen as apart from a child's imaginary world.)

For some reason, I just found this really, really interesting.

Warning: This may in fact be the longest post I have ever made. Read at your own risk.

When I was probably around 15, a friend of mine asked me what my favorite movie was. I opened my mouth to reply, and she quickly clarified that I could NOT choose what she considered my silly sci-fi movie series, such as Star Trek and Star Wars. It had to be a stand alone film. I’ll admit that I had to think about this for a while. Eventually, I threw out the name of a movie I loved, but I don’t think I truly believed it was my absolute favorite. It was lovely and haunting and fun, but I was still on my ST and SW kick and really couldn’t believe I would ever come to love anything as much as I did those movies.

The movie I tossed out to her was Labyrinth, and surprisingly enough, I soon discovered that I was right.
 

( In the beginning )

( Analysis )

( Jareth + Sara = OTP! )

( Conclusion )


"Things are not always what they seem in this place, so you can't take anything for granted."

I've been looking at this and all of Philippa Gregory's books for some time now, and I just generally kept telling myself I would read them when I get the chance. I've heard good reviews of her writing, and I've always been interested in that part of history, so I figured they'd make good reads. About a week ago, Mike mentioned that he'd seen a preview for the movie adaptation of The Other Boleyn Girl, and that he thought it would be really nice for us to go see it. I immediately refused, because I have this Thing where I do not go to see movies based on books without first reading the books. At least, not if I can help it. Sooo, I ran out to the store and grabbed a copy of the book. Annoyingly, though perhaps not unexpectedly, the cheapest copy was the new paperback with Natalie Portman & Co. on the cover, and not the original. (I have a Thing about this as well, you see.) Still, since it was literally half the price of the original, I swallowed my pride, reminded myself that this would allow me to save money for the *other* books, and bought it.

( My Thoughts )

This particular book, The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody, by Will Cuppy, was a recommendation from our very own princesslucia, and I must say it was a very good book to read during the middle of a busy period. It was nice and light, and think I can safely say that it wins the prize for Novel with the Funniest Title Ever. Basically, Cuppy takes us through the centuries and explains the way things really happened in the past...and how they didn't work. I would recommend this for anyone looking for a good laugh, but a fairly decent knowledge of history would definitely come in handy.

( A million laughs a minute )

The second "book" I finished this year is called De Historia et Veritate Unicornis (On the History and Truth of the Unicorn): The Facsimile and Translation of an Original Manuscript. Despite it's huge title, this work is only 64 short pages, pretty much all of which contain extremely large, high-quality images. The basic plot is that the author, Michael Green, was approached by a member of a secret society who preserved records of the unicorn, and even had an original spiral horn. Green was asked to translate the manuscripts and publish them, in the hopes of generating more interest in the magic and wonder that is the unicorn. This is clearly not a rocket science book, but I was truly amazed not only at how believable the text was, but at the true feeling of awe and wonder it inspired in me.

( Review )

So I think I have sufficiently calmed down from reading the new Harry Potter book that I can right at least a semi-coherent review. I think I may go back and re-read it quite soon, just so I can get a better handle on some of the details, but for now I think I just need to sit back and absorb.

 
Needless to say, there are SPOILERS behind the cut for the entire book.

 
Got that? SPOILERS!!!  DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED THE BOOK AND DO NOT WANT TO BE SPOILED!!!

 
Ok, my karma is clear. On we go!

Oh, and be warned...this is long and rambly and...yeah  ^^;;

( Good, Bad and Ugly )

So, I’m afraid I have to squeal about this here, because as much as Mike indulges in my fandoms, he is a guy, and as such he will never be able to truly appreciate the beauty of a good chick flick (or books based on them).

I have just finished reading the first book in the Fitzwilliam Darcy – Gentleman series by Pamela Aidan. This series is basically a re-telling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but from Darcy’s point of view. This first book, An Assembly Such as This, takes us up to the point where Darcy, Bingley and his sisters return to London, and deals a little with their time there. Unfortunately for me, the next two books are not out yet. I though I’d checked on Amazon to ensure that they were, because I *hate* getting involved in a series and then finding out that I have to wait for the rest of the them to come out, but apparently I was mistaken. They seem to have been released elsewhere (perhaps Britain) but the second book won’t be available until October, and the third comes out in January.
 

 This is Bad.

 Why, do you ask? Because I seriously do not think I have ever been so obsessed with an adaptation before in my life.
 

( Why Darcy Rocks My World )