The inexplicable charisma of the rival

Books read, 3rd and 4th quarters 2014

2015-03-16T07:50:28Z

Half of these titles were gifts/giveaways from dirtylibrarian, because in Fiji, I will pretty much read anything "new" since the fiction at my library is either Booker/Pulitzer winners or donated mass market paperbacks and nothing else. Other titles were either already owned and I finally got around to reading them, or ebooks (book club selections, especially).

Fiction:

1) Who could that be at this hour? (All The Wrong Questions, #1) – Lemony Snicket - disappointing. will probably not read sequels.

2) The cloud atlas - David Mitchell - read for book club. Hard to get into but ultimately a good read.

3) Captain Freedom - G. Xavier Robillard - comic novel about a superhero having a work crisis. I loved it. If you like Christopher Moore you'll dig it.

4) Harry Lipkin, private eye - Barry Fantoni -elderly Jewish PI novel. cute but didn't move me.

5) A Highly unlikely scenario, or a Neetsa Pizza employee's guide to saving the world - Rachel Cantor - Agressively quirky; finished it but didn't really like it.

6) The Frangipani hotel -Violet Kuperknick - Excellent short stories, most about Vietnam and ghosts/old beliefs in the modern world. Not flaky/horror, just the right touch of fantasy.

7) The Enchanted - Rene Denfeld - brilliant but really heavy literary novel about prison. Mostly interior monologue. well written but difficult subject matter.

8) Where'd you go Bernadette - Maria Semple - read for book club. Funny and entertaining novel about Microsoft millionaries having the same problems with neighbors and parents at their daughter's school that other people have. Plus, Antarctica!

9) The dead in their vaulted arches (Flavia de Luce, #6) - Alan Bradley - had not read any other in this series and this was a bad one to start with since it explicates plot points in the saga without anything much happening. didn't do anything for me but probably fine if you already know these characters from other books.

1) Starvation heights : A true story of murder and malice in the woods of the Pacific Northwest -Gregg Olsen - Health faddism kills people at an isolated sanitarium in Ollala, WA, including Ivar Haglund's mother! Interesting true crime story.

2) Let's pretend this never happened : a mostly true memoir – Jenny Lawson - blog humor pieces republished in book form. really funny.

3) Travel as a political act – Rick Steves - not much I didn't already know but nice to see someone in the travel industry who has the ear of middle America making these arguments.

4) Songs only you know: a memoir - Sean Madigan Hoen - Punk rock 'get in the van' memoir from someone who's been in a bunch of bands I've never heard of. a little self-indulgent but captures the pre-internet punk touring band scene really well.

5) Life and death in Eden: Pitcairn Island and the Bounty mutineers- Trevor Lummis - My Pacific History title for the 3rd quarter. Stranger than fiction tale of how there are still 50 people on a remote Pacific Island who are all descended from English mutineers.

6) Fiji and me- Carol Phillips - Peace Corps memoir; research. Self published long after her service as a nurse. Not much I didn't already know but pleasant enough.

7) Bula Pops!: a memoir of a son's Peace Corps service in the Fiji Islands - Michael J. Blahut - Peace Corps memoir; research. Self published by the volunteer's dad from his letters home. Lightweight and riddled with typos like "minor bird" for "Mynah bird" (which are so common in Fiji this mistake is egregious; it'd be like living in Italy for 2+ years and spelling the word for noodles as "posta")

8) Letters from Fiji - Keith Kelly. Peace Corps memoir; research. Probably the best of the three but also self-published and badly edited.

9) A renegade history of the United States – Thaddeus Russell - Celebrates the contributions to American History of drunks, prostitutes, jazz fans and other people not content to be good citizens. lightweight but amusing.

books read 1st and 2nd quarters 2014

2014-07-27T00:03:27Z

nonfiction:

1) Kago, kastom and Kalja: the study of indigenous movements in Melanesia today: edited by Marc Tabani and Marcellin Abong (2013) - academic papers on cargo cults. Did not know Papua New Guinea recently had one that was a combination of pyramid scheme and self-help/Tony Robbins blather. probably not of interest to any of you.

2) The Night of the Gun: A reporter investigates the darkest story of his life. His own - David Carr (2008) - What sets this apart from other drug confessional memoirs is that the author actually went back to police reports, court records, hospital files to reconstruct his drinking and crack-using years. A bit self indulgent, but interesting.

3) Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder: Pronged Ants, Horned Humans, Mice on Toast, and Other Marvels of Jurassic Technology... by Lawrence Weschler (1996)- How the Museum of Jurassic Technology came to be. Tries to uncover how much of the museum is fictional and how much is real. Worth reading if you're going/have been to the MJT.

4) Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach (2014) She cannot write an uninteresting book. Not as gross as "stiff".

5) A Thousand Lives: The Untold Story of Jonestown by Julia Scheeres (2012) An account told via survivor's tales and a diary kept by one who perished. Depressing but important.

6) Swingland: Between the Sheets of the Secretive, Sometimes Messy, but Always Adventurous Swinging Lifestyle by Daniel Stern (2013) more a memoir than an ethnography, which is what I was hoping for. But still interesting, if a little too Southern California.

7) Farewell, Fred Voodoo: A Letter from Haiti by Amy Wilentz (2013) Pretty good look at modern Haiti- part journalism, part memoir, but also an unflinching look at Western aid/involvement in Haiti, especially after that last earthquake. Basically, doctors that go to Haiti = good, Sean Penn=better than you'd imagine, UN and NGO aid orgs = probably making things worse.

If you're about to spend any time in a developing country that has lots of foreign aid workers in it (ahem), this is a pretty good primer of what the issues/results of that involvement can look like.

8) The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II by Denise Kiernan (2013) nice social history that doesn't shy away from the ugly parts of the home front (sexism, segregation, etc).

9) The Noble Hustle: Poker, Beef Jerky, and Death by Colson Whitehead (2014) I love his fiction, and really liked this, too. Participatory journalism about the World Series of Poker. Similar in theme to "Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker" but waaay shorter.

10) 30 days in the South Pacific : true stories of escape to paradise edited by Sean O'Reilly (2005) all the Traveler's tales series I've read have been good...so was this one.

11) When the Tea Party Came to Town: Inside the U.S. House of Representatives' Most Combative, Dysfunctional, and Infuriating Term in Modern History by Robert Draper (2012) The author profiles some of the Tea Party folks who got elected in 2010 and tries to show their mindset/motivation beyond "they were obstructionist morons". Not entirely balanced, but a tad more sympathetic than I'd expected.

12) Orange Is the New Black- Piper Kerman (2010) Different from the TV series but lots to learn about how screwed up the US prison system is.

FICTION

1) Gone Girl: A Novel by Gillian Flynn (2012) good suspense page-turner about a young marriage in trouble. Didn't like the end, but overall satisfied.

2) Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore: A Novel by Robin Sloan (2012) fast, delightful read. For anyone that likes codebreaking and hacker culture and thinks they can co-exist with the printed word.

3) Rubdown- leigh redhead (2007) Australian chick-lit mystery featuring ex-stripper PI. okay but not exceptional. Full of unfamiliar Aussie slang, so at least I learned something from it.

4) Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse: A Novel by Victor Gischler (2008) Like The Road, except with more lulz. Not the best post-apocalyptic book ever, but it was a fun read.

5) The Wrath of Angels: A Charlie Parker Thriller by John Connolly (2013) decent supernatural thriller. Haven't read any others in this series but I liked this one well enough.

6) Wool by Hugh Howey (2012) first 2 thirds are great. but then the last act has too much resolution crammed into it. will read the pre/sequel, just a little disappointed in the pacing.

7) Dear life - Alice Munroe (2012) Short stories. Very Canadian. Most are sad or wistful but I still liked this. Read for Book Club.

8) Hemlock Grove by Brian McGreevy (2012) started out great but the ending was a mess. Haven't seen the Netflix series, might try that and see if it has a better story arc than the last 3rd of this book.

9) Euphoria- lily king (2014) Anthropologist love triangle in 1930's New Guinea. Loosely based on Margaret Mead. Exceptional.

10) The Returned Jason Mott (2013) Dead people come back to earth for no reason; their living relatives are confused/anxious. Story drags forever and I almost quit this book twice before plodding through. Most of book seems to be about the emotional state of parents who get their dead kids back. Would not recommend.

books read 4th quarter2013

2014-02-04T11:40:29Z

Non Fiction

Headhunters on My Doorstep: A True Treasure Island Ghost Story (2013) by J. Maarten Troost
Supposed to be about retracing Robert Louis Stevenston's South pacific travels and life in Samoa, but turns out to be more about the author's recovery from alcoholism. Disappointing, especially since I liked his first two books. Read “Getting stoned with Savages” or “the Sex Lives of Cannibals” instead.

Zoo Station: The Story of Christiane F. (2013) by Christiane F
New translation of famous German teen heroin memoir from the early 80's, later made into a film with David Bowie music. Grim but an interesting read. The author is still alive, though in various states of sobriety.

Tell Them to Get Lost: Travels with Lonely Planet's First Guide Book (2011) by Brian Thacker
Travel writer takes 2010 SE Asia trip using LP's 1975 “SE Asia on a shoestring” guide. Bought this on a whim right before going to Singapore and Malaysia -fun to see how things have (and haven't changed). Amusing but ultimately forgettable. Makes me never want to go to Kuta Bali, though.

fiction

The Golem and the Jinni (2013) by Helene Wecker
Historical fiction about a female golem separated from her master trying to make sense of immigrant-laden NYC in the early 1900's. Nice portrayal of the Jewish and Arab neighborhoods of the time. I enjoyed, would recommend to anyone who likes fantasy with an element of history.

Murder below Montparnasse (2013) by Cara Black
Did not like this. Series mystery about Paris female detective, written by an American Francophile. Maybe the earlier ones are better but I thought this was hackneyed and trite.

Alif the Unseen (2012) by G. Willow Wilson
Somehow I managed to read TWO books this quarter with Djinn/Jinni characters, and this is the other one. Young hacker in unnamed modern Arab State with hyper-vigilant security invents an AI that multiple factions want to intercept. Not only a good story, will give you some insight into how Islam is lived day-to-day by average non-militant folks. Like "for the Win", except much, much better.

Carter Beats the Devil (2001) by Glen David Gold
Historical fiction about stage magicians in the age of Houdini and Prohibition. Loved it! Apparently a first novel, which makes it all the more impressive. Great read for all you Penn and Teller/ Ricky Jay fans.

books read 2nd and 3rd quarters

2013-10-27T08:45:33Z

Was traveling in June so didn't post book list then. Posting that one and the one that ended in September at the end of October. Island time, or something.

Fiction:

The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway (2009) -apocalyptic sci fi that starts strong, and then veers into flashback for a really good reason you'll learn as you get closer to the end of the book. almost gave up on it, but worth it in the end. Really excellent IF you can stick with it.

Bible Stories for Adults by James Morrow (1996) - cynical short stories, sorta SF in the way that J. G. Ballard was SF: 40% speculation and 50% misanthropy. Will read one of his novels eventually.

South Pacific Skin by Amanda D Fornal (2012) -self-published book ostensibly on the tattoo traditions of Oceania by self-absorbed American documentary filmmaker (or so she says). I haven't seen her film on SP tattoo (if it even exists yet), but why do we need a film AND a book from the same author, especially when the book is more about how crappy the tourist facilities are on remote islands than it is about tattoo?

There are a few bits and pieces of interviews with tattoo artists and some hints of the symbolism in SP tattoo iconography, but the majority of the book is a travelogue about the awesome scuba dives the author took in between interviews, her crushes on men she met while travelling, and how shitty (rats, no electricity) the guesthouses are at remote places that don't get any Western tourists. There are plenty of other books on tattooing in this region written by people that ACTUALLY HAVE TATTOOS (unlike Ms. Fornal) that no one needs to read this, ever.

Finder, King of the Cats - Carla Speed McNeil (2001) another excellent graphic novel by an artist who ought to be "Walking Dead" levels of famous.

The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles (1949)- American expats/postwar trust fund kids go to Algeria and Morocco in search of some vague cure for ennui and bad stuff happens. Alienating and poetic and I really wish I'd read this at 23 instead of 43. Not disputing it's place in literature, just probably not the best choice for me to read 1/8th of the way through my own expat contract.3 out of 5.

Tropical Depression by Arin Greenwood (2011) Like the protagonist, I am an American woman living and working on an island in the South Pacific. While this is a novel, she really captured the spirit of the joys and frustrations of living on island time in a foreign culture. Probably the best small press/self published (?)debut novel I've ever read. Read this before you take that expat job!

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight (2013) sorta YA novel about a mom trying to come to terms with and figure out the story behind her daughter's death by suicide/accident/murder after high school angst. Nice read, good suspense, not overly cheesy. Good airplane/beach book, would read next by this author.

Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss (2001) As a fan of the Mutter Museum and the circus tradition, I wanted to love this, but the writing just didn't do it for me. Historical fiction that tries to give voice to the idea of "what if you're a conjoined twin and you really despise your brother?" A nice effort with a true backstory that's remarkable, but I just didn't get into it (though I did finish it). 2.75 out of 5.

The Healer: a novel by Antti Tuomainen (2013) - Finnish crime novel about an Earth maybe 40 years from now devastated by climate change with refugees fleeing to Scandinavia for the tolerable weather and a vigilante called "The Healer" killing people indirectly responsible for trashing the planet (greedy CEOs, etc). Started off promising but I was unsatisfied with the end. not bad overall though.

Persepolis 2- the story of a return by Marjane Satrapi (2005) - pretty good, but not excellent, sequel to the amazing Persepolis covers authors high school years in Europe while her family suffers in Iran.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller (1987) - somehow I had never read this. would have liked it better had I read it before all the Bale Batman films, but still damn good.

Elders- Ryan McIlvain (2013) Novel about Mormon missionary in Brazil losing faith in the church written by ex-mormon who did his missionary work in Brazil. I guess we can assume some of the novel is autobiographical? Anyway, I liked it, but I don't think many people who are still Mormons would like it. As someone also living in a foreign country, I enjoyed the "fish out of water" descriptions from the lead character.

Nos482 - Joe Hill (2013) Very old school Stephen King-ish, but still really good horror novel about a sort of vampire who whisks children away to Christmasland and feeds on their souls and never ages. I haven't read King in decades but I loved this.

Non fiction:

More Women Travel: The Rough Guide, Second Edition (1995)
Anthology of short travel narratives with nothing in common except they were all written by women and were all mostly interesting. Many were extended vacation / "finding myself" while travelling, but there was only one or two that were overly self-indulgent. Recommended-- there are other similar other anthologies from Rough Guides like this one that are also probably as good.

What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America by Thomas Frank (2005)
One of Paul's books I never read but picked up off the bookshelf to see how it read post-Obama. Obviously weighted in favor of trying to explicate the GW Bush's popularity among people that didn't used to be GOP voters.

Tiger lilies : women adventurers in the South Pacific / Shirley Fenton Huie
Stumbled across this while researching something related. Really interesting. Amazing how many well-to-do Victorian ladies made it out here when there was little infrastructure for them to be travelling without an entourage. Knew that Robert Louis Stevenson and his wife lived in Samoa but didn't know Jack London and his wife also did that "sail around the South Pacific" thing, Probably not of interest to most folks I know, but I really liked it.

Month six in Fiji update

2013-03-10T10:25:32Z

So we made it this far. It's not what I thought it would be, exactly, but no huge surprises. We have experienced a burglary, absences of food and drink we loved in the PNW (alas Morningstar bacon, I'll see you again in June) and a shit-ton of rain but things are mostly okay. Don't know if we will last the whole 3 year contract but we're only 1/6 of the way through, so who can tell?

Hulu and netflix and proxy servers that make aforementioned think we are still in the US are keeping us sane. There is no indie rock here and no live music that isn't reggae or traditional island music. We are slowly making friends. We are perhaps the oddest people in Suva, not for our beliefs or musical tastes or clothes, but for the fact that we are a married couple with no children. Explaining that we got married when I was 39 does not help as that fails to explain what I did in my previous 20 years when I should have been raising 4-6 children.

If you want more detail read the blog (address posted in previous FL post). But things are good and we haven't broken down and freaked out yet. Yet.

4th quarter books: all time low!

2013-01-07T09:33:09Z

Okay, what did I do from October to December to make my book count the lowest it's been in the decade since I started doing this booklist? hmm, I dunno, MOVE HALFWAY ACROSS THE WORLD? Having my routine disrupted apparently affected my reading, not to mention no longer having access to the awesome Seattle Public Library.

non fiction:
1) The Miss Tutti Frutti Contest: Travel Tales of the South Pacific - Graeme Lay
nice sampler of SP travel anecdotes from NZ author. Covers bush beer drinking sessions and ladyboy beauty contests aside from the usual topics.

2) Best American travel writing 2004
Best piece was an obstinate dude that kept attempting to go off the beaten path in Myanmar with forged permits into restricted areas until he 1) realized he was endangering everyone he talked to and 2) got drugged at a bar and woke up with "Leave or die" written on his hands. other pieces good as well, even when old, this series rocks.

3) Sons Of The Profits Or, There's No Business Like Grow Business! The Seattle Story, 1851-1901 William Speidel
Waited til leaving Seattle after 10 years to finally read this because that's how I roll. Could have used tighter editing, but nice chatty history of the early days of Seattle. Unlike other history books, does not shy away from the salacious and snippy.

Fiction
1) Read World War Z by Max Brooks again. so doesn't really count except I liked it, still.

2) Geek mafia by Rick Dakan - free ebook recommended by friends. kinda half revenge fantasy and Half Fight club's project Mayhem with nerd references. good concept marred by atrocious editing and continuity problems (reads like a NaNoWriMo project sometimes), but you could certainly do worse for free ebooks about nerd life. here's the link if you want it: http://manybooks.net/titles/dakanrother07Geek_Mafia.html . I liked it enough to want to read more by him. I would give him kickstarter money to hire an editor and clean up his existing titles, but I wouldn't pay the same price to buy hardcopies for my personal library simply because of the sloppy copy.

Books read 3rd quarter 2012

2012-10-30T10:02:34Z

nf
1) Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama by Alison Bechdel (graphic novel) - not as amusing as her Dykes to Watch Out For comics and more introspective than her Fun Home, but still worth reading. Read Fun Home first if you haven't already, though. recommend: yes.

2) Solomon Time : an unlikely quest in the South Pacific by Will Randall (2003) Memoir of an English schoolteacher who gets suckered into administering the estate of a post-colonial sugar baron with the directive to go to the Solomon Islands and do something sustainable and income- producing for the former plantation workers. Trying to deal with South Pacific bureaucracy and lack of interest in entreprenuership is a common theme in books like this, but this one is sweet rather than cynical.recommend: yes.

3) Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings- second memoir by the Jeopardy champion. Okay, but nothing amazing. Nice but forgettable read. Good coverage of the national geography bee. recommend: sure, I guess.

4) Fielding's the World's Most Dangerous Places by Robert Young Pelton (1997)- Offbeat travel book telling you all about what's going on in Osetia, the Diaoyu Islands, and disputed Muslim territories, but published before 9-11 changed everything. Depressing but enlightening. Most recent edition appears to be from 2003 and is no longer published by Fielding (which appears to have collapsed as a travel guide publisher shortly after this was published). Dated and sensationalistic but interesting look into places most of us will never go.

Funny story about this book: I bought it used in like 2007 or 2008 and had been reading tiny little bits of it and putting it aside when something I wanted to read more crossed my path, until suddenly I'd been reading it for 4 years and was only 1/3 of the way through it. I solved this problem and finally finished it by bringing it on the plane to Fiji with me and having it be the only book I owned for my first week here. When I finished it, I noticed the bookmark I was using for it was an old Seattle PL hold slip with my pre-marriage name from 2008. recommend: yes, though mostly for the schadenfreude of "there are worse places you could be travelling".

5) The Call of the Weird: Travels in American Subcultures - other editions subtitled: Encounters with Survivalists, Porn Stars, Alien Killers, and Ike Turner which will give you an idea of what to expect. writer is son of famed travel writer Paul Theroux. more like a collection of Rolling stone type profiles of oddballs than a travel guide. Still, amusing.recommend: yes.

6) Even the Smallest Crab Has Teeth: 50 Years of Amazing Peace Corps Stories: Volume Four: Asia and the Pacific (Peace Corps at 50) by Jane Albritton (2011) - I have not read the previous 3 volumes, but this one has lots of South pacific content so I enjoyed it. Glad that my time in a developing country is spent working in a real job rather than living in a bure and sleeping on a mat, but the culture clash stories are great. recommend: enthusiastic yes.

fiction:

1)The Walking Dead: Compendium One (graphic novel) - 1088 pages that diverges enough from the TV series that sprung from it that it keeps me guessing. Now I want to read the next volume, but I doubt it can be obtained in Fiji for a reasonable price. the TV station here is about to start showing Season one, so that's a good sign that the American shows they syndicate here are getting better. then again, they also show the A-team and the Dukes of Hazzard.

2) Codex by Lev Grossman (2005) Sounds like a DiVinci Code ripoff but is actually about obscure Medieval manuscripts and scholars. From the guy that wrote The Magicians (which I liked). Apparently heavily influenced by the Voynich Manuscript. recommend: yes.

Also currently reading a bunch of Lonely Planet guidebooks, fijian phrasebooks, etc. But I don't think these really count as books read.

Goodbye, Seattle

2012-08-27T07:13:04Z

I'm moving to Fiji. Yes, really. Most everyone reading this already knows this from FB, but just in case...

I'll be working in an academic library there on a 3 year contract. Part of the reason for taking the job is the adventure, and the other part is the general suckiness of the job market for librarians here in Seattle. Over 2 years after my 2010 layoff, I have yet to obtain a FT permanent job, despite working two different short term (6-9 months) gigs that did not lead to permanent positions. So if I have to move to find career-level work, why the hell not go somewhere exotic?

Yes, Paul is coming with me. No, the cats aren't. We found them a new home with a friend I've known for a decade, and while I miss them terribly, it's what was best for them. They'd have been uprooted anyway if we had to sell the house when my unemployment ran out, which was beginning to look like a real possibility. Quarantine procedures precluded them coming with us.

I sold the art car. We're selling the house (have an offer, and it's currently in the inspection stage). I've divested myself of lots of stuff (though to be fair I still probably own 10x the amount of books/LPs/CDs as the average Fijian) and am preparing for the movers to come (supposedly this week, but that's a long story and may not happen on schedule) pack up all our crap and put it on a boat to reach us in 6 weeks. I will be moving into a furnished place but will basically be living out of a suitcase with only my laptop for entertainment for the first month.

I'm excited and scared. What if I hate the job? What if my apartment has mildew, or bedbugs, or mildewbugs? What if Paul hates it? I am trying not to dwell on the what if scary parts, but let's just say this last week was the worst possible time (biologically speaking) to be dealing with things that provoke an emotional response. I'm better now, honest.

Supposedly Suva has reliable internet, and I'll be on a campus with lots of wifi should the apartment DSL fail to live up to US standards. But it will be a far cry from having free wifi at any Burger King or Starbucks, notably because Fiji does not yet have either a Burger King or a Starbucks (there are 2 McDonalds on our island though).

I'll still check in here from time to time, though I'm mostly on FB these days. If you have any questions about daily life in the capital city, I'll probably be able to answer them in a few weeks.

books read, 2nd quarter

2012-08-13T04:47:07Z

Once again I forget to post this in June and now we're halfway thru the 3rd quarter. Oh well.

fiction:
1) The Leopard by Jo Nesbo (audio) - I read the Snowman and liked it, this is the next book in that series. Fairly tense crime thriller, but less believable plot than the Snowman. Audio is well done and will keep your eyes from hanging up on the Norwegian names.

2) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie - finally read this coming of age story. Very sad in parts but a nice memoir of what it's like to be young and miserable.

3) The Magician King by Lev Grossman (audio) - Sequel to the Magicians, which I really liked. This one has too much about Fillory when the really interesting story is about how Julia self-trains as a Magician after failing the Breakbills entrance exam. I'd probably read a 3rd one but I'd prepare for it to be disappointing.

4) Double Dexter By Jeffry P. Lindsay- Series is losing steam. WIll probably quit reading it. Started this one on audio, but it was read by the author and he's a TERRIBLE reader. Do not read on audio if you're still with this series.

5) Red, White, and Blood by Christopher Farnsworth- 3rd in President's Vampire series, where there's a vampire honor bound to advise and protect the Prez. This one has a very surprising twist ending that makes me want to read the next book NOW but I don't think he's written it yet.

6) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (audiobook) Perhaps the most delightful book I read all year. audio read by Wil Wheaton, who clearly is perfect for this story. Plot: it's the near future, there's a big puzzle-solving contest that will give the winner control of The Oasis, a very popular immersive video game environment. The creator of the contest makes all the puzzle steps feature the nerd passions from his youth, aka the 1980s. Great trip down memory lane for us 80s geeks.

7) A Study in scarlet by A. Conan Doyle (audiobook) Realized after watching the Masterpiece Mystery series with Frumious Bandersnatch that I'd never read a Sherlock Holmes story. Now I have. This one features evil Mormons!

8) Swamplandia! by Karen Russell Started out great, then turns icky when the Birdman shows up. Magical realism and great character development suddenly derails into really unpleasant story. Am really glad it did not win the Pulitzer.

9) Vanishing Act (Jane Whitefield Novels) by Thomas Perry (audio) 1st in series about a Seneca woman who helps people in trouble (battered wives, mob witnesses, etc) disappear. Good story, might read more of them.

10) A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel: Volume One by Daniel Abraham -follows the structure of the TV series pretty well, so I didn't learn much new (I haven't read the actual novels yet). Did not care much for the art style, so probably won't continue.

nonfiction
1) Best American Crime Writing: 2006 - Apparently they stopped doing this series, so no new ones. Boo.

2) Tales From Development Hell : The Greatest Movies Never Made? by David Hughes Stories about big budget movies that were almost made, but weren't, like the Total Recall sequel, Paul Verhoven's Crusades movie, and a John Boorman 1970's Lord of the Rings movie. Good reading if you're a film nerd.

3) Writing Movies for Fun and Profit: How We Made a Billion Dollars at the Box Office and You Can, Too! by Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon I had no idea that these dudes from The State wrote "Night at the Museum" and the Vin Diesel comedy "The Pacifier". They've also written some flops, so it's fun to read about those, too. Great read if you think you'll ever write a screenplay.

4) Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman - Essays, mostly funny. I liked it but can see why some people loathe this guy's writing.

5) Just Kids by Patti Smith - Memoir of being a starving artist in NYC in the late 60s and early 70s. Became the first great love of Robert Mapplethorpe before he knew he was gay (though if you've seen the bullwhip photo, you're probably as surprised as I am that there was a time when he didn't know). Criticisms: a little too name-droppy, and the path from starving to success isn't explored as much as I would like. I did like that she fesses up to living in such slovenly dumps at this time that she got lice on several occasions. Also, not enough detail on how Blue Oyster Cult decided to record songs she wrote (she was dating one of them, but no info about collaborating with the band).

6) Horrible Experience of Unbearable Length: More Movies That Suck by Roger Ebert - another compilation of his zero to two star reviews. great bathroom reading.

1st quarter books read

2012-05-05T21:19:26Z

(actually includes April's books too, because I procrastinate).

nonfiction:

1) The Book of General Ignorance By John Lloyd,
2) The Second Book of General Ignorance Everything You Think You Know Is (still) Wrong By John Lloyd

Trivia/debunking compendium. Interesting but a lot of them were facts I'd never thought about and thus had no reaction when they were proved wrong. Stuff like "Oranges aren't really orange in the wild". Still worth skimming if you like these kinds of books.

3) The Yugo: The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History -Jason Vuic(Audio)

Delightful. The story of how one dogged and possibly delusional entrepreneur, Malcolm Bricklin, (who had already spectacularly failed at other car-importing schemes) decided that America needed a tiny car cheaper than Honda and Toyota and looked to Eastern Europe to find it. Business case study combined with a history of the "good Communism" of Yugoslavia, though not at all dry. The Serbian/Bosnia war actually killed the American Yugo before the company could fold based on the crappy quality of its cars, and Bricklin was STILL trying to revive the Yugo brand in the US well into the 2000's after the dust of the breakup of Yugoslavia had settled. May be the only automotive history you read where Slobodan Milosevic repeatedly pops up.

4) The Book of the Dead: Lives of the Justly Famous and the Undeservedly Obscure- John Mitchinson , John Lloyd

Stumbled across this compilation of biographical sketches via Book of General Ignorance (same author), and it it was great fun. The book groups famous and forgotten people into chapters based on suitable shared characteristics: people whose lives were influenced by sex (Kinsey, Casanova and H G Wells), famous imposters, and for no apparent reason, people who were notable for other reasons but also kept pet monkeys (Frida Kahlo, Madame Mao and Oliver Cromwell). The book equivalent of falling into a wikipedia hole. Recommended.

5) To Hellholes and Back: Bribes, Lies, and the Art of Extreme Tourism by Chuck Thompson

Another one of those "travelling to places most people would prefer to avoid" titles by a travel writer that also works for Maxim (and yeah, it sometimes shows in his writing style). The places in question are The Congo (corrupt, broken, friendly people), India during monsoon season (wet, frightening), Mexico City (fun and undeserving of the stigma of the Drug War) and Disney World (the fish in a barrel for a cynical travel writer). I liked it okay, but the Lonely Planet title Tony Wheeler's Badlands covers more ground with more thought.

6) Everyone Loves You When You're Dead: Journeys into Fame and Madness by Neil Strauss

Music journalist Strauss went back to his interview notes to highlight the most telling excerpts that really revealed the essence of his subject(s). So instead of the completed Rolling Stone or Esquire piece, you get the 3 most interesting pages of the interview transcription that would become the profile. A lot of this stuff probably didn't make it into the final articles, so glimpses of the subject doing everyday things (Snoop running an errand to buy diapers for his baby, Courtney Love having the first crisis breakdown of the day) are sort of amusing. Also reads very fast because of the Q/A format.

7) Don't Make Me Think! A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability by Steve Krug

fast read, and still relevant despite the age. Probably essential if you ever find yourself having to name the buttons on a navigation bar and want to instill maximum clarity.

8) Emergency: This Book Will Save Your Life by Neil Strauss

Strauss decides to find out what it takes to get citizenship/a second passport from somewhere less provocative than the US without actually moving there and becoming a resident for 5-10 years (winner: the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts) and along the way starts doing the Doomsday prep routine. Investigates the "stay in your bunker with supplies" versus "bug out to the boonies with a pre-outfitted getaway car, boat, or plane" schools of survival. He also does EMT training and learns wildlife skills from Tom Brown's famous tracker workshops. Made me realize that if anything hits the fan, I am one of those people who is not going to be able to hunt and butcher goats and deer, so my best strategy is to enjoy the time I have rather than preparing for the worst.

9) Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems by Steve Krug

Companion piece to "Don't make me think" but focuses more on how to do usability test with actual live users. Not as pertinent to me but still sound advice.

10) Getting Stoned with Savages A Trip through the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu By J. Maarten Troost

Reread simply because I applied for a job in Fiji and got a skype interview (no foolin') and wanted to read something contemporary and irreverent about the country in case they hired me. They didn't, but I still enjoyed the book the second time around.

11) The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists by Neil Strauss

This is one of those books perpetually asked for by skeevy young men at the public library, so I knew I'd have to read it eventually. It contains some advice on picking up girls but also profiles the Pick Up Artist (PUA) subculture, which I was surprised to learn was a thing. Apparently PUAs give workshops to other aspiring PUAs and often go out "sarging" together. Strauss joins them, learns from them, and eventually rents a house in Hollywood with a group of them, and hilarity ensues. Best parts are when Courtney Love becomes a long-term houseguest/ cracked-out den mother at the PUA house and when the workshops become so successful that Strauss can't use his own pickup lines in LA anymore because every attractive woman in the region has now been subjected to them via his PUA disciples. The basic lesson is obvious: if you can approach women confidently and engage them in conversation for at least 10 minutes, your foot is in the door.

Fiction:

1) Blood Oath (Nathaniel Cade #1) by Christopher Farnsworth

Supernatural political thriller: Every president since Lincoln discovers the office comes with an vampire advisor/bodyguard, who steps in when the world gets into big messes. Kinda silly but I liked it enough to read the sequel (below).

2) The Snowman- Jo Nesbo (audio)

The next big name in Nordic crime fiction. A string of married mothers are killed, with a signature snowman in the yard facing TOWARDS the house left as the killer's signature. It takes a while for the cops to get the connection (apparently snowmen are too common to notice in Oslo) and then you have the standard red herrings, race against time to save the next victim mystery tropes. Still, I enjoyed it and am reading the next in the series. Excellent reader for audio version.

3) The President's Vampire (Nathaniel Cade #2) by Christopher Farnsworth

sequel to blood oath, more of the same, but likeable enough.

4) Zone One- Colson Whitehead

Literary fiction about the post-zombie world in NYC. Our hero is a "sweeper" trying to reclaim the city's buildings from straggler undead. Each of Whitehead's novels cover different plots/themes/styles, and this one was one of his better ones (also, way shorter than "John Henry Days")

5) Blood's a Rover -James Ellroy (audio)

Ugh. The third in the trilogy that started with American Tabloid and The Cold Six Thousand, which I enjoyed, but were really heavy. This one was also heavy but I think I'm just over the J Edgar Hoover/Nixon/CIA/Mob/Howard Hughes/Cuba conspiracy thing. Audio reading was fine, but the book was sprawling and manages to kill off main characters way too often. Plus, I kept falling into Wikipedia holes after every chapter to see what was historically real and what was not. For diehard Ellroy fans that loved the first two books only.

6) Blankets (graphic novel) - Craig Thompson

autobiographical story of first love, Christian parents and growing up in rural Wisconsin. Beautiful art, and good story, but I wanted to see a glimpse of what happens to the main character after childhood (more like Persepolis, I guess). Still, a fine book, but I'd have probably liked it more if I read it at age 17 instead of 42.

7) A Visit from the Goon Squad - Jennifer Egan (audio)

Is it a novel, or a series of connected short stories? Yes. Most chapters focus on pivotal players in a fictitious rock scene: the label magnate, his kleptomanic assistant, the has-been rock star, etc. I liked the interplay of a story about punk-loving kids in the 80s intersecting with other characters 20 years later, but there were a lot of loose ends I'd have liked to see tied up. Two of the stories take place in a 20 years away future with new technologies, and I'm not sure I liked that after the realism of the first batch of stories. I thought this was good, but not 2011 Winner of the Pulitizer Prize in Fiction good, if you know what I mean. Other beef- like "Catcher in the Rye", the title doesn't really fit, isn't apparent why it was chosen and the eventual explanation seems like grasping at straws. Audio version is good, but the chapter that takes the shape of a Powerpoint presentation ought to be seen in addition to being heard. Currently in development at HBO, so read it now before it gets a Game of Thrones-length hold list at your library.

8) The Magicians Lev Grossman (audio)

Sorta an American Harry Potter meets Less than Zero, but better. Plot: bright high school kid with a fixation on a set of Narnia-ish children's books is whisked away to a magic school, where there is no "wizarding world" and students are at a loss to figure out what to do with their skills after graduation. After the post grad indolence and descent into alcoholism, the hero and his pals are finally given a Magical Mission. I liked it and will read the sequel, but it took a long time to get to the Epic Quest part, so at first it seemed like just a coming of age story, but with spells and sexual tension.

9) The Marriage Plot By Jeffrey Eugenides (audio)

Contrasts the love triangle experienced by 3 new graduates of Brown University in 1982 with the "Marriage Plot" of 18th century novels, which is Madeleine's Senior Thesis topic. I really liked the story and the character development and the flashback to what it's like to be out of college and have no idea what to do next with your life. What I hated was all the anachronisms that the author could have easily checked against wikipedia before including them, which took away from the realism of the book by making me say "Wait, that can't be right!" (listed below* if you're curious to know)

10) The Second Half of the Double Feature By Charles Willeford
Posthumously collected unpublished short stories, fragments and even poetry from one of my crime fiction favorites. Good, but for completists/fans only.

21 books in 4 months. Having a 45 minute commute again is helping increase the audiobook consumption.

* Marriage Plot anachronisms I found (with help from wikipedia and amazon's "search inside this book" feature):
Leonard "fires up some Violent Femmes on the boombox" in September or October of 1982, despite the fact that their debut LP would be released in April 1983.

Leonard has somehow acquired a Moleskine notebook (mentioned twice), despite having never been to Italy (they would not be exported to the US until 1999)

When Leonard travels to Monte Carlo and visits the casino he "can't remember which Bond film it's in". He later recalls that it's "Never say never again", which would be released in October 1983, so even if it's late 1983 by the time Leonard is in France (I believe it's early 1983, before summer), he'd hardly need to "remember" what film it was, since he would have only seen it a month or so ago.

"Purple Rain" (September 1984) is playing on the stereo at a party in 1982 or maybe early 1983.

Unconfirmed anachronisms (cannot easily prove, but them seem wrong based on available data/my memories):

Leonard got a play microscope from Toys R Us at age 10, which would be about 1971 or 1972. Did the company ever have stores as far west as Portland, OR way back then?

Madeleine goes to her college PO box, gets a letter, tears it up and places the pieces in a recycling bin. Widespread paper recycling bins in 1982? I think that in 1987 my campus post office still didn't have them.

4th quarter books read

2012-01-09T07:48:40Z

non fiction:
1) The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific by Paul Theroux
I started this literally years ago (before we went to Fiji in 2009) and finally finished it. I liked it but it wasn't always compelling enough for me to read it instead of other stuff. Anyway, travelog about the South Pacific by famous travel writer upon the breakup of his marriage. Good, but dry at times.

2) Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach (audio)
Awesome, but REALLY graphic at times. The takeaway is if you donate a loved one's body to science, you probably DON'T want to find out what it's being used for, since only a fraction go to med school dissection and others go to things like car crash tests, plastic surgery face lift practice heads, etc.

3) Free for all: Oddballs, Geeks, and Gangstas in the Public Library- Don Borchert (2007)
Fast read, full of "yeah, I've been there" anecdotes from a dude who stumbles into library work via the call of a stable civil service job. Only real gripe is that the book jacket calls him a "librarian" when he is clearly a library paraprofessional and not someone who went to grad school and made a career choice to do this. Might not be very compelling for non library folk.

Fiction
1) 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks
Good idea, good execution, so-so wrap-up. Plot: Cancer cured, old people live well into their 90's, bleed out social security, bankrupt the nation, young people revolt, China controls us economically, America basically doomed. I wanted the ending to wrap up more of the intriguing premises that were introduced, but I mostly liked it.

2) Super Sad True Love Story: A Novel by Gary Shteyngart
Another near-future dystopian story. Sorta predicts the Occupy protests, so interesting to read now. May/December romance told through electronic posts and unreliable narrator. Good, but I found all the characters unlikable.

3) The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta (audio)
Something like the Rapture that isn't the Rapture happens- atheists, Hindus and Vladimir Putin disappear as well as millions of Christians. Story picks up 3 years later and focuses on how people deal with sudden inexplicable loss. Some join crazy cults, some are mired in depression, etc. Darkly humorous, and you never find out exactly what caused the not-Rapture. Recommended.

4) The Wishbones by Tom Perrotta
Read this because I liked the Leftovers so much, plus I liked his "The Abstinence Teacher" and the movies of two of his books that I have yet to read (Election and Little Children). Story of a man in his 30's who plays in a wedding band- okay money, but no cred. Typical "coming of middle age" story. Lightweight and I liked it, but most people (other than frustrated musicians) can skip it.

5) Citizen Vince by Jess Walter (audio)
Crime/political novel set in 1980 Spokane. Witness protection program guy relocates to Spokane, muses about crime and the upcoming Reagan/Carter election, which will be his first time ever voting since his old self had a criminal record and was prohibited from voting as a felon. Kind of an interesting mix hearing a low-level con man musing about civic duty. I liked it.

6) Absurdistan: A Novel by Gary Shteyngart
I liked this less than Super Sad True Love Story. Really unpleasant wealthy Russian lead character gets trapped in unstable former Soviet republic of Absurdistan during a sectarian uprising. I finished it and laughed at a few parts but I found the characters too unlikable to really enjoy.

On the death of Vaclav Havel

2011-12-19T09:20:16Z

Czech president Vaclav Havel was indirectly responsible for me getting into a romantic relationship that would last over 3 years and would result in cohabitation and a sorta marriage proposal. This was back in 1989 or 1990, and the relationship broke up around 1993 due to the usual post-college growing apart.

I thought about this time in my life when I heard Havel had died, and then Alex, the guy I'm talking about in the above paragraph, posted a FB link to something he wrote in January 2008 about Havel that also touches upon the circumstances of our getting together:
http://alexvcook.blogspot.com/2008/01/plastic-people-of-universe.html

Alex's writing has improved greatly since he wrote this, and now he's kinda a big deal in the music crit world. I continue to be unfamous, so it's a bit weird to read the above and think OH JEEZ THAT'S ME HE'S TALKING ABOUT. His recollections are accurate and not unflattering to me, but still it's weird to read something about yourself where even if you aren't named, you know it's you. For the record, I am the gal who smoked (briefly, it was a college thing) and loved Joy Division. I am NOT the actress who loved the Doors.

FB tells me Alex and I became FB friends in March 2009, so at the time he wrote the above, we probably hadn't corresponded in at least 5 years. We had been LJ friends at some point in the early 2000s, but I think he unfriended me when I said something churlish about children running wild at doctor's offices, and as a new father he had no need to hear the grousing of child-free cynics. I'm sure he's smart enough to know that even though I'd never see that in 2008, there was a good chance I'd see it one day, so keep it vague, non libelous, and allow plausible deniablity for the persons involved if needed.

So it's weird to read that, but a good weird, not a bad weird. In the last decade, most of the time I've been written about by friends is in blogs they know I'll read within a few days of their posts, so those posts are likely not as honest as Alex's trip down memory lane from 2008.

I actually saw Alex briefly at his workplace last month when I visited my hometown. He's got a book coming out in a few months from a reputable academic press, has a steady job at the university and seems to have all the pieces of the puzzle in place (good job, good marriage, good kid, good hobby that provides some level of artistic satisfaction). At the time I was unemployed and feeling angsty, so while I was happy for him, I was a wee bit jealous that someone who was a parent had a more carefree-seeming life than me, newlywed Burner in the big city.

One of the things that visiting your hometown always yields is weird nostalgia. Seeing Alex's Havel article today after seeing Alex last month for the first time in 10+ years really brought out all the changes I've experienced in the last decade. Though I'm pretty sure I still have one Joy Division poster in that roll that I haven't unfurled in 5 years.

3rd quarter books

2011-10-17T04:03:37Z

Fiction:

1. Freedom - Jonathan Franzen (audio)
Okay to pretty good. Same sort of barely likeable characters as The Corrections. I liked the punk rock musician character the best and couldn't understand why everyone liked Patty so much.

2. Santa Clawed - Rita Mae Brown
Dumb cat mystery series. Not sure why I still read these.

3. The Zero - Jess Walter (audio)
Surreal satirical story about NYC cop with amnesia working with a post 9/11 bureaucracy to recover business documents from Ground Zero. Unsettling and the ending wasn't very satisfying.

4. The 19th Wife - David Ebershoff (audio)
Polygamous separatist Mormons in modern times interwoven with the based-on-reality story of one of Brigham Young's wives who rebelled. Really good.

5. The Intuitionist - Colson Whitehead
Sorta SciFi-ish novel about elevator inspectors from competing philosophical schools, the Empiricists and the Intuitionists, the latter who do some sort of "communicating with the elevator-ness" of the equipment to detect defects. The protagonist is the first ever female black inspector, who faces racial discrimination and the possible sabotage of an elevator she'd recently inspected amid a turf war and search for the missing plans for a fabled Intuitionist-designed elevator. Recommended.

non fiction

6. A Vagabond in Fiji - Harry La Tourette Foster
Odd 1927 book I found at SPL. Travel writing from the days when you had to sail for a month to get to the South Pacific. Nice little slice of life of what Fiji was like under British rule between the wars, but probably of interest to no one on my friends list.

7.Best American crime writing 2003
8. Best American crime writing 2004 - Still good. Enjoying these immensely.

9. At Home: a Short History of Private Life - Bill Bryson, Bill (audio)
Bill takes you through a typical English country house to describe the evolution of domestic architecture and how we use the various rooms in our homes. Lots of great trivia about servants, class, and vicars. Excellent!

10. Best American crime writing 2005- Only have 2 of this series that I haven't read now. boo.

11. Secret Historian: The Life and times of Samuel Steward, Professor, Tattoo Artist, and Sexual Renegade- Justin Spring
I actually read Steward's "Bad boys and tough tattoos" in the early 1990s and really liked it. I had no idea his own life was so interesting.
Failed literary career, hanging out in France with Gertrude Stein and Alice, contributing material to Kinsey, sleeping with Thornton Wilder, writing gay pulp fiction- all that on top of going from being a Literature professor to a Skid-Row tattooist. Excellent biography of someone you've never heard of. Nice slice of pre-Stonewall gay life as well.

12. Into Thin Air : a Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster -Jon Krakauer (audio)
Had never read this but was interested in the topic when all those photos of dead bodies on Everest began making the rounds a few months ago. Fails to really answer the question of why people feel the need to climb deadly mountains, but a nice disaster tale otherwise.

13. Cleaving : a story of marriage, meat, and obsession -Julie Powell (audio)
Sequel to "Julie and Julia" which I liked. This one not so good. Julie apprentices as a butcher, has an affair and can't stop texting her lover. We hear very little about her aggrieved husband who was so supportive during the Julie and Julia project, except when they're fighting about her affair. Also, she talks about Buffy the Vampire Slayer way too much for a foodie memoir. Meh.

This month's actor crush:

2011-09-21T04:53:40Z

Between being the caring boyfriend/husband on Big Love, the screwup Jesse on Breaking Bad, and now this, which I finally saw in between songs at the Weird Al concert:
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/3231da28bb/weird-the-al-yankovic-story

Aaron Paul is my new favorite actor.

2nd quarter books read

2011-07-15T08:24:41Z

Non Fiction

1) My Year of Flops: The A.V. Club Presents One Man's Journey Deep into the Heart of Cinematic Failure by Nathan Rabin and A.V. Club
A spin off from the beloved (by me, at least) Onion feature. Not too many films I hadn't heard of, but for the most part I agree with his assessments, and he's very funny. Plus anyone who writes "I think everyone in the world should see 'The Apple'" and sorta means it is my kinda critic. Recommend: yes

2)You're A Horrible Person, but I like You: The Believer Book of Advice
Famous McSweeney's type celebrities answer fake advice questions. Good for bathrrom reading but ultimately fluffy and not all that funny. Recommend: meh.

3) I'm Down: A Memoir by Mishna Wolff (audio)
Funny memoir of growing up "black" in Seattle's Rainier Valley despite having two white parents. Great glimpse of growing up poor and culturally confused in the 80s. Read by the author, who does a serviceable job and funny impressions of her dad. Recommend: yes

4) Bossypants by Tina Fey (audio)
Funny at the time but unmemorable a few months later. Half autobiography and half comedy bits. Recommend: meh.

5) The Best American Crime Reporting, 2008
I love this series. Collection of magazine pieces from the types of magazines I used to read at the dentist's: GQ, Vanity Fair, Esquire, etc.

6) Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell (audio)
History of Hawaii, read by the author. Audio has weird multi voice cast of men and women reading single lines from missionary diaries in between Vowell's narration, which was sorta distracting and not really necessary. Book overall was interesting; you'll know if it's the kind of thing you'll like if you've read her before. Recommend: yes

7) What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio
Coffee table book showing people from around the world and a day's worth of food. I liked their "material world" photos of people with all their material goods but I think their concepts are played out. Recommend: no

8) Who Hates Whom: Well-Armed Fanatics, Intractable Conflicts, and Various Things Blowing Up A Woefully Incomplete Guide by Bob Harris
2007 title wrapping up all the regional conflicts you wish you knew more about. Each country/region is discussed for about 7 pages and snarky but concise. good bathroom reading as well. Recommend: yes

9) The Best American Crime Reporting, 2007
See #5. good stuff.

Fiction
1) Black Hole by Charles Burns
Graphic novel about teenagers spreading an STD that gives them extra mouths and/or other deformities that they try to hide from others. Creepy but great. Will scare you away from sex for a few days after finishing it.

2) All Together Dead (Sookie Stackhouse Series, Book 7) by Charlaine Harris
no comment.

3) Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead
autobiographical (I think) fiction about upper middle class black kids summering in the Hamptons in the 80s. I read this after "I'm Down" which was a nice contrast. Recommend: yes

4) From Dead to Worse (Sookie Stackhouse Book 8) (audio) by Charlaine Harris
5) Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse Book 9) (audio) by Charlaine Harris
6) Dead in the Family (#10) by Charlaine Harris (audio)
7) Dead Reckoning (#11) by Charlaine Harris (audio)

Now I'm caught up on this series. Spoiler Alert: By book 11 she's been with Eric for way longer than she ever was with Bill. which is fine by me.

8) For the Win by Cory Doctorow (audio)
Ugh. Barely finished this. I liked "little brother" okay and I liked the concept of this one (Chinese gold farmers spark a revolution) but this had more "fail" than "win". Too long, and diverges into didactic discussions of pyramid schemes, labor theory that don't move the plot along. Additionally, the author fails to make his point about worker exploitation: gold farming in China is probably a better job than 90% of other unskilled/factory labor, and the Indian boss seems reasonable until the author suddenly tells us that he is evil and must be stopped. The whole idea that a gamers union would fly in the third world (unless workers were chained to a pc and not allowed bathroom breaks or were regularly beaten or something like that) didn't work for me. Not gonna read anything else by this guy.

Currently reading: Jonathan Franzen's Freedom. on disc 8 of 19, but it moves fairly quickly. I like it so far but it hits a little close to home since I'm the same age as the lead character.

Books read, 1st quarter

2011-04-13T06:42:32Z

FIC:
1) Bite Me: A Love Story by Christopher Moore
3rd in a series, really phoned in. disappointing.

2) Dead to the World : A Sookie Stackhouse Novel by Charlaine Harris
My guilty pleasure. Shut up.

3) Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris (audio)
An interesting experiment but not as compelling as his autobiographical stuff. Fun on audio, though.

4) Dead as a Doornail : A Sookie Stackhouse Novel by Charlaine Harris
See #2.

5) The Lace Reader: A Novel by Brunonia Barry (audio)
multigenerational fortunetellers in Salem, murder mystery. I remember this book had book club buzz a few years ago but I didn't see it. B-.

6) Puss 'n Cahoots (A Mrs. Murphy Mystery) by Rita Mae Brown
My other guilty pleasure. Not aging well but whatever.

7) Catching Fire (#2, Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
see #10

8) Chew Volume 1: Taster's Choice by John Layman
Dark graphic novel about a guy who can eat things and see their history who becomes a sort of spy. Amusing. Will read sequels.

9) 13 reasons why Jay Asher - (audio)
Teen novel about suicide. Dead girl leaves cassettes for friends and enemies explaining her logic for offing herself. Melodramatic but compelling. good on audio.

10) Mockingjay (#3, Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
I enjoyed this series, though the 2nd and 3rd books really moved the story in a different direction than I expected. Recommended.

11) Little Brother by Cory Doctorow (audio)
Fiction book about terrorism and innocent kids being detained for acting suspicious. The cool part is that real world hacks (how to defeat RFIDs, etc) are woven into the narrative so it's the Anarchist's Cookbook disguised as a novel. The not cool part is that the 17 year old protagonist's father is a librarian who quickly caves in to the "it's okay to give up civil liberties for safety" stance. Doctorow really ought to have known better and made the dad a realtor or a hotel manager or something less fraught with cognitive dissonance. C+

12) purrfect murder (A Mrs. Murphy Mystery) by Rita Mae Brown (Audio)
13) Definitely Dead (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 6) by Charlaine Harris
no comment.

Non Fiction:
1) The Best American Crime Reporting 2010
Assorted pieces from magazines on crimes from murder to fraud. Worthwhile if you like these kinds of compilations, which I do.

2) The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression by Amity Shlaes (audio)
A little dry, but nice contrarian look at FDR and his cabinet. Made me appreciate Hoover more than I had previously.

3)The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment by A. J. Jacobs (audio)
Collection of assorted magazine pieces by the author of "The know-it-all" and "the year of living Biblically". Okay, but nothing amazing. Read by the author, which is seldom a good idea but was bearable here.

4) I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crosley (Audio)
Humorous essays by a less-bitchy Chelsea Handler type. read by the author, but it worked here. A little too NYC 20 something hip literary scene for me, but would recommend.

5) The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food by Jennifer 8. Lee
A+. I knew chop suey was a US invention and that what we call Chinese food is nothing like what folks in China eat, but this book goes into so much more detail and keeps it interesting. If you ever wanted to know who pioneered the idea of Chinese food delivery and littering your apt lobby with takeout menus, here ya go.

6) Driving Like Crazy: Thirty Years of Vehicular Hell-Bending Celebrating America the Way It's Supposed to Be - with an Oil Well in Every Backyard, a Cadillac Escalade in Every Carport, and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Mowing Our Lawn by P. J. O'Rourke (audio)

Collection of PJ's car journalism, which is not nearly as interesting as his international/foreign policy stuff. Includes the infamous "How to drive fast while on drugs while getting your wing-wang squeezed and not spill your drink" piece. Loses a letter grade for 1) announcing a different subtitle on the audiobook than appears on the hardcover 2) leaving off the last chapter/afterword from the hardcover on the audio. I suspect the reading was done from the galleys, which is NOT COOL. C-.

7)The Best American Crime Reporting 2009
See #1. Fun fact learned from the piece on retail shoplifting: Target has it's own CSI-type crime lab for fingerprint evidence to expedite prosecutions of organized crime shoplifting rings. The lab collects fingerprint evidence according to federal standards and chain of evidence rules since cops are too busy to deal with shoplifting cases, even ones in the several thousand dollar range.

8) This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson (audio)
I'd read this author's book on obituaries "The Dead Beat" before this book was even released, so naturally I had to read this. a little fangirlish but had no real errors to speak of. She seems to think Second Life is the future of reference outreach (I don't) but her vignettes are interesting. Nice coverage of special collections/archives issues. Not sure how interesting it would be to non library lovers.

I have a job again, at least for a while.

2011-02-15T06:24:15Z

I'm finally working again, at a stand-alone suburban public library, full time, on a temporary nebulous appointment. I'm guessing I'll be there 6 to 9 months. I really like it so far, and the staff and patrons are great.

However, jumping back into public library work during tax time, especially during the Great Booklet Drought of '11, has been challenging. The patrons mostly understand that the library isn't responsible for the delays, but everyone's frustrated and anxious that the booklets didn't arrive until February. Every other phone call is about tax forms.

Welcome back!

I am a scientist, for reals. Here is my research.

2011-01-10T21:51:08Z

I have two FB friends with an autistic kid who are refusing to accept the whole "Wakefield faked his data and we can stop talking about vaccines causing autism now" news. One of them is even posting poison pen comments to Paul Offit and posting "vaccines in fact do cause autism, and attacking Dr. Wakefield is never gonna change that".

So now that I understand that discredited data is still good enough to convince people who want to believe something badly enough, I would like to share some of the causal relationships my lifetime research has discovered. This research was peer-reviewed by people at the office water cooler, who said, "Yeah, that sounds about right."

1) The decline in the American education system is related to sneakers being considered acceptable everyday shoes for non-athletic pursuits.

It used to be athletic shoes were only seen in a gym, a playing field, or as part of an athletic uniform. When we as a nation decided it was not an egregious lack of class and decorum to wear them everyday to school and work, we see a correlation between sneakers and poor academic performance. This is because the difference in shoe tightness between loafers/wingtips and tennis shoes causes the brain to lose focus and be easily distracted. A graph showing the footwear market share of Nike/Converse/Reebok over the last 4 decades and the decline in high school standardized test scores since 1972 is available upon request.

A follow-up study on wearing sweatpants to the grocery store causing poor parking skills is in progress.

2) Peanut allergies are caused by having access to more channels on cable television.

According to infallible source wikipedia, "The number of young children affected (by peanut allergies) doubled between 1997 and 2002". In 1997, my cable subscription gave me about 20 channels. By 2002, I had over 50 channels for the same basic cable plan. COINCIDENCE?!? Parents who want to avoid raising a child with nut allergies are advised to cancel their cable subscriptions immediately.

3) People who own more than 30 hardcover books* take better care of their cats than non-readers.

Scoff all you want, but data proves that people with substantial book collections are 60% less likely to bring their cats to the vet for emergencies than people who only have magazines and paperbacks in their homes. In multiple studies, librarians have both the most impressive book collections and the healthiest cats, possibly meaning that organizing one's books in a logical classification on the shelf causes a positive immune response in cats who sleep near the bookshelves.

*excluding cookbooks or technical manuals

I've forwarded my research to the MacArthur folks and will be expecting my Genius Grant any day now, but I wanted my LJ friends to know about it first.

Books read, 4th quarter 2010

2011-01-05T21:32:49Z

Fiction:

1) Dexter by Design - Jeffry Lindsay
2) Dexter is Delicious - Jeffry Lindsay

Books 4 and 5 in the series, and now I'm caught up. The variance between who got killed off in the TV series and who's killed in the books varies wildly, and the whole "Barrel girls" plot of last season doesn't even appear here. Enjoyable but the TV show is better, believe it or not.

3) Living Dead in Dallas - Charlaine Harris
4) Club Dead - Charlaine Harris

Books 2 and 3 in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I swear I didn't mean to read so many novels that spawned cable shows, but that's the way the library hold list worked out. These are enjoyable despite knowing they're fiction junk food, kinda like when you really crave Mcdonald's fries, eat them, and then feel guilty for eating them. Not really liking this whole werewolf subplot in the the books or the TV show.

5) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Steig Larsson
Almost as good as the hype, but overly long. I saw the movie before I finished this, which I thought did a better job in telling the story by cutting out the sub-plots about labor history and Swedish magazine publishing. Would recommend, and certainly a better written "book even non-readers are reading" book than the Da Vinci Code was.

6) The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
YA dystopian novel about a televised Survivor type game featuring 24 children killing each other, with the last kid standing winning riches and comfort. Think Battle Royale, but American. Also a fair amount of rebel alliance/class warfare plot elements. Anyway, very compelling and I literally read it all in one sitting. Now in line for part 2 of the trilogy.

Graphic novels: (used to list these in NF as per Dewey classification, but I think they need a separate section)

7) Embroideries - Marjane Satrapi
Meh. Bunch of Iranian ladies sitting around talking about marriage, husbands, female oppression and lady parts. Might have been compelling as part of a longer narrative, but read more like walking in on a coffee klatsch where you don't know anyone or their background stories.

8) Persepolis 2 -Marjane Satrapi
Better than the above, but not as good as Persepolis. Still, a compelling insight into what it was like to live in Iran during the revolution and the Iran/Iraq war.

9) James Kochalka's Magic Boy & Robot Elf - James Kochalka
Gift from my mom. Didn't really care for it. Simultaneously weird and precious, which didn't work for me.

10) A.D: New Orleans after the Deluge - Josh Neufeld
Katrina narrative. Not as good as I'd hoped, but compelling.

Non fiction:

11) National Lampoon Road Trip USA: All the Places your Dad Never Stopped at - Harmon Leon
Travelogue to crappy or uncomfortable places, such as towns with Klan heritage or boar hunting ranches. Funny, but funny in the way that makes you want to wash your hands.

12) Role Models - John Waters
Essays about people who John Waters admires, including artists, amateur pornographers, and repentant Manson girl Leslie van Houten, and Johnny Mathis (really). Great fun if you're a fan of his films.

13) Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey inside the World's Most Famous Record Book- Larry Olmsted
History of the record book and profiles of people who set out to get into the book multiple times (including the author, who set a "playing golf in multiple countries in one day" record and a marathon poker record. Fun but forgettable.

14) Gastroanomalies: Questionable Culinary Creations from the Golden Age of American Cookery - James Lileks
Like the Gallery of Regrettable Food - same idea, still funny.

15) Mommy Knows Worst: Highlights from the Golden Age of Bad Parenting Advice - James Lileks
Probably funnier if you've actually read parenting books, but I enjoyed it. It's amazing that there was once controversy about giving babies laudanum to stop their crying (spoiler alert: you shouldn't)

16) Earth (the Book) A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race
Daily Show humor book, like "America (the book)". I liked it though 2 weeks later I can't remember any of the jokes in it that made me laugh.

Status report

2010-11-11T08:03:55Z

Still unemployed. Still not really happy about it, but whatever. I'm applying for (at least) my requisite 3 jobs a week but I haven't seen anything yet that screams "Pick me!"

Went to two meetups this week in an effort to network and be social. Mostly succeeded in the social part but left feeling a little doomed. As much as I'm trying to retool my library and writing skills into a career in private industry, I fear I'm tainted by being labeled A Librarian. In some fields the MLIS degree is an asset and people know what it generally means as far as skills possessed, but I often feel like despite 2 years of cataloguing experience, private industry employers look at me and think storytime and circulation, despite the fact that I've done almost none of either.

3 weeks into book research. I've told a few people what the topic is but for now I want to keep it on the down low. Suffice to say its non fiction, NOT a memoir, confessional, or triumphant story of my battle with (foo), and requires a bunch of book and web research and a tiny amount of talking to people. Luckily, the book isn't time sensitive, so if I can't finish it for 2 years, it will still be relevant, assuming no one else poaches the topic in the meantime. To really do it right, there are some research libraries on the West Coast I'd like to visit, which I of course have the time to do, but need to figure out the logistics/ road trip schedule for. If you're in the Bay area and hankerin' for me to visit for two to three days, lemme know, because having a place to stay and someone to dish with will basically be the deciding factor to get me on the road and into the sweet, sweet arms of Special Collections.

Still painting the basement. Could conceivably be finished before the year is up, but really, what's my hurry? not like there's anywhere I have to be anytime soon. sigh.

I have discovered the Loren ipsum of tech writing job ads

2010-10-19T21:30:04Z

found June 7, posted here:

Writer will use leverage existing content or create new content (content could be a process diagram) for the slated areas. In order to ensure consistency across the collateral the writer will need to leverage or develop a standard template.

The writer will need to cleanse content and ensure consistent use of terms. When creating instructional or process step guides, a more (cuts off)

As the writing process is complete the writer will capture and collate terms and definition of for terms.

The writer will validate the quality of the written information by having users exercise the instructions, review procedures, and restate processes. The process used provide iterative enhancements to the content of the documents.

Found from ANOTHER company's tech writer recruiting ad. Note the repeat of "definition of for terms." I guess it could originate from the same company that uses multiple recruiters but somehow ignores the little red line under "of for" in the emails it sends.

Use existing content or create new content (content could be a process diagram) for the slated areas. In order to ensure consistency across the collateral the writer will need to leverage or develop a standard template. If developed, it will need to be approved for usage. The component areas of the template will be reviewed by Stakeholders. The writer will need to cleanse content and ensure consistent use of terms.

As the writing process is completed the writer will capture and collate terms and definition of for terms.

The writer will validate the quality of the written information by having users exercise the instructions, review procedures, and restate processes.

Perhaps I should be looking for a job as a Content Cleanser.

Books read, 3rd quarter 2010

2010-10-10T09:28:44Z

Non Fiction:

1) Maus : a survivor's tale / Art Spiegelman.
Kinda ashamed that I never read this before now. If you read only one Pulitzer Prize winning comic book, it should probably be this one.

2) Prisoner of X : 20 years in the hole at Hustler Magazine / by Allan MacDonell.
Memoir of ex-punk working for a sleazy magazine. Great anecdotes but by the time it's over you may feel the need to be deloused.

3) Rex Libris. I, librarian / written and illustrated by James Turner
graphic novel. meh. maybe fine for kids, I was unimpressed even though I was sympathetic given the subject.

4) The palace under the Alps : and over 200 other unusual, unspoiled, and infrequently visited spots in 16 European countries / William Bryson.
early travel book from Bill Bryson. more of a straightforward guidebook and less reflective than the stuff he's known for.

5) Who would buy this? : the Archie McPhee story / Mark Pahlow
Company history. great photos. If you live in Seattle you should thumb through this. Pages about their failed products are really funny.

6) Persepolis / Marjane Satrapi.
another thing I should have read years ago. fantastic.

7) White savages in the South Seas / Mel Kernahan.
Memoir from travel writer who spent time in Tahiti from the 60s through the 90s. Nice look at what modernism and globalism did to the South Pacific.

8) Three sheets : drinking made easy! 6 continents, 15 countries, 190 drinks, and 1 mean hangover!/ Lamprey, Zane.
apparently this guy has a TV show where he goes to countries to learn about their drinking customs and specialty brews. Interesting but written at about a 6th grade level.

Fiction:

1) Dead until dark / Charlaine Harris.
First book from which True Blood was adapted. TV show is much better, this is written poorly but is still okay for a guilty pleasure. Show is pretty faithful to the plot of this one, though I've heard that isn't true in later books.

2) Darkly Dreaming Dexter /Jeff Lindsay
3) Dearly Devoted Dexter /Jeff Lindsay
4) Dexter in the Dark /Jeff Lindsay

VERY different from the TV show. At the end of the first book (the Ice Truck killer), one of Dexter's cop co-workers is killed off, even though this person is still in the TV series as of Season 5. Still, I think the TV show is more compelling- I think I'd like these books better on their own if I hadn't seen the show.

5) I am a genius of unspeakable evil and I want to be your class president / Josh Lieb.
Comic YA novel. I loved it. The title pretty much says it all.

Job posting of the weak:

2010-10-08T02:01:58Z

Usually I redact the company name, but this one is so leotarded I want everyone to know who they are so they fail:

Marketing Manager(s), Social Media, Public Relations (PR), Blogging

About Urban Spoils:
Urban Spoils was launched in June 2010 by two value-conscious entrepreneurs and executives with vast experience at Yahoo! (YHOO), Microsoft (MSFT) and Wall Street firms.

Skills Required
· You will need to be savvy in social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc. Must have a burning desire to lead viral marketing segment and should have ability to work in a fluid startup environment.
· Prefer Alumni or MBA or Undergrad students from top 20 US universities, especially with focus on marketing, communication, business, or journalism.

Compensation
This is a stock-only position.

Also, to make it even better, it's in BOTHELL.

And what MBA from a top 20 school wouldn't want to work for empty promises in Bothell?

http://www.startuply.com/Jobs/Marketing_Manager_Social_Media_2501_1.aspx?utm_source=Indeed&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=Indeed

In defense of the "objective" line on resumes:

2010-10-04T00:52:48Z

reposted with edits from a comment I left in another post, thought it might elicit advice/discussion:

I never used the objective line until I had to retool 15 years of library experience into a resume for tech writing/editing. Basically, I've all but given up finding library work after an agency-wide layoff (and the public libraries are laying off librarians as well, so no work there, either) and have rewritten my resume to show off my non-library skills.

The reason I'm using it it to answer the question "If she's been a librarian for the last decade, why does she want this writing job?". I'm assuming private industry HR may not be following the budget news for state and local governments to the point where they know that library work is scare in this county right now, so they may not understand why I want this job that I can do, even if I haven't held a job with that specific title.

But I agree that if your resume has reference librarian all over it and you're applying for head of reference or branch manager, citing your objective is redundant. Which is why I never used it before.

for the curious, mine says:

OBJECTIVE: Obtaining a professional position that takes advantage of my extensive research, editing, and writing background and in-depth computer skills.

and then goes on to describe said skills in bullet points. next comes work experience, and then education is at the bottom, since it's doubtful any of the companies I'm applying with will care that I have an MLIS (whereas it's the first thing on my library-specific resume).

Does this seem logical? I suppose instead I could put some kind of summary line on top that boils down to "Ex-librarian has research, editing, and writing skills and could totally do this job of writing your employee newsletter and corporate communications if you'd just look at my skills section and not so much at my past job titles", but it seems like that might be less useful. I don't want my resume to scream "I'm changing careers because there is literally nothing left to apply for in my field unless I relocate" even though that's more or less the truth.

something I don't get re: Twitter

2010-08-16T08:45:42Z

So this person:
http://twitter.com/CandaceEsker809

that I do not know is following me and 100 other people. She has one tweet, some platitude that belongs on a bumpersticker. only 9 people are following her back, presumably people who follow back anyone that adds them.

There are three similar profiles (few tweets, all tweets are cliche inspirational stuff, following random non-famous people that aren't following back) that started following me around the same time.

obviously it's some kind of scam, but I can't figure out the angle. If I don't know them and don't follow them back, they can't spam me. they aren't posting anything interesting that would make anyone want to follow them back. I'm not concerned, but I am curious to understand this otherwise confusing behavior.

I am new to twitter so apologies if this is an obvious question that everyone else dealt with 2 years ago.

I remember LJ had the "serial adders" back in the day, and I never understood that, either. are they related somehow?