This weekend I...

* Went to see The Shanghei Hitmen, a pretty great cover band a friend of mine plays with
* Made four cards at my first ever class at Archiver's with N. Super fun, I will take more classes
* Enjoyed watching bits of the Olympics
* Worked
* Taught myself to crochet. Looking forward to a more comprehensive lesson next Sunday with M. Not from James Bond. But she could be.

Looking forward to...
*My renewal meeting at church tomorrow
*House inspection Tuesday
*Book club at the library Wednesday
*RCBP on Saturday

I must buy my brother a birthday card and Home Depot gift card which will be late. If it weren't late though, he might worry about me. He's turning 45!

Now I'm off to find my camera case!

Christians Who Give Jesus a Bad Name

I am just catching up on this month's episodes of The Daily Show on Hulu and saw a clip of Brit Hume talking about Tiger Woods several weeks ago. He made the comment that Tiger is a Buddhist and Brit isn't sure that Buddhism offers the forgiveness that Christianity offers.

Brit, sweetheart, you are a journalist. LOOK IT THE FUCK UP! The only reason you don't know if Buddhism offers forgiveness is because you choose to remain ignorant about faiths other than your own.

The next day when he was being interviewed by Bill O'Reilly, Brit said that the mention of Jesus name causes all Hell to break loose. It isn't the mention of His name. It is your insistence that everyone must believe in Jesus as the son of God and that they must believe in Him the same way you do. I believe in Jesus and I'm kind of offended on His behalf. Nobody gives Him a bad wrap like his followers.

It makes me think of one of my favorite hymns. "They will know we are Christians by our love." Not "They will know we are Christians because we will tell them and then badger them until they are too." Perhaps Christianity and Jesus will be taken more seriously by others when Christians who are in the public eye begin to act their faith.

Reading ADD, vampires, goths, etc.

When I am suffering a bout of reading ADD I start many books and then tend to finish them quickly once I feel that the reading ADD is over. Here is an update on a few titles I've finished.

Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris - This is the sixth Sookie Stackhouse book. Sookie goes to New Orleans to take care of her deceased vampire cousin's estate. There is quite a bit of intrigue involving the vamp royalty of New Orleans. At this point in the series it is difficult to say a whole lot without giving away details from previous books. I will say that Sookie's male companion in this book, Quinn, might be my favorite so far.

Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga - I was so excited when I heard there would be a sequel to Fanboy and Goth Girl. I never thought I would say this but I like the sequel better. This is told from Kyra's point of view starting when she is released from the hospital. Since the reader misses everything that happened while Kyra was in the hospital along with her it is easy to feel what she is feeling when she returns to school. Barry Lyga mentioned in the acknowledgements that there wasn't meant to be a sequel to Fanboy and Goth Girl, so I dare not hope for a follow up to this one, but I love the characters so that I will hope.

Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore - This is the first of a series and the third book comes out in April. Tommy Flood arrives in San Francisco from the Midwest around the time Jody is turned into a vampire. She's looking for someone to take care of her affairs in daylight hours and he is looking for experiences to use as a writer. I have read A Dirty Job previously and there is some character crossover. There is a great twist at the end and I am looking forward to reading the second book, You Suck!

A Couple of Really Good Books

I'll start with the one I finished tonight. The bff lent me The Fire Rose by Mercedes Lackey last year but due to the great reading ADD of 2009 I just finished it. I love this woman's writing. This is the first book in her series on elementals. Each book is based on a fairy tale (yay) and this one is based on Beauty and the Beast (YAY!). Rose is an orphan whose father left her with no money. Plus she is a scholarly woman with IDEAS which makes her more unmarriageable than being poor. She receives a post as a governess in San Francisco but arrives to find there are NO children, just a mysterious employer named Jason Cameron who has her translating strange ancient texts through a speaking tube because of his "disfiguring accident." He messed with Magick he shouldn't have and is part wolf. There's intrigue and a horrible, morally corrupt, smarmy assistant and falling in love.

The other great book I finished a few weeks ago is Soulless by Gail Carriger. It's the first book in the new Parasol Protectorate series. It's historical / paranormal / tough kick butt girl / werewolf / vampire / steampunk and I need more! The world building is pretty thorough so I don't want to spill it all here.

Teen's Top Ten

YALSA has announced the Teen's Top Ten list for this year. It can be found here http://ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teenreading/teenstopten/ttt09.cfm

I am so pleased that Paper Towns won. I am giddy that quality won over, well, Breaking Dawn. I have read four books on the list. While I'm usually interested in reading lists like this in their entirety, but I am comfortable saying that I will not. I was not a huge fan of Marked by P. C. & Kristin Cast so I will not be reading any more of the books in the series. There are far too many quality books, and fluffy books too, that I want to read. Speaking of quality, I started Goth Girl Rising today and I love it!

Readers Imbibing Peril IV

I love this challenge run by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings. I love the types of books, reading other people's booklists, the fact that it is autumn, and the artwork used for the challenge. Gorgeous! Read all about the different perils here.

Yes, I am choosing to read four titles. Why you may ask? Yes I know I struggle to finish challenges because in my brain it turns READING FOR FUN into an ASSIGNMENT. But I need to kickstart my reading and I have to read a couple of these for work, so I'm aiming for four. My reading pool includes:

The Enchanted Emporium by Tanya Huff
The Red Tree by Caitlin Kiernan
Hell House by Richard Matheson
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R. L. LaFevers
Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox
Faeries of Dreamdark: Blackbringer by Laini Taylor
Lily Dale: The Awakening by Wendy Corsi Staub
Ghost Girl by Tonya Hurly
Unwind by Neil Shusterman

And anything else I feel like throwing in there ^_^

Movie and Music

Yesterday I had lunch with mom, D, an old family friend, and BFF. Fridays was pretty yummy: my burger had a wheel of fried provolone on it! BFF departed for another appointment and the rest of us went to see Julie & Julia. It was wonderful! I love Julia's excitement and verve for life! Maryl Streep is one of my favorite actresses. After watching this movie I want to see more films with Amy Adams and also read not only the book that inspired the film but also some biographies of Julia Child.

In the evening, BFF and I went to the local bowling alley for karaoke. It is under new ownership and has been remodeled since I was last there. It looks super nice. My only disappointment is that Betty Boop was painted over in the women's bathroom. I sang three songs last night.

One Headlight by The Wallflowers - decent job, more fun to sing along to in the car
Runaway Train by Soul Assylum - boy was my timing off! must listen to song, sing again, and then never sinf again. like the first song, mor fun in private
White Room by Cream - second time I sang it. love singing this one. will never stop!

Once Upon a Time 3

Last year I learned that reading challenges are not good for me. As soon as I want to participate in a challenge the books on that list become "required reading" and I have never liked that. BUT...
Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings holds two challenges a year that I look forward to and it is time for Once Upon a Time. http://www.stainlesssteeldroppings.com/?p=1083
So I will take The Journey which means I will read one book. Here is my pool of books

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
Onion Girl by Charles deLint
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Ghostlight by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor
Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Express Yourself Musically

Express Yourself Musically

Fiction
Brenner, Robin. Audrey, Wait!

Brooks, Kevin. Candy

Brothers, Meghan. Debbie Harry Sings in French

Castelucci, Cecil. Beige

Cohn, Rachel and David Levithin. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Korman, Gordon. Born to Rock

Krovatin, Chris. Heavy Metal and You

Kuehnert, Stephanie. I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone

Manga
Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad

Midnight Opera

Nana

Non-Fiction
Greenwald, Andy. Nothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo

Partridge, Elizabeth. John Lennon: All I Want is Everything

Punk. DK Publishing

Trevor, Kelley. Everybody Hurts: An Essential Guide to Emo Culture

Warner, Jay. On This Day in Music History

Magazines
AP

Revolver

Rolling Stone

Express Yourself in Writing

Express Yourself in Writing

Fiction
Cabot, Meg. The Princess Diaries series

Kinney, Jeff. Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Lyga, Barry. The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl

Payne, C. D. Youth in Revolt

Rennison, Louise. Confessions of Georgia Nicols series

Thomas, Rob. Rats Saw God

Townsend, Sue. Adrian Mole series

Non-Fiction
Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Arfin, Lesley. Dear Diary

Freedom Writers Diary

Johnson, Arne and Karen Macklin. Indie Girl

Riverbend. Baghdad Burning and Baghdad Burning II

Todd, Mark and Esther Pearl Watson. Whatcha Mean, What's a Zine?

Warren, Frank. Postsecret

Wrekk, Alex. Stolen Sharpie Revolution

Magazines
Merlyn's Pen

Teen Ink

Black and White by Paul Volponi

Marcus and Eddie are Black and White, basketball stars and friends nicknamed for their races. They are a team on and off the court. When they find themselves short of cash for the senior dues, Eddie shows Marcus his grandfather's gun and they pull off a few robberies to get the money. Once the dues are paid though the temptation is too great and they continue. One night the gun goes off and grazes a man getting the boys into more trouble than they ever anticipated.

The title not only refers to the boys' nicknames, but also racial lines and the nature of the truth. Marcus and Eddie tell their story in alternating voices. The story moves along at a quick pace. I really enjoyed it. A perfect book for boys and reluctant readers.

Yellow - An Action Adventure Yaoi?

Goh and Taki are "snatchers." (Ironic for a Yaoi title isn't it? By the way Alanis Morisette, this is an example of irony. You know, as opposed to anything in your song "Ironic.") Anyway, they get information on drug busts and it is their job to get the drugs before the authorities to make sure non-corrupt officials get them. Each chapter is a different case with new circumstances. The one constant in the story is Goh's love for his hetero partner Taki. I have a feeling there will be more sexual situations in upcoming volumes.

Bizenghast Volume 5 by M. Alice LeGrow

It had been so long since I read volume four of Bizenghast there was a HUGE plot point that I had forgotten about. Luckily, the reader is reminded of it quickly. Dinah deal with more vaults in the mausoleum but has trouble completing her tasks because of her grief. The first thing that drew me to this manga series was the art over the story, and I still like the art more than the plot. But on the other hand my favorite character would have to be Edaniel, drawn in such a sketchy fashion without a ton of detail. I recommend this series for teens who like Tim Burton movies.

More Seth and Ash!!!!!

There is a sequel to Wicked Lovely coming out in April! See?
Fragile Eternity Review

Thanks Leila for the info!

Wicked Faeries, Wicked Lovely

I've finally read Wicked Lovely and I think if faeries truly are the new vampires this book is one of the reasons why. It started out slow for me, but I stuck with it because it is a particular favorite of one of my friends and I love the character of Seth. In fact, I might be a little in love with him. Can we find me a grown up version? Aislinn has the sight and can see faeries in their true form. This gives her an advantage when Keenan, the Summer King, chooses her to take the test of the Summer Queen. So he falls in love with her but Aislinn is in love with Seth. Which really confuses Keenan because he is not used to modern girls. I wish Melissa Marr had gotten to the faerie action sooner. I prefer the second half of the book to the first. It just went faster for me. This is good for fans of Holly Black and Cassandra Clare.

Weekend Reading Review

I have a habit of having bookmarks in numerous books and lately I've been trying to finish up a number of these. I managed to finish two this weekend plus read a manga.

Marked by P. C. Cast and her daughter Kristin is the beginning of the House of Night series. A vampire series for teens! Can you believe it! *end sarcasm now* This book seems to be setting up the series and not a lot else. In this case, vampyres are known to the world and are marked as teenagers to indicate that they will begin the change from human to fledgling and eventually to vampyre if their body doesn't reject the change. Zoey's mark is special, it changes at a rapid speed, and she is advancing as a vampyre faster than normal. The climax of the book was a little bit of a let down. Most of the build up was for future books, so I suppose that I will read them someday.

Ain't Myth Behaving by Katie MacAlister contains two novellas. It is nice to have paranormal romance that it A) funny and B) not about vampires. I love my vamp books, but it's nice to switch it up a little. One story involves a fertility god looking for a bride in order to stay immortal. The other is about a group of Vikings who are cursed to sail for eternity until the captain can find the one who can break the curse. If I had to pick one story over the other, it would be the first one. But that's totally because of the image of toy poodles as hell hounds.

Shirley by Kaoru Mori takes place in Victorian England as did the author's previous series, Emma. This collects several short stories, most of them about the title character, Shirley, a 13 year old girl who takes a job as a maid. The stories go quickly and are charming.

A teen's addiction, an ordinary man's adventure, and an angel's mistake

Glass by Ellen Hopkins continues Kristina's struggle with drug addiction. The story picks up about three months after her son's birth. She falls back into drug use and is still searcing for unconditional love. Even though this story is sad and I really want to slap Kristina throughout the book, it is so gripping I couldn't stop reading. This one ends on a cliff hanger and I want Ellen Hopkins to write another volume about these characters. Do you hear that Ellen? PLEASE!

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman is an AWESOME book. Richard leads a hum-drum life, going to work and dealing with his fiancee (who I though was an annoying person). On their way to dinner one night, Richard notices an imjured girl in the road and insists on helping her ruining the annoying fiancee's plans for dinner with her boss. The injured girl is a resident of London Below, a magical place full of interesting and terrifying characters. This book is perfect for people who enjoy stories such as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Un Lun Dun.

The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore is hillarious. Pine Cove, CA has many quirky residents that we meet in this story. As Christmas approaches, an angel arrives to grant a child's wish. Unfortunately, the angel's work is somewhat sloppy and his attempt at wish granting culminates in a zombie attack. I do believe Christopher Moore may be one of my favorite authors.

From the Stacks Challenge

Here is my list for From the Stacks:

Vampire Kisses: Blood Relatives 1 by Ellen Schreiber
Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Magic's Pawn by Mercedes Lackey
Blood Sucking Fiends by Christopher Moore

Wow! That's a lot of supernatural stuff!

Vampire Kisses: Blood Relatives

This manga is a cute story that stands alone from the Vampire Kisses series. It focuses on Alexander's half-vampire cousin, Claude, and his three half-vampire cohorts. It is short so it's great for reluctant readers. I'm going to count this for the First in a Series challenge and the From the Stacks challenge.

Vampire Kisses 5: The Coffin Club by Ellen Schreiber

School's out for summer so Raven has the opportunity to escaped Dullsville for the more attractive Hipsterville. Not only is Hipsterville the home of Raven's ultra cool aunt but Raven suspects her boyfriend Alexander is residing their. She doesn't plan on sneaking in to The Coffin Club, but she does and stumbles upon an underground club within the club, run by and geared towards real vampires! It's not all bloody drinks and thrashing music though; there is a power struggle going on and Raven must avoid trouble while avoiding being outed as a human. This series is so fun. It's perfect for kids who are interested in the vampire genre but not horror novels. Even though it's not on my list, I'm counting it for the RIP challenge.