Bout of Books Day 4 progress and Challenges

Challenge: If You Like This, Try This:

 “If you liked, 

 you should try 

because the stories included continue the adventures of the crew of the Firefly class ship Serenity and set up what events after the film ends

(I would recommend all 3 of the graphic novels out so far I'm looking forward to the current comic run coming out in book format soon)

Books Finished:

1. Old Shirts & New Skins by Sherman Alexie

Books in Progress:

1. Baghdad Without a Map and other misadventures in Arabia by Tony Horwitz from nickel27 in 2013
2. Dimension of Miracles by Robert Sheckley (audio book listening with Elengil)

Thoughts on what I have read today:

1. Old Shirts & New Skins: very powerful imagery used in the poems in this collection. I loved these early works by Native American poet Sherman Alexie. 

Bout of Books Day 3

Not much reading today.  Today was a day of getting stuff ready for classes next week, a bit of video gaming, and taking a relative to see Guardians of the Galaxy. Which has to be my favorite so far of the Marvel Movies  because of the humor and setting (space!with aliens!). Although the first Thor still stand high on the list of great Marvel movies as well. I've always loved the space setting comics though I never read many comic books growing up. The Silver Surfer was one of the comics my dad shared with me as a youngster that I absolutely loved.

Book finished:

1. 1. Hero by Wing Shing Ma

Thoughts on what I have read today:

• I loved the film Hero when it came out. This comic adaptation was beautifully drawn.

Bout of Books Day 2

Books finished:

1. 1.  Dragon Moon by Rebecca York from thegoaliegirl in 2013. 
2. Your Lover by Seungwon Han (graphic novel) from K00kaburra in 2014
3. The Truth Is a Cave in the Black Mountains: A Tale of Travel and Darkness with Pictures of All Kinds by Neil Gaiman This is in my PC. It was a recent birthday gift from several close friends.

Books in progress:

1. Hero by Wing Shing Ma
2. Dimension of Miracles by Robert Sheckley (audio book listening with Elengil)

Thoughts on what I have read today:

• Dragon moon was exactly what I expected. A nice steamy and quick paranormal romance. It is 9th in a series but stands well alone. I have been picking these up piecemeal so have not actually read any of the books that were published prior to this one.
• Your Lover: The story was complicated and overly angsty and dramatic. I thought this was a graphic novel  about the historical love between Parisian painter Marie Laurencin and French poet Guillaume Apollinaire. Instead I got a contemporary story set in Korea (my fault for not reading the back blurb well enough I guess.
• The Truth is a Cave in the black Mountains: This is probably the best graphic novel I have read all year., I loved the story (But Mr. Gaiman's short stories almost never disappoint). The artwork matched the bleakness and dark thread running through the plot, an I thought the mixture of paintings, pen & ink drawings, and comic style panels  complimented the story incredibly well.

book review: Tula Station by David Toscana

This was very different from the books I have been reading recently.

The book follows three different stories. First is the tale left behind in a journal by the friend of the author about his interviewing Juan Capistran (who says he is his grandfather), and the events leading up to the night of the hurricane when the author of the journal disappears. The second story is that of Juan Capistan and takes place in Tula, Mexico in the late 1800's to early 1900's. The third story is that of the town of Tula and it''s rise in Mexican politics and eventual decline during the war for Independence...

The book alternates between the intertwined stories and lets us see the love, and hatred and pain that shapes the lives of the individuals and the town.  I actually loved this aspect of the plot best. You get to learn each of the main characters over a period of years (even though the whole book covers a matter of weeks in the modern time). The book was written using papers given to the author by his "dead" friends wife who after finding them many years after his disappearance believes her husband did not die during the storm but instead ran away with another woman. As we read the story further  the reasons that influence this decision become more evident.

Bout of Books Day 1

Book(s) Finished:

1. Tula Station by David Toscam (started reading at page 176 read until end at 276) 100 total pages read.
This  came to me from bookstogive in January of 2014.

Books read but not finished:

1. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams (e-book read in waiting room this morning)

2. Dragon Moon by Rebecca York - read   The first 39 pages. 

Bout of Books 11 Read a Thon Goals

I sort of forgot about this blog last semester due to the amount of work I had to do. I will be starting my final semester of classes next week, before student teaching in the spring. So, I have a chance to sit down and read this round of the Bout of Books Read a Thon. So Yes! I will participate this time :)

Here are my goals:

Time Devoted to Reading

• As this is my last week before classes I will be reading as much as I can all week. I do have one day of training to attend so may only get commute time reading done that day.

My Goals

• Read down some of the bookcrossing registered book pile both books from other members shelves as well as my own.

Books to Read

• The list is undecided at the moment. I plan on starting with Tula Station by  David Toscana which I have about 100 pages left in then go onto Dragon Moon by Rebecca York (new read) and finish 

Books Wild Released in December 2013

1.) Time Flies  by Bill Cosby  on 12/2/2013

2.) Briarpatch  by Ross Thomas  on 12/2/2013

3.) How Long will i Cry? Voices of Youth Violence  by Miles Harvey (Editor)  on 12/2/2013

4.) Hope Unraveled: The People's Retreat and Our Way Back  by Richard C. Harwood on 12/2/2013

5.) Brazen  by Carly Phillips on 12/2/2013

6.) The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (Book 1)   by Alexander McCall Smith on 12/8/2013

7.) The Last Juror  by John Grisham on 12/9/2013

8.) How Long will I Cry? Voices of Youth Violence  by Miles Harvey (Editor)  on 12/10/2013

9.) The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (Book 1)   by Alexander McCall Smith on 12/8/2013

10.) The Last Juror  by John Grisham on 12/9/2013

11.) How Long will I Cry? Voices of Youth Violence  by Miles Harvey (Editor) on 12/10/2013 CAUGHT!

12.) Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas  by James Patterson on 12/17/2013

13.) The Good Earth  by Pearl S. Buck on 12/17/2013

14.) Martin the Warrior   by Brian Jacques on 12/17/2013

15.) Galileo's Daughter  by Dava Sobel on 12/22/2013

16.) Mattimeo: A Tale From Redwall  by Brian Jacques on 12/22/2013  
17.)     Anne of Green Gables  by L.M. Montgomery on 12/27/2013

18.)     Julia Roberts: America's Sweetheart  by Mark Bego on 12/28/2013

2013 wrap-up

According to Good reads during 2013 I read 219 books. This includes 2 short stories which I don't count in my personal total. So I read 217 books.

Looking at the breakdown to see how many print vs audio books vs e-books I read. I  am still primarily reading print copies over the other formats.

Physical: 153
Audio book: 37
E-Book: 29 (count includes the 2 short stories from good reads count)

my reading goal for 2014 is to finish reading all the books traded through bookcrossing.com from 2012 and earlier and to take them to the nearby little free library that went up near my school last fall or the local coffee shops take a book/leave a book shelves.

Books Read in December 2013.

Print Books:
1.) Brazen by Carly Phillips
2.) Fat-free and Fatal by Jaqueline Girdner
3.) Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith and Love by Dava Sobel
4.) Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett
5.) Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by Nicholas Sparks
6.) A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table by Molly Wizenberg
7.) Do Kangaroos Wear Seatbelts? by Jane Kurtz, Jane Manning (Illustrations)
8.) Axle Annie and the Speed Grump by Robin Pulver, Tedd Arnold (Illustrations)
9.) Mrs Armitage on Wheels by Quentin Blake
10.) Mrs. Armitage: Queen of the Road by Quentin Blake
11.) Axle Annie by Robin Pulver, Tedd Arnold (Illustrations)
12.) Baudolino by Umberto Eco
13.) Plainsong by Kent Haruf
14.) Season of Wonder by Paula Guran (Editor)

Audiobooks:
1.) Kitty and the Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn
2.) Honor Among Enemies by David Weber
3.) The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch
4.)  In Enemy Hands  by David Weber

E-Books:
1.) Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits by Robin McKinley, Peter Dickinson
2.) Fire: Tales of Elemental Spirits by Robin McKinley, Peter Dickinson

Books Wild Released in November 2013

1.) Blackberry Wine  by Joanne Harris on 11/5/2013
2.) Two Tiny Claws  by Brett Davis on 11/5/2013
3.) When Duty Calls: A Novel of the Legion of the Damned  by William C. Dietz on 11/5/2013

4.) But Inside I'm Screaming  by Elizabeth Flock  on 11/11/2013
5.) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks  by Rebecca Skloot on 11/11/2013
5.) What Does Joan Say?: My Seven Years As White House Astrologer to Nancy and Ronald Reagan  by Joan Quigley on 11/11/2013
6.) The City of Falling Angels  by John Berendt on 11/19/2013
7.) The Autumn Castle  by Kim Wilkins on 11/19/2013
8.) Master of Dragons (Mageverse, Book 8)   by Angela Knight  on 11/20/2013
9.) The Last of the Red-Hot Vampires (Dark Ones Novel)   by Katie MacAlister  on 11/20/2013
10.) The Illusion of Separateness: A Novel  by Simon Van Booy on 11/20/2013

11.) Bridge of San Luis Rey, The  by Thornton Wilder  on 11/26/2013

12. The Copenhagen Connection  by Elizabeth Peters  on 11/26/2013 
13.)The War of the Worlds (Tor Classics)   by H. G. Wells on 11/26/201
14.) The Rescue  by Nicholas Sparks on 11/26/2013

Books Read in November 2013

Print:
1.) Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
2.) Two Tiny Claws by Brett Davis
3.) Master of Dragons by Angela Knight

4.) The Last of the Red-Hot Vampires by Katie MacAlister

5.)  The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt

6.) The Autumn Castle by Kim Wilkins

7.) The Illusion of Separateness: A Novel by Simon Van Booy 

8.) The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks 

9.) Zen and the Art of Vampires by Katie MacAlister 

10.) How Long Will I Cry? edited by Miles Harvey

Audiobooks:
1.) Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen
2.) Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
3.) Memory by Louis McMaster Bujo
4.) Dodger by Terry Pratchett

E-Books:
1.) Gaea by Robina Williams

Book review: How Long Will I Cry? Voices of Youth Violence

Title: How Long Will I Cry? Voices of Youth Violence
Editor: Miles Harvey
Publisher: Big Shoulders Books
Publication Date: 2013

This book is a companion to the play How Long Will I cry? that was produced by the Steppenwolf Theater in 2013.

The final version of this book was a collaborative effort by the creative writing students at DePaul University located in Chicago, IL. It uses collaborative story-telling methods to collect the real stories of people in Chicago whose lives have been touched by violence.

Chicago is still extremely racially divided. recent information given by the country France to it's tourists coming to visit the city tells it's citizens to avoid whole sections on the South and West sides of the city due to the mortality and crime rates.

This book takes stories of many types of people from many areas of the city to talk about the impacts of violence caused by and to the youth of the city of Chicago. Story types range from those of families who have lost children, community member in neighborhoods affected by violence who are working to change the neighborhoods in positive ways, stories told by both current gang members and ex-gang members, and youth who have been affected by the violence in many different types of ways. The stories while mainly focused on the South and West sides of the city also show how ares on the North and Northwest sides of the city are being affected by gang related violence.

This book impacted me in ways that I wasn't expecting. The stories, while predominantly sad, and filled with rage and hopelessness also had hope sprinkled through it's pages. Stories were shared by people who were trying to make a difference after loosing their own loved ones to violence. At the end of the book there is a list of organizations who are trying to work against youth violence in the city and while one could be disheartened by the length of the list, it is amazing to see how many people care about changing the city that I live in.

As a life long resident of Chicago my entire life I was spared  the effects of neighborhood gang violence until my late teens. I grew up in a neighborhood on the Northwest side that was predominantly white, with a strong Irish and Polish element to the families living in it. when I was in high school I attended a magnet school which drew students from all parts of the city, and was very racially diverse. I made friends from outside of my own neighborhood and sadly lost one to gang related violence right after graduation. There were times going out when I knew I had to either go home before a certain time or call for a ride home because it wasn't safe to wait for the CTA where we were.

This book is being given to readers for free through various events to promote awareness of the issue and by request to Big Shoulders Books which is a very big thing. By making the book free it will help get it into the hands of people who might not be able to buy a book, and the publishers encourage readers to pass their copy along to another reader when they finish. I was 1/4th of the way through the copy I was reading before I passed it onto a sociology student at NEIU That I had just met after it sparked a conversation between she and I. I plan on passing this copy on through one of the little free libraries that have popped up on the North/Northwest side of the city to hopefully find a new reader to touch.

Readers who are interested in acquiring their own copy of this book can visit Big Shoulders Books page about the book to request a free copy.

Books wild Released in October 2013

11.)  The Imperator Plot by Steven Spruill  on 10/1/2013

22.)  Breaking the Trust by Lucy Clare on 10/12/2013

33.)  Mariel of Redwall  by Brian Jacques on 10/12/2013

44.)  Mossflower  by Brian Jacques on 10/12/2013

55.)  Demons Are a Ghoul's Best Friend by Victoria Laurie on 10/12/2013

66.)  Chloe by Freya North on 10/18/2013

77.)  Cleopatra 7.2  by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough on 10/21/2013

88.)   Twilight  by Stephenie Meyer on 10/22/2013

99.)  New Moon by Stephenie Meyer on 10/22/2013

110.) Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer on 10/22/2013

111.) Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand by Carrie Vaughn on 10/27/2013

112.) Kitty Goes to Washington  by Carrie Vaughn on 10/27/2013

113.) Corpse de Ballet: A Nine Muses Mystery by Ellen Pall on 10/27/2013

114.) Even Vampires Get the Blues by Katie MacAlister on 10/27/2013

Books Read in October 2013

Print:

1.) The Imperator Plot by Steven Spruill
2.) Breaking the Trust by Lucy Clare
3.) Chicken With Plums by Marjane Satrapi
4.) The Simulacra by Philip k. dick
5.) Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain
6.) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
7.) The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

8.) Demons are a Ghoul's Best Friend by Victoria Laurie

9.) Engaging the Enemy by Elizabeth Moon

10.) Chloe by Freya North 

11.) Cleopatra 7.2 by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

12.) Echo Recoil by Lazarus Chernik, Echo Chernik

13.) The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister

14.) But Inside I'm Screaming by Elizabeth Flock

    

Audiobook:

1.) Transition by Iain M. Banks
2.) Flag in Exile by David webber

Books Wild Released in September 2013

1.) 12 Monkeys  by Elizabeth Hand on 9/4/2013
2.) The Virtuous Knight  by Margo Maguire on 9/4/2013
3.) Long Way Round: Chasing Shadows Across the World  by Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman on 9/4/2013
4.) Dark Curse by Christine Feehan on 9/12/2013
5.) lady oracle  by Margaret Atwood on 9/12/2013
6.) The Voyage of the Narwhal  by Andrea. Barrett on 9/12/2013
7.) Whirlwind by charles grant on 9/19/2013
8.) Love in the Time of Dragons: A Novel of the Light Dragons  by Katie MacAlister  on 9/25/2013
9.) Armor by John Steakley on 9/25/2013
10.) Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus  by Orson Scott Card on 9/25/2013
11.) The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon on 9/30/2013
12.) Goblins  by charles grant on 9/30/2013

Books Read in September 2013

Print Books:

1.) Dark Curse by Christine Feehan
2.) The Virtuous Knight by Margo Maguire
3.) Battle Royale by Koushun Takami, Yuji Oniki (Translator)
4.) Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus
5.) Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
6.) Lady Oracle by Margaret Atwood
7.) Love in the Time of Dragons by Katie MacAlister

8.) Pomogranite Soup by Marsha Mehran

9.) Flight, volume 8 by  Kazu Kibuishi (Editor)

10.) The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon

11.) Welcome to the Jungle by Jim Butcher (Goodreads Author), Ardian Syaf (Illustrator)

12.) The Panopticon by Jenni Fagan

13.) Armor by John Steakley

14.) Tatterhood and Other Tales by  Ethel Johnston Phelps (Editor), Pamela Baldwin Ford

15.) Goblins by  Charles L. Grant

Audio Books:

1.) Scholar by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
2.) Princeps by  L.E. Modesitt Jr.
3.) Imager's Battalion by  L.E. Modesitt Jr.
4.) Antiagon Fire by  L.E. Modesitt Jr.

E-Books:

Books Read in August 2013

E-book:

1.) Kiss Me, Kill Me H.P. Mallory, Zoe Winters, Susan Bischoff, Lori Brighton, M.T. Murphy, Kait Nolan, Toni LoTempio, Daniel Arenson, Stacey Wallace Benefiel
2.) Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey
3.) Saints Astray by Jacqueline Carey
4.) Jerome and the Seraph by Robina Williams
5.) Angelos by Robina Williams

Audio Books:

1.) The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

2.) Imager's Intrigue by L.E. Modesitt Jr.

Print Books:

1.) A Fist Full O' Dead Guys edited by Shane Lacy Hensley editor

2.) The Lady of the Sorrows by Cecilia Dart-Thornton

3.) Pinball, 1973 by  Haruki Murakami, Alfred Birnbaum (Translator)

4.) Clockwork Fairy Tales: A Collection of Steampunk Fables by by Stephen L. Antczak (Editor), James C. Bassett (Editor), Pip Ballantine, K.W. Jeter, Jay Lake, Kat Richardson, Paul Di Filippo, Steven Harper, Nancy A. Collins, G.K. Hayes, Gregory Nicoll, Philippa Ballantine

5.) Candyfreak: A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America by Steve Almond

6.) Westward Weird by by Martin H. Greenberg (editor), Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Jennifer Brozek, J. Steven York, Jeff Mariotte, Jody Lynn Nye, Kerrie Huges (editor) , Jay Lake, Larry D. Sweazy, Anton Strout, Seanan McGuire, Brenda Cooper, Christopher McKitterick, Steven Saus, Kerrie Hughes (Editor)

7.) Empire of Ivory by Naomi Naomi Novik

8.) White Lies by Jayne Ann Krentz

9.) Sizzle and Burn by Jayne Ann Krentz

10.) The Voyage of the Narwhal by Andrea Barrett

11.) Firefly: Still Flying: A Celebration of Joss Whedon's Acclaimed TV Series by Joss Whedon

12.) Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, Robert Uhlig

Books wild released in August 2013:

1.)  One Wish  by Linda Lael Miller on 8/1/2013

2.)  The Greedy Auctioneer: Church Choir Mysteries  by Evelyn Minshull  on 8/8/2013

3.)  Shabanu: Daughter of the Wind by Suzanne Fisher Staples  on 8/8/2013

4.)  A Fistful O' Dead Guys   by Shane Lacy Hensley  on 8/8/2013

5.)  Star of Wonder Anthology  by Jo Beverley, Kate Freiman, Alice Alfonsi, Tess Farraday on 8/12/2013

6.)  Clockwork Fairy Tales: A Collection of Steampunk Fables  by Stephen L. Antczak, James C. Bassett on 8/17/2013

7.)  At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon  on 8/17/2013

8.)  Westward Weird by Martin H. Greenberg, Kerrie Hughes  on 8/23/2013

9.)  Sizzle and Burn  by jayne ann krentz on 8/23/2013

10.)  White Lies by jayne ann krentz on 8/23/2013

11.)  Once a Princess   by Johanna Lindsey on 8/23/2013

12.)  Abhorsen by Garth Nix  on 8/28/2013

13.)  The Well of Shades by Juliet Marillier on 8/28/2013

14.)  Darkwitch Rising: Book Three of The Troy Game  by Sara Douglass on 8/28/2013