Jandy's Reading Room Blog

Bookstore Video

2012-01-10T11:04:00.001-08:00

There is a bookstore called Type in Toronto. The owners made this wonderful video.

2012 Reading Resolution

2012-01-06T22:09:00.000-08:00

LazyGal has issued a challenge. I can't ignore it because I have to do it whether I take the gauntlet or not. See her post about this resolution. The 2012 Read Your Own Books Challenge was originally issued at the Tales From the Crypt blog.

These are the rules:

This challenge is for those of us who have books that we’ve purchased and just haven’t gotten to. I will go into what does and does not qualify for this challenge below.

Rules:

Starts January 1, 2012 and ends December 31, 2012
Anyone can join
You don’t have to have a blog to participate.
Non-Bloggers feel free to share your list of books in the comment section of the monthly link up post.
Reviews though not required are always nice.
Audio, E-books, Bound all count
Re-reads DO NOT count
There is no need to come up with your list of books in advance.
Challenge crossovers ok

What qualifies for this challenge?:

Any book that you have personally purchased, been gifted, or swapped, BEFORE January 1, 2012 and just have not gotten the chance to read yet.

What DOES NOT qualify for this challenge?:

Any book that has been purchased AFTER January 1, 2012.
Any book that you have been asked to review
Tour sites, Netgalley, GalleyGrab, etc.
Library Books

Levels:

Level 1 – Read 1-5 Your Own Books
Level 2 – Read 6-10 Your Own Books
Level 3 – Read 11-20 Your Own Books
Level 4 – Read 21+ Your Own Books

Like LazyGal, I have to go with Level 4 - perhaps my own Level 5 - 50+ Your Own Books. Mt. Bookpile is high. Perhaps it's not as high as hers, but my bookshelves runneth over.

I have one already for the list. I'll add the widget with the list in the left column.

Web site update: It takes a (long) while to convert over 2,000 book review pages from the old html to the new WordPress format. I was way too optimistic when I hoped to be done by November. I may have been half way through then.

I keep plugging away at them. Once all the pages are converted, there will be more work to be done with the web page developer. I started in June. Hopefully I will have finished by this coming June. In the meantime, I still continue adding reviews to the current site. I really want to finish so I have more reading time and so I can get back to my scrapbooking. Yes, at times I bite of huge chunks. Some day I will finish this project...

Book Lover's Comic

2011-12-14T10:09:00.000-08:00

From SMBC (Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal)

A Crying Dragon - Anne McCaffrey Has Died

2011-11-23T08:02:00.000-08:00

If I could draw, I'd draw a crying dragon. I love McCaffrey's books.

Rest in Peace, Lady of the Dragons (and Killashandra and singing ships and Peyteybee and Talents and Unicorn Girl and...)

Hugo Awards for 2011

2011-08-22T07:25:00.000-07:00

It's a rare year when I've read the Hugo Award best novel before the award is won. But that's the case this year. Connie Willis' Black Out/All Clear combo took the best novel prize.

Check the Hugo Award Site for the complete list.

For those few of you who link to my blog, I know it's quieter than usual. That's because I'm still hacking away at my web site conversion. More of my reading has been audiobooks these days because I can copy and paste while listening to a book but not while holding one. I think I'm about a quarter of the way through. I like the new look. I hope others agree, but we'll see.

Book Addiction

2011-08-03T13:52:00.000-07:00

This is from Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies:

"...that lust for books which rages in the breast like a demon, and which cannot be stilled save by the frequent and plentiful acquisition of books...Book lovers are thought by unbookish people to be gentle and unworldly, and perhaps a few of them are so. But there are others who will lie and scheme and steal to get books...as the dope-taker in pursuit of his drug. They may not want the books to read immediately, or at all; they want them to possess, to range on their shelves, to have at command. They want books as a Turk is thought to want concubines - not to be hastily deflowered, but to be kept at their master's call, and enjoyed more often in thought than in reality."

Hmm, Davies described me before I was born.

Blatent Library Ad

2011-07-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

If you hear someone talking about their local library being free, here are some points by Carrie Straka in a post at the Tame the Web blog.

Libraries Aren't Free

When you work at a library you are very aware of the costs it takes to keep it open. It's good to remind the patrons that their tax money is working effectively.

E-Books

2011-07-06T13:41:00.000-07:00

Did you know there's a World eBook Fair going on now? It lasts until August 4th. I know some of my readers have Kindles or Nooks. You may want to check this out. They claim there is free access to 6.5 billion (yes, billion) books through Project Gutenberg and Internet Archive for the next month. I think we'll have to check it out.

World eBook Fair Announcement

For you who are interested, I've started the conversion of my web site. It's going to take a few (many?) months to get it all straightened out the way I want, but I'm plugging away at it.

Expect Changes - But Not Too Soon

2011-06-15T07:46:00.001-07:00

For the past couple years I've been wanting to revamp my website. To that end I spent much of 2010 trying to figure out Drupal. I never got past the learning curve.

This year I started looking at WordPress. That appears to be the better solution. I'll have to get some professional help for the conversion but will still do most of the work. There are a LOT of books there. It's been 13 years this week since I started the site as a small personal site. Who would have guessed then it would be where it is now? It isn't well known but it stays busy enough.

Anyway, this blog will hopefully be rolled into the new site as well. Just don't look to see the new site until close to the end of the year. I doubt there's any program than can automatically convert all those pages. I bet I'll be doing a lot of cutting and pasting...

Just When I Thought It Was Safe

2011-05-27T16:07:00.001-07:00

This afternoon I was going thru my daughter's boxes in the garage to take some of her things to her. I found this box.

Great...it's a box of books I missed unpacking when we moved last year. It's a good thing I just got another bookcase.

Nebula Awards

2011-05-23T07:30:00.000-07:00

The Nebula Awards were celebrated this weekend by the Science Fiction Writers of America.

Congratulations to Connie Willis for her dual books, Black Out and All Clear

Here is the list of all the 2011 Nebula Award Winners.

Nope, I haven't read anything else on the list, although I've seen four of the screen plays in their final form.

Fun Days

2011-05-22T19:54:00.000-07:00

My library book club has been a source of wonderful and not-so-wonderful unexpected books over the past six years. I never would have read Angry Housewives Eating Bonbons if it hadn't been for then. Now I enjoy Lorna Landvik's books.

The other thing about this group is that I've made a great group of friends. We usually meet every third Tuesday for book club. But then we have days like today. We had a pot luck picnic at one of the member's new home. The couple had bought a fixer-upper and have finally finished restorations and moved in. The house is beautiful (he's an architect, need I say more?). More fun, though, was just the gathering. We sat around eating and discussing everything from books to politics to travel to gardening to panning for gold to renovations to books again.

Good friends, good food, and good books - can you ask for much more?

Unseeing

2011-05-18T08:15:00.000-07:00

Right now I'm listening to The City and the City by China Mieville. It's about two cities that share a physical space in two different dimensions - sort of. I still haven't figured out a good way to explain their presence.

Since the two share space, people from one city can often see things from the other. But all are trained from childhood to "unsee" anything that happens in the other city. If someone tries to interact between the two, he could be arrested.

The concept of "unseeing" caught my interest. I wondered how the people in those cities did it. Then I took a plane trip this past weekend for a conference. I realized that I "unsaw" my fellow travelers. The couple trying to quiet the screaming baby on the plane? I ignored, or "unheard" them. I can't describe anyone I sat by on the plane or followed in a coffee line.

That's when I realized we "unsee" all the time. Mieville is making a point of it. It sounds difficult, but we do without thinking.

My New Toy

2011-05-11T12:38:00.000-07:00

Last week Woot had this enTourage Pocket eDGe on sale. It's an ereader on one side and a computer tablet on the other running Android. It came yesterday. I started playing w it today.

My first problem is it's running Android v. 1.6 which is out of date for most Android apps, including the Nook app and the Google reader app. I already have a question in to support about this because their documentation only mentions that they're working on an upgrade - dated February 2010.

For now I'm excited w it. It will be great for travel once it's set up. It's the smaller 7"version which is easier to carry. My brother pointed out that it's heavier than my Nook as well as having a smaller screen. I think that will be ok. I'm looking forward to experimenting w the reader.

I'll keep you posted.

Long Day in LA

2011-04-30T18:20:00.001-07:00

We have been having fun at the Festival of Books. Then we tried to find a Mexican restaurant in downtown LA. We got lost... Then we found the Library Bar. It seemed like it would be a good place on a book day. But they had a private party going on. We finally landed in an Irish pub. Sheesh!

Edgar Awards 2011

2011-04-29T08:00:00.001-07:00

The 2011 Edgar Award winners for presented by the Mystery Writers of America was announced last night. You can check out the list at their web site. I haven't read any of the nominated books or stories this year. (Probably because I'm busy catching up on the books on Mt. Bookpile.)

L.A. Times Festival of Books

2011-04-29T07:54:00.000-07:00

It's that time again. The Festival of Books is this weekend. This year it has moved to the campus of University of Southern California. I hope that campus isn't as sprawling as UCLA.

My daughter, Mrs. Undomestic, is getting away w/o her husband or daughters this weekend. It'll be the two of us surrounded by books, authors, and more books. We had a great time last year. I expect the same this year.

I'll be on the lookout for Diane Mott Davidson...

Hugo Awards 2011

2011-04-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

It's that time - the Hugo Awards for 2011 have been announced. The Hugo Awards are one of the two major science fiction awards.

Of the books and short stories, I have only read the two Connie Willis novels, Black Out and All Clear. I have one other book, Cryoburn by Lois McMaster Bujold, but have to catch up on the Miles Vorkosigan novels first. I believe those are best read in order.

I also glanced over the movies and television shows and immediately chose Toy Story 3 and Dr. Who: “Vincent and the Doctor", one of my favorite episodes of the past year.

Check the list out - perhaps you'll find a new author to try.

Cool Bookshelves

2011-04-21T14:04:00.001-07:00

These bookshelves showed up on one of the blogs I follow, The Swiss Army Librarian. They are extremely cool and featured in a few places around the Internet. But I couldn't find anywhere to purchase them. I wonder how much they are and it they would be worth it.

They're designed by ClarkeHopkinsClarke Architects in Australia.

Healthcare Reform

2011-04-11T09:07:00.000-07:00

As a medical librarian, most of the books that cross my desk are clinical textbooks and references. But occasionally there is one I want to read. My boss ordered this one and I read it before he returned from his conference. It's one I recommend highly for any patient or doctor concerned with healthcare reform in the United States.

Demand Better! Revive Our Broken Healthcare System is written by two doctors who have been involved with improving our current system, Drs. Sanjaya Kumar and David B. Nash.

Drs. Kumar and Nash show the discrepancies in our current system. For example, clinical guidelines available for many standard diagnoses, especially in heart care. Yet many doctors do not know them or reference them before treating a patient. They go with what they've done in the past whether it's the best care or not.

It has been shown that an angioplasty procedure doesn't make much difference overall diagnosis and care of a heart attack patient. But the invasive procedure is still often done - often because the procedure adds money to the doctor's or hospital's pocket. The patient will be in the same condition within three years whether the procedure was done or not. Why should a patient allow himself to have tubes surgically inserted if there's no benefit? Because the doctor says so.

As a patient, check into treatments available from reputable sources like MedLinePlus or Health on the Net Foundation. Take the information with you when you go to the doctor. Question anything you are unsure about.

As a doctor, as busy as you may be, make yourself aware of your clinical guidelines. You may save your patient pain and grief. Be ready to work out other solutions. It may cost a little now, but will pay off in the future. Happy patients refer their friends to doctors who treat them well.

The use of clinical guidelines is only one area Drs. Kumar and Nash discuss. They also discuss medical errors, communication between medical practitioners in all fields (nursing, lab techs, physical therapists, etc). They show good and bad examples in the current health payment system. Medical student education changes are addressed.

They offer solutions to many of these problems. They also highlight practices, hospitals, doctors, etc., who have started with these solutions and the results that have been shown so far.

What surprised me is how quickly things have gone from bad to worse. When I started in the medical field back in the early 80's, healthcare needed revision to improve. Then in the 90's we pushed healthcare reform. Then again in the 2000's. Yet it's worse now than it was when it comes to costs, problems, and errors.

Demand Better! is an eye opener and a Must Read.

Quotes

2011-04-09T12:29:00.000-07:00

Mother talking on the phone with her son:

"Do something for me, Simon."

"Maybe"

"Be careful. You're the only second son I have. Take care of your Fiona, but be careful."

"I can do that. Don't worry, Ma. Please."

"Now that's a useless request for a mother..."

From The Search by Nora Roberts

She has mothers pegged, all right!

Dresden Files Series Continues

2011-04-04T13:58:00.000-07:00

Jim Butcher tweeted this morning that he has finished writing Ghost Story. Hopefully that means it will make its July publishing date. He already announced the name of book 14, Cold Days.

Butcher's Twitter Log

Library Book Sales

2011-04-02T19:10:00.000-07:00

My local library has 2 or 3 book sales a year. Because of their excellent used bookstore, they get more books donated that can be sold through the store. The overflow is sold in a large sale to benefit the Friends of the Library. That means ultimately it benefits the library.

Today was the spring sale of the year. I volunteered to work opening this morning. Of course the first thing I did was look over the huge selection. With all hardbacks and trade paperbacks only 50 cents and mass market paperbacks a quarter, it's hard to resist. I walked out with 11 books. Only one was for my daughter although I was looking for other titles for her. I've read one of the other books I bought. So that means 9 more for Mt. Bookpile. (I only took 2 off this week.)

Friends of the Library book sales - dangerous. No wonder my Mt. Bookpile shelves are overflowing.

Depression and Poking Around

2011-03-31T19:20:00.001-07:00

There are places on the web that I've dropped out of this year (sorry, Reader's Place). It's not due to lack of interest. It's due to my chronic depression sneaking in and taking over. When that happens I withdraw more into myself. I watch more television.

My therapist has helped me through a lot, including a divorce, earning a master's degree, taking on a new job, and lots of other things over the past nine years. She's seen me through the ups and downs of depression. She told me if I wasn't careful I could end up like the frog in the cooking pot. I could escape, but don't notice the heat of the water until it's too late. Sigh, that means I gotta push myself again. So I'm finally blogging after about a 6 week absence. A week is fairly normal, but not this long.

I started poking around Blogger. Now I see some of the cool tricks my daughters have learned. For one, hopefully I can now avoid the spam comments. Last week I had casino comments on numerous posts that I've since deleted.

One of the things I've been considering is how to overhaul my static web site to make it interactive. That's not a problem with the book reviews themselves. Instead, I haven't made that intuitive jump needed on how to put together the grouping pages - authors starting with B, romantic suspense, or titles starting with N, for example.

Any suggestions? Meanwhile, I'm going to look again at WordPress and Drupal again. Perhaps Blogger has something that will work. I'll have to see.

Talk About Fantasy

2011-02-15T17:36:00.001-08:00

Most people realize that romance novels are about fantasy. The girl is always going to get the guy. There will be either misunderstanding between them or a terrible peril overshadowing one of them or both. But it gets worked out, often in the nick of time. That's what makes a good romance - the conflict and the love.

Of course the mainstream modern romance has to have its sex scene(s) - some more graphic than others. I put disclaimers on my reviews to warn people of that. (The key is here on this blog as well as at the website.)

I just finished Linda Howard's Kiss Me While I Sleep. Talk about fantasy!

She's a hired assassin who has worked for the CIA on a contract basis for almost 20 years. But she has now killed a bad guy that the CIA was leaving alone. The bad guy killed her friends, so she kills him. The CIA sends someone after her. He is, of course, the one man who can get under her defenses.

I had so much fun with this book. It certainly isn't great literature, but He kept me chuckling throughout. She is an unbelievable character who stays consistent, so once belief is suspended, it's fine.

Most of the time I was reading this I was shaking my head in disbelief over their actions. Like I said, I enjoyed the book. But it definitely falls into the fantasy realm! Perhaps not wizards and dragons, but it certainly is a dreamt up world where these characters live.

Romance novels are about fantasy - some more so than others...

Quotes

2011-02-12T23:25:00.000-08:00

Here's one I've found recently that is so true!

From Sheri Tepper's The Waters Rising:

"To my mind, the worst thing about death is not knowing how the story ends."

Hear that, Jim Butcher and Carole Nelson Douglas?

Shree has some reading quotes over at her blog as well.

Sad News

2011-02-07T13:11:00.000-08:00

Brian Jacques, creator of the Redwall series, has died. These books are wonderful good vs bad children's fantasies filled with woodland creatures set an at abbey run by mice.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-12380763

Question for a Dedicated Reader

2011-01-25T15:00:00.000-08:00

While visiting my daughter in Oregon this weekend, I also got to know her girlfriend's parents. I was asked:

Why do you read?

Not "why do you like to read?" or "what do you read" or "do you read fiction/nonfiction" or any related more specific questions. They wanted to understand me better. Instead, ponder this:

Why do you read?

Quote

2011-01-22T07:54:00.000-08:00

This one tickles me. It's from Jim Butcher's wise cracking Harry Dresden:

"To give Molly credit, she might have been nervous, but she had learned the job of wheelman - sorry, political correctioners, wheelperson - fairly well."

Political correctioners - that's good.

From "It's My Birthday Too" in Side Jobs

Edgar Mystery Awards

2011-01-19T13:22:00.000-08:00

The Mystery Writers of America released the finalists for the 2011 Edgar Awards today. The final list isn't at the MWA site yet, but here's the L.A. Times article.

Nope, I haven't read any of the finalists. But I checked over the long list of nominations and found I had read some of those. At times I also said "I missed that author's release..."

Even if I didn't have Mt. Bookpile, and even if I didn't read anything else, I still couldn't have read all those books in the past year. It's fun to check them out, though.

Ebook Disguises

2011-01-14T09:30:00.000-08:00

One of the complaints about reading an ebook is the different tactile experience. You can't feel the pages or smell the paper or appreciate the weight or even quickly glance and see how far through a book you are.

When Barnes and Noble offered The Golden Age of Science Fiction: An Anthology of 50 Short Stories for $2, I jumped on it. I love science fiction. This anthology includes stories from authors 100 years ago (Jules Verne and HG Wells) through those still writing (Ben Bova). It was not on my By the End of 2010 Challenge, but it was close after.

I started it last week in the midst of chaos, thinking it would be an easy read. It is, but it's deceptive. It has over 800 pages. The first story is not a short story but a novella that is around 175 pages (about 75 pages too long IMO after I finished it). I'm thoroughly enjoying the stories.

I have to chuckle when I'm reading some of the older ones (50's and 60's especially). These men are traveling through space and have whatever difficulties that they have to fix. More than one of them have whipped out their trusty slide rules to figure the higher math. One even had computers mentioned for navigation but the engineer still used his slide rule. Do people in the higher maths learn how to use a slide rule any more (in case of power failure)? Or is that now a museum piece?

Returning to the disguise. If I had the book in hardcopy, I probably wouldn't have picked it up yet. With Mt. Bookpile so high, I tend to choose books w under 450 pages. But who can tell the size of an ebook until after you've opened it? You certainly can't just by looking at the title on your ereader. The up side there? The ereader isn't nearly as heavy as the book would be.

Best Of for 2010

2011-01-10T10:54:00.000-08:00

Once again I've been poking around. National Public Radio (NPR) has a webpage devoted to a group of "best of" by their different columnists. I glanced through all the different lists. I haven't read any of them (although one has been on order and should arrive any day now). Many of them I haven't heard of. I decided not to poke too much because I just don't have the time. Check out the list:

http://www.npr.org/series/131336530/best-books-of-2010

Also, the major children and young adult awards for 2011 like the Caldecott and Newberry Awards were announced this past weekend at the ALA midwinter conference. You can fine those here:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/american-library-association-announces-youth-media-award-winners-113210649.html

By the End of 2010 Challenge

2011-01-01T10:06:00.000-08:00

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
Black Out and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

Actually I did pretty good. Of the original list, I still have three and one half books left. Then I added three books and read two of those. So I'm only one and a half books from my original goal if you count numbers.

The hardest part about this challenge was talking myself out of grabbing something else. I wanted (still do) to read these. But I also wanted to read other books on my shelves (like the Charles Martin novels I borrowed from my daughter over a year ago). Plus I've added a couple books to my Nook. A friend lent me The Girl Who Played With Fire that I plan to read this month. Then there are the series books I'm reading that I borrow from the library.

In other words, the list goes on and on.

Should I challenge myself again this year? I haven't decided. I can find all sorts of reading challenges through my friend Shree. Who knows?

What Do You Get Someone Who Has So Many Books?

2010-12-26T20:58:00.000-08:00

My family's dilemma this year was as to what book to get for me. They didn't want to duplicate what I already have. Instead, this was my mother's solution:

There are also bookends shaped like books on a shelf, and of course, book gift certificates. That works nicely. Thank you, all!

By the End of 2010 Challenge

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
Black Out and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

Graphic Novels

2010-12-19T21:44:00.000-08:00

In the last decade, comics have moved from the newspaper funny pages and comic books to slick graphic novels with meat and art. I have glanced at them, but didn't have much personal interest in them. My daughter's boyfriend is working on a graphic novel, but I don't believe it's near publication submission yet.

Then I was invited to a 14-year-old boy's birthday party this weekend. He loves shows on Discovery Channel like Mythbusters and Shark Week. He also loves history. He had a great time at a local joust sponsored in the area a couple months ago. I didn't have any ideas on what to get. His mom says he reads some, but not much. Perhaps a graphic novel would be just the thing. So I went to Mysterious Galaxy for help. I knew what I had in my head, but would they have it.

When the clerk helped me, the first thing she did was warn me to make sure the novel was age appropriate. Oh, yeah, I had almost forgotten these are written for all ages and some might really be graphic... We looked through books for ten minutes or so. I finally settled on the first Artemis Fowl graphic novel, although it didn't feel right. As she was returning to the register to help someone else, she mentioned Feist's books. As soon as I opened The Magician's Apprentice Vol 1, I knew I had found what I wanted. Although a fantasy novel, it has the feel of midieval times. I purchased my first graphic novel.

When he opened it at the birthday party, he started flipping through it. His mom finally told him to put it down and open the other presents. I hope he really checks it out and likes it. It caught his interest, so there is a chance...

By the End of 2010 Challenge

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
Black Out and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

Best Of for 2010

2010-12-17T07:31:00.000-08:00

Library Journal has published their Best of 2010 Lists:

Inaugural Top 10
More of the Best
Genre Fiction (sci fi, fantasy, mystery, suspense, romance)
Niche Nonfiction (includes graphic novels)
Audiobooks
YA Literature for Adults
Science and Technology

In looking over the books on these lists, I've read three of them. This Book Is Overdue is on the audiobook list, although I read it instead of listening. I gave high ratings to Velocity when I read it a couple months ago. I just finished Dragongirl last night.

Let's face it, there are more good books than I'll ever have time to read.

Science Fiction For Fun

2010-12-16T15:49:00.000-08:00

Here's a great mash-up/video. Someone had the brains to put Star Wars and Dr Who together into a "movie trailer". I couldn't help but laugh

Lucky Person

2010-12-16T08:36:00.000-08:00

This is another non-book related post. I just had a nice long chat with my mother-in-law. I have gotten along with her since I first met her 35 years ago. But the even nicer part is that her son and I have been divorced over 7 years yet it hasn't affected our relationship. She was as concerned as anyone else after my surgery in July. She was one of the first people I called when I was home (she lives in Ohio, I now live in California) to reassure her I was fine.

I know that many women do not do well with their mothers-in-law. I'm thankful for mine. (And yes, despite the divorce, she's still my mother-in-law.)

As If There Aren't Enough Books on Mt Bookpile

2010-12-14T09:11:00.001-08:00

Kirkus released its list of best science fiction and fantasy of 2010. I haven't read any of them (one is on Mt. Bookpile, though) and a few sound interesting...

Easter? Isn't It Christmas?

2010-12-12T14:08:00.000-08:00

It's only two weeks before Christmas. Much of the United States is blanketed in snow. Today, though, it's getting up to the 70's here in Southern California. That usually means we hear the ice cream truck all year round. While putting away the clothes I just laundered, I heard that truck's music a few minutes ago. The tune? Easter Parade. Two weeks before Christmas? Wha????

By the End of 2010 Challenge

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
Black Out and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

Reading Oddities

2010-12-09T12:23:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while I find coincidences in my reading. This afternoon at lunch I was reading Elizabeth Peters' A River in the Sky (1910). Ramses is with someone who has a fever. He tries to remember if his mother said aspirin was helpful in bringing down fevers, then gives one to the person, hoping it will help.

In Connie Willis' Black Out (1940), Eileen is caring for World War II evacuated children with the measles. One girl has a high fever. Eileen tries to remember if aspirin will help a fever since antibiotics haven't been invented yet. She gives them to the girl in hopes that she's right.

They're both right.

It's my family Christmas Cookie Baking Day this Saturday. This has been a tradition for around 25 years now. I'm looking forward to it. My daughter may put some of our recipes up on her baking blog.

I Love My Librarian 2010

2010-12-08T08:51:00.000-08:00

One of the websites sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) is ilovelibraries.org. They just released the winners of the 2010 I Love My Librarian Award Winners. Now that's a pretty cool award.

By the End of 2010 Challenge

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
Black Out and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

By the End of 2010 Challenge

2010-12-03T20:08:00.000-08:00

By the End of 2010 Challenge

2010-12-01T17:59:00.000-08:00

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Dragongirl by Todd McCaffrey
The Search by Nora Roberts
The Waters Rising by Sherri Tepper
~~Black Out~~ and All Clear by Connie Willis
Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark
Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts
The X Factor by Andre Norton
Something from the Nightside by Simon Green
Blood Rites by Barry Nazarian
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien
Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler

Hmmm, so far I've taken off three books - and added on three more. I mentioned Side Job already. It will be the last on my list to read. But I forgot about my book club book, so it has to be on this list. We're reading Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien. I know it should be quick. I also was sent Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler to review. I had agreed to take it a couple weeks ago. I try to read the ones I've agreed to take fairly quickly. Besides that, I'm looking forward to it. The short story authors look good. Sigh, I probably won't make the challenge...

By the End of 2010 Challenge

2010-11-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

What a List!

2010-11-23T10:48:00.000-08:00

While reading some of the Twitter I follow today, I ran across the RT (Romantic Times) Award Nominees for 2010. Goodness they have a lot of categories! They look at romance novels across genres. I've read a small number of them, and am reading one right now on their science fiction list - Black Out by Connie Willis.

You can find the whole list here.

By the End of 2010 Challenge

2010-11-21T20:32:00.000-08:00

Rest of the Year Challenge

2010-11-19T15:51:00.000-08:00

Mt. Bookpile Explained

2010-11-19T08:33:00.000-08:00

Lazygal's uncle wrote this post about the mysterious increase of books on our shelves.

Big Cats and Pumpkins

2010-11-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

No, this has nothing to do with reading. But I liked this video. I didn't realize cats liked pumpkins so much.

Quote

2010-10-06T12:17:00.000-07:00

Currently I am reading William Gibson's Zero History. One of the major characters is a recovered drug addict. This character is getting ready to travel from London to Paris, wishing he had a book to read.

"He'd look for a book in Paris. Reading, his therapist had suggested, had likely been his first drug."

I certainly know how he feels.

Today's Chuckle

2010-10-05T09:16:00.001-07:00

Currently at work I am doing research on different genetic testing and cancer treatments. One common treatment appears to not be effective when a certain gene is present (this is what I gleaned from reading abstracts - but I'm not the doctor). I had to laugh at this wording:

"and seem to derive inferior therapeutic benefit from..."

Is inferior therapeutic benefit worse than no therapeutic benefit????

Addicted

2010-09-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

My web site slogan is "So many books, So little time". To that end, I really should quit talking about books to people, reading friend's blogs, staying away from my online reading group at The Reader's Place, avoiding my real life book club, and even my coworkers.

In my home Mt. Bookpile keeps growing. (I volunteer weekly at a used bookstore - one more place I should avoid.) I keep putting books on hold at the library. Favorite writers release another book (you Connie Willis, Lois McMaster Bujold, and Jim Butcher each have one coming out in the next few weeks and Sherri Tepper's came out a few weeks ago).

This morning I was talking with my fellow librarian about our fiction reading (never mind we're medical librarians). I walked away from that conversation with more books to read. Recently at The Reader's Place someone mentioned getting ready to read a book that sounded good so I put it on hold at the library. Then there was the review on NPR yesterday - another book put on hold. There were four more added to my mental list this morning (three are a trilogy). No question - I'm a bookaholic.

No wonder Mt. Bookpile doesn't shrink.

Library Video

2010-09-21T13:30:00.000-07:00

This video came to my attention today. It's cute and fun. Like everyone in these days of budget cuts, libraries learn to adjust as well.

There's a longer version of the video that has a "typical day in today's library" scene before the song. You can find it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AhSxoVmZQs&feature=related

John Adams

2010-09-06T17:01:00.000-07:00

In case you're wondering, I finished the second half of John Adams by David McCullough. I read the first half about five years ago. I now have to go back and go over the first half before I write a review or report to my RL book club. So it stays on my "still reading" list.

Reading Oddities

2010-09-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

Recently I was doing some mundane task at work and decided to download an audio book to keep me company. I ran across Cara Black's Murder in the Marais and decided that sounded interesting. It was. (I'll have to read more of the series.)

Murder in the Marais takes place in Paris in the early 1990's but connects with Paris under German Occupation in 1943. The current Jewish victims were somehow tied up in some incidents at that time. Most of the Jews were being shipped to the concentration camps then, but some made it through. Fifty years later, the past returns to haunt them. The book is well written and I liked the native viewpoint of how the French survived the Occupation and handled things afterwords.

One of my goals this year is to finally catch up on a couple mystery series I've been reading through. One series is the Lydia Chin/Bill Smith series by S.J. Rozan. If you haven't read these and like well-written detective mysteries, I highly suggest these. I'm up to the last one published, Shanghai Moon. (Although the next one is due out in a few weeks.) How does this relate?

Shanghai Moon is about the Jewish refugees who went to Shanghai in the late 1930's. Shanghai was one of the few places that still had an open port to refugees without quota restrictions. I've had the basic American history studies about World War II. I never heard of the Jewish people escaping to the Far East. It seems Shanghai had a large population of refugees from Europe at that time even though it was under Japanese occupation. Sixty years later there are still children survivors from that time. There are still artifacts that appear to be reclaimed. Shanghai Moon starts with some uncovered jewelry that belonged to a Jewish woman in the city. While trying to return it to her heirs, the jewelry is stolen. Lydia Chin is brought in to see if the jewelry shows up in Chinatown and see if the Chinese administrator who stole them appears.

Lydia is able to find personal letters and diaries from some of the people involved in the 1930's and 1940's Asian portion of World War II. I (as the reader) was again given a glimpse of the warfare and welfare of the real lives (OK fictional lives) of every day people trying to survive and pass on a legacy for their children.

While I knew going into Murder in the Marais I would be harking back to the war, I didn't know that going into Shanghai Moon. These two books complement each other in handling the subject - giving two very different perspectives of the happenings of the times.

Thoughts About John Adams

2010-09-02T11:42:00.000-07:00

Right now I'm reading David McCullough's biography John Adams.

Did you realize he was 40 years old when he headed off to the Continental Congress? Who says you have to be successful in your career by the time you're 30?

These days we have lots of discussions about mudslinging and negative ads during election campaigns. One of the worst journalism, mudslinging campaigning fiascos in our history was for the presidential election of 1800 between Adams, Jefferson, Aaron Burr (who actually tied Jefferson in popular votes), and Charles Pickering. Talk about yellow journalism!

Wandering Conversations

2010-08-25T21:16:00.000-07:00

Three Tuesday evenings a month I volunteer in the Friends of the Library bookstore at the local library. It's a great gig - mass market paperbacks are 50 cents and hardbacks are 3 bucks. Also, I can read if it's not busy and no one objects.

My shift is 3 hours long. Last night I had customers who were chatty - for the first two hours I listened to customers. By the time the chatty people left, I didn't have time to read because there were bookstore things I needed to do.

What struck me, though, was the variety of topics that were discussed in that two hours. I believe it started with the vacation I have planned to the Mediterranean and Italy later this year. In no special order, here are the topics I could remember once I was alone:

Italy - both for travel and during WWII
Ancient architecture both in Europe and Korea
glamor photography
Bosnia and the conflict there
evil in the human heart
Paris, the Nazi occupation, and current neo-Nazism
Chinese people
Northern California - current and the shipping and lumber industries in the late 1800's
European train system
digital photography
beginning of the Viet Nam war
recovery from surgery
British and Italian governments - how they function
basis of Christianity
Francis Bacon

I know there was more, but I was amazed at how our conversations were all over the place. Although one of the chatters' hobby is photography, the digital photography and the glamor photography were separate conversations with other things in the middle.

Whew! If I remember a third of what I learned last night, I'll be a wiser woman.

Joining the Modern Age

2010-08-20T09:44:00.001-07:00

In November I'll be taking a two week vacation to Italy and Greece. I have traveled that far before with books in my suitcases. I will do it again.

But books weigh down a suitcase. I know I'll pick up a few when I'm traveling. I'd like to start with less weight. The solution is obvious with our modern technology.

Yesterday I bought a Nook, the Barnes and Noble e-reader. I thought I would buy a Kindle from Amazon. The new model was preordered for me. Then I learned that the Kindle doesn't handle Digital Rights Management (DRM) software that is set up through the Adobe e-reader.

I can borrow ebooks through my library. They are encoded with the DRM. I couldn't use them on a Kindle. I canceled my preordered Kindle, went to the local Barnes and Noble, and came home with my new Nook e-reader. They didn't have the book-style cover I wanted in stock (in any of my local B&N stores) so I had to order it online. I won't do much with my new toy until the cover comes in.

Last night I connected up with Overdrive audio and ebooks through my library's web site. I was able to borrow and download two books for my new reader.

I have now joined the ebook trend...

Thomas Jefferson - Kindred Spirit

2010-08-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

From John Adams by David McCullough:

"In the bookshops and stalls along the Seine were volumes in numbers and variety such as Jefferson had never seen, and his pleasure was boundless. To Madison he would describe the surpassing pleasure of 'examining all the principal bookstores, turning over every book with my own hand'... There were weeks when he was buying books every day. In his first month in Paris, he could not buy them fast enough..."

I can certainly empathize with that!

Reading Time Curtailed

2010-08-07T15:50:00.000-07:00

For the past five weeks I've been recuperating. During that time I napped a lot, worked on learning Drupal, scrapbooked, and of course, read. For the first time in ages, I feel like I've made a scratch in Mt. Bookpile.

In my time out of work, I've taken 20 books out of the many books waiting for me to get to them. Now I have some shelf space to put some of the Mt. Bookpile books that are stacked beside the bookshelf. Admittedly, most of the books have been light reading. Since my attention span was very short at the beginning of my time off, that's what I needed. Even now, I'm still avoiding the "big" books.

Alas, my reading time will now go back to pre-appendectomy schedule. Plus some of the library books I requested are in. Things will slow up again.

Reading was one good way to ignore the healing pain. Thanks, Mt. Bookpile

Killer Thrillers

2010-08-05T09:13:00.001-07:00

National Public Radio (NPR) recently had readers vote on the best murder mystery/thrillers. Now they've published the top 100 list.

Since I'm obsessive that way, I counted the number of books on the list that I've read. The total is 22 1/2 (I have to go back and finish The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown). For this list, I can say that many of the books don't appeal - they're horror as much as thriller. I refuse to read the top rated book, Silence of the Lambs.

The list goes from very new to very old mysteries - many not what I would call thrillers. The newest is the recent Stieg Larsen book, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Next. The oldest is Wilkie Collins' Woman in White. While I haven't read the Larsen trilogy yet, I wouldn't call Collins' book a thriller in the modern sense. The same would be true of Daphne Du Maurier's Rebecca or Arthur Conan Doyle's Hound of the Baskervilles.

The list is an interesting collection. If you like mysteries and/or horror, check it out.

Other Connections

2010-07-18T21:24:00.000-07:00

First, most of you who follow my blog know that I had major surgery a couple weeks ago. I'm recovering fine, but I let myself fall out of the loop for a while. I know that doesn't explain 3 postless weeks before that, but what can I say? In the summertime I don't like to spend as much time on my computer. Just the social connections like Facebook and favorite blogs eat away at my time.

While I was in early recovery, this email came to me:

--------------------------------

Subject: Frankenstein

Hi Jandy,

My name is Celina from onlinecollege.org. We wanted to let you know that we featured your blog in one of our recent articles on our own blog. (100 Book Recommendations to Get You Through the Summer), is linked below and could be a fun way to share this announcement with your readers.

(http://www.onlinecollege.org/2010/07/14/100-book-recommendations-to-get-you-through-the-summer/)

If you find something interesting or similar, please let me know.

Thanks

---------------------------

Today, while catching up on one of my favorite blogs, Will Unwound, I discovered that my web pages are one of the sites he now checks regularly. Will Manley is a retired librarian who has been writing about the field for years and recently started his popular blog. If even half his followers click the link, my site will get busy, at least for a short while. Now I have to be responsible to keep it updated, sigh. Yeah, yeah, I know I usually do, but the pressure!

It's nice to be recognized.

Harry Dresden Earns Extra Income

2010-06-17T13:06:00.000-07:00

Have you ever perused E-Bay's Weird Stuff section? Today I found how Harry Dresden earns extra money:

20 Minutes With a Wizard

If you haven't read any of my older blogs and don't know who Harry Dresden is, check out Storm Front.

Heimlich Maneuver

2010-06-09T10:27:00.000-07:00

While I don't tweet much, I do follow a few Twitter groups. One of them is the National Library of Medicine tweet.

Today they mentioned that the Heimlich Maneuver was first published in a medical journal in 1974.

1974? Is that all? I thought it was older. By the time I started working in a hospital in 1977 it was a standard practice.

Quote - Timeless Truths

2010-06-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

"The world is full of happy people, but no one ever hears of them. You must fight and make a scandal to get into the papers. No one knows about all the happy people."

A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton Porter, copyright 1909

Today we can expand "papers" to television, internet news, etc. That of course means that I hope I never make the news.

Bookstores - Ten Best

2010-06-04T08:03:00.000-07:00

We're used to the mainline Barnes and Noble or Borders bookstores, as well as our favorite used and independent bookstores. Do any of those boast trees, glass ceiling, stained glass windows, winding stairs, or movie theater left overs? Check out:

Top 10 Best Bookstores Around the World

Tomorrow Would Be a Good Day for a Treat

2010-06-03T10:29:00.000-07:00

Did you know there is a National Doughnut Day? It's tomorrow. Perhaps I'll have to stop by the doughnut shop on my way in to work...

Yahoo! Spark article

Doughnut, coffee, and a book? Sounds like breakfast to me.

Librarians Do GaGa

2010-06-01T21:51:00.000-07:00

My coworker found this at BoingBoing. Enjoy and laugh.

Duh! Headlines

2010-06-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

TV Promotes Poor Diet, Study Says
Advertised Food Has Way Too Much Sugar, Fat

http://www.wdsu.com/health/23753280/detail.html

You mean Fruit Loops or that Carl's burger or a Sonic shake aren't good for me???

(The advertisement beside this article was for Popeye's Bonafide Chicken meal. I doubt that is any better...)

19th Century English "Yellow Fiction"

2010-05-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Robert B. Parker, Danielle Steele, Dan Brown, Margaret Maron, Clive Cussler, Connie Willis, Jim Butcher, etc.

All these authors write popular fiction that is high selling and fun to read. But will they (and thousands others) last and stand the test of time? What similar work did people read 130 years ago?

In some of the English classics we see references to the popular fiction of the day. Now you can peruse over 2300 titles from 19th century England in an online database from Emory University. Yes, you'll find some that are now classics. But there are other titles that have been long lost and forgotten.

To find them, go to the Emory University Library home page. Then type "yellowbacks" in the search bar in the middle of the screen. You'll get a list of entries. Take it from there.

Yellowbacks are similar to our mass market paperbacks today. They have that name because of a yellow glaze used on the covers.

As an example, there are 18 titles by Anthony Trollope, including The Warden. There are also 5 titles by Thomas Trollope. I haven't studied historical British literature. I don't know who Thomas Trollope was. Was he related to Anthony? His titles all have an Italian flavor (like La Beata: a Tuscan Romeo and Juliet).

Since most of these books are in public domain, Emery has many of them available for download. (But of course, when I tried to do this while on break at work, the site gave me an error message and wouldn't go to the title I wanted to download. I'll have to play with it more later.)

Popular fiction has been around a long time. Some of it even stands the test of time.

Nit Picky With Words

2010-05-18T09:02:00.000-07:00

Did anyone else notice that this morning's headlines said "Five American Troops Were Killed In a Suicide Bombing in Afghanistan"? (That was on ABC.) I had to question that, because I wanted to know if it was five people or five full troops. I was fairly sure they meant people, but still...

I was glad to see the headline changed on NPR - "Five Americans Killed In Afghan Suicide Bombing".

While neither number is good, five is better than 500 (how many soldiers make up a troop?).

Come on, copy editors and journalists, make yourself clear.

"Don't Worry" Headlines

2010-05-17T14:27:00.000-07:00

Toddlers who lie 'will do better'

Actually, when you read on, this makes good sense. The ability to lie is a developmental milestone as the child leans to put thoughts together. So go on, encourage your kids to lie! (Or not...)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/10119297.stm

Dear Jim Butcher,

2010-05-12T21:50:00.001-07:00

What? How could you let Harry Dresden sell his soul to (unnamed bad guy). So what if he has a bad physical problem? OK, his daughter (whoa! But this information isn't a spoiler. It's in the first line of the book) is kidnapped. I get that. But selling his soul? And letting (unnamed good guy) get shot down like that???

From reading your tweets, I'm also guessing that this novel, Changes, ends on a cliffhanger. This is absolutely terrible. I knew I shouldn't have started it until early next year before the next one comes out. But I'm more than half way through Changes. I have to keep going now. The only reason I know Harry lives is that he is the first person narrator of the book. Then I'm going to mutter at you for the next 9 or 10 months for the next book in the Dresden Files.

This is book 12 in the series. At one book a year of a 20 book arc, with a trilogy after that to tie everything up, I just hope I live that long. But I'm telling you right now. If I find I'm on my death bed, I'm sending you an email. I want you to then send me the story arc for the rest of the books in the series so I know what happens to Harry before I die.

I'm just sayin'... (Yes, I'm probably too vested in this series.)

Single Too Long?

2010-05-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

First the background:

Will Unwound wrote a blog entry about needing to try some good mysteries. He got a lot of responses (including mine) and suggestions. Then he took the lists of authors and asked for specific titles. The second time around he received titles lists, as well as some additional authors.

Now to refer to this posting title...

Yesterday I spend a few minutes looking at the second list. I read one title I had forgotten and said "Ooooh, yeah!" My tone must have been...sultry? Did I also add "That's good" in the same tone? One of my co-workers walked into the library just then and started laughing. She asked if she she leave again and shut the door behind her.

Oh, dear...

(I was excited about seeing someone add Joanna Harris' Gentlemen and Players to the list.)

Google Lists

2010-05-05T16:00:00.000-07:00

Google changed their web site a bit, making it better according to their designers. I'll decide for sure after I've used it more. They put out the new design today. Of course I had to try it out. So during my break, I check out some of my web pages. I know that if you just put "book reviews" into the search, my pages will fall somewhere well past the 6th Google page - not found that way. But most of my search hits come from searches for titles.

I put in some searches for some of my more popular titles from the web stats I have. Yeah, there are some impressive results there, like on Tuesdays with Morrie or The Three Musketeers. I remembered another title from my stats list and entered it. I saw this:

Whoa! Octavia Butler had a wonderful voice and I think Kindred is the best of hers that I've read. I was pleased (OK, shocked and thrilled) to see my review first on the Google list. (Later it was second on the list, but so what, I had kept a screen shot, grin. The print on the screen shot may be too small to see well here, but it looks great in real size.)

Lovely Hibernating Weekend

2010-05-03T12:23:00.000-07:00

For the past few weekends I have been on the go. I don't regret the trips - a girls' weekend in an Idaho resort, the LA Times Festival of Books, visiting with my granddaughters, etc. This weekend I announced I wasn't going anywhere and avoiding people.

No, I didn't want to go swimsuit shopping with a friend. No, I don't think I'll go to the cookout (although I finally went for a while so I wouldn't have to cook...). No, I don't want to go to Trader Joe's (I'll go tonight).

Most of the weekend I hung out alone at home, wallowing in my guilty pleasure reading - romances and very light cozy mysteries. I put aside the deep Barbara Vane novel I'm reading for book club. I ignored the non-fiction I took off the shelf a few days earlier. I didn't even consider the modern classics waiting on Mt. Bookpile. Instead I pulled out Nora Roberts and caught up on the Bridal Quartet (Bed of Roses and Savor the Moment).

I also caught up on some TV - the Mentalist, the movie Hancock, and Bones.

I even vacuumed and washed floors and clothes. It was a nice, quiet weekend.

Not Powell's - But a Portland Tragedy

2010-05-03T12:16:00.000-07:00

Oregon bookstore destroyed by fire

Rare books, archives and a stock of more than 100,000 books have been destroyed. The owner started his first store in the early 1970's.

What Happens In The Library...

2010-04-29T11:33:00.000-07:00

My daughter, the almost-librarian (3 weeks??) sent me this link in a retired librarian's blog:

1992 Librarians and the Sex Survey

Now please notice and remember that this was a joke in the early 1990's. Although he had and published the responses, this was not a scientific survey. This was just fun for the time. Will Manley was active in the librarian field and still remains informed.

It's The Last Weekend in April Again

2010-04-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

That means it's the L.A. Times Festival of Books again. This year I came with my older daughter. She hadn't come up here yet. We sat in on a panel of writers who had written books about baseball - Game Six by Mark Frost, Giants Past and Present by Dan Fost, and Forever Blue by Michael D'Antonio. Although I'm not the big baseball fan in our family, it is part of my family heritage.

The panel was fascinating. Now I want to read one of the books - although it's a toss up between Game Six about the Boston Red Sox/Cincinnati Reds World Series in 1975 or Forever Blue about the Brooklyn Dodgers moving to become the L.A. Dodgers.

We wandered around, sat in at the Children's Stage when Bernadette Peters read and sang her newest children's picture book, Stella Is a Star (illustrated by Liz Murphy). We also visited in and out of many of the vendors' pavilions and basically had a great time. We're going back tomorrow for a couple more panels. I'll be wiped out tomorrow night.

Duh! Headlines

2010-04-22T10:43:00.000-07:00

American Action Films Continue To Portray Female Heroines As The Weaker Sex

Are we supposed to be surprised?

Quote

2010-04-15T19:36:00.000-07:00

Father and son talking:

"I know you wanted to play music, same as I do. But the Depression knocked you out."

"And something might come along and send your dreams packing. The fact is, most of us can't be what we wanted to be."

"Why not?"

He frowned like a war reporter giving yesterday's body count. "Because life has a habit of making us be who we are."

From The Do-Re-Mi by Ken Kuhlken

What Are Those Words?

2010-04-12T21:42:00.000-07:00

After writing that last post, I wandered around a librarian blog or two, then followed links. I found Lyric Wiki. It has the lyrics to hundreds (thousands?) of songs. This week White Rabbit has been in my head (I was watching a TV show where it was featured). It's been over 40 years since Jefferson Airplane sang that song. Now, finally, I'm past the blurry sounds and I know what the dormouse said...

It's National Library Week

2010-04-12T21:22:00.000-07:00

Neil Gaiman is this year's reader for National Library Week.

Actually the timing is good for me. I had reserved a copy of the new book This Book is Overdue! How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All. It came in last week and I started reading it yesterday. Reading about all these librarians active on the Internet, in their own cities, within the librarian community, in Second Life, blogging, etc, is enough to give me an inferiority complex.

Then I remember that I do well for my own little corner of the world. My library may have a small number of readers, but they certainly appreciate us. We know their work is easier and better because of the work we do for them.

I know there is a lot of negative perceptions about librarians - but watch the people highlighted in this book and the librarians of the new and coming generation (including my daughter in a few months). They can be involved and take the profession past anything I would have dreamed of when I was a kid.

Happy National Library Week

Turning Science Fiction Into Science - Really

2010-04-08T15:04:00.000-07:00

After finishing up Physics of the Impossible, I still have all those possibilities in my head. Here's one from medicine that fits right into the science fiction realm but is in early testing phases. How would you like to have your wounds healed by spraying new cells right onto them?

Inkjet-Like Device 'Prints' Cells Right Over Burns

Quote

2010-04-06T17:23:00.000-07:00

"The utopias of the past are always a little sad."

From The Gold Coast by Kim Stanley Robinson

The Spellman Files

2010-04-04T22:12:00.000-07:00

Have you read any of the Spellmans series? If you haven't found this cozy, hysterically funny mystery series, you've got to check it out - especially if you're a fan of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. (And yes, I've said this before.)

Isabel Spellman's whole family is - strange? weird? unpredictable? They are a family of private investigators (except for the older brother, David, who is a lawyer). While they take care of their clients, they spy on each other as well. If you haven't read these, run to your nearest library and check out the first one, The Spellman Files.

After I finished the marvelous Physics of the Impossible Friday evening, I picked up the final book in the Spellman series, The Spellmans Strike Again. Despite the fact the family was coming here today for dinner and the house cleaning I had to do, I still tore right through this book.

By now the narrative style Lisa Lutz uses in these books is no longer new. Yet it's still fresh and I still found myself laughing out loud at the family's antics. These books are family friendly reading - no bad language, no questionable bedroom scenes, no violence. I've recommended these books from my mother-in-law and my mother to my youngest daughter and anyone who can read at this easy adult level. Age doesn't matter - although you might not want precocious younger teens reading these. They'll get lots of ideas to disrupt everyone's life.

I'm sorry the stories are ending, yet they end in a good way. Everything is tied up as well as life ever lets up tie up our stories. Thanks, Ms. Lutz, for these great books.

Libraries In Fiscal Danger

2010-04-01T16:04:00.001-07:00

This isn't a great solution, but it's cute...

Swiss Army Librarian Blog

I've Been Tagged (by LazyGal)

2010-03-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

The rules:

If you've been tagged, you should write your answers in your own journal and replace any questions that you dislike with a new question. Tag nine people. Don't refuse to do that. Don't tag the person who tagged you. (OK, I won't make anyone but - Sardonic Girl? The Wife, the Mom? Marsha?)

The Meme

What song are you currently addicted to?
I can't get Defying Gravity or A Wonderful Day from Wicked out of my head. Never mind it was over a week ago I listened to it.

What books are you currently reading?
I'm enjoying Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku (see previous post), Brightness Reef by David Brin, Blood Sins by Kay Hooper, Montana Legacy by R.C. Ryan (a trilogy that is the male version of Nora Roberts' Montana Sky), and Content Licensing by Michael Upshall (professional book review).

What is the one skill you wish you had?
These days I think it'd be pretty cool to know how to fly an airplane.

If you had the chance to go back in time for 24 hours, where and when would you go?
I'm pretty satisfied with yesterday. I'd probably make less french fries or less cheese for my dinner.

What is your favourite quote?
I don't have one favorite - there are too many that fit different occasions. Oh, I know. I head this last week. "Your granddaughters are beautiful."

What was your favorite TV show as a kid?
Bewitched and Addams Family. I can remember as a kid I would pretend that Thing (the disembodied hand) would help me make my bed.

What websites do you always visit when you go online?
the crossword puzzle at the Boston Globe, the Reader's Place Ning, Wordsplay (online Boggle) (personal) PubMed, other medical literature databases

What was the last thing you bought?
A new book (The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear), a new pair of black walking sandals, and a surge protector for the laundry room.

Coke or Pepsi?
Coke

Do you get cravings? If so, what do you crave?
Chocolate, of course. Sometimes I crave salty so I keep crackers around too.

What do you do to change your mood?
It depends - read, cry, talk to someone, sleep, talk to a cat...

What was the last meal you ate?
Breakfast - vanilla yogurt, apple cinnamon danish, coffee

Five things you can't live without.
My children, in-law-children, and grandchildren
My extended family
Sunshine (even though I stay in a lot)
My books and ability to read
The independence and freedom of my lifestyle

What is the closest purple thing near you?
A purple ink pen in my desk organizer. I never use it anymore.

What's something that never fails to make you smile?
My granddaughters
My scrapbooks with my photos in them

What are you not looking forward to?
My extensive dental work continues Wednesday morning - at least 3 crowns and a bridge. I've already had 3 root canals in the past few months.

What significant world event that you have lived through stands out most in your mind?
(showing my age) Assassination of President Kennedy - there's also the Challenger Explosion and 9/11

Name a movie you'd like to see, but just somehow haven't gotten around to doing it yet.
Angels and Demons - I know it's not as good as the book, which is probably why I haven't bothered yet.

That's a long list!

Turning Science Fiction Into Science

2010-03-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

It was impossible for me to ignore a nonfiction physics book with a picture of the Tardis from Dr. Who on the cover. So I borrowed a copy of Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku from my public library. It's fascinating.

Kaku's main focus is to show how physics is moving into the realm of "impossible" science fiction. In the process of showing the reader what could happen, we learn what is happening or how it is happening. For example, in his discussions about phasers and light sabers, Kaku describes how computer chips keep getting faster and are able to hold more on them. Then he mentions how some studies into storing data on crystals are developing into reality. I know computer crystals rather than chips has been a science fiction staple for decades.

Right now I'm listening to Brightness Reef by David Brin in the car. One of the six alien races living on the planet Jijo moves around on wheels. I kept trying to picture how that would work, even with bones in sockets, etc. Then I learn in Kaku's book that nature on Earth has already mastered atomic machines in some tiny creatures - so the possibility that larger creatures could work similarly is not a far stretch of the imagination. Brin's characters could work after all.

Obviously science and science fiction work together. Science fiction takes imagination of what's possible from what we know. Science can then turn that science fiction into reality. Then science fiction will take the imagination further. Then science will add to reality. Etc, etc, etc.

Cool.

Philosophy and Science Fiction

2010-03-14T09:50:00.000-07:00

Frequently I'm reminded that science fiction and fantasy is more than entertaining space opera, wizards, and dragons. Right now I'm reading Robert Silverberg's Dying Inside. It was published back int he 70's (I'm getting into all sorts of older SF these days). The narrator has been able to read other people's minds all his life. Now, at 41, he's losing the ability

The paranormal aspect is the character's psychic talent. Otherwise, Silverberg wrote this as a self examination, makes you think about life type book. He feeds himself by writing ghost college papers for students who don't want to do it themselves. We, the reader, get to read a couple of these papers, sinking the book even more into the philosophy of life. I must admit, I wouldn't have guessed I would read a treatise on Kafka when I opened this book.

This book isn't entertaining so much as compelling. Yes, I'm enjoying it. Will it have a happy ending? It's hard to say. I bet instead it ends inconclusively - like ongoing life does.

Duh! Headlines

2010-02-25T10:23:00.000-08:00

Obama Doubts Gaps Over Healthcare Can Be Bridged

My cynical self says that is no surprise. U.S. healthcare is very complex, then combine that with politics. I don't know the solution, but I can't see Congress mandating effective changes.

(When it comes to the government trying to control such a large issue, I don't have an un-cynical self.)

Locked Room Novel

2010-02-23T12:25:00.001-08:00

Ooooh, I'm happy. My newest In Death novel, Fantasy in Death arrived today. It's a locked room mystery. I haven't read a good locked room story in a while. I hope this one satisfies.

Connie Willis

2010-02-20T18:49:00.000-08:00

Around 20 years ago I first discovered and got hooked on Connie Willis' work. I remember the first short stories that impressed me were "Even the Queen" and "The Last Dog in America". Since then when I come across her work I pick it up. I finally was able to have my book club read her Doomsday Book next month. I also was tickled to see that Nancy Pearl devotes one section of Book Lust to Ms.Willis' writing.

Her observant eye about people lead me to believe her wit makes her a comfortable sounding author. I quickly felt I would love to have her for a dinner guest to sit and talk. I was we would get along well and have fun visits.

Her newest book Blackout was released this month and she is on a book tour for it. One of her first stops was at the Mysterious Galaxy bookstore here in San Diego. I was one of the first people in line and in the front row when she spoke. After listening to her talk, then talking to her twice while I had books signed, I believe that even more now. She's down to earth and funny.

Connie, do you want to have lunch some time???

Quote for Readers

2010-02-15T20:20:00.000-08:00

My sister and I have often said we didn't want to live a "book" life. Robert Harris' Imperium is full of great quotes. This one underlines my thoughts on a "book" life:

"...for if you were to ask me: 'Tiro, why do you choose to skip such a long period in Cicero's life?' I should be obliged to reply: 'Because, my friend, those were happy years, and few subjects make more tedious reading than happiness.'"

I choose that tedious reading life of happiness.

Quote to Ponder

2010-02-13T23:03:00.000-08:00

"He lived alone, in a small house full of books, and did nothing all day except read and think--a most dangerous occupation for a man, which in my experience leads invariably to dyspepsia and melancholy."

from Imperium by Robert Harris

Oh, I hope not! If so, I'm in trouble...

---- Check out Aravis' comment to this. She gave me a great laugh. ----

Anarchy Reigns

2010-02-11T22:13:00.001-08:00

All of us had to read assigned books in high school and probably college as well. One of those books often given out is Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I always felt fortunate that I never had that book assigned to me. It is one I don't want to read.

But I just read the story anyway, although it's a technological, science fiction update with (I believe) more character involvement. Stephen King's Under the Dome is another version of the anarchy that can take over when people are cut off and on their own.

Despite it's length Under the Dome is a well written book and worth reading - if you can take the chills and creeps that are King's trademarks. It doesn't descend into horror, but still leaves its mark.

And you know, now more than ever, I don't want to read Lord of the Flies.

J.D. Salinger

2010-01-30T16:30:00.000-08:00

This hermit author died a few days ago. He had quite a cult following. His anti hero Holden Caufield is still admired by disaffected teens. I didn't read any of Salinger's books or short stories until I was in my 30's. I didn't get his work. I decided I wasn't the target audience. I found his work esoteric and hard to appreciate for the most part. Occasionally I found a short story or two that I liked, but his work usually left me cold.

I had one irreverent thought when I head he had died - "How do they know? He hid away from everyone." I guess I don't understand hermits. One interview showed that Salinger continue to write long after he withdrew from the world. I wonder how long before this work will be published?

What Are the Odds?

2010-01-27T13:05:00.000-08:00

Last night I picked up four books from the library that I had requested over the past few months. Two of them are new, so there was a longer wait for each. Of course they both came in together and I won't be able to renew either one because of that wait list. These are what came in:

U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton
Under the Dome by Stephen King
The Unbidden Truth by Kate Wilhelm
Moll Flanders by Daniel DeFoe

How did I manage to get three books whose titles start with "U" all at once?????

Quote for Librarians

2010-01-26T17:15:00.000-08:00

"Information is a librarian's business, dear." (Helen Shandy)

The Corpse in Oozak's Pond by Charlotte MacLeod

That is certainly true!