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emzebel

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Blog Entries posted by emzebel

  1. emzebel
    There is no reason why anyone would even read this thing (since it essentially consists of a bunch of lists for my own record keeping), but I've started a real, honest to goodness, ranting about politics/social issues/isisms blog: I'm Just Not Impressed.
     
    Visit?
  2. emzebel
    So, to start, I'm a little disappointed that I didn't reach 100 books. At some point, I thought I'd counted and was way ahead of 89 - 93 if you count the books I finished in 2007 that I'd started previously, 99, if you count books which I didn't finish in 2007 as well - I can get to 100 if you count the one book I read about 75 pages of then decided to abandon. Although I think I'd still have to go with 99, since I don't think I actually read anything of Ulysses last year.
     
    Braking down the 89 that I read entirely in 2007:
    * 78 were new to me, 11 were re-reads
    * 22 were children's/ya books
    * 6 were graphic novels + a 7th novelization based on a comic series
    * 3 were non-fiction (2 books of essays, 1 of literary criticism)
    * 41 were installments of fantasy/sci-fi/historical fantasy series
    * 35 were by authors which were new to me in 2007
    * there are 42 unique authors represented
  3. emzebel
    Books read/started/finished/etc. in 2008.
     
    Read Entirely in 2008
    1. Noisy Outlaws, Unfriendly Blobs, and Some Other Things That Aren't as Scary, Maybe, Depending on How You Feel About Lost Lands, Stray Cellphones, Creatures from the Sky, Parents Who Disappear in Peru, a Man Named Lars Farf, and One Other Story We Couldn't Quite Finish, So Maybe You Could Help Us Out - McSweeney's YA Short Story Collection
    2. Lunatic Cafe - Laurel K. Hamilton
    3. M is for Magic - Neil Gaiman
    4. Dead as a Doornail - Charlene Harris
    5. For a Few Demons More - Kim Harrison
    6. The Cat's Pajamas - Ray Bradbury
    7. The Revenge of the Wizard's Ghost - John Bellairs
    8. The Thief of Always - Clive Barker
    9. Burnt Offerings - Laurel K. Hamilton
    10. Blue Moon - Laurel K. Hamilton
    11. Obsidian Butterfly - Laurel K. Hamilton
    12. Train Man v1 (manga)
    13. The Innocent Man - John Grisham
    14. 6th Target - James Patterson/Maxine Gross
    15. Narcissus in Chains - Laurel K. Hamilton
    16. The Dark Secret of Whetherend - John Bellairs
    17. Definitely Dead - Charlene Harris
    18. Cerilean Sins - Laurel K. Hamilton
    19. The Bloody Chamber - Angela Carter
    20. Kushiel's Scion - Jacqueline Carey
    21. Incubus Dreams - Laurel K. Hamilton
    22. Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War - Clive Barker
    23. Yuki Huma Dream Shoppe (manga)
    24. Wild Ones v.1 (manga)
    25. Not Safe After Dark - Peter Robinson
    26. Micah - Laurel K. Hamilton
    27. Friend of the Devil - Peter Robinson
    28. Farewell Summer - Ray Bradbury
    29. Serenity Rose Vol. 1 (graphic novel)
    30. Mistral's Kiss - Laurel K. Hamilton
    31. Grave Sight - Charlene Harris
    32. Shakespeare's Landlord - Charlene Harris
    33. Danse Macabre - Laurel K. Hamilton
    34. Killing Yourself to Live - Chuck Klosterman
    35. Roomates - Emily Chase
    36. My Roomate is Missing - Emily Chase
    37. Kushiel's Justice - Jacqueline Carey
    38. Strange Candy - Laurel K. Hamilton
    39. The 13th of Never (graphic novel)
    40. Hellboy - Seed of Destruction - Mike Mignola (v. 1 graphic novel)
    41. Justice Denied - J.A. Jance
    42. Emerald Magic, Tales of Irish Fantasy - Andrew Greeley Ed.
    43. The Harlequin - Laurel K. Hamilton
    44. Nature Girl - Carl Haissian
    45. 7th Heaven - James Patterson
    46. Grave Surprise - Charlene Harris
    47. The Outlaw Demon Wails - Kim Harrison
    48. Dead as a Doornail - Charlaine Harris
    49. You're No Friend of Mine - Emily Chase
    50. My Dead Girlfriend (graphic novel)
    51. Kushiel's Mercy - Jacqueline Carey
    52. Keeping Secrets - Emily Chase
    53. Hellboy - The Chained Coffin and Others - Mike Mignola (v. 3 graphic novel)
    54. Hellboy - The Right Hand of Doom - Mike Mignola (v. 4 graphic novel)
    55. An Ice Cold Grave - Charlaine Harris
    56. Shakespeare's Champion - Charlaine Harris
    57. Hellboy - Conqueror Worm- Mike Mignola (v. 5 graphic novel)
    58. Hellboy - Strange....- Mike Mignola (v. 6 graphic novel)
    59. Rose - Jeff Smith & Charles Vess (graphic novel)
    60. Dark Side of the Moon - John Sanford
    61. Stardust - Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess (reread of text, first time w/illustrations)
    62. Lady Friday - Garth Nix
    63. Watchman - Alan Moore (graphic novel)
    64. Parable of the Sewer - Octavia Butler
    65. From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris
    66. Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi
    67. A Lick of Frost - Laurel K. Hamilton
    68. Glasshouse - Charles Stross
    69. Daughter of the Forest - Juliet Marillier
    70. Hellboy - The Troll Witch and Other Stories - Mike Mignola (v. 7 graphic novel)
    71. Son of the Shadows - Juliet Marillier
    72. Persepolis 2 - Marjane Satrapi
    73. Child of the Prophesy - Juliet Marillier
    74. Storm Front - Jim Butcher
    75. Maus I - Art Spiegelman
    76. Maus II - Art Spiegelman
    77. Kindred - Octavia Butler
    78. Summer Blues - Emily Chase
    79. Best Friends Forever - Emily Chase
    80. Blood Noir - Laurel K. Hamilton
    81. Wild Seed - Octavia Butler (in Seeds of Harvest)
    82. Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
    83. Invisible Prey - John Sandford
    84. Hellboy - Wake the Devil - Mike Mignola (v. 2 graphic novel)
    85. Hellboy - Darkness Calls - Mike Mignola (v. 8 graphic novel)
    86. Mind of My Mind - Octavia Butler (in Seeds of Harvest)
    87. Clay's Ark - Octavia Butler (in Seeds of Harvest)
    88. Patternmaster - Octavia Butler (in Seeds of Harvest)
    89. Twilight - Stephanie Meyer
    90. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
    91. Parable of the Talents - Octavia Butler
    92. The Host - Stephanie Meyer
    93. Bloodchild and Other Stories - Octavia Butler
    94. Lover Enshrined - J.R. Ward
    95. Across the Wall - Garth Nix
    96. Phantom Prey - John Sandford
    97. Survivor - Octavia Butler
    98. Winter Study - Nevada Barr
    99. Bitten - Kelly Armstrong
    100. Exit Wounds - J.A. Jance
    101. Dead Wrong - J.A. Jance
    102. Halting State - Charles Stross
    103. Silver Screen - Justina Robson
    104. Swallowing Darkness - Laurel K. Hamilton
    105. Shakespeare's Trollop - Charlaine Harris
    106. Scent of Shadows - Vicki Peterson
    107. The Marriage of Sticks - Jonathan Carrol
    108. Moon Called - Patricia Briggs
    109. A Secret Rage - Charlaine Harris
    110. Shakespeare's Counsler - Charlaine Harris
    111. The Egypt Game - Zilpha Keatley Snyder
    112. A Cristmas Carol - Charles Dickens (annual reread)
    113. Angels and Other Strangers - Katherine Patterson (annual reread)
    114. Outlaws of Sherwood - Robin McKinley
    115. The Shining - Stephen King
    116. The Final Death (Anita Blake Graphic Novel)
    117. Tales of Beedle the Bard - J.K. Rowling (read stories to son as well)
     
    Chapter books read with Son
    1. Charlotte's Web - E.B. White (reread with son)
    2. Stuart Little - E.B. White (reread with son)
    3. Matilda - Roald Dahl (with son)
    4. Trumpet of the Swan - E.B. White (reread w/son)
    5. George's Marvelous Medicine - Roald Dahl (w/son)
    6 - 45. The Magic Treehouse series (v. 1-40)
    46. From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwiler - E.L. Koningsberg (reread with son)
    47. The Jungle Book - Rudyard Kipling (abridged, w/son)
    48. Who Really Killed Cock Robin - Jean Craighead George (reread w/son)
    49-60. The Magic School Bus Chapter Books (v. 1-4, 6-9, 11-13, 17)
    61. The Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum (w/R)
    62. Cam Janson an the Mystery of the Missing Dinosaur Bones - David Adler
    63. Transformers: The Search for the Allspark
     
    Started in 2007 or before, finished in 2008
    Dead to the World - Charlene Harris (2007)
    Les Mis - Victor Hugo (via LJ) (2007)
     
    In progress (if not started in 2008, starting year in parens)
    Divine Horsemen, The Living Gods of Haiti - Myra Deren(2006)
    Ulysses - James Joyce (2005)
    Jambalaya - L. Tisch (2007)
    Who Let the Dogs In - Molly Ivins
    Blood Lite (anthology)
    Shakespeare's Christmas - Charlaine Harris
     
    In progress with R
    The Magic School Bus Chapter Books (v. 10, 14)
     
    Island of the Could Not Finish
    Death of a Darklord - Laurel K. Hamilton
    Hand of Evil - J.A. Jance
    Children of Chaos - John C. Wright
    Black House - Steven King/Peter Straub (2007)
    Artimis Fowl - Eoin Coifer
    Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
    Septimus Heap Book 1: Magyk - Angie Sage
    Mr. Monk in Outer Space - Lee Goldberg
    Inkspell - Cornelia Funke
  4. emzebel
    After almost two decades of protests, my alma mater, the University of Illinois, has decided to retire its mascot "Chief Illiniwek". They will retain the name "Fighting Illini", desipite the fact that tribe that gives the state, and the Chief, and the sports teams their name, the Illiniwek tribe, were a peaceful tribe that didn't fight - which probably helped account for the fact that they were completely wiped out in earlier centuries.
     
    I'm taking the time to write about this because it is in part, the culmination of years of effort that I was a part of back in the early 1990s when I was a student at UofI. As a freshman and later I marched against the Chief, I met with the off-campus protesters. Somewhere I have the Daily Illini photo, not online, alas, of my sophomore year roomate and I holding up a banner bearing the admonishion - "What if the Pope were our mascot?", complete with little pope mugs and t-shirts. I think I still have the mug cut out somewhere as well.
     
    Robert Novak and his ilk are up in arms about the PC police and caving in to political pressure. But what this really should be about is basic respect. Respect for the people around you. Respect for Native Americans on campus and for the tribes who are portrayed in the Illiniwek dance.
     
    It's about time. And it's overdue.
  5. emzebel
    So, evidently I am going to primarily be using my blog for lists.
     
    This is a list of books I've read/started/finished/etc. in 2007. 'Cause, you know, it's the in thing.
     
    Read Entirely in 2007
    1. The Trolley to Yesterday - John Bellairs
    2. The Lamp from the Worlock's Tomb - John Bellairs
    3. Vengence of the Witchfinder - John Bellairs
    4. Doom of the Haunted Opera - John Bellairs
    5. The Secret of the Underground Room - John Bellairs
    6. The Great Snape Debate - Amy Berner, Orson Scott Card, Joyce Millman
    7. Kushiel's Dart - Jacqueline Carey
    8. Kushiel's Chosen - Jacqueline Carey
    9. Kushiel's Avatar - Jacqueline Carey
    10. Neverwhere - Mike Carey, Garth Ellis (graphic novel)
    11. Alice in Wonderland - Louis Carroll (reread for forum Book Club)
    12. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl (reread with son)
    13. The Witches - Roald Dahl (reading with son)
    14. A Christmas Carol and Other Stories - Charles Dickens (annual reread of ACC, first go round with "The Chimes" and "Cricket in the Hearth")
    15. Geek Love - Katherine Dunn
    16. Interworld - Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves
    17. Vanished - Tess Garretson
    18. Hell to Pay - Simon Green
    19. Guilty Pleasures - Laurel K. Hamilton
    20. The Laughing Corpse - LKH
    21. Circus of the Damned - LKH
    22. Bloody Bones - LKH
    23. The Killing Dance - LKH
    24. A Kiss of Shadows - LKH
    25. A Caress of Twilight - LKH
    26. Seduced by Moonlight - LKH
    27. A Stroke of Midnight - LKH
    28. Dead Until Dark - Charlene Harris
    29. Living Dead in Dallas - Charlene Harris
    30. Club Dead - Charlene Harris
    31. Dead Witch Walking - Kim Harrison
    32. The Good, the Bad, the Undead - Kim Harrison
    33. Every Which Way but Dead - Kim Harrison
    34. Fistfull of Charms - Kim Harrison
    35. Native Tongue - Carl Hasissian
    36. Injustice for All - J.A. Jance
    37. Trial by Fury - J.A. Jance
    38. Taking the Fifth - J.A. Jance
    39. Improbable Cause - J.A. Jance
    40. A More Perfect Union - J.A. Jance
    41. Dismissed With Prejudice - J.A. Jance
    42. Payment in Kind - J.A. Jance
    43. Without Due Process - J.A. Jance
    44. Failure to Appear - J.A. Jance
    45. Lying in Wait - J.A. Jance
    46. Breach of Duty - J.A. Jance
    47. Long Time Gone - J.A. Jance
    48. Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs - Chuck Klosterman
    49. Swordpoint - Ellen Kushner
    50. A Feast for Crows - George R.R. Martin
    51. The Hedge Knight (graphic novel) - George RR Martin
    52. Deerskin - Robyn McKinley
    53. The Hero and the Crown - Robyn McKinley
    54. Spindle's End - Robyn McKinley
    55. Sunshine - Robyn McKinley
    56. Moby Dick - Herman Melville (via LJ)
    57. V for Vendetta (graphic novel) - Alan Moore
    58. Sir Thursday (The Keys to the Kingdom) - Garth Nix
    59. Island of the Blue Dolphins - Scott O'Dell (reread from childhood)
    60. 3rd Degree - James Patterson
    61. 4th of July - James Patterson
    62. 5th Horseman - James Patterson
    63. Angels and Other Strangers - Katherine Patterson (reread from childhood)
    64. Clockwork - Phillip Pullman
    65. The Firework Maker's Daughter - Phillip Pullman
    66. The Antipope - Robert Rankin
    67. Brightonomicon - Robert Rankin
    68. Piece of My Heart - Peter Robinson
    69. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    70. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    71. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    72. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    73. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    74. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling (reread)
    75. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - JK Rowling (x2)
    76. Broken Prey - John Sandford
    77. Subterranean (Hellblazer novel) - John Shirley
    78. Perfume: Story of a Murderer - Patrick Suskind
    79. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
    80. Take the Cannoli - Sarah Vowell
    81. Dark Lover - J.R. Ward
    82. Lover Eternal - J.R. Ward
    83. Lover Awakened - J.R. Ward
    84. Lover Revealed - J.R. Ward
    85. Lover Unbound - J.R. Ward
    86. Fables: Arabian Nights (and Days) Graphic Novel v. 7 - Bill Willingham
    87. Fables: Wolves Graphic Novel v. 8 - Bill Willingham
    88. Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall Graphic Novel (prequel) - Bill Willingham
    89. Lord of Light - Roger Zalany
     
    Started in 2006 or before, finished in 2007
    Fragile Things - Neil Gaiman
    The Neverending Story - Michael Ende
    Cages - Dave McKeon (2005)
    Life of Pi (originally started in 2005, completely restarted because I lost the book and refound it!)
     
    In progress (if not started in 2007, starting year in parens)
    Divine Horsemen, The Living Gods of Haiti - Myra Deren(2006)
    Ulysses - James Joyce (2005)
    Les Mis - Victor Hugo (via LJ)
    Jambalaya - L. Tisch
    Black House - Steven King/Peter Straub
    Dead to the World - Charlene Harris
     
    The island of the just couldn't finish
    Haunted - Chuck Palonick
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