21 April, 2009

Meme: A Life in Pages

2009-04-21T21:00:00-05:00Book Reports|4 Comments

1. What author do you own the most books by?
Anne McCaffrey. One of my favorite authors since I was about 10 years old.

2. What book do you own the most copies of?
I try not to have multiples of the same title. I have too many books already. I know we have 2 copies of the last Harry Potter book because Andy and I wanted to read it at the same time.

3. What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
Justin de Quincy from Sharon Kay Penman’s mysteries, Remus Lupin

4. What book have you read more than any other?
Moreta by Anne McCaffrey

5. What was your favorite book when you were 10 years old?
The Talking Parcel by Gerald Durrell

6. What is the worst book you’ve read in the past year?
I don’t know about worst. Most disappointing was The Mysterious Benedict Society. Lost Interest: The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde. Usually if it’s bad, I stop reading.

7. What is the best book you’ve read in the past year?
One best? The Sanctuary books by Deanna Rayborn, several by Georgette Heyer, Jean Plaidy

8. If you could tell everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
Ack. Hard to choose. Anything I have mentioned that you haven’t read.

9. What is the most difficult book you’ve ever read?
Les Miserables

10. Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
French

11. Shakespeare, Milton, or Chaucer?
Shakespeare.

12. Austen or Eliot?
Austen 100%.

13. What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
The Great Gatsby. Seems like everyone has to read this and I managed to get by without it being required anywhere.

14. What is your favorite novel?
I don’t have 1 favorite. The things I re-read the most are Harry Potter, Anne McCaffrey, Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, Guy Gavriel Kay, Robin McKinley.

15. What is your favorite play?
Midsummer Night’s Dream.

16. What is your favorite poem?
Favorite poet: ee cummings. I think my favorite of his is
“somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond”

17. What is your favorite essay?
I am not sure I have a favorite.

18. What is your favorite short story?
I don’t read a lot of short stories either. A Sherlock Holmes, maybe.

19. What is your favorite non-fiction?
I love field guides. I don’t read a lot of non-fiction.

20. What is your favorite graphic novel?
Those Left Behind (Firefly)

21. What is your favorite science fiction?
The Hawk’s Grey Feather by Patricia Kennealy, The Summer Tree Trilogy by Guy Gavriel Kay (sci-fi/fantasy mix). Strictly science fiction I like Jack McDevitt.

22. Who is your favorite writer?
Just One?? I have mentioned quite a few.

23. Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
Stephanie Meyer.

24. What are you reading right now?
Dissolution by C.J. Sansom

25. Best memoir?
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot

26. Best history?
I prefer historical fiction. Anything by Sharon Kay Penman.

27. Best mystery or noir?
And Only to Deceive by Tasha Alexander, Joliffe Mysteries by Margaret Frazer, Brother Cadfael Mysteries by Ellis Peters

And what about you?

31 March, 2009

Book Reports

2009-03-31T22:22:00-05:00Book Reports|2 Comments

It has been a while since I filled you in on my reading list. I ran out of new books and did a bunch of re-reading for a while there.

I cruised through:
Dragon Prince and Star Scroll by Melanie Rawn. I have read them each at least 5 times. As I have said before anything with dragons is usually good enough for me. These have some good characters and a unique interaction with magic that I like. (I am pretty sure my sister B has read them 20 times). There are more in the series.

Then The Hawk’s Grey Feather by Patricia Kennealy. An Arthurian based story, told from Talesin’s point of view. Celtic influences but with starships. Good stuff. First in a trilogy. I have read them half a dozen times at least.

Then I got an Amazon gift certificate for my birthday and ordered Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Allison Goodman. Cheesy title and dumb cover art kept me from buying it before. But a recommendation from Bookshelves of Doom (who has very similar taste in books to mine!) convinced me to order it. Read her summary, she does a beautiful job. I liked it a lot. I look forward to reading more.

Another recommendation from Bookshelves lead me to Silent in the Grave by Deanna Rayborn. I LOVE these books. I am in the middle of the second one right now. Historical mysteries. I have read some who criticize them for not being historically accurate enough, but who cares? The characters are highly entertaining and the mystery itself had many twists which I didn’t expect. Thoroughly entertaining and at points witty enough to make me chuckle out loud. I did have an interesting deja-vu moment – the first book has many parallels to Tasha Alexander’s And Only to Deceive. Similar characters and a couple of familiar situations that they find themselves in.

17 February, 2009

Book report: The Mysterious Benedict Society

2009-02-17T15:54:00-06:00Book Reports|1 Comment

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Enjoyable Read? Yes
Would I read it again? No.
This one was really just fluff. I enjoyed the story, I liked the characters, I finished it with no strong feeling either way. It reminded me at times of the Lemony Snicket series, which I did like but didn’t love. The premise of this one is that a group of super smart kids (orphans) get together to invade a school, run by the bad guy, and foil his plot to take over the world. Things work put pretty much how you would expect – a couple of twists where someone turns out to be someone else, heroes that didn’t like each other at the beginning end up being friends, the orphans find families.

3 February, 2009

Book Reports: Dragonheart, Chalice, To Hold the Crown

2009-02-03T14:41:00-06:00Book Reports|1 Comment

DragonHeart by Todd McCaffrey

I have loved Anne McCaffrey since I was about 10 years old. Her son Todd is just as good. He has taken over writing stories set in the dragon-filled universe that she created. I read this in one day.

Chalice by Robin McKinley

Another author that I usually love. Her Spindle’s End is one of my favorites. I had seen Chalice mentioned on several blogs I read. It is, in fact, mentioned on Anne McCaffrey’s blog. Go figure. Anyhow. It is a lovely story with an interesting premise. It wasn’t action packed but it made me smile.

To Hold the Crown by Jean Plaidy

Jean Plaidy books never disappoint. This one is the story of Henry VII, father of Henry VIII. It covers from about the time of his marriage to his death. Surprisingly, I found this copy at Target, but I think given the popularity of the Tudors (Other Boleyn Girl, The Tudors), they are stocking some unusual titles. Henry VII was neurotic about losing his crown and Henry VIII was ready to take over at age 10. The only disappointing thing for me is that a good portion of this book switched the focus to Katharine of Aragon. I read Plaidy’s Katharine recently and felt as though this book borrowed a lot from that. Both great, but don’t read them back to back.

20 January, 2009

Book Report: Flora Segunda

2009-01-20T21:14:00-06:00Book Reports|1 Comment

Just finished reading Flora Segunda by Ysabeau Wilce, around watching inauguration coverage. This one took me a while to get in to it. I felt like the beginning was trying too hard to introduce too many unusual things -like setting the stage was a little bit contrived. The story itself is a coming of age kind of thing. Fourteen year old girl finding her place and her individuality- I don’t want to give away story details. But the magical world she lives in is an interesting one, and by the first third of the book I was sucked in. I will look for the sequel.

14 January, 2009

Reading Log

2009-01-14T22:42:00-06:00Book Reports|4 Comments

I am going to try again and blog the books I read. I would love to keep track – I read a lot (usually several at once) and so I think I will talk about them as I finish them. The first read of the new year was actually a re-read: Jane and the Stillroom Maid, by Stephanie Barron. I love this whole series – mysteries starring Jane Austen. I needed something to read with lunch one day and just pulled this off the shelf. I love the language and the flavor of Austen. I am not a purist, I will read just about anything that is related to Jane Austen’s work.

Book number two: The Other Queen
by Philippa Gregory. Another subject I will read almost anything about is Queen Elizabeth. This book is told from the perspective of three different characters, alternating between them with every chapter. It is mostly the story of Mary Queen of Scots while she was imprisoned by Elizabeth. The narrators are Mary and the Lord and Lady Shrewsbury who were her supervisors while she was being held. Philippa Gregory’s books have been hit and miss for me – I loved the Boleyn ones and really didn’t like the Wideacre ones. This one was a hit for me.

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