Hm. This is a bit overdue, eh? Looks like that reading resolution has fallen right in the crapper.
RESOLUTION TITLES READ IN SEPTEMBER: 0
NON-RESOLUTION TITLES READ IN SEPTEMBER: 4
Brown, Dan. The Lost Symbol
Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games
Maitland, Karen. Company of Liars
Simmons, Dan. A Winter Haunting
TOTAL TITLES READ IN SEPTEMBER: 4
CURRENT RESOLUTION PROGRESS: 33 / 88
TOTAL BOOKS READ IN 2009: 55
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
An unconventional, unsettling ghost story
Her Fearful SymmetryAudrey Niffenegger
I've recently had the pleasure of reviewing Audrey Niffenegger's latest novel for Pajiba.
I adored The Time-Traveler's Wife, so I was eager to see what her latest effort was all about.
While it doesn't reach the heights of TTTW, Her Fearful Symmetry is both intriguing and unsettling. To read my full review, kindly click here.
In a nutshell: Compelling and moving, with a truly unforgettable ending. Everyone won't like it, but everyone will have an opinion about it.
Bibliolatry Scale: 4 out of 6 stars
FTCBS: I received a copy of Her Fearful Symmetry from the publisher.
I adored The Time-Traveler's Wife, so I was eager to see what her latest effort was all about.
While it doesn't reach the heights of TTTW, Her Fearful Symmetry is both intriguing and unsettling. To read my full review, kindly click here.
In a nutshell: Compelling and moving, with a truly unforgettable ending. Everyone won't like it, but everyone will have an opinion about it.
Bibliolatry Scale: 4 out of 6 stars
FTCBS: I received a copy of Her Fearful Symmetry from the publisher.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Fall Festival Recipe Exchange
Yay! It's time for the Fall Festival Recipe Exchange, hosted by My Friend Amy!
Disclaimer: This recipe, while yummy, is not my own. Actually, such a disclaimer is probably a good endorsement of the recipe's yumminess, if you knew my cooking skills.
Follow this link for more awesome recipes by FoodieFarmgirl. Follow this link to see both Amy's recipe and links to other participants.
Disclaimer: This recipe, while yummy, is not my own. Actually, such a disclaimer is probably a good endorsement of the recipe's yumminess, if you knew my cooking skills.
Follow this link for more awesome recipes by FoodieFarmgirl. Follow this link to see both Amy's recipe and links to other participants.
Enjoy!
Farmgirl's Spicy Pumpkin Pecan Raisin Muffins
Makes about 18 large muffins (or dozens of small muffins)
INGREDIENTS
1 cup raisins
3/4 cup orange juice
3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg (slightly less if freshly grated)
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup (2 sticks) margarine or butter, melted*
1 cup golden brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup honey
3 eggs
1 15-ounce can packed pumpkin (or 1 pound fresh pumpkin puree)
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (toasted if desired)
DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place raisins and orange juice in a small bowl and microwave for 2 minutes; set aside. Grease muffin tins.
Combine flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a large bowl and set aside. Combine margarine, brown sugar, honey, and eggs in a large bowl and mix well. Stir in pumpkin. Gently fold in dry ingredients, alternating with the raisin/juice mixture. Stir in the pecans.
Generously fill muffin tins. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. (Bake baby muffins about 15 minutes.) Cool muffins in tins for 15 minutes, then remove from tins and serve warm, or let cool on wire racks. Store in an airtight container for up to three days or freeze.
*Lowfat version: Simply omit 1/2 cup (1 stick) of the margarine or butter.
Monday, October 05, 2009
Strength does not come from physical capacity, but from an indomitable will
InfectedScott Sigler
I don't remember how I heard about Scott Sigler's Infected, but whoever it is, I owe you a solid. Sigler combines an intelligent premise with fast-paced plot -- and he's got some serious writing chops to boot.
Alien seeds land on earth, most ineffectively falling to the ground or swept away by the weather. A lucky few, however, land on a couple of very unlucky individuals. In time, these seeds grow and evolve, probing deep into the human body. The infected, for their part, at first notice a rash which soon becomes an itchy, triangular growth that is an eerie blue color. Soon, these growths take on a life of their own...literally. It isn't long before the infected become violent, homicidal maniacs driven insane by the voices in their heads.
Thankfully, the CIA is on the case. Agent Dew Phillips seeks to find newly infected persons before they butcher both themselves and their families. CDC epidemiologist Margaret Montoya hopes to discover how to stop these triangles, which dissolve into a gooey mess not long after the host's death. Finally, former football player Perry Dawsey, who might be the best anti-hero ever created, finds himself infected -- and will stop at nothing to free himself from the triangles.
Sidenote: Dear Perry, please be real, and please come hang. We have lots of beer. You are teh awesome. xoxoxo
Anyway.
Infected explores the seeds burgeoning development, moving from mindless probes to sentient beings. There's a lot of science here, but it never feels that way. Infected is intelligent and believable. It's more than a little hair-raising. Equally pleasing, however, is the writing. This isn't a great story with bland writing -- Infected's got it all. As soon as I finished, I started Contagious, the sequel. I just can't get enough.
In a nutshell: Well written, perfectly paced, and a gripping premise -- what else could you ask for? Oh, yeah: no more triangles in the eyeball, please. I have a thing about eyeballs. Otherwise, we're cool.
Bibliolatry Scale: 5.5 out of 6 stars
Alien seeds land on earth, most ineffectively falling to the ground or swept away by the weather. A lucky few, however, land on a couple of very unlucky individuals. In time, these seeds grow and evolve, probing deep into the human body. The infected, for their part, at first notice a rash which soon becomes an itchy, triangular growth that is an eerie blue color. Soon, these growths take on a life of their own...literally. It isn't long before the infected become violent, homicidal maniacs driven insane by the voices in their heads.
Thankfully, the CIA is on the case. Agent Dew Phillips seeks to find newly infected persons before they butcher both themselves and their families. CDC epidemiologist Margaret Montoya hopes to discover how to stop these triangles, which dissolve into a gooey mess not long after the host's death. Finally, former football player Perry Dawsey, who might be the best anti-hero ever created, finds himself infected -- and will stop at nothing to free himself from the triangles.
Sidenote: Dear Perry, please be real, and please come hang. We have lots of beer. You are teh awesome. xoxoxo
Anyway.Infected explores the seeds burgeoning development, moving from mindless probes to sentient beings. There's a lot of science here, but it never feels that way. Infected is intelligent and believable. It's more than a little hair-raising. Equally pleasing, however, is the writing. This isn't a great story with bland writing -- Infected's got it all. As soon as I finished, I started Contagious, the sequel. I just can't get enough.
In a nutshell: Well written, perfectly paced, and a gripping premise -- what else could you ask for? Oh, yeah: no more triangles in the eyeball, please. I have a thing about eyeballs. Otherwise, we're cool.
Bibliolatry Scale: 5.5 out of 6 stars
Thursday, October 01, 2009
An open letter to Melanie Benjamin
Alice I Have BeenMelanie Benjamin
Dear Ms. Benjamin,
I know Alice I Have Been won't be published until January, so I hope you don't mind my impertinence by discussing your book so far before its publication date. Unfortunately, I just can't wait. It's that good.
True, I am predisposed to liking things that in any way involve Charles Dodgson, but I think my affinity for the man and his (hopefully) misunderstood fascination with children would lend me a keener critical eye. In fact, yes, I think that is so. My praise, therefore, is all the more difficult to secure. Sure, let's go with that.
It must be noted that I finished your novel a few weeks ago, and my praise remains undimmed. My reactions remain unchanged. I deemed Alice perfect immediately upon finishing it, and I still deem it so today.
The truth is, Alice I Have Been was one of the most enchanting, most moving books I've ever read. Alice Liddell comes alive in your novel, and watching the young girl transform into an elderly woman was both utterly riveting and totally realistic. Although I'm sure much of your work was a creative reimagining of events, the story never felt false. More importantly, Alice never felt false. It seemed as though she herself had written a memoir of her life, so totally did you capture her voice and her life. Perhaps that is the greatest compliment I can give.
However, I must make clear that Alice I Have Been is an excellent story on its own, regardless of the characters' connections to a famous author or another literary work. In fact, your novel does stand on its own, for at its core it is simply a moving story of a life blighted by the scrutiny of others.
My biggest complaint is that I received this book through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program; while it is debatable that I would have heard of your novel otherwise, I can't help but feel chagrined when I see the ARC. Yours is a novel for which a quality copy is a must. That's okay -- your Alice, like her previous incarnations, won't be easily forgotten.
I wish you nothing but the biggest success with Alice I Have Been. It is more than a story of a young woman famous for her relationship with an older man. You have brought Alice to life and, in the process, allowed readers to find themselves in her.
In a nutshell: Simply enchanting, entirely captivating: this book should be preordered immediately.
Bibliolatry Scale: 6 out of 6 stars
I know Alice I Have Been won't be published until January, so I hope you don't mind my impertinence by discussing your book so far before its publication date. Unfortunately, I just can't wait. It's that good.
True, I am predisposed to liking things that in any way involve Charles Dodgson, but I think my affinity for the man and his (hopefully) misunderstood fascination with children would lend me a keener critical eye. In fact, yes, I think that is so. My praise, therefore, is all the more difficult to secure. Sure, let's go with that.
It must be noted that I finished your novel a few weeks ago, and my praise remains undimmed. My reactions remain unchanged. I deemed Alice perfect immediately upon finishing it, and I still deem it so today.
The truth is, Alice I Have Been was one of the most enchanting, most moving books I've ever read. Alice Liddell comes alive in your novel, and watching the young girl transform into an elderly woman was both utterly riveting and totally realistic. Although I'm sure much of your work was a creative reimagining of events, the story never felt false. More importantly, Alice never felt false. It seemed as though she herself had written a memoir of her life, so totally did you capture her voice and her life. Perhaps that is the greatest compliment I can give.
However, I must make clear that Alice I Have Been is an excellent story on its own, regardless of the characters' connections to a famous author or another literary work. In fact, your novel does stand on its own, for at its core it is simply a moving story of a life blighted by the scrutiny of others.My biggest complaint is that I received this book through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program; while it is debatable that I would have heard of your novel otherwise, I can't help but feel chagrined when I see the ARC. Yours is a novel for which a quality copy is a must. That's okay -- your Alice, like her previous incarnations, won't be easily forgotten.
I wish you nothing but the biggest success with Alice I Have Been. It is more than a story of a young woman famous for her relationship with an older man. You have brought Alice to life and, in the process, allowed readers to find themselves in her.
In a nutshell: Simply enchanting, entirely captivating: this book should be preordered immediately.
Bibliolatry Scale: 6 out of 6 stars
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