Lost in a Pyramid or the Mummy's Curse (Louisa May Alcott)

In order to help me find more books to fill my shelves, I hired two assistants--an Arabic Egyptian named Ahmed and a Londoner named Kilbronson.  Together, we hope to track down as many classic mummy stories as we can.  

Within a day, they had already brought me a goodish pile, and this one was towards the top of the list.  It's a little-known gem by Louisa May Alcott (you know, of Little Women fame?).  Now, I'll start this review my admitting that I'm not in love with this book cover.  But, that's the cover that Goodreads used, so that's the one that I'm going to use, too.

So, let's talk about this mummy chiller.  Finally, we have a mummy that's not completely sweet and charming!  Ironically, though, the mummy doesn't do too much on her own.  Of course, as always, there are spoilers ahead, so read at your own risk.

In this story, a man gives his girlfriend some seeds, telling her that he cannot share their origin, because that story is too terrible to recount.  She pushes back slightly and the man folds like a cheap suit and tells her everything.

And everything, in this context, is a story about he and his friend made a bunch of stupid decisions, got lost in a pyramid, and burned a mummy in order to create a smoke signal for their rescuers to follow.  Apparently, the mummy they burned was buried with a small box of seeds close to her breast, and of course, there's not only a curse on the seeds, there's a curse on her, too--because she's a sorceress.

If you're confused, it's okay.  So was I.  Two friends burn an Egyptian sorceress's mummy in order to create a smoke signal and bring about her wrath is not a usual story that you'd expect to find.  But, here's where it gets crazy.  The girlfriend suggests planting the sorceress's seeds.  In protest, her boyfriend throws them into the fire, only to reveal later that he had saved one of the seeds and had his friend plant it.  And the girlfriend reveals that she did the same thing.

Against all better judgement, friend and girlfriend decide to wear their flowers on their person, and the flower's deadly poison (a mummy's curse?) seeps into their skin and kills them.  Shock and horror abound!

I guess I'd have to admit that I saw the ending coming--after a point.  And while I enjoyed this story, it was too short to really sink my teeth into.  The biggest thing that stood out to me is the continual line of terrible decisions being made by all the characters involved.

Cheers to my assistants for starting things off with a bang.  I'll keep you all posted on the other titles they send my way.

Moby Dick Summer

 

As all my lovely readers know, my theme for summer reading is 100% going to be about mummies.  My summer reading themes, however, are only a portion of my summer reading--and I'll read other books in-between.  One of those "other" books this year is Moby-Dick.

Last year, I tried reading along with the Substack, Moby Dick Summer.  I had a great time, but came in a bit late, so it was a constant game of "catch up" for me.  I really enjoyed the book, though, which is surprising, since I had tried to read it multiple times before and hated it.  In the end, it got me through some very difficult times and I'm very excited to read it again.

I hope you'll join me!

Reading Challenge 2023

Merry Christmas, everyone!

While I have a few moments of unexpected solitude, I thought it might be fun to share my plans for the coming year.  As longtime readers know, I love to read, and every year I try some sort of reading challenge.  I usually do well, but I never finish, so this time, I'm trying something a little bit different.

Past attempts have seen me using a book for as many prompts as I could.  Other years, each book can only complete one prompt.  I've tried starting in December.  I've tried keeping track on paper.  I've tried keeping track online.  And this time, I think I found the magic solution.

I desperately want to whittle down my TBR list, so I'm going to try and take books from that list exclusively.  And in order to do that, and to make sure that I don't get stuck throughout the year, I've started putting together a list of books (from my TBR) that fit each prompt.  I've done something similar in the past, where I had one or two books selected.  But, this year, I've got lists upwards of 10 titles to choose from for each prompt.  There should be no way that I'll be at a loss for titles to fit my mood!

I'm combining PopSugar's Reading Challenge with three others I found online, plus one I made up (a book title for each color of the rainbow).  It's going to be a real challenge, but I'm very excited.

To keep me on track, each month, at the end of the month, I'll post a list of all the books I read and the prompts they fulfilled (with a small description of the book and my thoughts).  So, keep your eyes peeled throughout the year, for 12 book prompt reading lists!

I'll start the festivities off on January 1st.  We're looking at 173 prompts.

I hope you'll join me in sharing your reading selections (and reading challenge prompts) in the comments throughout the year!

Thank you for being a part of my ramblings!

♥Emmy

Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Samuel Taylor Coleridge)

The next time the Arabella docks, there's a wedding.  We all clamber down the boat onto the shore, hands laden with gifts-- golds, jewels, and pearls--for the happy bride and groom.  Up ahead is the best man.  But, what's this?  Someone steps from the shadow of a doorway and stops him before he can enter into the feasting hall.  Let's step a bit closer and see if we can hear what they are talking about.

The stranger from the shadows is a grizzled old sailor, or mariner, with a grip like iron.  He's clutching at the wedding guest's arm, and the guest is struggling to get away.  Let's step a little closer still, to see if we can hear what they're talking about...

The mariner shares his story, about how he was once sailing on a ship, and how the ship's luck took a terrible turn after he shot and killed an albatross that was flying around them and hanging out with the sailors.  Of course, no one could have realized the terrible bad luck that this would bring down upon their heads, but soon enough a thick fog blankets the water, and another ship appears, bringing with it two terrible passengers.

I read this back in high school and absolutely loved it.  Reading it again now was a special treat, as it had been...well, years since I had read it last.  The pacing, the tone the rhyming, it was all excellent.  Besides being an interesting story, this is just a genuinely fun piece to read.  4 of 5 stars on Goodreads.

The Sea Fairies (L. Frank Baum)

Our first stop aboard the Arabella is actually underwater.  So, we're going to lower the anchor and prepare ourselves to leap overboard.  This is The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum.  The story is centered around a young girl named Trot and her friend, a grizzled old sailor named Cap'n Bill.  One day, as Cap'n Bill is explaining to Trot how no one has ever seen a mermaid and lived to tell of it, a mermaid appears and tells the pair that she had heard what they said, and that the mermaids all agree that they want to prove Cap'n Bill wrong.  After some slight hesitation, Trot and Cap'n Bill jump out of the boat, exchanging their legs for tails, and go on a deep-sea adventure.

Your captain (that's me) will freely admit that I did not finish this book.  I read it back in grade school a couple of times, and remembered liking it.  But, reading it again, I was struck by how slow it was.  While as a child, I would have been dazzled by the beauty of this underwater world, and all the amazing sights to be seen, as an adult, I kept checking my watch, or skimming, or even dozing off in the sunshine while I waited for something, anything to happen.  C'mon, I thought to myself, let's have someone get eaten by a sea monster or get trapped in an underwater cave or something!  But, nothing happened.  Until about 120 pages in, when the evil sorcerer plot started up.  But, by that point, I was kind of done, so I pulled my bookmark and moved on to new adventures.

Summer Reading 2021

All aboard the good ship Arabella (named for the ship in Rafael Sabatini's adventure story, Captain Blood).  Today, I want to talk about my Summer Reading theme for the year: A Summer at Sea. 

So, I know what you're thinking.  Yeah, yeah, this is one of Emmy's summer reading posts that never amounts to anything.  And, yes.  You're probably right.  But, this year, I'm really going to try.  I'm going to actually have a theme and stick with it.  And it's going to be awesome!

So, as I said, this year's theme is A Summer at Sea.  Not to be confused with any of my previous Summer Reading themes:

• 2010: Gothic Novels
• 2011: Scary Stories and Mythical Monsters
• 2012: A Summer in Middle Earth
• 2013: Summer School
• 2014: It's a Mystery!
• 2015: To Read or Not to Read
• 2016: Professional Fan-Fiction
• 2017: [Skipped this year]
• 2018: Monster Mash
• 2019: [Skipped this year]
• 2020: [Skipped this year]
• 2021: A Summer at Sea

As I've attempted in previous years, I'll provide lists of the books I'm reading as well as reviews.  If you want to see EVERYTHING I read, you can check out my Goodreads account here.

So, toss on your rain slickers, hoist the mainsail, and raise the anchor, because we're going out to sea!

Telephone Book Club and the Death of Sherlock Holmes

The other day, my grandpa and I finished reading Favorite Sherlock Holmes Detective Stories.  It was a lot of fun.  I personally love the Sherlock Holmes stories, and he had been wanting to read some more mysteries.  It was a win-win for both of us.  Everything went fine for most of the book.  I'm pretty sure he dozed off during "Silver Blaze," although I didn't particularly mind, since that was never my favorite, and in general, good times were had by all.  But...then, we got to "The Final Problem".  You know the one.  Sherlock Holmes reveals that most of the biggest crimes in London were being orchestrated by one man, weaving his web in the shadows: Professor Moriarty.  And of course, Holmes is *this* close to capturing him and ending his reign of terror forever.

But, Moriarty is easily Holmes's equal in brainpower and deductive reasoning.  And he has figured out what Holmes is up to.  So, what soon follows is a game of cat and mouse that culminates at Reichenbach Falls.  Watson gets pulled away on a fool's errand only to return once the final fight has ended.  Holmes and Moriarty have gone over the falls.

It was an incredibly emotional story, and reading it out loud made me realize just how intense it really was.  Reading to someone is so much more than just reciting something.  It's a performance.  You need inflection, and sometimes voices.  You get really invested in the story.  I found myself reading slowly, with lots of feeling and emotion.  It was probably my best reading yet.  

And I closed the book, and announced, as I do after every short story, "...and that's the end of 'The Final Problem'."  He was quiet on the other end, and for a moment, I wondered if he had fallen asleep.  Finally, he said, "So...Sherlock Holmes and this Moriarty fella.  Did he die?"

Of course I knew that this was not the end.  I've read all the Sherlock Holmes stories, and I knew that Conan Doyle killed off the detective because he wanted the freedom to write something else.  So, I told him with a smile in my voice what really happened.  That this was supposed to be the end, but after a huge public outcry, he had to bring the detective back. 

"Well, then," he said, "There's one more story in the book.  Is that the one about how he comes back?"

It wasn't, and I told him so.  But, I told him that I could totally get it for him and read it in a few days.  He was surprised, but delighted.  And when we finally did read it, it was awesome.

Reading with My Grandpa 2

Due to our schedules, my grandpa and I had to take two days off from our reading.  And when we were back on the phone together, it was very clear that he missed me. We talked for way longer than we have on our previous nights, which meant that I missed out on getting ice cream with the rest of my family (to be fair, they decided not to go without me, but I still felt kinda bad).  But, even so, we had a wonderful time.

The book is nearing its end.  We have about four more days of reading to go.  I'm going to suggest we continue on with a different book when we finish this one.

Reading with My Grandpa

I was very close to my grandma.  Towards the end of her life, she suffered from Parkinson's, did not emote, and could not speak.  But, I loved our weekly visits and always looked forward to them.  It was such a special thing that we had together, but I'll be honest, most of my friends and coworkers didn't understand when I'd tell them about it.  About how I'd arrive full of the stresses of the day, but leave two hours later as calm and relaxed as could be.  She had such a presence, such elegance, for someone who could barely communicate.  And after visiting for a while, I began to understand her moods and little gestures.  She "spoke" in her own way, and it was not that hard to understand her if you actually tried.

Now, my grandpa and I have not been close since I was a little kid.  We used to play cards together, color Easter eggs, share jokes, play games... But, we don't really talk much anymore.  So, when my mom told me that there was a book he had been wanting to read, but couldn't (he's legally blind), and since he was bored being stuck in quarantine (he's not sick, but his building is on lock-down), I agreed to read it to him over the phone.

I wasn't expecting anything monumental, and I don't think he was, either.  We began the phone conversation with him telling me that if I wanted, I could just read the book to myself, and then update him on what it was about.  But, I suggested that we do one day of reading and then decide how to proceed.  He loved it and asked when I could call again.  Today was day two, and we read even more than yesterday (I'm good for about half and hour, but this was easily an hour).  We're already looking forward to tomorrow.

Uncle Dynamite

If you were to ask me who my favorite author is, I couldn't answer you.  Choosing one favorite author is like choosing your favorite child.  There are just too many excellent writers out there, and I love each one for something different.  But, if I was going to pick one, Wodehouse would certainly be in the running for the best.

I very rarely "laugh out loud" when I'm reading a book.  I might smirk or even chuckle, but I don't laugh out loud.  Wodehouse makes me laugh, though.  Sometimes, I'll laugh until I cry.  When I need a good pick-me-up, I pick up a Wodehouse book.  There's nothing like one of his gut-busters when you're feeling sour.

I've not been feeling sour, per se, but I've been feeling cooped up.  So, when my dear friend  Shay said that she was reading one of the books I'd given her last year (I had passed along a couple of my precious Wodehouse titles when shelving got a bit too tight), I thought it might be worth checking out one myself.  And since she was reading Uncle Dynamite, I thought that I would, too.  The problem is that of course, I had given my copy to her.

But, remember how I talked about Hoopla and other ebook systems in one of my last posts?  Well, Hoopla had Wodehouse on audiobook.  And I remembered that as a lonely teenager, I would spend hours pouring over Wodehouse's books, and I discovered the brilliant Jonathan Cecil's narrations.  Even though I didn't particularly like audiobooks, I liked him, so I started to listen to anything that the library had to offer.  And wouldn't you know it, years later, I found that Hoopla had 30+ Wodehouse books read by none other!

So, of course, I downloaded Uncle Dynamite.  And goodness gracious!  I was not disappointed.  The magic had not been lost.  I had a delightful time.  It was so much fun!  The voices, the pacing...Cecil even includes little vocal cues, like braying laughs, or someone choking on a muffin!

But, what is Uncle Dynamite about?  Anyone who has read a Wodehouse book knows that there are always multiple intertwining subplots that make it hard to answer this question.  So, instead, I'll give you a short list of some of the things you can look forward to in such a book.    You'll find love triangles, American girls, Brazilian explorers, mistaken identity, smuggled jewels, and plots to punch policeman.  There are impoverished publishers, scheming uncles, and bonny baby contests.  In short, it's a lot of fun!  While this one didn't have me in tears, it certainly had me in stitches the way that only Wodehouse can do.  I learned about halfway through the book, it was #2 in the Uncle Fred series (for some reason, I thought this was book 1), but as with any Wodehouse tale, you can generally jump right into the series wherever you want.  You'll still be able to follow along just fine.

What I'm Reading

What are YOU reading?  During this time of social distancing (or as my boss put it, physical distancing), many of us are locked up at home, looking for something to do.  What a great time to bust out your To-Read list!

Not actually me.  Sorry to disappoint!

As for me, I'm relying on a few different resources, including my own personal book collection, titles I grabbed from the library before we closed, and lots of ebooks.  I know I've been staunchly anti-ebook, but since getting a smartphone (welcome to the 21st century, Emmy!) I've started to appreciate the convenience of an expanded digital library.

My library (along with many libraries across the country) offers access to ebooks through several ebook systems.  I like to use Hoopla and Libby (by Overdrive).  I can check out books, audiobooks, movies, music, and comics through these resources!  And if you're interested in ebooks but don't want to use the library, I have two apps to suggest.

The first is Free Books.  And just as the title suggests, it's free books.  Most of them are classics or out-of-print, but MAN!  You can find some really cool stuff on here!  The best part is that you can download everything onto your device for reading offline, and its yours to keep.  I recommend starting with The Abandoned Room by Charles Wadsworth Camp.  It's a chilling story of murder, ghosts, and missing time.

The second is sort of a combo.  Project Gutenberg has an amazing collection of excellent Classics available to read for free on their website.  But, their app leaves a lot to be desired.  So, what I do is download the books I want from Project Gutenberg onto my phone, and open them with this app: ReadEra.  I've played around with a few different eReader apps, and this is my favorite.

Of course, I still prefer the feeling of paper pages between my fingers.  And I'm still reading physical books.  As I teased in the title of this post, I'm reading a lot right now.  If you want to see all the sweet details, follow me on Goodreads.  But, I'll share my Currently Reading list with you right now.

In an effort to find something a little more fun and happy, I picked up a few Wodehouse titles.  Got Mike at Wrykyn by PG Wodehouse sitting on the desk next to me as I write.  I'm also listening to the audiobook for another Wodehouse title: Uncle Dynamite.  The narrator is Jonathan Cecil, who's my favorite audiobook reader.  I was super excited to see that there are 30+ Wodehouse books narrated by him on Hoopla, so if you're interested, be sure to check him out!

And finally, I have one ebook in the works-- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.  I read it as a kid, but that was years (and many books) ago, so I don't remember much.  It's been fun getting to relive the experience.

A Return to the Blog??

So....It's been a while since I've actually, really blogged on here.  And I'm not sure how many of you readers are still out there. But, on the off chance that some of you lovely people are still floating around (and you know who you are!), I thought I'd try to resurrect the old blog.

I've recently come to the conclusion that I need to read more of the classics.  Modern books just aren't doing it for me the way they used to, and I'm finding that I'm generally frustrated with weak plot twists, poorly written romance, and just general drivel.  Not saying that all contemporary writers are bad, but lately, I've been picking all the bad ones.

Those of you who follow me on Goodreads (I'm linking my account if you want to follow me) might know that I'm in a book group called "Catching up on Classics, where we read...the classics.  (I'm also linking that here).  We have four or five titles a month, and it's really a lot of fun.

When I first started this blog, I would write about the books I was reading for school (and for fun).  I miss doing that, so this is going to be my attempt at starting up again.  Ideally, I'll write about the books I'm reading, including supplementary information, like videos, articles, and other readers' reviews.  It should be a lot of fun!

I miss blogging, and I miss you all.   If you're still out there (and again, my most devoted blogging friends know who they are!) I would love to start up the conversation again!

Reflection

The weather was much cooler today than it has been.  It's already starting to feel like fall, even though we're about a month away.  I sat outside after dinner and did some reading, but I'm not used to these chillier temperatures yet, and my toes were freezing in my flip-flops.

The other day, my coworkers were joking about getting me a boyfriend, and I was quick to discourage the idea.  But, it would be nice.  I'm nearly thirty and still single.  I have not had anyone who made an impression on me in a while--I mean really made an impression, like made me think I could actually see a future with him--not since Movie Boy, and that was five or so years ago.

I feel a little sad, and I'm not sure if it's because I'm lonely or just nostalgic for the changing leaves.

Bird Box (Josh Malerman)

There is something out there.  If you see it, you go insane, kill everyone around you, and then kill yourself.  No one knows what it is, or how it can be stopped.  All they know is that you cannot look at it or you'll die.

I had heard about this book a few years ago, and meant to read it.  I actually started it a few times, but never finished.  I guess it just wasn't the right time.  But with my "Monster Mash" summer reading theme, I thought I had finally found the perfect excuse to read it.

And oh, boy!  This does not disappoint!  Right from the start, this book grabs you by the throat and drags you into a claustrophobic nightmare, where you can't even trust your own eyes.  Malorie is living alone in a house in Michigan with her two children, Boy and Girl.  Desperate to get away from the house for the first time in years, she gathers the children, and together the three of them take a boat down the river--completely blindfolded--in hopes of finding freedom.  The story alternates between these moments in the present, and Malorie's experiences from four years ago, when reports first started cropping up of something driving people to unspeakable violence.

This method of alternating chapters works wonders, as we start to see the stories converge.  You know how the original story ends--Malorie is now all alone, except for her two children.  But, we don't know how she gets to that ending, and that is what will keep you on the edge of your seat.  That, and the fact that we don't really know what is the cause of the madness.  What is out there?  Can it hurt you?  Can it be avoided?  And is there any way you can actually look at it without completely losing your mind?

If you're looking for something atmospheric and creepy, I would recommend giving Bird Box a try.  It's a quick and fascinating read.  

Summer Reading 2018

Hello, all!

So, this is the time of year when Emmy posts about how she is totally doing a Summer Reading theme, and then promptly forgets all about it!  (Such excitement!)  And if I recall correctly, this is also the time of year when I make big promises that no, this will not be like last year--this year I will really stick with the ideas that I had planned, etc.

So, enough of all that.  Here's what I'm aiming to do (whether I do or not is up for debate...)  First, I intend to choose a reading theme and read as much as I can with that theme.  Those books will (hopefully) be reviewed both here and on my Goodreads page.  Feel free to follow me there.  For books that I read that aren't related to the theme, those can still be found by following me on Goodreads.

I've been doing Summer Reading themes on and off since 2010!  For a quick refresher, here's what I've done in the past:

• 2010: Gothic Novels
• 2011: Scary Stories and Mythical Monsters
• 2012: A Summer in Middle Earth
• 2013: Summer School
• 2014: It's a Mystery!
• 2015: To Read or Not to Read
• 2016: Professional Fan-Fiction
• 2017: [Skipped this year]
• 2018: ???

Much debate has gone into this, but after looking at my to-read pile, I think I have decided.  2018's theme is: Monster Mash!  These are books about monsters, both real and imagined, seen and unseen, scary and silly, human and beast.  So, anything from The Invisible Man to Bird Box is fair game.  As always, feel free to read along with my suggestions or to add your own to the list.  Read something good?  Let me know!

I've not worked out an official start time yet.  I used to start Summer Reading when the semester ended.  But, I've been out of school for five years.  So, I've considered June 1st-August 31st, Memorial Day to Labor Day, and several variations in between.  I think this year, I'll just wait until it seems natural.  Expect something in the next few weeks.  And we'll go from there.  

And stay tuned.  I'll definitely be posting books on Goodreads, but I'll try to add the reviews here, as well.  I hope you find something fun to read from my list :)

100 Classics Challenge

So, I know it has been a little while since I've posted, but I'm excited to announce a new reading challenge!  I'm finding that my summer reading theme of "professional fan-fiction" is just not working for me right now...because I'm finding that I would rather read the classics which inspired these books than the adaptations.  So, I had an idea.  What if I just read the classics and skipped the rewrites?  So, I decided to do that instead.  But, summer is almost over, with just about a month left.  So, again, I had an idea.  This challenge, which I'm calling the 100 Classics Challenge (or 100 CC for short) is going to be an ongoing program, starting now and going until I finish (few months?  few years?  Who knows?).  I'm not going to read just classics in the time it takes me to finish, but when I do read one, I'll include a review of it here.

As always, if you would like to follow along, please feel free to do so.  Also, feel free to suggest titles in the comments.  And if you want to participate on your own blog, let me know so I can see what classics you're reading!

As for what makes a classic, here's what I'm going off of.  These are the books that are still be published today, even if they were written twenty, thirty, or even 100 years ago.  This means no "modern" classics.  I'm not going to be reading Harry Potter, for example, but I might pick up Ragtime, since it's more of a "classic".  Titles like Silas Marner, David Copperfield, and Frankenstein are all fair game, as are more obscure books by writers of classics, like some of the lesser known works of PG Wodehouse or GK Chesterton.  For more ideas of what I'm going for, feel free to ask, or check out this guide by Italo Calvino.

As for what I'm reading right now, it's not a classic, per se, so I won't be posting right away.  But, I'm excited to start a new reading challenge and share this with all of you.  Hope you'll join in the fun!  Happy reading :)

English as She is Spoke (Pedro Carolino)

I'm learning Japanese.  (私 は 少し 日本語 を はなします).  I'm no expert, and don't consider myself to be one.  Mostly, I can say basic sentences, and spout out some vocab.  Even that does not make a ton of sense.  I can say that I speak Japanese or English (私 は にほんご を はなします; 私 は 英語 を はなします), words like awesome, apple, and rice (すごい; りんご; ご飯) and make simple sentences that make little sense (私 は おいしです ご飯)--> I am delicious rice.

Sometimes, things get lost in translation.  And even while using online translators, such as Google translate (which helped form the Japanese characters for me) things often get screwed up. How many of you (and I'm sure it's most of you) have tried putting something into Google translate, filter it through a few languages, and set it back to English?  Usually what comes out is somewhat garbled, but generally intelligible.  I had tried it myself a few years ago, and posted the results on this blog.  It makes for an interesting way to spend a rainy afternoon.

Of course, because of its shortcomings, people generally use Google Translate knowing that this is not going to be a perfect translation.  And we certainly don't think that this is good and proper English.  But, what if someone had really butchered a translation and people believed that it was legitimate?  Well, that's what happened with my most recent read: English as She is Spoke.  What happened was a well-intentioned Portuguese man wanted to create an Portuguese to English phrasebook.  But, he didn't know any English and didn't have a Portuguese to English dictionary.  Rather, he had a Portuguese to French dictionary and a French to English phrasebook.  English as She is Spoke is the results of his careful translations.  Some of it makes sense, most is pretty garbled, and there are passages that mean nothing at all: "After the paunch comes the dance" or "To craunch the marmoset".

I felt bad for laughing, since it was obvious someone put a lot of time and effort into writing this book.  But, in all honesty, there is only one reason its still being published over 100 years later.  And that's because it is so funny!  As a textbook, it is no longer valid.  But, as a piece of entertainment, it's a real hoot!  If you're interested in language, then you should check this out.  But, also, you should check it out just because it's fun to read.

I have an additional treat for all you, too.  If you are interested in reading this book right away, you can check it out online at this link here.  This is a pretty fancy digital copy of the text, so it should be a lot of fun to explore!  I wish I had known it was online, so I wouldn't have had to use the library copy (which was mysteriously sticky--ewwww).

As always, happy reading!

Anya's Ghost (Vera Brosgol)

I'm actually reading at a pretty steady clip right now.  I'm happy to report that Summer Reading 2015 is off to a good start.  At least until classes get underway.  Then we'll see how I'm doing, I suppose.

But, for right now, let's talk about my next read: Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol.  This is a graphic novel story of a high school girl (Anya) who is struggling to fit in with her classmates because her Russian immigrant mother keeps pulling her back into her heritage, encouraging her to attend Russian Orthodox mass and become friends with nerdy little Dima, who is also from Russia.  But, instead, she's something of a loner, smoking cigarettes behind the principal's back with her friend Siobhan, and wishing the cute guy in her class would notice her.  All this changes when she finds herself taking an alternate route home from school and ends up tumbling into a well.  She's not the only one there, either.  There are the skeletal remains of a young girl, about her age.  And the ghost of that girl is still down there.  Ninety years is a long time to be alone, and she's eager to

have found a new friend, although Anya's not so keen on being pals.  Still, when Anya leaves the well, she finds that this ghost is going to be a bit harder to lose.  But, that might not be a bad thing...or is it?

This is a sort of spooky tale.  It's a ghost story, after all.  And of course, this is one of those stories that I really can't say much about for fear of spoilers, so I ask that you bear with my vague descriptions.  But, if you're interested in paranormal stories, ghosts, mysteries, or comics, this is something you might enjoy.  Also, I recommend this to anyone who has ever felt like the outsider or been unlucky in love.

Since this was a graphic novel, I did want to comment on the art style.  I really liked the character design, and I thought the art was wonderful!  The characters were emotional and expressive and popped off the page.  The art actually reminded me somewhat of the art of Bryan Lee O'Malley, who writes the Scott Pilgrim books.  Obviously not the same, but it made me think of it.

Well, I have a whole stack of books lined up for continued reading.  I hope you'll stop in again to see what else I'm reading this summer.  In the meantime, I'm reading about management for a Library Science class....Bleah.

But, still, there is a lot of good stuff out there.  I'm looking forward to sharing my samplings of it with all of you.  And tell me what you're reading to!  As always, Happy Reading! ~em

Summer Reading 2015!

Hello, everyone!  I'm super-excited to announce that my summer is finally here!  I had a paper due yesterday at noon, so I am officially done with classes, now!  And of course, the end of classes means the start of summer, so it is time to start posting my summer reading titles!

I haven't gotten any feedback about summer reading suggestions this year, so I'm going to be super-boring and use my Goodreads reading list as the basis of my selections.  My theme is called: To Read or Not to Read (as a reference to the "To Read" list on Goodreads and other sites).  It might sound a bit lame, but it's going to give me a great chance to start catching up on the huge list of books I've been wanting to read!  (Don't believe me?  While I may be prone to exaggeration, I think even the most skeptical would agree that 1,238 books counts as a pretty sizable amount!)

So, that's where I'm starting right now.  This summer, you're going to get a dose of everything.  A little of this, and a little of that.  To start with, I'll let you in on what I'm reading right now: Her Death of Cold: A Father Dowling Mystery by Ralph McInerny.  An old woman dies under mysterious circumstances and is found in her large storage freezer in the basement.  Everyone is a suspect, including her children.  The local parish priest, Father Dowling is curious to discover what is going on, and teams up with the town's head detective to find out the truth.

Looking forward to reading with you this summer!  Tell me about what you're reading, too!

I Kill Giants (Joe Kelly)

Confession time: when I was a kid, I sort of lived in my head.  I was imaginative, quiet, and always working up a new story or some adventure to daydream about.  I was that kid who would get called out by the teacher not for talking too much or acting out, but because I was staring out the window, thinking about what Pokemon I would want to take with me on my quest to become the Pokemon master, or what it would be like if I, like so many of the books I read as a kid, could go to some fantasy world and find all manner of strange and wonderful creatures and new friends.

Even now, at 24, I can still appreciate that part of child me.  Sure, I don't think that I'll be able to walk through a closet and end up in Narnia, but sometimes, I still think about what it would be like to go on an adventure, meet all manner of strange and wonderful creatures, and together fight off some great evil and save the world.  Or, more realistically, I would love to go backpacking across New Zealand, and meet some wonderful people who would remain close friends for the rest of our lives.

When I first picked up this book, I was looking for a simple fantasy story, but instead I found a deep and touching tale of growing up, coming of age, and dealing with the pain and suffering of life.  Let's be honest here: life is not always easy, but some of us have it easier than others.  For me, childhood had a lot of ups and down.  As a kid, I was very happy.  I was active, got along well with boys, and had a lot of fun.  When I got to be about 10 or so, I started having friend troubles, as girls do, because my classmates were getting into cliches.  And by the time I was in seventh or eighth grade, it had graduated from cliches to bullying.  There were years that I struggled because I was bullied to the point where I had no self-esteem.  For those of you who have never experienced it, there is no way to explain it.  It is the worst thing I have ever experienced, and I would never wish it on anyone.

Anyways, on to the book.  I think what attracted me to this book once I stared reading was the fact that I could see so much of myself in Barbara.  Here, we have a young girl who certainly stands out in her class.  She's quirky, she's odd, and she doesn't care.  When questioned, she claims that she kills giants, but this is all just a cover for coping with issues at home.  She's a smart kid, but you can see that she is struggling through something.  But, instead of making this an obviously mopey piece, in the hands of Joe Kelly, this becomes an amazing story full of heart and imagination.  It was incredibly engaging and difficult to put down.  We want to cheer on Barbara through her struggles, even though she makes herself somewhat unlikable.  But, she's a kid with a lot of emotions all bottled up inside, and like all of us, just wants to be loved and accepted.

The start is a bit slow, so make sure you give it some time to get involved.  And then, toward the end, there is some shocking stuff.  I'm not going to say anything more, but you don't want to miss out on this!  A great collaboration of drama, magical realism, and fantasy, this book is sure to blow you away!  Not gonna lie: there were a few parts where I got pretty choked up.  Which is saying something, since I generally try to be as emotionless as Mr. Spock, haha!  But, seriously--go and read this!  You'll be so glad you did!  And once you read it, come back and tell me what you thought about it!