Skinny Doggy Catty Wormy

.

055) The Skin I'm In by Sharon G. Flake, finished September 27

This is one of the most popular books with my Read 180 students, so I thought I should give it a spin.

Maleeka is a junior-high girl with lousy friends, a dead dad, a hidden literary talent---typical stuff for a book like this, I imagine. And over the course of the novel she moves through a terrible funk with the help of a good teacher and a cute boy patiently waiting for her to be ready for him. You know.

As a teacher, I'm a little annoyed by the corporate woman sweeping in and becoming a school's One Good Teacher. But that's another cliche that will play well.

I'm not surprised unsophisticated readers like the cliches. And I'm not surprised the demographics latch on to this protagonist.

And although my tone is really brushoffish right now, I don't mean to be that way. It's a fine book and I love it because it's often the one book over a hundred pages I'll see a student finish. Major props for that success, Flake. Nice work. Keep the books coming.

threeweeksish



===========================================================



054) Lote That Dog by Sharon Creech, finished September 25

053) Hate That Cat by Sharon Creech, finished September 24

Tomorrow I anticipate finishing Love That Dog (again) as we're reading it in my AP class as a bit of poetry lite to start the year. And since I was at the library tonight, I decided to finally pick up this book and see what I thought.

It was . . . okay.

Love That Dog is a simple and moving pastiche, looking at an old story through a kid learning to appreciate poetry. Hate That Cat tries to do the same thing with another old story. But this time, the kid's poetic development is far less interesting, leaving the Big Story without the strong parallel structure that makes Love That Dog so successful. Plus, the kid's older and getting obnoxious.

In short, if you like the first book, this will take you no time to read so why not. But if you never get around to it, you ain't missing much.

an hour if that



===========================================================



052) Wormwood, Gentleman Corpse: It Only Hurts When I Pee by Ben Templesmith, finished September 24

The latest in a string of totally inappropriate comics recommended to me by students. This one is about a worm who, um, drives corpses around, and has so for millenia. Bad luck, in this volume, he gets bitten by a leprechaun which means he must be kissed by their queen or finally die. Etc etc.

In fact, although this book is a vehicle for gore and violence and naked succubi and nasty sight gags, it's also a pretty smart read. I enjoyed it. Though I would never ever buy it. Not the sort of thing I would want my kids stumbling across.

I will say I like Templesmith's art with has a very DaveMcKeany sensibility.

couple weeks as I thought about it



Previously in 2012 . . . . :

Read the reviews of 49-51.
051) The Zabîme Sisters by Aristophane, finished September 20
050) Little Death by Thomas Kriebaum, finished September 16
049) God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut, finished September 11


Read the reviews of 44-48.
048) American Nerd: The Story of My People by Benjamin Nugent, finished September 7
047) Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming, finished September 6
046) Simply Science by a number of authors and illustrators for All Aboard Reading, finished September 5
045) Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach, finished September 3
044) The Strange Case of the Walking Corpse: A Chronicle of Medical Mysteries, Curious Remedies, and Bizarre but True Healing Folklore by Nancy Butcher, finished August 27

Read the reviews of 40-43.
043) How to Analyze the Works of Stephenie Meyer by Marcela Kostihova, finished August 13
042) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, finished August 10
041) Captain America: Man Out of Time by Mark Waid and Jorge Molina, finished August 1
040) If You Believe in Mermaids . . . Don't Tell by A.A. Philips, finished July 28

Read the reviews of 37-39.
039) The Smartest Man in Ireland by Mollie Hunter, finished July 27
038) Blockade Billy / Morality by Stephen King, finished July 12
037) Dispirited by Luisa M. Perkins, finished July 9

Read the reviews of 34-36.
036) Hyperion by Dan Simmons, finished July 2
035) A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, finished June 27
034) Kampung Boy by Lat, finished June 22

Read the reviews of 29-33.
034) The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple, finished June 20
033) Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl, finished June 18
032) Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart, "finished" June 18
031) Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese, "finished" June 15
030) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon, finished June 9
029) Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick, finished early June

Read the reviews of 25-28.
028) Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, finished May 24
027) The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, finished May 16
026) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, finished May 10
025) Dominant Traits by Eric Freeze, finished April 10

Read the reviews of 21-24.
024) The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White, finished April 2
023) UNTITLED MS by Kyle Jepson, finished March 12, 2012
022) The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 4
021) The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, finished March 3

Read the reviews of 14-20.
020) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
019) Good-bye, Chunky Rice by Craig Thompson, finished February 26
018) Madman 20th Anniversary Monster HC by [everybody], finished February 25
017) Billy Hazelnuts and Crazy Bird by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
016) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
015) Habibi by Craig Thompson, finished February 20
014) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, finished February 15

Read the reviews of 12-13.
013) Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell, finished February 12
012) Black Hole by Charles Burns, finished February 11

Read the reviews of 6-11.
011) The Complete Peanuts: 1979-1980 by Charles M. Schulz, finished February 4
010) Blankets by Craig Thompson, finished February 4
009) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, finished February 2
008) The Millstone Necklace (forthcoming) by S.P. Bailey, finished January 31
007) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished January 27
006) Across a Harvested Field by Robert Goble, finished January 23

Read the reviews of 1-5.
005) Hark! a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton, finished January 21
004) The Death of a Disco Dancer by David Clark, finished January 12
003) Bucketfoot Al: The Baseball Life of Al Simmons by Clifton Blue Parker, finished January 9
002) Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly, finished January 9
001) What of the Night? by Stephen Carter, finished January 5

Back from "The Dead"

.

Thanks to GoDaddy's miserable communications with consumers and utter disinterest in solving problems of its own creation, Thmazing.com was down for just a couple days shy of a month. Yesterday, Recession Cone, who was hit with a similar (though not as severe) GoDaddy-inflicted blow, called me up and talked me through repairs. It was frustrating and more difficult than it should have been but it's working again. For a while. The site is very 2008 in appearance anyway and I've been thinking I need to repair it, but this fix will work until GoDaddy screws everything up again. But for today we live!

Anyway, to celebrate Thmazing.com's return from the dead, I'm posting a story from my undergrad days, based on Joyce's classic novella. Now that Joyce himself has been dead sufficiently long, I can share this without his notoriously sue-happy decendents coming after me.

Please enjoy "The Dead"-----

Comics and Vonnegut

.

051) The Zabîme Sisters by Aristophane, finished September 20

I picked this book up at the library assuming it was a comics adaptation of an Aristophanes play I'd never heard of before. Not so. Aristophane is a Caribbean/French comics creator who died only a year older than I am now.

Here is the first page:

At first I was uncertain but by the end, I had grown to love his brushstrokes and the understated storytelling. I liked it, in other words, much better than Kampung Boy which in its attempt to cover more territory actually tells us less.

three days over more than a month



===========================================================



050) Little Death by Thomas Kriebaum, finished September 16

(Note first that this book was sent to me gratis from the publisher; I was confused when an unmarked package with British stamps arrived in the mail.)

This comic is written by an Austrian, but questions of translation hardly matter since the book is nearly word-free. But other questions remain. Like: Was this originally published serially? Which is an important question as complaints of repetitiveness don't come up when you get one chapter every six weeks. Rather than on the very next page.

After I finished it, Lady Steed picked it up. And besides the above complaint (in the form of "it went on a little long"), she liked Little Death---she laughed more in any given chapter than I did in the entire book.

I found the book tonally troubled. Is it supposed to be funny? What kind of funny? I suppose it's supposed to be ironic, but I couldn't quite get a grasp on what it was being ironic about. This mini Grim Reaper---is he a sadist? Sometimes it seems like it, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes people are horrified to see Death, sometimes delighted. But who feels which way is chaotic. And does Death care who he kills? Or does it just need to be someone? Is he just doing his job or does he totally dig this gig?

I don't have answers to any of these questions and that made the book hard for me to enjoy. People who expect less from comics will probably enjoy it more.

Nice Charlie Brown, though.

The following images were taken from the artist's webpage. They give a good sense of what the book's about and whether you'll be interested.

not long



===========================================================



049) God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut, finished September 11

I'm a but late this year on my every-summer Vonnegut, but I've finally read God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater. It's been high on my list because most years I teach Slaughterhouse-Five, and Rosewater makes a cameo in that novel.

But he's hardly the only connection. Besides him, we have Kilgore Trout (and the book Farmer wrote, which has no relation to Sh5, but fascinates me all the same since I've been trying to finish that piece of trash for nearly five years), the firebombing of Dresden, poo-tee-weet, Rumfoord, Tralfamadorians (and in a manner that makes Billy seem perhaps crazy after all), and more and more and more. Holy crap it should be required reading for all kids reading Sh5. I'm a fool for never reading it before.

Besides the connections, it's just a great book. It's Vonnegut grounded in the real world. By which I mean no aliens or timequakes or ice-nine.

And I just enjoyed it ever so much. I do like me some Vonnegut.

about three weeks



Previously in 2012 . . . . :

Read the reviews of 44-48.
048) American Nerd: The Story of My People by Benjamin Nugent, finished September 7
047) Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming, finished September 6
046) Simply Science by a number of authors and illustrators for All Aboard Reading, finished September 5
045) Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach, finished September 3
044) The Strange Case of the Walking Corpse: A Chronicle of Medical Mysteries, Curious Remedies, and Bizarre but True Healing Folklore by Nancy Butcher, finished August 27

Read the reviews of 40-43.
043) How to Analyze the Works of Stephenie Meyer by Marcela Kostihova, finished August 13
042) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, finished August 10
041) Captain America: Man Out of Time by Mark Waid and Jorge Molina, finished August 1
040) If You Believe in Mermaids . . . Don't Tell by A.A. Philips, finished July 28

Read the reviews of 37-39.
039) The Smartest Man in Ireland by Mollie Hunter, finished July 27
038) Blockade Billy / Morality by Stephen King, finished July 12
037) Dispirited by Luisa M. Perkins, finished July 9

Read the reviews of 34-36.
036) Hyperion by Dan Simmons, finished July 2
035) A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, finished June 27
034) Kampung Boy by Lat, finished June 22

Read the reviews of 29-33.
034) The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple, finished June 20
033) Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl, finished June 18
032) Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart, "finished" June 18
031) Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese, "finished" June 15
030) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon, finished June 9
029) Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick, finished early June

Read the reviews of 25-28.
028) Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, finished May 24
027) The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, finished May 16
026) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, finished May 10
025) Dominant Traits by Eric Freeze, finished April 10

Read the reviews of 21-24.
024) The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White, finished April 2
023) UNTITLED MS by Kyle Jepson, finished March 12, 2012
022) The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 4
021) The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, finished March 3

Read the reviews of 14-20.
020) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
019) Good-bye, Chunky Rice by Craig Thompson, finished February 26
018) Madman 20th Anniversary Monster HC by [everybody], finished February 25
017) Billy Hazelnuts and Crazy Bird by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
016) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
015) Habibi by Craig Thompson, finished February 20
014) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, finished February 15

Read the reviews of 12-13.
013) Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell, finished February 12
012) Black Hole by Charles Burns, finished February 11

Read the reviews of 6-11.
011) The Complete Peanuts: 1979-1980 by Charles M. Schulz, finished February 4
010) Blankets by Craig Thompson, finished February 4
009) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, finished February 2
008) The Millstone Necklace (forthcoming) by S.P. Bailey, finished January 31
007) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished January 27
006) Across a Harvested Field by Robert Goble, finished January 23

Read the reviews of 1-5.
005) Hark! a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton, finished January 21
004) The Death of a Disco Dancer by David Clark, finished January 12
003) Bucketfoot Al: The Baseball Life of Al Simmons by Clifton Blue Parker, finished January 9
002) Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly, finished January 9
001) What of the Night? by Stephen Carter, finished January 5

Thoughts on One Teen Story

.

I'm a fan of One Story. I've been subscribing since 2006 and while I let my other lit-mag subscriptions lapse, not this one. In fact, it's the only lit mag running whose content I like consistently enough to not be annoyed that they reject my work 100% of the time.

This year they've begun a second title, One Teen Story. Like One Story, it arrives several times a year, one story per issue.

The premier issue arrived the same day as an issue of One Story and I read them the same evening, on BART, on my way to and from a night in San Francisco with Mr Fob (who, incidentally, should really consider submitting to OTS).

Anyway, comparing the two issues was startling.

I read OTS's "So Much for Artemis" by Patrick Ryan first. The story is not new and I suppose that for the premier issue OTS wanted to go with a proven favorite. It was originally published by OS (before my subscription began) and was collected in Best American.

But, although it's a very good story, it's a bizarre choice for a magazine called One TEEN Story.

It's about a couple kids.

Everyone knows the first rule of writing for kids is make the protagonist no younger than your target audience.

Then I started reading the latest issue of OS---"His Other Fathers" by Michael Byers---which starts out as not just an astonishing story but as about, wait for it, a TEENager.

I knew then I would write the post, though at the time I was planning to suggest the two mags swap stories. But that was before I knew "Artemis" had already appeared in >OS or that "Fathers" would take our protag into adulthood and sex and sex and sex and stuff (great story though).

Today I received the first issue (VOLUME I, ISSUE I, according to the cover) of OTS: "The Deadline" by Gayle Forman. She at least knows YA lit. It's what she does, after all. In fact, she worked as a journalist for Seventeen. Which makes some of the weird things in the story even weirder. For instance, for an obvious one, this:

"You know, I saw Iron and Wine play a few months ago. I had to take two buses and hitchhike to get to the show but where there's a will there's a way. . . .

"Were they amazing?"

"No, they tanked.

Okay. First, copyeditor, it's Iron & Wine. I didn't know that incidentally, but it's a point worth mentioning. What I did know is that Iron & Wine is one guy. Sometimes he tours with a full band, but someone who would take two buses and a stranger's car to see him, probably knows Iron & Wine is one guy. Second of all, of all the indie bands in the world, it seems to me an odd choice. I'm not an expert on What Kids Like (and even if I were, the school I teach at probably has way different tastes than kids in small town nowhere), but the only legit reason I can think of is that "i" in "Wine."

I'm not joking.

Forman plays this fun game with little "i"s and names. It's a little obvious, probably, for Me or You, but for a teenage reader, I imagine making this discovery---then noticing how much of it there is---will be thrilling. I can definitely imaging teaching this story to a freshman class. But, on the other hand, I wonder if it's too obvious. It could be a symptom of what I noticed here and there throughout the story. And again on their website:

Please join us for a One Teen Story launch party and fundraiser on September 18, 2012 at Littlefield in Brooklyn. We’ll be celebrating our new magazine with a 21+ homecoming dance featuring drinks, a DJ, and a homecoming court including some of today’s top young adult authors. . . .

What I smell here is adults talking about how cool they are doing something for the kids while not letting kids come to their party. Missed opportunity, methinks.

Anyway. I have, I think, eight more issues coming. We'll see if they can convince me to keep them coming after that. I would love for a teen rag to be successful.

But so far I'm not impressed enough not to be annoyed they rejected the story I sent them.

Step it up, One Teen Story!

Books with bosoms!, he said. Ugly art, she said.

.

048) American Nerd: The Story of My People by Benjamin Nugent, finished September 7

I have many positive things to say about this book, but I want to start with polluting those compliments. Because although this book makes many striking and convincing arguments about nerd-related topics, it's also just a single and early voice in the serious discussion and its arguments are filled with holes that I hope later writers drive trucks through. That said, I enjoyed his arguments.

I started reading the book just a few days before school started and the first person mentioned is Mary Bennet. And the second section of the book is about Victor Frankenstein. Which two people happen to be characters in the first two novels I teach in AP Lit. And yes: they are total nerds.

So I started off rather excited. And I adapted his Animals<------->Machines spectrum to an early lesson and made it the first homework assignment of the year. I also talked about a number of the facts and proposals in the book with people in conversation.

What's been difficult is reading a book by a guy who clearly rejected his nerd past---and violently---writing about nerds. He's the apostate expert, as it were.

In the wild and idiotic delusions I experienced in my nerd phase . . . (187)

He doesn't back down from looking down on nerds even as he explains and promotes their humanity.

Now, me, I've always felt like a failed nerd. By which I mean I had a lot of nerd characteristics, but never really was nerd enough to be a nerd. I don't know what I was, but I've never felt comfortable aspiring to nerddom. That belongs to nerds and it is theirs. Bur I've certainly been friends with nerds and sometimes I want to slap Nugent. Even with his painful regrets re how he rejected his nerd friends, he still hates that he was ever a nerd and goes to great pains to prove he is not and has not been a nerd for years and years and years and years. And that desperate need to prove colors everything else he has to say about nerds.

If I read another book about nerd history and theory, I would like it to be written by someone who never backed down from their nerdiness. No one can know nerds as well as the nerd who never backed down.

But---and this is something American Nerd points out well---"nerd" is a broad category with many subsets. So broad that maybe, just maybe, there is even room for me within its borders.

(And my making that sentence would suggest that my least favorite of Nugent's arguments may apply to me in some small way after all.)

Note: For a tangential bit about the book's comments on Mormons, see A Motley Vision.

a bit over three weeks



===========================================================

047) Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming, finished September 6

I've heard of Powers in the years it's been out, but a new grownup look at superheroes has never been reason enough to check it out. But then someone game me pirated digital issues of the first thirty-seven issues and, well, why not? (Those issues comprise of the stories "Who Killed Retro Girl?", "Roleplay", "Little Deaths", "Supergroup", "Anarchy", "The Sellouts", and "Forever" which together comprise volume one of three and counting.)

First, disclaimer, sex, violence, nudity, gore, etc. Not for kids.

Second, holy crap. This may well be the best reinvention of superheroes for adults ever. It's on par with Watchmen for sure. Personally, I think it may be better. Maybe not as consistently excellent, but overall a better read. Less literary, more pure. Great stuff.

Starts with a former superhero as cop. Moves forward to apocalypse (conclusion of which is the series lowpoint), back to the age of monkeys, back up the just after the beginning.

Solid writing, solid art, nice jokes in the endpage (though those you can take or leave).

If you have an interest in revisionist superheroing, you need to read Powers. That is all.

months



===========================================================



046) Simply Science by a number of authors and illustrators for All Aboard Reading, finished September 5

So this is Large S's first book checked out from the school library and it's a winner. A collection of science stories about water and spiders and butterflies and frogs and turtles and stars. Each in simple words perfect for reading to a kindergartner and illustrated in a Highlights-friendly style. I particularly enjoyed the sharks---holy crap have you ever seen a pink goblin shark??? That thing is freaky!!!

I read the whole thing tonight after the kids went to bed. I'm excited to share it with the boy who checked it out. Stellar first checkout, S. Stellar.

an evening



===========================================================

045) Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach, finished September 3

I was thrilled to hear about this book and bought it before its release four years ago. I started reading it and had to share every other fact with Lady Steed who then tried to read it at the same time which resulted in a compromise: we'll read it together. Which proved to be a lousy choice because it took us over four years to read the darn thing. In that time, we both read a similar book in a fraction of the time.

Anyway, Mary Roach is as great as ever and, I've since learned, she's a charming person to email. The main bummer is we took so long to read this book I haven't touched her space book yet. At least the bug book isn't out yet. That's something.

Anyway, if you would like to learn awful things (like Kinsey stuck t**********s up his u****a---b******s-first, no less!---for his colleague's viewing pleasure) and wonderful things (no comment) all with a charismatic guide, then this is the book for you.

Also it has sex.

years



===========================================================



044) The Strange Case of the Walking Corpse: A Chronicle of Medical Mysteries, Curious Remedies, and Bizarre but True Healing Folklore by Nancy Butcher, finished August 27

I'm afraid I was terribly disappointed in this book. I kept picking it up and reading chapters, but there were so few new delights. I suppose in part because I have already read so much about medical mysteris and curious remedies, etc, in my day, but still. I expect a higher percentage of Exciting New Never-Before-Heard things. It doesn't help that poor Ms Butcher is not the equal of, say, Mary Roach when it comes to wit and charisma. Nor does it help that her publisher forced her to cite web sources in a way that a mere eight years later feels painfully antiquated.

With that last paragraph as a caveat, however, I love the topic and if you are interested but unfamiliar, this is a light and chewy primer. So think about it.

a few weeks perhaps







Previously in 2012 . . . . :

Read the reviews of 40-43.
043) How to Analyze the Works of Stephenie Meyer by Marcela Kostihova, finished August 13
042) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, finished August 10
041) Captain America: Man Out of Time by Mark Waid and Jorge Molina, finished August 1
040) If You Believe in Mermaids . . . Don't Tell by A.A. Philips, finished July 28

Read the reviews of 37-39.
039) The Smartest Man in Ireland by Mollie Hunter, finished July 27
038) Blockade Billy / Morality by Stephen King, finished July 12
037) Dispirited by Luisa M. Perkins, finished July 9

Read the reviews of 34-36.
036) Hyperion by Dan Simmons, finished July 2
035) A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, finished June 27
034) Kampung Boy by Lat, finished June 22

Read the reviews of 29-33.
034) The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple, finished June 20
033) Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl, finished June 18
032) Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart, "finished" June 18
031) Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese, "finished" June 15
030) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon, finished June 9
029) Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick, finished early June

Read the reviews of 25-28.
028) Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, finished May 24
027) The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, finished May 16
026) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, finished May 10
025) Dominant Traits by Eric Freeze, finished April 10

Read the reviews of 21-24.
024) The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White, finished April 2
023) UNTITLED MS by Kyle Jepson, finished March 12, 2012
022) The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 4
021) The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, finished March 3

Read the reviews of 14-20.
020) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
019) Good-bye, Chunky Rice by Craig Thompson, finished February 26
018) Madman 20th Anniversary Monster HC by [everybody], finished February 25
017) Billy Hazelnuts and Crazy Bird by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
016) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
015) Habibi by Craig Thompson, finished February 20
014) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, finished February 15

Read the reviews of 12-13.
013) Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell, finished February 12
012) Black Hole by Charles Burns, finished February 11

Read the reviews of 6-11.
011) The Complete Peanuts: 1979-1980 by Charles M. Schulz, finished February 4
010) Blankets by Craig Thompson, finished February 4
009) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, finished February 2
008) The Millstone Necklace (forthcoming) by S.P. Bailey, finished January 31
007) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished January 27
006) Across a Harvested Field by Robert Goble, finished January 23

Read the reviews of 1-5.
005) Hark! a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton, finished January 21
004) The Death of a Disco Dancer by David Clark, finished January 12
003) Bucketfoot Al: The Baseball Life of Al Simmons by Clifton Blue Parker, finished January 9
002) Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly, finished January 9
001) What of the Night? by Stephen Carter, finished January 5

Thloppiness

.

Reading through this front page I found seitching for switching and now for not.

Clearly I need to spend some more time in the rewriting portion of blogging.

Waiting for Mitt Romney to Lead

.

I used to be a Romney booster. I was excited about his candidacy in 2008. Largely this was because I lived in Utah in 2002 and the way he swept in and saved the state from embarrassment and disaster was wondrous. Then he became a Republican governor of Massachusettes (!) which creates the sort of Venn diagram wherein a moderate might find a desireable presidential candidate.

Besides that, other than the superrich thing, he seems of a type I know very well and tend to like very much. I'm not saying I would be bosom friends with him, but I'm sure I would get along well with the man.

In the last few years however, Romney's made a real effort to alienate moderates such as myself. (Sorta like McCain did, come to think of it. I voted for McCain in the 2000 primary. Voted Nader in the 2000 general, Obama in the 2008 general.) As a moderate, I have my issues with Obama. And I learned my lesson in 2004 when I voted for Bush: Abe's seitching-horses-midriver argument is fallible. (Although the Democrats could have tried harder to find a candidate I could vote for.)

Anyway. Back to Romney. He has the Republican nomination now and no one can take it away from him. The time for pandering to the far right has passed. Now Romney can decide whether he will continue through November as their puppet or if he will lead. Last night was not promising. You have a crowd who will cheer just about whatever you say. You can slip in a few hints that you're still your own man. Instead we get things like this:

President Obama promised to begin to slow the rise of the oceans.

(LAUGHTER)

And to heal the planet. My promises to help you and your family.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, it makes a nice soundbite. Obama is lost in grandiose windmill hunts while I will help you. But, on the other hand, this was an easy time to make a slight shift. Remember when moderates could pretend Huntsman might win the GOP nom? You know, the guy who said that when Republicans "take a position that basically runs counter to what 98 of 100 climate scientists have said, what the National Academy of Science has said about what is causing climate change and man's contribution to it, I think we find ourselves on the wrong side of science, and, therefore, in a losing position." Almost everyone (outside those who will vote red no matter what) agree with this statement. And the GOP's ignorant stance on climate impact forces many in the middle to view their whole gameplan as askew.

Maybe we'll see Mitt act like a leader between now and November, but little words will never have the symbolic weight they could have had last night.

======================================================================


Of course, living in California, it doesn't matter whether I vote blue or red until a few more states convert to the popular vote.

Because of this, I'm thinking of lodging a protest vote for a third-party candidate this year. Another bonus of such a vote is I can keep alive my record of never voting for the same party twice in presidential races.

Thmazing.com down

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Thmazing.com is down until I get it up again. And since I'll be out-of-town this weekend, that may be a bit of a while. It's broken because GoDaddy "updated" things after "telling" me they would. You see how that goes. . . .

Pogrom in Thutopia

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I just cleaned my list from people who no longer blog, no longer interact, etc. It's entirely possible I clicked out a few I should not have. Please alert me if you notice you've disappeared from me list. Thanks.

Windmills: the bones issue

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Saturday, I received my copy of the ninth edition of Windwmills, a lit mag published by Deakin University in Australia. Inside this small 20-page zine is my short "Swallowing Bones," an oddball piece about a seagull who thinks he's a human who thinks he's a seagul which I thought was too wacky to ever fit in anywhere. So I was delighted when Windmills accepted it.

The zine is mostly poetry, with a few pieces of fiction (mine being the shortest). My favorite pieces include the two poems by William Doreski which I am rather gaga over. I don't know if he intended "My Books Won't Stay Shelved" as surrealism, but I think it captured the logic of my own dreams better than any actual capital-s Surrealism I've ever read.

Anyway, included in my envelope was an invitation to submit again on the theme dance. The deadline is September first, but I happen to have something about dancing monkey sitting around. I think maybe I'll see what they think.

Don't tell your dad you read books about mermaids. Et cetera.

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043) How to Analyze the Works of Stephenie Meyer by Marcela Kostihova, finished August 13

Read my remarks here.

evening



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042) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, finished August 10

I've never read one of Alexie's novels, though I have enormous respect for his short fiction. This was his first lunge into YA lit and it feels like it. I don't mean that as a slam, but I suppose it is a bit of one anyway. It reads like Author Deigning to Talk to Kids at times. That said, it's an enjoyable book, and has sufficient layers, to make it a good choice for a serious English class in junior high. Though, frankly, the masturbation discussion disqualifies it in my mind. I don't want to have to deal with that. And once the kids are old enough to make it no longer a disqualification? Their a bit too old. They should be reading something a bit richer.

All that said, still, good book.

weekish



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041) Captain America: Man Out of Time by Mark Waid and Jorge Molina, finished August 1

Because I enjoyed the Avengers movie so much, I'm planning on watching all the earlier films that I missed. So when I bumped into this book at the library, I brought it home as a primer on a character I've never cared anything about. It covers the same ground as a Silver Age comic (reproduced in an appendix), viz. Cap recovered from suspended animation to the modern world ("modern" varying depending on, you know, publication date). Not Incredible Work, but perfectly satisfying. And the contrast with Stan Lee's script lets you know how far even hypercommercial superhero comics have come in the last fifty years.

one day



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040) If You Believe in Mermaids . . . Don't Tell by A.A. Philips, finished July 28

This is the story of a thirteen-year-old boy who has always had a thing for mermaids and Barbies and crossdressing and the conflict this causes in his family. That's your synopsis.

It's a short book, about a hundred pages, and simply executed. Some minor factual inconsistencies (eg, the race at the end of the book is actually held at night), but nothing that gets in the way of enjoying the book. Although this is obviously a message novel (it's normal to be a boy in an "abnormal" way), the moral is never pushed down the reader's throat. Instead, the characters are well drawn and complicated. In fact, the message of it's okay to be you is emphasized because nearly every character has something that makes them feel different or lost or out-of-place---even the popular girl.

The weakness of the book is the presentation of the father, who is the last major character to round out. But since a thirteen-year-old is apt to reduce his father to "He's mean to me" this is hardly a weakness that could be counted as an error.

I would imagine that this book would be a blessing to young readers who may be dealing with muddied gender issues (and, when you consider being thirteen, who isn't?). At the very least I think it might inspire some empathy.

under ninety minutes




Previously in 2012 . . . . :

Read the reviews of 37-39.
039) The Smartest Man in Ireland by Mollie Hunter, finished July 27
038) Blockade Billy / Morality by Stephen King, finished July 12
037) Dispirited by Luisa M. Perkins, finished July 9

Read the reviews of 34-36.
036) Hyperion by Dan Simmons, finished July 2
035) A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, finished June 27
034) Kampung Boy by Lat, finished June 22

Read the reviews of 29-33.
034) The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple, finished June 20
033) Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl, finished June 18
032) Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart, "finished" June 18
031) Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese, "finished" June 15
030) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon, finished June 9
029) Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick, finished early June

Read the reviews of 25-28.
028) Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, finished May 24
027) The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, finished May 16
026) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, finished May 10
025) Dominant Traits by Eric Freeze, finished April 10

Read the reviews of 21-24.
024) The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White, finished April 2
023) UNTITLED MS by Kyle Jepson, finished March 12, 2012
022) The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 4
021) The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, finished March 3

Read the reviews of 14-20.
020) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
019) Good-bye, Chunky Rice by Craig Thompson, finished February 26
018) Madman 20th Anniversary Monster HC by [everybody], finished February 25
017) Billy Hazelnuts and Crazy Bird by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
016) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
015) Habibi by Craig Thompson, finished February 20
014) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, finished February 15

Read the reviews of 12-13.
013) Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell, finished February 12
012) Black Hole by Charles Burns, finished February 11

Read the reviews of 6-11.
011) The Complete Peanuts: 1979-1980 by Charles M. Schulz, finished February 4
010) Blankets by Craig Thompson, finished February 4
009) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, finished February 2
008) The Millstone Necklace (forthcoming) by S.P. Bailey, finished January 31
007) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished January 27
006) Across a Harvested Field by Robert Goble, finished January 23

Read the reviews of 1-5.
005) Hark! a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton, finished January 21
004) The Death of a Disco Dancer by David Clark, finished January 12
003) Bucketfoot Al: The Baseball Life of Al Simmons by Clifton Blue Parker, finished January 9
002) Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly, finished January 9
001) What of the Night? by Stephen Carter, finished January 5

Spam addressed to this blog (from the Polish) (edited for "clarity")

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Prophecy in the name of his favorite composers such as aged Hamfast measure. Dzal spe-time in Palm Beach in this chapter, we will direct our inherent feature of this church is to respect the freedom of information and knowledge does not permit her ear inflammatory diseases, or at least tolerated, by which is meant the violent.

Delegate of 11 years earlier brings me claire - replied mitrydan - blind you to drive off at both ends? As a historian, was seen at the normal inclinations turned to him with fearless sang today thus resembles a fully scientific sponge-rams-pa.

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Descriptions of revelry taking place in one room studio with a nice dinner visit to the monastery to penetrate. Wearing only opponent in the stables for the eyes zamydlenia people dedicated to one of the deacons zmarlychmeczenska death the pope of Rome took the initiative in a private. intelligence developed world, German naval radio station in Gliwice - but agree.

Changing the habits of the Egyptian pantheon by war there are gates, remove them. Do not regard them as slaves to the great powers wmanewrowaly August and was considered to be very deferential.

What lamented the suffering of both the students certainly could it have its own maid to the lead in Balkan revolutionary movements usually imagine it to Peter was hufcowym in Czestochowa and tested the visitors will be able to beg him. Russia with the Turks enlarge their wine its Swiss league has taken over all the characteristics of phase II rise and fall with specific facial images of a star shining brightly satirist.

Wrongly identified by surprise they took him by Pope Leo IV in the characteristics of these periods of observation do not try to influence the game of stykalismy bezika with her drool for each difference.

Take off a star with many roles to function as a sorcerer of the parasite. We have here in their hearts he felt dizzy and swallowed a large big favor for his work. Blush were to carry them through the mysterious, startling and menacing afraid Apsu two space powers.

The Government of the Russian republic exceeded the English and the vehicle rolled over and saw the glow of inspiration was looking for in Berlin was authorized to be programmed for Euler enjoyed the dead before 1900, under the French living under one or two incidents or illness it.

Other power - men have any relationship Lisowski soldiers were tired already patron of civilization and the construction of three or operated on the northern border przyczai many things. the common people are seeing the completion of the Talmud has closed an important stage of its front paws on a well-armed, and accepted the claim of France refused to eat or owes its brahma. Rather, smiled and finally it seemed to him to convince Directorate gene is not assumed, and for the entire United States Significant sectors oroznych temperatures. Difficulties in the implementation of judicial competence and police for peace from the ceiling to the construction of military bases is the keeper of the object returned to work more trivial simple exercise of power will surprise you and the paddle like a victim of robbers.

New poetry from DC Nelson

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Thmighty is Theric, it has been said--
Thmighty in heart and in vitals and head;
Thmighty in all! Indeed, and in summing:
The thworld is thincredibly blessed by your thcoming..

CC&D

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Children, Churches & Daddies is a litrag about none of those things. And if you've got $7.87 to spend, you can pick one up.

Why would you do that?

Because you want to read "The Legend of Boitown" sensibly formatted.
Because you're a completist collector of Therickiana.
Because you need something to get the taste of my last story out of your mouth.

All excellent reasons, thriends. All excellent reasons.

Symmetry

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I keep forgetting to announce this story's publication. Perhaps because it's the sort of thing one does now show mother.

But here's some NSFW fiction if you, you know, dare.

Violence against fairies, umpires, houses

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039) The Smartest Man in Ireland by Mollie Hunter, finished July 27

This book was first published in 1963. The copy I read was published in 1996, though it seems to have since gone out of print. I can't say as I'm surprised. The YA fantasy market has changed enormously since '96 and Hunter's more folky feel just doesn't feel like, say, Harry Potter.

That said, it's a small, fun book that tastes like old folk tales. I think for kids who like fantasy, it would be a nice bit of leaven for their diet.

Note that the book was, it seems, first published under the title Patrick Kentigern Keenan. And while a '63 copy would probably be falling apart, the cover's much more retro cool. (Click the image to the right to see it.)

perhaps a couple weeks



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038) Blockade Billy / Morality by Stephen King, finished July 12

It's nice to find a slender Stephen King book, isn't it? And this one's very small, just two stories. I found it remaindered at an office superstore with a KIDS BOOKS sticker on it. Cost me two or three bucks. Made me glad I hadn't picked it up new as I darn near did.

"Blockade Billy" is a story of a baseball legend erased from the record books. It was a good story, but the reveal was a bit pedestrian. "Morality" was a chilling look at what the deliberate introduction of sin can do to a soul, a marriage. But in the end, it didn't really sing for me either. Though this may be because I've been sick which makes it harder for books to succeed. Not fair, not fair.

three days, one day per story with a day inbetween



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037) Dispirited by Luisa M. Perkins, finished July 9

I enjoyed this books as much as everyone said I would. And you will too. Read the first few chapters to see for yourself.

I intend to write a longer review on AMV at some point. It'll show up here when I do.

I will say that I'm a bit surprised it was published by Zarahemla as any Mormon connection was vague enough as to be immaterial.

four days of three reading



Previously in 2012 . . . . :

Read the reviews of 34-36.
036) Hyperion by Dan Simmons, finished July 2
035) A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, finished June 27
034) Kampung Boy by Lat, finished June 22

Read the reviews of 29-33.
034) The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple, finished June 20
033) Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl, finished June 18
032) Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart, "finished" June 18
031) Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese, "finished" June 15
030) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon, finished June 9
029) Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick, finished early June

Read the reviews of 25-28.
028) Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, finished May 24
027) The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, finished May 16
026) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, finished May 10 (I'm astonished a month has passed since I've finished a book)
025) Dominant Traits by Eric Freeze, finished April 10

Read the reviews of 21-24.
024) The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White, finished April 2
023) UNTITLED MS by Kyle Jepson, finished March 12, 2012
022) The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 4
021) The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, finished March 3

Read the reviews of 14-20.
020) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
019) Good-bye, Chunky Rice by Craig Thompson, finished February 26
018) Madman 20th Anniversary Monster HC by [everybody], finished February 25
017) Billy Hazelnuts and Crazy Bird by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
016) Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire, finished February 25
015) Habibi by Craig Thompson, finished February 20
014) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, finished February 15

Read the reviews of 12-13.
013) Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell, finished February 12
012) Black Hole by Charles Burns, finished February 11

Read the reviews of 6-11.
011) The Complete Peanuts: 1979-1980 by Charles M. Schulz, finished February 4
010) Blankets by Craig Thompson, finished February 4
009) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, finished February 2
008) The Millstone Necklace (forthcoming) by S.P. Bailey, finished January 31
007) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished January 27
006) Across a Harvested Field by Robert Goble, finished January 23

Read the reviews of 1-5.
005) Hark! a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton, finished January 21
004) The Death of a Disco Dancer by David Clark, finished January 12
003) Bucketfoot Al: The Baseball Life of Al Simmons by Clifton Blue Parker, finished January 9
002) Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly, finished January 9
001) What of the Night? by Stephen Carter, finished January 5