Free Comic Book Day

Yesterday was fun and exhausting.  It was our first experience being an "Artist" instead of an attendee at any thing.  And we saw so many people yesterday.  

And, I discovered a new comic.  I stopped to talk to Dirk Manning about a new comic he is working on about a superheroine.  I love stories featuring strong female protagonists, so I wanted to know more about it.  While I did learn a little (and we'll be talking to Dirk on the podcast shortly about that), he did introduce me to his Nightmare World.  This comic was billed as a horror book, so I didn't pick it up.  Dirk opened the book to one story, told me to read it, then decide.  I was immediately hooked!  If you haven't read this yet, DO SO NOW!

In fact, I got both volumes that are out now, and will get the third volume in October.   

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!!!!!!! JLI

I just ready the last issue of JLI: Generation Lost, and I am so happy!  Should I say more?  I won't, as I don't want to spoil things.  But, as usual, this comic was great.  And best of all, the very last bit, JLI will be an ongoing series!!!!!!!!!!!

Love you Booster Gold! 

Babylon 5

I have been watching Babylon 5 on Netflix lately.  We didn't watch it when it was on first-run, or in reruns.  But with JMS being so "in the news" with comics now, and with Netflix streaming all the TV episodes, I decided to give it a try.  I am up to Episode 13 in the first season, and it is -- not bad.  I suppose it is as good as the first season of  STNG.  But it does feel dated.  And a few things bother me.

Everyone refers to the alien races as aliens.  Even the aliens.  It seems to me that, at the point where there are so many different races, they would all have a word for themselves, and you might refer to humans and non-humans (if you were talking about other races as a whole), or non-Terrans (better).  And the humans would be aliens to any other planet's population.  The whole "aliens" thing just reeks of future racism.  

I am just waiting now for Netflix to have all the Star Trek series available for streaming.  I never did watch the last two seasons of Voyager, or past the first couple episodes of Enterprise.  And I really would love to rewatch my favorite episode of Star Trek ever, the DS9 episode of time travel back to "The Trouble with Tribbles."

And I just have to say, "Curse you, Netflix, for streaming so many TV shows that I end up wasting way too much time watching!"

Gardening Season is upon me.

I am starting the garden this week.  I have three Tiny Tim Tomatoes in pots already.  These are going in and out the patio door pretty much daily, depending upon how windy it is.  My lemon trees are also spending non-windy days outside now.  

I have six broccoli plants in an Earthbox already.  They have gotten a little windblown, and I don't know if they will make it.  But I still intend to put another six in the garden plot, which should be ready on Thursday or Friday. 

I am planting at least one brussell sprout plant this year.  I don't really like brussell sprouts, but the plant is just so interesting.  And I am trying my hand at cabbage as another early spring crop.  Once the end of May rolls around, I should have lots of pepper plants to put out, as well as the traditional carrots, onions, zucchini and cucumbers.  I am planning on canning lots of salsa, and carrot/jalapeno relish.  

As much as I love the winter and snow, I have grown to appreciate the summer and working the garden!  

Nathan Fillion, Crafting, Weather, Work

I don't want anyone listening to the podcast to think that I am obsessed with Nathan Fillion.  I am not.  I just think he is really cute and charming AS AN ACTOR.  I don't know if he is that way in person, because I don't know him.  I have to say that, if I found myself in a room with him, I would not even know what to say to him.  "I like your work."  That's about it.  Because after that, it sort of devolves into either asking him about stuff I have already read in interviews (which would be creepy for me if I was a celebrity, to know that someone is reading all this stuff about me), or treating him like one of the characters he plays (creepy in its own right).  And I imagine he (and all the other actors who have been in shows that develop such obsessed fans) is really, really tired of being asked about "what happened between Mal and Shepard Book that ended with Book on a planet in the movie."  

 I am doing little bits of crafting here and there.  I saw a tutorial on the Craftzine blog a while back about weaving baskets out of maps.  I have a bunch of old National Geographic insert maps that I decided to use for this. 

Pictured is a map woven using two lengths of said map, each cut in half (so four strands woven).  I was just playing around, but then thought of another posting from Craftzine, which was about making yo-yo flowers.  I have tons of yo-yos made with the Clover yo-yo makers, and decided to give this a try.  I think it turned out pretty cute, for a craft I made with things lying around! 

In the background, you can see my front door.  I am not having a party.  The streamers are to keep birds from nesting on the ledge over the door.  I like watching birds, but I hate when they build a nest over my door and swoop down to peck out my eyes.  Okay, that's probably an exaggeration, but I saw The Birds at a very young age.

I have been working a lot more lately.  Teachers tend to take off more as the spring progresses.  Today I am in an 8th grade Math class, which I really love.  Algebra and Pre-Algebra really are my favorites.  But, as it is tornado season, it is time for tornado drills, which I hate.  I hate fire drills too. 

San Diego Comic Con

I just read that tickets for SDCC 2011 have already sold out (in seven hours)!  SDCC really isn't a comics convention anymore.  It really is an "all-media" event.  It is too bad that that the people who really are interested in the comics part of the event aren't able to attend, crowded out by the movie, television, and press people who aren't (weren't?) really the target audience of the con.  Maybe everyone who attends should be required to show proof of at least once comic book purchase that year.  Boost up the comics industry a little.  

That being said, I am glad we got to attend.  But as I said then, and say now, I think once is enough.  

It's very crowded, people will grab anything that is free, and the level of noise and congestion on the floor made it almost impossible to talk to anyone.  

What I am looking forward to this week...

I really love this comic.  The whole series will be over with issue 30, so while I am looking forward to this issue coming out, it is a little bittersweet.  Only two more issues after this one.  Shortly after the series started, there was talk of making it into a movie.  I wonder if that will still happen...

Check the Library or Buy the Book?

Today I returned "Shades of Grey" (Fforde) to the library.  I did not finish reading it, but I have renewed it twice.  It is a good book, I am just not in the mood for Fforde now.  Which made me start asking the question, "Should I have just bought the book?"

There are some books I just have to be in the mood to read.  A book like "The Wind-Up Girl" (Bacigalupi ), which I am also reading now (and have been for about a month), is very dense reading.  I have to read every word, because the writing is just so precise and the descriptions of the future world are vital to the story taking place.  Because of that, this is a book I can't just pick up and read while I am watching kids take a test.  It demands my attention.  "Shades of Grey" is also a book that you have to give your full attention to, and be in the mood for.  These books might sit on my shelf for months, until I am in the right mood.  These are the books I buy, so that I remember I want to read them, and have them for when I want them.

But other books, like most series mystery, I can pick up and read anytime.  I can read and knit, or read and watch a classroom, or read and cook.  I love these books too, they just take a little less effort and dedication.  And I can read them pretty much anytime.  So those are the books that I tend to check out of the library, while I tend to buy the more complicated fiction.  Yet I read many more of the series types mystery and thrillers.  I think I need to have a rule to buy one or two of those for every three or four I read at the library.  I want the authors to keep writing, so they need to be paid!  

Read:  Trio of Sorcery (bought), Revolution (Advanced Copy), Olive Kitteridge (library), Masked (read from library, but subsequently purchased for Mark).  

 

Squarespace

We have moved to Squarespace!  I am not all that happy with them now that we are moved -- the grass is always greener on the other side, I guess.  But their Customer Service has been very unhelpful with a few issues. 

However, the site looks pretty good, and you will soon be able to download any older episode of any of our podcasts.  We'll be updating blogs and adding Twitter feeds with convention and comic book store pictures.  

And we'll be having some neat giveaways as we move forward, thanks to  Packrat Comics.  

Books I Need to Review

I finished these books in the last month:

Black Magic Sanction (Harrison)
Fledgling (Lee and Miller)
Saltation (Lee and Miller)
Fear the Worst (Linwood Barclay)
Asterios Polyps
Dark Entries
Takeover (Lisa Black)

This post is a reminder to me to write something about them. Right now, I am busy trying to use WordPress so I can move the blog over to our own web site, and still load podcasts.

Falling Behind

Once again I have fallen behind on comics. My New Year's resolution lasted until I went away for a week, and then I got back to two weeks worth of comics, plus problems with the website and podcast posting.

However, in the last two days I have read 31 comics, and only have 12 more to read before Wednesday, when the new ones come in.

What did I like in the last two weeks? As always, Terry Moore's Echo continues to delight. I love this story, which has much more action than SIP, but maintains the characterization and relationship building of it.

The Question and Manhunter. These two strong female superheroes (who took over from male predecessors) both have good stories, with the "superhero" and "regular person" sides balancing out -- sometimes.

The Vertigo titles I have read so far this month have also been great. Sweet Tooth is a little weird, but the story is moving along well; Cinderella is cute, and House of Mystery is mysterious.

What I didn't like quite so much? Well, I was confused by Teen Titans. Connor is back, but it seems like Cassie doesn't know it. I thought she did, but this issue made it seem like she didn't. And how does this tie in with the Milestone title that just came out? I am confused.

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko

I was at a middle school yesterday, and noticed a lot of students carrying this book around. They were reading it in their Language Arts class. One student told me they had been reading it for "two months."

Al Capone Does My Laundry, an earlier book by this author, was one I enjoyed a lot, so I picked this up during my lunch period and started reading. I was sucked in right away. This is another book where the author really effectively tells the story from the points of view of two different characters. This must be a trend for me lately, picking up books with this format. Or maybe a hot trend for authors? In any case, this is another case where the author really gets it right. The changing viewpoints between Walk and Kirsten are really effective.

The story itself is good, if not very complicated. Walk and Kirsten become unlikely friends, then find out a secret that affects their friendship and their other relationships. Choldenko realistically portrays tween/teen life and some of the trials and tribulations of youth.

I did finish this book overnight, as it was a fairly easy read (as are a lot of books aimed at kids 10 and up!), and I hope that student really hadn't spent two months reading this book. If I had had to spend several weeks reading a chapter at a time, I'd probably have lost interest in finishing.

As a final note, I am looking forward to getting Al Capone Shines My Shoes, further adventures of Moose Flanagan.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

This book came recommended from several different places. One of my favorite book podcasts, Books on the Nightstand, mentioned it several times. I also read about it on LibraryThing, and my mom liked it. So, how could I go wrong?

I did really enjoy this book. Set in 1950 England, Flavia de Luce is an 11-year-old chemistry genius, due to books and a laboratory left by an eccentric uncle. Flavia and her two sisters were left motherless at an early age, with a father who seems to be distant, at best. Things start to change when Flavia finds a dead body in the garden. Aided by her superior intelligence, sense of smell and knowledge of chemicals, Flavia proceeds with an investigation to determine the killer (and clear her father of the crime).

This is by no means a children's or YA book, despite the heroine being a youngster. Although there is nothing of a graphic nature, there is murder and kidnapping.

The second book in this series, The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, will be coming out very soon. I will be adding it to my TBR (or maybe my "To Be Listened To") pile.

The Bricklayer by Noah Boyd

I borrowed this book from my sister (thanks, Lisa!), who got it as a freebie from Bouchercon 2009. I think it was handed out during a publisher panel, but don't really remember... It wasn't part of the big free-for-all at the end of the con, I know! In any case, the FTC or whoever should be satisfied now that I have said it was free.

Boyd has written a credible and exciting thriller (even if I did figure out what was going on way before the FBI). A terrorist group is extorting the FBI, using a series of murders to get $5 million dollars. The FBI is at a loss, and calls in a fired agent to locate a missing FBI agent who might have run off with $2 million of the money. False leads abound as the hero, Steve Vail, works outside the FBI hierarchy to find the missing money and the last members of the Rubaco Pentad, who have planned what may be a perfect crime.

I finished this in just a few days, and really enjoyed it. I would pick up the next in what is sure to be an on-going series featuring Vail.

A Book I Read, and Some Comics

First, I want to mention that I finally got to read the Fables novel, and I have written a little bit about it here. Suffice it to say, I really enjoyed it, and it gave a lot of back story on the characters of Peter Piper and Bo Peep. It occurs BEFORE the big war, so you could really read it any time in the course of your Fables reading.

I am also doing really good keeping up with the comics reading. There were a few things I wanted to comment on that we didn't get to in the podcast. SPOILERS AHEAD!

First, The Unwritten #9 -- Argh, Mark was right. I am really glad this is labeled for mature readers. As Mark predicted in the podcast a few weeks ago, the prison warden's kids have (apparently) been killed. I am sure Tom will be blamed for this. I really like this comic (in spite of the killing?), and think it is going into a really interesting direction.

Blackest Night: Suicide Squad is one of the those canceled titles that they are bringing back for a Blackest Night issue. To me, this seemed more like an extra issue of "Secret Six," which isn't a bad thing. If you like "Secret Six," don't miss this one!

All I can say about Echo is READ IT.

I had "House of Mystery" in my pile that I wanted to post about, but I can't remember why. Another good Vertigo title, and it seems as though this issue (21) is starting a new arc, so it might be a good time to hop in.

Peter and Max by Bill Willingham

As you might know, I also read comics. One of my favorite comics is Fables, which follows a community of well-known (and lesser-known) characters from fairy tales, nursery rhymes, myth and Americana as they try to live life in our "mundy" world while hiding their special abilities from those of us without (hmmm... mundies are muggles?). The comic has been going for several years, and has spun off another series, Jack of Fables. And now, Bill Willingham has written a novel set in the world of Fables.

This novel follows what happens when Peter Piper, in our modern mundane world, has to deal with the results of his relationship with his brother, Max, the Pied Piper. Interspersed in the modern story is the back story of Peter, his wife Bo Peep, the Black Forest Witch, Max, the town of Hamelin, and more. Willingham shows that he is just as good at novel writing as he is at writing for comics.

The book is (lightly) illustrated by Steve Leialoha. The black-and-white illustrations, while not necessary in the story as they would be in a graphic novel, still add to the telling.

This book could be read by any reader who likes imaginative fiction set in a world similar to our own. You don't have to be familiar with the Fables universe, and this might even get you to consider taking a look at the comic.

Never Look Away by Linwood Barclay

I just finished reading an ARC of this book (that I did receive free from Delacourte Press, through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer Program). It is not due out until March 16 (Amazon says March 2), but I definitely recommend it for your "To Be Read" list..

The book starts off with what seems like an innocent trip to the amusement park -- although why anyone would want to take a four-year-old to an amusement park is beyond my comprehension. When Jan and

David Harwood's son goes missing at the park, it is the beginning of a chain of events that has David confused about his family, his job and his sanity.

The book sucked me right in, from the first chapter. I received this Friday afternoon, and finished it in less than 24 hours. There are several things that I really liked about it. First, it appears to be a "stand-alone" novel, not one of a series. While I like series thrillers (Michael Connelly's Bosch books are a good example), I always feel like I have to read the books in order. With stand-alones, I can jump right into an author's newest book, and then look forward to going back to the previous ones if I like this one. I will definitely go back and look up Barclay's newer books!

Second, the point of view shifts throughout the book. Normally, I don't like this, but Barclay is very good at handling the alternating first-person chapters, narrated by David, with the other sections told from the points-of-view of David's wife, the investigating police officer, and other characters as needed. The transitions were not jarring at all; I was never confused or thrown out of the story.

Lastly, I really liked the font used in this book. Isn't that weird? It isn't something I normally think about, the size and layout of the print seemed really easy to read, even in the low light of the bedroom, or while I was sitting in the brightly lit living room.

Comics

Argh, I haven't posted here in quite a while. But I spent the last three days reading about a month and half worth of comics. I am caught up through this past Wednesday's releases. Some comments:

There were lots of lettering "typos" in some of the Star Trek comics. That really takes me out of the moment.

Batwoman (Dectective Comics) is growing on me. I still don't love the comic, but I'm not skimming over the main story just to make it to Manhunter anymore.

Vertigo Crime -- YES!

Secret Six -- Black Alice comes for a visit. I love the Black Alice character.

Angel Annual #1: Last Angel in Hell -- a comic book adaptation of a movie that was made in a comic book that is based on a TV series. Talk about multi-media.

Blackest Night -- I think half of the comics I read in the last few days were Blackest Night related. I have to say I am a little tired of this. It is like the same thing happens in every title.

Maybe I should make a New Year's resolution to read the comics in a timely manner? So I can make timely posts? Okay. I will try to read all of the comics before the next week Wednesday's releases enter the house!

Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

As you, dear reader, may know, I read comic books. I haven't always read comic books. I have been led to comics by my dear husband, who is a collector. But that doesn't mean I have abandoned reading traditional prose books; and, sometimes, a traditional prose book will cross over to appeal to comics readers. One of those on my reading list right now is Peter and Max, a novel set in the comics world of Fables, from Vertigo.

However, this posting is about Kavalier and Clay, a book I am clearing off my bookshelf and giving away for Christmas (maybe Peter and Max will be in next year's batch). Kavalier and Clay is an award-winning novel following the creators of a Superman-like character called the Escapist. The story of the two cousins is funny, touching, sad, and well deserving of the Pulitzer Prize it won.

Griffin and Sabine, The Diamond Age

Another set of books going out the door...

Griffin & Sabine, Sabine's Notebook, The Golden Mean by Nick Bannock

An extraordinary set of books. The artwork is beautiful and helps tell the story of two artists meet through the their art of postcards and stamps. Their correspondence leads to mystery and love. These books made me wish I was a letter writer. Alas, I am not.

The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson

Neal Stephenson writes long books. Really long books. Mark is a big fan of Stephenson (in ebook form, otherwise the books are just too big...they are sometimes heavy and sometimes have very small prin)t. I actually partially listened and partially read this book because it was so long.

BUT, the book is definitely worth reading. The Diamond Age melds the story lines of so many characters, in such a unique way, that it is really hard to describe. The world of enclaves based on different societies, and how they interact, is so interesting; and the driving force of the book, the Primer, is such a unique creation.