Of the boxed set of Dragonriders of Pern books that I got for Christmas when I was in high school, this one was solidly my favorite. So sad! So good! Of the boxed set of Dragonriders of Pern books that I got for Christmas when I was in high school, this one was solidly my favorite. So sad! So good! Also, the descriptions of her gowns, and everyone's clothes, were really rich in this one and to this day I can remember them all!
(The boxed set, which I still have, contained Moreta, Dragonflight, Dragonquest, and the White Dragon.)...more
You simply cannot understand the effect Figment has had on my entire life. My stuffed Figment that I got when I was four years old is sitting on a sheYou simply cannot understand the effect Figment has had on my entire life. My stuffed Figment that I got when I was four years old is sitting on a shelf five feet away from met as I write this. He was the first in my dragon collection, the one little spark that started everything for me. The book is a charmer, a peek into the original ride with Dreamfinder, Figment, and their airship!...more
Can we take a moment to appreciate how affectionate all these men are, and the beautiful friendships/brotherhood they share? Every time Darrow would gCan we take a moment to appreciate how affectionate all these men are, and the beautiful friendships/brotherhood they share? Every time Darrow would grab Sevro or Cassius and give them a hug (and we all know that Sevro does not get hugged enough), I would tear up a little. All the people kissing each other's heads, too. There's just something so endearing about it! Even when five minutes later they're disemboweling someone.
Hey, speaking of disemboweling, you know who needs to be disemboweled, and slowly? I'll give you a hint: Not Sevro. Not Darrow. No, not Lyria, you weirdos. That one guy. And apparently there's only going to be one more book, which means that Sevro and his knives need to get to carvin'. ...more
A gorgeous and unusual adaptation of my favorite fairy tale, putting it in a modern, but still very fairy tale-esque, setting. The pictures are glorioA gorgeous and unusual adaptation of my favorite fairy tale, putting it in a modern, but still very fairy tale-esque, setting. The pictures are glorious, of course, but the words are just as beautiful. My sister gave this to me for Christmas, because she loves me. ...more
This was always my favorite. The magic rings, and the wood between the worlds, the birth of Narnia, the planting of the lamppost, and Uncle Andrew's "This was always my favorite. The magic rings, and the wood between the worlds, the birth of Narnia, the planting of the lamppost, and Uncle Andrew's "She was a dem fine gel!" All of it is just perfect to me. The Christian imagery hits REAL hard here, with the tree and the fruit and all that, but still, a dem fine book!...more
Beartown: Rips your heart out Us Against You: Throws it onto the ice of the rink The Winners: runs over your heart with newly sharpened skates
As I got tBeartown: Rips your heart out Us Against You: Throws it onto the ice of the rink The Winners: runs over your heart with newly sharpened skates
As I got toward the end of this book, sobbing openly, I started to think that this trilogy truly was a saga. The word saga gets tossed around a lot, much like "epic," but this was a saga in the old Viking tradition. We knew each character, their family, their strengths and weaknesses, and we followed them over years and saw the fallout from the inciting incident and how it affected their lives for generations, how it affected the town, how reparations were made or not made, and what the result of that was. Then in the acknowledgments he thanked everyone involved for the making of his saga, and I thought, yes. It's not just me. This is what he was doing, and he did it gorgeously.
Beartown stands alone, in my opinion, and should be taught in high schools. Yes, there's swearing. Yes, there's a rape. I don't care. It shows the effects on everyone in a community of a crime that was ultimately caused by toxic masculinity and toxic sports culture. It's a great book.
But if you read on you can't stop at Us Against You. You have to keep going. You have to put your heart into the blade sharpener and let it be sliced into a million pieces, because The Winners isn't just a great book. The Winners is a masterpiece. By the time it's over you'll have read over a thousand pages (with the three books combined) about this community in the forest, and the people who live in it. You will know them intimately. You will love them, hate them, smile at them, yell at them, cry for them, and cry with them. They will be so real you won't know what to do with yourself when you close the book and realize that it's over, you're done. You've been privy to something so raw and beautiful you will be changed.
The first Dickens I ever read! Way back in 2000! I borrowed it from my sister, because I had never read a book by Boz, and she was like, WHAAAAT, thisThe first Dickens I ever read! Way back in 2000! I borrowed it from my sister, because I had never read a book by Boz, and she was like, WHAAAAT, this is the BESSST!
So good!
More humorous than some of his novels, but definitely bittersweet. Pip is a very human character. He's fully realized as a child, and as he grows into a young man he continues to contain multitudes: he's a bit of an asshole and spends too much money, shuns people who might embarrass him, but also secretly helps a friend in financial need, and yearns for the childhood friendship he had with that big sweetheart, Jo. Miss Havisham in her bridal finery is so terrifying and so sad, Magwitch is much the same.
I can see why this is the one that gets taught the most in schools, and is called the most accessible. It's got plenty of quirky characters, like Miss Havisham and Mr. Wemmick (Oh, my gosh! The Aged Parent! The moveable property! The Post Office!), and the Pockets, but it's also got a lot to say about fair weather friends, and social class distinctions of the time. It would make for some great discussions, without students having to know the ins and outs of the debtors' prisons, say. ...more
Another stunning MinaLima book. I think my favorite was the entrance to Dumbledore's office . . . just amazing! Another stunning MinaLima book. I think my favorite was the entrance to Dumbledore's office . . . just amazing! ...more
Absolutely in my Top Ten of Marion Chesney's delightful romances. I love that Henrietta takes her small inheritance and, instead of hiring a chaperoneAbsolutely in my Top Ten of Marion Chesney's delightful romances. I love that Henrietta takes her small inheritance and, instead of hiring a chaperone and doing the Season to find a husband, she sets up shop as a confectioner. And she's good, too! She comes to fame by making a marzipan Beau Brummell and having it sent to his house! She makes a scene from a recent win against Napoleon out of spun sugar. And, knowing that she will need to have the prettiest showgirls, she takes her two beautiful but impoverished friends with her, along with her retired schoolteacher, who dreams of having the most elegant funeral you can imagine!
Chesney's Regency romances definitely follow a pattern. It's not hard to know that soon Henrietta will meet an infuriating man, they'll fight, he'll fall for someone else, they'll end up in each other's arms, etc. But what makes this one stand out is the setting and the characters. There's a chapter where, after "giving birth" (aka, being fitted for leather trousers), a young suitor is then nearly killed when those same trousers get wet and shrink, cutting off his circulation. I can still remember it in detail!...more
The MinaLima team designed the look of the Harry Potter movies, and I have loved their editions of classics, so I knew this would be great. And it wasThe MinaLima team designed the look of the Harry Potter movies, and I have loved their editions of classics, so I knew this would be great. And it was. Jewel-like illustrations, giving it the look of an illuminated manuscript, special features like fold out maps, Dumbledore's pocket watch, and Quirrell's turban made it especially fun as a read aloud. The paper itself is heavy and faintly tinted like parchment, each page decorated along the edges. We have the illustrated edition, but this is even more spectacular! ...more
Love this story, and love how it was brought to life by this voice cast! Alan Cumming was remarkable as Dr. Seward, and whoever did Mina had a charminLove this story, and love how it was brought to life by this voice cast! Alan Cumming was remarkable as Dr. Seward, and whoever did Mina had a charming voice. But of course: Tim Curry. So great. ...more
Read this aloud to my kids, but it was probably the third or fourth time that I've read it myself. It was wonderful as I remembered. A really good mesRead this aloud to my kids, but it was probably the third or fourth time that I've read it myself. It was wonderful as I remembered. A really good message about being yourself, and not caring what "they" think, but it's fun and bittersweet, instead of being preachy. ...more
I think I discovered this book in early high school, shortly after it had been written, and I think it changed my life . . . ?
It certainly made it funI think I discovered this book in early high school, shortly after it had been written, and I think it changed my life . . . ?
It certainly made it funnier, and more exciting! I love everything about this book from her mother's portrait waking her up like a motivational alarm clock to the unicorn itself to the peeve! THE PEEVE. Arguably the best part of this book is that there are basically talking groundhogs moiling around her mother's fortress, and it's one of them that leads her to the bones of the black unicorn- "Bone! Found a BONE." My older brother read this and he and I used to say that to each other all the time and laugh like idiots!...more
Stuart McLean is a Canadian National Treasure, and listening to him tell the stories of Dave, Morley, the Vinyl Cafe, their kids and neighbors, is oneStuart McLean is a Canadian National Treasure, and listening to him tell the stories of Dave, Morley, the Vinyl Cafe, their kids and neighbors, is one of life's great delights....more
Had to take a break halfway through to read some Christmas books, and then some other things for Battle of the Books, but at last we finished!
Such an Had to take a break halfway through to read some Christmas books, and then some other things for Battle of the Books, but at last we finished!
Such an interesting book: the turning point for the series where it becomes YA! Romance! Political intrigue! Murder! DRUNKEN HOUSE ELVES! The illustrations suitably reflected this more mature story line, with lovely pictures of Hermione, and funny ones of Winky and Dobby undercut with a HORRIFYING portrait of Mad-Eye Moody. There were also, I felt, fewer illustrations to this one, which makes sense because there are so many words! ...more
One of my favorites of the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books, because it introduces the well-mannered pig Lester, and ends with a treasure hunt through Mrs. PiOne of my favorites of the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books, because it introduces the well-mannered pig Lester, and ends with a treasure hunt through Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's upside down house, as the children try to help her find her husband's pirate treasure! I yearned to find a lucky gold piece wrapped in a black silk scarf as a child! In fact, I still do!...more
Dear Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle! So clever, so kind! And what a fascinating look these book give you at life in the "Donna Reed Era." All the mothers are at hDear Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle! So clever, so kind! And what a fascinating look these book give you at life in the "Donna Reed Era." All the mothers are at home making pot roasts and gingerbread for their children, and the fathers work in an office and smoke pipes and read the paper after supper. The girls wear dresses and white socks and the boys wear sweaters and ironed jeans! It's swell, just swell!
And YET. The problems that these frazzled mothers call Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle to help with? Still so current! Selfishness, not picking up toys, picky eating, constant bickering! Every time I read these books to my kids (and it looks like it's been about 6 years since the last time), I always have to keep stopping to stare meaningfully at my children. Because even though they're generally very good . . . well, we all need a reminder about how annoying quarreling is, or how important it is to take care of your own things!...more
One of my favorite Chesney Regencies! Lucy, seemingly meek and certainly not as pretty as her younger sister, brings out the sass to try and warn the One of my favorite Chesney Regencies! Lucy, seemingly meek and certainly not as pretty as her younger sister, brings out the sass to try and warn the rakish Duke of Wardshire away from Belinda when their vulgar mother tries to make a match. The duke falls for the elfin and high spirited Lucy, of course!
PS- I think this is the first one I bought after I got married, much to the bemusement of my husband, who had previously only seen me read "the classics" or 1,000 page fantasy tomes. Now when I read books like this, he still asks, "Is it scandalous? IS IT A REAL SCANDAL?!" And of course I have to describe the whole plot to him!...more
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