Why do I do this to myself? February 18, 2009

I really don’t want to waste any time writing a coherent review of New Moon. So, here are my thoughts, in no particular order. There might be some spoilers below, but I think most of us know all the sordid details by now anyway. I don’t like obsessive love. People too often use it as [...]

Holy Merde January 27, 2009

Must. Have. Please let this not be a joke. This dose of awesomeness brought to you by Bookshelves of Doom.

I’ll take Brisbane over Heathcliff any day January 21, 2009

When I saw the ARC for Silent on the Moor in the Readers’ Advisory office I literally squealed like a little girl. I’m not ashamed to admit it. I adore Raybourn’s Silent series and was dreading the three-month wait for the next one (I can be terribly impatient sometimes). But then, there it was, just [...]

A far cry from Bram Stoker January 13, 2009

And now, for part two of my “What I read on Christmas vacation” report: Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. Twilight reads as if written by a precocious teenager. In fact, if it had been, I would probably have been pretty impressed. Alas, it is not. The writing is unsophisticated and transparent (that’s either good or bad [...]

Come in! and know me better, man! January 9, 2009

During my weeklong Christmas break, amidst the festivities and family dinners and hockey and gallivanting in our nation’s capital, I somehow manage to polish off two books. The first of those, admittedly, should probably not count, since I’ve read it so many times I could doubtless recite it verbatim if I tried. (Okay, maybe not [...]

Sacrilicious April 11, 2008

LISNEWS had an article a few days ago about artist Brian Dettmer, who carves old books into pieces of art. You can see more of his work at the Packer Schopf Gallery. Incidentally, this Gallery also features art by Clive Barker (“Ah, the suffering. The sweet suffering.”) and Peggy Macnamara, artist in residence of Chicago’s [...]

Sweetly Gruesome or Gruesomely Sweet? February 20, 2008

I don’t think it’s any secret that I am a fan of books with a touch of the surreal and/or fantastical. No surprise then that I enjoyed K. M. Grant’s How the Hangman Lost His Heart. It’s a fun little romp with a healthy dose of the absurd. The premise alone gave me a good [...]

Oh, Frabjous Day! Callooh! Callay! February 8, 2008

Last night, I stayed up far later than was advisable so that I could finish Frank Beddors’ Looking Glass Wars. I simply could not stop. The final third of the book sunk its claws into me with the ferocity of the Cat. (Oh, don’t groan…I just couldn’t resist.) Beddors’ book was a fun, rollicking, and [...]

Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn. June 9, 2007

If I wasn’t sitting in a library right this moment, I would be SQUEALING with delight. From Dreamland Toys comes this package of pure scifi joy: Yes, friends, that is dread Cthulhu. Isn’t he just the Cutest? Don’t you just want to kiss his big evil forehead? And he comes complete with 2 screaming victims. [...]

Following the Silver Thread June 5, 2007

I just finished reading Rumo and His Miraculous Adventures by Walter Moers. It was… well… kinda… about… sorta… it’s really hard to explain. It’s about war and death and life and growth and adventure and intrigue and science and the unknown and, above all, love. Reading a Zamonian tale is almost like stepping into a [...]