giving thanks

Yesterday was our chance to show our love to the many wonderful book bloggers who didn't make the shortlists for the BBAW awards. Wow...the posts were wonderful, weren't they? And I don't even have to ask how many of you doubled the subscriptions in your readers, do I? All hands are raised, I'm sure.

But as I wrote my post yesterday, I couldn't help but feel a little sad. For one thing, there are just so many people who brighten my days on a regular basis...and if I read your blog, that means you're one of them! So I used the only method I knew to select out who to highlight..."randomosity." But the other thing that made me sad is that so many of the people that have honestly, truly become my closest friends were shortlisted...so I couldn't gush all over them.

Well, I'm going to do that today...

Ana a.k.a. Nymeth...Though I have never seen her beautiful face in person, she is undoubtedly one of the very best friends I have ever, EVER had! We've laughed together, and we've grieved together. She is a bottomless well of support. Oh my goodness, I can't tell you how guilty I feel about the crap I dump on her...but she never complains. She listens to it all, and then miraculously finds the words to make me feel better. And it's always so comforting to find someone who sees the world in the same way you do. I swear, there is not a single thing about Ana that I don't love. She is intelligent, and thoughtful, and generous, and open...and dammit, I'm starting to cry here because I honestly don't know what I ever did to deserve such an incredible person in my life.
Of course, she has been living hell on our floors...and when we go crashing down through to the basement under the weight of all these books, she had better fly herself right over here and help us rebuild. ;)

Chris...He's Ana, in boy form. :D Don't worry, they both know what a tremendous compliment that is! Of course, Chris and Ana are very individual people...it's just that the feelings I have for them both are so strong. Chris is one of the kindest, most genuine people on the planet! You know, with Rich and Ana and Chris, I think I could face any challenge that this world could throw at me...and that's a feeling I wouldn't trade for all the money in the world. I got to meet Chris in person. :D Was it awkward or uncomfortable? Did it take us time to warm up and feel at ease? HELL NO!!! Because Chris on-line = Chris in person. There's no pretense there. It felt as if we'd known each other forever. And I will cherish those two days with him always! Of course, we'll be getting together again...there is NO doubt about that! Friends like Chris just don't come into one's life very often...and I am so very blessed that he came into mine!

Renay...I don't think I've ever been quite so intimidated by any blogger as I was by Renay. And you know, I almost hate using that word "intimidated" because I worry that it has a negative connotation, and I truly don't mean it to. So let me explain...I never felt I could possibly have anything to say that the incredibly awesome Renay would want to hear. Going the equation route again: Renay = fabulously cool, while Debi = total dork. But guess what! While these descriptions remain true, it didn't stop Renay from liking me. :D I was lucky enough to get to meet Renay in person, too. And holy crap, I just love her all the more! But for all this babbling here, I haven't really told you what makes Renay so special to me. Renay has one incredible voice! She doesn't pull her punches. She reviews books like no one else I've ever read. She makes me think...always. Even when I think my eyes are already wide open, she manages to pull them open even wider. I don't know quite how to thank her for that, because it's one of those gifts that is truly priceless. And don't let her fool you...sure, she's strong and she's opinionated and she's just too cool for words...but she's also got a heart of gold.

Eva...Eva is such a ray of sunshine in my life! I probably shouldn't admit it, but I feel almost maternal towards her at times. I'm guessing that's because she and Annie remind me so much of one another. And as I've told Eva before, I can't possibly think of a better role model. I worry about her incessantly, probably to the point that I drive her crazy (though she would never admit it)...but I can't help it, because I just cannot stand the fact that she suffers with such pain. But while I worry about her, it is she who ends up making me feel better about myself. She's so incredibly intelligent that at first I was definitely greatly intimidated by her. But she refused to let that stand...she somehow managed to make me stop degrading myself by comparison. Now, instead of feeling stupid around her, I take joy in all I can learn from her. Can I say it again, what a ray of sunshine she is...because warmth and light and happiness, that's Eva!

Carl...Talk about the epitome of giving. It seems like a lifetime ago when Annie and I met Carl through the first Once Upon a Time challenge. Because who could possibly believe that so much could happen in just a couple short years. Over this time, I have grown to love Carl and his family more than I can say. He totally won my undying friendship in his selfless gestures to a little girl. I've tried to tell him, but I'm not sure I've ever been able to convey the true extent that the impact his encouragement, and generosity, and respect, had on Annie. A little girl who always found herself feeling a bit different from her peers. But all that was just the beginning. The gifts I've received from this incredible guy are boundless...from the horizon-expanding nature of his posts both on books and on art to the reawakening of my long-buried love of horror, from the endless fun he provides us all through his awesome challenges to the encouragement he abundantly offers...but the most precious of all, is truly his wonderful friendship.

Trish...There is no possible way on earth that one cannot fall in love with Trish! Those of you who know her, I'm sure you'll agree. For those of you who don't, well, I dare to go meet her and see. Always, always, always, Trish makes me smile! :D And not just itty bitty smiles either, no, we're talking the ear-to-ear variety here. It's one of those ineffable qualities. Honestly, I can't describe it. She exudes warmth and friendship and positive feelings. She's so open and welcoming and gosh darnit, she's just as adorable as can be!

Amanda...I haven't known Amanda nearly as long as I've known these other friends, but already I can't imagine my life without her. Truth is, she sometimes reminds me of me, only in a much more polished form. :D Honestly, there's so many thing I love about her...her passion for her incredible family, her talent with a pen (or keyboard, if you will), her willingness to disagree with the "majority" about a book, her worldviews, her love of all things HP...seriously, this list could go on and on. But on a selfish note, there's also the fact that she has a knack for making me feel good about myself...she somehow seems to sense my insecurities and bolsters me just when I need it (and I have no idea if she's even conscious that she does this).

Okay, feel free to call me a major league sap here. I just read over what I wrote and I'm sitting here with tears flowing freely. I feel so undeniably blessed to have each and every one of these people in my life. Yeah, and don't ever try to convince me that on-line friends aren't "real"!

And to those of you above, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Dewey...You know how much you belong on that list. I still miss you so much it physically hurts. I guess it will always be that way. Because I will always love you.

so many wonderful blogs

Yes, it's finally here! Book Blogger Appreciation Week. And today, we've been asked to highlight some of our favorite blogs that didn't make the shortlists for the awards. This is a good time to make a confession. I don't feel like a book blogger myself. Yes, I love, love, love books...reading them, talking about them, reading what other people have to say about them. But a.) I don't write wonderful, intelligent book reviews...I babble, and b.) I don't even limit my babbling to books, as anyone who reads my blog can attest. I'm just one of those little bloggers who blogs for purely personal reasons...to have fun, to "hang out" with friends, to create a little record of my time on earth. In other words, I am not one of those awesome book bloggers whose blog is filled with beautifully-written, insightful reviews and author interviews and book news, etc. I do admire those bloggers...I can't even imagine the time and dedication involved...but it's not who I am.

But why do I mention any of this at all? Well, because part of being this little blogger that I am, also involves the fact that I just don't read that many blogs. A fact that kills me. Honest. I know that there are probably hundreds of blogs that I could easily get addicted to if I let myself. There are just so many freakin' cool people in this book blogging world!!! But I've had to be tough on myself...I've had to make myself keep my blogging world on the small side. Simply because I'm in the midst of one of those tremendously busy periods of my life. We all go through them, so I'm sure you understand. And I can honestly say that I feel truckloads of guilt for not reading more of the wonderful blogs out there and for not commenting on every single post of the blogs I do read. But every time I try to expand my world too much, I find myself stressed, and fighting to hold onto my sanity, and starting to lose the joy that blogging gives me.

Sheesh...see, this is what I mean about babbling!!! Could I not simply have said, "There's too many freakin' awesome book blogs out there for me to keep up with, but here's a few that didn't make the shortlists that I positively adore." ?!! Yeah, I think that would have worked. And you know what, even with the small number of blogs I read, I can't possibly mention all the ones I adore. So I'm just going to choose 9 (because 4 and 9 are my favorite numbers, but 4 isn't enough) totally randomly from my google reader. And it truly makes me sad to leave anyone out, because honest and true, if I read your blog it means I love it.

DesLily of Here, There, and Everywhere...Wow, what an interesting life she's lived! She tells the greatest stories, writes fun book reviews that leave me immediately with a feel of whether it's a book I'd enjoy or not, and takes wonderful photos that always make me smile. Did I mention that she's just a sweetheart of a person to boot?!!

 Melody of Mel's Reading Corner...Oh my goodness, I wish I could put into words the kind of person she is. The best I can do is to say that she's a ray of sunshine. There is something about Melody that just exudes warmth and happiness. Yeah, even in her book review posts!

Vivienne of Serendipity...Another sweetheart. Hey, I think we've got a theme going here! :D  So much I love about Vivienne...her sense of humor, her lovely local expressions, her personal way of writing that just makes you feel like you're sitting down with her chatting. And I love reading her reviews, and hearing about her family, and drooling over her scrapbook pages, and...

Stephanie of Stephanie's Confessions of a Book-a-holic...Oh what can I say...Stephanie is just so mega-cool. I adore her! We love the same kind of books, but even more importantly, we feel the same way about the world. She's so crazy busy living life and doesn't generally get to post every day, but every time she does post, it's just a pure treat!

Susan of You Can Never Have Too Many Books...Susan is so down-to-earth and friendly, and her blog is so homey and welcoming! We, too, have much the same taste in books, so I always look forward to what she has to say about her latest reads.

Care of Care's Online Book Club...Oh my, Care is such a doll! Seriously. She's adorable and funny and reads such a cool variety of books. And while math may not really be my thing, I so love her math geekiness! Adorable, I tell you. Adorable!

Megan of Leafing Through Life...No one makes me laugh like Megan does!!! I kid you not. And she's just as sweet and friendly and approachable as a person can be. And she reads these books that I always think initially are "too sophisticated" for me, but her reviews are so awesome that she ends up making me want to read them after all!

Staci at Life in the Thumb...Is it really dorky of me to say that I want to grow up and be just like her? (I'm ignoring that fact that I'm older than she is, of course.) Okay, I'm not sure how to put into words why I love her so much. Yes, she's incredibly sweet. Yes, she's obviously very smart. Yes, she's down-to-earth. Yes, she reads an incredible amount of books (and she scrapbooks!) But there's something else...some intangible that I can't explain. Maybe it's self-confidence or poise. I don't know, but I find her utterly charming!

Kailana of My Written World...Well, there is the fact that she is definitely one of my reading idols...seriously, the amount of books she reads is astonishing! But it's way more than that. I love the way Kelly talks about books...she's got a real personal style that really appeals to me. And it's not just when she talks about books either. She's just such an open, friendly person, and I love her to pieces.

Lots more bloggy love to be found here.

*sigh*

How many days in a row can I write "catch up on blog reading" on my to-do list and still fail to accomplish it? I'm obviously shooting for a record. :(

In case you haven't met her...

you should really go change that right now. I'm talking about Amanda at A Patchwork of Books. It's hard to describe just how sweet she is...I swear she's got a heart the size of Montana.

And she's doing something really cool on her blog this month. Giving away tons of stuff. Seriously, you should really go read about this, because it's all in honor of Earth Day and Arbor Day and this wonderful planet we call home.

And she's asking for suggestions. What Earth-friendly charity holds a special place in your heart? Because she's also going to be making a donation...and she's going to pick one charity from the suggestions she receives. And the person whose suggestion she chooses will also win a prize. (And I swear, that's not why I'm posting about her plans for the month...in fact, I already told her not to enter my name for the prize...it's just that I think this is such an awesomely cool thing she's doing!) And well, Amanda's just awesomely cool herself!

why I love bloggers: reason 667

Because even when I write a post that apparently comes off sounding unintentionally melodramatic, they not only put up with me, but they are incredibly sweet and supportive and just plain wonderful to boot!

*****

Thank you all for the incredibly thoughtful comments on my last post. Seriously, as upset as I can allow myself to get over things I should patently ignore, nothing would ever really make me stop blogging. I love you all way too much for that!!!

And thank you all for forgiving me that unintended melodrama.

Geeking...week 26

Haven't had my act together enough to participate in the last few Weekly Geeks. Still don't have my act together, but at least I managed to join in the fun this week. So, what did Dewey have in store for us this time:

It’s been awhile since we’ve done some serious WG bloghopping. So this week, let’s visit five other Weekly Geeks.

How to:

1. Using the WeeklyGeeks category here in my blog, find 5 Weekly Geeks you don’t know. The easiest way is probably to look at the Mr Linkies in my weekly Saturday posts.

2. Visit each of your 5 new blogpals and snoop around their blogs to find at least one thing you have in common.

3. In your blog, write a post, linking to your 5 new blogpals, about what you have in common with them.

4. Come back and sign Mr Linky.

5. As you run across other Weekly Geek posts (or deliberately seek them out) if you see anyone mentioned who has something in common with you, pay them a visit.

Here's the cool new blogs I happened upon:

Icedreams:
She loves Stephen King. Particularly his short stories. Me, too. Unfortunately she was disappointed in his new collection, Just After Sunset. Oh well, I'm still hoping Santa leaves me a copy under the tree this year.

Ali at Wordcopia:
She's a home schooling mom. Me, too. Well, actually I'm not just like her...she home schools all her kiddos, while I've got kiddos in public school and at home. I also relate to her "religion" which she describes as "Common sense and being open to all humankind." She attends a Unitarian Universalist church, which is something I've very much wanted to do for a long time, but my whole "I'm afraid of having to talk to people" thing holds me back.

Marina at Momma Writes About Books:
She obviously loves lists. Me, too.

Alyssa at The Shady Glade:
She belongs to Paperback Swap. And she loves crafts. Me, too. And me, too. As an aside, I just love the title of her blog.

Louise at Lou's Pages:
She just read Goodnight Nobody by Jennifer Weiner. Me, too. Well, I didn't just read it, but I read it a couple years ago. Only Jennifer Weiner book I've ever read. Possibly the only chick lit book I've ever read? She also just finished one of John Sandford's "Prey" books. I've read lots of those, but haven't read one in a while. Should remedy that.

this one means a lot

It's always so nice when someone gives you an award, isn't it? But this one, for some reason, is just really special to me, most especially coming from Nymeth. She is someone I've come to absolutely adore, as she is without question one of the nicest people on the planet. And I admit, I sometimes wonder if she thinks me quite the dork after some of the comments I leave her. You know, she said something in talking about this award that rang so true to me, and I imagine it does to a lot of others..."sometimes wondering if the comments I leave are too long, too short, too bland, too cheerful, not cheerful enough, irrelevant, annoying, etc." I try to tell myself when I'm commenting that as long as I'm sincere in what I say, that's the best I can do. If people think I'm an idiot, well so be it.

Anyway, I'm now to pass this award on to seven people. I know, only seven?!! Isn't that cruel? Because each and every comment is appreciated! Be they from someone who pops in once in a lifetime, once a week, or for every single boring post I write. But I will follow the rules and pick seven. Seven people, who when I click that "comments" link and see their names, I know my day will be a bit brighter. Brighter because they are always supportive, always have the sweetest things to say, always manage to put a smile on my face. Nymeth, Melody, Dawn, Chris, J.Kaye, Carl, and Eva.

Yeah, seven really wasn't enough.

quick question

Well, a lovely gentleman was here and fixed our internet. And it seems to be working just fine. Except for one thing...I can't get Dewey's blog to load. Has anyone else been having problems with it? It's driving me crazy. I miss you, Dewey!

geeking...week 9

And this week’s theme is Challenges.

1. If you participate in any challenges, get organized! Update your lists, post about any you haven’t mentioned, add links of reviews to your lists if you do that, go to the challenge blog if there is one and post there, etc.

2. If you don’t participate in any challenges, then join one! There’s a good selection of possibilities over on my right hand sidebar (scroll down) where I list those I participate in. There’s also A Novel Challenge, a blog that keeps track of all sorts of reading challenges.

3. Towards the end of the week, write a wrap-up post about getting your challenges organized OR if you’re joining your first challenge, post about that any time during the week. Once you have your post up, come back and sign Mr Linky with the link to the specific post, not just to your blog.

Ah yes, this week's challenge is much needed around these here parts! Which frankly, seems ridiculous, as I have a whole separate blog just for my challenge lists. The problem, however, is that this addiction/obsession/exercise in sheer lunacy is so overwhelming that even that blog isn't entirely solving the problem of keeping me organized. So, here, all in one post, I'm going to try to get down a list of all the books I still need to read, which challenge they're for, and the date the challenge ends. Sounds daunting. And while this will make for quite the boring post, it will hopefully serve as a great reference for me in the months to come.

---by June 30, 2008:
*Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut (Banned Books Challenge)
*The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (Banned Books Challenge)

This is also when The Book Awards Challenge ends, but I am writing that one off, as I still have seven books to go. No hope there, huh? I'm hoping to redeem myself with Book Award II.

---by July 14, 2008:
*Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. by Judy Blume (Heart of a Child Reading Challenge)
*The Stand: Complete and Uncut by Stephen King (Heart of a Child Reading Challenge, End of the World Challenge, Chunkster Challenge, Decades '08 Challenge)

---by July 31, 2008:
*Stuart Little by E.B. White (Celebrate the Author Challenge, Initials Challenge)
*A Painted House by John Grisham (Well-Rounded Challenge, Southern Challenge)

---for the month of July 2008:
*as many books as I can get read (July Book Blowout)

---by August 1, 2008:
*The 6th Target by James Patterson (Numbers Challenge)
*Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult (Numbers Challenge)

---by August 15, 2008:
*A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole (Southern Reading Challenge, 1% Well-Read)
*The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen (Southern Reading Challenge)

---by August 31, 2008:
*My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett (Celebrate the Author Challenge)
*Green River, Running Red by Ann Rule (Well-Rounded Challenge, Non-Fiction Five, Suspense & Thriller Challenge, What's in a Name Challenge)

---by September 15, 2008:
*The Road by Cormac McCarthy (End of the World Challenge, Book Awards II)
*Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by John Joseph Adams (End of the World Challenge)

---by September 30, 2008:
*The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells (Novella Challenge, 1% Well-Read Challenge, Reading Full Circle Challenge, Decades '08 Challenge, Initials Challenge)
*Wolves of the Crescent Moon by Yousef Al-Mohaimeed (Novella Challenge)
*The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier (Novella Challenge)
*Gossamer by Lois Lowry (Novella Challenge, YA Reading Challenge)
*The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (Novella Challenge)
*New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers: Tales of Parasites and People by Robert S. Desowitz (Non-Fiction Five)
*Rats: Observations on the History & Habitat of the City's Most Unwanted Inhabitants by Robert Sullivan (Non-Fiction Five)
*The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright (Non-Fiction Five, Grapevine Challenge)
*The BFG by Roald Dahl (Celebrate the Author, Well-Rounded Challenge)

---by October 31, 2008:
*Lexi's Tale by Johanna Hurwitz (Celebrate the Author)
*lost boy, lost girl by Peter Straub (Well-Rounded Challenge, Book Awards II)

---by November 1, 2008:
*Vanish by Tess Gerritsen (MMM '08, Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*The Sisterhood by Michael Palmer (MMM '08)
*Shock by Robin Cook (MMM '08)

---by November 30, 2008:
*The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien (Initials Challenge, Inklings Challenge)
*Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (Grapevine Challenge)
*Larklight by Philip Reeve (Grapevine Challenge)
*Looking for Bobowicz by Daniel Manus Pinkwater (Celebrate the Author)
*The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks (Well-Rounded Challenge, 1% Well-Read)

---by December 20, 2008:
*Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi (Chunkster Challenge, Decades '08 Challenge)
*Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (Chunkster Challenge, Mythopoeic Challenge, Book Awards II)


---by December 31, 2008 (this is where things get really ugly):
*The Legend of Holly Claus by Brittney Ryan (Well-Rounded Challenge, YA Challenge)
*Ragweed by Avi (Celebrate the Author)
*"Lost Hearts" by M.R. James (Short Story Challenge)
*"The Sussex Vampire" by Arthur Conan Doyle (Short Story Challenge)
*"How 7 Went Mad" by Bram Stoker (Short Story Challenge)
*"The Signalman" by Charles Dickens (Short Story Challenge)
*"The Body-Snatcher" by Robert Louis Stevenson (Short Story Challenge)
*"The Boys of Goose Hill" by Charles de Lint (Short Story Challenge)
*"The Oakthing" by Gregory Maguire (Short Story Challenge)
*Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman (Mythopoeic Challenge)
*Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer (Mythopoeic Challenge, YA Reading Challenge)
*Stardust by Neil Gaiman (Mythopoeic Challenge, YA Reading Challenge, Decades '08 Challenge)
*Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley (Mythopoeic Challenge)
*Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman (Mythopoeic Challenge)
*The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke (Mythopoeic Challenge)
*Light on Snow by Anita Shreve (What's in a Name Challenge)
*Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes (What's in a Name Challenge, Decades '08 Challenge)
*Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King (What's in a Name Challenge)
*The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (What's in a Name Challenge)
*Death: The High Cost of Living by Neil Gaiman (Graphic Novel Challenge)
*We Are On Our Own: A Memoir by Miriam Katin (Graphic Novel Challenge)
*elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (YA Challenge)
*The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (YA Challenge)
*The Secret Hours by Scott Westerfield (YA Challenge, 1st in a Series Challenge)
*The Blue Girl by Charles de Lint (YA Challenge)
*The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor (YA Challenge)
*Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson (YA Challenge)
*The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (1st in a Series Challenge)
*Shadow Man by Cody McFadyen (1st in a Series Challenge)
*Fablehaven by Brandon Mull (1st in a Series Challenge)
*The Black Echo by Michael Connelly (1st in a Series Challenge)
*MayBird and the The Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson (1st in a Series Challenge)
*The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (1st in a Series Challenge)
*The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau (1st in a Series Challenge)
*Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien (Inklings Challenge)
*The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Inklings Challenge)
*The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (Inklings Challenge)
*Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (Decades '08 Challenge, Classics '08, 1% Well-Read Challenge)
*The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne (Decades '08 Challenge, Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (Decades '08 Challenge, 1% Well-Read Challenge)
*The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle OR Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter (Decades '08 Challenge)
*All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (Decades '08 Challenge)
*And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (Decades '08 Challenge)
*A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith OR All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren (Decades '08 Challenge)
*The House With a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*Pandora's Clock by John J. Nance (Reading Full Circle Challenge, Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Pandora: New Tales of the Vampires by Anne Rice (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*The Society of S by Susan Hubbard (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Reading Full Circle Challenge)
*Blaze by Richard Bachman/Stephen King (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Deep as the Marrow by F. Paul Wilson (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Double Cross by James Patterson (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Dracula by Bram Stoker (Classics '08, 1% Well-Read Challenge)
*Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (Classics '08, 1% Well-Read Challenge)
*Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (Classics '08)
*Walden by Henry David Thoreau (Classics '08, 1% Well-Read Challenge)
*The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Classics '08)

---also by December 31, 2008 (even if I finish all of the above--yeah, right!--I will still also need to read for The A-Z Challenge:
*"J" title
*"O" title
*"U" title
*"X" title
*"Y" title
*"Z" title
*"I" author
*"Q" author
*"U" author
*"X" author
*"Y" author

---by February 28, 2009:
*Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (1% Well-Read Challenge)
*The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (1% Well-Read Challenge, Book Awards II)

---by June 1, 2009:
*The Calcutta Chromosome by Amitav Ghosh (Book Awards II)
*The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett (Book Awards II)
*Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card (Book Awards II)
*The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Book Awards II)
*How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (Book Awards II)
*A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson (Book Awards II)

---by December 3, 2009:
*40 more items, many of which will hopefully be filled in through other challenges (42 Challenge)

---by December 31, 2009:
*Sea Change by James Powlik (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Joyride by Jack Ketchum (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Three Days to Never by Tim Powers (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Trace by Patricia Cornwell (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)
*Testament by David Morrell (Suspense & Thriller Challenge)

Whew. Now that was one tedious, time-consuming, and most especially, depressing post! Yet I'm grateful to have done it, as I hope it will help keep me on a track a bit more.

And now, if you want to visit some people who not only sign up for truckloads of challenges, but also actually finish them, you might want to visit these fellow "Geeks"...

Wendy
Eva
Becky

Thanks for being such a wonderful hostess, Dewey!

share the love

J.Kaye just passed this little award on to me. She's such a sweetheart, thanking us for making her days by coming by and commenting. As I told her, there's no need to thank me...I drop in because it makes me happy to visit her!

This is really quite a special award. It was started by Crystal at Memoirs of a Mommy. She started it to help raise awareness and give thanks for organ donation, as her sweet little baby's life was saved by a heart transplant.

Crystal requested:

Share this award with all those blogs out there that you love. All the people who make you smile. All those that make you laugh. All those that make your day. All those that leave uplifting comments on your blog. All I ask, is that you include a link to this post with the award and ask your recipient to do the same.

That's a link I'm happy to provide...for what a truly wonderful gift organ donation is. Does your family know your wishes?

But I'm afraid I'm going to be a rebel and not stick with the rest of her request. If I were to list all the blogs that I love, all the people who make me smile, etc., I would be here forever. Instead, I'm going to pick just one. One person who never fails to make me smile, make me think, make me feel better about myself. Someone who is so real, so down-to-earth, so incredibly compassionate. Someone who is intelligent, thoughtful, insightful. Someone who I will probably never even have the chance to meet in person, but whom I would miss more than I could ever express if she were to quit blogging. Nymeth...thanks for brightening my days!

Geeking...week 7

Assignment for Weekly Geeks: Photos.

I like it...I can combine it up with this week's Blame Game post and kill those idiomatic two birds.







So here's a pictorial look at the books I managed to drag into our home this week:



I've got a real problem, don't I? But it's not quite as bad as it looks. Honest. Because some of these are for homeschooling next school year. I can be forgiven those, right?

*Books 1 and 2 are the first two books in The Lighthouse Family series (The Storm and The Whale) by Cynthia Rylant. Got them from the library for this month's Celebrate the Author choice.

*Books 3 and 4 were pure impulse buys. Lottery by Patricia Wood and The Digital Plague by Jeff Somers. No one to blame.

*Books 5, 6, 7, and 8 all came from Paperback Swap. Night Shift by Stephen King, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, The Mousetrap and Other Plays by Agatha Christie, and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. All are for homeschooling.

*Book 9. Bought it, but it's also for homeschooling. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque.

*Book 10. A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer. One point for Joy!

*Book 11. Again from Paperback Swap. The Folk of the Fringe by Orson Scott Card. One point for Chris!

*Book 12. Yet again from Paperback Swap. The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman. One point for Nymeth!

*Book 13. Library book. Swan Sister: Fairy Tales Retold edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. Second point this week for Nymeth! (She was kind enough to recommend it after I wrote that I didn't think The Rose and the Beast was quite appropriate for our fairly tales unit. Thanks, Nymeth!)

Book 14. Library book. The Sandman: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman. Third point this week for Nymeth! It was her review of The Sandman: Endless Nights that finally got me to place a hold on this one.

If I've figured correctly, Nymeth has now pulled into the lead! And you know, somehow I suspect that surprises no one...she's hell on many a person's wish list!

And finally, want to check out a few more Geek's pictures?

Alessandra has posted a photo of her dream rainbow bookshelves.

Chris showed us his latest acquisitions, as well as his TBR shelves.

Maree gave us a glance not only at her bookshelves, but also at a few of her kitties as well.

a week's worth of acquisitions

The preceding week has brought many new books into my life. Thanks mostly to my wonderful husband spoiling me rotten for Mother's Day.


This is the pile I got to unwrap:
*The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
*Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Weiss
*Invisible Prey by John Sandford
*The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang
*Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
*Winterwood by Patrick McCabe
*Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
*The Film Club by David Gilmour


This is the pile I bought with my gift cards (one from Mother's Day and one from Annie for Teacher Appreciation Day):
*A Death in Belmont by Sebastian Junger
*Looking for Alaska by John Green
*Origin by Diana Abu-Jaber
*Monkey Girl by Edward Hume
*Island of Lost Girls by Jennifer McMahon


This is the pile I ordered from B&N on-line bargain section (also using gift card):
*The Fifth Vial by Michael Palmer
*San Francisco is Burning: The Untold Story of the 1906 Earthquake and Fires by Dennis Smith
*All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren
*Suicide's Girlfriend by Elizabeth Evans
*The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls


Bought this one Friday night at Borders. How nice of Becky to host the It's the End of the World... Challenge and give me the excuse to get it. :)


And finally, this arrived in the mail yesterday. I won it from one of J. Kaye's generous book raffles. Thanks, again J. Kaye!

The horribly sad thing about this excessive accumulation of books is how few I actually finished reading this week. That would be one measly book...and it was a library book to boot. I guess the good news, at least looking at it from the standpoint of "where the hell are we going to put yet more books?!!", is that this is likely to be the last huge haul before Christmas. Well, for me anyway...both Father's Day and Rich's birthday will be coming this summer. I am in the process of gathering up some books for a give-away, too. Hopefully, I'll be organized to do that in the next week or two.

I've also decided that I'm going to start taking names! I'm going to start keep track of who among you are responsible for the dent in my bank account. I'm calling it the Blame Game, and I'm going to keep tallies listed over in the sidebar. I think I'll keep it running for a year (say until the end of April '09). At that time, the one of you that has caused me to purchase the most books (actually I'm going to count putting holds on them from the library as well) will win a prize (probably an Amazon gift certificate, but I haven't yet decided for sure). Obviously not every book I get will earn someone a point, as many books I get are pure impulse buys. And many I pick up after reading several reviews, and I can't really just point to one as the deciding factor.

Anyway, here's a list of who earned points this first week:

1 point for Becky (Such a Pretty Girl)

1 point for Stephanie (Speak) (Though I've read lots of reviews lately for this book, something about Stephanie's review compelled me to finally add this one to the list.)

1 point for Carl (The Film Club)

1 point for Dewey (Looking for Alaska)

1 point for Erin (The Glass Castle)

yet more fun hosted by Becky

Yep, she's at it again. More irresistible fun. This time we're heading into the realm of Sci-Fi. But it's not all about reading this time. Well, it could be if you so chose, but it needn't be. It's called the 42 Challenge...read and/or watch 42 sci-fi "items" in 42 weeks and 42 days. Items might include books, short stories, novellas, movies, TV show episodes, radio show episodes, just about anything you can think of. And the 42 weeks, 42 days officially runs from Jan. 1, 2009 through Dec. 3, 2009, but she has graciously allowed for cheating (in other words, we can start now if we can't contain ourselves). But you know what, instead of me trying to explain it here, just head over to the blog Becky set up just for the challenge.

Geeking...Week 2...part 1

Well, Dewey is back with week 2 of Weekly Geeks. This week's challenge is an idea borrowed from Darla at Books and Other Thoughts. I just discovered Darla's blog this past week as part of Weekly Geeks. I pretty much love everything about her blog, but this idea that Dewey picked up on is definitely quite brilliant. When Darla reviews a book, she invites others to send her links to other reviews of the same book, and she posts these along with her review. Great idea, huh?

And Dewey is now challenging us to do the same. I'm in. I already try to leave links to reviews that I've read, especially when it was the review that made me pick up the book in the first place. But this goes a step beyond, and should really end up giving everyone a very extensive network of reviews to use.

Dewey suggested several different ways we might go about it. I'm opting for just having people leave links in the comments, and then I will add these links to the body of my post. And as I'm already buried for the next several weeks with other things, I think I will just start doing this from today on, instead of trying to make it retroactive.

(Part 2, scheduled for later in the week, is where we are to come back and write a blurb about how this new review network is working out for us so far. Seems to me, it can't help but be a success.)

***edited to add***

Part 2:

Well, I feel lousy, but I just don't have much--o.k. I have nothing--to add as follow-up...haven't done a single review this week. And didn't read any reviews by fellow participants that I've reviewed in the past. But I have noticed the links starting to show up...how fun!

Geeking...Week 1

Loved, loved, loved Dewey's theme for kick-off week! *Visit at least 5 fellow participants that you don't already know.*

I decided to spread my joy out and visit someone new each day. Instead of just starting at the beginning or the end of the list, I just closed my eyes and raced mousie around and randomly clicked. System seemed to work...I found a bunch of great new blogs! (Of course, I'm guessing I would have found that no matter which Geeks I visited.)

Here's how my week went:

Saturday:
The Biblio Brat. Yep, it was immediately confirmed what a fabulous idea Dewey had concocted. Day one of theme one...and I've already found a wonderful new blog to read!

I could tell from the very post I read that she has her priorities straight...she mentioned three of the major food groups (cheddar cheese, tart apples, and Hersheys bars!).

And I totally loved her ratings system!

Sunday:
Trish's Reading Nook. Okay, what could be better? I head to her blog and what do I immediately lay my eyes upon...pictures of her bookshelves! You just gotta love that, don't you?!!

She also has a bunch of book reviews I really want to get back over there to read as soon as I have a chance. You know, books I've been curious about, or ones I've been thinking about reading. (Because one's TBR pile can never be too big, can it?)

Monday:
Darla D. at Books and Other Thoughts. Well, if my visit over there is any indication, I think I am going to love, love, love her blog! It's not always easy to find books for my semi-reluctant reader (that would be Master Gray), but first post there netted me a good find for him. And from the looks of things, her reviews are going to be adding books to Annie's and my wish lists as well!

Tuesday:
Reader Rabbit. Two for the price of one here! A book blog written by sisters...isn't that cool? And the post that popped up when I headed over there had two for the price of one reviews, too! The Goose Girl and Enna Burning, which was fun since I just finished up Enna Burning as well.

Wednesday:
Natasha at Maw Books. Lots and lots and lots of great book reviews. Most recent post was a review of Sirens and Spies, a book I'd never heard of, but had me immediately intrigued. Already checked our library for it, because even I don't get around to reading it, I can tell it's one Annie would love.

I also noticed she's currently reading Horns & Wrinkles, as am I. Anxious to see what she has to say about it. I haven't gotten far yet, but I'm thoroughly enjoying it!

***

Okay, I was going to keep this going through Friday, but everyone else seems to have their posts up already and it's making me feel like such a slacker that I guess I'll just go ahead and put this up. Thanks Dewey! I think this has been a great first week!

hodge podge

*Have you all heard about Book Blogs yet? What a fun place! I think if you click that link you can figure out how to sign up. If I'm wrong, and you want to join, just leave me your e-mail address and I'll send you the invitation.

*And speaking of books, I bought a couple the other night. Night, by Elie Wiesel (I just had to pick this up after Nymeth's incredible review) and The Reluctant Fundamentalist, by Mohsin Hamid. Not sure when I'll actually get around to reading them...

*Anybody out there who loves words or enjoys writing, might want to pop over here. We've starting playing a little game with Annie's weekly vocabulary lists.

*And speaking of contests, anyone participating in Annie's What's In a Name? Challenge might want to pop over to the challenge blog and get in on this month's contest before it's too late.

*I finally finished reading Enna Burning a few days ago. Don't know why I can't seem to get my review written.

a couple of plugs

*My sweet friend Melissa is starting a new website, Root and Sprout. It's set to have a June 1st launch date. Here's a brief bit of what she has to say about it:

“Here at Root and Sprout, we believe the connection between parent and child is what’s most important, and it’s a relationship that grows through mutual love and respect. With gentle, hands-on parenting, we can give our children the necessary roots to help them sprout.

Root and Sprout is a place for moms and dads to come for practical information, stories, and advice about being a parent and raising kids. You will also find helpful tips, family-friendly activities, and more . . . all submitted by people who support the Root and Sprout way of life.“

She is looking for people who would like to submit articles. To people like me, the idea of writing an article for a website sounds way too daunting, but she swears one shouldn't feel that way...that if you can write a blog post, you can write an article for the website. It's supposed to be by parents, for parents. If you're interested in more info, pop on over here.

*If you haven't yet read Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer, well, here's the perfect opportunity...it's the featured book for May in Becky's on-line book club. I read the book a couple months ago, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I know I'd be joining in on this one with Becky if I hadn't already read it.

*I know I already wrote a post about Dewey's fabulous new idea, Weekly Geeks. But if you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, you really should. Week One's Theme is up. And it's never to late to sign up to join in the fun!

happy 100, Kim

Okay, I suspect most of you already know Kim. She's just such a sweet thing, wouldn't you agree? And man, can that girl write! (I've been missing your weekend fiction break, Kim!)

Anyway, Kim is having a book giveaway to celebrate her 100th post! And she's giving away not one, but four different books! If you haven't yet met her, I strongly suggest you hop on over and say "hi"...I'm willing to bet you'll keep going back!

how does she do it?!!

Okay, Dewey has pulled the wool over my eyes for far too long. But I've finally figured it out...she is THE Book Blogging Super Woman! (Wish she'd post a pic of herself in full costume.)

Not only does she read in the neighborhood of a gazillion books a year, write truckloads of fabulous reviews, host multiple reading challenges, participate and complete even more reading challenges, run the Bookworms Carnival, host the Read-a-thon (all this on top of busy life of working, mothering, and wifing)...but now she's come up with another fabulous idea...Weekly Geeks!

I'm feeling ill-equipped to explain it myself (after all, I just said "wifing" and that can't possibly be a word, can it?). So I seriously suggest you go check this out for yourself...it sounds like great fun!

this wonderful world of blogging

I don't think I'm alone in the way I feel about blogging. It seems bizarre on the face of it, truly it does. But blogging has become very important to me. Because of the people and the connections. Before blogging, I would have thought it a tad ridiculous to think that I could "meet" people this way and come to consider them true friends. But I do. And as silly as it seems on the surface, I've really come to love some of these people. No, I've never met them in person. And I probably never will. Yet they mean the world to me. I love hearing about their lives. I treasure the minutes I "spend" with them. I want only the very best for them in everything they do.

Nymeth is one of these people. She is an absolute treasure! She's always, always, always sweet and gracious. She's intelligent, but in no way pretentious. She writes the most exquisitely beautiful and thoughtful book reviews. She's taken her own valuable time to help Annie and me, never complaining about my silly questions. In short, she is a beautiful person!

And as unbelievable as it seems, she just celebrated her one-year blogoversary (or whatever the appropriate term is). It seems unbelievable, because it feels as if I've "known" her for years. Anyway, to celebrate both this milestone and BYFAB week, Nymeth is giving away not one, but five books! And let me tell you, they're good ones! But to find out what they are, you're going to have to go see for yourself!

Happy one year, Nymeth!