The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

Title: The Indigo Spell
Author:  Richelle Mead
Genre:  Paranormal Romance/Fantasy
Length:  432 Pages
Weight:  1.2 lbs
Date of Completion:  March 2, 2013

Thoughts:

Ok.  Here it is:  the first of what will likely be many vampirically inclined novels.  Twilight may have given the genre of teen paranormal romance a bad rap, but that doesn't mean that all books featuring vampires and/or vampire-human relationships are terrible.  I saw, I think, a quote from Angeline Jolie who said that she wanted to be a vampire when she was little.  My poor mother understands this;  she was understandably horrified that her 7 year-old was reading Ann Rice and L.J. Smith.

Richelle Mead's books do fall into the paranormal romance category with the whole human-vampire love triangle.  But I like that.  And its not a phase--I've been reading books like this for years.  I do find it odd that my initial reaction to posting about this book is immediately to defend my choice in reading it.  People, including my family, have given me flack for years about my recurring interest in the supernatural-themed books.  I honestly don't care.  If you are interested in this genre, I have several other series I would recommend.  

In comparison to the Vampire Academy series, I think I like this one better.  Sydney's personality is far more similar to mine than Rose.  Also, I'm one to admit that I'd pick Adrian over Dimitri (for myself at least).  Green eyes and a sharp suit are definitely a weakness of mine.  At least he doesn't have glasses and/or a British accent or I'd be a hopelessly lost cause.  This book was a particular pleasure for me as I forced myself to wait until I wasn't so bogged down with schoolwork to lose myself for a few days.  Indigo Spell was released almost a month ago, so the fact that I held out this long is a testament to my willpower.  However, I finished this book in less than 24 hours, so perhaps my willpower isn't quite up to par after all.  I have no shame in admitting that I spent my Friday night at home curled up with a mug of tea and a good book instead of socializing.  Who needs people when I've got a library, right?

The Science of Doctor Who by Paul Parsons

Title: The Science of Doctor Who
Author:  Paul Parsons 
Genre:  Non-Fiction
Length:  307 Pages
Weight:  1.2 lbs
Date of Completion:  February 23, 2013

Thoughts:

This is one of many science-related books that I love to read.  Although not as technical as Kip Thorne or framed as nicely as Neil DeGrasse Tyson, I loved it.  As a hard-core Whovian, it was interesting to read about how the "science" of a science fiction television show might not be so far from reality.  Parsons does a great job of keeping the book light and stays away from majorly in-depth explanations of certain scientific explanations.  But, in doing so, it follows the same path as many science-for-the-non-scientist books do.  At times, (especially on topics that I had greater understanding) I felt as though the author dumbs down the science to where it isn't science anymore and at times almost misrepresents some of the material in order to keep is more accessible.  

Those complaints aside, I did love the book.  As opposed to some other science related books I've read (such as The Physics of Star Trek by Lawrence M. Krauss), this book explores further topics of biology, chemistry and engineering, instead of just physics.  It takes many of the far-fetched ramblings of a writer with a decent imagination and explains that while we will never get exactly what the Doctor ordered, some of the ideas are based in fact.  Rather clever if I do say so myself.  

Reading books like this reminds me why I got into physics, and science in general, in the first place.  Is speaks to the imagination of a human consensus and decision to push beyond that into the unknown.  We chase after the impossible with logic and hope.  It encompasses the way that Doctor Who tugs at my heart (besides when RTD and Moffitt make me cry).  Like Galileo, Kepler and hundreds before me, I too was filled with wonder and awe when I gazed up at the night sky.  Stars and galaxies shown, illuminating my eyes and imagination with light from a hundred, thousand lifetimes ago.  As a frontier of human knowledge, space represents the vast unknown into which we expand, and it calls to the explorer in all of us.  My heart reaches out to answer that same call, and I know that I will always ache for the vast and incomprehensible beauty of the universe stretching out before my eyes.   

The Sorcerer's Companion by Allan Zola Kronzek & Elizabeth Kronzek

Title: The Sorcerer's Companion:  A Guide to the Magical World of Harry Potter
Authors:  Allan Zola Kronzek & Elizabeth Kronzek
Genre:  Fantasy
Length:  286 pages
Weight:  1.4 lbs
Date of Completion:  February 17, 2013

Thoughts:


There are a huge variety of Harry Potter-related books on the market.  This one has no official affiliation with  J.K. Rowling or her publishing company, and is really just associated with the world she created.  Technically, this book is formatted like an encyclopedia;  it goes alphabetically through the creatures and people that make up Harry's world and explains their historical context and importance.  This would be the perfect time to insert some joke about how reading this book equates, therefore, to reading an encyclopedia.  As some would note, this is not so far out of reach for me.  Case-and-Point:  I am the only person I know who has actually read the Simarillion.

This is nowhere near as dry.  While not the most academic or in-depth reference, I found it entertaining and fun to read.  The content of the book, as well as the organization, made it a great bedside companion.  I was able to read a few sections every night before bed without feeling that continuous pull to continue that often accompanies a novel.  For a book my Mom got at a library sale for 50 cents, I think it was a great deal.

A Dream of Armageddon by H G Wells

Title:  A Dream of Armageddon:  The Complete Supernatural Tales
Author:  H.G. Wells
Genre:  Sf/Fantasy
Length:  363 pages
Weight:  1.5 lbs
Date of Completion:  February 9, 2013

Thoughts:

I have always loved to read Wells.  He has an impeccable command of the English language and is a great writer.  More than that, though, he is a storyteller.  This book is a compilation of Wells' short stories, and a large majority are told from either a first person POV or a retelling of what occurred to another person (as was told to him).  The tales range from slightly macabre to humorous and are full of supernatural themes.  Wells is a master of the sensible and thrilling as he pursues the illogic of fantasy to its logical extreme.  As a series of short, unrelated stories, this is the type of book I like to keep by my bedside; it can be read all at once, or in short snippets, as time permits.  I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes science fiction!

Read Your Weight in Books

I have a confession to make.  I am a class A bookworm and bibliophile-have been since birth.  There are few things in the world more wonderful and fulfilling than to be able to dive between the covers of a book and disappear from the world.  It is a practice as necessary to my survival as breathing.  If you were to search my backpack or purse, you would find at least one poetry book and one novel in my possession at all times.  My first purchase of nearly every paycheck is a new book, even if I haven't finished the one I am currently working on.  This results in an ever evolving stack of 4-5 books "in-progress" scattered around my house and car.  My nightstand, dresser, and desk are covered with battered copies of Jane Eyre and the latest Orson Scott Card.  The bookshelf is overflowing; books stacked two deep and piled on top.  I'd say I suffer from bibliophilia, but in truth, I love every minute of it.

I take pride in my obsession hobby and the volume of literary materials I consume.  In the words of Barbara W. Tuchman "books are the carriers of civilization...They are companions, teachers, magicians, bankers of the treasures of the mind.  Books are humanity in print."  There are also studies that show direct, positive correlation of  intelligence (as well as vocabulary size) to the amount of time an individual spends reading.  As an individual who places a great amount of importance on intelligence and literary competency, a passion for reading is both necessary and fitting.

I've never been big on the whole "new year's resolutions" thing, but this year I found one that I think I have to try.  While trolling Pinterest (biggest time suck known to man), I came across a funny pin with a tagline that read "Most literary doctors say you should read your weight in books-every year."  My initial response was nod and agree. I, of course, made the internal assumption that I was meeting this recommendation.  When I matched my annual book consumption against a scale, however, I found myself sadly lacking.  I was horrified and stunned.

Somewhere between work, college and social activities, my precious books had slid down my priorities list; no longer was reading in a constant battle against the need to sleep.  Instead, it had come to rest somewhere between watching a movie and surfing the internet.  I experienced that unpleasant, but necessary revelation that perhaps I was spending too much of my time attached to my computer and my phone. In the process of becoming a more extroverted person, I don't believe that I have to give up my bookish tendencies.  I'd much rather give up Facebook than a piece of my soul.  There is much more to be found between the pages of a book than on any back-lit screen.  (This would be a good time to explain that I'm also a purist-I prefer REAL books over any Kindle, eReader or tablet.  There is something more about the feel, the smell, the comforting weight of a book.  It feels more old fashioned that way, more honest.)

Ashamed, I turned to the nearest book on my nightstand and refused to reappear until I felt more like the bookworm I profess to be.  As expected, this resulted with a finished book at 2 am.  However, as any book lover worth their binding will tell you, staying up till all hours of the night to finish a book is ALWAYS worth it.  In the weeks that followed, I re-organized my books and my 4,000+ title long to-read list-no mean feat, I can tell you.  I plan to use this blog, if I can figure out how, to chronicle everything I read this year.  I'll keep an updated list of what I have read (and comments about the books) and what I am currently reading.  My scale doesn't register the weight of a single paperback, so I'm still working on how to record the weight.  I found that using a kitchen scale, or finding the shipping weight of the book on Amazon are the best ways to keep track of the book weight.  I hope that by the close of this year, I will see a re-emergence of the girl who used to get in trouble because she would sneak a book into class, instead of the woman who has momentarily forgot who she really is.

Wish me luck and happy reading!

“You should date a girl who reads.

Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes, who has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve.

Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag. She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she has found the book she wants. You see that weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a secondhand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow and worn.

She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book.

Buy her another cup of coffee.

Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice.

It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas, for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry and in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does.

She has to give it a shot somehow.

Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world.

Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who read understand that all things must come to end, but that you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two.

Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series.

If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are.

You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype.

You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots.

Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads.

Or better yet, date a girl who writes.”

― Rosemarie Urquico

In Defense of Harry Potter

We found the Sorcerer's stone,
We entered the Chamber of Secrets,
We freed the Prisoner of Azkban,
We entered our names in the Goblet of Fire,
We fought alongside the Order of the Phoneix,
.We discovered the Half-Blood Prince,
We mastered the Deathly Hallows,
With pride and love, we are the Harry Potter generation.
It will never die, but live on through us.
There is now, and will always be magic in the world because of Harry Potter.

 I recently had a friend tell me that it was sad to say that Harry Potter was the defining moment of our generation.  My first, knee-jerk reaction was that he was just a jealous muggle.  But after much thought, I came to a more logical and consicse argument.:

What else would you have define it? Jersey Shore, Teen Mom or any other ridiculous and embarrassing TV shows? The current economic crisis? Decreased marriage rates and rising suicide occurrence? Faceook/Myspace/Twitter? It is true that there are great technological and scientific advancements that could also "define" our generation, and I would whole-heartedly agree with such sentiments. But saying that Harry Potter defines a generation does not mean to the exclusion of those things.
In defense of Harry Potter, if it were a primary thing that could be said defines our generation, I would not think it sad in the slightest. First because it is first and foremost a book. In a world that is fast becoming indiscriminately (and not in a bad way) intertwined with technology, the fact that a book is primarily reaching its audience in the form of literal printed word is never a bad thing. In fact, it is a true testament to its literary heritage. This series has had a phenomenal influence on literacy rates and school work as well as increasing the interest of the general population (specifically children, teens and young adults) in the written world. About 450 million copies of Rowling’s novels are in circulation in almost every language under the sun. She has inspired our generation to pick up a book and read again! (In a slightly scientific side note, it has also been shown in several research studies that an increase in fluency and literacy, which come from an increase in reading, are directly related to increased “intelligence” as is classified by academic achievement and academic interest.)
Second, the simple but constant messages of this story have left a lasting impression on those who participated in the phenomena. Harry Potter is about hope, courage, friendship, self-sacrifice, family, loyalty, hard work, choosing good in the face of evil, and above all love, not just for our friends but also compassion for our enemies and those considered of less worth by society. In a world constantly bombarded by the media with deceit, hatred, intolerance, greed and cruelty, this is a surprising and most welcome change. There are all sorts of charities, organized, funded and run by our peers striving to apply this series towards changing the world. With mottos like “love is our weapon,” and acting to help the down-trodden of society (donations of thousands of books, raising money for Haiti and Darfur, etc.), Harry Potter has given a “raison d’etre” for our generation to stand and fight for what is good in the world.