November Wrap-Up

I know there are still 3 days left in the month, but I'm fairly certain I won't be finishing any more books in those 3 days, so here's my wrap up.

Let's start by reviewing what I had planned to read this month:

Songs for the Deaf by John Henry Fleming

Moranthology by Caitlin Moran

Republic of Imagination by Azar Nafisi

Y:the Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan

Prince Lestat by Anne Rice

What We See When We Read by Peter Mendelsund

Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas by Stephanie Barron

And the results: I read all of these books! Okay, not really, but I read at least some of each of them.

I only read about 50 pages of The Republic of Imaginatiom. I intend to go back to it one day, but I had a lot on my plate and that book requires me to brain.

I am still working on Prince Lestat, but it's already 11 days overdue at the library, so I may have to get back on that list and move on.

Otherwise, I read all the others.

Songs for the Deaf by John Henry Fleming was the book club book for this month. It is a collection of short stories. They were all different, but I really enjoyed them. When we discussed them at book club, I got even more appreciation for them.

Moranthology by Caitlin Moran. I got into a mood to read essay collections, so I picked up this one. It was entertaining, but I was distracted by the vast number of typos. I hate typos. So much. Most of the essays are from her Guardian column. She interviews musicians and reminisces on her early years in journalism. Also, her husband is a saint. She's pretty neurotic.

Y:The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan is a graphic novel about a guy who is stuck in a world where all the other people (and animals) with Y chromosomes have been wiped out by a plague. Now he is hunted by scientists for research purposes, by other women for reproduction purposes, and by gangs of militant feminists in order to "finish what the plague started".

What We See When We Read by Peter Mendelsund is a fun little book with great pictures about what our brain does when we read. It was a quick read and did I mention the pictures? Mendelsund is the Associate Art Director for Knopf publishing. Which means he may be the genius behind this horrendous thing:

I'm sorry, but really? That's all you could come up with?

Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas by Stephanie Barron. I really enjoyed this Jane Austen Mystery. I've read all the other ones, and I adore the world of Jane Austen created by Barron. Definitely a cozy mystery, but so much fun! Jane and her mother and sister have removed to her brother James' rectory for Christmas. His wife Mary might be the best/most horrible character. She is whiney and petulant and self absorbed and fancies herself terribly ill when she is bored. They go to the local country manor for Christmas dinner when a

The Graveyard Book Graphic Novel Vol. 2 by Neil Gaiman - I love The Graveyard Book and this graphic novel version is a lovely visual recreation. A baby boy manages to slip out of the house the night his entire family is murdered. He wanders to the cemetery and is taken in by the inhabitants there. His guardian is a vampire named Silas, and his adoptive parents are ghosts. Unfortunately, the man who murdered his parents is still after him.

So, that's 6 completed books this month. Not too shabby!