My Livejournal friends should well know by now that I have an oddly patriotic streak that tends to show itself in occasional minor obsessions with founding fathers and colonial history in general, as well as obsessive voting and an unreasonable fondness for Sousa marches on national holidays. The other result of this strange patriotism are my annual Fourth of July posts. This will, however, all be new to those folks I have only met through Dreamwidth. Here, then, is a list of my previous posts:

• In 2003, I shared The Virginia Declaration of Rights.


• In 2004, I lost steam somewhat and went entirely with 1776 references. Yeah, I don't know either.


• By 2005, I was back on track and making up for lost time with Declaration related letters from both Adams and Jefferson.


• In 2006, I provided both a letter from Benjamin Franklin to Admiral Lord Howe and a biography of James Wilson who, I promise, is more interesting than you think.


• 2007 brought The Journals of the Continental Congress for the dates July 2 - July 4, 1776.


• Then last year, I chose to go with 1775's Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms.

This year, I didn't put in the research time I might've. I kind of got caught up watching John Adams and ripping the Sousa CD I bought yesterday, instead. So, I'm taking it a bit easy this year and giving you Patrick Henry's appeal to the Virginia Legislature from March 23, 1775, better known as Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death.


( This is no time for ceremony. The questing before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery; and in proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate. )

If you can't remember whether or not you took the Tylenol and your head is still hurting more than an hour later, you probably didn't take it.

Really, take the pill. It'll be okay and your head will feel a lot better.

Love,
Me

Hrm.

Talking with the writer for the live action Bebop movie.

I remain skeptical.


In other news, I find those Bing commercials annoying.

That's all for the moment.

Home from work, tired. The new pay period started Saturday and I've already got 50 hours in this week (not counting any long hours I put in last week). The proposal has been delivered, though so I'm taking tonight off and working from home tomorrow.

Tonight is going to be mellow and I will relax with the manga I got from lohquesse last week and the couple of volumes I picked up on the way home today. I got most of the books on Saturday, but so far, I've only been able to read one volume. Fortunately, Mixed Vegetables 4 was fabulous. It's still a good series and was exactly the light, fun distraction I needed. Actually, I think it's ranking among my favorite shoujo series at the moment.

Tonight, I plan to dig in to meatier fare such as 20th Century Boys and Pluto (vol. 3 of each). I've also got volume 1s for Detroit Metal City, Gestalt and Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei. It should be an awesome, manga-tastic evening for me.

ETA:

Okay, I'm so burnt out that I completely forgot that in the past week I've also read FMA 18 and Kaze Hikaru 13 which both continue to be awesome. Like, awesomely awesome ♥. I also read Otomen 2 which continues to be cracktacular but somehow lacks something from the first volume. Still, it's cracky enough that I will continue to read.

Patient Records Stolen From VA State Database

Ummm...what?

Do we average Virginians have any way of knowing if our prescriptions were flagged in that database? Also, for those whose information was stolen, what will the state do for restitution? Credit monitoring isn't a solution, but it's a start. Or not.

*checks*

Oh...it's Schedule II drugs...so, you know, any prescription with codeine or oxycodone would be flagged. Now I'm wondering when this database was started and when my last prescription for percocet was. :-p






p.s. Been mad busy at work lately, I promise actual update-y type stuff soon.

So the new 'foolproof' charger AT&T sent me? It has a little plastic doohicky on the back so you can't plug your phone in the wrong way. Only problem? You can't plug the charger in securely when the phone is in a protective case. So...still a fire hazard.

THANKS AT&T!

Okay, I figured out why this didn't crosspost from Vox. I'd changed my login information since the last time I used my Vox account so my the crosspost wasn't validating correctly. I've fixed that but am pretty sure I'm just going to have to post this manually. If you get the post twice, I'm sorry.

Here, for your reading pleasure, is a copy of the review I wrote of the upcoming book Enemies and Allies by Kevin J. Anderson. I recieved an advance reader's copy through Harper's First Look program and, since I already wrote it up for the publisher, I figured I'd cross-post it at the same time.

Enjoy!

( Cut for those who don't care. )

Following the trend on the librarything community, and because it was so much fun last year, here's a list of everything I read in 2008. If you've ever read any of these books, please check them off!

I did add manga into the poll this year, but only listed them by series. Because there are so many ways to read manga (scans, magazines, collected volumes) I figured it would just be easier to go by the main series - so feel free to check them off if you've ever read any volumes of that series. Don't worry about where I noted volumes as that's mostly for me. If there's no volume listed, it's for one of three reasons: 1) that's the only volume of that manga; 2) I only read the first volume of the manga; 3) I read scanlations and have no idea what volume they belong to.

( Cut for one extremely long poll! )

Since I didn't sign up during the regular yuletide period, there was no need for a 'Dear Yuletide Santa' letter. However, as a pinch hitter I get to put in story requests for 'Yuletide Madness' in the hopes that someone will come through with a treat for me. Yay! \o/

I apologize to the people who are normally not on my fanfic filter but...prezzies for me are good things so you will just have to scroll past. ;-)

So, here goes. Borrowing heavily from previous letters, I bring you:

Dear Yuletide Santa,

First of all, thank you for the time you'll be putting in working on this, I really am looking forward to reading what you write for me. Like, lots. :) I tried to give a clear idea of what I was looking for, but not be overly limiting in my requests. I can only hope I succeeded!

Here are a few things I tend to look for in a fic beyond what I asked for in my request:

• Grammar: Good grammar is just dead sexy. No, really. Even the most original of plots and snappiest of dialogue can be ruined by inattention to proper grammar and punctuation. I don't want to sound like a bitch about it or anything, but...yeah. Just wanted to call that to your attention.
  
• Pairings: My preferences should have been fairly clear from the requests, but in general I prefer canon pairings and I like het or gen better than slash.
  
• Explicitness: While I like a good bit of smut as much as the next person, I'm really really particular about the smut I read. I'd prefer it if the story was kept below an 'R' rating just in general.
  
• Genre: While I'm usually a big fan of teh angst, that's not necessarily what I'm looking for at yuletide. Introspective is good, serious is good, but emotional anguish is probably going a bit far.
  
• Holiday Trappings: I know that some of what I requested doesn't lend itself to holiday trappings, but for the things that do, if you're thinking of going in that direction I'd like to politely request that you not. I'm not a Christian, I don't celebrate Christmas and I'm not particularly interested in a Christmas-based story.

There's probably other things I could say or come up with, but those are the major things that come to mind right now so I'll leave the rest up to you! Have fun writing because I know I'll enjoy reading it, no matter what you choose to write. Oh, and if you're looking for indications of what kind of things I write or read, I store my fic at msc_fic, and there are some stories I've enjoyed favorited in the memories section. I have also got favorites on my ff.net page, though that stuff is all pretty old. (Haven't quite gotten around to the planned overhaul yet...)

Thank you yet again,

~MsC

One thing about being sick, it saps your focus. I just don't have the mental energy to do anything beyond rote tasks. Therefore, instead of me getting my homework done, you get a post updating what I've been reading for the past three months.

You're thrilled, I'm sure. :-p

Anyway, despite all the things I've had going on at work, and the reading I've had to do for school (those books likely won't show up on-list until December), I've managed to get a few books under my belt. Just, you know, a handful.

*ahem*

Books: 11 (51 YTD)
A College of Magics by Caroline Stevermer
Trinity Blood - Rage Against the Moons Vol 3: Know Faith by Sunao Yoshida
The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
Something in the Water by Trevor Baxendale
Aunt Dimity and the Deep Blue Sea by Nancy Atherton
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges Into History by The Bathroom Readers' Hysterical Society (what?)
Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik
Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik
High Wizardry by Diane Duane
Heaven's Net is Wide by Lian Hearn

Graphic Novels: 67 (128 YTD)
Fruits Basket 1 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 2 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 3 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 4 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 5 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 6 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 7 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 8 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 9 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 10 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 11 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 12 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 13 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 14 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 15 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 16 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 17 by Natsuki Takaya
Fruits Basket 18 by Natsuki Takaya
Wonder Woman: Spirit of Truth by Paul Dini & Alex Ross
Suppli 3 by Mari Okazaki
Modesty Blaise: Live Bait by Peter O'Donnell and Romero
Kaze Hikaru 10 by Taeko Watanabe
Millenium Snow 2 by Bisco Hatori
Skip Beat 8 by Yoshiki Nakamura
Honey and Clover 1 by Chica Umino
Honey and Clover 2 by Chica Umino
Honey and Clover 3 by Chica Umino
Fables: Legends in Exile by Willingham, Medina, Leiloha, Hamilton
Fables: Animal Farm by Willingham, Buckingham
Crimson Hero 6 by Mitsuba Takanashi
Crimson Hero 8 by Mitsuba Takanashi
Bleach 23 by Tite Kubo
Vampire Knight 2 by Matsuri Hino
Vampire Knight 3 by Matsuri Hino
Vampire Knight 4 by Matsuri Hino
Bleach 24 by Tite Kubo
Naruto 1 by Masashi Kishimoto
One Pound Gospel 1 by Rumiko Takahashi
One Pound Gospel 2 by Rumiko Takahashi
Skip Beat 11 by Yoshiki Nakamura
Skip Beat 12 by Yoshiki Nakamura
Skip Beat 13 by Yoshiki Nakamura
Kamen Tantei 1 by Matsuri Akino
Vampire Knight 5 by Matsuri Hino
V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd
Rurouni Kenshin 7 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 8 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 9 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 10 by Kenshin Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 11 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 12 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 13 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 14 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 15 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 16 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 17 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Kaze Hikaru 1 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 2 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 3 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 4 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 5 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 6 by Taeko Watanabe
Skip Beat 14 by Yoshiki Nakamura
Kaze Hikaru 7 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 8 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 9 by Taeko Watanabe
Kaze Hikaru 10 by Taeko Watanabe

So, uh, yeah. I've been re-reading whole series of manga. This is partly because I'm so burnt out that a volume of manga is about the only thing I can handle at the end of the day; it is partly because I've been going through my books with an eye towards culling and I need to remind myself why I should keep certain things; also, I just plain like reading manga.

Anyway, sorry for the friendspage spam for those on LiveJournal, but it's not like I do this very often. Also, I hate trying to edit the Vox code.

Originally posted on mscongeniality.vox.com

This is a continuation of my earlier post regarding books I plan to sell or trade. I have three lists behind the cut, non-fiction, fiction and graphic novels. These are all (with the token exception to prove the rule) hardcover or trade paperback, I haven't even started to go through the regular paperbacks yet. Let me know if you're interested and we can work it out from there.

( Full List Behind the Cut )

I'm making this post public, so if you want to direct your friends to it, you can.

Okay, I ultimately decided to be quietly productive today. I'm currently working on tagging the books I want to get rid of in LibraryThing and, ultimately, putting them on Book Mooch. I am, however, still considering half.com for at least some of them.

What I thought I'd do first was make some of the books I think people on my friends list might be interested in available to them before I try more mercenary means. This first post consists entirely of manga, manwha, OEL and light novels. All the books are in basically pristine condition except where noted. I'm thinking maybe $3-4 per book (more for artbooks) or else a trade of similar value. I'm not sure how I want to handle the shipping yet, but I figured it was something we could work out if there's actually any interest in these books.

( Full List Behind the Cut )

I'm making this post public so if you want to direct friends to it, you can.

Woo, 12:06! I can post!

My flist tends to remain rather stable, so this will be old news to most of you, but I have an oddly patriotic streak that tends to show itself in minor obsessions with founding fathers and colonial history in general, as well as obsessive voting and an unreasonable fondness for Sousa marches on national holidays. The other result of this strange patriotism are my annual Fourth of July posts. For those who may have missed them, let's recap:

• In 2003, I gave you The Virginia Declaration of Rights.


• In 2004, I lost steam somewhat and went entirely with 1776 references, but I regrouped!


• By 2005, I was back on track and making up for lost time with Declaration related letters from both Adams and Jefferson.


• In 2006, I provided both a letter from Benjamin Franklin to Admiral Lord Howe and a biography of James Wilson who, I promise, is more interesting than you think.


• Last year, I had some .pdf and OCR issues, but came through with The Journals of the Continental Congress.

This year, I've thought about it a bit. I waffled some on what document to go with. My first thought was maybe a little bit of Patrick Henry because, really, it doesn't get any more melodramatic than

Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

I have to say, though, that I'm not feeling the hyperbole right now.

No, this time around, I thought I'd go back to 1775 and another Jefferson-penned document. He and John Dickinson (among others) put together a little document commonly known as the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (July 6, 1775). It's a year before independence, but our boys definitely pack some punch.

( We resolved again to offer an humble and dutiful petition to the King, and also addressed our fellow-subjects of Great-Britain. We have pursued every temperate, every respectful measure; we have even proceeded to break off our commercial intercourse with our fellow-subjects, as the last peaceable admonition, that our attachment to no nation upon earth should supplant our attachment to liberty. -- This, we flattered ourselves, was the ultimate step of the controversy: but subsequent events have shewn, how vain was this hope of finding moderation in our enemies. )

I haven't posted on my reading in, well, about three months now. Once again, I just don't have it in me to do any reviews. I'd love to, but time is not my friend right now. Maybe if work cools off at the end of the fiscal year...

Anyway, it being the midway point in the calendar year, I thought I'd at least update my list of books read. Since March 23, I have read the following:

Books: 21 (41 YTD)
Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers
The Turing Test by Paul Leonard
Unnatural History by Jonathan Blum & Kate Orman
Earthworld by Jacqueline Rayner
Escape Velocity by Colin Brake
Salvation by Steve Lyons
Rage Against the Moons Vol 2: Silent Noise by Sunao Yoshida
Vanishing Point by Stephen Cole
Reborn on the Mars, Vol 2: The Iblis by Sunao Yoshida
So You Want to be a Wizard by Diane Duane
Dealing With Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
Magician by Raymond E. Feist
Mission: Impractical by Dave McIntee
Deep Wizardry by Diane Duane
Silverthorn by Raymond E. Feist
A Darkness at Sethanon by Raymond E. Feist
Krondor: The Betrayal by Raymond E. Feist
Krondor: The Assassin by Raymond E. Feist
Krondor: Tear of the Gods by Raymond E. Feist
House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones
Managra by Stephen Marley

Graphic Novels: 52 (62 YTD)
Suppli 2 by Mari Okazaki
Rurouni Kenshin 18 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 19 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 20 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Love Attack (Juna'i Tokko Taicho) 2 by Shizuru Seino
Rurouni Kenshin 21 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 22 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 23 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 24 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 25 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 26 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 27 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Rurouni Kenshin 28 by Nobuhiro Watsuki
Crazy Love Story 1 by Lee Vin
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 8 by CLAMP
Trigun Maximum 9 by Yasuhiro Nightow
Trigun Maximum 10 by Yasuhiro Nightow
xxxHolic Omnibus (vols 1-3) by CLAMP
Saiyuki Reload 1 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 2 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 3 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 4 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 5 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 6 by Kazyua Minekura
Saiyuki Reload 7 by Kazyua Minekura
Ouran High School Host Club 10 by Bisco Hatori
Saiyuki Reload 8 by Kazyua Minekura
Kaze Hikaru 9 by Taeko Watanabe
Bleach 1 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 2 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 3 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 4 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 5 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 6 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 7 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 8 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 9 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 10 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 11 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 12 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 13 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 14 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 15 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 16 by Tite Kubo
Pet Shop of Horrors: Tokyo by Matsuri Akino
Wild Adapter 5 by Kazyua Minekura
Bleach 17 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 18 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 19 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 20 by Tite Kubo
Bleach 21 by Tite Kubo
Fullmetal Alchemist 16 by Hiromu Arakawa

As busy as I am, I guess I still have time to read. :)

Originally posted on mscongeniality.vox.com

I had three separate posts planned for today. I'll try to get to the other two shortly, but I wanted this out there.

Reminder: livelongnmarry charity auctions go live at midnight tonight, Pacific Time.

There is a lot offered beyond the purely 'fannish'. There are auctions of signed items, jewelry, baked goods, services including language tutoring, style consultation and manuscript reviews by well known authors...just to name some of what's on offer.

Of course, many of the items up for bid are 'fannish' in nature, including fanfics, fan art, journal styles and icons. I actually offered to contribute a story despite not thinking my I'll be able to bring in any money that way. Hopefully I'll be able to at least do something. If not, then I did my part by advertising.

Okay, I know there are a few people on my friends list who would be interested in this. I meant to advertise the comm yesterday, but got too wrapped in work to get around to it.

Not this time!

The community livelongnmarry has been set up as a fundraiser to support the fight against the proposed California initiative to once again remove the rights of same sex couples. The majority of bidding items offered are fannish - stories or art by request, offers of reviewing services, etc., but there are also some handmade goods and general creative services on offer. So...feel free to check it out and consider making a bid once they open on July 1.

Via Making Light, The Rather Difficult Font Game.

I only got 22/34 which is dead embarrassing, but I also only just woke up. I'm going to try it again in a bit once I've had some cofee and see if my score improves.

Well, I've realized that I haven't posted about my reading for some time and not at all regarding the books I've read this year. Thus far, I'm up to 20 prose books (15 new) and an additional ten (new) manga.

I'd like to write up some comments on at least a portion of what I've read so far, but just haven't had the time. (Same goes for my drastically overdue review of The Dreamers of the Day.) I also haven't decided how I'm going to go about things, really.

For now, just have a list:

Books: 20
The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Volume I by Diana Wynne Jones
The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Volume II by Diana Wynne Jones
Sorcery & Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer
Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell
The Witch Hunters by Steve Lyons
The Twelve Kingdoms: Sea of Shadow by Fuyumi Ono
Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn
Grass for His Pillow by Lian Hearn
Brilliance of the Moon by Lian Hearn
Seeing I by Jonathan Blum & Kate Orman
Welcome to the N.H.K. by Tatsuhiko Takimoto
The Empire of Glass by Andy Lane
The Harsh Cry of the Heron by Lian Hearn
Mad Dogs and Englishmen by Paul Magrs
The Grand Tour by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer
Catastrophea by Terrance Dicks
The Twelve Kingdoms: Sea of Wind by Fuyumi Ono
The Areas of My Expertise by John Hodgman
Have His Carcase by Dorothy L. Sayers

Graphic Novels: 10
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 4 by CLAMP
Mushishi 1 by Yuki Urushibara
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 5 by CLAMP
Tsubasa  Reservoir Chronicle 6 by CLAMP
Fullmetal Alchemist 15 by Hiromu Arakawa
Tramps Like Us 14 by Yayoi Ogawa
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 7 by CLAMP
Kaze Hikaru 8 by Taeko Watanabe
Wild Adapter  4 by Kazyua Minekura

Originally posted on mscongeniality.vox.com

http://media.www.sbstatesman.com/media/storage/paper955/news/2008/02/25/News/Gunman.At.Sbu.Report.To.Police.Says-3232820.shtml

Dude...WTF!

Added:

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/crime/ny-liston0226,0,3334282.story

Oh GOOD. So he ran towards the 4M. I'm going to calm right down then. :-p

Also:

I'm totally printing out a copy of that Newsday story to show to people who complain about not being allowed to have guns as part of their cosplay.

The University issued an 'all clear' at 3:55.

http://stonybrook.edu/sb/emergency/alerts.shtml

Still...not fun.

Aha! Nothing wastes time better than a meme and it's been a long time since I've done the music 'first line' one. I realize that my choices are somewhat limited by the fact that this is my work computer and I have a much smaller collection here than at home, but it should still be diverse enough.

( Here Goes! )

The final raw numbers for everything I read in 2007 are as follows:

Books: 56 - 19358 pages
Graphic Novels: 139 - 27378 pages
Fanfiction: 213 - 412329 words/ 825 pages
Scanlations: 9 volumes, 100 chapters - 3759 pages

Re-figuring this for re-reads of the same book during the course of the year, it changes slightly. I'm going to leave the number of pages the same, but reflect the number of unique books:

Books: 55 - 19358 pages
Graphic Novels: 122 - 27378 pages
Fanfiction: 213 - 412329 words/ 825 pages
Scanlations: 9 volumes, 100 chapters - 3759 pages

I've already posted a full list of all the books I read as a poll so I'm not going to reiterate them here. The two things I haven't covered are a list of all manga series that I read (much simpler than individual volumes) and the handful of books that I started during the year, but didn't finish.

As usual, I'm going to tackle the books first. These are almost all things I intend to finish at some point, but either I ran out of time or put them down for other things and just never quite got back to them. Actually, when I went looking for unfinished books, I found more than I expected, I'm actually kind of embarrassed.

Leading off the embarrassment is Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things. It's not that I dislike short stories, or that the stories in this compilation are in any way bad, quite the opposite in fact. It's just that I tend to pick it up in between other things, read one story, and then forget about the book for another couple of months. I think I have a Diana Wynne Jones short story book that I've treated the same way, too. I'll finish these in 2008, I swear!

Next up is another book I've been reading in between other things. I picked up a remainder book called Manhunter: The Definitive History of Serial Murder Investigation as background for a story I didn't end up writing. It's not a priority for finishing any time soon, but if I do write that story, I'm definitely going to pick this back up again.

I've actually got two Doctor Who novels in the unfinished pile. One of which, amazingly, stars my beloved Eighth Doctor and Fitz. The Banquo Legacy is...well, it's not bad per se, it just really hasn't been my cup of tea. Honestly, I can't even really tell you what it's about or why I haven't been reading it, but that's not surprising because going by the bookmark, I haven't picked this up since February of last year.

The other Doctor Who novel is one I simply haven't finished. It's a Missing Adventure called Downtime and the Doctor doesn't appear in it at all. Instead, we have Victoria, the Brigadier and Sarah Jane which should have added up to a kickass novel but...didn't. Actually, the first portion of things dealing solely with Victoria and following on The Abominable Snowmen and The Web of Fear held a lot of promise, but the actual main story bogs down and just plain gets uninteresting. Fortunately, I've only got about another thirty-five pages and then I can put that one to rest.

The next book is one I borrowed from my brother, it's the first compilation of Glen Cook's Garrett stories, The Garrett Files. I'm about thirty pages in to the first book Sweet Silver Blues. It's not bad so far, but I was reading it when my brother got sick and I just haven't picked it up since. The other book I was reading when my brother got sick was Welcome to the NHK. That one I put down because I couldn't bear to continue reading.

Welcome to the NHK is actually far too good, it was cutting way too close to home for me to feel comfortable reading it. The main character is what's known in Japan as a hikikomori. When I had this problem, I called myself agoraphobic, though I never was formally diagnosed that way*. The story is excellent, and I'm very near the end of the book, but I'm not ready to face the rest of it just yet. Until then, this book will remain unfinished and I can guarantee that I will not be reading the manga or watching the anime any time soon. I do, however, recommend it to the rest of you.

The final book left unread in 2007 was one of the Early Reviewer books I've gotten through LibraryThing. Tokyo Year Zero sounded incredibly promising. It's a novel based on a real life serial murderer who was active in post-war Tokyo. What I found when I started reading was an impenetrable stream of consciousness first person perspective. The story may yet follow through on its early promise, but I haven't been able to get past the prologue because I find the prose to be such tough going and I just haven't had the energy to put in to this book. I plan to try again in January, because I feel obligated both to give it another shot and to share my experience in a review.

And, as usual, I'm going to end with the manga. The following is a list of all thirty-five series I read in 2007:

Aishiteruze Baby
Bleach
Buso Renkin
Crimson Hero
Divalicious
Dramacon
Emma
Fruits Basket
Fullmetal Alchemist
Genshiken
Heaven!!
Hellsing
Hoshi no Koe
Kamen Tantei
Kaze Hikaru
Love Attack
Millenium Snow
Monster
Nana
Ohikkoshi
Ouran High School Host Club
Paradise Kiss
Pixie Pop Gokkun Pucho
Rin!
Rurouni Kenshin
Saiyuki Reload
Shirahime-Syo
Skip Beat
Suppli
Tramps Like Us
Trigun
Trinity Blood
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle
Wild Adapter
xxxHolic

*There are a handful of people on my LJ who may remember what I was like that time

Originally posted on mscongeniality.vox.com

I had mentioned some time back that I was thinking of doing a friends cut at the end of the year. Well, I went ahead and finally did it. Some of the people were inactive, some were folks I had friended since my last cut who I never really bonded with, but most were people I met and friended through fandom who I no longer feel any real connection to. In most of those cases, our interests had simply moved in different directions and it was time (or past time) to let go.

I hope nobody takes this personally, it's not meant to be an insult. The simple fact is that I haven't cut anybody in a very long time and my daily reading list has gotten out of control.

I'm going to leave this post public and screen replies in case anybody has something to say to me.

6 Books - 2383 pages (2 new)
Dreamstone Moon by Paul Leonard
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Christopher Bulis
Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis
The Crown of Dalemark by Diana Wynne Jones

5 Graphic Novels - 1360 pages (4 new)
Dramacon 3 by Svetlana Chmakova
Genshiken 9 by Kio Shimoku
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle Omnibus (vols 1-3) by CLAMP
Love Attack by Shizuru Seino
Fruits Basket Fanbook - Cat by Natsuki Takaya

Fanfiction - 275003 words/ 550 pages

Scanlations - 80 pages (all new)
Bleach Chapter 301. Shut Up & Die
Bleach Chapter 302. Pride on the Blade
Bleach Chapter 303. Dumdum-Dummy-Dumbstruck
Bleach Chapter -15. Death in the Field of Ice

Preliminary Yearly Total:
Books: 56 - 19358 pages
Graphic Novels: 139 - 27378 pages
Fanfiction: 213 - 412329 words/ 825 pages
Scanlations: 9 volumes, 100 chapters - 3759 pages

Here we go! The penultimate posting for my Grand Reading Project in 2007. After this, you'll just have to suffer through a year end wrapup including the books I didn't finish and some musings on 2008. It will all be relatively painless, I promise.

Books this month were mostly re-reads with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Gaudy Night having been prompted by their film counterparts. I re-read To Say Nothing of the Dog because I was just in that sort of mood and The Crown of Dalemark because I was inspired by Yuletide stories (which are, by the way, solely responsible for the vast increase in fic reading).

The new books were both Doctor Who novels, one a Missing Adventure and one an Eighth Doctor story. Of the two, I vastly preferred the MA, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, which featured the first Doctor, Ian, Barbara and Susan. In it, the TARDIS lands on a world where 'science' (in this case, pretty much anything electronic) is crippled and magic seems to rule the day. To take the every so faintly bizarre situation a step further, the society seems to come straight out of an idealized mythological view of medieval Europe.

The action is brisk and, over the course of the story, manages to straddle the seeming divide between science and fantasy quite well. I thought the characterization was decent over all with fun moments for each of the characters, though I must admit I particularly enjoyed the bits with Susan as a 'damsel in distress' and the Doctor trying to overcome his skepticism and place events in context. This was a fun read and I don't hesitate to recommend it to anybody looking for a decent First Doctor story.

I had a lot more going on with manga in December, with the final volumes of both Dramacon and Genshiken along with the first volumes of two other series and a Fruits Basket special. I have to say that Fanbook - Cat was a decent companion to the series, filled with fun detail and a priceless moment or two of its own (Ritchan/Mitchan FTW!). It's not something I'd sit down and read cover to cover, but taken in chunks I enjoyed it quite a bit. In fact, if I were still doing Furuba roleplay, I'm pretty sure I'd find some of it completely invaluable.

Dramacon was, overall, a satisfying end to the story. I thought the direction she took with Bethany's family was a bit over the top, but she clearly has a point she's been making over the course of of the story and that was her mechanism for presenting that aspect in this volume. Also, the fact that 'Drama' is in the title should probably be a tip-off for what to expect. At any rate, this title is frequently recommended as the main example of what OEL can be and it clearly earns that distinction, holding up well against most, though hardly all, import shoujo.

After focusing so closely on Oguie and reaching a sort of 'closing point' to her story in the previous volume, this final volume of Genshiken returns to a broader approach. There is no great revelation or resolution, nothing you can point to as a climax to the ongoing story, but more a sense that this particular chapter has been brought to a close for these characters as the three who entered as freshmen in the first chapter graduate. You see more of all the characters through the volume and come away with a clear sense of what's next for nearly all of them. As an end to this 'slice of life' it's decent and in keeping with the tone of the series over all, even if it's without a specific 'impact'. I was satisfied with it and continue to love the series as a whole.

I don't need to comment on Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle as I'm not reading it and I haven't quite decided if I'm going to continue to not read it. I do, however, have something to say about Love Attack. I've mentioned it here before, if briefly, under the name Jun'ai Tokko Taicho. It's by the same mangaka as Heaven!! (which I hated) and Girl Got Game (which I quite enjoyed) and is a relatively straightforward comedic shoujo story about a pair who are more than a little bit rough around the edges. Despite having previously read scanlations, I found that I came to the material fresh and enjoyed it all over again. Further, I found myself comparing this story to Heaven!!--almost entirely in a positive light. The action is far less confusing this time around and the characters more engaging and three dimensional right off the bat. This is a series that I can, and will, recommend unreservedly.

That about wraps things up on the year, though I've a few more comments that I will make in another post. Thank you all for putting up with me on this project, I hope I've at least managed to entertain a bit in the process.

~MsC

Originally posted on mscongeniality.vox.com

It's pretty much all the rage in the librarything LJ community to post an end of year poll asking if people have read the same books as you. I wasn't able to play along in 2006 because I had no idea what I'd read through the course of the year, but this year I have a full list!

( Come on in and play along at home! )