book list, April 2006

I made three resolutions this year. First, get a job. (Done.) Second, exercise more regularly and lose weight. (In process.) Third, keep a list of the books I read.

These are the books I read in April, 2006:

New: 16
---Runaways: Teenage Wasteland, Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona (comics: teens discover their parents are supervillains, suffers from middle-volume pacing issues)
---Runaways: The Good Die Young, Vaughan and Alphona (comics: story arc conclusion, overly rapid character reversal, some WTF plotting weirdness)
---Gravitation, vol. 1, Maki Murakami (manga: aspiring rock star falls for famous author, very cute)
---The Final Key, Catherine Asaro (science fiction: book two of the Triad duology, part of her Skolian saga; a mix of space opera, theoretical physics/mathematics, hard military sf, and romance)
---Changelings, Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough (sci-fi: start of a new Petaybee trilogy, brain candy, serious problems with the creation of believable characters and universes. Remind me to rant about the anti-science themes sometime, and the inherent contradictions of the "Oh, sentient creatures, yay animal rights, fwuffy bunny nature love!" stance McCaffrey often seems to advocate via her characters.)
---His Majesty's Dragon, Naomi Novik (historical fantasy: the Napoleonic wars, with dragons! Great fun -- there are a few things that aren't explained well, but overall it's very well thought-out and I quite liked the two main characters.)
---Butterfly Gardening, The Xerces Society, et al (nonfiction: about gardening to attract butterflies and create biodiverse areas, and about the life cycles of butterflies. Some chapters are much more interesting/informative than others; the English lady who waxes poetic on large white butterflies is particularly annoying.)
---The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell (nonfiction: on how a small push at the right place can cause huge changes; thought-provoking)
---Harrowing the Dragon, Patricia A. McKillip (fantasy: story collection, of varying quality)
---Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less, Guy Claxton (nonfiction: exactly what the title says, very interesting)
---Hunter x Hunter, vols. 1-6, Yoshihiro Togashi (manga: shonen action/adventure pushed to its logical amoral conclusions, and hymn to the importance of friendship)


Old: 0
*blinks in surprise* Wow. Usually I reread something every few weeks...


April Total = 16 books (plus a bunch of fanfiction, a few newspapers, and several magazines)

Year to Date = 78 books (56 new, 22 old)

book list, April 2006

I made three resolutions this year. First, get a job. (Done.) Second, exercise more regularly and lose weight. (In process.) Third, keep a list of the books I read.

These are the books I read in April, 2006:

New: 16
---Runaways: Teenage Wasteland, Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona (comics: teens discover their parents are supervillains, suffers from middle-volume pacing issues)
---Runaways: The Good Die Young, Vaughan and Alphona (comics: story arc conclusion, overly rapid character reversal, some WTF plotting weirdness)
---Gravitation, vol. 1, Maki Murakami (manga: aspiring rock star falls for famous author, very cute)
---The Final Key, Catherine Asaro (science fiction: book two of the Triad duology, part of her Skolian saga; a mix of space opera, theoretical physics/mathematics, hard military sf, and romance)
---Changelings, Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough (sci-fi: start of a new Petaybee trilogy, brain candy, serious problems with the creation of believable characters and universes. Remind me to rant about the anti-science themes sometime, and the inherent contradictions of the "Oh, sentient creatures, yay animal rights, fwuffy bunny nature love!" stance McCaffrey often seems to advocate via her characters.)
---His Majesty's Dragon, Naomi Novik (historical fantasy: the Napoleonic wars, with dragons! Great fun -- there are a few things that aren't explained well, but overall it's very well thought-out and I quite liked the two main characters.)
---Butterfly Gardening, The Xerces Society, et al (nonfiction: about gardening to attract butterflies and create biodiverse areas, and about the life cycles of butterflies. Some chapters are much more interesting/informative than others; the English lady who waxes poetic on large white butterflies is particularly annoying.)
---The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell (nonfiction: on how a small push at the right place can cause huge changes; thought-provoking)
---Harrowing the Dragon, Patricia A. McKillip (fantasy: story collection, of varying quality)
---Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less, Guy Claxton (nonfiction: exactly what the title says, very interesting)
---Hunter x Hunter, vols. 1-6, Yoshihiro Togashi (manga: shonen action/adventure pushed to its logical amoral conclusions, and hymn to the importance of friendship)


Old: 0
*blinks in surprise* Wow. Usually I reread something every few weeks...


April Total = 16 books (plus a bunch of fanfiction, a few newspapers, and several magazines)

Year to Date = 78 books (56 new, 22 old)