January 2015 reading
January 2015 reading:
1. Prodigy, by Marie Lu (371 pages)
I didn't expect my first book of the year to have me sobbing like a baby, but then maybe I should have chosen from a different genre. June and Day have escaped the Republic, and join the Patriots to get medical attention for Day's leg, reunite with Tess, and try to rescue Eden. The price they are asked to pay, though, is assassination of the new Elector. Except he might be everything the Republic needs.
2. Greywalker, by Kat Richardson (341 pages)
The premise and plot are interesting, but this felt under-developed in some ways. Maybe that clears up later in the series, but for instance Harper seemed to automatically trust/know Quinton after meeting him only once, without any justification. There were also some issues with pacing. I do wish we'd gotten to know Harper before her incident, though. I just didn't know enough about her to really understand her character. Overall, a decent first book, and I'll probably continue the series.
3. The Titan's Curse, by Rick Riordan (320 pages)
Percy and his friends end up saving two halfbloods from a manticore, but Annabeth is lost in the process. Another prophecy brings Athena's Hunters and the Campers together on a quest to save Athena--one Percy hopes will help them find Annabeth. Action-packed and fun to read.
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth, by Rick Riordan (368 pages)
Percy, Annabeth, Gordon, and Tyson must embark on a question into the infamous labyrinth after discovering an entrance in the middle of camp--one Luke and Kronos intend to use to invade and destroy the Halfbloods. Gordon also suspects Pan is down there. The problem: not many escape from the labyrinth, and some who do are insane. There's no helping it, though; they need to find the creator of the labyrinth if they have any hope of saving the sanctuary of Camp Halfblood.
5. The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan (383 pages)
The war with Kronos has begun, tearing Percy away from a vacation. This time he'll lose many of his fellow campers, as the battle for Olympus, a last stand, is fought. But having heard the whole prophecy this time, Percy fears he may not survive the war.
6. I am Legend, by Richard Matheson (317 pages)
Finally got around to reading this. I really enjoyed the title novella, though in places it felt underdeveloped. I also went into it thinking it was a zombie story, but it was actually vampires (of a sort). The rest of the stories were also pretty good. I had to reread some of the fast-paced ones to really get the full impact.
7. Because Cuba Is You, by Ramón Chao (224 pages)
This spans the late 1800s through the Cuban war for independence from Spain past World War I. It's set in both Cuba and Galicia, and has elements of magical realism and a lyrical sort of tone which makes it feel almost dream-like. At times I felt lost because of the split near the middle, but I enjoyed that feeling with the way the book was written and paced. It's written by a young man about his grandmother's life, interspersed with her interjections in italics. Her name changes repeatedly during the book as her identity shifts with growth--she starts off as Loliña, becomes Lolita, becomes Lola, and grows into Dolores. There's also discussion of the political movements in Cuba, as well as the political atmosphere in Spain after WWI. Interesting read.
8. The Lost Hero, by Rick Riordan (557 pages)
Jason wakes with no memory of who he is on a bus holding hands with a girl named Piper who says she is his girlfriend, and with a very hyperactive boy named Leo. Things get bad at their destination when they are attacked by wind spirits, and then they are rescued and taken to Camp Half-Blood. But Jason knows he doesn't belong there. They are quickly called out for a quest to rescue Hera from a new and terrible threat waking. And Piper... she has a secret of her own.
9. Clockwork Kiru: Steampunk Haiku, edited by David Nell (68 pages)
I bought this because I had a haiku published in it, but I really enjoyed all of the haiku, and the way they came together to build a world and strange sort of narrative.
10. Blue Collar Anthology, by Michael Meyerhofer (100 pages)
A really great collection of poems. My favorites were "Ode to Dogs" and "Collateral Damage." I loved how the personal twined with the sociopolitical many of the poems in this collection.
11. The Demigod Files, by Rick Riordan (151 pages)
Several short stories involving minor Percy Jackson quests. They add to what happens in the books, but aren't entirely necessary for understanding. Overall enjoyable. Also included random games, interviews, a map of camp, Annabeth's trunk contents, and portraits of some major figures.
12. The Son of Neptune, by Rick Riordan (521 pages)
Percy can't remember much--just his name and that he has a girlfriend named Annabeth. He fights his way to a place Lupa the wolf has sent him, and discovers Camp Jupiter and New Rome hidden in the hills outside Oakland, CA. He quickly becomes friends with Hazel and Frank after saving them from gorgons, and joins the Fifth Cohort, which seems to be cursed with bad luck. When they are sent on a quest to Alaska, the land beyond the gods, to free Thanatos and weaken the goddess Gaea's plan for destroying the world, it seems like a death march, one taking him further from the connection with Annabeth. Can the cursed Fifth Cohort succeed?
13. Poltergeist, by Kat Richardson (338 pages)
Harper is hired to check into supposed sabotage at local university in a parapsychology study on poltergeist group creation as power of the mind. Only it's not sabotage--they succeeded. And one of the group is a murderer. To add to it, the person running the experiment is just looking for a patsy in Harper, adding another layer of annoyance. Overall, well-written. I feel like I still don't know who Harper is, though.
January pages: 4,059
Pages to date: 4,059
Progress: 13/52
January 2015 comics/manga reading:
1. Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 1, by Brian Michael Bendis (136 pages)
2. Absolute Boyfriend: Volume 6, by Yuu Watase (191 pages)
3. Gotham City Sirens: Volume 1, by Paul Dini (320 pages)
4. Kekkaishi: Volume 32, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
5. Kekkaishi: Volume 33, by Yellow Tanabe (192 pages)
6. Kekkaishi: Volume 34, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
7. Kekkaishi: Volume 35, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
January pages: 1,429
Pages to date: 1,439
Progress: 7/365
1. Prodigy, by Marie Lu (371 pages)
I didn't expect my first book of the year to have me sobbing like a baby, but then maybe I should have chosen from a different genre. June and Day have escaped the Republic, and join the Patriots to get medical attention for Day's leg, reunite with Tess, and try to rescue Eden. The price they are asked to pay, though, is assassination of the new Elector. Except he might be everything the Republic needs.
2. Greywalker, by Kat Richardson (341 pages)
The premise and plot are interesting, but this felt under-developed in some ways. Maybe that clears up later in the series, but for instance Harper seemed to automatically trust/know Quinton after meeting him only once, without any justification. There were also some issues with pacing. I do wish we'd gotten to know Harper before her incident, though. I just didn't know enough about her to really understand her character. Overall, a decent first book, and I'll probably continue the series.
3. The Titan's Curse, by Rick Riordan (320 pages)
Percy and his friends end up saving two halfbloods from a manticore, but Annabeth is lost in the process. Another prophecy brings Athena's Hunters and the Campers together on a quest to save Athena--one Percy hopes will help them find Annabeth. Action-packed and fun to read.
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth, by Rick Riordan (368 pages)
Percy, Annabeth, Gordon, and Tyson must embark on a question into the infamous labyrinth after discovering an entrance in the middle of camp--one Luke and Kronos intend to use to invade and destroy the Halfbloods. Gordon also suspects Pan is down there. The problem: not many escape from the labyrinth, and some who do are insane. There's no helping it, though; they need to find the creator of the labyrinth if they have any hope of saving the sanctuary of Camp Halfblood.
5. The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan (383 pages)
The war with Kronos has begun, tearing Percy away from a vacation. This time he'll lose many of his fellow campers, as the battle for Olympus, a last stand, is fought. But having heard the whole prophecy this time, Percy fears he may not survive the war.
6. I am Legend, by Richard Matheson (317 pages)
Finally got around to reading this. I really enjoyed the title novella, though in places it felt underdeveloped. I also went into it thinking it was a zombie story, but it was actually vampires (of a sort). The rest of the stories were also pretty good. I had to reread some of the fast-paced ones to really get the full impact.
7. Because Cuba Is You, by Ramón Chao (224 pages)
This spans the late 1800s through the Cuban war for independence from Spain past World War I. It's set in both Cuba and Galicia, and has elements of magical realism and a lyrical sort of tone which makes it feel almost dream-like. At times I felt lost because of the split near the middle, but I enjoyed that feeling with the way the book was written and paced. It's written by a young man about his grandmother's life, interspersed with her interjections in italics. Her name changes repeatedly during the book as her identity shifts with growth--she starts off as Loliña, becomes Lolita, becomes Lola, and grows into Dolores. There's also discussion of the political movements in Cuba, as well as the political atmosphere in Spain after WWI. Interesting read.
8. The Lost Hero, by Rick Riordan (557 pages)
Jason wakes with no memory of who he is on a bus holding hands with a girl named Piper who says she is his girlfriend, and with a very hyperactive boy named Leo. Things get bad at their destination when they are attacked by wind spirits, and then they are rescued and taken to Camp Half-Blood. But Jason knows he doesn't belong there. They are quickly called out for a quest to rescue Hera from a new and terrible threat waking. And Piper... she has a secret of her own.
9. Clockwork Kiru: Steampunk Haiku, edited by David Nell (68 pages)
I bought this because I had a haiku published in it, but I really enjoyed all of the haiku, and the way they came together to build a world and strange sort of narrative.
10. Blue Collar Anthology, by Michael Meyerhofer (100 pages)
A really great collection of poems. My favorites were "Ode to Dogs" and "Collateral Damage." I loved how the personal twined with the sociopolitical many of the poems in this collection.
11. The Demigod Files, by Rick Riordan (151 pages)
Several short stories involving minor Percy Jackson quests. They add to what happens in the books, but aren't entirely necessary for understanding. Overall enjoyable. Also included random games, interviews, a map of camp, Annabeth's trunk contents, and portraits of some major figures.
12. The Son of Neptune, by Rick Riordan (521 pages)
Percy can't remember much--just his name and that he has a girlfriend named Annabeth. He fights his way to a place Lupa the wolf has sent him, and discovers Camp Jupiter and New Rome hidden in the hills outside Oakland, CA. He quickly becomes friends with Hazel and Frank after saving them from gorgons, and joins the Fifth Cohort, which seems to be cursed with bad luck. When they are sent on a quest to Alaska, the land beyond the gods, to free Thanatos and weaken the goddess Gaea's plan for destroying the world, it seems like a death march, one taking him further from the connection with Annabeth. Can the cursed Fifth Cohort succeed?
13. Poltergeist, by Kat Richardson (338 pages)
Harper is hired to check into supposed sabotage at local university in a parapsychology study on poltergeist group creation as power of the mind. Only it's not sabotage--they succeeded. And one of the group is a murderer. To add to it, the person running the experiment is just looking for a patsy in Harper, adding another layer of annoyance. Overall, well-written. I feel like I still don't know who Harper is, though.
January pages: 4,059
Pages to date: 4,059
Progress: 13/52
January 2015 comics/manga reading:
1. Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 1, by Brian Michael Bendis (136 pages)
2. Absolute Boyfriend: Volume 6, by Yuu Watase (191 pages)
3. Gotham City Sirens: Volume 1, by Paul Dini (320 pages)
4. Kekkaishi: Volume 32, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
5. Kekkaishi: Volume 33, by Yellow Tanabe (192 pages)
6. Kekkaishi: Volume 34, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
7. Kekkaishi: Volume 35, by Yellow Tanabe (200 pages)
January pages: 1,429
Pages to date: 1,439
Progress: 7/365