What I've been reading - ALSO: I have moved to Dreamwidth!
Sorry for any friends who saw this in rough draft form. I'm still learning all the ins and outs of DW and how to cross-post to LJ. Name on DW: same as here!
Book 17 was "The Story of My Tits," graphic nonfiction by Jennifer Hayden. This is, in some ways, a breast cancer memoir, but it more than that, putting the author's experience of breast cancer in context with her entire life, from wishing her breasts were bigger as a teenager, to dealing with her mother-in-law's and mother's own cancer diagnoses to deciding to have a radical dual mastectomy. The illustrations are funky and fun and complement the text. I really enjoyed this and recommend it to anyone who is looking for interesting, off-the-beaten-path graphic books.
Book 18 was "Long Black Curl," a Novel of the Tufa, by Alex Bledsoe. I really enjoy Bledsoe's tales of fairy folk living in modern-day Tennessee. This novel follows on the previous two Tufa novels and has some of the same characters but also introduces several new ones. Reckless lovers Bo-Kate Wisby and Jefferson Powell are the only Tufa to ever be banished from Needsville, and to boot, their ability to make music or find each other was taken away when they were banished. With Rockhouse Hicks maimed and much diminished from the action in "Wisp of a Thing," Bo-Kate sees an opportunity to come back and take over the entire Tufa clan. She somehow overcomes the curse and comes back to wreak havoc. Mandalay Harris, the head of one half of the Tufa, sends for Jefferson to see if he can help head Bo-Kate off. The fate of the Tufa hangs in the balance. It felt like coming back to old friends again to read this book. I liked it slightly less than the previous two books, but I still enjoyed it a great deal, and especially enjoyed the many old and new bluegrass and folk songs quoted in the novel. I recommend the entire set of Tufa Novels to anyone who enjoys well-written urban fantasy.
Book 17 was "The Story of My Tits," graphic nonfiction by Jennifer Hayden. This is, in some ways, a breast cancer memoir, but it more than that, putting the author's experience of breast cancer in context with her entire life, from wishing her breasts were bigger as a teenager, to dealing with her mother-in-law's and mother's own cancer diagnoses to deciding to have a radical dual mastectomy. The illustrations are funky and fun and complement the text. I really enjoyed this and recommend it to anyone who is looking for interesting, off-the-beaten-path graphic books.
Book 18 was "Long Black Curl," a Novel of the Tufa, by Alex Bledsoe. I really enjoy Bledsoe's tales of fairy folk living in modern-day Tennessee. This novel follows on the previous two Tufa novels and has some of the same characters but also introduces several new ones. Reckless lovers Bo-Kate Wisby and Jefferson Powell are the only Tufa to ever be banished from Needsville, and to boot, their ability to make music or find each other was taken away when they were banished. With Rockhouse Hicks maimed and much diminished from the action in "Wisp of a Thing," Bo-Kate sees an opportunity to come back and take over the entire Tufa clan. She somehow overcomes the curse and comes back to wreak havoc. Mandalay Harris, the head of one half of the Tufa, sends for Jefferson to see if he can help head Bo-Kate off. The fate of the Tufa hangs in the balance. It felt like coming back to old friends again to read this book. I liked it slightly less than the previous two books, but I still enjoyed it a great deal, and especially enjoyed the many old and new bluegrass and folk songs quoted in the novel. I recommend the entire set of Tufa Novels to anyone who enjoys well-written urban fantasy.