Getting there...

Whee!

This cheered me up after a spectacularly shitty day. I cannot wait for this book!

Okay, going to bed now, really.

Bored on campus with nothing to do

A while back, Corey sent me some books to read. Some of them were Magic books, and he also sent me the Indigo series, by Louise Cooper. Very little known fantasy series...seriously, it doesn't even have a Wikipedia page. I was looking up the books on Amazon, trying to find a damn summary of the series for someone else since at the time I'd only read part of one book. This is when I realize that there are eight books in the series. And Corey had only sent me seven books.

Turns out he hadn't even finished the series before sticking it in a box and sending it here. So he sent me books 1-6, and then book 8. I have been looking for the seventh for a while now. Patty's only ever has a couple of the earlier books, the only copy I found on BookMooch was in England, and on Amazon the stupid thing costs about $20 after shipping for a decent copy. No idea why that one book is so expensive when the rest are fairly easy to find.

Finally, I discovered a great library perk. You can request a book at your branch, for free, and then if any library in the state has it they will get it in for you so you can borrow it. Unfortunately, I hadn't gotten a new library card to use their spiffy new online system for this. It was only implemented a couple of months ago, and to access it you need the barcode on the back of the new cards, which you need to go and pick up at your local branch. And I've had a hell of a time finding time to get to the library when it's actually open to request the book and get my new card.

While all this shit was going on, I stopped reading the series entirely. Only one other library in Pennsylvania has the book, and it's up in the northeastern corner of the state (aka as far from me as you can possibly get). I figured it would take a while to get to my library, and at the time I didn't even know when I'd get to request it to begin with. I didn't want to get through six of the books then be stuck wondering what happened. So I let it go, deciding that I would pick up book two again as soon as I requested the seventh. At the rate I read it should be easy to get through them. They're all fairly short too, at around 300 pages each.

I requested the book...last Wednesday. And I have yet to bother starting the second. It's sitting on my nightstand with a bookmark in it, but I haven't actually read any of it yet. Of course, I've started five books besides that one. Then I went to Patty's today and picked up two more books. And then went to the library and got Ysabel since it was actually in for once. And now I'm sitting here on the library website putting in requests for other books that I haven't been able to get before. So far I'm up to four, I think. It would be more but libraries apparently don't feel the need to get much fantasy that's come out in the last two or three years.

Oh look, The Lies of Locke Lamora is available at my branch, and it's not checked out either. Same with one of the Mercedes Lackey books I've been wanting to read for a while. I should go and pick those up tomorrow...

At this rate the seventh book will be here before I even read book two, much less three through six. I am never getting through this Indigo series.

Ideas wanted!

Okay, so Jade and her friend Jules have started up this video blog, and forums to go with it. The site is here, and the forums here, if any of you are interested in checking it out. There's only one vlog up so far, but they're aiming to update weekly.

At any rate, I'm contemplating filming a book review or two every week as well, and having Jade and Jules edit them into the show. Or I suppose I could always just do them separately. I'm a bit nervous about doing these on video, as I've no idea what I am going to say. But I figure I'll give it a shot. Hell, if I don't keep up with the videos I may at least write out some reviews.

This is where you come in. I need ideas for books to discuss. I read a lot and have loads I could choose from, but I'd like to know what people want to hear about. What genres are you most interested in? Are there any specific books that you'd like to know about? Even if I haven't read it already I'm willing to go check it out at the library, so pretty much anything goes. The only exceptions to this are manga and graphic novels. Can't really get those at the library, though I might be able to find them at Patty's or borrow them from a friend. So make the suggestions if you'd like, but no promises on those.

So, yeah. I'm not sure how many people actually read this, but if you do, let me know what you think. Post a comment on here (preferably), or catch me on MSN if you'd rather do that. Thanks!

I think I read too much

If there is such a thing as too much reading, anyway. I had a conversation with a friend the other day, and I was saying how it was taking me forever (just under three months) to finish A Feast for Crows, by George R.R. Martin. Even though the book is fairly long at about 1,000 pages, that's a hell of a long time for me to take to read anything. Especially something I enjoy as much as Martin's books. At any rate, my friend started laughing, and I asked why, to which he replied, "And since you started Feast, how many other books have you read?" Back in October, I started keeping track of everything I read in a journal, so I checked, and it's been 35.

As if that wasn't enough under normal circumstances, keep in mind this was through half of Nanowrimo, finals, family visiting, holidays, five classes with insane workloads this semester thus far, and being sick in the hospital for days. I'm almost afraid to see how many books I'd get through if I actually had a lot of free time, and not just an hour here and there.

I've got hundreds of books in this room. I've never even read um...over 100 of them, last I checked. Plus, I consistently have about five people who lend me books. I have a shelf of books that aren't even mine. And yet, apparently I don't have enough. I still make regular bookstore trips, and I still come away from each one with at least one new book, usually more.

Actually, I'll let some of the evidence speak for itself. This is an excerpt from a conversation I had with Chris earlier.

Denise says: I DO need a bookstore trip! >_>
Denise says: wanna know what's funny
Denise says: I said how I know I had more stuff I wanted to look for, didnt' i?
Denise says: that's after writing down a dozen books >_>
Christian says: ...
Christian says: ................................
Denise says: OH I remembered one
Denise says: *cough*
Denise says: To be fair, I don't expect to find most of them
Denise says: And it's all completing various series
Denise says: Except that one book you told me
Christian says: but of you do youll buy them
Christian says: XD
Denise says: no
Christian says: if*
Denise says: I will get 2 probably
Denise says: I still get four off amazon >_>
Christian says: XD
Denise says: Okay well
Denise says: If I find older editions or dollar books I might get like 4
Denise says: but if they're regular $4 ones just two >_>
Denise says: Pretty much, I wanna spend about 10 bucks, if that
Denise says: Would I get 10 $1 books? Probably >_>
*Christian nods emphatically on webcam*
Denise says: yeah you're right
Christian says: YAY
Denise says: There's not usually anything I'm dying to have in those...but they're a dollar
Denise says: Right, I have issues

I was going to actually talk about some of the books I've been reading in this post, but I've already been working on it for a while and it's good enough. I'll make sure to start posting more often what I think about various books I read. For now, I need to be heading off. I'm leaving soon, to go to...you guessed it.

The bookstore.