Saturday, November 9, 2013
Nov. 9th, 2013 07:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bearshortyOne good benefit of the time change: I can wake up much earlier this week and have extra time without feeling too tired. It's Saturday morning and I woke up at 6:30am, which is a little silly. But I can be on the internet guilt free before I go about my day. I'm meeting my parents and another relative in Manhattan at noon to go to an opera with my Mom ("Tosca" at the Met) and I will need to grade some more.
But right now, it is quiet and early and I want to talk about books.
I don't have time to read that much, and some of the books include books for school. But I did manage to read some fiction too. For the most part I will talk in general terms and I will put any spoilers under a cut.
1. The Maze Runner by James Dashner - A story of amnesiac boys stuck in a weird maze with scary monsters outside the walls. I borrowed this book from the library on Kindle and read it really fast, in a couple of days. I was reading for the plot, not for the writing style, which was atrocious. The plot definitely made me want to read more but the writing had me roll my eyes. The writer was very repetitive in trying to describe emotions and I wanted to hit the characters upside the head. This book is the first of the trilogy but after reading the description of the plot online for the other two books, I don't want to continue at all. And there is literally one girl character.
2. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach - a story of an English retirement community in India and the people who go there. I saw the movie (with Judy Smith, Maggie Smith, and every other awesome older British actor) and really liked it so I decided to read the book to see if some plot points could be fleshed out. I borrowed the book on Kindle from my library website that night (I do love instant book technology). The book is a completely different story from the movie. The movie took the setting and the character names and did a very different plot and character motivations. Which is fine. After a while, I just let the book be its own story and I did enjoy it very much. So two stories with the same people and settings for me. Both book and movie were fun.
3. The Newsflesh Trilogy by Mira Grant - I read Feed , the first book of the Zombie trilogy over the summer and then I promised to wait for Bear to finish the second book before I picked it up, since I got the books for Bear as a birthday present. It is only fair that he reads them first. So this fall I read Deadline and Breakout , books 2 and 3 in addition to the few Kindle only novellas that go with the series. (I still have one more novella left).
Overall impression: it took me a bit to get into the series but I did enjoy the books. I don't think I would reread it or be obsessed with it but it was a good contribution to Zombie genre. My favorite was the second book.
I knew I wanted to read more after the first book killed the main character who was a first person narrator. That doesn't happen in fiction so that was really great. My sister-in-law incidentally emailed me in shock when she got to that part of the story. (I still remember being amazed at 10 or so when I was obsessed with Agatha Christie when the killer was revealed to be a first person narrator - still my favorite Christie book.) My favorite book was the second one - I liked Shawn as narrator. And I did like Georgia as a clone. I think their relationship was icky despite not being genetically related but I do understand it and they got their happily ever after. What I didn't get was the point of the final confrontation in Blackout. When the evil CDC scientist was telling his evil plan in the White House, I was expecting more revelations but by that point we, as readers, knew all the plot points and conspiracies. Why was Alaric so shocked about the designed mosquitoes when they were talking about that plot point by the end of the last book. I just found the final confrontation anti-climactic. Still, overall I enjoyed reading the books.
4. The Empress Matilda: Queen Consort, Queen Mother and Lady of the English by Marjorie Chibnall - first book I assigned to my History of England class about Matilda, a woman who was almost the Queen of England in the 12th century and who fought a long and devastating civil war with her cousin King Stephen. Her son was Henry II. I knew the story before but it was interesting to read a full biography of her, including about her first marriage to the Emperor of Germany. This was a full on history book, not a popular history and it made me miss reading history books.
5. A Medieval Life: Cecilia Penifader of Brigstock, c. 1295-1344 by Judith M. Bennett - I taught this book before but maybe nine years ago, so it was great to re-read it. Through the story of the 14th century peasant, gathered from court records, Bennett writes a primer for undergraduates about peasant life in the medieval world. It is full of great detail and I liked reading it again. It is still bizarre to me that I had a conversation with Judith Bennett about this book in Norwich, when we were both in the archives and went to get a drink. That was such a highlight. (She is a really, really famous medieval historian and feminist).
6. The Conquest of Gaul by Gaius Julius Caeasar - I assigned his book to my Global History class for their first paper, mainly because I wanted to read it. Every semester I teach this class, I pick different books so I get to read a variety of books I always wanted to. I haven't finished all of it - just 6 out of 8 books but I did really like it. Caesar has a very easy writing style, especially compared to Tacitus (whom we read in the spring) and it is fun to get a handle on Gaul in the 1st century BCE.
7. Four Voyages of Christopher Columbus - I'm reading this book now since this will be the second paper assignment for my students. It is a collection of primary sources - some from Columbus' letters and log-book, some from the biography written by his son, letters from eye witnesses. I'm in the middle of the Second Voyage right now. I'm really loving this book. Columbus just tries so hard to show why future expeditions should be funded. And I liked the detail of him underestimating the distance traveled for his sailors on the first voyager so they don't freak out at being too far from their known territories.
8. Nell Gwyn: Mistress of a King by Charles Beauclerk - I'm halfway through this book - the last assigned book for my History of England class. It is a popular biography written by a direct descendant of Nell and Charles II. And he is definitely romanticizing their relationship which is very amusing. The author is simple enamored with this ancestor and sees the love of Nell and Charles as a great true love. It makes me snicker. But I think this book is also great for an introduction to Restoration England and the Restoration theater. So I'm having fun with it. I'm really glad I assigned it.
Next time my goal is to talk about TV shows of this season.
But right now, it is quiet and early and I want to talk about books.
I don't have time to read that much, and some of the books include books for school. But I did manage to read some fiction too. For the most part I will talk in general terms and I will put any spoilers under a cut.
1. The Maze Runner by James Dashner - A story of amnesiac boys stuck in a weird maze with scary monsters outside the walls. I borrowed this book from the library on Kindle and read it really fast, in a couple of days. I was reading for the plot, not for the writing style, which was atrocious. The plot definitely made me want to read more but the writing had me roll my eyes. The writer was very repetitive in trying to describe emotions and I wanted to hit the characters upside the head. This book is the first of the trilogy but after reading the description of the plot online for the other two books, I don't want to continue at all. And there is literally one girl character.
2. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach - a story of an English retirement community in India and the people who go there. I saw the movie (with Judy Smith, Maggie Smith, and every other awesome older British actor) and really liked it so I decided to read the book to see if some plot points could be fleshed out. I borrowed the book on Kindle from my library website that night (I do love instant book technology). The book is a completely different story from the movie. The movie took the setting and the character names and did a very different plot and character motivations. Which is fine. After a while, I just let the book be its own story and I did enjoy it very much. So two stories with the same people and settings for me. Both book and movie were fun.
3. The Newsflesh Trilogy by Mira Grant - I read Feed , the first book of the Zombie trilogy over the summer and then I promised to wait for Bear to finish the second book before I picked it up, since I got the books for Bear as a birthday present. It is only fair that he reads them first. So this fall I read Deadline and Breakout , books 2 and 3 in addition to the few Kindle only novellas that go with the series. (I still have one more novella left).
Overall impression: it took me a bit to get into the series but I did enjoy the books. I don't think I would reread it or be obsessed with it but it was a good contribution to Zombie genre. My favorite was the second book.
I knew I wanted to read more after the first book killed the main character who was a first person narrator. That doesn't happen in fiction so that was really great. My sister-in-law incidentally emailed me in shock when she got to that part of the story. (I still remember being amazed at 10 or so when I was obsessed with Agatha Christie when the killer was revealed to be a first person narrator - still my favorite Christie book.) My favorite book was the second one - I liked Shawn as narrator. And I did like Georgia as a clone. I think their relationship was icky despite not being genetically related but I do understand it and they got their happily ever after. What I didn't get was the point of the final confrontation in Blackout. When the evil CDC scientist was telling his evil plan in the White House, I was expecting more revelations but by that point we, as readers, knew all the plot points and conspiracies. Why was Alaric so shocked about the designed mosquitoes when they were talking about that plot point by the end of the last book. I just found the final confrontation anti-climactic. Still, overall I enjoyed reading the books.
4. The Empress Matilda: Queen Consort, Queen Mother and Lady of the English by Marjorie Chibnall - first book I assigned to my History of England class about Matilda, a woman who was almost the Queen of England in the 12th century and who fought a long and devastating civil war with her cousin King Stephen. Her son was Henry II. I knew the story before but it was interesting to read a full biography of her, including about her first marriage to the Emperor of Germany. This was a full on history book, not a popular history and it made me miss reading history books.
5. A Medieval Life: Cecilia Penifader of Brigstock, c. 1295-1344 by Judith M. Bennett - I taught this book before but maybe nine years ago, so it was great to re-read it. Through the story of the 14th century peasant, gathered from court records, Bennett writes a primer for undergraduates about peasant life in the medieval world. It is full of great detail and I liked reading it again. It is still bizarre to me that I had a conversation with Judith Bennett about this book in Norwich, when we were both in the archives and went to get a drink. That was such a highlight. (She is a really, really famous medieval historian and feminist).
6. The Conquest of Gaul by Gaius Julius Caeasar - I assigned his book to my Global History class for their first paper, mainly because I wanted to read it. Every semester I teach this class, I pick different books so I get to read a variety of books I always wanted to. I haven't finished all of it - just 6 out of 8 books but I did really like it. Caesar has a very easy writing style, especially compared to Tacitus (whom we read in the spring) and it is fun to get a handle on Gaul in the 1st century BCE.
7. Four Voyages of Christopher Columbus - I'm reading this book now since this will be the second paper assignment for my students. It is a collection of primary sources - some from Columbus' letters and log-book, some from the biography written by his son, letters from eye witnesses. I'm in the middle of the Second Voyage right now. I'm really loving this book. Columbus just tries so hard to show why future expeditions should be funded. And I liked the detail of him underestimating the distance traveled for his sailors on the first voyager so they don't freak out at being too far from their known territories.
8. Nell Gwyn: Mistress of a King by Charles Beauclerk - I'm halfway through this book - the last assigned book for my History of England class. It is a popular biography written by a direct descendant of Nell and Charles II. And he is definitely romanticizing their relationship which is very amusing. The author is simple enamored with this ancestor and sees the love of Nell and Charles as a great true love. It makes me snicker. But I think this book is also great for an introduction to Restoration England and the Restoration theater. So I'm having fun with it. I'm really glad I assigned it.
Next time my goal is to talk about TV shows of this season.