Persy -- 2015's Books

Hey guys. I'm alive. So is Arty (had a surprise encounter with her the other day actually), so that's good. But there's no denying that we both lead busy lives, so really this blog only gets updated when we have time and an itch to review a book.

But my review of the year's reading is one of my favorite things to do, so here it is!

My reading goal was only 110 books for 2015. I set it low since I'd had so much trouble the past years balancing leisure reading with college life, but for the most part I was pretty ahead of schedule. Until the fall semester anyway, when life fell apart. But you know, that's okay, it happens. I still managed to rope my total up to 110 books even, with 24,639 pages (plus quite a few unpaged graphic novels and childrens' books).

The first book I finished in 2015 was Sock Monkey Dreams by Whitney Shroyer and Letitia Walker, with pictures by Michael Traister. The final book of 2015 was the classic Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, written and illustrated by Virginia Lee Burton.

I managed to narrow it down to 15 Fabulous Books of 2015! Please check them out, because they are truly fabulous.

Sock Monkey Dreams by Whitney Shroyer and Letitia Walker, photography by Michael Traister
This is an awesome little book about a huge collection of sock monkeys and their day to day lives. So many pictures of them doing their stuff and little side stories and information. Each sock monkey is unique, and it's just wonderful. Even if you're not a huge sock monkey fan like myself. Fantasy/Art.

Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs
The second book in the urban fantasy series Mercedes Thompson. I genuinely love these books because they're not only just well-written, they also don't revolve around sex. Mercy isn't constantly swamped by lovesick suitors of various supernatural races. She actually solves mysteries, fights monsters, and fixes cars. Urban fantasy.

Living Hell by Catherine Jinks
This is one intense, terrifying scifi ride. I don't really know what else to say about it, except that it's intense. And terrifying. And that you should read it. Science fiction.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
The great classics by the great author. Full of humor, truths, and adventure. And weirdness. Science fiction.

Ouran High School Host Club by Bisco Hatori
I read volumes 13-17 this year and only have ONE VOLUME left of the entire manga. It has gotten SO INTENSE and SO HEARTBREAKING. And still so much fun to read. Shoujo manga.

The End and others by Lemony Snicket
I've had the great pleasure of rereading the entire Series of Unfortunate Events this year. Not only is Lemony Snicket full of wit and honesty, the story itself is interesting all the way until the 13th book. It was really awesome to be able to read all the books all the way through. Mystery/adventure/tragedy.

Wicked Bugs by Amy Stewart, illustrated by Briony Morrow-Cribbs
Anyone can tell you that I love bugs. I have a modest collection of entomology books. But this one was nice and specialized, with very cool and detailed artwork. A small volume of some of the deadliest bugs on earth, and not just the romanticized ones either. No, you get the honest truth here. Nonfiction.

Night Gate by Isobelle Carmody
Of course this is here. I reread this book every single July. Of course this book is here, guys. Fantasy.

Click by a whole bunch of people
I'm a big fan of this book because it has very little continuity. It's like reading ten short stories, and yet together they tell such a huge story that it's pretty impacting. With such diversity in authors, you can get a whole lot out of this novel. Fantasy/science fiction

There And Back Again by Pat Murphy
The Hobbit in space. Need I say more? Science fiction.

Beauty is the Beast series by Tomo Matsumoto
A short manga series that I had the pleasure of completing this year. I'm a sucker for shoujo, everyone knows this. But Eimi is the absolute weirdest main character ever. The series isn't the best (it's often real hard to tell who's talking), but the story and characters are really hard to not love. Shoujo manga.

Superman: Man of Tomorrow Archives Vol. 1 by Jerry Siegel and others
Superman is the best. Sorry, but he is. And fifties Superman? Even better. Graphic novel.

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
No, it doesn't star Will Smith. It is, however, very awesome. It's an anthology of short stories involving Susan Calvin, a robopsychologist, and each story offers something different. Many, if not all, stories tell something important about humanity, while some also involve a technical mystery about robots. Either way, it's all very interesting. Science fiction.

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
It's told out of order, which is one of the best parts. The story doesn't make a lot of sense at first. But then it starts to make a whole lot of sense. Plus, Vonnegut is a fantastic writer. Pretty much every single line I wanted to copy down and quote at opportune times. Science fiction.

Betsy B. Little by Anne McEvoy, illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers
An absolutely adorable kids' book about following your dreams. Perfect for everyone, especially dancers of any age who tend to get discouraged. Childrens'.

**Honorable Mentions**

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson); Cut (Patricia McCormick); Twelfth Night (William Shakespeare); Graceling and Fire (Kristin Cashore); Poison Study (Maria V. Snyder); The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (E. Lockhart); The Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling); Being Dead (Vivian Vande Velde); I Am Here series (Ema Toyama); Fruits Basket series (Natsuki Takaya).

The Few Foul Books of 2015

Warrior by Bryan Davis
His Starlighter series is just...bad. Badly-written, with unappealing characters and overcomplicated plots. Fantasy.

Corpse Party series by Kudouin Makoto
This manga series isn't necessarily bad, but let's just say it's mostly gore and panty shots. Horror manga.

Serpentine by Cindy Pon
Again, this isn't a terribly bad novel. It's interesting, with a half-demon protagonist and monks and demon invasions and plot twists and lesbians and all kind of stuff. But that's kind of the problem, there was a lot of stuff that disappeared halfway through. Also, the writing isn't much to get excited for. Fantasy.

The Immortal Highlander by Karen Marie Moning
AGAIN, not a terrible book. But it did cause me to go on a feminist tirade (which believe me, I NEVER go on) because I was sick of how every female and male romance protagonists are the same in every stupid romance novel. Romance/fantasy.

For 2016, my goal is to read 111, just one more than this year. Also, my only New Year's Resolution is to read Victor Hugo's Les Misérables before the end of the year (it's 1500 pages). So far I'm on page 7.

How was your 2015 reading?

--Persy

Persy -- Cut by Patricia McCormick

Callie is in a residential treatment facility for young women called Sea Pines. Except they all just call it Sick Minds. Most of her fellow patients are there for eating disorders or drug addictions. But none of them know why Callie is there. Callie doesn't speak. Not to the other patients, not to the doctors, not to the nurses. These days, even when she tries to speak, she can't make anything come out.

But then one day there's a new patient: Amanda. Amanda cuts herself and is unashamed. She doesn't hide the scars -- she flaunts them. Not like Callie, who hides in her long sleeves and her silence.

In the outside world, Callie's little brother has terrible asthma and her mother worries about everything. Her dad's job doesn't go so well anymore. A lot of responsibility fell on Callie every day -- but not anymore. Now she's just at Sick Minds. To get better, to get treated. So much led up to her entry into Sick Minds -- but will she ever be able to speak?

Some reviewers have said that the characters are stereotypical and flat. This is true. But that doesn't mean they're not realistic as well. Take it from someone who knows.

You also have to keep in mind that this book is only 150 pages long. It's not going on an indepth psychological journey of each and every character. It's more of a statement. A statement about an issue that doesn't really get spoken about a lot. The book itself mentions that people with problems such as eating disorders or substance abuse are relatively "normal", but cutters and self abusers... those are just freaks. For an issue so big, it's remarkably ignored.

Anyway, back to the book. I finished it in one sitting, and not just because it's so short. I really got pulled in right off the bat. For starters, it's written a little like a letter. It's all addressed to Callie's psychiatrist, which is a really cool and effective way to do it.

Also, it's incredibly realistic for only 150 pages. Admittedly, I'm a bit biased. Serious talk here, please forgive me, but I have literally been in Callie's shoes. I've spent time in residential treatment for the exact same reason, and reading Callie's story was practically a walk down memory lane. I don't know how it reads to someone without my experience, but perhaps the guarantee that it IS realistic will change the way you read it.

It's honestly not as horrifying as I was expecting. There is a deep dark secret, but it wasn't as deep and dark as I thought it would be. But that doesn't really take away from what's there.

All in all it's a short little book about a big issue, and you certainly won't waste any time giving it a read. I would DEFINITELY love to know what people who haven't spent time in a loony bin think of this little book, because it has to change your perspective. Y'know, just a little.

--Persy

You might like this if you: like short little books; like books about mental disorders; like books that address big issues; want to know more about cutting and cutters; or if you are or know someone who cuts

PS. DON'T FORGET ABOUT RYFBM!! Only a few more weeks!

Wednesday Scrolls -- May Review!

When I, Persy, said we were back, I MEANT IT. Here we are to give you a summary of our May reading!

In May, I read 12 books, 6 of them being manga and 1 a collection of comic books I considered to equal a graphic novel. All of this added up to 2788, which really is quite good for me these days.

Best May Book: This ends up going to Volume 6 of Skip Beat! by Yoshiki Nakamura. I just love this series so much. Even if you don't like Manga, you should read it or watch the anime, 'cause it just makes me happy.

Honorable Mention(s): Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, Breakfast at Tiffany's and Other Stories by Truman Capote, The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart, and Volume 14 of Ouran High School Host Club by Bisco Hatori (of course).

Worst May Book: Volume 6 of Corpse Party: Blood Covered by Makoto Kudouin. Really it's not that bad, but it's hardly art, y'know? Mostly pantie shots and gore. It just ends winning this award because I didn't read anything truly bad this month.

Dishonorable Mention(s): There isn't one!

So far my June has been pretty good, and don't forget that July is RYFBM! Reread Your Favorite Book Month!

--Persy


Welcome back, guys! Or maybe I should be saying that to Persy and myself. Oh, well.

In the month of May, I read 13 books. One of them was a two-shot manga and one was a comic collection. As usual, I'm lazy, and don't keep track of page count - I just count 13 to be pretty good for being out of the country for a week!

Best May Book: It's really a tie between the fairly new Alif the Unseen, by G. Willow Wilson, and the ever-classic Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. It should probably go to Alif, though, since everyone knows that Cyrano is amazing. And Alif was fantastic! Go read it!

Honorable Mention(s): Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson and How To Read Literature Like A Professor by Thomas C. Foster.

Worst May Book: Liars, Inc. by Paula Stokes. Sigh. Incredibly generic for a pretty well-promoted YA serving, and the ending was an inch shy of preposterous.

Dishonorable Mention(s): Mordred by Vivian Vande Velde was a shocking departure for the generally super-quality Ms. Velde. Boring, and barely even about Mordred, really - more about OCs and a disappointingly-drawn Nimue than the angst-ridden titular character. Sigh again.

Get ready for RYFB Month - July will be here before you realize it!

--Arty

Persy -- The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart

King Arthur and Merlin and all those chaps have been a part of legend ever since they actually existed, and it's practically a genre unto itself. Sometimes it focuses on Merlin, sometimes Arthur, sometimes Lancelot, sometimes Guinevere, sometimes someone completely random. But the Arthurian legends are still going strong today.

Sorry, we're studying Anglo-Norman literature in my English class right now, so I'm trying not to slip into essay mode. Focus.

Myrddin Emrys is the bastard son of Lady Niniane, daughter of the king of Britain in Maridunum. No one knows who his father is, for Niniane refuses to tell a single soul, even her father the king. It is widely believed that little Merlin (affectionately called so by his mother and others) is the son of the demon or the devil himself, for sometimes he knows things he shouldn't and has a tendency to overhear a great many things.

One day Merlin finds himself in a cave and encounters a wise old man named Galapas, who teaches Merlin many things. Not long after this, Merlin is forced to flee the castle and ends up crossing the sea to Cornwall and in the service of Ambrosius, outcast prince. With Merlin's often supernatural assistance, Ambrosius and his brother Uther just might be able to retake all of Britain and drive the hated Saxons out.

Okay, so that summary is a bit crap, but I'm not super good at all of the Saxons war Britain king stuff. I followed along fine while I was reading, but it's not exactly what stuck with me.

What did stick was all of Merlin's adventures and powers. I really like how Mary Stewart writes him, starting with his toddler years and gradually following him as he grows up. He's not an amazing sorcerer, but no one will believe him when he tells them. He actually is just very very intelligent and likes to learn about everything. True, he's prone to a few destinies and visions every now and again... but really, he's not a magician.

Normally I don't read a lot of epic fantasy or even Arthurian tales in general -- it's just never been my forté. Arty's usually the one who reads that stuff. So I entered The Crystal Cave without much excitement. But I actually really enjoyed the whole adventure. It's definitely an epic in the sense that it moves along slowly at its own pace, unhurried and in no rush to get to the action. There's a lot of description of the war and the tactics of Ambrosius, which makes sense because it concerns Merlin quite a lot. Mary Stewart has some very nice writing suited to the genre she's chosen, though if you like fast-paced fantasy adventure then this isn't the book for you.

What really kept me reading was Merlin himself. His personality is just great. He's very no-nonsense, a bit brash, but also extremely level-headed as he matures into a young man. He knows how to use his brains and his luck, and is extremely good at coming up with something in the moment. No one else likes him much, but in the age he lived in, he wasn't exactly the popular type. Personally, I'd love to hang out with him.

If you like historical epic fantasy and/or Arthurian legends, this is definitely the book for you. There are few more books in Mary Stewart's Arthurian Saga, and I look forward to reading those at some point. They just take a long time to get through because they're each over 500 pages. Not exactly light reading.

It feels great to be reviewing books again. Let's hope it lasts!

--Persy

You might like this if you: like historical epic fantasy; like Arthurian legends; like Arthurian retellings; like Merlin; like magic that's not actually magic but everyone insists is magic; like historical battle fantasy stuff; or if you sometimes have weird visions that cause all your friends to make the sign against evil and make everyone think your absent father is the devil.

Wednesday Scrolls -- RYFBM!!

It has literally been a year since the last post on this blog. Please forgive us, we are both poor busy college students.

Even though it's summer, we're both still rather busy, but I got the urge to review a book (look forward to it this weekend), plus it's almost July! No matter how busy I am, you know I'll never miss...

RYFBM!!

Yes, in the past it went by another name. RAMFAP. But... okay, so I'm in college and... y'know. That could be taken another way. I'm sorry.

So it is now Reread Your Favorite Books Month! Not quite as catchy, but it still gets the point across. Plus it's actually easier to say.

Anyway, it's my favorite month of the year. I get so stoked for this. I've got my list all planned out, and it took a lot of self control not to go ahead and get all my books out in a neat orderly stack.

I hope you take this opportunity to reread a few of your favorite books, and I hope you forgive us for being so MIA all the time!

--Persy

RAMFAP Is Here.

I know we haven't exactly been punctual lately, but there's one thing that I still take deathly serious.

RAMFAP MONTH.

That's right, I'm sitting here counting down the hours, artfully arranging the first five books on my list, ready to snatch up the first one and start reading. I'm so pumped for this. I don't get pumped for anything except marathon reading.

For those of you who may not know, RAMFAP month is Reread As Many Favorites As Possible month. Technically, you don't have to read fifteen thousand. You can just read one, and you'll still have participated. I encourage everyone to participate, because sometimes you just need to sit down and read an old favorite, y'know?

So let me know if you take part in RAMFAP 2014! What are you reading this July?

--Persy

Persy -- Starlighter by Bryan Davis

What's this?? A REVIEW??? Did anyone else know those ever happened here? Seriously, it's been like, two or three months. Sorry about that. My bad.

Jason's a young man living on the human world where few people still believe the stories of dragons and human slaves. But his brother is one of those few, determined to save the people who, a century ago, were captured by dragons and taken to another world as slaves. Jason himself isn't sure he believes the stories, but when his brother disappears in search of the lost ones, the quest is left up to him. But first he must rescue Elyssa from the dungeons and accept her strange, perceptive abilities...

Meanwhile, Koren lives as a dragon slave, prized for her red hair and green eyes and bewitching storytelling abilities. But what do the dragons really have in store for her? And is it true that they were enslaved against the will as the humans say, or did the dragons really rescue them from an even worse fate?

It's not a bad fantasy adventure. It's a relatively fast read, so it doesn't feel like you've wasted your life away reading it or anything. Honestly, it's just not good enough to spend a ton of time on. Aside from Arxad the dragon, all of the characters are very one-dimensional and flat. Don't get me wrong, plenty of them are likeable. I honestly love Randall and Tibalt, but they're still pretty flat, plus they're only secondary characters. Jason and Koren certainly aren't bad for main characters, in fact they're pretty cool themselves. And Elyssa's not awful or anything. But... they're all just pretty boring. The character interactions as well are just kind of... flat. 

The plot doesn't really make up for it, unfortunately. Lots of the adventure seemed pretty pointless, making the whole thing unnecessarily complicated. The whole mess with them falling down the bottomless pit and floating down the river and everything totally went over my head and I had no idea why any of it was happening. And then Elyssa's always coming up with "brilliant" schemes that seem totally pointless, like sending Jason out to die while she works on stopping the flood. Why didn't she just try to stop the flood first and then send out Jason? She's supposed to be super smart, but she just strikes me as kind of distracted.

If I were to sum up this book in two words, they would be "needlessly complicated." I think if it had been edited down a bit more it would've been really something, but as is it kind of reads like an early draft I wrote when I was twelve. Tons of twists and turns and delays and puzzles and not much else.

I will say that the Black Egg gives me genuine creeps. That part was extremely well done. When he's trying to convince Koren, I actually wasn't sure for a minute if the Black Egg was good or bad. And the fact that I was so unsure and on edge made it so much more interesting. It's honestly one of the few reasons I'm looking forward to finishing the book series.

--Persy

You might like this if you: like dragons; like Christian fantasy; like simple fantasy adventures; don't care about the characters; have time to kill; or if your ancestors were kidnapped by dragons.

Wednesday Scrolls -- March Review

My how time flies. But here we are in April, and here I, Persy, am to start off the review of March!

In March, I read 7 books (two of them being manga...) totaling 1811 pages. Not all that impressive, but still better than February, so I'm content.

Best March Book: It's gonna have to go to Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis. Such classic. Such awesome.

Honorable Mention(s): Kiss of the Highlander by Karen Marie Moning was fantastic, as was Volume 10 of Ouran High School Host Club by Bisco Hatori.

Worst March Book: I suppose Dayhunter by Jocelynn Drake. Honestly it wasn't bad, just kinda tedious.

Dishonorable Mention: There isn't one! I had a pretty good month!

Pretty excited for April!

--Persy


Welcome to April! Arty here.

In March, I did a bit better than in February - 13 books in total. Lucky thirteen!

Best March Book: Probably How To Betray A Dragon's Hero, by Cressida Cowell, the eleventh book in the How To Train Your Dragon series. Let me tell you - I never expected this kind of plot progression when I read the first book. It's still hilarious but simultaneously heartbreaking - and there's actually a death in this one.

Honorable Mention: Tossup between Coaltown Jesus and the first volume of Nabari No Ou. Coaltown Jesus was a very short poetry-book about a young boy who, after his older brother overdoses on drugs, gets visited by Jesus. For real. The first volume of Nabari No Ou is, well, Nabari No Ou, the anime for which I adored and the manga of which is so far just as adorable as the beginning of the anime was.

Worst March Book: Civic Agriculture by Thomas Lyson. As the title implies, it is a treatise on civic agriculture, which I read for honors class. It was... difficult.

Dishonorable Mention: Divergent. Sorry - wasn't quite my taste.

Here's to an even more successful April!

--Arty

Wednesday Scrolls -- February Review

So my plan to get back on the ball with reading hasn't really succeeded. Of course, I'm keeping up with my actual goal for the year, but I was hoping to exceed that goal by quite a few. Oh well. Persy here, ready to admit some more embarrassing book figures.

In February of 2014 I read 5 whole books with a total of 1731 pages. Eheh.

Best February Book: I'd have to say Singularity by William Sleator. Love me some time travel.

Honorary Mention(s): Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling and Lord Sunday by Garth Nix.

Worst February Book: The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer. A very disappointing sequel to Life As We Knew It.

Dishonorable Mention: There isn't one. I just didn't read enough in February. Yikes.

Here's to March being better.

--Persy


My February was about as dismal as Persy's. I have 7 books on my Goodreads account, and one of those I didn't actually finish. I fail.

Best February Book: My Most Excellent Year, by Steve Kluger. Great, funny, sometimes devastatingly emotional - yeah, definitely the best.

Honorary Mention: Wise Blood, by Flannery O'Connor. I mean, it's Flannery O'Connor. Obviously.

Worst February Book: Well, if I can count the one I didn't finish, then Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. Didn't get quite 60 pages into it before I fell asleep.

Dishonorable Mention: I had to read Human Ecology: A Theoretical Essay and unless you're into ecology, it's about as dismal as it sounds. (Though there were still one or two interesting snippets that made it less dishonorable than Shiver.)

Maybe this year just needs a bit of time to pick up speed. Here's to March!

--Arty

Persy -- Singularity by William Sleator

Sooo I really was going to write this on an actual weekend day, buuuuut my dorm kind of flooded last night and it threw off my schedule just a tad. I'm also super sleep deprived and loopy right now, so this is going to be an awesome review! Yay college!

Harry and Barry are sixteen-year-old twins. Harry is smart, Barry is athletic and popular and generally gets what he wants. Their family randomly inherits the old house of a crazy uncle, and Barry gets it into his head to spend a few weeks there while their parents are away. Harry thinks it's a bad idea, but Barry convinces their parents.

There they meet Lucy, a teenage girl, and hear stories of animals wandering onto the property and then disappearing. When the trio unlock the playhouse, they slowly discover that inside time passes differently. Once you step inside, the outside world practically stands still. You could spend a year in there and mere hours would pass outside.

There is a singularity inside the playhouse, a portal to another world that is affecting time. Harry finds their uncle's journal and begins to get worried about what might come through the singularity. He wants to tell someone, but Barry threatens to lock himself inside the playhouse if Harry does anything.

This is a really lame summary. Sorry, I'm really just out of it.

Basically, the point is that there's a singularity and Harry is super awesome. And there's a dog, Fred, who's cute. And there's a singularity. And it's awesome.

But really though, I love this book. There's a very eighties feel to the writing and yeah, it starts off pretty slow in the beginning, but it definitely pays off. I mean, talk about character growth (this should make you laugh if you've already read the book).

Yes, I would've liked even more time travel play and that kind of thing, but this isn't meant to be an indepth, hard scifi novel. It's basically a quick, young adult read, and it functions very well as such. Because it's not super hardcore, readers who don't normally like scifi can probably still enjoy it, while there's still enough awesomeness for scifi nerds to get into. It's a very nice balance.

So, y'know. Read it.

--Persy

You might like this if you: like time travel; like science fiction; like hard science fiction but want a quick read; only like soft science fiction; aren't normally a huge fan of science fiction; like character growth; like awesome books; or if you feel like time passes super slowly sometimes and are worried about the possible causes.

Wednesday Scrolls -- January Review

I'm honestly not sure when we last did one of these. Maybe...2012? Well, whatever. It's a new year, and I've made it my goal to get back on this kind of stuff (and my my partner do it too). Persy here, with the January review!

In January, I read a total of 14 books counting 3 graphic novels/anime, adding up to 3206 pages, which is actually really good considering 2013 as a whole.

Best January Book: Definitely The House At Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard. It's just really hard to beat Winnie-The-Pooh and the gang.

Honorable Mention: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This was the second time reading it, and it's still as beautiful as it was the first time.

Worst January Book: The Highlander's Touch by Karen Marie Moning, third book in her Highlander series. I hate it when people mess up time travel.

Dishonorable Mention: Cleanup by Norah McClintock. It was just really boring and too short to actually be an interesting mystery.

My school schedule still hasn't settled (snowmageddon?), so I still don't actually know how much reading time I'll have on a weekly basis. But I'm pretty hopeful. I might even get to start going to the local library. Dang, I miss libraries.

--Persy

Better late than never, right? Don't answer that.

January saw a grand figure of 10 books read, two of which were manga. Sigh. Oh well.

Best January Book: Probably The House of Hades, just because Percy Jackson and Nico. And Annabeth. And Leo. Percy Jackson, man.

Honorable Mention: The two manga I read, the first two volumes of Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan. The art is (if I may say so) kind of a struggle to look past, but the story and characters and world are all fascinating. (Armin Arlert forever.)

Worst January Book: Nevermore, the final (thank goodness) Maximum Ride book. It's about as good as you could expect it to be, which is not very.

Dishonorable Mention: Not to say I didn't like it, but The Lord of Opium, sequel to the breathtakingly wonderful House of the Scorpion, was kind of a letdown after the masterpiece that came before it. It just... didn't have the same mystical quality. 

Stick around for the upcoming February review and (hopefully) a normal review this Saturday!

--Arty

Persy -- The Highlander's Touch by Karen Marie Moning

Here's the thing, Karen Marie Moning: you write a story in which time travel plays a significant part, and I'm GONNA be harsh.

This is actually the third book in Karen Marie Moning's historical romance Highlander series, but you don't have to read them in order, so don't worry about spoilers for other books. However, if you don't know the standard plot to a romance novel and/or don't mind discovering one or two minor plot surprises, you might not want to read this review.

Lisa Stone is working two jobs, struggling to support her cancer-ridden mother. Her father died long ago, and now she's all Catherine, her mother, has. She works as a night maid for a museum, and one night she happens upon a mysterious artifact and... well, touches it. She is instantly transported back in time to the Scottish highlands... where she comes face to face with Circenn Brodie, a deadly man who is a stickler for rules. But will his unquenchable love for Lisa cause him to break . . . every . . . single . . . rule?

Sorry, I get super dramatic when I review romance novels. Dunno why.

Let's start way back in the Prologue. Circenn curses a flask so that once it is touched it will be transported back to him, effectively returning the lost flask. Unfortunately, it will also return whoever touches the flask. Adam gets pissy and makes Circen swear to kill the bearer of the flask to protect all the secrets, or whatever. After a lot of arguing, Circenn makes the oath. But here's the thing: Circenn swears to kill the MAN who touches the flask. MAN. MALE. Guess who brings the flask? Right. A woman. I totally expected this to be the loophole. And it would've worked SO WELL because Adam knew who would pick up the flask, and Adam didn't actually want her dead, and even if Circenn forgot he said man, Adam could've been all, "Remember, you swore to kill the MAN. AHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA."

But that's not what happened. Oh well.

Moving on. I don't see what the big deal is about Circenn being immortal. I mean, yeah, I get not wanting to curse anyone else with immortality, but still. Do you have any idea how much trouble would've been saved by him just spilling the beans? "Oh, Lisa, your mother is going to die alone in the future? WAIT, I'm IMMORTAL. I promise to seek her out and take care of her. Heck, I'll even throw my sexy bod into the equation."

But that solution never occurred to anyone. Whatever.

Moving on. Perhaps this is a small detail, but it seriously bugs me. The longer Lisa spends in the past, the more upset she gets because every day she spends there is a day her mother is alone. But... she's not on another planet. She's in the past. So if she were to find some sort of way to time travel... she could just travel back to the moment she left.

But maybe I'm just being nitpicky about time travel.

But now that we're on the subject, the ending. Oh. my. gosh. the. ending. Romance novels are notorious for magical, happily ever afters, but THIS? SERIOUSLY? You are taking it TOO FAR, here! You can't just DO THAT.

There are also some absolutely random parts that I don't understand. There's the stereotypical best friend Ruby, who gets left behind in the modern day world. She has a total of two scenes, and afterwards she's sometimes referenced but never more than to explain away bits of knowledge or clothing that Lisa possesses. There is never any sign that Lisa misses her best friend. But this isn't a major issue.

What strikes me as REALLY odd is the redhead who snubs Duncan. I mean, what the crap? She and her brother hint at some malicious intent and there's the insinuation that they're even lying about their names. Moning goes into such detail about her appearance and the scene seems so dadgummed important... and then she disappears completely. Maybe it's a reference to another book in the series? I don't know. But it's just plain weird.

And my final irritation... the first time Circenn sees her in her undies, she says that he caught her in the one fancy pair of underpants she happens to own: a set of lacy lavender lingerie. The ONE pair she owns. But then at the very end, she rushes to get dressed and we find out later that she is now wearing a set of lacy PINK lingerie. What.

Oh wait. Of course. Of COURSE she'd have more lacy lingerie, because THEY CHANGED THE EFFING FUTURE. Naturally, that would result in her having more pairs of flirty underpants.

All that aside... I mean, the characters weren't bad. I guess. I didn't think the book was too awful until I started writing a review of it. Let's be honest, this isn't much of a review... more like a rant. But I can't think of anything so awe-inspiringly brilliant that it would make up for all of my little pet peeves that showed up in the book. I swear, when I was actually reading it, it wasn't awful.

But she messed with time travel. How can you expect me to not be harsh?

--Persy

You might like this if you: just really like historical romances; like time travel, but don't like it when it's complicated; have an afternoon to kill and don't want anything serious; or if you work as a night maid in a museum and wonder what would happen if you inspected all the artifacts yourself. That's right, bad stuff would happen. Don't do it.

Persy -- 2014: We're Back

So did you like how neither of us were here at all in December? And most of November too? We planned that. Really. Okay, so we suck, get over it. We're busy college students. BUT we've been talking and we're both hopeful to get more reading done this year and write more about what we're reading. Hey, I'm even sucking up my pride and showing you exactly how badly I did in 2013...

My reading goal for 2013 was to read more books than I did in 2012, so 187 books. How many did I read? 56. 15,764 pages. Almost a 4th of what I read last year. I am ashamed. But I'll do better this year!

The first book I read in 2013 was Three Men on the Bummel by Jerome K. Jerome, and the last book I finished was the 9th volume of Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya.

Because I read so little this year, it was painfully easy to narrow down the Best Of list to 14 books. And most of them were during RAMFAP month, and have thus been mentioned numerous times already... but I'm sure y'all can get over it.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOKS

The Grace Effect by Larry Taunton

Maybe I'm biased (I know the Tauntons), but this is such a good book. Mr. Taunton skillfully weaves the story of Sasha into the effects of Christianity and grace, and I was never bored by the story or the lessons. Definitely a book to study in detail a second time through. Nonfiction/Religion

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Easily the best war novel I've ever read. Not only is it interesting, but I also found it enjoyable. The writing is amazing, and the story gripping. What really makes it brilliant is the fact that it's told by German soldier. Historical

Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein

It's both serious/thought-provoking and funny/light-hearted. The light tone is maintained all throughout the story, whether the main character is discussing philosophy or bugs. Definitely a book I'll read again and again, always finding something new. Science fiction

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Oh my gosh this book. OH MY GOSH THIS BOOK. Classic

A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken and C.S. Lewis

Normally I don't get super excited about biographies and memoirs, but this is simply beautiful. Vanauken's writing is gorgeous and I'm pretty sure he's kind of brilliant. Anyone who has been or is in or thinks he/she's in love should read this. Nonfiction/Autobiography

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

I think I've mentioned this book before. Zombie/Romance

Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

I just don't get tired of Shenfu and Mara and Egyptian revolutions. Historical

Dragon Flight by Jessica Day George

While it doesn't quite live up to the brilliance of Dragon Slippers, the sequel is still pretty dang good. Getting to meet a bunch of cool new dragons basically saved the somewhat ridiculous plot, and let's not forget Jessica Day George's magical ability to write perfect endings. Fantasy

Flora Segunda by Ysabeau S. Wilce

I love almost everything about this book, especially the world and the characters. How can you not like a pudgy, lazy, pacifistic 12-year-old main character? And I'm still shouting for a movie with Gary Oldman as Hotspur. Fantasy

Night Gate by Isobelle Carmody

Everyone knows this is one of my all-time favorite books. Fantasy

Going Bovine by Libba Bray

Another old favorite. Road trips, Norse gods, punk angels, mad cow disease . . . this book is basically irresistible. Fantasy/Surreal

How To Make Friends and Monsters by Howard Boward and Ron Bates

Yet another book that everyone has heard me talk about. Franklin' adorable, that's all I have to say. Fantasy

The Bruised Reed by Richard Sibbes

A very very old book on depression and grief in the Christian life. It's amazing and beautiful, and I wish it was more well-known because I think everyone should have access to this. Nonfiction/Religion

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

I wasn't sure what to expect from the third book in the Seven Kingdoms series, but I was not disappointed. In fact, I was seriously scared, and could not put it down. Kristin Cashore amazes me yet again. Fantasy

**HONORABLE Mentions**

Ouran High School Host Club series (Bisco Hatori); The Passage (Justin Cronin); The Hiding Place (Corrie Ten Boom); Maid-Sama series (Hiro Fujiwara); I, Claudius (Robert Graves); Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters (Lesley M.M. Blume); Fruits Basket series (Natsuki Takaya).

BOOKS TO VIOLENTLY AVOID READING

Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind

Eh, y'all remember this absolute gem, I'm sure. Fantasy

Escape from Warsaw by Ian Serraillier

Boring. Not painful to read, but only because it's an easy read. Basically, it's just boring as heck. Historical

Ancient Rhetorics by Sharon Crowley and Debra Hawhee

Well, it's a textbook. And it's not written overly well. And it was for a writing class. Nonfiction

I seriously hope your 2013 was better than mine.

--Persy

Persy -- How To Make Friends and Monsters by Howard Boward (with a little help from Ron Bates)

Howard Boward is a super genius, but super intelligence doesn't make you a lot of friends in middle school. The UPs (uber-populars) only notice him when they find him in the way or when he runs down the school halls in a unitard, and then they call him How-Weird.

His mom, disturbed Howard's friendlessness, gives him a book: How to Make Friends. At first Howard refuses to read it, but gives in out of curiosity. The book gives him a brilliant idea on how to make a friend.

After gathering equipment and an unwanted lab assistant, Howard builds himself a secret laboratory in his basement and sets to work. A few accidents later and he has his first friend (and monster) on his hands. He names his new friend Franklin Stein and takes him to school...

Franklin is almost instantly a hit with everyone, including the UPs. And it's not long before Howard soaks up the spotlight as well... But Franklin's secret origins won't stay hidden forever, and what happens when Howard no longer needs him?

This book is a delight in every way.

When I first got the book in the mail, I was lovestruck. "Perfect size! Perfect shape! Perfect color! Perfect cover! Perfect cover material!" For a while I was almost afraid to read it for fear that it would be awful and then the perfection of the physicality of the book would be such a waste.

But I was not disappointed.

Howard Boward is a brilliant little nerd with a streak of passive sarcasm, and he's probably one of my favorite main characters of all time. And Franklin... Franklin, Franklin, Franklin. He's the BEST. Oh my gosh he's just so freakin' (franklin?) adorable. I just want to hug him so super duper hard and then I want to smack Howard for being mean to him sometimes. But then not really, because I really love Howard too. Yeah.

Reynolds and Winnie are also superb supporting characters, not to mention the rest of Howard's family. How often do ALL of the supporting characters turn out perfectly? Very, very, very, very, very rarely. All of the characters are simply amazing and they make it an absolute joy to read.

If anyone dares to say that the plot is too crazy and farfetched I might have to punch them in the face, because that is hardly a big issue in this book. I think the plot is perfect. It's one of those great books with character development that isn't too inspirational and meaningful and painstaking, if you know what I mean. Howard goes through a lot and learns a lot of lessons and really does change for the better.

Plus, the illustrations are franklin adorable. Props to André Jolicoeur (um, his last name in French means "pretty heart." That might be the best thing EVER).

How To Make Friends and Monsters is such a perfect, delightful little book. The orange is so cheerful, the cover illustration so intriguing, the size so perfect, the material so comfortable in your hands. And then you open it up and don't put it down for a few hours until you're done, and you walk on sunshine for the rest of the day.

Ron Bates hasn't "helped" anyone else write anything yet, but I'll definitely be keeping an out. He's kind of hard to find too, but you can visit his website here. Though I recommend you read the book before watching the promotional video...

--Persy

You might like this if you: love perfectly sized books; love perfect covers with perfect insides; love adorable illustrations; want a cute, short read; like awesome things; like The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate; or if you have a hard time making friends yourself.

Persy -- Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Y'all should be proud. Because even though I just spent my first night in a college dormroom and I've been way too busy the past few weeks to read a reviewable novel... I'm bringing you an ontime review. Shazam.

 

All Brittany wants to do her senior year is maintain the perfect life others see: the clothes, the grades, the cheerleader, the boyfriend. What they don't know is that Brittany struggles to take care of her autistic sister and deal with her distant parents.

 

But her first day goes ominously bad. She accidentally amost runs over Alex Fuentes, the toughest guy in school, and then finds out she has to be his partner in chemistry. Yikes.

 

Meanwhile, Alex is just trying to take care of his brothers and his mom and protect them from the gangs by being in one of the gangs. But when a bet is placed over Brittany's virginity, his world gets a little more complicated...
 

I was expecting to either hate the book and quit within the first five chapters or find a surprising new favorite. I actually did neither. My first impression was that Simone Elkeles is trying pretty hard, and almost has really good writing. Instead, it's just pretty good. The best thing this book has going for it is that it's real easy to read quickly, so the 350 pages goes by in a breeze. If it didn't, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have finished the novel. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be a r...more I was expecting to either hate the book and quit within the first five chapters or find a surprising new favorite. I did neither. My first impression was that Simone Elkeles is trying pretty hard, and almost has really good writing. Instead, it's just pretty good. The best thing this book has going for it is that it's real easy to read quickly, so the 350 pages goes by in a breeze. If it didn't, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have finished the novel. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be a retelling of Romeo and Juliet or not, but it basically is. So I might consider excusing the stupidity and hopelessness of Brittany, the heroine. She's kinda... boring and... silly and... impetuous, in a weird kind of way. I'm honestly not sure what her personality is supposed to be. Alex is a little better, but he's also very dramatic and I can't see why he's so in love with Brittany.   I personally like Alex and Shelley, but whatever.   And then Mrs. Peterson is really cool. In fact, she's probably my favorite character. But whatever.   Y'know what's really silly? The epilogue. I mean, I guess it's kind of cute in a weird kind of way, but it's also just... silly. Sorry.   Overall it's not a bad book, but I certainly wouldn't reread it and I don't think I'm even going to continue the series (the second book is about Alex's little brother and the love he finds in an unexpected place!).   --Persy   You might like this if you: like shallow romance; like Romeo and Juliet; like high school romance; like forbidden romance; or if you yourself are shallow, in high school, and are involved in a forbidden romance.



Wednesday Scrolls -- RAMFAP Requiem AKA July Review

Last year, RAMFAP was quite a momentous occassion. I read so many books. Had so much fun. Not that I didn't have any fun this year either... 

 

For RAMFAP 2013, I read a total of 7 favorite books, with 1,612 pages read not counting an unpaged manga and an unpaged children's book. I actually read a total of 11 books in July, with 3,328 pages read, but not all of those were for RAMFAP. Honestly, I don't think I did too shabby considering all the stuff I've been busy with.

 

Here's my favorites book list from RAMFAP 2013:

 

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr, John Archambault, and Lois Ehlert
Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

Dragon Flight by Jessica Day George

Flora Segunda by Ysabeau S. Wilce

Maid-Sama! Vol. 6 by Hiro Fujiwara

Night Gate by Isobelle Carmody

 

It's interesting to note that Night Gate is the only book that has been in both RAMFAP lists so far -- I tried to keep this year's priority list limited to the books I didn't get to last year, but Night Gate snuck to the top anyway.

 

How did y'all do, if y'all participated? I'm hoping for a good August!

 

--Persy


Arty here.  Yes.  The Arty who hasn't written a review in ages.  COLLEGE, GUYS. *lame excuses*

For RAMFAP... I reread one book.  And it turns out I probably shouldn't have, because The Angel Experiment, the first book in the Maximum Ride series, was a lot better when I was thirteen than it is now.  I still really like the story, but... sorry, Max, you're just not one of my favorites anymore.  Except for maybe nostalgia.

I did get to read around thirteen other books - what can I say, July caught me when my to-read stacks were high and I had succumbed to multiple library temptation.  Some of them were pretty lame - the Supernatural tie-in novel, One Year Gone, was disappointing, as was Mortlock by Jon Mayhew (it had black page edges - black page edges!) - but some of them were pretty dang fantastic and destined to end up on the next RAMFAP list.  Such Wicked Intent, the second book in the Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein series by Kenneth Oppel, and Trickster: Native American Tales: A Graphic Collection by Matt Dembicki are destined for my favorites shelf.

August is already looking pretty good - hope you all have similar prospects!

-Arty 

Persy - Wednesday Scrolls - RAMFAP 2013!!

It's that time of the year again, folks... Yes, it's back. Are you ready?

 

For RAMFAP 2013!!!!!!

 

A quick recap of what it is: Reread-As-Many-Favorites-As-Possible month! And it's as easy as that. All you have to do is reread a minimum of one favorite book. I like to make it a challenge and see how many I can squeeze into the month of July, but that's definitely not a requirement. All it is is one month devoted to favorite books. Other than that, it's open to everyone's unique interpretation.

 

I honestly wasn't sure I would participate this year, because my reading kind of fell behind due to ballet, school, and college prep. We were in a week into July when I realized how ridiculous I was being. Heck yeah I'm gonna participate! And you should too! There's really no excuse not to pick up a favorite novel and give it another read!

 

So please, if you do participate, let us know! Start a conversation! Both Arty and I will gladly talk for hours on the subject of literature (as you've surely discovered by now). What book(s) are you reading this month?

 

--Persy

Persy -- The Passage by Justin Cronin

Are you ready for my round of excuses? Well, I was out of the country for almost a month, and then I got the chickenpox...

 

Science is cruising along, forever searching for the equivalent of the fountain of youth. Someone thinks they've found it... but is it what they think it is? Meanwhile, a young girl named Amy is abandoned to a group of nuns, and then kidnapped by the government. She becomes part of the experiments and while the world falls to ruins around her, she remains... Amy. And something a little bit more.

 

Almost a hundred years later, the story takes up with the small community of survivors who live inside a walled city with electric lights that will eventually shut off for good. And once that happens, no one will be able to stop the "smokes" from getting in and killing everyone.

 

The smokes are what happened when they tried spreading their fountain of youth. They got youth all right, but also a lot more. Superhuman abilities and a dose of insanity, and insatiable thirst and hunger for blood...

 

The little community's fragile peace is disturbed when Peter Jaxon runs into a Walker outside of the wall, a young girl who cannot speak with her mouth but somehow communicates exactly what she needs to say. No one knows where she came from, but it doesn't take Michael long to find the chip in her neck, put their years ago by the military. And it doesn't take him much longer to find a signal being sent out for her, asking for her return.

 

As the little community crumbles and the infected breach the walls, Peter leaves with a small crew to find the source of the signal, and, just maybe, other survivors.

 

This book took me over four months to read. That is a freaking long time. Geez. Admittedly, part of the problem was just crazy life stuff, but still. I mean, thinking about all the other things that have happened in the last four months, it's ridiculous to think that I've been reading the same book the whole freaking time.

 

Anyway. All that said, it makes it rather remarkable that I didn't just give up on the stupid thing. For some reason, I just kept on reading, kept re-checking it out at the library.

 

The beginning really drew me in, but the sudden drastic setting change really disoriented me, and for a long time I was really irritated about it. It took me a very long time to warm up to the new characters in the new setting. And once I had started to like them, Justin Cronin goes off and kills one of them and then has the other go through such a drastic character growth that he's not even the same character anymore. I'm still a little pissed off about that.

 

Two of the characters, Peter and Sara, really do have nice character growth. Peter was just "meh" in the beginning, but by the end he was awesome. Sara was "meeeeeeeh" and then she was "DON'T DIE, SARA." Theo and Maus, however, are just dull the whole way through.

 

The ending, OH THE ENDING. It was so sharp, so sudden, so unexpected, so... AAAUGH. It's amazing. I had to reread it five times to make sure I'd understood it correctly. Geez. Man. Wow. Golly what an ending. Major points for that one.

 

Justin Cronin has a very insensitive writing style. It's rather dry and there's not a whole lot of emotion in his characters (other than the occasional maniacal rage). It's not like I want an epic love story or anything, but something might be nice. Instead, you've got nothing. And then when he does put a bit of emotion in, it feels weird and...alien. Maybe he was just trying to sum up the world he created, but I don't really like it.

 

All in all it's... weird. The story and characters and writing is all just... weird. And long. Man. I would honestly only recommend this book to people who specifically like ridiculously long books. I don't think anyone else could get through it.

 

I also discovered that there's a sequel, and I'm not sure if I want to put my time and strength into that...

 

--Persy

 

You might like this if you: love ridiculously long novels; like horror vampire stories; like apocalyptic stories; don't much care about emotion (except for maniacal rage); or if you're dreaming about a mean fat woman and have an imaginary friend named Babcock.

Persy -- Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind

Richard Cypher leads a simple life as a woodsman-guide-trailblazer-whatever person. Until the day a beautiful young woman named Kahlan shows up in his forest, bringing with her a boatload of trouble.

 

Secrets are unveiled. Richard discovers that he has a destiny as the Seeker, and he is given the Sword of Truth. It is now his job to defeat the evil tyrant Darken Rahl who has taken over Kahlan's homeland, and will soon move on to Richard's. He is accompanied by Kahlan and the old cloud reader Zedd.

 

You'd think there'd be more to say about an 800-page novel, but there really isn't.

 

If you've had to be around me over Christmas break, you'll know that Wizard's First Rule is a bit infamous. It took stinking forever to read. Oh my gosh, the only reason I was so determined to finish it was so that I could say I had read the whole darn thing and so I could write a legitimate review of it. Although let's face it, this will probably be more of a rant. Sorry.

 

The writing is dull. Oh my gosh it's dull. Terry Goodkind maybe could've gotten away with it four a 200-page book, but not an epic fantasy. Oh my GOSH. And the characters? So flat. Uuuuuugh flatness and dullness married and produced THIS.

 

Terry Goodkind also seems to have some kind of fascination with gore. There are random fightscenes that are basically excuses for him to talk about entrails and guts spewing across the floor in pools of blood. Basically.

 

The only enjoyable things in this entire book are Zedd and Denna and Scarlet. In fact, the thing that makes this book a real pain is Kahlan. If she weren't in the book, the whole thing might be tolerable. Near the end, there are sections with just Richard and Denna or just Richard and Scarlet, and I actually really enjoyed those parts. But then Kahlan would come back, and it would all go downhill into drama. The parts with Zedd, Denna, and Scarlet are not worth it.

 

This review's a little...well, lackluster. But let's just say I'm out of practice (haven't written a review in a loooong time) and I read this book a long time ago and don't really want to delve back into it even if it's just to refresh my memory. Yikesies.

 

--Persy

ps. I'm thinking Arty and I may have to have a Book Arena about Wicked Lovely, because I actually like that book.

 

You might like this if you: enjoy dull, flat, long, epic fantasy novels; like to make fun of things and need something new to make fun of; have a fondness for dramatic whiny heroines trapped in forbidden love; or if you have a dark secret, meet a strange woman in a forest, AND know a strange cloud-reader.

Persy -- I Want My Hat Back/This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen

So...I haven't really read much since my last review. Which is saying something, because my last review was over a month ago. Yikes. So I'm resorting to something I've never done before: I am reviewing a children's book. This review will probably be longer than the book itself. Oh well.

 

So normally when I write a review, I head over to GoodReads to look at the short reviews I post there, to refresh my memory a little about the book. When I went back to look at what I'd written for I Want My Hat Back, written and illustrated by Jon Klassen, this is what I found:

 

"Awesomeness. Pure awesomeness."

 

Never have I spoken (written) truer words.

 

I Want My Hat Back follows the life of a bear(? There has been some disagreement over the species of the main character) who has lost his hat. And now he is going to find it.

 

It's as simple as that, really. But how do I relay the awesomeness and fantasticity of this short little book? I don't believe it is possible. The only thing you can do is read it. It's not like it'll take you very long.

 

Jon Klassen recently released the sequel, This Is Not My Hat. This little book follows a fish, who has...acquired...a hat. He quite likes his hat, and is determined to keep it. But someone has a different idea...

 

While its awesomeness is not as pure as I Want My Hat Back's, This Is Not My Hat is still pretty dang awesome. Pretty. dang. awesome.

 

This is the best review I've ever written. There's no need to tell me.

 

All I can say is that I'm struggling my way through an 800-page book with atrocious writing, and for some stupid reason I'm determined to finish it. I still have about 400 more pages, but I'm hoping to finish it at some point... hopefully within two weeks, and then I'll review an actual novel. Maybe.

 

--Persy

 

You might like this if you: like hats; like bears; like fish; like catching thieves; like thievery; or if YOU ARE AWESOME.