Kevin's Journal

Left of y'all
I have made it out to Oregon. Yaay! I will be returning in a smidge more than a week. At that time, I will be attempting the flip-flop to a nightshift schedule (assisted by the redeye flight on the return).

Keep chugging away,

booniverse, but it's only fair to warn you that I burned through four books on this travel day. Two fiction, two non-fiction. I like to alternate them when I'm flying. Why? I don't know.

I don't know when I will reliably have internet access, but I don't suppose anyone really needs anything from me on the interwebs, do you?

Read a book!
Twentieth book started & finished in 2009: Chopper by Mark Brandon Read (282 pp).

Was it interesting? It is. It's essentially an autobiography of an Australian standover man. Some of it's a bit much, especially when you consider that it's nonfiction, but it was interesting.

Well-written? It was rambly, and digressed in several places. Also, some of the same stories were touched on multiple times, in relation to different people. I have no problem believing that Mark Brandon Read wrote it himself, let's put it that way.

Would I read it again? I might. It was entertaining, I'll give it that.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I'm willing to give one of the further Chopper books a try. I think he's written something like 11 of them at this point.

Read a book!
Nineteenth book started & finished in 2009: Holy Sh*t!: The World's Weirdest Comic Books by Paul Gravett and Peter Stanbury (128 pp).

Was it interesting? I love this sort of thing! It's very much like Comic Book Heaven: the Book would be, except it isn't by Scott Saavedra.

Well-written? It is. I wish it was a little more in-depth, but it's more of a general audience thing than oriented toward the semi-specialist.

Would I read it again? I would.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? Absolutely. And when/if Comic Book Heaven: the Book (or least another issue of the 'zine) comes out, I'll (buy! and) read it, too.

Read a book!
Eighteenth book started & finished in 2009: A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World by Tony Horwitz (408 pp).

Was it interesting? It's the story of Europeans visiting America, and the conquering (and some colonization) that followed. Specifically, the pre-Pilgrim visits. It is interesting, although since it covers such a wide span of time, it's not quite as interesting as the much larger (but more focused) Blue Latitudes.

Well-written? I do like Tony Horwitz' writing style. It took him a few books to get it down, I think. I find his earliest books to be less enjoyable. But everything from Confederates in the Attic (still my favorite T.H. book) on is marvelous.

Would I read it again? I would.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? With absolute certainty.

1776-1976
I think it's been a few years since I last got a Bicentennial Quarter in change, but I got one today from the Thompson Street Parking Structure.

Read a book! (interstitital)
This book was by my bedside, which means it got read in small fits and starts from mid-2008 until mid-2009. Said book being Happy Cruelty Day!: daily celebrations of quiet desperation by Bob Powers (402 pp).

Was it interesting? It's a list of made-up holidays, one for each day of the year. Here are a few examples, to give you a feel for them. April 25 is Saddest Sandwich Day. June 15? Come Out of the Closet as Something Society Thinks Is Shameful Day. February 2? Try To Make Shit Happen With Your Mind Day. Each of these holidays has a writeup, somewhere between a short paragraph and a few pages.

Well-written? I certainly thought it was funny enough to read through 400 pages in small doses over a long period of time. I don't know that I would want to try and sit down to read the book front-to-back in a few sittings, though. A little of that kind of humor goes a long way.

Would I read it again? This is another of those would-reread-periodically-but-not-likely-to-read-through-beginning-to-end-again books.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I'm certainly willing to give other books by the same author a try. I don't really know if I would read another book of weird holidays anytime soon....

Read a book!
Seventeenth book started & finished in 2009: Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher (163 pp).

Was it interesting? It was fascinating. As she says, she's a product of Hollywood inbreeding. It's an excellent little memoir, and if it's got holes in it, there are good reasons.

Well-written? If you saw Carrie Fisher's speech at George Lucas's roast, you're familiar with her sense of humor (and a small chunk of the book as well). She has a great sense of humor, and no illusions that her problems are anyone's fault except her own.

Would I read it again? Absolutely. I read chunks of it out loud to

lunargeography when she was trying to work. I'm pretty sure that I'll pick it up and go through it again in a year or two.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I would. I enjoyed Postcards From the Edge, and I liked this even better. Have more adventures and write about them, Carrie Fisher!

Read a book!
Sixteenth book started & finished in 2009: Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid by Lemony Snicket (168 pp).

Was it interesting? It was full of little cynical snippets.

Well-written? It was fun. It takes real work to make little cynical snippets light and breezy reading.

Would I read it again? I would. It's a very fast 168 pp.

Keep or give away? Keep. No question on this one.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? As I believe I have said before, I like the non-Series-of-Unfortunate-Events Lemony Snicket writings, and will continue to read them so long as D.H. continues to produce them. Not with any urgency, certainly. But eventually.

Read a book!
Fifteenth book started & finished in 2009: This Book of more Perfectly Useless Information by Mitchell Symons (360 pp).

Was it interesting? Very feast-or-famine. The bits of written-out trivia are very interesting, often more so than any of the other books of trivia I've been reading lately (for example: why trivia is called "trivia"). But they're punctuated with lists, and even the cleverest of lists can become tiresome reading. And the not-cleverest of lists? Wow, what a way to kill my interest fast.

Well-written? The parts which are not lists? Well-written.

Would I read it again? Would re-skim. Too many lists to fully re-read.

Keep or give away? Keep. For now.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? This is the second of three "Book of Useless Information"s. I have read the first, and will read the third.

Read a book!
Fourteenth book started & finished in 2009: A Shite History of Nearly Everything by A. Parody (160 pp).

Was it interesting? The "Shite" books by (*ahem*)Antal Parody are either amusing or annoying. This one amused me.

Well-written? There is a certain irreverent tone.

Would I read it again? Might read again; it's small and breezy. Might not read again; it's irrelevant to everything. Pretty much by definition.

Keep or give away? Keep. For now.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I'm two for three on the "shite" books, so I would probably give another one a go.

Read some kid's books!
Tenth through thirtheenth books started & finished in 2009: Big Bob and the Magic Valentine's Day Potato by Daniel Pinkwater, illustrated by Jill Pinkwater (32 pp), Roger's Umbrella by Honest Dan'l Pinkwater, pictures by James Marshall (32 pp), Four Valentines in a Rainstorm by Felicia Bond (32 pp), Snow Valentines by Karen Gray Ruelle (32 pp).

Was it interesting? The Pinkwater books were best. I like Pinkwater a lot.

Well-written? Ditto.

Would I read it again? Probably read the Pinkwater books again.

Keep or give away? Two that I'll keep for sure. Guess which ones?

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? Yup, at least the other "Big Bob and the Magic Holiday Potato" books....

Read a book!
Ninth book started & finished in 2009: Monster Spotter's Guide to North America by Scott Francis, with Illustrations by Ben Patrick (248 pp).

Was it interesting? It's like a birder's guide, but specifically for cryptids and other possibly-nonexistent fauna.

Well-written? Descriptive without being boring.

Would I read it again? I might.

Keep or give away? Will keep. I wouldn't cry if it vanished forever, but I have no reason to discard it.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I probably would, assuming they would be Monsters of Other Continents....

Read
Eighth book started & finished in 2009: A Hole is to Dig: A First Book of First Definitions by Ruth Krauss (pictures by Maurice Sendak) (48 pp).

Was it interesting? It's a kid's book, full of practical definitions such as "The ground is to make a garden" or "Mashed potatoes are to give everybody enough."

Well-written? Succinct. The pictures are nice as well. That Sendak kid has a future.

Would I read it again? I might.

Keep or give away? Bought as a gift. Will give it. Probably not buy another copy.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? If available, but I'm not going to actively seek out other Krauss/Sendak collaborations.

Read a book!
Seventh book started & finished in 2009: More Information Than You Require by John Hodgman (368 pp*).

Was it interesting? Oh yes, even if a list of 700 Mole Man names is about as interesting as a list of 700 Hobo Names. The rest of the book more than made up for it. Hodgman knows how to write amusing fake trivia.

Well-written? His style is part of what keeps me coming back. As one example, whenever he uses the word literally (except in a footnote), he footnotes it. The footnote contents either being "Literally" if he's using the word literally literally, or "Not literally" if he's using it colloquially (i.e. incorrectly).

Would I read it again? I will skim it again, for sure. I don't know about reading it front-to-back again....

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I will read the third book in his fake trivia sequence when it comes out. Hopefully (as with the first two), I can convince someone to give it to me as a Christmas gift.

booniverse will appreciate this. In the table which lists the experts and subjects he consulted when preparing the book, the penultimate entry (alphabetically by last name) was "Jimmy Wikipedia," consulted "on the subject of true fake trivia."

(*) Exact page count is difficult to determine. There's text everywhere, including the indicia, chapter heading pages, otherwise-blank pages, even the inside of the dust jacket. And the page count increases sequentially from the previous book (although I'm not certain which edition of the previous book). That's part of its charm.

Read a book!
Sixth book started & finished in 2009: I Still Have It... I Just Can't Remember Where I Put It: Confessions of a Fiftysomething by Rita Rudner (249 pp).

Was it interesting? Yes, I like Rita Rudner's comedy.

Well-written? Yes. She replicates her stand-up voice well in the book.

Would I read it again? I might or might not. I like Rita Rudner, but she's not one of my favorites.

Keep or give away? Undecided.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? Probably. I don't know that I would buy one, but I didn't buy this book either.

Read a book! (interstitial)
I received this one as a Christmas gift in 2007, started it, and lost it in early 2008. I found it 13-14 months later, and just finished it. The Areas of My Expertise by John Hodgman (255 pp).

Was it interesting? False trivia is even more interesting that real trivia, when droll.

Well-written? It is. Although a list of 700 Hobo Names is slow going, for most of the book, his delivery is spot-on. If you've ever seen the author on The Daily Show or in his most-famous role as "PC" in the Apple commercials, that should give you a sense for this.

Would I read it again? I have already flipped through and re-read some sections.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? I asked for (and received) the sequel (More Information Than You Require) for Christmas. I hope not to lose this one. He claims to be working on a third book, entitled That Is All. I sense a future Christmas gift....

Read a book!
Fifth book started & finished in 2009: The Yggyssey: How Iggy Wondered What Happened to All the Ghosts, Found Out Where They Went, and Went There by Daniel Pinkwater (245 pp).

Was it interesting? Yes, D.P. is a master at this sort of thing. Although I will say that I preferred The Neddiad slightly.

Well-written? Yep. Although Yggdrasil Birnbaum's voice doesn't stand out quite as well as Neddie Wentworthstein's did in The Neddiad.

Would I read it again? Yep. I might read N and Y back-to-back one day.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? Absolutely. Daniel Pinkwater would have to stink on toast for a dozen books or more before I would hesitate to pick up the new one. Whatever "the new one" is.

Read a book!
Fourth book started & finished in 2009: Ken's Guide to the Bible by Ken Smith (143 pp).

Was it interesting? Absolutely. There's a lot of weird stuff in the Bible.

Well-written? That's what makes this book a sheer keeper. He summarizes, when his four primary Bibles disagree, discusses it, and keeps the tone light and breezy. Do you want to know which book of the Bible was William Shatner born to do the book-on-tape version of? Ken will tell you.

Would I read it again? Absolutely. For enjoyment as well as reference.

Keep or give away? Keep. Keep. Three times keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? If you cast your browser back to June of last year, you will recall my review of Raw Deal. I still have Ken's Junk English to go, and I suspect that I will enjoy it very much.

Read a book!
Third book started & finished in 2009: Yokai Attack!: The Japanese Monster Survival Guide by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt (Illustrated by Tatsuya Morino) (191 pp).

Was it interesting? Yes. It's a fairly detailed rundown of Yokai (weird supernatural creatures), including their haunts, how to survive an attack, etc. It goes well beyond the basics (kitsune, tanuki, kappa), and has given me much to ponder.

Well-written? It is.

Would I read it again? I might.

Keep or give away? Keep.

Would I read a sequel/further adventures/etc? Probably.

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