Booked (10 Down, 90 To Go...)

I've done a terrible job following a regimented daily topic-schedule for this blog. However, I've done a slightly better job at meeting some of my other ambitious goals for this year... including spending more time reading, and aiming to make it through 100 books in 2012. So though it may not be in sync with the schedule, here's an update on my most recent "booking".

"Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan. I read the first in the Percy Jackson series. I've been meaning to read these ones for awhile, since being a kid lit author is a dream of mine. I have to say - this book was a bit of a disappointment. It was fun, and readable, but not particularly witty. I could be a biased yucky grown up here, but I think part of it is the first-person twelve-year-old-boy narrative. I loved Harry Potter, and third person writing meant J.K. Rowling could balance the children's perspective with a more sophisticated, omniscient observational arc. Riordan's first-person Percy voice is more likely to crack a fart joke and use weak metaphor. That said, it was a good romp, it knows its audience, I'll read the other ones, and I did enjoy some of the mythological twists. Still, overall - Percy's no Harry.

"Cesar's Way" by Cesar Milan. I do love The Dog Whisperer, even if I don't always agree with him. On the whole, Cesar has inspired me to cultivate my "calm-assertive"self. Truth be told, he's a better television personality than he is a writer, and a bit rigid overall, but I still liked most of the book. Some parts were harder to swallow than others ("your dog jumping up and down to greet you when you get home does NOT mean he missed you, it means he's unbalanced") but a lot of his philosophies and suggestions made some sense, and thus the book has inspired some minor behavior-modification experimentation at home (much to Dov's confusion). 

"All My Sons" by Arthur Miller. I feel like I've read this play before, or at least knew the story, but somehow the ending still caught me by surprise. Surprisingly contemporary dialog and truly brutal family moments. I definitely need to add some more plays to the docket; I read this one because I was auditioning for a production of it, and am glad I had the impetus to pick it up. As a writer, I definitely benefited from engaging with this text. As an actor... well, I've heard nothing, so I'm pretty sure I didn't get the part. But the writer and reader in me still benefited from preparing for the audition.

"Locke & Key (Volume 2: Head Games)" by Joe Hill / illustrations by Gabriel Rodriguez. I read the first Locke & Key book late last year - creepy, smart, riveting. I can't believe it took me this long to read the second book! Well, actually I can. I had lots of other stuff to read, have been busy - and can't really travel with this book, because sometimes it gets scary and I need to be able to put it in the freezer. Rodriguez's illustrations are dark and detailed. Hill's storytelling is twisted and engaging, with some sharp humor pinching you between the jump scares. (By the way: if you're unfamiliar with Joe Hill, he has kind of a famous father. You might have heard of him - Stephen King? Anyway, Hill manages not to live in his father's shadow - he casts quite a spooky shadow of his own, not only in his graphic novels but also in his books like Heart Shaped Box. Scaaaaaary.)

"Stardust" by Neil Gaiman is what I'm delighting in right now. I'll save my review until I actually finish the book.

Two final thoughts before I stop writing, and get in some more reading:

• I'm doing all right in keeping myself "booked," but I really do need to pick up the pace. Almost two months in, and not quite 10 books read. I need to be at about double that rate - nine books a month,  for the rest of the year, if I want to make it.
• There's pretty much NO pattern to what I read. Dog psychology, horror-themed graphic novel, youth adventure series, American classic play, quirky fantasy. Next on the docket is an autobiography, more kid lit, a how-to book, a history book... hmm. What am I missing? Hey, Dad - you got any sports book recommendations? ;-)

CURRENT TALLY: BOOKED!

1. "Bossypants" by Tina Fey
2. "Neverwhere" by Neil Gaiman
3. "My Life As An Experiment" by A.J. Jacobs
4. "Southern Gothic Novel" by Frank Blocker
5. "Y: The Last Man" by Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra, and Jose Marzan, Jr.

6. "Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan

7. "Locke & Key Book 2: Head Games" by Joe Hill & Gabriel Roriguez

8. "Cesar's Way" by Cesar Milan

9, "All My Sons" by Arthur Miller

10. "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman (okay, I'm not quite done, but almost...)