Monday, April 13, 2009

Take that, "2"

Sleeper Code (Part I in the Sleeper Conspiracy), by Tom Sniegoski. It was pretty obvious where this was going plot-wise, but I'm sure younger readers would have found this interesting. This is certainly more of a boy-book, but there is a fairly-main female character who gets some time in the light, so girls who like sci-fi/conspiracy-touched adventure might like it, too. It wasn't too bad, but I won't be reading the sequel (Sleeper Agenda), as I have too much else to get through. Have I mentioned my collection development areas? Highlander in Love, by Julia London. I thought I would give romance novels a real honest try, having recently read more about their history and what readers find in them. Lumping together regular romance readers into a (somewhat honest) stereotype, I was able to pick out the parts of the story that meet their needs and give them some comfort. For a book, this wasn't that awful. For a romance novel, it was nearly very good. The author did a pretty decent job of inflecting a historical feel into the narration, although there were a few times toward the end where more modern turns of phrase slipped in and kind of jogged the flow a bit. The author also used two problem situations trying to keep the lovers apart, when I think using just one, adding more detail and giving it more of the story, would have helped. Probably nothing will come of this, but I've been playing around this weekend with the idea of trying to write a romance novel. The story wouldn't be very difficult, since these books, "the crack cocaine of the library world," follow a pretty set plot outline. What I can bring to the field is my ability to correctly use punctuation and my tendency to only use words I know. I also have taken several biology courses, and I happen to know where the (female) human body has nerve endings, and where it does not. Maximum Ride: The Manga 1, by James Patterson; adapted & illustrated by NaRae Lee; lettering by Abigail Blackman. This graphic novel probably wouldn't have made much sense to me had I not already known the story. Some elements and details are presented in a different order than in the books, but otherwise the story is pretty much the same. There are some problems with the books that are more visible when presented in illustrations-- I think, for example, that, given the size of the flock's wings, it would be impossible for them to be hidden completely by a jacket, and that, to get the power needed for flight, they would have to be connected all down the back, not just between the shoulder blades. Of course, this is just me thinking here, but it seems like a lot of the practicalities of these guys don't make sense. I found some parts of the graphic novel confusing, as the characters were drawn at different times in different styles. They don't look very much like I had imagined from their descriptions in the books, but that is a matter of interpretation, I supose. I thought the Erasers were very well done. This book only covers a portion of the first novel. Baby Food, by Saxton Freymann and Joost Elffers. This is appropriate for the youngest of audiences; this is the most basic of this duo's books, with very simple pictures and very little text. It is still amazing; I could look at these every day. 9,410 to go, + 2 picture books. My observation that I had been reading 2 books a week during my first few weeks of full-time employment was honest and correct. But now, having set myself a lifetime goal, it feels more like a challenge to me (not surprising: I've always been able to read competition into anything).

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