Breaking Out The CueCat

So I just got to use the CueCat scanner to enter books into LibraryThing because yes, I went to Barnes and Noble and bought more books. Even though I have way too much on my plate right now, I couldn't wait for the new Fablehaven book that came out this past Tuesday. So I bought that first and will jump into that tonight. By doing so, I'm breaking a rule I set for myself which was to read one book at a time. Oh well, I'll try to go back to that rule after this one.

I also picked up The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. I'm really looking forward to this one, but I'm thinking I'm going to wait until the R.I.P. challenge in October to read it as it will fit in nicely with Dracula. It's the story of a woman who discovers that her father spent his life trying to track down Vlad the Impaler and I believe that she does so herself. At least that's what I gather from the bookflap. Sounds great! And it was a bargain book at only $6.98!

Next up is Dragons: The Greatest Stories, which is...you guessed it, an anthology of short stories about dragons edited by Martin H. Greenberg. I bought this one because there's a short story in it by Orson Scott Card called The Bully and The Beast which he is writing a novel based on. This is the only place I've seen the short story in print. There's also stories by Ray Bradbury, Anne McCaffrey, Roger Zelazny, Alan Dean Foster, and Ursula K. LeGuin among others. Great cover too! It's a bargain book too!

Also in the bargain book pile: A really cool version of Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman that I had to tell myself not to buy because I already had a copy. This one has a spider web on the cover and has a blue bookmark sewn in. It's $5.98. I highly recommend picking this one up if you don't have a copy. Also saw plenty of copies of Susanna Clarke's wonderful novel Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell left for $6.98. Everyone should own a copy of this book...and you can't beat that price.

I picked up the newest issue of Realms of Fantasy as well. There's a new short story by Charles de Lint in it called Companions to the Moon and it's illustrated by Charles Vess. Charles Vess is doing a series of illustrations for Realms of Fantasy and will illustrate short stories for the next six issues! How cool!

And finally, I wanted to mention that on Orson Scott Card's website, he is selling signed copies of his book, Magic Street, for $8.95. Magic Street is one of my favorite books by Card. It's an urban fantasy set in suburbia and is about a boy who finds a portal in between two houses that leads him to the world of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Much more involved than that, but that's the basics.

Ok, tired and dirty from work, so I'm going to take a bath and then start on Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star.

Moonheart by Charles de Lint

One of the things that I've come to love about Charles de Lint is his ability to capture the essence and spirit of the fantastic and to portray that perfectly to the reader in a way that brings out a glow like a child discovering magic for the first time. With Moonheart, de Lint once again has captured my heart and brought me on a journey that I loved every second of.

Moonheart is a very complex story. There are many interweaving story lines which works very well with the theme of Native American souls, spirits, and connectedness. It begins as the story of Sara Kendell. Sara co-owns a wonderful little antiques and book shop in Ottawa called The Merry Dancers. One day, while unpacking one of the boxes from an old estate, Sara discovers a painting of two Native American men, and a medicine bag which contains a gold ring, a bone disc with a quarter moon on one side and a stag on the other, and a feather. The contents of this box are what goes on to form a truly amazing and epic story.

Sara lives with her uncle, Jamie Tams. Jamie is more of a friend to Sara and is the co-owner of the shop. Jamie is also the owner of Tamson house where they live. Tamson house is a wonderful thing. The house is a character in itself. It's a giant house encompassing an entire city block and has had numerous occupants coming and going throughout the years. It's an old house with all of the wonderful features of an old house. There is a courtyard in the middle of the house that is more like a park with beautiful gardens. Here's where the twist comes in. The house exists not only in Ottawa, but in the Otherworld as well.

While at a diner one day, Sara is approached by a stranger, a musician, named Kieran Foy. What eventually ensues brings her to this Otherworld. The otherworld is a beautiful, rich forest untouched by mankind. It is inhabited by Native Americans who practice ancient magics and follow ancient ways. The contents of the medicine bag tie Sara to this world now, and we soon learn that fate had it arranged that way. When all of the inhabitants of Tamson House are spirited away to the Otherworld, the battle against an ancient evil, an ancient feud begins. The ancient evil is a being named Ma'lek'a and it's allies are the Tragg'a and both are truly horrifying creatures.

This only begins to touch on the story. I could go on for pages and pages describing this wonderful book to you, but I recommend that you read it yourself. There are many wonderful characters in this book, and I came to love so many of them. Blue, Taliesin, Hengwr, Tucker, just to name a few.

I love the cover art for the book. It was done by David Bergen and sums up the feel of the book perfectly! Bergen also did the cover art for Greenmantle, I believe, another great book of de Lint's. There's also a highly desired version of this book with art by Charles Vess which was published by Subterranean Press. I'd love to get my hands on a copy of that.

It took me a long time to read this book. It's definitely not a sit down and read it quick book. It was much like reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell to me. Very rewarding, but I couldn't plow through it. I loved it though, and it has definitely secured me as a de Lint fan. All of the de Lint themes are here...magic, Native American folklore, music, the power of bonds and ties in humanity. De Lint's writing is wonderful. I'll leave you with one of my favorite passages that I feel sums up the feel of the book:

Tonight he stood alone, his back to the Bearstone and his gaze searching the shadows that lay in amongst the pines, waiting for the one he knew would come. A trembling touched the air, soft as a breath across the strings of his harp. The scent of pine resin and sea were swallowed by the heady odor of apple blossoms, rich and pungent as they are in the spring. Sometimes his grandsire came in the shape of Taliesin's own craftfather - old Myrddin, black hair greying, but still tied back at the nape of his neck, golden eyes deep with dreaming. And sometimes he was the green man in a cloak of oak leaves and mistletoe, face like a fox, narrow and brown. Tonight he came as a stag, brow heavy with twelve-pointed antlers, his reddish-brown coat gleaming in the starlight, his eyes heavy with riddles.

"Are you content?" he asked the bard.

Taliesin inclined his head respectfully. "Content indeed."

It's Gonna Be A Good Monday!

Or so I'm telling myself. It's my mantra of sorts for today. Why is it going to be a good Monday, you ask...That is because after a little over a month of waiting, we get a brand new episode of Heroes tonight!! I'm so excited. It felt like such a long wait. I haven't felt this excited about a TV series in a long time. Heroes is every geeks dream (which is why I love it). Super powers, villains, heroes, blood, guts, and wonderful art by Tim Sale. Does it get any better than that? Today is going to feel like such a long day as I wait in anticipation of tonight.

I can check the first chore of the day off. Went to the internship this morning and I think my happiness for Heroes wore off on my patients. They were all in such a good mood today and we had a really good process group. Next up is 6 hours of school and then I can come home and relax....and watch Heroes.

There's another great series on TV that I've just started watching and it's on Lifetime of all channels. It's called Blood Ties and it's the story of a cop whose best friend is a vampire and together they solve paranormal mysteries. How cool! It's a little bit cheesy, but I'm liking it so far. It comes on Sundays at 9:00 Central time.

I'm in the middle of Charles DeLint's Moonheart right now for the Once Upon a Time Challenge and I'm loving it so far. This is my second DeLint and I'm starting to feel that he deserves to be right up there with Gaiman. He's a remarkable storyteller and I just enjoy his books so much! I'll be sure to post the review as soon as I finish it.

Did I mention that Heroes comes back tonight?

Anna, the Gym, and DeLint

Sorry, I really tried not to mention Anna Nicole Smith in this blog, but my God! This trial is like a damn circus. I've never seen anything like this. I feel like I'm watching Judge Judy. By the way, the judge actually did apply for a "judge judy" type show, but was denied. I guess this is his big break. The majority of this trial has absolutely nothing to do with where her body is buried. The video, Daniel's father testifying over the phone, the judge....it's nuts. Throw into that Brittney Spears' latest escapades and you really start wondering what the hell role models exist anymore for young girls. This is what fame has become these days. Geesh.

I'm going to the gym today. I'm making myself. I officially have tickets and hotel reservations in Mexico for May 22nd, so I really have to get into shape. No more belly!! I need to start watching what I eat more too. Not just to look good for the beach, I just want to get healthy all the way around. I'd be much more comfortable with myself and you never know, it may even help my migraines. I've had a migraine for the past 5 days. That's crazy, I've never had headaches for this long of a streak. None today yet, knock on wood.

Subterranean is publishing a very cool sounding chapbook by Charles DeLint with illustrations also done by him by the name of Old Man Crow. It's about a man trying to decide if he's a person dreaming of being a crow or a crow dreaming of being a person. 18 bucks for the limited edition, 80 bucks for the deluxe, signed and numbered editions. They also announced another book in the works by De Lint for a fall release date by the name of Promises To Keep.

Lots of Fun Web Wanderings

While playing catch up on my blog surfing I found all kinds of fun stuff online. Book news, fun blogs, and a new addition to the blog roll.

Lots of new news on Neil Gaiman. Found this one the day before I left, but didn't get to post on it. Neil Gaiman appears to be working on a new book as is evidenced by this post. He started with a short story that is being worked into what looks like a novel that was inspired by his son riding his bike in a graveyard. Seems to be titled "The Graveyard Book". Or he may be talking about two different books there. Not really sure.

If you stop over at amazon, you find all kinds of great Neil Gaiman news by doing a search for his name. The first is a new edition of Stardust illustrated by Charles Vess that is due out May 2, 2007 and is published by Vertigo. This made me very happy as I never got a copy of the original with illustrations by Vess. Can't wait for this one. I love Charles Vess' work and his blog over at Greenman Press has been added to the blog roll.

Gaiman also has two other books forthcoming. The first is a collection of short stories called "M is for Magic". I believe that I heard about this awhile ago and it is supposed to be geared toward a younger reader. It's due out July 1, 2007. The second book is Interworld which is a collaboration with Michael Reaves. Also geared towards younger audiences with a release date of July 1, 2007. The cover for that one is great!

The next thing I stumbled across brightened my day tremendously. There is a wonderful blog out there called the Friends of English Magic. It's subject matter is everything Susanna Clarke, lots of Neil Gaiman stuff, Charles Vess stuff, and just all kinds of wonderful things that interest me. The title of the site is of course taken from Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. The Friends of English Magic was the name of the scholarly magician society in that book who were not practical magicians, but just studied magic. I discovered this site because I was getting lots of referrals to this blog from it. After some investigating, I found that the author of the site had some very kind things to say about my review of The Ladies of Grace Adieu on this post. Always good to get a nod from a site as wonderful as that one. They've also been added to the blog roll.

I also stumbled across a wonderful post by Carl V. at Stainless Steel Droppings that made me smile in a nostalgic way. A post all about Star Trek! Carl is a wonderful reviewer and I always look forward to the things he has to say about books, art, movies, and culture in general. This post was about the History Channel's Star Trek anniversary special and a great homage to the beautiful thing that is called Star Trek.

Finally, I came home to find that I had won 4 incredible books off of ebay that I really didn't think I was going to win. The first book is Dustcovers, a book that Carl told me about. It is a collection of all of Dave McKean's covers for Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic. Can't wait for this one. The second is Subterranean Press' edition of The Road to Lisdoonvarna by Charles De Lint. It is a signed, first edition, numbered (#424/2000) book and I got it for $9.99! How awesome is that. Next is The Alchemy of Mirrormask. Mirrormask is the wonderful cinematic child of Dave McKean and Neil Gaiman, and I have mentioned it before here. This book collects some of Dave's original sketches for the movie as well as paintings and shows the process from original ideas to completion. And last, but certainly not least is the Trade Paperback version of Black Orchid. This is a graphic novel that was the first collaboration of Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean. Can't wait to read it.

This is all the news I have for now, but it seems to be enough to satisfy the palate for now.

Update: One more exciting piece of news. Just saw that Tori Amos will release her new album, American Doll Posse on May 1, 2007 to be followed by a world tour. yay!

Greenmantle by Charles De Lint

Greenmantle is a beautiful story, a hidden story. It is a story of love, murder, revenge, loss, past mysteries, resolution, friendship and the fantastic. This is the first work of Charles De Lint's that I have read, and I must say that he will be put on my list of must read author's after this wonderful book.

Greenmantle is the tale of "a mystery," a being that exist in our world, yet lives in a parallel version of that same world. He is a stag, a greenman, Pan, a goat, etc. Alice Treasure and her mother, Frankie, move to a very small country town out in the woods after winning the lottery. Ali discovers the sound of pipes playing in the woods and is changed by the sound.

Mix this story with a mafia story and what you have is Greenmantle. I never thought that I would be a fan of any story about the mafia. Just never been in to that genre, but De Lint works the mafia into a work of fantasy and it really works! What you get is a wonderful story with a strong human touch and beautiful, well developed characters, set in the real world, yet a fantasy world at the same time.

De Lint's writing style reminds me a lot of Neil Gaiman's. Common themes can be drawn between the two writers. Both are able to create a totally believable fantasy world within the modern world in which we live. Both focus on relationships between people and the power that is in those relationships. Both take ordinary people and make them into their own kind of heroes. Gaiman has a slight edge over De Lint, but that should not take anything away from De Lint. De Lint knows how to write a page turner that doesn't just have a driving plot (numerous plots at that), but he knows how to write well. He always chooses the right words and really makes this book an enjoyable and moving experience.


The cover art is wonderful and is done by David Bergen. Nice stuff.

Favorite line of the book: "I've been all the way there and back again - just like Bilbo."

A well appreciated day off

My alarm went off this morning at 6:30 and I had the pleasure of turning it off and sleeping until 10:00 because I had decided that today needed to be a day off. My supervisor was off today and there are 2 other interns who work with the other social worker on the unit, so my services were not needed today.

So I awoke finally at 10:00 and decided that I would go to PJ's and enjoy a cup of coffee on my day off. On the way there, I decided that I should take advantage of this day and get some links taken off of my watch. So I went to the jewelry repair stand in the mall and got 2 links taken off, so I can finally wear my new watch. While I was waiting for the watch to get fixed I went to look around Dillards and found some stuff. They're having a big sale this weekend, so I got 2 dress shirts which were normally $79 a piece for $10 and $14. Not too bad, eh? Also got a pair of khaki cargo pants that are nice and destroyed and came with a belt for $11, regular $40. Good deals!

So after all that, I started heading to the coffee shop when I realized that I needed an oil change. But if I was getting my oil changed, I needed a book to read while I was waiting for my car. So I went to Barnes and Noble. Picked up Charles de Lint's Greenmantle which is great so far and I'm only about 50 pages in. Urban fantasy has got to be one of my favorite genres. Also picked up Norah Jones' new CD, Not Too Late, which is ok so far, but I always like her albums best on 3rd or 4th listen.

After the oil was changed I finally made it to PJ's where I got my coffee. For some reason, the coffee shop was very smokey which was strange. So of course I asked if they had burnt the muffins. But they said that they hadn't and it had been smokey all day and no one knows why. Doesn't sound too promising.

All in all, it's been a good day so far. Funny how going to get coffee can turn into such an adventure. Random...

Yeah I bought more books....

I really need to stop this buying of books. At least for now. My "to be read" list sitting next to my bed has gotten to about 15 books tall. But I hit up Second Chance Book Adoption again today. Some great books on there. Get them now, because I'm pretty sure he said the site is going down soon. Great deals. Here's what I got:

Girl in Landscape by Jonathan Lethem
Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk
Sock by Penn Jillette
Someplace to be Flying by Charles De Lint

I'm very excited about the DeLint. I've never read any of his books and I hear people talk about him all the time. Looking forward to it!