March 2015 Monthly Recap

Books Read

1. The Poet and the Donkey by May Sarton
2. A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans by Laurence Yep & Joanne Ryder, illustrated by Mary GrandPré
3. Our Souls at Night: A novel by Kent Haruf
4. As We Are Now by May Sarton
5. Transformers: Robots in Disguise, Vol 1 by John Barber, illustrated by Andrew Griffith
6. Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye, Vol 1 by James Roberts & John Barber, illustrated by Alex Milne & Nick Roche
7. Avengers: Time Runs Out, Vol 2 by Jonathan Hickman, illustrated by Kev Walker, Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato, Szymon Kudranski, & Mike Perkins
8. Glamour of the God-Touched: Saga of the God-Touched Mage, Volume 1 by Ron Collins
9. The Adventures of Sophie Mouse: A New Friend by Poppy Green, illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell
10. Prometheus: Fire and Stone by Paul Tobin, illustrated by Juan Ferreyra
11. Once Upon a Cloud by Claire Keane
12. The Bet by Anton Chekhov

3136 pages total

Favorite Book of the Month

A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans by Laurence Yep & Joanne Ryder, illustrated by Mary GrandPré

Gender of author

8 male
4 female

Year of Publication

1889 - 1
1969 - 1
1973 - 1
2012 - 2
2014 - 1
2015 - 6

Books Acquired

41 Total
13 - books purchased from Amazon
17 - used books purchased at local Indie
4 - books purchased at local Indie
1 - books purchased at author signing at local Indie
1 - book purchased from bn.com
5 - books received for my bad

2015 Year to Date Totals

Books Read: 32
Pages Read: 6330
Books Acquired: 92
Books Acquired Read: 11

The Bet by Anton Chekhov

The Bet
by Anton Chekhov
Narrated by Walter Zimmerman
Produced by Jimcin Recordings, 1979



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Book description:

"The Bet" is one of Chekov's most anthologized stories. A rich banker makes a bet with a poor artist that he cannot voluntarily stay imprisoned for a long period of time. The result of the bet is quite different than either man could have supposed.

To prove which is a worst way to die, capital punishment or life imprisonment, a banker and a lawyer enter into the bet: the lawyer agrees to imprisonment for fifteen years in exchange for 2 million. He can have as much wine, tobacco, and books, but will have no contact with any person for the fifteen years,being confined to a room in the banker's home. If the lawyer leaves the room for any reason, he forfeits the 2 million. The banker doesn't think he can do it; the lawyer is confident that he will. Fifteen years pass, and what both men have discovered in that time has changed them both in equally dramatic and unexpected ways. The story may be short, but it is powerful. It is amazing how Chekhov can create such an interesting character study in such a short work of fiction.

Once Upon a Cloud by Claire Keane

Once Upon a Cloud
by Claire Keane
Published by Dial Books, March 3, 2015
40 Pages • ISBN 978-0803739116 • Hardcover



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Book description:

Fresh from her work on Frozen and Tangled, Claire Keane brings her legendary talent to her debut picture book about finding the right present for someone you love.

Celeste wants to give her mother something special — but what? Her search takes her up into the skies, where she meets the stars, the moon and the sun, but she still doesn’t find the heartfelt present she’s been looking for. At the end of her journey, Celeste sees it — the perfect gift! Chosen with care and wrapped with love, it’s just what Celeste was hoping to find.

Celeste wants too give her mother the perfect gift, but as hard as she thinks about it, she can't seem to come up with the perfect gift. When she lies down to think about it some more, the winds come and pick her up and take her on an adventure into the sky, where she meets the stars, the moon, and the sun, and through these adventures, she realizes what it is she wants to give her mother as the perfect gift.

This book is beautiful. The story is charming, but the real strength in this volume lay in the art; Claire Keane's paintings are, in a word, stunning. I read through the volume once, and then have gone back about a half dozen times in the last week to just look at the artwork. It really is simply stunning. I'd highly recommend this to anyone, with or without children, who enjoy a lovely, whimsical tale.

Prometheus: Fire and Stone by Paul Tobin, illustrated by Juan Ferreyra

Prometheus: Fire and Stone
by Paul Tobin, illustrated by Juan Ferreyra
Published by Dark Horse Books, April 21, 2015
126 Pages • ISBN 978-1616556501 • Paperback
I picked up an ARC of this book at #ALAMW15



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Book description:

When the Prometheus never returned from her fateful journey to LV-223, the questions surrounding the origins of man went unanswered. Now a new team of explorers seeks to uncover the dark mystery that holds not only the fate of the original mission, but possibly their own damnation. This is the first volume of Prometheus in a blockbuster crossover event featuring Aliens, Predator, and Prometheus!

Picking up after the events of the movie Prometheus, Paul Tobin's Fire and Stone event is running through the entirety of 20th Century Fox's scifi properties: Prometheus, Alien, Predator, and AvP. Prometheus provides the opening chapter, as a survey/salvage crew have been dispatched under the pretense of reclaiming a lost research vessel in order to make some decent money on the salvage. What they don't know is that this is really a cover up in order for part of the crew to complete the Prometheus' original mission. However, things on LV-223 have changed dramatically in the time since the Prometheus disappeared there.

This was a pretty decent follow up to Prometheus, even if it did read more like a Alien comic (but there is an Engineer in the story, so I guess that skews it more towards a Prometheus story). Tobin did an admirable job of answering some of the questions from Prometheus (is that even possible, though?), but of course, being the first chapter in a four part series, there are now also plenty of other questions related to this story that haven't been answered...

My only problem with the book is that there are far, far too many characters. Basically, there are three different crews involved in this mission, and you barely have time to figure out who everybody is before the story takes off and people start dying; characters show up towards the end of the book, and I honestly had no idea who they were. I think this story would have benefited greatly by paring down the number of characters and keeping it a tighter knit group, but that's just me.

I'm curious to see where Tobin will be taking this story, and will more than likely be picking up the rest of the volumes as they are release. For fans of the various franchises, I think this would be a great addition to your library.

Book mail! Prudence by Gail Carriger

The Adventures of Sophie Mouse: A New Friend by Poppy Green, illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell

The Adventures of Sophie Mouse: A New Friend
by Poppy Green, illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell
Published by Little Simon, January 20, 2015
128 Pages • ISBN 978-1481428323 • Paperback
I picked up an ARC of this book at #ALAMW15



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Book description:

In this first of a charming series about a little mouse and her forest friends, Sophie Mouse must convince her classmates—and herself—that a new student is nothing to fear. Even if he is a snake! Readers will delight in The Adventures of Sophie Mouse!

In the first book of The Adventures of Sophie Mouse, springtime has arrived at Silverlake Forest! The animals are coming out of their homes, buds are blooming on the trees, and the air smells of honeysuckles and tree bark. Sophie Mouse can’t wait to go back to school after the long winter break.

Even better, there’s a new student in class — Sophie loves meeting new animals! But the class gasps when Owen enters: he’s a snake! No one is brave enough to sit near him, or play with Owen at recess, or even talk to him. Can Sophie help her friends understand that Owen’s not scary after all?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Adventures of Sophie Mouse chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

A cute, short story that teaches kids about accepting new people in your life and how not to judge someone based on hearsay.

Sophie Mouse and her best friend Hattie Frog are excited about their first day of school, especially since there is a new student in class this year. However, when they find out that the new student, Owen, is a snake, the girls don't know what to think about it and don't know how to act around him. Quite possibly, though, Owen isn't nearly as scary as they may think he is.

This chapter book is clearly aimed at young girls, but it doesn't ready "girly" to me at all. It's really quite a charming little story, and I know I'll be recommending to my friends with children.

Recommended!

Cover revealed for Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

The cover has been revealed for Harper Lee's upcoming Go Set a Watchman from HarperCollins, to be released on July 14, 2015.



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Book mail! The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain

Glamour of the God-Touched: Saga of the God-Touched Mage, Volume 1 by Ron Collins

Glamour of the God-Touched: Saga of the God-Touched Mage, Volume 1
by Ron Collins
Published by Skyfox Publishing, November 14, 2014
78 Pages • ISBN 978-0692318072 • Paperback



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Book description:

A mage's apprentice.

Sorcerers on the hunt.

Unnatural magic of devastating power.

Garrick is a mage’s apprentice, soon to be a full-fledged sorcerer. The course of his life is clear—he will be an apprentice, a mage, and then a superior. But a tragic accident finds him wielding a god-like power over life and death, and as rumors of mage war grow stronger around him, he learns his future is not fated to be as simple as he dreamed. Glamour of the God-Touched follows Garrick as he discovers the forces behind his new magic. The lessons he learns and how he deals with them will threaten the very nature of who he is.

So, I won't be properly reviewing these books until I'm done with the entire series, as they are so short there just isn't much to write about individually, but I will say that if you've ever wondered what a high fantasy story would be like if you cut away all the extraneous storylines and characters and just got right to the meat of the story, this is for you, as that is exactly what Ron Collins is doing with these books.

Avengers: Time Runs Out, Vol 2 by Jonathan Hickman, illustrated by Kev Walker, Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato, Szymon Kudranski, & Mike Perkins

Avengers: Time Runs Out, Vol 2
by Jonathan Hickman, illustrated by Kev Walker, Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato, Szymon Kudranski, & Mike Perkins
Published by Marvel, March 17, 2015
136 Pages • ISBN 978-0785193722 • Hardcover



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Book description:

The Avengers are fragmented! While one group seeks out the Illuminati for a confrontation, another takes the fight to the new Cabal! What has become of Tony Stark... to say nothing of Doctor Strange...!

COLLECTING: Avengers 38-39, New Avengers 26-28

The second volume in Jonathan Hickman's big lead up to Secret Wars left me wanting a little. The entire volume leads up to one big battle between the three groups all trying to figure out how to stop the Final Incursion: the Illuminati, the Cabal, and SHIELD. I didn't really feel like a whole lot was going on in this volume leading up to the battle (or maybe it's just that I'm a little burnt out on this story at this point, as it really has been going on for years now), but when each of the groups kept throwing a larger, more surprising and shocking group at each other, I really began to roll my eyes. It's getting old, and I'm not really sure that I care about what happens at this point getting to Secret Wars. There's just been way too much lead up; get to the point already, Marvel!

Book mail! The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye, Vol 1 & Transformers: Robots in Disguise, Vol 1

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye, Vol 1
by James Roberts & John Barber, illustrated by Alex Milne & Nick Roche
Published by IDW Publishing, June 26, 2012
128 Pages • ISBN 978-1613772355 • Paperback



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Book description:

The ultimate Transformers saga begins here! More Than Meets The Eye reunites the fan-favorite creative team behind Last Stand of the Wreckers and sends the Transformers on an epic quest to the farthest reaches of the Transformers Universe - and beyond! Also includes the one-shot Death of Optimus Prime.

Transformers: Robots in Disguise, Vol 1
by John Barber, illustrated by Andrew Griffith
Published by IDW Publishing, August 7, 2012
120 Pages • ISBN 978-1613772911 • Paperback



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Book description:

The war for Cybertron is over - now the hard part begins! Bumblebee and his fellow Autobots struggle to maintain control of a world without Optimus Prime! Bumblebee's provisional government is struggling and Prowl defends it against the Decepticons, but how far will he go - and who will chose to stand by his side?

So, Humble Bundle's newest offer the other day was pretty much the entire current run of IDW's Transformers run of comics ($155 worth of comics according the website - I got it for $15, so not a bad deal). I've been curious about the current run that IDW has been publishing, so this seemed like a ridiculously good deal to me. I read the first volume of each series and actually thought they were pretty good.

The whole idea between both volumes is that the war between the Autobots and the Decepticons has finally ended with the Autobots in charge of Cybertron (a Cybertron that has changed as a result of something that happened just prior to the beginning of these two stories, and something that I'm not at all familiar with). Since the war, more and more Transformers who had fled Cybertron in the wake of the war are now returning, and see no need to have either faction on the planet anymore, as both Autobots and Decepticons are equally seen as responsible for the destruction of the planet. However, the Autobots don't see it this way and want to set up a new government to try to keep another from happening. Optimus Prime sees himself as the most visible sign of the war, so relinquishes his title as Prime, returns to calling himself Orion Pax, and exiles himself from Cybertron, leaving Bumblebee in charge. Meanwhile, Rodimus sees no point in giving up their heritage and starting over so decides to travel from Cybertron in search of the Knights of Cybertron. This is where the series splits into two.

More Than Meets The Eye follows Rodimus and his crew in search of the Knight of Cybertron, while Robots in Disguise deals with Bumblebee trying to reestablish something of a government on Cybertron and dealing with the disillusionment felt by just about everyone over this, especially the newly returned, unaligned Transformers. I've read about the More Than Meets the Eye title from several sources around the internets, and it turns out that they weren't wrong about the title. It combines a pretty decent story with some great character development and just enough wit to make something that's actually fun to read. Robots in Disguise is intriguing as well, given the way the series is dealing with the repercussions and aftereffects of the war. Overall, both series are surprisingly good (I think it would be easy for most people to write off Transformers as a whole, but these are legitimately good comics), but I did find that I enjoyed More Than Meets The Eye more. I'm really glad I bought into this most recent Humble Bundle and will be gladly reading the rest of the volumes.

Sarton Sunday 8 III 2015 - As We Are Now by May Sarton

As We Are Now
by May Sarton
Published by W. W. Norton & Company, October 17, 1992 (1973)
144 Pages • ISBN 978-0393309577 • Paperback



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Book description:

"I am not mad, only old... I am in a concentration camp for the old."

So begins May Sarton's short, swift blow of a novel, about the powerlessness of the old and the rage it can bring. As We Are Now tells the story of Caroline Spencer, a 76-year-old retired schoolteacher, mentally strong but physically frail, who has been moved by relatives into a "home." Subjected to subtle humiliations and petty cruelties, sustained for too short a time by the love of another person, she fights back with all she has, and in a powerful climax wins a terrible victory.

A searing look at the hopelessness of despair, loneliness and old age, May Sarton's As We Are Now is a powerful study of a woman's resolve to relinquish herself by any means possible from the depths of the anger and anguish she feels from her surroundings. Told through the journals of Caro Spencer who has moved into a "home," not due to a lack of mental strength but of a physical frailty that leaves her unable to live alone. She keeps the journals at first as a record of her days as she fears she is losing her memory, but later the journals become a record of the mistreatment that she and the other "inmates" must endure at the hands of the two women who run the home. Told over the course of several months, this is the story of one woman's battle against age and the carelessness that the elderly can be treated with.

This is a powerful book, told quickly and to the point, and there are times that you forget you are reading a novel and feel like you are being given a first-hand account of a woman's battle against her keepers. I found myself feeling hopeless as there should be something that I could do to help ease her suffering, but then I would need to remind myself that this is a novel. One of Sarton's more powerful works.

Our Souls at Night: A novel by Kent Haruf

Our Souls at Night: A novel
by Kent Haruf
Published by Knopf, May 26, 2015
192 Pages • ISBN 978-1101875896 • Hardcover
I picked up an ARC of this book at #ALAMW15



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Book description:

A spare yet eloquent, bittersweet yet inspiring story of a man and a woman who, in advanced age, come together to wrestle with the events of their lives and their hopes for the imminent future.

In the familiar setting of Holt, Colorado, home to all of Kent Haruf's fiction, Addie Moore pays an unexpected visit to a neighbor, Louis Waters. Her husband died years ago, as did his wife, and in such a small town they naturally have long been aware of each other, if not exactly friends; in fact, Addie was quite fond of Louis's wife. His daughter, Holly, lives hours away in Colorado Springs; her son, Gene, even farther away in Grand Junction. What Addie has come to ask—since she and Louis have been living alone for so long in houses now empty of family, and the nights are so terribly lonely—is whether he might be willing to spend them with her, in her bed, so they can have someone to talk with.

Louis is surprised, even shocked, that she would've thought of him, though he soon is brave enough to try, impressed by the courage of her proposal. And so their lives now find a new rhythm and their conversations range freely, if sometimes haltingly, through their personal histories: his work as a high school English teacher; the loss of her teenage daughter, and the harm this did to her marriage as well as their son; his brief affair, as a young husband and father, which Addie had heard about; their youthful aspirations and middle-age disappointments and compromises; the joy both feel in at last being able to express the woof and weave of their experiences. This unusual arrangement, as Addie predicted, provokes local comment, and then the disapproval of their children, and their nightly pattern is further disrupted when her son, whose wife has departed for California, asks Addie to take in his six-year-old son, Jamie, for the summer while he tries to solve his various troubles.

Jamie is confused and hurt, of course, but gradually finds comfort in the company of his grandmother and her friend Louis, neither of whom has spent much time with kids in years but in turn learn how to all over again. Teaching the boy to play catch. Adopting a dog from the local shelter. A camping trip in the mountains, a trip to the county fair, simple pleasures that are a hallmark of Haruf's fiction. As are the things that jeopardize them, from the death of a mutual friend to family tensions that suddenly test Addie and Louis's ability to withstand them. And the subtle denouement then sweeps both of these amazing people forward—heartbreakingly, hearteningly into the unknown.

A beautiful, sparse story of a woman and a man who find companionship in their later lives through a fairly unconventional proposal: Addie Moore stops in to see Louis Waters one day wondering if he would like to come and sleep in her bed with her at night.

No, not sex. I'm not looking at it that way. I think I've lost any sexual impulse a long time ago. I'm talking about getting through the night. And lying warm in bed, companionably. Lying down in bed together and you staying the night. The night's are the worst. Don't you think?

She misses the closeness of her husband, who passed away several years ago, and would like someone to talk to at night. Louis' wife has passed as well, and while at first he is unsure exactly of how this will all play out, he agrees to sleep with her for one night, and then they would both see how they felt. If it was uncomfortable and neither wanted to do it again, they could walk away, no strings attached.

What they discover is a companionship and closeness that comes unexpectedly to them, while causing something of a scandal in their small town. People seem shocked by their decision, but Addie and Louis decide that they are of an age where what other people think is of no consequence to them anymore. That summer, Addie's grandson, Jamie, comes to live with her for the summer while his father (her son), organizes his own life. Jamie is confused by the change, but Addie and Louis rediscover their ability to take care of a young child again, and something of a family comes to exist. It isn't until tensions between Addie's son and Louis grow that anything can ruin what they have created for themselves.

This is a very fast read; Haruf wastes no time getting to the meat of the story. He takes what starts out as a very unconventional idea and reforms it into something that seems so natural that it isn't a wonder that more people don't make this a regular practice. My only complaint with his storytelling is making the book a bit too sparse; the lack of any quotations marks in the book makes for a somewhat confusing reading experience at times. Other than this one minuscule gripe, this is a beautifully told story, and one that will stick with you.

Our Souls at Night: A novel by Kent Haruf will be available May 26, 2015, from Knopf.

A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans by Laurence Yep & Joanne Ryder, illustrated by Mary GrandPré

A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans
by Laurence Yep & Joanne Ryder, illustrated by Mary GrandPré
Published by Crown Books for Young Readers, March 10, 2105
160 Pages • ISBN 978-0385392280 • Hardcover
I picked up an ARC of this book at #ALAMW15



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Book description:

Fans of How to Train Your Dragon will love this whimsical tale, the first in a series, by a Newbery Honor winner, featuring charming illustrations and pet "training tips" in each chapter.

Crusty dragon Miss Drake has a new pet human, precocious Winnie. Oddly enough, Winnie seems to think Miss Drake is her pet — a ridiculous notion!

Unknown to most of its inhabitants, the City by the Bay is home to many mysterious and fantastic creatures, hidden beneath the parks, among the clouds, and even in plain sight. And Winnie wants to draw every new creature she encounters: the good, the bad, and the ugly. But Winnie’s sketchbook is not what it seems. Somehow, her sketchlings have been set loose on the city streets! It will take Winnie and Miss Drake’s combined efforts to put an end to the mayhem... before it’s too late.

This refreshing debut collaboration by Laurence Yep, a two-time Newbery Honor winner and a Laura Ingalls Wilder Award winner, and Joanne Ryder features illustrations by Mary GrandPré.

What an unexpected surprise! I had picked up a copy of A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans on a whim at #alamw15, having not one clue as to what it was about. Yesterday, I was looking for something to read, and picked this up just to check it out and ended up reading it in the one sitting. The story follows Miss Drake, a curmudgeonly dragon who has taken on a new "pet" in the form of Winnie, the grand-niece of her previous pet, Amelia (or Fluffy as Miss Drake liked to call her). Winnie is strong willed and very sure herself and at first Miss Drake finds this very discouraging and realizes she's going to have to be very assertive in training her new pet. (Of course, the question actually becomes, exactly who is the pet here?)

Miss Drake, on a shopping excursion for some new tea and biscuits, also buys Winnie a new sketchbook that may be more that it appears to be, and when Winnie starts to sketch all the marvelous, magical creatures she is discovering, the sketchbook releases a magic all its own and the sketches come to life! It is up to Miss Drake and Winnie to find the sketchlings before they are discovered by both the magical and nonmagical worlds.

Putting this all down, A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans sounds like a typical middle grade adventure story, but what took me completely by surprise was that the story is just as much about love, loss, and the importance of family as it is about anything else. Amidst all the magic and missteps and adventures in the story is a growing underlying theme of the importance that both friends and family can have in a person's life, where friends become family and family become friends. The conclusion is one of the most touching endings to a book that I have read in a very long time, and made me think fondly of those that I have loved and lost in my life. The connections between Miss Drake and Amelie, Winnie and her father, and eventually Miss Drake and Winnie are made so incredibly real in such a short book. Laurence Yep and Joanne Ryder have crafted a beautiful and fun-filled story, and Marie GrandPré's accompanying illustrations are perfect. I would recommend this to anyone with or without a young person in their life; anyone will be able to enjoy this whimsical tale about the strength and love of families. Highly recommended.

A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans is published by Crown Books for Young Readers and will be available March 10, 2015.

Sarton Sunday 1 III 2015 - The Poet and the Donkey: A Tale by May Sarton

The Poet and the Donkey: A Tale
by May Sarton
Published by W. W. Norton & Company, September 17, 1996 (1969)
128 Pages • ISBN 978-0393315530 • Paperback



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Book description:

"A small, sophisticated, elegantly sentimental journey through a New Hampshire village summer. Our companions are an aging poet, who is sad because he can no longer write — he has lost the joy he used to have in simply being alive – and a young, mischievous female donkey, who is sad because she can't run and play — she has a touch of arthritis... There is a moral, of course, but any moral looks dull next to the simple happiness of the old poet and his long-eared muse." — The New Yorker

A charming and quick little book about a poet who has lost his muse and is no longer able to write, and the donkey he borrows from his neighbors, who, in time, becomes his missing muse. There isn't much to this story, which is refreshing; the book really does just follow the poet as he borrows the donkey and learns to navigate the language between the two until they both become just what the other needed. There's a moral, of course, but overall this is the perfect book if you need something to just make your afternoon that much better.