Po(sey) Sessions

Even before I read The Waters and the Wild I have been fascinated by Francesca Lia Block. Every summary I had ever read from one of her books sounded like something I wanted to read.  Though many of her books graced my wishlist, it took me a long time before I read one.   Francesca Lia Block has a simplistic style reminiscent of poetry. Sometimes, for me, the writing is a little too straight forward, a little too sparse. But there is something about her prose that connects with one’s understanding of magic that keeps me going back.  Block writes something beyond urban fantasy; she calls it urban fairy tales and the genius of it is the way  a reader can connect with moments of their own past through her writing.  And thanks to Goodreads Swap I will soon be the proud owner of many new books by Block.  The first one to show up was Girl Goddess #9 , a collection of short stories published in 1996.     Today I sat down and read through th...

Though I am American through and through, I do connect a strong part of my heritage and culture with the Irish. I have always admitted that were are more Irish in celebration than we are in blood, but I do have the name to back me up. I am planning on going to Ireland with my two daughters within the next year or two. I am looking forward to connecting with my past and my future through the reading choices I explore over the next 11 months. Carrie at Books and Movies is hosting this challenge again. Sign up here . Details following: ~ The challenge runs from January 1, 2011 to November 30, 2011. ~ Any books read for this challenge can also apply to other challenges you are working on. ~ Re-reads are allowed. ~ Any book written by an Irish author, set in Ireland, or involving Irish history or Irish characters, counts for the challenge – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, audiobooks, children’s books – all of these apply. ~ Choose your commitment level: Shamrock level: 2 books Luck ...

I am thrilled that my friend Vasilly is hosting the Graphic Novel Challenge this year. We have had many great discussions on various types of books and I hope more will follow! For the past few years I have had a growing interest in graphic novels and manga. Much like how I felt about science fiction for a long time, I mainly wrote off graphic novels as something that just weren't for me. A friend of mine encouraged me to read Watchmen and that changed everything. I fell in love with the depth of Alan Moore , so expect to see me reading more of his titles in 2011. I already have V for Vendetta here and The League of Extraordinary Men Vol. 1 on its way to me. I have never been a huge fan of manga in the past, but I am using this opportunity to explore these type of books more. I recently received a box full of manga titles and I hope to find something I really connect with there. Intermediate (3-10 books) 1. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1

In the past I have joined a challenge to keep track of how many books I have read, but never officially because I keep track of when I finish books, not when I start them. This year I am going to do my best to simply keep up a list of everything I end up finishing. 1. The Passage by Justin Cronin (audio) - dystopian, post-apocalyptic 2. Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (audio) - dystopian 3. Wasteland by Francesca Lia Block - young adult 4. Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin (audio) - historical fiction 5. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1 - graphic novel, steampunk? 6. Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon - fantasy, young adult 7. The New Policeman (audio) by Kate Thompson - fantasy, Ireland, young adult 8. Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder (audio) - young adult, dystopian 9. Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton - young adult 10. The Dark Divine by Bree deSpain (audio) - young adult, paranormal 11. The Legend Of Spud Murphy by Eoin Colfer (audio) - children's, humor, Ireland 12. ...