Comic Geekery

2010-07-18T02:33:47Z

The other day, in my Booksale scavenging, I saw this book that made me think really hard. It costs around Php300 plus, WAY beyond my Booksale budget (php20) but it was so thick and useful and interesting and cheap enough for this kind of book that I couldn't resist it. I had to have it.

Look how detailed the instructions are inside:

It inspires me to create a comic of my own (another thing I want to do before I die--I used to do this secret comic series about a teenage girl and her rainbowy life in an exclusive school for girls) and I'm excited to read it and learn more about the technical side of things. Maybe then I'll further appreciate these comics I already love.

Here are the comics/graphic novels that I'll never forget, some lumped together because of the awesomeness of the artist:

Rented comics My love affair with comics really started with those comics for rent at some enterprising neighbor's house. Displayed like clothes on a clothesline, one can choose from these bestsellers: Nightmare, Love Stories and Fantasy (which was my favorite, since I was too scared of the gore in Nightmare). I was about 7 or younger then, and I saved up and sold stationery (which I also collected back then) so I could have my weekly fix. I can't remember a moment when I read everything on display, which probably meant that they had a lot of comics for rent back then.

Funny comics and Bata Batuta The small neighborhood salon had a huge stack of these comics for their customers' reading pleasure which would probably explain why I never had long hair, ever. They also sold it every Friday in front of our school, something I obsessively bought and looked forward to.

Archie comics! That was my fantasy, finding a soulmate who loved Archie as much as I did when I was about 8 years old. I loved them so much some copies have embossed marks, with me trying to trace them, putting a piece of carbon paper behind each page and tracing them to a coupon bond. I can't stand how stupid both females are now, fighting over this wishy-washy playboy (who isn't even kind or funny or cute), but I still have fond memories of my Archie phase.

Gospel comics What? I thought Gospy was cute. Hahaha. :) We were probably brainwashed by the weekly analysis and readings of this certain comic, but I somehow remember that I collected these too.

Pugad Baboy But it was so much funnier then. Remember that aswang chapter in Pugad Baboy 4? That was what I loved the most, those stories, but I can still remember how Brosia was asked to buy 'de lata' for pulutan, and she did buy something in can--"It's de Liberty Condensed Milk!"

Free comics from Sunday newspapers You know, the ones that came with puzzles and trivia? I had a huge stack of them fastened together, unanswered, because I was too OC to write on the pages, haha.

Lynda Barry Part-Pinay, I love her unique, gritty drawing style and sense of humor. I forgot where I first saw her work but I've luckily stumbled upon most of her comics and books in Booksale. Oh, Booksale, thank you so much for these awesome buys, especially the comics by my beloved...

Ariel Schrag Her comics should be renamed into "The incredibly true misadventures of a budding lesbian in love", because each time I read her graphic novels I am reminded of that movie with young Tina and some episodes of the L word. I found out about her through an issue of BUST and heard her name in Le Tigre's girl power song "Hot Topic", so I researched her some more and was really dying to buy her superpricey book found in Sputnik, Cubao X. It was around a thousand, which made me sad. But then I found a copy of Awkward and Definition and Potential at Booksale for only around a hundred pesos, which made me extremely jubilant (I almost hugged the ates there) and happy. Sigh, Booksale = ♥
I love how honest she is with her storytelling, how her art has also evolved (she made the comics when she was around 14 and sold it) and how she captures the rollercoaster of emotions teenage lesbians go through in a few frames. Are you reading this Ariel Schrag? Hi, I love you. :)

Y The Last Man Oh wow oh wow oh wow. Fantastic artwork, gripping storyline about how there's this guy who is supposedly the last guy in the world, with lightning-fast pacing and snappy dialogue to boot? Yes please. I saw this in one of my National bookstore trips and was intrigued by the romantic storyline between the women characters. I wasn't disappointed with the whole story, although I did feel that the ending was a bit rushed. It was still a great read though, and will probably be my second favorite, because I really really love:

Strangers in Paradise I think I might have obsessed about this with matching images a year ago in this lj. I find myself rooting for the Katchoo-Francine loveteam, being surprised by each issue with its where-did-that-come-from twists and just being um, touched by this heartwarming series. I don't know if it was just me, but this was a really nice love story for me. The heartthrob also has a realistic figure, which makes me happy. I think my respect and adoration for Terry Moore is right there with my adoration for Joss Whedon. See this AfterEllen interview with him.

Buffy, season 8 And the Buffy love lives on! Long live the Slayers! Long live Willow with her adorable geekiness. I couldn't care much for Kennedy though. I wish Willow ended with someone more...likeable instead. The recent issue was getting weirder and weirder though, but I still love this. Which reminds me of another Whedonesque series I love:

Runaways Kids with evil parents and superpowers? A lesbian character with alien metaphors? Witty witty dialogue, reads just like a Whedon show? Hurrah! I haven't finished this yet. It's so good i'm taking my sweet time, since this series is already finished.

Fables I think of this series like this: Fairy tale characters meets Gotham City.

Asterix series My family is a huge fan of the Asterix comics. I think we have the complete series, some hardbound, some in paperback, some mini-sized, some huge. We're not really that OC with the collection. :) We love it so much my father bought home an Asterix stuffed toy in one of his trips. Obelix reminds me of him.

Dykes to Watch out for This was how I discovered this series. We were in Baguio, in the guestroom of my mom's friend's house. I found this comic book peeking from the side of the bed and promptly read it. I think it about changed my life. Alison Bechdel is a very hot genius.

Tammy Pierce is Unlovable Because there's definitely a little bit of Tammy Pierce in all of us. How fascinating is it that Esther Pearl Watson based this on some teenager's diary she found in some gas station?

I forgot your name, but it was locally-made and had this gay guy, this bisexual girl and this straight guy getting it on in the end. It appeared at the back of Pulp magazine. I cannot say I adore you, but you were pretty interesting also.

Kikomachine I have all the books, I love this. Manix, if you can read this, do you remember when your dad used to bring you to his office and my mom would also bring me and we were told to play? Remember those vague incidents? Did I just imagine them? Haha. Anyway, great work, man. I have a crush on that bald teacher. Plus, did a romance exist between that bespectacled girl and the ponytailed one? You know, when they were having this sexual tension and the other girl whispered why to her punk boyfriend? What are their names anyway? I need answers! I can't sleep thinking about it!

Any amazing comics/graphic novels you'd like to recommend? :)

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Books I read and loved recently

2010-06-27T13:00:07Z

Lately I've been able to read more. Lesser malling and spending moolah, more reading time instead at home, reaching home just in time to avoid being drenched.

Some books that I can't forget:
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

"The biscuits with lilac jelly, the lavender tea cookies, and the tea cakes made with nasturtium mayonnaise the Ladies Aid ordered for their meetings once a month gave them the ability to keep secrets."

Likened to Esquivel, I found myself caught up in this story filled with magical realism and was reminded of: That sister rivalry in Privileged, That sister rivalry in Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman, and a bit of Desperate Housewives. I loved the quirkiness of the characters (even the personality of that feisty apple tree), and the little bits of plant trivia injected within paragraphs. I loved how Evanelle gave away items useful for recipients in the future, and how Tyler is that too-good-to-be-true guy, and how you want things so badly to end up happily for these characters (and predictably so), you care for them too much. A nice breezy read under a soft blanket with the rain pitter-pattering outside.

What I think: 9 unicorns

The Likeness by Tana French

You know how they say that people like Dan Brown's books because they make them feel intelligent?
Tana French can do that, but with prettier prose but with more sympathetic and flawed characters, more No-I-Can't-Langdon-fly- humanity.

Rife with descriptions, no whambam surprises here. Rather she sneaks surprises in setting descriptions and subtly weaves metaphors within metaphors:

"He told me about old herb gardens: how carefully they were arranged to make sure that each plant had everything it needed to flourish, how perfectly they balanced sight and scent and use, practicality and beauty, without ever allowing one to be compromised for another's sake. Hyssop to loosen chest colds or cure toothaches, he said camomile in a poultice to reduce inflammation or in a tea to prevent nightmares; lavender and lemon balm for strewing to make the house smell sweet, rue and burnet in salads. 'We'll have to try that sometime,' he said, 'a Shakesperean salad. Tansy tastes like pepper, did you know that? I thought it had died off long ago, it was brown and brittle, but when I cut right back to the roots, there it was: just a tinge of green. It'll be all right now. It's amazing, how stubbornly things survive against incredible odds; how irresistibly strong it is, the drive to live and grow..."

or this:

The rhythm of his voice washed over me, even and soothing as waves; I barely heard the words. "Time,' I think he said somewhere behind me, or maybe it was 'thyme', I've never been sure. "Time works so hard for us, if only we can let it."

What I think: 8 unicorns

Cruddy by Lynda Barry

Since Barry is one of my favorite illustrators and writers, I took a chance with this creepy book with creepier illustrations. Some of the drawings were really scary that I had to cover them up with one hand while I read the rest of the text beside it. If you like the gritty books of Palahniuk, and if you're fascinated by gory slasher flicks, this just might be the perfect book for you. It scared me horribly, but it was also fascinating and empowering, in a way. It ends in a surprisingly hopeful note for me, which is what I think is lacking in Palahniuk books, and which makes me like this book more. Huzzah for Ms. Barry who bravely went there, in a shocking, drawn-out tale of good versus evil, and in some parts evil versus evil.

What I think: 7 unicorns

The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond

"You exist, each moment, as if waking from a dream, with no awareness of where you are or how you got there, no knowledge of what, or who might be waiting for you in the next room. Each thing you perceive has no more significance than a random snapshot in a stranger's photo album. A life without memory is a life without meaning"

"The moment a photograph is transferred to paper, the slow process of erasure begins. The purpose of photography is to stop time but time inevitably erodes.
We put such faith in this flimsy mnemonic device, a moment written in light. But photos provide a false sense of security. Like our own flawed memory, they are guarantedd to fade. Over time, the contrasts within a photo diminish, the contours soften, the details blur...We take photographs in order to remember but it is in the nature of a photograph to forget."

"A common misconception is that memory is like some sort of computer that stores and retrieves information. The truth is, memory is an act of reconstruction. Every time we remember an event, we piece together rough drafts of the event based on our lifetime of experiences."

Wow. Just, wow.
This gem of a book is filled with unforgettable imagery, and quotable, heartbreaking lines. The premise is simple: There's this woman who manages to lose the daughter of her fiancee one fateful afternoon. Wracked with guilt and desperation, she manages to wax poetic about memory and priorities and those little things we encounter daily but manage to just forget. I skimmed a couple of pages, just to take a peek at Ms. Richmond's style, but the story was so riveting and her language was enticing, which led me to some nights where I battled sleep just to be able to read a few more pages. This book makes me want to buy a Holga for myself and study the hippocampus. Richmond uses photographs as prompts, mixed with a dash of research for grounding and ends up with this unputdownable book. I didn't want it to end, and was slightly panicking when there were only a few pages left but with the mystery still unsolved. Then blam! There it was, not really surprising, but then it's the aftermath that leaves you with these nagging questions, these delicate "what next?s".
I enjoyed the ride thoroughly though, and would like to try out her other books. I'm also well aware of that digital camera photos versus old-school camera photos that would lessen the impact of her metaphors, but if you think of it in that old-school camera sense, it adds a tinge of nostalgia and you think, Damn, these metaphors are just right.

What I think: 8.5 unicorns

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Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

2010-05-31T02:00:23Z

I'm still reeling from Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic. A few years ago,
I watched the movie and fell in love with how luminous Nicole Kidman
appeared there as the enigmatic, beautiful Gillian. It's one of those
heartwarming movies you don't seem to forget, like Hook, or The Secret
Garden. So when I found myself an ebook, recommended by a friend, I
proceeded to read with extreme interest.

Here's the thing. I'm not fond of reading ebooks since it hurts my eyes.
I like the tactile effect of real books and the smell of crisp or
tattered pages, and how I can insert cute nifty bookmarks whenever I
want, but this was different. I found myself drawn to Hoffman's simple,
matter-of-fact storytelling, that I finished it in three days (quite a
feat recently, since I was busy with work and other ventures), reading
whenever I can.

I gobbled up this slightly dark modern fairytale. There's Gillian, the
extremely attractive, impulsive, tempestuous sister, prone to always
falling for (and marrying) the wrong guy. Then there's her sister Sally.
Dependable, predictable and fiercely protective of her daughters Kylie
and Antonia, Sally reminded me of Elizabeth Wakefield, while Gillian is
the exciting (and a tad annoying) Jessica.

I wish I had a sister.

Anyway, the plot is pretty basic: Word is that the Owens women are
witches. Gillian and Sally live with their "witchy" aunts and are
mercilessly teased and avoided at school, until the point where Gillian
becomes so dazzlingly beautiful and all the boys fall in love with her.
She could have any guy she wants, but of course she picks the bad boys,
who are..um, bad. Sally meanwhile, falls in love with a good guy, and
almost lives a normal, picket-fence type of existence, but predictably,
this good guy dies by some freak accident.

After some time, Gillian leaves home and runs away with some guy,
occasionally contacting her sister, who is depressed because of said
husband death. Sally leaves home too, taking her two daughters with her
and building a new life somewhere.

It really sounds simple, and it is, but Hoffman is a whiz at telling
this story without having to use the gimmickry of long words, her
characters a-zest and popping with life.

The pages move forward with details of how Antonia and Kylie are growing
up, and it must be Hoffman casting a spell on me, because I am so
fascinated by these Owen women, I feel like one of the villagers who
can't comprehend what hit them.

While Sally is moving on with her life, Gillian suddenly re-appears and
claims she's accidentally killed her abusive boyfriend, Jimmy. The two
are afraid of going to jail and bury his body in the backyard, where it
wreaks havoc on their plants by its diabolical ways, even six feet under.

After this it feels like nothing major is happening, but the prose is so
deceptively simple and charming, that it's so easy to get lost in
Hoffman's storytelling.

This is a pretty magical book, with all the razzle dazzle of magic
metaphors: Magic inside of us, magic in each day, but most importantly,
the magic of love, hidden in surprises. How can you go wrong with a book
that preaches the magic of love?

What I think: 8 unicorns

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On Judy Blume

2010-03-06T12:15:17Z

If I were as small as Domo here, I would also love to cuddle these books:

( Le Domokun et les livres. Plus my Judy Blume obsession )

Now my girlcrush on Ms. Winterson, that's another story:

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Therese and Isabelle by Violette Leduc

2010-02-21T09:05:13Z

Seasons, lend us your tattered dresses. Let us be wandering gypsies with hair lacquerred to our heads by the rain. Will you come with me, Isabelle? will you set up house with me on some roadside bank? We'll crunch up our dry crusts with lions' jaws, we'll find our spices in the storm, we'll have a house, with lace curtains at the windows as the caravans roll by and disappear toward the frontiers. I'll undress you in the growing wheat, I'll find you lodgings in the hearts of haystacks, I'll cover you in the water under low, overhanging branches, I'll nurse you on a mossbank in the forest, I'll make love to you in the fields of lucerne, I'll haul you up into the haycarts, my Boadicea.

It's the cover that got me. In minimalistic black and white with just a hint of red, it appealed to me and my obsession with vintage-looking, art nouveau. Plus, the title itself was intriguing: Therese and Isabelle, by Violette Leduc. I look at the synopsis and there it is: A rainbow-tinged friendship, in a French boarding school, no less. Sold.

Therese, the intriguing newcomer fascinates the elusive Isabelle. That's it. There was no buildup from friendship, which disappointed me, since I want my queer ya lit to have that tension. The tension here results from getting caught instead, since the two are quite into it like bunny rabbits, doing it in restroom cubicles, in the woods, and other places where there's bound to be people who will see them.

Originally translated from the French, you get the feeling that there's something lost in translation. Sure, Leduc's writing is rife with metaphors, and allusions, but it sometimes reaches the point of saturation, leaving you a bit numb after repetitive descriptions of soft-p*rnish encounters.

I felt a bit shortchanged with the hurried ending. It felt like it started with the two and their carnal obsession with each other, which must be mostly due to hormones, since I didn't understand much about what fascinated them about each other, aside from physical beauty, which was also mentioned in a by-the-way-she's-pretty type of way. Then we arrive to the bucketloads of sex scenes and the matching metaphors (whoa sometimes subtlety works better) and then the depressing ending. I expected more for this book. Le sigh.

Incidentally, I was multi-tasking and watching the movie while reading this, and the movie was a bit better. The cinematography was awesome, and they were able to get a pretty convincing cast. The ending was more satisfying too, although it felt a bit too contrived. Considering this film was shown during the 60s, it was quite a daring film at that time. Nevertheless, it was so-so.

What I think: 5 unicorns

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The way to a woman's heart: New books and yummy thrills

2010-02-19T14:08:36Z

♥♥♥ There's this promise that I make to myself, something about not buying books until my TBR pile amounts to less than twenty books, but I had to, I just had to have these:

♥ Believer magazine,
♥ Bitch magazine,
♥ The Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm (!!!!) For only Php115!

and, a book that I've been looking at longingly each time we enter bookstores:
♥ Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. I am

♥ plus The Mammoth book of Lesbian Erotica (not in picture)

( Secondhand and loved. )

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The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn

2010-02-16T14:07:26Z

When I'm reading something really good, chances are:

a.) I would immediately finish it, then, still on a high, I would be gushing about it till kingdom come via my blog(s) or proceed to text message people who might also like it/convince friends to read it

or

b.) I would prolong the reading experience, savoring certain passages, anticipating reading a few pages each night, going to sleep with the content, happy feeling of having some more pages to devour the next day, waking up and having my day brightened just by seeing the cover of said book, and then gushing about it till kingdom come via my blog(s) or proceed to text message people who might also like it/convince friends to read it

or

c.) Feel that no words coming from me would be adequate enough to describe how beautiful it is which leads me to the sometimes-nice option of just keeping quiet about it, safe in the private knowledge of having this secret love which brings forth lots of scary content smiling and dazed euphoria.

My latest book-related obsession would have to be the beauty of audiobooks. I think I might have tried this once or twice and then I gave up, bored and restless.

But then perchance (Thanks again! :) You've got excellent taste!) gave me a copy of The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn, and it is suddenly the dawn of a new era for me. A memoir similar to Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love (which I couldn't finish due to its overwrought woe-is-me tones) in which Flinn decides to pursue her dream of studying at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and discovers herself in the process, this was a joy to listen to while working. (The current state of my reading experience with this book is B, btw.)

Since I'm a hopeless multitasker, I listen to it while working, discovering that contrary to what I expected, this particular audiobook actually helped improve my focus instead of distracting me.

Also, there's this certain inexplicable shimmer of glee that I get whenever I partly understand what the chefs are saying. Interspersed with some French from her chef instructors and neighbors, it's like the listening tests we have at Alliance, where I know I am an epic failure, so this is multitasking at its finest: Not only do I get to finish a book at a faster rate, but I also become more alert, with my French listening and comprehension skills honed.

The story itself is interesting. I found myself giggling like a lunatic at some parts and shuddering at some extremely detailed sections where rabbits are beheaded and their legs cut up for a stew, making me reconsider about my future plans of studying in a cooking school.

Many years ago, my mother bought us some audio cassette tapes of stories for children narrated by someone named Laura I-forgot-her-last-name. It had an earthy, tribal feel to it, and sort of reminded me of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories or Gaiman's Anansi Boys, which I both loved. My whole family and I would listen to those tapes, in my parents' bedroom, with the lights turned off and we'd hear stories about faraway lands with talking animals and I'd feel very Eliza Thornberry-like, with the world opening up, showing its marvels to me.

This might explain my revived fascination with audiobooks. That nostalgic, feel-good instance where someone cares enough (or appears to) to read stories to me and that Capricornian drive to actually accomplish something even by sitting still.

The narrator, Cassandra Campbell, does very good impersonations; from grumpy chefs to lovestruck maidens to this nun from Texas with a Southern drawl--with her impeccable French (or what I think must be, since I can't really tell at this stage). One thing I've noticed though, is that there everyone is VERY.PRETTY. in this book. Everyone is lavishly described as being so beautiful and exotic and entrancing that I kept on anticipating a surprise sapphic affair. Not that Flinn's fiancee isn't a sweetheart, because he is, and if he's every bit of the charming, loving man that Flinn makes him to be, then he's certainly a keeper. (P.S. I'm a bit squeamish about that breaking -the-mahogany-bed-in-throes-of-passion though, although it is mortifyingly funny and mostly mortifying that that was the first time he met the parents, but it made me feel dirty and not in a good erotica kind of way, so..yeah, a bit ick, says the prude in me.)

I'm a sucker for food-related memoirs, especially one with recipes. I'm also a sucker for armchair travel and self-discovery/self-improvement blah blah, so this one really takes the cake.

I want to be an audiobook narrator when I grow up. I think that would be the best job ever, after being a librarian or Angelina Jolie's secret lady love.

What I think: 9 unicorns

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In The Woods by Tana French

2010-02-09T15:43:39Z

The girls I dream of are the gentle ones, wistful by high windows or singing sweet old songs at a piano, long hair drifting, tender as apple blossom. But a girl who goes into battle beside you and keeps your back is a different thing, a thing to make you shiver. Think of the first time you slept with someone, or the first time you fell in love: That blinding explosion that left you crackling to the fingertips with electricity, initiated and transformed. I tell you that was nothing, nothing at all, beside the power of putting your lives, simply and daily, into each other's hands.

Okay, see, prose like that above is what gets me to turn the pages in this whodunit mystery debut novel by Tana French. The first few pages got me, with sprawling descriptions of how idyllic and peaceful life was back then, children playing, suburbia-type ordinariness blahblahblah and then blam! Two kids have gone missing, and their other playmate is the only one found, with odd scratches and bloody shoes and no memory of what happened whatsoever.

That kid grows up to be the protagonist in the story, Rob, a detective who works in the murder department in Ireland, investigating a new case with his female partner, Cassie. I read this as quickly as possible, intrigued by the two murder mysteries, with Ms. French foreshadowing some kind of connection between the mysterious disappearances and the recent case--I wanted to find out what happened. The wording is beautiful, albeit a bit sexist and trying to be tough macho, and each chapter finishes with Rob's introspection, something different from the usual cliffhangers/leads in the usual detective/Dan Brown novels, which is actually quite interesting, for a change. The words were strung prettily, but nothing much was happening in some chapters, which had me putting down the book several times and picking up BUST magazine instead (but that's another story), and times like these I wish I had enough patience and wasn't too short-attention spanned.

Reading about the mysterious things happening in the woods did give me the heebiejeebies though, and made me glad I lived in a place right now surrounded by concrete. Rob reminded me of Ballard from Dollhouse, with his pursuit of truth and justice, blind to his own flaws and blind spots and possessing that sulky annoying arrogance. I didn't like him, and kept wishing he was a woman instead, would have made things more interesting.

Anyways, when I reached the middle, things picked up and I couldn't put it down. Suddenly there were flashbacks and unexplained memory loss and I wanted SO BAD for it to be connected to the disappearances, and not just put there to throw me off-track. It ended satisfactorily and eerily for the murder case, but the disappearances were never explained, which irked me a bit. Some might like that, but the loose ends made me feel a little shortchanged. I want to drop some spoilers about what happened between Cassie and Rob, but it's too much like real life, and I actually liked how it was played in the end, so I won't. Plus Cassie appears in The Likeness, which I'm looking forward to reading, since I like Cassie more than Rob.

What I think: 7 unicorns

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Online friends are wunnerful. Oh, and new books.

2010-02-09T15:42:47Z

The very, very sweet made my book blog syndicated!! HUZZAH! Abiotique, Email me your mailing addy at rainbowrama@gmail.com, I want to send you something to show my appreciation. :) Thanks so much!

Clicky here for geekgasmic fun :) Add me if you fancy some privy dorkiness and ramblings about books.

How to know if you are a Booksale addict:
a.) You know the names of the ates and kuyas, you greet them regularly, they reserve magazines they think you'd like, they tell you about the availability of the books you are looking for
b.) Instead of going to a spa, you go there for relaxation
c.) You know when the pullouts are, how the books are categorized, where they can be usually found
d.) You get some scrapes on your hands and arms due to overzealous scouring of bottom shelves and hard-to-reach areas
e.) You seriously consider a career there, with books instead of money as payment
f.) You feel like there's something amiss when you miss a visit in a week
g.) You are disappointed when the books you saw last week are still there
h.) All of the above

Yes, I might need professional help.

My wallet's a bit sore, and this is the first time I spent that much to warrant a discount, but look what I found:

I saw a book in this series, The Best American Nonrequired reading (insert year here) at Fully Booked Gateway, and I remember looking at it longingly (it was around Php700, I think) and seeing a copy of this at the Citiland branch. But the copy at Citiland was only one, and I looked at the price (Php180) and decided it was still too pricey for me. But then I saw FOUR books at Makati Cinema Square and my bookhoarding sickness got the better of me and I gave in. Especially when I read one which had comics by one of my favorite artists, Fil-Am Lynda Barry, THE Lynda Barry, object of my obsessions (I found several of her comics at Booksale MOA). She wrote a piece on smells, and there was a bit of Filipino humor there, which sealed the deal.

But before that I saw this book, Far from Xanadu, by another one of my heroes, YA LGBT writer Julie Anne Peters, the one who wrote Keeping You a Secret which I've finished (heeheehee) at the children's section of PowerBooks, all the while bawling (it was possible that I was PMS-ing at that time), and quite possibly scarring some of the kids there for life.

I also bought A Short Guide to Writing about Art because I'm pretentious like that and I want to learn more about another thing that fascinates me. Plus it was only Php20. Then I bought Jobsmarts for twentysomethings because I can, and because it's Php25. No, seriously, if you know some interesting...you knows, you know where to contact me, yeah? Yes please. I would love love LOVE to work inside a library, even if this means I have to take another job at night. Dear Universe, I hope you can hear me.

Anyway, I was wondering why I never saw new copies of BUST anymore, and lo and behold:

AMY POEHLER! ASSDFKSJFKJSDKJFLSJLKFJS!

Ohthankyougoddessesofthewrittenword

What reading material makes you all excited and happy? :)

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New books post

2010-02-09T15:26:42Z

Booksale is love.

This one was translated from the original French. Guess what the story's about, heh. :)

I am most afraid of dying and not being able to read all the books in my TBR list. What does that make me? Haha.

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It's gonna be a great book day.

2010-02-09T15:22:21Z

What I want you to remember is that I am a detective. Our relationship with truth is fundamental but cracked, refractung confusingly with fragmented glass. It is the core of our careers, the endgame of every move we make, and we pursue it with strategies painstakingly constructed of lies and concealment and every variation on decption. The truth is the most desirable woman in the world and we are the most jealous lovers, reflexively denying anyone else the slightest glimpse of her. We betray her routinely, spending hours and days stupor-deep in lies, and then turn back to her holding out the lover's ultimate Mobius strip: But I only did it because I love you so much.

-In The Woods, Tana French

Have you ever experienced that visceral thrill of liking a book, falling in love with it, even if you're just a few pages into it? This is how I feel with Tana French's In The Woods. :)

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I can haz book loot! No.223909

2010-02-09T15:20:06Z

I should probably do this more often. To remind me to read all of them books in my TBR pile. Just looking at it makes me giddy. Really excited about that Steingarten book, food lit plus research plus a dry sense of humor= <3

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How They Met and other stories by David Levithan

2010-02-09T15:18:37Z

I have a love/hate relationship with short story collections. On one hand, they're quicker to read, offers variety for people with short attention spans (like moi), and showcases the author's versatility. On the other hand, I personally haven't found a book of s.s. which made me fall in love with all of the stories in the collection.

Until "How They Met", that is.

Methinks I read a rave review or two of this collection of stories about falling in love by David Levithan of Boy meets boy and Nick and Norah's IP fame. I saw an open copy in Powerbooks and proceeded to read the first story: "Starbucks Boy", finished the story with a huge grin on my face and decided that this book is worth the original non-Booksale price. (If you know me, I rarely buy books that are not from Booksale, because I'm stingy--and practical like that, haha).

I cannot NOT mention the blurbs, because I am gullible and prone to reading it to get a taste of what's in store. Here, Detroit Free Press labels it as "Pure reading pleasure."

My feelings for this book have never been summed up more succinctly.

Created as a V-day gift for friends, the stories about love here are written by Levithan out of boredom, but then evolved into a yearly tradition. The story that started other stories was written during his Physics class, with references to laws of Physics, metaphors so clearly relatable to love.

Fast-paced and witty without being pretentious, I was able to read it in one night, promising to write down particularly meaningful passages, but I got too lazy.

Each story made me feel different levels of giddy. "Miss Lucy had a steamboat", which recalls a meeting-liking-loving-pining after sort of relationship, is bittersweet, glimmering with wisdom one can only acquire after a heartwrenching breakup.

Levithan's style is accessible, lyrical and sweet but not cloying. I am aware that this is a YA book, but his writing is sharp and smart enough to make you want to revel in these layers of complex emotions brought upon by adolescence and continuing to adulthood, if that made sense, haha. I imagined it as a queer-friendly movie in my head, an LGBT "Love, Actually", with openly gay and happy characters sharing a snippet of their lovelife to the expectant audience.

The whole book reads like a movie, which isn't exactly a bad thing for me, and I could almost imagine this scene in "The Alumni Interview" where Ian is interviewed by his boyfriend's father for his requisite alumni interview:

"It also says you were involved in something called a Pride March?"
"Yes. We dress up as a pride of lions and we march. It's a school spirit thing. Our mascot is a lion."
"I thought it was an eagle?"
"It used to be an eagle. But then our principal's kid saw The Lion King and got hooked. You know how these things work."

It is noticeable how angst-free the stories are, despite the characters getting in trouble or getting their hearts broken over and over or or or. Levithan proves that you don't have to be all cuss-y and whiny to express the intensity of how you feel. Is it possible to have stories with reckless abandon, raw and honest at the very core, but absent of cheese? Because I've encountered cringe-inducing sapfests, and I dove into this book, thinking I'd get maybe one or two of those, but curiously, there is none. I think that is where Levithan's magic lies, in his ability to combine these short, simple words to create something much greater. Like so:

"I think one of the highest compliments you can give a person is that when you are talking to her, you are not thinking about the fact that you are talking to her. That is, your thoughts and words all exist on a single, engaged level. You are being yourself because you aren't bothering to think about who you should be. It is like when you talk in a dream."

"We talked so much that we started to feel like we did know each other, as if every shared story could create an actual shared past."

The stories are compelling enough on their own, but read as a whole, this collection provokes and inspires the readers to open their minds and see variations of this thing called love (and its permutations) with rainbow-tinged glasses on.

If this book were a person, she'd be that bespectacled quirky girl who sings with reckless abandon while commuting. Maybe wearing a necklace she made herself, or reading some obscure book that you coincidentally like too. Someone so interesting and stalk-worthy, someone you can't help but have a huge crush on.

I'd totally go out with this book.

What I think: 10 unicorns

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Levithan lovin'

2010-02-09T15:17:18Z

David Levithan is really, really cool. He's listening to bands like Travis,
watching the hottest indie movies (like Hedwig and the Angry Inch),
making all the appropriate pop-culture references and writing young adult
books that gained him a cult following with books like Nick and Norah's
Infinite Playlist and Boy meets boy.

I was still reeling from a David Levithan high, having finished his book of
short stories about love, entitled "How they met" and the fairytaleish
"Boy meets boy" when I saw his book about 9/11, entitled "Love is the higher law".

Nothing brings people closer together than a catastrophe. It's a proven test
of faith and character, and this book is an effort in highlighting that
closeness, and how different types of people deal with a major change.

"I can't help but think, this was supposed to be a good day. I feel nostalgia
for an hour ago, when Sammy and I were walking from the subway stop,
taking in the sunny weather, making jokes about Spongebob
Squarepants."

It's touching in some parts, and started with the events happening already,
working its way backwards in terms of characterization: Here are the
people affected, here's what happened, now let's take a closer look at the
characters. The characters are flawed, surely, quirky in their own ways, like
most of Levithan's characters, but I particularly couldn't stand Jasper, and I
find him very unlikeable.

"One of the things the terrorist attack has done was to send us all into these
Sliding Doors-scenarios--all these what ifs. What if I'd gotten up earlier that
morning?"

This is a book that makes you think about your own mortality and reflect on
the fragility of life. I can't quite say I loved it, but I didn't hate it either. It was
just okay for me, not really memorable. It swooped during the first few
chapters but then it somehow failed to sustain that momentum.

What I think: 6 unicorns

After reading this, I picked up another Levithan, Rachel Cohn collab,
"Naomi and Ely's No-kiss list", about how Naomi loves Ely, but Ely can't
reciprocate since he's gay, so it really has nothing to do with her, but then
she's all drama and "I'm so SO HOT, and all the boys adore me, why can't
you?!??" and I found it a tad annoying. I could not stand this Naomi
character and she had all these irritating quirks which reminded me of
those mean girls back in highschool, a place I do not want to revisit for the
meantime.

Each chapter is told from a character's pov, a la Nick and Norah (another
Levithan-Cohn collab), and it had all these pictograms which look cute for
the first few pages but becomes too gimmicky and tired after a while. Also, I
could do without having to read about people with the same names (two of
them!) in one story, which made it just confusing, (hence the need for
pictograms depicting male and female) when there are a gazillion names
to choose from, by the hammer of Thor!

There are some memorable parts though, like how resident beefcake
Gabriel is a sensitive-playlist-making dude, with an entire chapter
defending his song choices but I was a bit disappointed that he chose
(predictable) Naomi instead of the tres interesting Robin (female). Or how I
was also disappointed when Robin (female) doesn't end up with Naomi,
which would definitely make this a more interesting story, imho.

They have a nose and smell exhibit, which I found very wonderful and is
the best part of the book for me, along with Bruce the second discovering
how Ely shared his passion for X-men:

"Then we hit the nose amplifiers, where you can plug in your nostrils and
breather in different scents. Everything else is blocked out, like using
headphones in your ears. I try some out (the plugs are one-use only, much
to my hygienic relief) and am dosed up with the deepest, purest almond
I've ever experienced, including taste. Then I stupidly stop and smell the
coffee, and I can't black out the morning anymore. It's there and I can't
escape what it means."

If you've ever fought with a friend over a guy/girl or if you've ever fought with
a friend period, or if you've fallen in love with someone who's not that into
you, this might just be the salve to your forgotten wounds. I just wished
wished wished that Naomi character was better-written.

What I think: 7.5 unicorns

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Honest Scrap Award! Woot!

2010-02-09T15:15:05Z

Yay, I got an Honest Scrap Blogger award from Sasha! :)
Thanks for tagging me, Sasha!

Here's what I had to do:

* The Honest Scrap Blogger Award must be shared.
* The recipient has to tell 10 (true) things about themselves that no one else knows.
* The recipient has to pass on the award to 7 more bloggers.
* Those 7 bloggers should link back to the blog that awarded them

Ten true things about me and books

1. We have this sort-of library room at home. Our house in Malabon is infested with termites and to our dismay, we find out that they love books as much as we do, which means we had to transfer books from shelves to huge-ass plastic rolling crates. Anyway, about that room: Apparently, the parents of my parents loved reading so much (My grandfather, a soldier, made it through the Bataan March through his knowledge of self-taught Nippongo through books, and his harmonica-playing skills.) that they created this mini-library found at the top of our stairs, before you can reach the bedrooms. It's filled with old National Geographic and FATE magazines, and a lot of Booksale finds from my father, my mother and from me. My father got OC one time and catalogued it according to Classics, Bestsellers and such, and each time I pass through this room, with all its yellowing, dusty, termite-infested volumes, my stress is significantly lowered and I remind myself that I should be eternally grateful to the Universe.

2. When I was younger, my parents taught me to read and rewarded efforts with books. Before I got a book, I had to read it loud to my mom and answer some comprehension questions before she gave it to me. I think this was what made me love reading, for the family time, and rewards! :)

3. I was a huge Sweet Valley addict. I started loving young adult novels through Judy Blume, but I adored the Sweet Valley Series. I also read Fifth Grade Stars and some other copycat novels which made me have a twin fixation. I was so intrigued with the phenomenon of twins that every term paper I made in school centered on its magic and mysticism. I started to write (start is more like it) crappy young adult novels with twins as the protagonists, illustrating the cover with my ideal vision of how the twins would look like and describing them in detail for the first few pages, before quickly losing steam. This happened for more than 3 would-be novels. I think I still have them at home.

4. I am obsessed with the smell of magazines. I like book smells too, but magazines--ooh la la! It's aromatherapy for me, in this fast-paced digital age.

5. In the library, when I was in grade school, my bestfriend and I would borrow these bound Liwayway magazines just so we could finish the Agua Bendita comic series.

6. Speaking of comics, aside from getting addicted to Archie when I was younger, I used to borrow almost everyday from our neighbor, who had a comic rental store. For Php2.00, you could borrow Nightmare and Fantasy comics, those grainy, cheaply-made ones, for a day. The neighborhood barber also had stacks of those comics, which made me really excited to get my hair cut and volunteer to accompany anyone who needed a hair cut.

7. Every Friday I would buy Funny comics at school, because I had a Funny comics collection, which I was obsessed with, then. I also collected those religious comics given at school called "Gospel", even if I'm not really Catholic. I'm a Spiritist, by the way.

8. I was the only girl in our school service. They were all boys, mostly older than me, and I was educated about the world of boys when I was ten and reading a copy of Judy Blume's "Are you there God? It's me Margaret." at our service. I was quietly reading and reached the part about menstruation, which my seatmate caught a glimpse of, and which sent them to hysterics.

9. When Jessica Zafra's column was still appearing in the newspaper Today, I would cut up each article and put it in a binder. During my snarky, angsty teen phase, I would often re-read each article, dreaming of the day when I could write with such wit and candor. I loved her foodie pieces most of all. She shared how she ate tuna from a can, how she cooked dulce de leche from condensed milk cans, how she grilled cheese sandwiches using a flat iron, etc.

10. I'm seriously considering a career in bookfinding. I'm talking about cheapo finds here, from Booksale. Tell me about books you want, and I just might see them, and then maybe, if it's cheap, I could buy it for you! :)

I'm tagging:
Raych from BooksIdoneread,
Eva from A Striped Armchair,
phoenixdreaming,
teaandoranges,
jc,
perchance,
hastyteenflick.

Thanks again, Sasha! :)

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Boy meets Boy by David Levithan

2010-02-09T15:06:01Z

We hold hands as we walk through town. If anybody notices, nobody cares. I know we all like to think of the heart as the center of the body, but at this moment every conscious part of me is in the hand that he holds. It is through that hand, that feeling, that I experience everything else. The only things around me are the good things--The mesmerizing tunes spilling out from the open door of the record store; the older man and the even older woman sitting on a park bench, sharing a blintz, the 7-year-old leaping from sidewalk square to sidewalk square, teetering and shifting to avoid stepping on a crack.

The night before, I unlock my closet of origami paper--over a thousand sheets of bright square color. I turn them all into flowers. Every single one. I do not sleep. I do not take breaks. Because I know that as well as giving him the flowers, I am giving him the time it takes to make them. With every fold, I am giving him seconds of my life.
With every flower, part of a minute.
I tie as many as I can to pipe-cleaner stems.
I arrange bouquets and lattices, some topped by cranes.
In the morning, I garland them throughout the halls, centerpiecing it all at his locker, so he'll know that they're all for him.
Every minute, every crease, is a message from me.

I can honestly say that it's been a long time since I was blown away by a ya love story. Especially something with an LGBT theme, so this was a pleasant surprise. I first read Levithan's work in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, and then I saw his collection of stories about love entitled "How they met and other stories", and that book was just SO good, that after reading the first story at a bookstore, I just had to have it. So I could savor it more thoroughly. But that's another story.

This book reminds me of the feeling of being in love, of how it feels when you see your crush, or when you begin to develop an explicable kind of fondness for someone. It has a lot of heart, and the sensation I got while reading it was akin to reading a modern-day fairytale, where you root for the hero, and pray that he gets his deserved happy ending.
It's predictably saccharinely sweet, but never cloying, for Levithan has this love affair with words, as well.
I read it expecting something like boy meets boy, boy falls in love, struggles with some identity issues, overcomes it, and loves boy back, proudly.
But it ISN'T like that.

Levithan knows how cliche and predictable that is and so he takes a slightly different path for his story, something I never would have expected in your typical lgbt ya novel. But he doesn't stray too far away from being a nice love story, and I loved every word. I cried in some parts (but that might be the pms sniffling), and got so giddy about others that I just had to finish it in one sitting so I can immediately pimp it to my officemates. This is the kind of book meant to be shared right away, so everyone can just bask in the afterglow and then maybe burp rainbows, in that happy, goodvibes sort of way.

What I think: 10 unicorns

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Girl from Mars by Tamara Bach

2010-02-09T15:04:28Z

Ah, teenagers. I was a really thin, gangly, clumsy teen. Definitely awkward, and prone to obsessing about how others saw me and skin problems. I didn't really have any sexual-identity related issues (I studied in an all-girls highschool, having a girlfriend was considered very cool)

Back in highschool, I had a girlfriend which lasted for only one day. It was a dare, and we couldn't stand being in this fake relationship so we called it off after a day. I still like girls though, and my partner and I have been happy together for the past 2 years or so, but that's another happy story.

Anyway, I picked this up because I was intrigued by the cover. That girl in the left is hot, and looked like my type, so I read the blurbs at the back, and decided to skim through it.

I could understand Miriam's fascination with Laura. (Miriam, I presume, is the one at the right side of the cover, while Laura is the hottie at the left)
Laura is the stereotypical cigarette-smoking rebellious new girl with the tough-as-nails aura, spiky short hair, black clothes and piercings.

I'm betting shy awkward teens with confused identities would love this one. If I were in highschool, this book might have changed my life, probably.

Or maybe not.

See this, for example:
"I am Miriam. Fifteen. Blonde. Brown eyes. Average height. Average weight. Daughter, sister, the person who sits beside you at school."

DISCLAIMER: I wrote this while reading it.

I do wish the author was more inventive with her letting-the-audience-know-how-average-the-protagonist-is-to-set-up-a-contrast-between-her-and-cool-rebellious-outgoing-Laura. In a nutshell, the plot of this book is: Average girl falls in love with not-so-average girl. The end.

There might be something lost in translation there, because this book was originally..Dutch? German? I am not sure, but it did win some awards. It could also be intentional, since the book is written using Miriam's pov, and maybe that was how 15-year-olds sound when they're waxing poetic about themselves. In hindsight, I probably sounded like that too, back then, so, okay.

On the bright side, there is the occasional interesting imagery:

"What is it about Laura? Every time I look at her, it's different. Sometimes it's as if she's always been here. And sometimes it's like she's here for the first time. Like she's just landed on my planet. Then I look at her and she looks at me and it's different again. Not bad different, but weird, like when you hear a new song that sounds strange but not in a bad way. And at some point you find yourself humming along. And you remember the words as you lie in bed, thinking of Laura and smiling into the dark, because the song is good, better than the others, and because it makes your hear beat faster, and it reminds you of yourself"

I got quite distracted with the number of times the word "weird" was said, but then I guess I must have been obsessed with how that word summed up almost everything when I was younger, without revealing too much. This book actually reminded me a bit of Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower, except it's less introspective and has more giggling.

I am now sad. How many books have I read with this theme, where the shy girl and the rebel girl kiss and then the roles are reversed, with the rebel girl going all cold and aloof, and the shy girl is all hurt and confused, and..
Curiously, I am now liking Ms. Average girl, but I am still sad for her. And for YA LGBT readers, who read books like this that end up making them depressed and hopeless. I understand how authors want to be realistic, but I'm sure there are teen LGBT romances that don't end up so miserably. Which brings me to the next ya LGBT-themed book I've read: How they Met and other stories by David Levithan, but that book merits another gush-filled entry.

Like the Well of Loneliness, but for teens. And with more drugs.

What I think: 5 unicorns

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Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

2010-02-09T15:02:07Z

Writing can give you what having a baby can give you: it can get you to start paying attention, can help you soften, can wake you up.

There's no point in writing hopeless novels.

A writer paradoxically seeks the truth and tells lies every step of the way.

This is what separates artists from ordinary people: The belief deep in our hearts, that if we build our castles well enough, somehow the ocean won't wash them away. I think that is a wonderful kind of person to be.

When writers make us shake our heads with the exactness of their prose and their truths, and even make us laugh about ourselves, or life, our buoyancy is restored. We are given a shot at dancing with, or at least clapping along with, the absurdity of life, instead of being squashed by it over and over again.

I am afraid of calling myself a writer. In fact, I deliberately shy away from using that term to describe myself, preferring the safer "blogger", or "crafter" or the new-agey "dreamer". It scares me that people will laugh, see the many typos and grammatical errors in my entries and scoff at my gall to use that holy, sacred word meant for people with impeccable grammar, who can churn out meaningful entries each day without using imageposts as crutch for writer's block, or those witty enough to imply with words that they are smiling without having to resort to the use of smiley faces at the end of their entries.

But this book makes me want to write, it makes me want to call myself a writer, just because no one should stop me. It gives you the permission to create mistakes, to be vain and obsessive, even to love wholeheartedly, which is what a writer should be doing--connecting with this world and everything in it.

Almost each page was lovingly filled with words of wisdom and encouragement, urging the reader to just dive as well as she can and to forget all the negativity that hinders their growth as "writers".

"I don't think you have time to waste not writing because you are afraid you won't be good enough at it, and I don't think you have time to waste in someone who does not respond to you with kindness and respect. You don't want to spend your time around people who make you hold your breath. You can't fill up when you're holding your breath. And writing is about filling up, filling up when you are empty, letting images and ideas and smells run down like water, just as writing is also about dealing with emptiness."

I'm still hesitant about calling myself a writer, and I'm hoping someday I get to be as good as Lamott, but for the meantime, I'm sticking to this year's resolution to write more, and getting inspiration from wonderful writers I admire. If you ever got the feeling of being stuck and wanting some inspiration, this book is definitely a huge help. Even if you don't fancy yourself a writer, her tips are pretty much applicable to life in general, and everything is delivered in a nice older-sister/aunt kind of way, that you can't help but listen.

Aside from writing more, I also vow to love more, since I got inspired by this quote from the book:

A big heart is both a clumsy and delicate thing: it doesn't protect itself and it doesn't hide.

What I think: 10 unicorns

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Lena by Jacqueline Woodson

2010-02-09T15:00:07Z

I honestly thought this was an LGBT book, since I read the wrong blurb at the back. The blurb was for some other book by Woodson, but apparently she gets a lot of awards for her writing. I took a chance on this book, since it just costs Php10.00 and it was hardbound, no less, and seemed interesting.

I finished it in half a day, because true enough, Ms. Woodson is a gifted storyteller. This book is about how Lena, a 13-year-old girl and her younger sister ran away from home to escape their father, who has been sexually abusing them. Sounds depressing? Well it is, but Woodson manages to insert such feistiness and courage in her characters that you get this impression that things might change for the better for these two brave girls.

Unlike other authors (I won't name names), Woodson refuses to dwell into the graphic details, instead relying on carefully-strung words, like how their father "smiled at them with a smile meant for my mother" instead of the usual nitty-gritty descriptions.

It was a short read, but quite meaty. Woodson knows when to expound, like in her descriptions of how these girls could still find pleasure in the simplest things, and when to leave things to the reader's imagination. Her characters stay with you long after you've finished turning the pages. Is it wrong to like a book tackling such a delicate taboo topic? Because I quite like how that issue was handled by Ms. Woodson here, in a book for young adults, no less.

What I think: 8 unicorns

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The Adrian Mole Diaries by Sue Townsend

2010-02-09T14:59:30Z

My mother is thirty-eight today. I bought her a card which said 'Happy 18th Birthday', but I cunningly changed the number one into a three by the use of Tipp-Ex and dried lentils. So it read 'Happy 38th Birthday!" Unfortunately the verse on the inside didn't math my mother's lifestyle much.

A-tremble on the edge of life,
One day to be a mum and wife.
But now it's discos fun and laughter:
Why should you care what's coming after?

The picture on the front was of a teenage girl going mad to sounds coming out of a record player. On reflection, I think it was a bad choice of card. I wish I wasn't an impulse buyer. Her present was some underarm hair remover. I noticed that the stuff she usually uses had run out.

This book is a 2-in-one, containing "The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4" and "The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole". Found in Booksale for around Php75, if I remember correctly.
I haven't quite gotten round to finishing it, and the last time I laid my eyes on it was two years ago, but that's another story. I picked it up again in a desire to give it away, but I'm re-reading it again first.
I skipped the first book, since I've finished reading it already, and couldn't remember much about it, except that it had this lad, Adrian Mole obsessing about his facial hair (or lack thereof) and other body parts which brings him angst and pining after this smart sassy girl named Pandora. They ended up together, but then they break up, then they got back together, then they broke up again, and so on and so forth.

I kept on thinking it was Bridget Jones' diary that I was reading, since they have almost the same style and tone, or that Angus thongs series. There were a few chuckles here and there, some sexism, which turned me off, and impeccable deadpan delivery, which had me flipping the pages every now and then. However, it just wasn't that engaging for me, or maybe I was distracted and wasn't in the right frame of mind whilst reading it.

If you enjoy British humor, or like Bridget Jones or Georgia Nicholson, you might enjoy this.

What I think: 7 unicorns

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2010 TBR pile part 1

2010-02-09T14:57:01Z

I'm quite excited about my TBR pile:

Also, I was lusting over a copy of Ariel Schrag's Likewise at Cubao X. Unfortunately, it costs around Php1,000 so I could only stare at it longingly, safe from my grubby hands inside that glass shelf. Lo and behold, last week's Booksale raid got me this:

Not just, Awkward, not just Definition, but both in one book! I kept wishing I had somebody with me to grab onto whilst I hyperventilated with excitement. To top it off, it only cost around Php140! Ohgod I love Booksale.

I think I might be in love with Ariel Schrag. She just exudes this clumsy, awkward aura that I find hard to resist. I'm not yet finished with this, but I am loving what I've read so far. It's just so honest and real and funny without trying too hard and there are some parts where you just...feel for her. She documents highschool ups and downs, with L7 and Juliette Lewis-obsessed entries that I am reminded with how I made a Leonardo Dicaprio (don't ask) newsletter and Angelina Jolie scrapbook and shrine to prove my love for them.
I had to read it slowly, since I didn't want it to end, so I just savor a few pages a day, thinking about how miserable and laughable highschool was, and how glad I am that it's over, thank God.

What I think: 10 unicorns

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rainbowunicorn_reads @ 2010-02-09T23:14:00

2010-02-09T14:55:01Z

So for 2009 I've read 75 books.My goal is to read 100 books for 2010. :) Wish me luck!

Books I've read:
* Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
* NP by Banana Yoshimoto
* Hardboiled and hardluck by Banana Yoshimoto
* The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
* Women's Glib Anthology
* Gossip Girl: Nobody does it better
* The Little White Horse
* Blindness by Jose Saramago
* Double fudge by Judy Blume
* The Book of Salt by Monique Truong
* Nobody belongs here more than you by Miranda July
* The Beach by Alex Garland
* The tale of Despereaux
* Plato and Platypus walk into a bar
* Flip edited by Zafra
* Stephen King goes to the movies
* Different Seasons by Stephen King
* Then we came to the end by Joshua Ferris
* Tales of Beedle the Bard
* Heart-shaped box by Joe Hill
* I Capture the castle by Dodie Smith
* The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
* Garlic and sapphires by Ruth Reichl
* Tales of a fourth-grade nothing by Judy Blume
* The good times are killing me by Lynda Barry
* The Ruby in the smoke by Philip Pullman
* The Shadow in the North by Philip Pullman
* The tiger in the well by Philip Pullman
* Cathy's book
* Letters to a young poet by Rilke
* Almost French by Sarah Turnbull
* Sugar and salt by Ninotchka Rosca
* Kikomachine 5 by Manix Abrera
* Oranges are not the only fruit by Jeanette Winterson
* Mediterranean summer
* New day revolution
* 13 reasons why by Jay Asher
* Kikomachine 4 by Manix Abrera
* The end of the alphabet by C.S. Richardson
* The Road by Cormac Mccarthy
* The merchant of marvels and the peddler of dreams
* Welostit
* The Best American Erotica 1996
* Shockproof sydney skate
* Brokeback mountain
* A year in the merde
* Knots in my yo-yo string by Jerry Spinelli
* The World and other places by Jeanette Winterson
* A year in the merde by Stephen Clarke
* Dave Barry's complete guide to guys
* Change your life without getting out of bed by Sark
* Goodbye chunky rice by Craig Thompson
* Creative license by Danny Gregory
* Primavera by Francesca Lia Block
* Sleepaway (writings on summer camp) edited by Eric Simonoff
* Neverwhere graphic novel
* Persepolis 1 graphic novel
* Kissing Kate
* We have always lived in the castle by Shirley Jackson
* The Zombie survival guide by Max Brooks
* Blood roses by Francesca Lia Block
* The Lost symbol by Dan Brown
* Trese 1, 2, 3
* Stories for free children from Ms. Magazine
* Possible Side Effects by Augusten Burroughs
* Nasty by Simon Doonan
* Best Lesbian love stories 2004
* Prom dates from hell
* Hell week
* The Haunting of Hill house by Shirley Jackson
* Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
* Connecting flights edited by Ruey de Vera
* Lena by Jacqueline Woodson
* Awkward and Definition by Ariel Schrag
* How they met and other stories by David Levithan

Personal bookwins: Awkward and Definition. Bird by Bird. Creative License. The Sally Lockhart series by Philip Pullman. How they met and other stories. Welostit. Persepolis. Heart-shaped box. Good omens. Almost French
Bookfails: Sadly, Primavera. A Year in the Merde. Cathy's book had all this interactivity but the story was pretty much "meh".

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A mango-shaped space by Wendy Mass

2010-02-09T14:54:16Z

I saw this book a few months before I saw it again. You know, the usual, I see it in some pricey bookstore, salivate and obsess about it a bit before putting it back in the shelves, and then find it luckily in some Booksale branch. I love how the Universe works :D

Anyway, it's about this girl who has synesthesia, an affliction I am fascinated with, and how she has this cat named Mango, because said cat reminds her of.. um, that fruit. I loved how the girl describes everything, from how she tasted some letters to how colorful someone's name is. Or was it the other way around? I wish I paid more attention whilst reading it, wish I wrote down unforgettable descriptions, because there were many, but I think I was reading it in a hurry and this means I should read it again, more slowly, savoring this time.

I do remember feeling that I wanted to have this girl as a younger sister. That maybe she could describe things she saw to me, and how it would make a lifetime of difference, seeing things anew.

What I think: 7 unicorns

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Obsessing about magazines and reading.

2010-02-09T14:53:35Z

On obsessing about reading

The very first thing I do when I get my hands on a book or a magazine, regardless of whether it's new or old, is to open it to a random page and inhale the comforting smell of its binding.

It instantly transports me to a happier place, where there are no looming deadlines or other worries--just me and bound paper, with a smattering of words I have yet to get acquainted with. I particularly love the scent of our local magazines--a smell I've come to associate with "me time" and possibilities, owing this perhaps to my previous job at a magazine publishing company.

I cannot recall when my love affair with books and magazines started, but I do know that since I was small I have religiously collected young adult paperbacks, magazines found lying around our house like Food, or Parents, and obsessively filed those kiddie supplements found in our newspapers.

I had bad grades in elementary since I'd rather max out my library card than study. I think I was "Borrower of the month" in our library a bit too often. Instead of socializing, I hurriedly ate my packed lunch at my chair, and spend time at the library with those imaginary friends found between pages, who lived in far more interesting worlds, I thought then. I'd lug home those thick, hardbound books with a mishmash of stories and varying illustrations that are really for kids abroad, and ignore jeering comments of "Nerd" by my classmates and comfort myself with the thought that I could instantly escape school bullies and bad grades and friends who are not really friends the moment I open my books. This might be the reason why I am hooked on fairytales and happy endings and avoid the grittier Palahniuk-style works. Shallow as it might seem, my reasoning is simple--real life is already harsh sometimes, and I wouldn't want to escape to something equally horrifying. Horror stories are different, though, since it's equally comforting to just shut the book when things get too scary. Since I also have a short attention span, I could easily teleport from one fictional world to another, in just a simple flick of a finger as I open another book.

My short attention span is partly to blame for my magazine fetish, though. And my love for color and typography. There's just something decadent about opening a newly-bought magazine on your favorite topic leisurely, taking time to absorb the beautiful photographs, or over-analyzing the profile interviews, or feeling that winkle of pleasure to know that someone is also as obsessed as you are with a particular topic as represented by that magazine.

I read magazines I love from cover to cover and relish even ads and letters to the editor. NYLON magazine readers are particularly creative, with handmade cards declaring their love for NYLON and for the NYLON mag lifestyle. Bitch zine readers, on the other hand, are a feisty, opinionated bunch. If you know me well enough, you'd know that I have plenty of tiny obsessions and these are encouraged by the variety of affordable mags on related topics found in my usual bookstore haunts. I obsess to the point of obsessing about my obsessions (if that made any sense) which led me to reflect on why I love each unique mag. (Plus I also love creating lists, haha).

My favorite magazines and why they rock my socks:
1. BUST- They always feature girls who deserve to be featured on the cover, and they have an extensive interview with thought-provoking questions. They contain articles about modern feminist movements all over the world and inspire me to start a revolution myself. Plus they have a DIY section, a well-researched review section, unique fashion editorials featuring real girls, funny comics and illustrations by modern up-and-coming artists. Bust, for me is the perfect blend of modern feminism (and ideals) and old-school nostalgia, if you ask me to describe it. As a bonus, also has that infamous "one-handed read" section that makes it different from your usual glossy mainstream mag.

Also see: Venuszine and Bitch - Venuszine is like a thinner version of Bust, since it has less pages but is equally enjoyable. Bitch is the angrier, less glossy, more informed version. Reading Bitch is like reading an investigative report on a theme, since each issue is focused on themes like "Genesis" or "The Wired issue". There's just so much injustice towards women discussed in Bitch, and I often end up angry at mankind after reading it. But still, you have to admit it's a gutsy and very informative magazine.

2. Craft zine and Readymade- Both are craft magazines, but Craft is quirkier and funnier, with projects ranging from deconstructing shirts into skirts to japanese juggling toys. Readymade is more focused on industrial design/woodwork and construction themes, with lawn chairs from old crates, or lamps from cd cases etc.

3. Blueprint and Domino- They're both sadly out of print, which saddens me to no end. Blueprint, from Martha Stewart publications is a mishmash of interior decorating tips, household tips and also appears like a catalog that revolves on a theme, a la Domino. Domino features cool homes, offers decor tips too, and is just like a dream house book, since most of the stuff here are pricey. I look at both magazines for decor inspiration, since both feature cheap decor ideas, like blowing up a picture of the simple things you love and framing it against a brightly-colored wall.

4. Martha Stewart Living- When Martha means "Good things" I believe her, especially since the diy ideas here are simple but lovely, inexpensive but impressive, proving that 'good' doesn't necessarily mean expensive. The styling and photography within these pages amaze me, with its bold and effortless color combos.

5. Women's Health- I'm not an exercise and fitness buff, nor do I engage in miracle diet plans. I do wish I could revert to my college weight though, only with more muscle. Women's Health makes me want to devote myself to achieving my healthy ideal weight NOW. They have useful facts about which food and exercise combination suits you most and they suggest dishes that are tasty and easy to cook. All those buff toned women inside are great motivators too. I'm so glad they have the local version from Summit, with healthy food that you can actually buy here. Not so keen about the price though, the back issues from abroad are much cheaper.

6. NYLON- I first saw NYLON fresh from college, when I was filled with idealism and had high hopes for my future. A lot has changed since then, but I still love NYLON. Not as much as I love Lula or BUST, but love it just the same. The fashion spreads are glorious and very inspiring. Sometimes, however, I feel old when I read NYLON since it's too scenester-y and indie--guess i'm not a part of that scene. haha.

7. Lula and Frankie- Already posted about my obsession with Lula and Frankie in a previous post. They give me sweet dreams, they're modern fairytales in magazine format. If they were real girls I would be crushing on them majorly, maybe stalking them, like a creep. Big time.

Looking at my reading list is enough to give me good vibes:

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Author crush: Ali Smith

2010-02-09T14:52:00Z

I have a new crush: Ali Smith. Her writing is so sharp and gentle at the same time--she makes me feel all warm and fuzzy with the way her words are strung, but a bit drunk too, if you can comprehend that feeling in its entirety. The gf recommended it, when I saw her clutching almost all Smith's books at a bookstore, and I read one short story and I was hooked. That story was Free Love, about a woman's sexual awakening and it was from her collection of short stories also entitled Free Love. My personal gauge of the effectiveness of a short story is its memorability, and this one is unforgettable. I like its simplicity and optimistic tone, how it doesn't end as magically as I would have liked, but it still made me feel hopeful. I think most short stories that I've read tend to be depressing or too sugary, but this one was just right.

What I think: About Ali Smith in general? 10 unicorns (She's also openly gay so additional bonus points, heh)

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