Top Ten Tuesday May 10: Ten Websites I Waste Time on That (mostly) Aren't About Books

(Concept, topic, and logo all from The Broke and the Bookish)

Tor: I know the guidelines are for sites not about books, but I actually don’t really use the Tor site for book stuff. Rather, it is one of my go-to places for TV recaps and reviews. I also love when they do re-watches and re-reads of older work and see how it holds up (a hobby of mine I would like to have time to indulge more).

Flavorwire: A culture site devoted to books, art, television, film, current events, etc. I respect their writers and their occasionally contrarian reviews of popular media.

The Sartorialist: I love street style, and The Sartorialist is the premiere place to see amazing style all over the world and on people of all genders and ages (a rarity for street style blogs).

Io9: There is a definite pattern emerging, as this is another place I go to frequently for pop culture updates and television recaps.

Kotaku: More pop culture, usually focused on video games but sometimes just random Japanese trends.

Refinery29: Fashion, makeup, beauty. All that good "girly" stuff plus articles on sex, relationships, etc.

Buzzfeed: Who doesn’t waste the occasional block of time on Buzzfeed listicles? They also do pretty good long form journalism.

Vulture: A go-to place for what's going on in all the TV shows I don't watch but am inexplicably interested in.

The Daily Beast: Like Vulture, but often a little more insightful and with more space given to current events as well as entertainment. I’m always looking for more pieces like Arthur Chu’s “Your Princess is in Another Castle.”

Pinterest: This is the only social media I’m including, since it’s really the only social media I spend huge swathes of time on, mostly for closet inspiration and to find really amazing costume ideas and cosplay.

Ten Child/Young Adult Characters You’d Love to Revisit as Adults

Attempting to put this list together has shown me how very few books I’ve read with child or young adult protagonists whose adult lives I never see. Or whose adult lives I would care much about, honestly. I don’t think I’ll make it to ten, but here goes:

Junior, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. I would really like to know if everything Junior went through turned out OK. Did his education off the res give him the leg-up he was hoping for? Did his dad ever deal with his drinking problem? Did his family ever catch a break?

Romeo and Juliet, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. For the sake of this list, I would like to imagine they didn’t die. How long would it have taken them to realize they made a terrible mistake and that declaring undying love for someone and tying yourself to them for life before you’ve even finished puberty (or known them longer than a week) is really, really dumb?

Matilda Wormwood, Matilda by Roald Dahl. You just know Matilda grew up to do amazing things. Did she keep her powers? Did she outgrow them? Did she grow up to be the world’s coolest librarian or did she start writing her own books? Personally, I’d like to think she grew up to be much like Mara Wilson, the actress that played her in the film.

Sophronia from the Finishing School series by Gail Carriger. Thanks to the series being part of the Parasol Protectorate universe, we do see a couple of the girls all grown up. But what about Sophronia? A whole series of her adventures as a badass secret agent would be so much fun, and I would love to see her meet other characters from the Parasol events (besides the ones she went to school with).

Eleanor and Park from the eponymous novel by Rainbow Rowell. JUST TELL ME IT WORKS OUT. Theirs is perhaps the only adolescent romance I’ve ever rooted for in the long term.

Well, I think that’s the best I can do. It’s a bit of a conundrum: if an author creates a really compelling character, it’s natural to want to see more of them. And yet, if they tell the story right, they rarely leave me feeling like I need more. Sometimes a great character is great specifically because their story arc fits perfectly, and I simply don’t need anything else.

(Original Top Ten Tuesday concept, topic, and logo via The Broke and the Bookish)

April 26: Top Ten Bookworm Delights

(Original Top Ten Tuesday concept and topic thanks to The Broke and the Bookish)

Spending hours in the used book store

            The used book store is my “me” place. Every chance I get I like to slip away from work, kids, bills, and non-book things and just browse for unexpected treasures.

Rediscovering a book I loved years ago and finding that it’s still just as good

            I reread a lot, which means some disappointment but also some great surprises.

Finding something new in a book I’ve read before

            Books that are truly great reward you every time you read them again.

Making infographics and charts of reading data

            I like compiling data and seeing it in all of its visualized glory.

A freshly organized library (physical and/or digital)

            The feeling of having everything in its place and knowing exactly where to find something: priceless.

A paperback of the perfect size and weight

            There’s just something about the way certain books feel in your hands.

Books with worn leather covers

            I own an old copy of Henry Esmond by William Makepeace Thackery. Will I ever read it? Probably not. But it is a tiny little quarto sized volume with onionskin pages and the butteriest, softest old leather cover, so I have to keep it, if only just to hold it occasionally and have it look very sophisticated on my shelf.

Having a whole day to do nothing but read

            I have a toddler. In other words, spending the whole day reading is not usually an option. When it does happen though, it’s like heaven.

The feeling of responsibility fulfilled when I pay my library fines  

            I’m terrible about dealing with due dates. I should be more responsible, but frankly the money is going to a great place and that fresh feeling of paying off a tiny debt is kind of nice.

Swapping books with someone who appreciates your taste and vice versa

            For me, this is particular to comic books. I have a friend who is forever looking for new indie comic titles, and since he doesn’t have kids, he usually gets his hands on expensive or really new stuff that I can borrow in exchange for a few of my lesser-known titles. The best part is we can then have awesome conversations about comics.

(Original Top Ten Tuesday concept and topic from The Broke and the Bookish)

Today's list is slated to be Ten Books On My Spring TBR, but rather than make a TBR for spring when I’ve barely made headway into any of the others I’ve made for past Top Tens, I’m going to go with a list of the Top 10 ARCs I Desperately Need to Read ASAP (which is still a TBR, I know). I’ve been sitting on some of these ARCs for over a year, which kind of goes against the whole “reading in advance of release” thing.

Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction by Hannu Rajaniemi. I’ve dipped into it and love the style, but just haven’t been into a lot of short fiction lately.

The Unfortunate Decisions of Dahlia Moss by Max Wirestone. This was requested based on one really strong review. Perhaps not the best barometer of my own interest.

The Witch of Lime Street by David Jaher. Another one that came from a strong recommendation and has yet to be cracked open.

The Builders by David Polansky. I’m really interested to see where the Tor novellas are going to go. It would help if I read the only one I’ve requested so far. Plus, talking animals.

Investigating Lois Lane by Tim Hanley. I’ve never been terribly interested in Superman, but Lois’ history sounds fascinating.

Ladies Night at the Dreamland by Sonja Livingston. I really love essay collections, university press publications, and books about women, so this looks to be promising.

Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye. I’ve started this one, but it’s very dark (Jane Eyre if Jane were a serial killer!) and I’m taking my time.

The Beauty Volume 1 by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley. An interesting premise and the cover art drew me in.

Sister Light, Sister Dark by Jane Yolen. I’ve actually read this book before, but it was more than 15 years ago and I remember nothing other than I enjoyed it. I know I will like it and I want to boost the signal for it as a re-launch of a title that has been out of print for some time.

Through the Habitrails by Jeff Nicholson. It will be interesting to see how an early 90s social commentary comic holds up (from what I can tell, very little has changed).

Today's Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I've Recently Added To My TBR

(Topic and original Top Ten Tuesday concept from The Broke and the Bookish)

After Alice by Gregory Maguire. A Christmas present (my copy is signed, which is extra cool). I love Alice in Wonderland and I also love classic story retellings, and since Maguire hasn’t let me down yet, I have high hopes.

White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi. This was also a Christmas present (from the same person, my super sneaky Secret Santa who knows just what I like, apparently), and a book I’ve been hoping to get my hands on for ages.

Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho. This one has been on my list for a few months, since it keeps getting compared to Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, one of my absolute favorites. My library hold finally came in, so hopefully I’ll get to it soon.

House of Dark Delights by Louisa Burton. This is on my list, though I don’t own it yet. I’m trying to find some well-written erotica and nothing is meeting my absurdly high standards (Anais Nin is my only love so far). (Also, recommendations highly sought).

Bonk by Mary Roach. I’ve been meaning to read something by Roach forever, and I’m always interested in learning the biological and neurological underpinnings of sexuality.

Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction. I received an ARC of this AGES ago, and just recently dipped into it and had to bump it up the TBR list.

The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell. Like Mary Roach, Vowell is a writer I’ve had on my radar for some time but have yet to try. I found a copy of this (and a couple of her other books) at the used bookstore and now they are awaiting me on Mt. TBR.

Old New York by Edith Wharton. I’m hoping to take on a sort of “Wharton project” this year, tackling things I haven’t read, but also rereading the greats like House of Mirth and Age of Innocence.

The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee. I’ve had the ARC for this for a while, as I was trying to wait until a bit closer to publication to read it. Since it comes out in early February, I fear I may have cut it a bit close to tackle it before the release date, but I’ve heard so much buzz, my curiosity got the better of me.

How Star Wars Conquered the Universe by Chris Taylor. This is the lone audiobook I’m counting, as I tend to let them sit around longer. But the history is intriguing, and this is also a book I think my husband and I will both enjoy, which is rare.