Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Hello from my sickbed.

Hello from Mr. Caine and me!

I've been knocked down by some random cold that's run through Ben and jump onto me.
It's not cool. I haven't be able to do much except sleep, read, eat and check Tumblr.
I'm feeling more substantial today though.


On Saturday we went up to a town called New Harmony that's been very well preserved and has tons of old churches and buildings. New Harmony hosts a lot of little galleries and a lot of events take place there. We went for a "gallery stroll." It was fun except it had to be crazy hot of course. We took a break in their coffee shop/used bookstore/gallery. 
The gallery was hosting some truly atrocious painting selling for unbelievably high prices, but the coffee shop was air conditioned so we stopped to rest there for awhile. Looking at the books for sale was way more interesting than those paintings!

The rest of the week I've spent a lot of time of at dccomics.com. It seems that my brain can only process a little information at a time so I've slowly caught up on the New 52 Wonder Woman series. So far I'm pretty impressed.

What have you been up to this week?
Happy reading!

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Comic Review: A Study in Scarlet


I've always told myself that I'd read all of the Sherlock Holmes stories, and it hasn't happened yet.
I keep saying to myself "Oh, I'll get to it...after I read this."
Ben and I did listen to some of the stories on audiobook while packing up the apartment.
They seemed to be towards the end of the series.
A Study in Scarlet is the start of Sherlock Holmes series. It introduces Dr. Watson and Holmes.
The mystery deals with poison and Mormons. It was really entertaining but also a little odd (Mormons? Who knew they were so vicious).
This graphic novel was listed as an Illustrated Classic which means it was safe for children. Considering the time period that the story was original written I doubt it needed to be censored for content. 
I liked the graphic novel version it was still text heavy but it was split up enough that it was a fairly quick read. 
I was weary about the art at first-it's very caricature like- but the coloring was very detailed and it all work well together.
I would like to read the others in this series as well.

I also watched the first episode of the first season of the BBC series Sherlock.
A Study in Pink
It was extremely well done and I can see why the fandom is fierce.
So fierce it's a little off putting...

Happy reading!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

The joy of pens


I've been journalling since I was nine. My first journal was a composition notebook like Amelia from Amelia's Notebooks. I used to love writing with pencils. I remember carrying this notebook and pencils with me everywhere, documenting every happening. I loved the act of writing itself. I loved to feel the lead dragging across the page. I never liked pens much because I could never get the ink to come out evenly and I always ended up scratching the pages. A couple years ago a discovered PaperMate Flair pens. I was doing a journalling challenge and the host talk about these as her favorite pens so I tried them out. They remind me of markers but don't bleed and they have a similar drag quality as pencils do. I now have tons of these pens everywhere. My favorite colors are purple and green.
The other night I saw a commercial for a new PaperMate pen. (which I thought was weird, but I also think commercials for books are weird)
These are new journals from 08-10. My childhood journals are buried somewhere.
Well, whilst wandering around a drug store I came across these new pens, the InkJoy pens, and decided to buy some. We have a myriad of cheap pens around the house that drive Ben crazy because he can never make them work (he doesn't like my Flair pens, he classifies them as markers) so I got these for him and I hopefully will slowly start purging the house of the old ones; he feels bad about getting rid of these cheap pens because he thinks it's a waste, God bless him.
All this talk of writing makes me want to find my journal, where ever I misplaced it.

Happy Writing!

Monday, August 20, 2012

What I'm currently reading...

I'm in the middle of reading a couple of things that I thought I'd share with you. I'm still recuperating from the wedding weekend and we have a house guest in the form of a Great Pyrenees this week, so I'm a little slow on my reading, forgive me.
Outlander



My aunt gave this too me to read I'm about 2/3rd of the way through and I like it.
Goodreads has mixed reviews on it at polarizing ends too. They are either obsessed with the series (didn't realize it was legit series I just thought it was stand alone) or they tore the book apart. (someone stated they burned it which was a bit melodramatic in my opinion) Right now I haven't gotten to any "romantic" parts which is what has everyone in a tizzy, but am enjoying the peek into Scottish history which I know nothing about.

Anna Karenina



I'm reading this along with a group on Goodreads.
Actually, I'm listening to it on audiobook. I had to read Tolstoy in high school and I knew from experience I'd give up on actually reading it pretty quick. I do still tend to tune out parts of the book where he launches into his theorizing on economics and class, though interesting, they get tedious. That aside I'm enjoying the story and the characters thus far.

A Study in Scarlet



I've read/listen to a lot of Sherlock Holmes short stories but never any of the novels. This series of graphic novels has interested me for awhile and this one just happened to be at the library last week...

I'm planning on making lots of progress on all of these this week and have summaries as well as some opinions on Romance and the Classics.

Happy reading!

Friday, August 17, 2012

Weddin' time!


One of my dearest friends is getting married on Saturday. We've been doing traditional wedding things lately- like stressing about dresses, bachelorette parties, trying to figure out hair and nail appointments and being awake way too late. 
So to be honest, I haven't done reading of any kind this week, but it will back to normal on Sunday! and I'll be back then.
Have a lovely weekend!

Monday, August 13, 2012

Comic Review: Batman: Arkham Asylum


Okay, bear with me here this is my first review of a comic.
And, this is my first Batman Comic that I've read this decade.
That being said I don't think this was a good place for me to start back.
This also contains spoilers.
This comic was published in 1989 right before Warner Brother's came out with their Batman, and they asked that this comic be censored to a point. I think because of this a lot was lost in the story.
I read a review/summary on it after I read it through and it mentioned things like Batman dealing with his sexuality and a cannibalistic scene with Abraham Arkham that I totally missed.
I went back and read it through again and had to stretch my imagination on though scenes.
The artwork was beautiful in the book, but it didn't portray motion well. I don't think Dave Mckean wanted it too he went for an abstract approach I think that it was to focus on the emotional and psychological issues that were supposed to be happening.
However I sort of lost that in the writing. A lot of scenes turned out to be Batman wandering the halls of Arkham Asylum occasionally peeking in to see old rivals and getting his ass kicked by the Croc.
At that point I wondered why he came. He's Batman and he was doing what he was told by the Joker? What? and the only point I saw any psychological struggle was when he remembered his parent's murdered and whispered "Mommy?" Then he just lets all the villains go...
WHAT?
What kind of conclusion was that?
The comic was supposedly exploring a different side of Batman which it did, however it did it weakly.
Arkham's story was better and clearer.
If they had removed the almost random Batman side story I think they could have made it an interesting look in Arkham's history instead it turned into a vague exploration of the Batman that didn't quite go anywhere.



Sunday, August 12, 2012

Library Love

Libraries.
I love them.
My mom took me and my brother to the library a lot when we were little.
To me, it was like being in a bookstore except I could take any of it home.
I still have that view I guess.
I always check out more than one just because I can.
 I really started to utilize the library the summer of my junior year.
I answered phones for a Feedscrew company and had a lot of down town.
I remember going to the library and just checking out stacks of books at a time.
I read almost all of Francesca Lia Block's books, and the whole Sandman series that summer.
I have an e-reader now, but I still enjoy going to the library. I like being around books as weird as that sounds.
I thought I'd share some of my favorite libraries with you.

For some reason this reminds me of the library from Beauty and the Beast.

George Lucas has great taste.

Neil Gaiman's library. Duh.


I'd totally live in this loft. In Paris.

This looks like the coziest place on Earth. 

Does anyone enjoy looking at books as much as I do?





Thursday, August 9, 2012

Favorite Aurthors

a person or thing regarded with special favor or preference.

I've been trying to figure out who my favorite author is so I could do a post about him/her, but as it turns out I don't have just one; I have three. Three different authors for three different reasons.


1. Neil Gaiman- I started reading Anasi Boys on a vacation and loved it. After that I started looking specifically for books written by Gaiman. Then I saw him all over the internet. He has a Twitter and Tumblr account which I both follow. Through this I know more about him than any author I've read about and I think he's a cool dude. He is my favorite author for his personality.



2. J.K. Rowling- I love the Harry Potter series so much. The re-read value is excellent. I've read the whole series several times. I'm not a fan of J.K.Rowling as a person- she strikes me as snobby and aloof, but I can't deny she is a fabulous writer. She is the author of my favorite book series.








3.Tamora Pierce- I read everything that she wrote in middle school and high school. I love her characters, she writes strong female characters that are believable. The plots in her books are full of epic adventure. She's the author of some of my favorite characters.







Six months from now this set could change, or there could be another one added on, there are so many good authors out there for some many different reasons.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Book Review: Wuthering Heights

This is my first book review- I enjoyed doing it more than I thought I would. Until recently, I thought all book reviews were was a summary and an opinion. I did some looking around and realized that that is no longer the case. This one runs long and I do apologize, and it has spoilers in it. 


"Lonely, like the devil, and envious like him? Nobody loves you-nobody will cry for you when you die!"

This quote made by Catherine Heathcliff to Heathcliff himself sums up the whole of the book.
Emily Bronte creates a intimately painful narrative that follows the finding of the boy Heathcliff and his effect on the innocents that make is adoptive family. 
 
    Upon Catherine's death I had her listed as devious as Heathcliff and felt no sympathy for her, upon reflection however, I've changed my mind. She was so conflicted between two loves that it killed her. She really did love Edgar (who, in my opinion, was the purest of characters in this story) but she also love Heathcliff equally as much and could not choose between the two.

"Be with me always - take any form - drive me mad! only DO not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you!"
Heathcliff's statement upon learning that Catherine was dead sums up the deepness of his true feelings for her. I believe that her ghost did drive him mad and his actions after her death was him trying to quell that madness.

Catherine's daughter was as equally tormented as her mother but in a different way- she loved Linton because she felt someone aught to, and he needed her. After being forced into marrying Linton and seeing his true character she suffered an illness similar to her mother's-feeling trapped and not knowing what to do. The only thing that kept this Catherine alive was the hope of seeing her father again.
At this point I honestly had a hard time continuing with this book. I knew by the narrator Lockwood's account that Catherine stayed trapped and miserable at Wuthering Heights. I was afraid this would be how the book ended.

I want to take a moment to talk about the narrators - Nelly Dean and Mr. Lockwood. Nelly was my favorite, I loved that she always strove stand by her moral code and no one, including Heathcliff could change her mind.
Mr. Lockwood struck me as foolish. He met Catherine at her worst, was told how foolish she had been and fell in love with the idea of her. Despite that he was still endearing for his outside observations.

I was surprise at the positive turn at the end. I was glad the Hareton finally got his moment to shine. To me, one of the most despairing parts in the book was when Nelly had to leave the five-year-old Hareton with Heathcliff knowing no good would come to him. She held out for him till the end, knowing of his quick mind and good heart. No matter what Heathcliff had done to him to turn him into a swearing brute Catherine eventually brought out the best in him. Catherine of course, had to learn how to swallow her pride. (which at that point in the book was starting to drive me a little crazy) Geez-you live in the middle of no where and everyone you used to talk to is dead, maybe lower you standards, Catherine?
She eventually did and realized that Hareton had the best heart of all of them.
Heathcliff's end puzzled me. Honestly, I would have rather him been murdered by someone he tormented, or Nelly attack him out of protectiveness for Catherine, but he end suited him better.
He realized that his life of revenge didn't satisfy him after 20 years of it and he lost his will to live and simply wasted away.
The imagery in the last scene of the book 099 perfect. Heathcliff and Edgar's graves with Catherine's in between- with Lockwood's finally statement-
"I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heaths and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth."




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Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Hello! A blog introduction

Me and my husband
Hello! Hello!
My name is Lillian! 
I live in southern Indiana with my husband and our two cats.
I'm a huge reader of fiction and comic books.
I've created this blog to share and expand my book and comic love.

My enjoyment from reading came at a young age. My family and I were visiting an uncle when my mom bought for me Illustrated Classics: The Count of Monte Cristo.
It was the first book that I got lost in reading. I loved that feeling and that drove me to find more books.
Here I am now still seeking books.
My mother also helped me discover comic books (she's a pretty cool lady) by giving me a Wonder Woman journal. After years of having it I decided I wanted to learn more about this Wonder Woman so I headed to the local comic store to pick up the 100th issue of Wonder Woman. My collection grew from Wonder Woman to X-Men, The Sandman series, Batman and various others.
Despite reading comic books for years I'm still new to the comic "world"- the artist, authors, publishers and things and am looking to explore that further. 

The journal and novel the fueled my love. 
So, there it is-my blog. I hope that I can entertain you with my musing and invite you to share with me your knowledge and opinions!