2017 Reading: Ten Count Vol. 1

I was putting this one in the system at work and when I read the back cover I was pleasantly surprised to see our library getting yaoi. I haven't read a good manga in a very long time.

This one promises to be most entertaining... Assuming we can get the rest of the volumes without any trouble.

2017 Reading: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I don't know why I picked this up. I guess that I just forgot that this was written my Fitz and I figured it was a quick enough read to get through without bogging me down.

Interesting concept. Maybe not enough for me to want to see the movie, though.

2017 Reading: Lizzie Borden

#27 A book with a title that's a character's name

I told you about my thing with killers, right? Well, this is another one that's been sitting on my shelf for a while and I figured I would check it off of the list.

2017 Reading: The Last One

#24 A book set in the wilderness

THIS BOOOOOOOOOOOOOK!!! OMFG!

I don't remember how I heard about this book, I think someone might have just seen it on the shelf (it's relatively new) and when I said I was looking for a book set in the wilderness they just told me about it. I AM SO GLAD THEY DID! I loved it!

At first I was a little weary because I don't really do the whole reality survival show thing (to be clear, I didn't really read the description before diving into this so I had no idea how it was going to turn out). But, as soon as that second or third chapter rolled around, I was hooked.

There was so much in this story. So much. What she did... What she HAD to do... Amazing. And heart-breaking.

I will definitely be suggesting this book to anyone who will listen.

2017 Reading: The Odyssey

#52 A book based on mythology

This is another one of those books that I was SUPPOSED to read in high school, but never did. You know, I honestly think our teacher just let us watch the movie and we never actually read it. We seemed to do that a lot at my school.

You know, if you were to cut out all of the literal word-for-word repetition in this story, it would go a LOT quicker. I swear, most of the book was just the same words over and over and over again.

Also, did people really used to treat each other like that? All "Welcome stranger whom we don't know, please eat with us and rest and only then tell us who you are and what's up. Of COURSE you're not a murderer or anything. Let my women rub oil on you and take some of my clothes and gold! Want a car to take you where you want to go? HERE!" Seriously, can we go back to that? I want to be welcomed into rich people's houses before they even know my name and give me free things.

2017 Reading: Billy Bloo Is Stuck In Goo, Eva and Sadie and the Worst Haircut Ever, The Wrong Side of the Bed

Okay, so this time I actually DID get to do story time for the kids! Granted, there were only three of them and one was scared of me, but STILL...

Yeah, I suck at dealing with kids, apparently. But these are the books that I read to them:

This one was adorable and there were lots of opportunities for me to use voices and accents, which I think went over well with the kids. Parents too, actually.

This one was also cute and also taught a little life lesson.

This one was very repetitive and I found myself getting tongue-tied while reading it aloud. That made it a little awkward but it was still a cute little story.

2017 Reading: Hannibal Rising

#19 A book about food

HA! See what I did there?

But, seriously.

I know a lot of people didn't like this book/movie for a number of different reasons, but the main one that I see over and over again is the fact that they don't like Hannibal killing for revenge. They feel it is somehow beneath him. The thing no one remembers is, it's ALL revenge. He kills people for being rude. So, it's revenge for his sensibilities or even the sensibilities of those people that he holds in esteem (see: Miggs' death after he disrespected Clarice, and also Paul Krendler). So for him to take revenge on the people who murdered and ate his little sister is not that far of a stretch. In fact, it makes more sense once you think about it.

This act that was brought upon him is so heinous that people don't even like to think about it and a person's natural reaction, however buried in morals it may be, is for revenge. I think that people just don't like to admit that Hannibal IS human and has human feelings. They prefer to think of him as a monster with no morals who kills at random on a whim and then tries to justify it with "manners."

This book shows you that he is indeed a human who has gone through something terrible and found a way, however misguided and amoral (to us) to deal with it. It is this act that set off a chain reaction to the events of the rest of his life and career, including his unique "tastes."

I enjoyed this book. It was fascinating to learn the back story and to see behind the mask, as it were, to this character.