Katherine Nabity's Blog, page 175
January 19, 2016
Review ~ As You Wish
The Princess Bride has been a family favorite for close to three decades. Ranked by the American Film Institute as one of the top 100 Greatest Love Stories and by the Writers Guild of America as one of the top 100 screenplays of all time, The Princess Bride will continue to resonate with audiences for years to come.
Cary Elwes was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented look into the creation of the film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. In As You Wish he has created an enchanting experience; in addition to never-before seen photos and interviews with his fellow cast mates, there are plenty of set secrets, backstage stories, and answers to lingering questions about off-screen romances that have plagued fans for years! (via Goodreads)
I love behind-the-scenes stories. I’m a fan of DVD extras and making-of documentaries. I’ve read all of William Goldman’s books about screenwriting and movie making. (He’s the writer and screenwriter of The Princess Bride, if you didn’t know.) But most of all, I really enjoy it when the people involved have actual love and enthusiasm for the work they’ve done. To me, that’s so much better than ugly, gossipy stories.
As You Wish is all about the love. If Cary Elwes has any regrets about forever being Westley (at least a little), he’s keeping that under his black pirate mask. Not that it was an easy shoot. Between rainy rural England and grueling sword-fight training sessions, it was not a piece of cake. But it’s all about who you’re in a situation with and the many cast comments attest that it wasn’t only Elwes who felt Princess Bride magic. In retrospect, it’s hard to believe that the movie would have been anything but a hit, but the production almost didn’t happen and the movie was only moderately successful. Thank goodness for cable TV and the home video revolution for bringing it to its eventual audience.
I listened to this as an audio book, read by Elwes, but including recordings by many of the cast, director Rob Reiner, and producers Andy Scheinman and Norman Lear. So, no never-seen-before photos for me, but instead Elwes dulcet tones telling me stories.
Publishing info, my copy: audio, Simon & Schuster, Oct 14, 2014
Acquired: Tempe OverDrive Digital Collection
Genre: Nonfiction, memoir
January 18, 2016
Magic Monday ~ Omaha’s Magic Man
I like Mondays. On Monday, I am refreshed from the weekend and exhilarated by the possibilities of the week ahead. I also like magic. I like its history, its intersection with technology, and its crafty use of human nature. I figured I’d combine the two and make a Monday feature that is truly me: a little bit of magic and a look at the week ahead.
I’m starting to get itchy; ready to get back to the David P. Abbott stories I want to tell. This is a really nice piece about Abbott done by Omaha’s KMTV. It aired around Halloween, but I missed it until yesterday.
It’s Monday, What Are You Reading?
Finished White Plume Mountain. Such a fun novel. The Oliver Sacks audio book didn’t go so well (the narration was annoying), so I ended up listening to You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day while taking down my Christmas tree.
This week I’m going to finish Deadlands: Ghostwalkers by Jonathan Maberry, an ARC I am woefully behind on reading and reviewing. My next audio book will be Still Foolin’ ‘Em by Billy Crystal. And another Richard Matheson story for Deal Me In.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading, hosted by Book Date!
What Am I Writing?
Saying that I’m going to write a humorous story on demand is kind of like walking up to someone and saying “Quick, say something intelligent!” Mostly, you’re going to get a lot of unintelligent noises. Last week reaped nothing but writer’s block. I’m going to do some hard core editing on the stories I have, and work on a cover until the end of the month. Title? Bounded in a Nutshell. Haven’t decided if I want to add editorial notes.
January 17, 2016
Deal Me In, Week 2 ~ “Buried Talents”
Hosted by Jay @ Bibliophilopolis
“Buried Talents” by Richard Matheson
Card picked: Four of Diamonds
From: I Am Legend, Tom Dorherty Associates, 1997 – This edition of I Am Legend contains ten other short stories.
Thoughts:
A man in a wrinkled, black suit entered the fairgrounds. He was tall and lean, his skin the color of drying leather. … His eyes were pale blue. There was no expression on his face. It was a hundred and two degrees in the sun but he was not perspiring.
This strange man goes to one of the booths where marks are attempting to toss ping-pong balls into fishbowls. “Try your luck! Win a prize!” says the talker. If you’ve ever been to a street fair, carnival, or amusement park, you know that this sort of thing is not really a game of skill. Many carnival games are severely skewed toward the carnival if not out-and-out rigged. Climbing the hierarchy of prizes to get the better stuff (in the story, things like a four-slice toaster, a portable typewriter, a drill, a short-wave radio) is nearly impossible.
This strange man pays his quarter and proceeds to throw three balls into the same fishbowl. The talker is a little annoyed, but gives the man his prize and hopes he moves on. Instead, the man refuses the prize and pays another quarter. He easily sinks another three balls. They don’t even hit the rim of the bowl. This goes on for a few rounds. The talker tries to change the rules mid-game, but the crowd quickly takes the strange man’s side, cheering as he does what they cannot. After what should be four-slice-toaster-winning balls, the talker insists that those prizes are just for show. No one wins them. And right about then, the talker has something akin to a heart attack.
Who was this strange man in the black suit?
I don’t know what I think about the ending—I sort of saw it coming—but Matheson does an excellent job making the whole repetitive process of throwing balls *not* boring.
About the Author: Richard Matheson is part of that echelon of classic sci-fi and horror authors that everyone knows even if they don’t know him. His novel (novella? novelette?) I Am Legend has been adapted four times. Many of his other stories have been adapted into dozens of movies and television episodes, not to mention the writing he did directly for TV and the movies. My favorites (in both book and movie form) are Stir of Echos and What Dreams May Come.
January 16, 2016
#COYER ~ Short Story Update
Beyond picking up free/cheap e-reads via Amazon, Smashwords, and B&N, the internet really is awash in great fiction. And I have a habit of bookmarking and leaving stories to “read later.” You know, when I have extra time. My list keeps getting longer, so I figure it’s in the spirit of COYER to clean out my virtual Table of Contents too.
Aika (Keepers of the Flame: Origins #1) by Cate Morgan – As the world crumbles during the Second Blitz and her world is personally destroyed, Aika becomes a pawn for the Dreamtech company. But her destiny lays in the realm of the mystical. The Keepers of the Flame series isn’t quite my thing, but this prequel is well written with a nice dose of world-building. Interested? The Keepers of the Flame prequels are available for free at Amazon!
“The Book Seller” by Lavie Tidhar – I was about halfway through “The Book Seller” when I realized it was set in Central Station, the same world as “Strigoi” (which I read during COYER in the summer of 2014). The tale continues Carmel’s story, but from the point of view of Achimwene, a seller of old paper books. Carmel is a futuristic strigoi, feeding on the memory “data” of others. Achimwene is un-noded, not part of the information web on which Carmel depends. I really enjoy Tidhar’s science-fiction setting and I’m looking forward to reading Central Station, the novel, which is being released in May.
“Wet” by John Wiswell – You know I love a good ghost story, and I doubly love a ghost story with a twist. In “Wet,” an Arizona immortal helps a young ghost move on. The story has humor as well as chills. The setting is so subtly established that I could believe that there are ghosts and immortals walking by me on Apache Blvd every day.
January 12, 2016
Review ~ NeuroTribes
by Steve Silberman, read by William Hughes
What is autism? A lifelong disability, or a naturally occurring form of cognitive difference akin to certain forms of genius? In truth, it is all of these things and more—and the future of our society depends on our understanding it. WIRED reporter Steve Silberman unearths the secret history of autism, long suppressed by the same clinicians who became famous for discovering it, and finds surprising answers to the crucial question of why the number of diagnoses has soared in recent years.
Going back to the earliest days of autism research and chronicling the brave and lonely journey of autistic people and their families through the decades, Silberman provides long-sought solutions to the autism puzzle, while mapping out a path for our society toward a more humane world in which people with learning differences and those who love them have access to the resources they need to live happier, healthier, more secure, and more meaningful lives.
Along the way, he reveals the untold story of Hans Asperger, the father of Asperger’s syndrome, whose “little professors” were targeted by the darkest social-engineering experiment in human history; exposes the covert campaign by child psychiatrist Leo Kanner to suppress knowledge of the autism spectrum for fifty years; and casts light on the growing movement of “neurodiversity” activists seeking respect, support, technological innovation, accommodations in the workplace and in education, and the right to self-determination for those with cognitive differences. (via Goodreads)
This has been a tough “review” to write. It’s probably going to be more of a collection of thoughts, only some of which have to do with the book.
I.
Within the book blogging community, we talk a lot about how important it is to read diversely, but often this doesn’t really extend to neurodiversity. While we want to read about and attempt to understand the experiences of those different from us, reading the works of someone who thinks differently is challenging. Deep down, we still want to relate. We want a way into a character/author and that might be absent. But wouldn’t it be worth it to have that better understanding?
II.
I spent most of the time listening to this book being very angry.
I am surprised, I guess, by my reaction at how children are treated. I’m not a parent. I have no intention of being a parent, so take the following with a grain of salt: it strikes me as deeply unfair that parents should feel they deserve a certain type of child—a “normal” child—and only seek to fix a child that doesn’t match this expectation. Or to only show disappointment in a child that doesn’t meet that expectation.*
It’s hard to hear about kids on the spectrum who aren’t meeting their parent’s expectations in ways that are very parent-oriented. They’re not being cuddly enough, not being talkative enough (or maybe being too talkative). They don’t want to go to a noisy birthday party or a crowded mall to sit on Santa’s knee. They just want to be themselves…except that’s not what their parents want.
I realize there are many forms of autism and raising a child with disruptive tendencies isn’t easy; that it might be almost impossible to understand a child who has a radically different way of thinking. I know I can’t understand how hard that must be. But why do parents seem to go into parenthood only expecting the very best situation?
* Obviously, this is not all parents. There are lots of parents out there doing their best to recognize their children as people.
III.
NeuroTribes is probably the most in-depth history of autism at the moment. The history aspect is important because it informs the way we look at autism today. It shows us just how much of an uphill battle it is to see people on the spectrum not as broken, but as different. We need a shift in the way we think about neurodiversity.
Publishing info, my copy: Audio, Blackstone Audio, Inc., Aug. 25, 2015
Acquired: Tempe Public Library Overdrive Digital Collection
Genre: Nonfiction
January 11, 2016
Magic Monday ~ Review: The Magician and the Cardsharp
I like Mondays. On Monday, I am refreshed from the weekend and exhilarated by the possibilities of the week ahead. I also like magic. I like its history, its intersection with technology, and its crafty use of human nature. I figured I’d combine the two and make a Monday feature that is truly me: a little bit of magic and a look at the week ahead.
The Magician and the Cardsharp by Karl Johnson
It has the nostalgic quality of an old-fashioned fable, but Karl Johnson’s The Magician and the Cardsharp is a true story that lovingly re-creates the sparkle of a vanished world. Here, set against the backdrop of America struggling through the Depression, is the world of magic, a realm of stars, sleight of hand, and sin where dreams could be realized-or stolen away.
Following the Crash of ’29, Dai Vernon, known by magicians as “the man who fooled Houdini,” is tramping down Midwestern backroads, barely making ends meet. While swapping secrets with a Mexican gambler, he hears of a guy he doesn’t quite believe is real-a legendary mystery man who deals perfectly from the center of the deck and who locals call the greatest cardsharp of all time. Determined to find the reclusive genius, Vernon sets out on a journey through America’s shady, slick, and sinful side-from mob-run Kansas City through railroad towns that looked sleepy only in the daytime. Does he find the sharp? (via Goodreads)
Spoiler: He does find the sharp.
And that’s not much of a spoiler because we meet Allen Kennedy in chapter three as Johnson deftly jumps between the histories of Vernon and Kennedy. This is essentially the biographies of two men, how their lives intersect, and the world in which they live. That last aspect is especially well done and of interest to me. The history of the middle of the country is often over-looked despite being as colorful as anywhere else.
Johnson does a great job contrasting the magician and the cardsharp. It’s interesting to note that Vernon’s life was very much overtaken by Kennedy; first the search for him and later the mastering of his dealing method. On the other hand, for Kennedy, Vernon was only maybe an odd little footnote in his life as a Missouri gambler. If you’re interested in magic history, gambling, or history west of the Mississippi and east of the Rocky Mountains, I highly recommend this book.
This is a good compilation of Dai Vernon doing magic. Most of his TV performances weren’t card tricks because those weren’t in vogue, but it’s great to see some cardistry in these clips.
Publishing info, my copy: first edition
Acquired: Jackson Street Booksellers, Omaha NE, 2013
Genre: nonfiction, magic
It’s Monday, What Are You Reading?
Continuing with White Plume Mountain by Paul Kidd, a fun reread.
Listening to The Mind’s Eye by Oliver Sacks.
Reading “Buried Talents” by Richard Matheson for Deal Me In.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading, hosted by Book Date!
And What Am I Writing?
I’ve been working on putting together some of my short stories into an anthology. I have a particular structure in mind which would work best if I have one more humorous story. So, this week, I’ll be playing with a story idea or two.
January 10, 2016
Deal Me In, Week 1 ~ “The Key”
Hosted by Jay @ Bibliophilopolis
“The Key” by Isaac Asimov
Card picked: Queen of Clubs
From: Asimov’s Mysteries, a Double Day Book Club edition that I purchased at Book Maze ages ago.
Thoughts: I started by reading the introduction to this volume because I couldn’t remember if this was supposed to be a book of straight-up mysteries written by Asimov or a book along the lines of his robot mysteries. It’s the latter, not surprisingly. There was, at one time, a contention that mysteries and science fiction weren’t compatible. Asimov tried hard to dispel that myth, with mixed results.
“The Key” begins on the Moon:
Karl Jennings knew he was going to die. He had a matter of hours to live and much to do.
In flashback, we learn that Jennings and another astronaut/geologist (sorry, selenologist), Strauss, had found a pieces of non-terrestrial spacecraft and a strange device. The device seems to allow an empathetic user, like Jennings, to be able to read the minds of those around him and manipulate their behavior. Jennings learns that Strauss favors the Ultras, a sect that wants to solve Earth’s over-population problem by simply eliminating 95% of it. Such a device in the hands of the Ultras could be devastating. The two have an altercation and Jennings is stabbed. He manages to get away and hide the device before he dies, leaving behind a clue to its whereabouts. The second half of the story takes place on Earth where H. Seton Davenport of the Terrestrial Bureau of Investigation tries to decipher the clue with the help of the eccentric scholar Wendell Urth.
A lot of older science fiction doesn’t hold up very well because being a futurist isn’t easy. The burdening population of Earth in this story (first published in 1966) is 6 billion people. We’re at 7.4 billion now and are doing sort of okay. The clue is a message written in coda on a 3×5 card, found inside the glove of Jennings space suit. The card is filmed and broadcasted to Earth.
Solving the mystery, deciphering the message on the card, comes down to science knowledge gymnastics, which the characters indulge in. It isn’t terribly specialized knowledge, but you’d have to have a pretty decent background in physics and astronomy to manage as a reader. This is the fourth (of four) stories in the volume to feature Wendell Urth
About the Author: Isaac Asimov was one of the most prolific authors ever and had a very wide background of knowledge. His birthday was observed on the second of January. It seemed like fate that I had drawn an Asimov story for my first Deal Me In of the year, but Asimov himself would probably prefer that I examine that further: Asimov’s Mysteries is one whole suit for Deal Me In; it was a one in four chance that I’d pick one of his stories.
Is This Your Card?
I feel like I’ve shared this video before. I possibly have but it’s a good one and a good way to start the year.
January 2, 2016
Pinned: Bout of Books 15
The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 4th and runs through Sunday, January 10th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 15 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team
Readathons: when people who already read a bunch read even more. I have a TBR, but no specific goal other than having some BoB fun.
Finish The Magician and the Cardsharp by Karl Johnson – Finished
“The Key” by Issac Asimov – Finished
White Plume Mountain by Paul Kidd (I’ve already started this one too.)
The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne (#COYER)
“One Drink” by Max Florschutz (#COYER)
Finish listening to As You Wish by Cary Elwes – Finished
Subject to change. ;)
Sunday
Books Read From: “The Book Seller”
Number of Pages Today: 20
Number of Pages Total: 211
Notes: I’d *like* to hit 300 pages read, but I’m still having quite the busy week.
Saturday
Books Read From: White Plume Mountain
Number of Pages Today: 22
Number of Pages Total: 211
Notes: Feeling better today. Missed the chat, but that’s okay. My batteries are still pretty low.
Friday
Books Read From: White Plume Mountain *cough*
Number of Pages Today: 8
Number of Pages Total: 189
Notes: Just sort of crashed on Friday. Managed some VOTS stuff, did my Python assignment, and otherwise played EQ2 all day.
Thursday
Books Read From: White Plume Mountain
Number of Pages Today: 40
Number of Pages Total: 181
Notes: It’s past noon and I haven’t read yet. *Such* a Thursday.
Challenge:
Bingeing on Books — Villain Mash Up
Pick villains from two different books that you would love to see fight each other. It can be from any genre and it doesn’t even have to be a physical fight. … Give a short reason why you think these villains should fight each other.
King Haggard from The Last Unicorn v. Stannis Baratheon from A Game of Thrones
Both have fiery allies who could also do battle, but the glare-off between these two powerful old men would be epic. Who would win? My money is on the meaner and immovable Haggard.
Wednesday
Books Read From: “The Key”, White Plume Mountain
Number of Pages Today: 59
Number of Pages Total: 141
Notes: …Once I finish with the webpages, I have Python homework…
Challenge:
Ranty Runt of a Reader — The Rainbow Challenge
For the author challenge, use authors surnames to complete an acrostic poem style rainbow of ROYGBIV
R – Rainbow(!) Rowell
O – Joyce Carol Oates
Y – Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
G – Elizabeth Gaskell
B – Emma Bull
I – Suzie Ivy
V – Ursula Vernon
Tuesday
Books Read From: White Plume Mountain
Number of Pages Today: 44
Number of Pages Total: 82
Notes: Should have expected that I’d need to attend to my webmaster duties this week…
Challenge:
Writing My Own Fairy Tale — Would You Rather
Would you rather: Lend books to someone who dog-ears pages or to someone who reads with cheesy Cheetos fingers? Lend to someone who dog-ears. Very few of my books are pristine, but I don’t like…stains.
Would you rather: Be able to meet one character of your choice or meet one author of your choice? Author, and probably an author of nonfiction. As an author of fiction, I know how boring authors can be and how flimsy character are. ;)
Would you rather: Never be allowed in a book store again or never be allowed in a library again? Bookstores. I’m poor. Bookstores are just frustrating.
Would you rather: Have to choose one of your favorite characters to die in their book or have to pick one of your favorite couples to break up in their book? I’d pick the breakup, but I don’t read a lot of books with couples, so that feels a little like cheating.
Would you rather: Be required to read Twilight once a year for the rest of your life or The Scarlet Letter once a year for the rest of your life? I have nothing against Twilight, but I’d want something with a little meat to it. I’d have to go with The Scarlet Letter.
Monday
Books Read From: The Magician and the Cardsharp (I didn’t realize I only had one chapter left…), also finished the last 3 hours of As You Wish.
Number of Pages Today: 38
Number of Pages Total: 38
Notes: Gosh, I have a lot to do today. I’ll try to squeeze some reading in.
Challenge:
The challenge is simple: introduce yourself on Twitter, Instagram, or on this post using six words, no more, no less.
Writer. Reader. Magic history enthusiast. #alwaysForgetsTheHashtags
Bout of Books 15
The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 4th and runs through Sunday, January 10th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 15 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team
Readathons: when people who already read a bunch read even more. I have a TBR, but no specific goal other than having some BoB fun.
Finish The Magician and the Cardsharp by Karl Johnson
“The Key” by Issac Asimov
White Plume Mountain by Paul Kidd (I’ve already started this one too.)
The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne
“One Drink” by Max Florschutz
Reading Stats for 2015
I read 51 books in 2015, one book short of my goal of 52.
I read 66 short stories that weren’t included in the two anthologies I counted in the above number, so I could argue that I hit that 52 book goal after all.
Goodreads puts my number of pages read at 11,249.
My count is 12,902. In addition to the short stories not counted in Goodreads’ number, I have a couple in-progress books and maybe 10 or so DNFs. My number does not include two audio books.
I read 51 books authored or edited by 48 different people.
Nine were ARCs (17 in 2014).
Mystery/Crime was the most common genre.
Read-a-thons, Read-a-longs, and Challenges from 2015
Authors New to Me
2015 – 53%
2014 – 62%
2013 – 71%
50%-ish in 2012
Fiction / Nonfiction
2015 – 59% / 41%
2014 – 72% / 28%
2013 – 66% / 33%
2012 – 80% / 20%
By Women
2015 – Not quite 40%
2014 – 27%
2013 – 20%
2012 – 40%-ish
37% of the short stories I read were by women.
E-books
2015 – 64%
2014 – 68%
2013 – 71%
Overview
My average review for both books and short stories was over 3 “stars,” so by the numbers, it was a good reading year.
As I intended, I kept my reading plans pretty low-key in 2015, and was probably better for it. I finished 6/31 on my Obscure Literary Monsters list and read 16 works in the name of Gothic fiction. Didn’t read nearly enough from my Abbott/Joseffy list.
Plans for 2016
More of the same, really. I plan to make an effort to read from the books I already own and to keep tabs on my acquisitions. I also want to reread Helene Hanff’s books (I already reread 84, Charing Cross Road in December), and Paul Kidd’s Greyhawk novels. My best discovery of 2015 was the number of popular nonfiction books available through Tempe Library’s digital and audio collections.
