And my daemon is...

I'm really excited about The Golden Compass coming out in theaters this winter. I'm not usually impressed by movie adaptations of my favorite books, but I think this one could be good. Not only does this give me an excuse to reread His Dark Materials (sorry hundreds of other books on my To Read list), I'll get to watch Daniel Craig on the big screen. Yum.

Amazing things in the backyard

I came home from work this evening to the sound of a crow cawing away like there was no tomorrow. Having learned to interpret Bird from watching the BBC's Life of Birds, I knew there was some large predator nearby. But what? And then I saw it: a red-tailed hawk! The crow was leaping and cawing all around the hawk trying to drive it away, but the hawk was just sitting there as calm as anything. I tried to get a picture of it through the window, but was met with only a modicum of success. Sorry for the horrible picture quality, folks, but when I tried to creep outside for an unobstructed shot, it flew away (you can thank me later, other birds):


My first thoughts once I started to get over my excitement, were for another bird family (who knew we had crow eggs/babies in the backyard? I'll have to try and track down that nest tomorrow.) we found over the weekend acting skittish and peculiar. Here's mom:


And here's dad:It turns out they have a nest with three eggs in a bush about two feet off the ground, right next to the house. That's right, three eggs! The incubation period is 11-13 days, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we have some baby birds on hand sometime next week. I'm hoping to get the canonical wide-mouthed baby bird shot, but I doubt Mom and Dad will let me get close enough.

Giraffe!!

Oh boy do I wish I were at the Providence, RI zoo this past Saturday! Apparently a giraffe gave birth right in front of visitors. How neat is that?! Check out the story and some cute pictures here:
http://wbztv.com/local/local_story_128081345.html

"My book report" or, "how a book group can save you loads of money."

A little over 6 months ago, E and I started a book group. Yes, we decided that the two of us could be considered a "group." A book "couple" just didn't seem right, and in any case, three months later C joined. We take turns choosing books and hosting monthly meetings, but spend way more time eating than discussing our book of the month.

C chose this month's book, The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean. The plot on a shoe-string: Symone is a fourteen year old girl obsessed with Antarctica. Her mentally unstable uncle is equally obsessed, but for reasons she only discovers when he takes her there on a surprise trip. The best, most riveting part of the story details their journey towards the center of the continent. Without giving away any more of the plot, McCaughrean does a wonderful job using the geography and the dangers of Antarctica to her advantage.

I loved the book and was completely drawn into the story and into Symone's character. However, McCaughrean's mind-boggling description of her trek was enough to make me want to curl up in my bed with a nice, warm blanket and enjoy Antarctica the way it was intended: BBC nature videos. Who knew a $13 Amazon.com purchase could cure me (likely only temporarily) of any desire to visit Antarctica, thus saving me at least $15,000 in the process?


For your reading pleasure, here is a list of all prior books the group has read:
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Lisa See
The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Kim Edwards
The Princess Bride, William Goldman
The Talented Mr. Ripley, Patricia Highsmith
Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot..., Particia C. Wrede
Julie and Julia, Julie Powell
Suite Francaise, Irene Nemirovsky


What I'm reading now:

Must see

I know this video has been out in the ether for a while now, but if you haven't seen it, please:



Bad teeth, crazy eyes. Glamor shots. I mean my god, people, who wouldn't want an alpaca?! These babies could sell anything.

"The first one is always dumb," or things my friend E tells me to get me to post

Confession: I have an eensy weensy book addiction. Ok, fine. It's a huge book addiction, but I can stop anytime I want. Really. I just don't want to put my personal UPS delivery man or my local bookstore out of work. See? It's all for the greater good.

I dream of one day having a gorgeous library that'll look something like this. Or any one of these (hot library smut indeed!). A girl can dream, can't she? I love my current library, despite how little it resembles any of the above. I've tucked most of my books away into the butler's pantry in my apartment, and I have to walk through it to get to my kitchen. The shelves are very long and extremely sturdy, and are protected by big sliding glass doors. I can't think of a better use for the space!

What I'm reading now:

Stay tuned.

Books I've Read: 2006

This is more or less what I read in 2006. Books in bold are ones I liked especially.

1. On Beauty, Zadie Smith
2. The Accidental, Ali Smith
3. Prep, Curtis Sittenfeld
4. The Emperor's Children, Claire Messud
5. The Truth About Forever, Sarah Dessen
6. Maru, Bessie Head
7. I Am the Messenger, Markus Zusak
8. The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
9. The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Kim Edwards
10. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Lisa See
11. Planets, James Boylan
12. Icelander, Dustin Long
13. Magyk, Angie Sage
14. This Lullaby, Sarah Dessen
15. Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro
16. The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
17. The Giver, Lois Lowry
18. Specials, Scott Westerfeld
19. River Secrets, Shannon Hale
20. The Goose Girl, Shannon Hale
21. Enna Burning,Shannon Hale
22. Haunting Of Alaizabel Cray, Chris Wooding
23. Westmark, Lloyd Alexander
24. The Beggar Queen, Lloyd Alexander
25. The Kestrel, Lloyd Alexander
26. The House of the Scorpion, Nancy Farmer
27. Endymion Spring, Matthew Skelton
28. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld
29. Pretties, Scott Westerfeld
30. Twilight, Stephenie Meyer
31. New Moon, Stephenie Meyer
32. Peter Pan in Scarlet, Geraldine McCaughrean
33. Mister Monday, Garth Nix
34. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 1, Alan Moore
35. Y: The Last Man Vol. 3: One Small Step, Brian K. Vaughan
36. Arthur & George, Julian Barnes
37. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party, M.T. Anderson
38. The Minister's Daughter, Julie Hearn
39. Five Quarters of the Orange, Joanne Harris
40. Ines of My Soul, Isabel Allende
41. The Blood Confession, Alisa Libby
42. Coraline, Neil Gaiman
43. Kafka on the Shore, Haruki Murakami
44. The Makioka Sisters, Junichiro Tanizaki
45. Seek My Face: A Jewish Mystical Theology, Arthur Green
46. The News from Paraguay, Lily Tuck
47. Down the Rabbit Hole: An Echo Falls Mystery, Peter Abrahams
48. Libraries, Candida Hýýfer
49. No god but God : The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, Reza Aslan
50. The Jews of Islam, Bernard Lewis
51. A Wind in the Door, Madeleine L'Engle
52. A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Madeleine L'Engle
53. Many Waters, Madeleine L'Engle
54. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle
55. Boy Proof, Cecil Castellucci
56. The Lost Colony, Eoin Colfer
57. The End, Lemony Snicket
58. The Blood Knight, Greg Keyes
59. Celandine, Steve Augarde
60. Hero's Song: The First Song of Eirren, Edith Pattou
61. Fire Arrow: The Second Song of Eirren, Edith Pattou
62. Midnighters #1: The Secret Hour, Scott Westerfeld
63. Gathering Blue, Lois Lowry
64. Messenger, Lois Lowry
65. Grim Tuesday, Garth Nix
66. Drowned Wednesday, Garth Nix
67. Eye of the Needle, Ken Follett
68. Rats Saw God, Rob Thomas
69. Burned, Ellen Hopkins
70. Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson
71. Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson
72. Fly by Night, Frances Hardinge
73. Elsewhere, Gabrielle Zevin
74. Lyra's Oxford, Philip Pullman
75. Midnighters #3: Blue Noon, Scott Westerfeld
76. Midnighters #2: Touching Darkness, Scott Westerfeld
77. The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
78. Walk Two Moons, Sharon Creech
79. Princess Academy, Shannon Hale
80. The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World, Guillaume de Laubier
81. The Great Libraries: From Antiquity to the Renaissance (3000 B.C. to A.D.1600), Konstantinos Staikos
82. Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories, Garth Nix
83. Inexcusable, Chris Lynch
84. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister: A Novel, Gregory Maguire
85. The Wind on the Moon, Eric Linklater
86. Buried Fire, Jonathan Stroud
87. Shakespeare's Secret, Elise Broach
88. The Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster
89. Poison, Chris Wooding
90. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L. Konigsburg
91. Avalon High, Meg Cabot
92. Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War, Clive Barker
93. The Perilous Gard, Elizabeth Marie Pope
94. The Prophet of Yonwood, Jeanne Duprau
95. The City of Ember, Jeanne DuPrau
96. The People of Sparks, Jeanne Duprau
97. The Stolen Child, Keith Donohue
98. The Thief of Always, Clive Barker
99. Rebel Angels, Libba Bray
100. A Great and Terrible Beauty, Libba Bray
101. The Myth of You and Me, Leah Stewart
102. East, Edith Pattou
103. Strange Times, My Dear, Nahid Mozaffari
104. A Historical Atlas of the Jewish People: From the Time of the Patriarchs to the Present, Eli Barnavi
105. Maimonides, Sherwin B. Nuland
106. Epistles of Maimonides: Crisis and Leadership, Moses Maimonides
107. Hard Love, Ellen Wittlinger
108. Y: The Last Man Vol. 1: Unmanned, Brian K. Vaughan
109. Y: The Last Man Vol. 2: Cycles, Brian K. Vaughan
110. Captain Alatriste, Arturo Perez-Reverte
111. Jews of Arab Lands a History and Source Book, Norman Stillman
112. Yiddish with Dick and Jane, Ellis Weiner
113. A Tale of Love and Darkness, Amos Oz
114. The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, John le Carre
115. The Smaller Majority, Piotr Naskrecki
116. Through the Eyes of the Gods: An Aerial Vision of Africa, Bobby Haas
117. The Life of David, Robert Pinsky
118. Abhorsen, Garth Nix
119. Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr, Garth Nix
120. Sabriel, Garth Nix
121. Someone Like You, Sarah Dessen
122. The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, Jeanne Birdsall
123. Seventeenth Summer, Maureen Daly
124. Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery
125. Anne of Avonlea, L.M. Montgomery
126. Anne of the Island, L.M. Montgomery
127. Anne of Windy Poplars, L.M. Montgomery
128. Anne's House of Dreams, L.M. Montgomery