Space Station Mir

I know this Broke and Bookish topic is a few weeks away, but by then it will no longer be relevant-so Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind for the 1 in 75,000 Years Convergence of Hanukkah and Thanksgiving 1. Hild by Nicola Griffith 2. The Lowlands by Jhumpa Lahiri 3. The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert 4. The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M. Valente 5. Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delaney 6. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman 7. How to Suppress Women's Writing by Joanna Russ 8. The Collected Works of Katherine Phillips vols. one and two (out of print) 9. The Annotated Persuasion by Jane Austen, David M. Shepard(or the annotated version of any of Jane Austen's books) 10. Or any other awesome historical, literary, science fiction, and/or fantasy work that I might enjoy

30. Mary Boleyn: Mistress of Kings by Alison Weir I've been fascinated with Mary Boleyn since I learned of her existence. Everybody knows the story of her sister, Anne Boleyn, whose charms caused the king of England, Henry VIII, to divorce his first wife and break with the Roman Catholic Church in order to marry her. Everyone also knows the sad end of that story, which culminated in Anne becoming the first of Henry's six wives to be beheaded. But what is known about Mary? Nothing much, until more recently, with the release of Philippa Gregory's bestselling novel The Other Boleyn Girl . Alison Weir points out that it is this novel, and the movies of the same name, along with the "Tudors" television series, that have propelled Mary out of obscurity, and into what Weir claims is undeserved notoriety. While I am a huge fan of Gregory's novel, it was not my first encounter with Mary Boleyn. My first knowledge of her stems from a book that is significant in ...

29. The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory. Narrated by Bianca Amato and Graeme Malcolm. When I first started listening, I was afraid I had gotten the wrong tape. The description was of a young woman begging for a cross, and receiving one from a hated Englishman. She was about to be burned at the stake, and a king whom she had saved would not save her--how did I accidentally get an audio about Joan of Arc? But it turns out that instead, Gregory uses Joan of Arc as a guiding narrative force in the life of Margaret Beaufort as she uses the water goddess Melusina as a narrative guide to Elizabeth Woodville's life in The White Queen . I found this devise less annoying, as it was evoked less often, and presented more as Margaret's imagination than a "true legend." I personally enjoyed The Red Queen far more than I did The White Queen . Gregory's true triumph here is the character of Margaret Beaufort. There are few deviations from her narration, and these are read ...

Happy Top Ten Tuesday ! Top Five Character Names I Love 1. Christopher Carrion, Lord of Midnight from the Abarat books by Clive Barker Doesn't it just roll off the tongue? 2. Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov from Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky Besides the alliteration, "Raskolnikov" literally means schismatic, very appropriate for the character. 3. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore from the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling J.K. Rowling is a genius for names, but this is one of my favorites! (I think I'm noticing a trend...) 4. Dimple Lala from Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier An unforgettable name! 5. Galadriel from the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien The name is musical, light, and powerful all at once. Just saying it gives me a thrill.

28. Sexy Feminism by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong and Heather Wood Rudulph A couple years ago, I wrote a post entitled Thoughts on Reformist vs. Revolutionary Feminism , based on bell hooks' Feminism Is for Everybody . Since then, it's been one of the most popular hits on the blog. It seems that a lot of people are wondering, what is the difference between reformist and revolutionary feminism? I don't have all the answers or know all the history. But, in my understanding, "reformist feminism" aims to give women equal rights to men, as applied in Western democratic, capitalist societies. Reformist feminists are the advocates of equal pay and of more women in CEO positions and STEM fields. Sheryl Sandberg of Lean In and even Betty Friedan of The Feminine Mystique would be considered reformist feminists. these women are aiming to increase women's presence and power in the workforce, aiming to treat women exactly (or almost exactly, save the contentious mothe...

27. The White Queen by Philippa Gregory So with my two rather new jobs comes an awful lot of commuting. And what better way to pass the time than an audio book? Since I had such success with The Queen's Lover , I decided to pick up some more historical fiction, this time from an author I'm quite familiar with. Philippa Gregory creates tension in the details. Most of her books deal with well-known events in British history, but she focuses in on minor characters and minor events that pack more unexpected dramatic punches. In The White Queen , the first person protagonist is Elizabeth Woodeville, a minor noblewoman who famously beguiled (some say bewitched) Edward IV into marrying her. What I didn't know was that Elizabeth was already widowed with two young sons when she married the king, making her conquest even more extraordinary. I know the broad outlines of the story, that Edward became king through conquest, and after some years of rule died, leaving behind two son...

Happy Top Ten Tuesday ! Top Ten Books I Was "Forced" to Read 1. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien I must confess, it wasn't my idea to read these books; it was my dad's. He went on so much about how they were his favorite books as a kid and made such a point of telling me that he had his own copies available for me that I finally went ahead and read them. And now, his copies sit coolly on my shelves. For safekeeping. 2. The Source by James Michener My grandfather took me to a bookstore once and told me I could have any book I wanted. Then he proceeded to steer me toward this one. He told me all about how much he had enjoyed it, and was so full of enthusiasm that I couldn't resist "choosing" it. I'm very glad I did, it remains one of the most interesting books I've ever read and I'm so glad I had the chance to talk with my grandfather about it. 3. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand My good friend got quite enthusia...

Short Story # 7 Thief of War by Beth Bernobich Publisher: Tor.com Summary: Arbija, a daughter of the northern province Vesterlant, has traveled south in disguise, to steal the jewels of the king of the Erythandran Empire. Her family fears that the Empire seeks to conquer their lands, as they did to nearby provinces in earlier years. Our protagonist is part of a complicated scheme that involves enrolling in an ancient University and using magic to disguise her features, while pretending she is a novice in magical studies. The scope and lore of this novella seem to extend far beyond its contents. The grand lineages, premise, and cast of characters, however, lead to an abrupt and disappointing end. I fervently hope this is only an excerpt from a novel, which I would line up to read! In the meantime, I hope Bernobich does not continue to disguise material of novel proportions in thin novellas! Favorite Quotes: "Beauty was one thing. Humor was far more seductive."