Mildly Interesting Times

Rincewind is not my favourite character, but I did enjoy Interesting Times by Terry Pratchett for his usual satirical flair, callback characters, and progressive changes. We get Pratchett's wonderful humour that is sometimes subtle enough that a second reading (or The Annotated Pratchett File) is needed to discover. We find out what's happened to Twoflower and Conan, and then we get to see more to Hex's evolution as the first (magical) computer on the Discworld. Overall, it's a 4 out of 5.

Next up: Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko.

(Kate) of Kinrowan

Today I finished Jack of Kinrowan by Charles de Lint, which is divided into two stories -- Jack, the Giant Killer and Drinking Down the Moon. While I was impressed with de Lint's writing style, I thought he did a great injustice to the reader. Let me explain . . .

Jacky Rowan is the main character of both stories, yet her portrayal as the fabled Jack of Kinrowan is a disappointing one. Jacky makes stupid decisions, especially in Drinking Down the Moon, which leads her friend Kate "Crackernuts" Hazel to shine through her strategies and common sense. It's a good thing this book is written from multiple perspectives, otherwise I would have to give it a 3.5 for Jacky's lack of character. Kate, hands down, is the star in my opinion, and earns the book 4 out of 5 stars.

On another note, you'll notice the fancy list next to my book. I've started a reading list for myself, the goal to read at least 25 books this year. So far, I've finished the first book (Jack of Kinrowan), and am halfway through the next book (Interesting Times by Terry Pratchett).

I've got several stories that I need to finish, which've made their way onto the list, and then I have books that I haven't read in years (such as Dune) that I'll be re-reading before I move on to their follow up books. If possible, I'm going to post reviews of each one as I finish them. If I forget any, then apologies in advance.

Ringing in 2014

Well, Happy New Year, everyone! I trust you all are doing well.

I thought I would take this opportunity to point out that I, like many people, have set a resolution for myself. Fortunately, I started mine back in July of 2013, so I'm making pretty good headway with it. For those of you that remember, I had a moment back in July when I realized I had some unfinished books on my plate. While I didn't get to them all, I did complete a few. I even made a mid-year resolution to start reading at least 25 books a year, and for starting in July, I think I did pretty good for myself. Take a look:

Terry Pratchett:
1 Sourcery
2 Wyrd Sisters
3 Pyramids
4 Guards! Guards!
5 Eric
6 Moving Pictures
7 Reaper Man
8 Witches Abroad
9 Small Gods
10 Lords and Ladies
11 Men at Arms
12 Soul Music

Laurell K. Hamilton:
13 Affliction
14 Micah

Neil Gaiman:
15 Stardust

J. R. R. Tolkien:
16 The Hobbit

Richard Adams:
17 Watership Down

Seventeen books in five months -- especially when you remember I stopped in November to do NaNo -- is damn good if you ask me. I at least did well enough to keep myself motivated for the new year, and I'll be looking forward to seeing my progress for 2014.

How about you folks? Have any of you made pre-New Year's resolutions that you're following through with?