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You are viewing the most recent 25 entries.
16th January 2007
 xoraclex @ 10:01am: When Food is Love - Geneen Roth
Self help book that is very anti-diet, and deals more with the impact of food issues on intimacy and relationships, and how they are related. I found this book very helpful because of the information about intimacy, but I did not relate to some of the information about compulsive eating. I'm thinking now that maybe I'm not a compulsive eater, though I still have some issues. The main idea of this book is that we need to be more self-aware, aware of why we are eating, and more aware of our hunger, our satiety, smells, tastes and textures, because: dieting turns us into children who can't be trusted around food and need to be told what to do strictly, and punished when we are bad. Further, punishing ourselves for failing is like kicking our inner child instead of hugging them and letting them tell us what is wrong. If we trust ourselves, and pay better attention to what is really going on, eventually our inner child gets the idea that we can eat whenever we are hungry, and that we are trustworthy, and we can make good, nourishing decisions. The rest of the information applies to how we treat our hearts/relationships the same way we treat food. It is all about our attitude toward ourselves, and what we feel we deserve. I found this part very relevant to myself. Overall, a good book if you have relationship trouble OR food issues, and a very quick read. I read it in one evening.
7th November 2005
xoraclex @ 12:12pm: Earth's Children Series
I'm almost done with the series, better known by the title of the first book Clan of the Cave Bear. The first book was really interesting. Everything was written close to historical as possible (at the time, though what we know has changed since then), with the exception of the main character being given credit for every huge leap of inspiration (fire, domesticating animals, understanding reproduction...) I skim through large sections of descriptions of the lay of the land, and through (at least in every book past the first) frequent caveman sex scenes, but the dialogue, and interaction in the different cultures is fascinating. It is definitely worth all the boring parts. Synopsis:5 year old girl sees her family get swallowed up in an earthquake, she travels on her own for days with nothing to eat, and collapses, is picked up by a tribe of neanderthals, and raised by them. She doesn't quite fit into their society, but does her best, eventually being tossed out and having to go out on her own to search for her own people. In the process, she gets passed around from culture to culture, amazing everyone she comes across, and teaching them things she has learned.
19th October 2005
xoraclex @ 9:50pm: These Books are SOOO Gay.
P.S. Your Cat Is Dead by James Kirkwood New Years Eve, New York City, dead best friend, bitchy-recently ex-girlfriend, controlling aunt, dead cat, and it's the third time this burglar has robbed the apartment. Jimmy has finally HAD IT, and he ties the gay burglar face down over the kitchen sink, and cuts his pants off...then things get REALLY wacky. Was good, but the front of the book pretty much tells you everything that is going to happen, so there aren't a lot of surprises. The dialogue is very "groovy" and it is a pretty quick read. ************************************* Annie On My Mind by Nancy Garden Two high school senior girls form an intense friendship that blossoms into a love they have to hide, and only through losing it all do they come to realize that the truth will set them free. I enjoyed the story, though the girls seemed much younger than 17 to me. It was written for the YA catalogue, so it was a quick, easy read. The story very much reminded me of Pauline Parker...the girls exist in love in a fantasy world of their own making. One is well off, one is poor. At least they don't kill her mother. *sigh* I think being gay must've been a lot harder in the 80's.
26th August 2005
xoraclex @ 11:01am: Pen Pals by Olivia Goldsmith
This is a well researched, fictional commentary on the state of today's women's prison system. The characters are well-developed and come to life, being simultaneously likeable, and detestable, and the first half of the book seems to be a pretty realistic display of what prison life is like. The second half is a fantasy-ride of what you want to happen, and puts the reader more at ease (in that pop-culture sort of way), as the characters come together, beat the system, and in general have a happy ending. I liked this book, it made me want to get involved in helping women prisoners have a better quality of living, it didn't leave me feeling bad inside (yeah, it's shameful, isn't it?).
3rd July 2005
xoraclex @ 8:19am: The Girls: Sappho goes to Hollywood - Diana McLellan
A book following Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo, from childhood, to Hollywood, to death. It details their shared lovers, and involvement with Communist Russia, and the bizarre social rules they lived by. Basically, about all the silver screen stars that were gay and lesbian, and had lavendar marriages, and lived androgynously. Fascinating, sad, illustrated. :)
2nd July 2005
 ep42 @ 1:23pm:
www.angelfire.com/zine2/loveriotdistro check this out!!!!!!!!! :)
11th June 2005
 missjaala @ 10:57am: I'm so brave...
I have a 'bordering on pathological' aversion to Tim Winton novels after having to study one for 3 Unit English back in 1985 or 6. I'm assuming it was 'An Open Swimmer' based on these reviews. I have decided to face my fears & have borrowed 'Cloudstreet' from the library & will attempt to read one again after almost 20 years. It took me years to get back into Jane Austen for the same reason.
16th February 2005
xoraclex @ 8:53pm: The Petting Zoo by Brett Singer
The characters were fascinating, but repellant. They are people I've known, and people that I never wanted to have sympathy for, but I did have sympathy. I'm not sure what I wanted to happen in the end, but the author tells you from the beginning what is going to happen, the book is just a process of finding out how. Two 20 year olds who have been in love since they were 11. The boy is suicidal, but they never really explain why. The girl is obsessed with him, I think she loves him out of habit because she alternately loves him, hates him, cheats on him, feels terribly guilty, is angry at him for wanting to die and simultaneously wishing for the relief it would bring. It is set in the late 70's, has sex between practical strangers, drug use in varying degrees. The guy dies in the end. It sounds like I'm ruining it, but you find out in the beginning.
xoraclex @ 8:46pm: Suzanne Somers: Keeping Secrets
A fantastic biography about growing up as a child of an alcoholic, with lots of old pictures in the middle (that's what I like best about biographies). It was a very real account of the issues of an ACOA (adult child of alcoholic), and an inspiring story about a family overcoming alcoholism, double wins, and co-addiction. I was completely unaware of how much I had in common with Suzanne Somers. I have a new-found respect for her. She kind of kicks ass as she bares her weaknesses and humbly reports her successes.
5th January 2005
 jenbug_101268 @ 1:50pm: 2004 book list
1.Fargo Rock City - Chuck Klosterman 2. Fig Eater - Jody Shields 3. White Apples - Jonathan Carroll 4. Leaving a Trace - Alexandra Johnson 5. Mr Sandman - Barbara Gowdy 6. Candyfreak - Steve Almond 7. Art of Sleepy Hollow - Tim Burton 8. Harlequin Valentine - Neil Gaiman (graphic novel) 9. Shade the Changing Man - Milligan (graphic novel) 10.The Passion - Jeanette Winterson 11.Lab 257 - Michael C. Carroll 12.Mortal Souls - Steven Grant (graphic novel) 13.Chip Kidd - Veronique Vienne 14.The Little Endless Storybook - Jill Thompson (graphic novel) 15.Blackberry Wine - Joanne Harris 16.Zero Girl - Sam Keith (graphic novel) 17.Hardcore Zen - Brad Warner 18.Cool Moonlight - Angela Johnson 19.What Would Buffy Do? - Jana Reiss 20.Invisible Frontier - LB Deyo and D Leibowitz 21.The Circus in Winter - Cathy Day 22.Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold 23.Fight Club - Chuck Paluhniak 24.Henry and June - Anais Nin 25.Triangle:The Fire that Changed America - David Von Driehle cross posted a wee bit ....
2nd January 2005
xoraclex @ 12:19am: The Exorcist
By William Peter Blatty Not as scary as the OLD version of the movie, even for someone who visualizes things very vividly.
27th December 2004
xoraclex @ 9:10pm: Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi
A first hand account of the Manson trial with pictures, interviews, testimony and an inside look into the legal process of the case. I enjoyed reading the anecdotal accounts and interviews. The pictures were also very thought provoking to me, as they were pictures of kids around my age and younger, most from middle class families, lots of them were former boy scout/prom queen type kids. The legalese and police work specifics kind of bored me, especially since the book is a million pages long, but it was worth reading. Made me think a lot. I'm terrified of Charles Manson and LSD now. Thanks Vince!
13th December 2004
ninjahobodistro @ 6:22pm:
The Ninja/Hobo zine distro is Now Open!
We have a lot of new, great zines!
Grab-bags are available for $5 shipping included (us only.)
Do check it out!!
www.ninjahobodistro.vzz.net
x-posted
8th October 2004
jenbug_101268 @ 8:09am: The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day
well, I haven't been here in awhile...I keep doing that thing where I'm reading 4-5 books at a time and not finishing any of them...but I finally finished this one. (I'm so proud of myself!) Definitely two thumbs up. It's a series of interconnecting stories about a circus town and it inhabitants. I quite liked it although most of the stories were on the more melancholy side... I've always been fascinated by the circus - so bright and cheery on the outside - but teeming with seediness and tragedy on the inside... so , while we're on the subject - if anyone out there has some recommendations along these lines (seedy circus stories) ...besides the classic "Geek Love" ...I'd love to hear them...
20th August 2004
 waldo84 @ 6:31pm: w00t!
I just finished The Manchurian Candidate. The first 150 pages or so weren't very eventful, but after that it started getting really could. Once I reached this point I couldn't put the book down. I now want to see the movie, but it would probably disappoint me...
17th August 2004
waldo84 @ 8:41pm: First post here
This is my first post here. Books I have read this summer alone: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson A Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood Catch-22 by Joseph Heller Twelve by Nick McDonnell Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand The Virtue of Selfishness by Ayn Rand Other books I have read: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse Libra by Don Delillo Choke by Chuck Pahlaniuk 1984 by George Orwell That's just an insight on the literature I like.
11th August 2004
jetlager @ 12:11pm: Seen this?
For those who are into mysteries and hard-boiled detective novels - not sure if this is real or not, but it certainly is entertaining...and addictive: privatedick.blogspot.com-Jet
24th July 2004
 missjaala @ 9:24am: Bergdorf Blondes - Plum Sykes
Just finished it this morning. Nothing to rave about but the cover is gorgeous. I found it really hard to care about the characters at all or even get swept up in the story, as the characters are just so shallow & vacuous. Now I know that's meant to be the idea; but it just didn't resonate with me at all unfortunately. I'm horrified to think my love of chick-lit may be waning; or gasp, that I may have a maturing reading taste. Say it ain't so!
12th July 2004
xoraclex @ 9:23am: Just finished One For the Money
This book, by Janet Evanovich, was pretty damned awesome (see how eloquent and intelligent I can be? HA!) The main character is Stephanie Plum, she's ditzy sometimes, can be weak, clumsy....she's a character I can relate to, all the way down to her insane family. She takes a job as a "bounty hunter" turning bail-jumpers over to the police to collect a nice fee. The book has lots of humor, very real characters, action, chills and sex. What more could you ask for?
7th July 2004
 petalmcmako @ 8:10pm: Erica Spindler
You know, I think this woman is the very best example of why romance writers should NOT switch genres. She has some great ideas - but talk about over-write! Everything is melodramatic and written in a hushed tone (like newsreaders use to say something dramatic). I just read Cause For Alarm and even though it was a 500pager, I whipped through it in a day. Why? Because by the time I skimmed over the crap (and there was a lot of it), the book was maybe 150 pages of story. This reviewer from amazon says it all "...Terrible book-readers should expect more from authors!, July 21, 1999 Reviewer: An Amazon.com Customer I read this book based on the rave reviews by readers at Amazon. I feel cheated. Readers should expect more from authors. This was a cookie-cutter thriller. It was all wrapped up too nicely. You could see the authors outline at every turn. Golly, we need someone with insight into the lives of professional killers--How about having the wife/husbands best friend be an author? Great idea! Thrillers should be twisting and page turners, and surprises should happen when you least expect it! To say nothing for the neat and UNCLIMACTIC ending...one lousy chapter of a finale--and the COPS shoot him down? Ridiculous!..." Erica Spindler has great IDEAS, it's such a damn shame she can't write!
10th June 2004
 angriest_girl @ 9:38pm: I read a book!
Psychoville by Christopher FowlerI read this years ago during a phase where I devoured as many of his books as I could find, but my memory is so bad I had completely forgotten it. It is one of those unputdownable ones where you end up sitting up till 3am because you have to find out what happens. It's hard to describe his style. I've heard it described as "urban horror" but it's not really horror as such - not like ghouls and goblins and whatnot. He writes these sort of blackly nasty books about the undercurrents of apparently "normal" life. All is not what it appears to be kind of thing. And he is wicked.
22nd May 2004
missjaala @ 6:41am: Gone With The Wind
I'm rereading GWTW at the moment as my before bed book, it's so much more detailed than the movie, I love that about it! There are more characters & the characters from the movie are more developed & in some cases quite different to how they're portrayed. I love thew movie too, it's just that they are completely different experiences. Mind you, the only book/movie pair that I know worked as well as each other & stayed true was Misery by Stephen King.
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