Uncreated Conscience

As much as I adore seeing my family members and being home in southern California, my latent sociability is getting harder to suppress. This morning I announced to Dad that I was going to the bookstore to buy some books as I had read everything in their apartment (true—this includes rereads of ENDER’S GAME, MAY [...]

I’ll admit it: as far as space operas go, I was always much more of a Star Wars fan rather than a Trekkie. The original Star Wars trilogy closely followed the mythic hero story described by Joseph Campbell and had such epic scope to it. Also, it had Harrison Ford Han Solo. In comparison, I [...]

My dad calls narcissus flowers “June lilies”, which just makes me think of Mrs. Lynde in ANNE OF GREEN GABLES. He’s wrong, of course. Narcissus flowers, especially the ones that flourish in Pasadena are not lilies; they’re daffodils (called “paperwhites”) and they are especially fragrant. This morning I dropped my brother off at school and [...]

I love living and working with book people: I get to 1) steal books from their shelves and 2) “borrow” books from work. Russ has been the most consistent purveyor of new material to read; in addition to PURE, he’s also given me WINTERGIRLS, a Brian Eno biography, and Chuck Palahniuk’s PYGMY (which I have [...]

For the past five days, I have been going crazy trying to figure out which activities don’t require the use of my eyes. Friday night I lost my last pair of contacts (I needed to go see the optometrist anyway) and I have been stuck wearing my glasses since. Now, I love my glasses, I [...]

Before anything else, I want to wish my White-Harp a happy 21st birthday! Now she’s legally able to drink (not that age has stopped her before). Sometimes books make me want to eat whatever the characters are eating. My friend Katranna (and Jo March of LITTLE WOMEN) have both mentioned THE PICKWICK PAPERS by Charles [...]

I have decided I need to add Michael Emerson to my family of adopted people I may or may not adore in the way gay men adore Judy Garland. So, I have Magical Uncle Neil Gaiman, Fairy Grandfather Ian McKellan, Storytellin’ Gramps Philip Pullman, and…I may have to relegate the actor playing Benry as…That Creepy [...]

One morning before work, Russ dropped a book on my desk with the injunction: “You like YA. Read this, it’s really good.” Now, I trust his taste, but I will admit that I was initially skeptical because the cover is a monstrosity of pink and sexual suggestiveness, exactly the sort of book (YA or not) [...]

I have a new crush. Her name is Yui (ユイ) and she is just about the cutest thing ever in addition to being extraordinarily talented.

Sometimes, I really do wish William Shakespeare had written a play called Gold Diggers of 1602 or whatever that made-up book was in GOOD OMENS. Because it would have been amazing. The other day I finished reading Anna Godbersen’s THE LUXE, which I picked up from Ye Olde Literary Agency. I never had much interest [...]