I'm embarking on my FOURTH year of the 50 book challenge. It's funny that so many people in my world balk at that idea, yet I browse around the web and see people that easily double or triple that goal. I'm still proud of myself for reading 152 books in the last 3 years - especially since they're such a variety. Here's to a new year chockablock of books!
- B
Thursday, January 14, 2010
A Guide To Buying Books
This post is indeed the first thing I've ever written in this blog - officially. This blog - B(u)y The Book serves as a place to both review the books I've read over the last three years and moving forward, with a special bonus for readers - a guide to a book's buyability (yay invented words).
So when I say buyability, I'm basing it on personal preference. Don't get me wrong, I own *most* of the books reviewed in this blog, but many were gifts, many were freebies, and many are some I wish I didn't buy after all.
Here's my quick rubric though:
8-10: Buy it - it's completely worth rereading and lending to everyone you know.
6-7: Ask for it as a gift, or worth a buy off the bargain table / used book stores / to top up that Amazon order for free shipping.
4-5: Split the cost with a friend, or wait till it's at the library.
2-3: If it crosses your path in some way, worth a read, but not really worth seeking it out.
0-1: Don't bother reading this, period.
I almost never buy a book after I've read it - although many people I know do. Over the last few years I've *had* a book buying problem, which I've recently curbed due to an overflowing end table and a renewed library card. So here we go, the ten points of book buyability. In theory you could rank every book you're going to buy on these points, but more often than not they're not all applicable - a debut book with a ton of buzz won't match up to most of these characteristics.
Note that although there are ten items on this list, each item does not count for one point based on the rubric above!
SERIES? - Sometimes a book is really buyable because you want to complete or continue a series. It's buyable because you've read other books in the series and anticipate you'll love this one (and therefore MUST get it right away rather than wait it out at the library) and would like to round out your set.
REREADABILITY? - Whether you're judging this category on your past experience with an author or series, or on your actual experience reading a book and then considering buying it, the number of times you'll read a book is a critical part of deciding whether to buy it. Just like how you justify to yourself that if you buy a $300 skirt and wear it 10 times you've practically made it worth it.
AUTHOR? - Sometimes ya just want to buy the latest from your favourite author. There are devotees to authors - whether part of a series or not - that will make a reader come back again and again. Obviously the buyability factor here is subjective :)
LENDABILITY? - Also supremely key for me anyway, is whether I anticipate those around me will want to read the books I buy. I have several mini 'lending' clubs with my friends and their books on loan make up a good chunk of my to read pile. I in turn consider - is this a book that would really just interest me (and can therefore wait till the library has it available?) or can I see my friends loving it as well?
URGENCY? - Got a cliffhanger that you KNOW will get spoiled if you don't buy it right away? This is mostly for big publishing phenomenons like the latest JK Rowling or Dan Brown...and not really applicable to stuff like Shakespeare :)
AVAILABILITY? - Maybe it's an obscure title you know your library will never get in. Maybe when you DO browse your library's catalogue you see there's 96 requests on it thus nullifying the chances you'll ever get it in a timely manner. It's easier to buy sometimes, plain and simple.
LENGTH? - If a book is really long, dense, or worthy of rereading for studying purposes, it might be worth it to have a copy in your library. An example would be something like a guide to your favourite TV show that numbers in the 600 page range (yeah I have a few of those) or the 500-page biography of a well-known politico. I call these books 'reference' books because they aren't necessarily (save for dense bios) meant to be read in one three-week library takeout period.
SELLABILITY? - Still not keen on buying new books for eco-friendly or whatever reasons? Consider the life cycle of a book. If some of the other factors on this list don't add up, consider how much you'll make by selling it to a used book seller. If a book is in good condition, in demand, and of higher-quality materials (like a hardcover) you can recoup up to $7 or $8 depending on where you go - about half the cost of what the book likely cost you.
BUZZ? - Sometimes a book just gets so much buzz you can't help but wonder what the fuss is about. If you want to be in the loop and be able to give your opinions on the forthcoming movie adaptation, the number of best seller lists it ended up on, or the way it keeps on getting canned, you might just pick it up based on endless buzz.
WANT? - This is an easy one. See, want, order.
So when I say buyability, I'm basing it on personal preference. Don't get me wrong, I own *most* of the books reviewed in this blog, but many were gifts, many were freebies, and many are some I wish I didn't buy after all.
Here's my quick rubric though:
8-10: Buy it - it's completely worth rereading and lending to everyone you know.
6-7: Ask for it as a gift, or worth a buy off the bargain table / used book stores / to top up that Amazon order for free shipping.
4-5: Split the cost with a friend, or wait till it's at the library.
2-3: If it crosses your path in some way, worth a read, but not really worth seeking it out.
0-1: Don't bother reading this, period.
I almost never buy a book after I've read it - although many people I know do. Over the last few years I've *had* a book buying problem, which I've recently curbed due to an overflowing end table and a renewed library card. So here we go, the ten points of book buyability. In theory you could rank every book you're going to buy on these points, but more often than not they're not all applicable - a debut book with a ton of buzz won't match up to most of these characteristics.
Note that although there are ten items on this list, each item does not count for one point based on the rubric above!
SERIES? - Sometimes a book is really buyable because you want to complete or continue a series. It's buyable because you've read other books in the series and anticipate you'll love this one (and therefore MUST get it right away rather than wait it out at the library) and would like to round out your set.
REREADABILITY? - Whether you're judging this category on your past experience with an author or series, or on your actual experience reading a book and then considering buying it, the number of times you'll read a book is a critical part of deciding whether to buy it. Just like how you justify to yourself that if you buy a $300 skirt and wear it 10 times you've practically made it worth it.
AUTHOR? - Sometimes ya just want to buy the latest from your favourite author. There are devotees to authors - whether part of a series or not - that will make a reader come back again and again. Obviously the buyability factor here is subjective :)
LENDABILITY? - Also supremely key for me anyway, is whether I anticipate those around me will want to read the books I buy. I have several mini 'lending' clubs with my friends and their books on loan make up a good chunk of my to read pile. I in turn consider - is this a book that would really just interest me (and can therefore wait till the library has it available?) or can I see my friends loving it as well?
URGENCY? - Got a cliffhanger that you KNOW will get spoiled if you don't buy it right away? This is mostly for big publishing phenomenons like the latest JK Rowling or Dan Brown...and not really applicable to stuff like Shakespeare :)
AVAILABILITY? - Maybe it's an obscure title you know your library will never get in. Maybe when you DO browse your library's catalogue you see there's 96 requests on it thus nullifying the chances you'll ever get it in a timely manner. It's easier to buy sometimes, plain and simple.
LENGTH? - If a book is really long, dense, or worthy of rereading for studying purposes, it might be worth it to have a copy in your library. An example would be something like a guide to your favourite TV show that numbers in the 600 page range (yeah I have a few of those) or the 500-page biography of a well-known politico. I call these books 'reference' books because they aren't necessarily (save for dense bios) meant to be read in one three-week library takeout period.
SELLABILITY? - Still not keen on buying new books for eco-friendly or whatever reasons? Consider the life cycle of a book. If some of the other factors on this list don't add up, consider how much you'll make by selling it to a used book seller. If a book is in good condition, in demand, and of higher-quality materials (like a hardcover) you can recoup up to $7 or $8 depending on where you go - about half the cost of what the book likely cost you.
BUZZ? - Sometimes a book just gets so much buzz you can't help but wonder what the fuss is about. If you want to be in the loop and be able to give your opinions on the forthcoming movie adaptation, the number of best seller lists it ended up on, or the way it keeps on getting canned, you might just pick it up based on endless buzz.
WANT? - This is an easy one. See, want, order.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Book #24: The Dead Zone
Title of Book: The Dead Zone
Author: Stephen King
Pages: 402
Grade: C+
Buyability: 4/10
Status: Owned, but gave away in a book drive
Review: Ahhh another book for pop lit down, another day. The thing about Stephen King books, and many of the same genre, is they fail to really challenge the reader other than to try and retain certain clues and hints as to what might happen in the future of the plot. Why are we being introduced to a lightning rod salesman? Why do we see a blue and yellow filter in a vision? What is the significance of the main character's interest in meeting politicians?
Well for the most part, the big hints were pretty easy to pick up on in this wide-sprawling tale of a man who has a 'gift' for predicting the future when he touches someone. The gift remains dormant for most of his life until a near-fatal car crash puts him into a coma for four and a half years. When he wakes up he finds most of his old life - and his old self - has wasted away, except for this newfound gift that continually astounds people, but more importantly freaks them out.
I guess my beef with the book was how much of it felt like filler and fluff. Even the more exciting parts of the book didn't reallllly contribute to the so-called climax of the story. I guess in reflection the story is a lot about checks and balances - ironic since a good deal of it deals with politics. An eye for an eye and all that..the big twist kind of falls in line with other elements of the plot but I can't say it was a BIG twist like say, in Secret Window. The characters fell flat, the descriptions were tideous to get through (and were often skipped), and good portions of the book failed to ignite tension, while others forced it.
I know this is classic Stephen King and I'm sure for the time it was quite a remarkable, exciting book...but other pop lit books I have read, like Peyton place or Valley of the dolls, have really inspired me as a writer and a reader...but King's book just didn't. It felt flat and pulpy. Sorry dude.
Author: Stephen King
Pages: 402
Grade: C+
Buyability: 4/10
Status: Owned, but gave away in a book drive
Review: Ahhh another book for pop lit down, another day. The thing about Stephen King books, and many of the same genre, is they fail to really challenge the reader other than to try and retain certain clues and hints as to what might happen in the future of the plot. Why are we being introduced to a lightning rod salesman? Why do we see a blue and yellow filter in a vision? What is the significance of the main character's interest in meeting politicians?
Well for the most part, the big hints were pretty easy to pick up on in this wide-sprawling tale of a man who has a 'gift' for predicting the future when he touches someone. The gift remains dormant for most of his life until a near-fatal car crash puts him into a coma for four and a half years. When he wakes up he finds most of his old life - and his old self - has wasted away, except for this newfound gift that continually astounds people, but more importantly freaks them out.
I guess my beef with the book was how much of it felt like filler and fluff. Even the more exciting parts of the book didn't reallllly contribute to the so-called climax of the story. I guess in reflection the story is a lot about checks and balances - ironic since a good deal of it deals with politics. An eye for an eye and all that..the big twist kind of falls in line with other elements of the plot but I can't say it was a BIG twist like say, in Secret Window. The characters fell flat, the descriptions were tideous to get through (and were often skipped), and good portions of the book failed to ignite tension, while others forced it.
I know this is classic Stephen King and I'm sure for the time it was quite a remarkable, exciting book...but other pop lit books I have read, like Peyton place or Valley of the dolls, have really inspired me as a writer and a reader...but King's book just didn't. It felt flat and pulpy. Sorry dude.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Book #23: Valley of the Dolls
Title of Book: Valley of the Dolls
Author: Jacqueline Susann
Pages: 440-ish?
Grade: A
Buyability: 9/10
Status: Bought, owned & lent out to virtually everyone I know
Review: Another book for pop lit and probably my favourite to date, although I did enjoy Peyton Place this was just so much more crushing! Basically it follows the rise to fame for 3 young women in New York, from about age 20 to 40 and all the trials that befall them along the way. The book I think, is a satire on fame and feminism, given it gives the 3 girls a taste of pure joy but repeatedly crashes it down by punishing the girls with what they value (or are valued for) most...looks, personality, determination/wealth. The very things that get the girls to the top are the same things taht drag them to the 'valley of the dolls' - dolls being uppers and downers that play a significant role in the story.
I won't say too much about the plot, other than it has a lot of repetition...but for interesting reasons. The first time these repetitive storylines are introduced, you feel a ton of sympathy for the female characters. The second time, perhaps moreso, but it also shows how the cycle of fame is quite fickle and just that - a cycle. A neverending one.
What I liked (and simultaneously hated) about this book the best was the ending. There is no easy exit for these women from the lives they've created for themselves. I also loved how much the book shed light on celebrity - many of the patterns and commentary in this book is some of the same stories I've heard today! It really got me thinking about the celebrity world a lot more. Although the book isn't particularly...forceful...in its suspense, the very idea of how much bigger or how much worse or how much better can it be is what makes you keep on turning the pages.
Overall this is a great book - but the A- grade comes from the fact some of it is kind of dippy and fluffy and really unnecessary. The book is quite staggeringly long for its genre, but despite its pop lit/fluff motif, it also has some hard hitting lessons and commentary about women's power. If you want to borrow it, get in line, I'm shoving it down the throats of all my friends....the power of fame = deadly!
Author: Jacqueline Susann
Pages: 440-ish?
Grade: A
Buyability: 9/10
Status: Bought, owned & lent out to virtually everyone I know
Review: Another book for pop lit and probably my favourite to date, although I did enjoy Peyton Place this was just so much more crushing! Basically it follows the rise to fame for 3 young women in New York, from about age 20 to 40 and all the trials that befall them along the way. The book I think, is a satire on fame and feminism, given it gives the 3 girls a taste of pure joy but repeatedly crashes it down by punishing the girls with what they value (or are valued for) most...looks, personality, determination/wealth. The very things that get the girls to the top are the same things taht drag them to the 'valley of the dolls' - dolls being uppers and downers that play a significant role in the story.
I won't say too much about the plot, other than it has a lot of repetition...but for interesting reasons. The first time these repetitive storylines are introduced, you feel a ton of sympathy for the female characters. The second time, perhaps moreso, but it also shows how the cycle of fame is quite fickle and just that - a cycle. A neverending one.
What I liked (and simultaneously hated) about this book the best was the ending. There is no easy exit for these women from the lives they've created for themselves. I also loved how much the book shed light on celebrity - many of the patterns and commentary in this book is some of the same stories I've heard today! It really got me thinking about the celebrity world a lot more. Although the book isn't particularly...forceful...in its suspense, the very idea of how much bigger or how much worse or how much better can it be is what makes you keep on turning the pages.
Overall this is a great book - but the A- grade comes from the fact some of it is kind of dippy and fluffy and really unnecessary. The book is quite staggeringly long for its genre, but despite its pop lit/fluff motif, it also has some hard hitting lessons and commentary about women's power. If you want to borrow it, get in line, I'm shoving it down the throats of all my friends....the power of fame = deadly!
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Book #22: Weetzie Bat
Book #22: Weetzie Bat
Author: Francesca Lia Block
Pages: 107
Grade: C
Buyability: 3/10
Status: Owned, but I think I donated it to a book drive recently
Review: I remember wanting to read Block's books when I was a kid...they are really airy, poetic stories, often retellings of fairy tales or myths or this or that, but set against the backdrop of new york or venice beach or something crazy. I never did read one of her bookst ill now, and this was for class - fairy tales - as its supposedly related to Cinderella. I made one note of them mentioning Cinderella but otherwise I didn't get it. I read this book in approximately 30 minutes it was so short - big type! Yay.
Regardless, the story is about a girl named Weetzie who befriends a gay guy, gets 3 wishes from a genie that give her and her friend lovers and a house. Eventually she decides she wants a baby so the two gay guys and her boyfriend all sort of try to impregnate her and one of them does - not sure who - and her boyfriend leaves when he realizes what's happened so the gay guys help her raise her kid and then the boyfriend comes back...the end is sort of abstract and weird but that is the gist.
The point of Block's books though, clearly, aren't the plot because there really isn't any. She manipulates words in a way that paints a world that I'd picture if you could permanently take hold of the feeling of a happy drug - like ectasy or something. Everything is pink and bubbly and floaty and indie and sparkling, yet everything is so realistic at the same time. Her writing is beautiful, but shrouds any hope of 'understanding' the books she writes (i've read a short story of hers for class as well so I get the gist of how she writes).
I can't say I 'reccomend' the book persay because it's so...airy. But if you're into an extremely quick read fantastical long-form poem, then pick it up.
Author: Francesca Lia Block
Pages: 107
Grade: C
Buyability: 3/10
Status: Owned, but I think I donated it to a book drive recently
Review: I remember wanting to read Block's books when I was a kid...they are really airy, poetic stories, often retellings of fairy tales or myths or this or that, but set against the backdrop of new york or venice beach or something crazy. I never did read one of her bookst ill now, and this was for class - fairy tales - as its supposedly related to Cinderella. I made one note of them mentioning Cinderella but otherwise I didn't get it. I read this book in approximately 30 minutes it was so short - big type! Yay.
Regardless, the story is about a girl named Weetzie who befriends a gay guy, gets 3 wishes from a genie that give her and her friend lovers and a house. Eventually she decides she wants a baby so the two gay guys and her boyfriend all sort of try to impregnate her and one of them does - not sure who - and her boyfriend leaves when he realizes what's happened so the gay guys help her raise her kid and then the boyfriend comes back...the end is sort of abstract and weird but that is the gist.
The point of Block's books though, clearly, aren't the plot because there really isn't any. She manipulates words in a way that paints a world that I'd picture if you could permanently take hold of the feeling of a happy drug - like ectasy or something. Everything is pink and bubbly and floaty and indie and sparkling, yet everything is so realistic at the same time. Her writing is beautiful, but shrouds any hope of 'understanding' the books she writes (i've read a short story of hers for class as well so I get the gist of how she writes).
I can't say I 'reccomend' the book persay because it's so...airy. But if you're into an extremely quick read fantastical long-form poem, then pick it up.
Book #21: Peyton Place
Book #21: Peyton Place
Author: Grace Metalious
Pages: 372
Grade: A
Buyability: 7/10 (probably in the library, but good enough to own)
Status: My sister got this for HER pop lit class, but I have absorbed it into my own collection
Review: This is a really famous book I read for pop lit class and I devoured it despite the fact it's a bit tough to read here and there cause it's so packed with information! Peyton Place (PP) is actually the basis for modern soap operas in a lot of ways...it really would have been a shocking book for its time so I get the appeal and shock value back then. Did you know the character of "Peyton" on One Tree Hill and the title of Melrose PLACE are both tributes to PP? Yep.
To sum up, it's the story of the inhabitants of a small New England town called Peyton Place, named after a black guy who managed to get a ton of $$$, build a castle, which attracted other people to the area, and then the castle looms over the place forever...the people in the town are BIG on gossip and there happens to be a lot of it to go around. It takes place over 3 sections of time - when the younger characters (Allison, Selena, Norman, Rodney etc.) are at the cusp of high school at 14, when they are just about graduated at 17, and a couple of years after that.
I can't really say much more about the plot cause it's SO interwoven. Nearly every character has a plot arc, some have several. Overall though this book is fabulous, definitely not just another 'school book' for sure! I loved the way it wove between stories so effortlessly, you never sat and read too much about one person or family and you were never bored, especially because you were always surprised. This was a GREAT book! Read it.
Author: Grace Metalious
Pages: 372
Grade: A
Buyability: 7/10 (probably in the library, but good enough to own)
Status: My sister got this for HER pop lit class, but I have absorbed it into my own collection
Review: This is a really famous book I read for pop lit class and I devoured it despite the fact it's a bit tough to read here and there cause it's so packed with information! Peyton Place (PP) is actually the basis for modern soap operas in a lot of ways...it really would have been a shocking book for its time so I get the appeal and shock value back then. Did you know the character of "Peyton" on One Tree Hill and the title of Melrose PLACE are both tributes to PP? Yep.
To sum up, it's the story of the inhabitants of a small New England town called Peyton Place, named after a black guy who managed to get a ton of $$$, build a castle, which attracted other people to the area, and then the castle looms over the place forever...the people in the town are BIG on gossip and there happens to be a lot of it to go around. It takes place over 3 sections of time - when the younger characters (Allison, Selena, Norman, Rodney etc.) are at the cusp of high school at 14, when they are just about graduated at 17, and a couple of years after that.
I can't really say much more about the plot cause it's SO interwoven. Nearly every character has a plot arc, some have several. Overall though this book is fabulous, definitely not just another 'school book' for sure! I loved the way it wove between stories so effortlessly, you never sat and read too much about one person or family and you were never bored, especially because you were always surprised. This was a GREAT book! Read it.
Book #20: Ella Enchanted
Book #20: Ella Enchanted
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Pages: 200-ish
Grade: A
Buyability: 7/10
Status: Bought & owned
Review: This is one of the books I read for my fairy tales class as it's a short novel that retells the Cinderella story in the form of a full-length story about a young girl cursed with the duty of being obedient. She goes on adventures to try to break her curse but eventually is reduced to slavery by her stepfamily until the curse is finally broken...a prince, glass slipper, and a happily ever after are involved.
I really liked this book! Even though the Cinderella story is so tired for me after this class, I found Ella Enchanted strangely amusing and cute - the romance was well done, Ella was a good Cinderella role model as opposed to traditional versions, and the world created in the story was quite lovely. I could have done without some of the magic/ogre languages and so on, but overall it was a cool modern redo of the story where the fact they made it fantastical actually made it quite realistic.
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Pages: 200-ish
Grade: A
Buyability: 7/10
Status: Bought & owned
Review: This is one of the books I read for my fairy tales class as it's a short novel that retells the Cinderella story in the form of a full-length story about a young girl cursed with the duty of being obedient. She goes on adventures to try to break her curse but eventually is reduced to slavery by her stepfamily until the curse is finally broken...a prince, glass slipper, and a happily ever after are involved.
I really liked this book! Even though the Cinderella story is so tired for me after this class, I found Ella Enchanted strangely amusing and cute - the romance was well done, Ella was a good Cinderella role model as opposed to traditional versions, and the world created in the story was quite lovely. I could have done without some of the magic/ogre languages and so on, but overall it was a cool modern redo of the story where the fact they made it fantastical actually made it quite realistic.
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