Tag Archives: literature

My 2018 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 2 of 3

January 15, 2019 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment
Library books!

We’ll not be covering the 108 books that my wife read in 2018, but you can glimpse a few of them in this library haul. Guess which one of these four was my selection and win no prizes!

Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and self-promotion from internet users who have me muted. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to non-timeliness.

Presented over this entry and the next two is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2018, partly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 80 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 30% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

As with last year’s experiment, every book gets a full capsule summary apiece, because 29 years of reading Entertainment Weekly have gotten me addicted to the capsule format. The list is divided into a three-part miniseries to post on back-to-back evenings in order to ease up on the word count for busier readers. Triple bonus points to any longtime MCC readers who can tell which items I bought at which comic/entertainment conventions we attended over the past few years.

Special shout-out to our local library, source of a few of the books in this section. Also, please note the numbers don’t represent rankings. They were merely to help me count toward my grand total. On with the countdown! Some more!

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My 2018 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 1 of 3

January 14, 2019 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment
books 2018!

Other than a handful of library selections not pictured, this is the complete 2018 reading list.

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and self-promotion from internet users who have me muted. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to non-timeliness.

Presented over this entry and the next two is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2018, partly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 80 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 30% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

Continue reading →

My 2017 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 2 of 2

January 11, 2018 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment
Leguizamo + Gordon!

Library trip, 9/2/2017. Also, two of my favorite books of the year.

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and self-promotion from internet users who have me muted. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to non-timeliness.

Presented over this entry and the next is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2017, not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 70 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 40% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

As with last year’s experiment, every book gets a full capsule summary apiece, because 28 years of reading Entertainment Weekly have gotten me addicted to the capsule format. The list is divided into a two-part miniseries to post on back-to-back evenings in order to ease up on the word count for busier readers. Triple bonus points to any longtime MCC readers who can tell which items I bought at which comic/entertainment conventions we attended over the past few years.

Once more: onward!

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My 2017 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 1 of 2

January 10, 2018 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

[UPDATED 1/2/2023: This entry originally had a lead photo, but I made the mistake of hot-linking directly to my Flickr account, where I assumed it was safe forever and consequently deleted all my backup copies. Their rules changes for free accounts appear to have resulted in its subsequent deletion. Sigh.]

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and self-promotion from internet users who have me muted. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to non-timeliness.

Presented over this entry and the next is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2017, mostly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 70 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 40% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

As with last year’s experiment, every book gets a full capsule summary apiece, because 28 years of reading Entertainment Weekly have gotten me addicted to the capsule format. The list is divided into a two-part miniseries to post on back-to-back evenings in order to ease up on the word count for busier readers. Triple bonus points to any longtime MCC readers who can tell which items I bought at which comic/entertainment conventions we attended over the past few years. Onward!

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My 2016 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 2 of 2

January 3, 2017 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment
Best books of 2016!

My ten personal favorites from the pile of 38, but not the only good ones in there.

Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and tweets by self-promoters who pretended to care about anything I wrote exactly once each. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to irrelevance.

Presented over this entry and the next is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2016, mostly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 70 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 40% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

New for this year: I expanded the list to a full capsule summary apiece, because logophilia. I’ve divided the list into a two-part miniseries to post on back-to-back evenings (like they used to do with the ’66 Batman TV show) in order to ease up on the word count for busier readers.

Once more: onward!

Continue reading →

My 2016 in Books and Graphic Novels, Part 1 of 2

January 2, 2017 By in Comics/Lit, Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , , 1 Comment
books 2016!

All 38 books on my list in order by size. For an explanation of the conscious lack of e-books in my literary diet, please enjoy this MCC treatise from 2013.

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and tweets by self-promoters who pretended to care about anything I wrote exactly once each. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on at least two books at a time in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to non-timeliness.

Presented over this entry and the next is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2016, mostly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 70 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 40% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream.

New for this year: I expanded the list to a full capsule summary apiece, because logophilia. I’ve divided the list into a two-part miniseries to post on back-to-back evenings (like they used to do with the ’66 Batman TV show) in order to ease up on the word count for busier readers. Onward!

Continue reading →

My 2015 in Books and Graphic Novels

January 22, 2016 By in Comics/Lit Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Library of Souls!

Ransom Riggs’ Library of Souls, one among a handful of 2015 books I actually read in 2015.

Time again for the annual entry in which I remind myself how much I like reading things besides monthly comics, magazines, and tweets by followers who have me on Mute. Despite the lack of MCC entries about my reading matter, I’m always working on a book or two in my ever-diminishing reading time. I refrain from full-on book reviews because nine times out of ten I’m finishing a given work decades after the rest of the world is already done and moved on from it. I don’t always care about site traffic, but when I do, it usually means leaving some extended thoughts and opinions unwritten due to irrelevance.

Presented below is my full list of books, graphic novels, and trade collections that I finished reading in 2015, mostly but not entirely in order of completion. As I whittle down the never-ending stack I’ve been stockpiling for literal decades, my long-term hope before I turn 70 is to get to the point where my reading list is more than, say, 40% new releases every year. That’s a lofty goal, but I can dream

Right this way for another Reading Rundown!

“Anne of Green Gables” Reboot Emphasizes Unimportance of Accurate Book Covers

February 9, 2013 By in Misc. Media Tags: , , , , , , , 4 Comments

Anne of Green GablesLiteracy pundits wept this week over a controversial re-release of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic Anne of Green Gables, which is now in the public domain and can be reprinted and reformatted by anyone who thinks they can earn a dime from it, regardless of whether or not they’ve actually read it themselves. Rather than publish it with a cover that reflects one iota of the content, dark forces working through CreateSpace instead revamped little Anne’s image by disposing of everything about her except her gender. Presumably a skewed focus group or an ad executive with a one-track mind advised that today’s younger readers are 75% more likely to read a classic novel if the cover resembles a supermarket magazine.

Do the guilty parties have a point? Some publishers have found that quality content alone, regardless of pedigree, is often not enough to entice new readers, especially if the content is really old and uses archaic terms such as “gables”. Schoolteachers do their best to inform students of the perks and wonders of reading, but they only have so many months to force the kids to read as much as possible before they’re turned loose on the world and free to avoid books for the rest of their lives. If the writing itself isn’t enough of a draw, if the recommendations of elders send them in the opposite direction, how else are the classics supposed to attract new generations of audiences?

Clearly the answer is repackaging that catches the casual eye at any cost. Sure, photogenic Nü-Anne bears no resemblance to her textual counterpart and is somewhat of an affront to dedicated Anne fans, but you’ll note the Amazon listing as of this writing lists this new edition as sold out. Either someone ordered it pulled due to the media scrutiny, or the plan worked beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.

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America Salutes Time Traveler Who Killed Wrong Butterfly, Extended Ray Bradbury’s Life 50 Extra Years

June 6, 2012 By in Comics/Lit, Movies/Films/Flicks Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

The Internet already paid all the best tributes to legendary fantasy/sci-fi author Ray Bradbury, who passed away June 5th at age 91. All I can add are my votes for favorite Bradbury moments:

Favorite movie adaptation: Something Wicked This Way Comes. Sinister carnival comes to small town; ringmaster tries to lure local kids into the exotic carny life…of eeeeevil. I first read about it in Muppet Magazine in a silly movie review section “written” by Statler and Waldorf. Even their crotchety descriptions made it sounds appealing. I caught it on cable TV as a preteen and loved every uneasy minute of it. Young, creepy Jonathan Pryce is all promises and temptations, lording his slithery nefariousness all over Jason Robards and a couple of meddling kids. To this day I’m still a little edgy around merry-go-rounds because of this flick.

Favorite audio adaptation: “A Sound of Thunder”, as part of “Bradbury 13”, a one-time BYU/NPR co-production of radio-drama performances of classic Bradbury shorts. I own six of them on audiocassette, including such suspenseful tales as “Kaleidoscope” (think Cast Away in the vacuum of space, minus hope) and “The Wind” (panicky man terrified by alleged killer weather), but “Thunder” was my favorite of the sextet for introducing me to the now-famous “butterfly effect” concept, and for fun foley-artist dinosaur sounds. Not too long ago the same story was adapted into a full-length made-for-cable movie that I’m afraid to watch because I don’t want to know how much they padded it.

Favorite short story: “The Pedestrian“. In a future where no one takes a walk for pleasure, a man decides to take a walk for pleasure and is branded an unfathomable lunatic. For anyone who’s ever engaged in a simple pastime that no one else gets (collecting Hummel figurines, paint-by-numbers, unicycling, solitaire with real playing cards, blogging), Bradbury knew your discomfort long before you did.

If only the rest of us could live so long, and with even a fraction of his imagination.

Lemony Snicket Prequels to be Less Series, More Unfortunate, Similarly Eventful

June 3, 2012 By in Comics/Lit Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The thirteenth and final book in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, aptly entitled The End, ended exactly as he promised from the outset. The finale was as depressing and disappointing as Snicket repeatedly warned readers it would be. What we followers once idealistically shrugged off as his false modesty proved to be truth in dark advertising. I found it difficult (though not impossible) to complain about my crushed expectations when I knew deep down that the author had reserved the privilege to respond, “I told you so.”

Later this year, Snicket’s clever woe returns to the new-release section of our few remaining bookstores with the first in a four-book prequel series under the umbrella title All the Wrong Questions. The first installment, Who Could That Be at This Hour?, appears to star Snicket himself at age 12 and may or may not relate to us the secret history of his initiation into the V.F.D., which may or may not stand for “Vilified Federation of Downers”. Illustrations will be provided by Seth, a much-lauded graphic novelist who prefers to remain mononymous, a word which here means, “distinguished enough to require only a single name.”

Skeptical fans are encouraged to go read the entire first chapter, which is now officially available online. The reader can infer from the opening paragraph alone that, once again, future side effects of partaking in this experience may or may not include unhappiness, heartbreak, and complaints about so many unseemly tragedies.

Entertainment Weekly indicates the release date has been moved from the original December 2012 plan up to October 23rd, all the sooner for us to get it over with — which may be desirous, if this tantalizing sample is an accurate indicator of the surprises and double-takes in store. Lord willing, perhaps the Questions tetralogy won’t also be adapted into a Jim Carrey movie that ends up as neither a series nor an event.