Hot

People, it is hot.

The bugs are gone.

My glasses fog up when I open the front door.

The humidity has been so consistently high that the water I set out on the front porch for the cats has not evaporated at all. (They do come inside at their leisure so it's not like I make them drink hot water all day. Please don't call the ASPCA on me.)

Most telling though is that I actually turned up the thermostat a few degrees today in a vain measure to lessen the stress placed upon our local electric company. See how responsible I am?

I've been spending the day looking through piles of recipes and gardening tips I've collected from magazines over the years and getting wrapped up in Lost in Austen on some cable channel I've never heard of before. My main refreshment today has been ice water with a packet of True Lemon (not to mention this Iced Coffee with breakfast) but one of my favorite summertime (or anytime) drinks is one I (by way of my mother) discovered at Starbucks:

Passion Iced Tea (unsweetened) with Lemonade
Makes about 3 quarts

• Two bags of Tazo Passion Tea (the purple box, recently found at Whole Foods)
• One can frozen Minute Maid Pink Lemonade concentrate (regular Lemonade is good too)
• Water

Boil enough water to fill a teapot to steep the tea and steep the tea a good ten minutes. Pour into a pitcher large enough to hold 3 quarts. Add the lemonade concentrate, making sure to hold the can as close to the tea as possible if it's still mostly frozen - it'll plop and splash. Add the 4 1/3 cups of water as directed on the can. Stir. Add ice if desired (and if you have the room) but not too much as it'll dilute everything. Chill it if you can wait, pour immediately over ice if you can't, and be charmed by the sweet-tart taste and the pretty raspberry color.

Week-Long Cookbook Review, Wednesday

I realize it's Friday and that I missed posting Wednesday's dinner review yesterday but, you see, when you take two small children to a swimming pool and chase them around for several hours, it wears you out. Even more so when you're sunburned and have stuff you have to do at home later that you can't put off any longer... Well, you get the picture.

Anyway, here's what we ate for dinner Wednesday - TWO recipes from this book:

Slow-Cooker Sticky Wings and Amish Potato Salad.

 

 (Sorry about the awful pictures. The lighting in my house is crap and my camera thinks I'm a dummy. It is not necessarily wrong.)

First, the wings. I (obviously) own a slow cooker but have never been a big fan. Any meat I have ever cooked in this contraption (adding liquid or no) has turned into a doorstop. Recently though, I do believe that Kelsey Nixon from Kelsey's Essentials on Cooking Channel set the foundation for some slow-cooker cookin' when I saw this show for a few weeks ago with her Roast Turkey Dip with Melted Gruyere sandwich recipe. I was still a bit skeptical though.

Well, worry no more. These wings were Awesome! (They deserve a capital A.) They are simple to make and the sauce/glaze is absolutely delicious. The Man decreed that when/if we have our annual Football Draft Day party next year, these will be the main course. (We usually eat ribs.) These wings are spicy and sweet with a bit of heat - much like the sauce in General Tso's Chicken. The directions call for the wings to be cooked for three to four hours on low. Mine cooked for 3.5 hours and were almost falling apart; I halved the amount of wings made here since there are only the two of us but kept the amounts for the sauce the same so I didn't make any mistakes.

Slow-Cooker Sticky Wings

from The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2011

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 4 lbs. chicken wings (I bought wingettes), halved at joint and wing tips removed
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup tomato paste

1. Pulse 1/4 cup of the sugar, 1 tbsp of the soy sauce, the ginger, garlic, and 1/4 tsp of the cayenne in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Add the wings and toss until combined.

2. Cover and cook on low until the fat renders and the chicken is tender, 3 to 4 hours. Using a slotted spoon, remove the wings from the slow cooker and transfer to a large bowl (discard the liquid in the slow cooker.) Let the wings cool for 20 minutes (or cool briefly and refrigerate for up to 24 hours).

3. Adjust an oven rack to be 10 to 12 inches from the broiler element and heat the broiler. (Note: my broiler is wimpy and I found that I kept having to move the wings closer and closer as I broiled them. You may want to start at the next to the top rack setting in your oven to get the proper results.) Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and spray the rack with vegetable oil spray. Whisk the water, tomato paste, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, remaining 3 tbsp soy sauce, and remaining 1/4 tsp cayenne in a bowl. Add half the sauce to the bowl with the cooked wings and toss gently to coat. Arrange the wings, skin side up, on the prepared rack. Broil until the wings are lightly charred and crisp around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes. Flip the wings, brush with the remaining sauce, and continue to broil until well caramelized, about 3 minutes. Serve.

Now, about the Amish Potato Salad. I have another version of potato salad in my repertoire that I am partial to. It's pretty standard with hard boiled eggs, celery, and some onion action mixed in amongst the taters. Mayo, salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar make the dressing. I was curious to see if the Amish could impress me. 

I wasn't. But I don't think it's the salad's fault.

Having to cut out quite a bit of salt out of my diet has had more impacts than just decreasing the salty aspect of food. Salt is crucial for balance; sweet and sour need salt to balance them out and keep them under control. I did add some salt to this dish but it wasn't enough to keep the sweetness of the 1/4 cup of sugar and the sour of the 1/3 cup of vinegar from being overpowering to me. The Man added some salt to his plate and said that it helped tremendously. I guess this means that you'll have to take my opinion here with a grain of salt. (So bad, I know, but I couldn't resist.)

Amish Potato Salad

from The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2011

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes (about 6 to 8 medium), peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
• Salt
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp yellow mustard
• 4 large hard-cooked eggs, peeled
• 1/2 tsp celery seed
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 celery rib, chopped fine (I added more because I like the crunch)
• Pepper

1. Bring the potatoes, 1 tbsp salt, and enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch to boil in a large pot over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the potatoes are just tender, about 10 minutes.

2. While the potatoes simmer, microwave the vinegar and sugar in a small bowl until the sugar dissolves, about 30 seconds. Process the vinegar mixture, mustard, 1 hard-cooked egg yolk (reserve the white), the celery seed, and 1/2 tsp salt in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl.

3. Drain the potatoes, then spread them in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle 2 tbsp of the dressing over the hot potatoes and toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate until cooled, about 30 minutes.

4. Whisk the sour cream into the remaining dressing. Add the remaining eggs and egg white and, using a potato masher, mash until only small pieces remain. Add the celery and cooled potatoes and stir until combined. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve. (The salad can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.)

The 2.0 Version (Or, I'm Back! Now, With Food!)

Hello. I would like to reintroduce myself.

My name is Jen and I have been a book addict for most of my life. Being a bookworm totally suits me and my books have always been a major part of my existence ever since my dad taught me to read when I was three. I am married to a wonderful man who loves football, Batman, and me (but not necessarily in that order).

I am now thirty-three and have been writing book reviews on this blog for almost three years. However, as much as I love my books, I've recently become so very tired of the subject. I haven't even been reading that much.

Burnout stinks, baby.

There's a topic that's more interesting to me lately: FOOD. In the past year, I've become more and more infatuated with cooking; my kitchen feels stuffed to its gills with gadgets, my cupboards are bursting, and the little shelf that used to hold all my cookbooks is now inadequate. I'm growing tomatoes and bell peppers in five gallon buckets in my backyard, herbs on my deck. I'm also going organic which, let me tell you, is not easy in my neck o' the woods. The closest Whole Foods is. . .105 miles away! I had my first Whole Foods experience last week and Oh. My. God. I bought carrots with their "plants" (as my nephew would say) still attached and when my husband got home that day, I proudly showed them to him with a big, goofy grin on my face. I kinda wanted to fight a woman at my local organic produce stand the other day for the last quart of heirloom tomatoes.

Here's the hitch. I have been having recurring ear problems. The diagnosis? Meniere's Disease. My case isn't super-disruptive but it can be annoying as hell. Sometimes, it feels like the worst part is the low-sodium diet I've had to maintain. I'm a big fan of kosher salt and kept a salt pig on my counter. Sodium is in everything and salt makes anything taste better. Check out the food labels on some of your most basic convenience foods - mayo, soy sauce, ketchup, bread crumbs, etc. - and you'll see how difficult it can be to stay below 2000mg of sodium per day. So, I'm now making everything from scratch. Now, I know it's a good thing because most of the stuff I just mentioned is most likely full of chemicals so it'll last longer on the shelf but it's such an inconvenience! On the other hand, so is losing my hearing so I'll do what I have to and that's what I plan to talk about here. Other stuff too, definitely including books, but I'm shifting the focus. Also, please bear with me in this. With the Meniere's, I have days where I'm a complete airhead, can't remember anything, and I have no (or often the wrong) words. (Yes, I've had an MRI on my head.) Any pics I post are bound to be totally amateurish too. Just try not to laugh too too hard.

I'm trying out this background with the tomatoes what with all my tomato fever I've got right now and I hope it's not too hard to read. There was a background that looked like salt but I thought that might be too cute. As it is with moving, things on the blog will be shifting around until they find their proper homes. Comments and suggestions are always welcome so please don't be shy. Thanks!

Because Mondays Suck

This is not book-related so it totally doesn't count what with the hiatus and all but! I was talking to my mother the other day and have discovered that my parents have lost their marbles: they want to get some peacocks. Two peacocks to be precise, to be gorgeous and perpetually pissed-off so that they might wander around my folks' yard and show off their beautiful feathers. 'Kay. My husband, having lived next door to people who had peacocks when he was younger, also thinks that they are out of their ever-loving minds. (So it's not just me.)

So I bring to you this video that we found on youtube. There are plenty on there that have peacocks screaming their heads off (one is called "The Most Annoying Sound in the World") but this one I LOVED. This cat is priceless and a week later, I'm still watching him so I can see the expression on his furry face once more. And you can watch it at work! (There's very little audio.) Here you go...

http://youtu.be/eR9FQdQwpQg

Houston, We Have a Problem

My dad taught me to read when I was three. My kindergarten teacher was thrilled with me; one less rugrat to teach their ABC's to was probably a bit of a relief. Now, I am thirty-three and after blogging for three years, have lately become burned out on the subject of books. Sitting down at this computer, waiting for the words to come so I can write reviews, has become difficult to say the least.

It has taken me thirty years of loving books to get where I am today. But finding the desire to want to write reviews is hard for me these days. And when I get up in the morning and open the browser on my laptop, you want to know the first websites I've been checking out lately? Food bloggers.

That's right. FOOD bloggers, not BOOK bloggers. I feel guilty, like I'm cheating on the one I love (not my husband, of course). I've been getting more pleasure out of reading foodie websites, food bloggers, and cookbooks than I have book sites. *gasp*

Some people would ask me why I can't do both? Here's why: I'm not a food blogger. I make a mess when I cook and I can't imagine trying to take pictures of the process of trying to make a meal as I am too anal and a bit of a perfectionist and would obsess over the pictures. And since there are some awesome food blogs out there with bloggers who take gorgeous pictures that make their food look like something out of four-star restaurants, I won't even go there. So, I'm going on hiatus. I need a break, friends, before I end up burned-out completely. I'll be back when I'm ready.

I'm still reading, though. I didn't name this blog "My Book Addiction" for nothing, you know.

Today, though, on this gloriously rainy day (thank God, the pollen here has been making me crazy), I'll be making Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread from Joy the Baker. And finishing the laundry. Well, nothing's perfect.

Best Book(s) of 2011 (so far)

Wow. I just recently realized that I haven't posted my fave reads for the first three months of this year. Am I a slacker or what?

*crickets*

So. It may be a little lame being so late with some of this but...here's my favorite reads of January, February, and March. This is so exciting, right? *snort* These are going to be short and to the point.


January:
I'm going to have to go with Shadowfever Karen Marie Moning for this month. Yes, I thought it was well done and all (and I'm not forgetting Pale Demon!) but I'm picking it for the emotional impact it made. It finally wrapped up the five-book Fever series and gave me the ending I could live with. I could finally put the subject of Mac and Barrons to bed (heh heh) and get some distance for a little while - I was quite hyped up for Shadowfever and looking back at January, I'm glad I read it. Now, I'm interested to see where Moning goes from there with all the loose ends she left behind. Hmm.

February:
My favorite read in February was another reread of Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas. I read it during my teeth troubles and it made me feel better. I had just listened to the ebook of Secrets of a Summer Night, the first Wallflowers book, and was in the mood to revisit Evie and Sebastian. Good stuff.

I also loved Unveiled by Courtney Milan and Archangel's Consort by Nalini Singh. Fabulous, both of them, which is definitely no surprise.

March:
Last month, I read two truly outstanding and memorable books: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly and Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart. Revolution is powerful. Many times while I read it, I was overwhelmed by Andi's pain. It is one of the best researched novels I have ever read; Andi's study of musical DNA is fascinating and the Alice in Wonderland feel to Andi's trip to the catacombs under Paris and back to the Reign of Terror almost lends a little whimsy (the iPod was a nice touch) to a mostly sad but expertly written book.

Nine Coaches Waiting had been sitting on my shelf for a little while now, ever since Jane sent me a copy. It made the book blogger circuit not that long ago but I wasn't ready to pick it up until last week. Nine Coaches Waiting is a gem of a novel and Mary Stewart definitely knows how to write a mystery that keeps you guessing. There's also a bit of romance thrown in for fun as well. This is definitely a keeper.

Thanks for reading!

In My Mailbox, Mar 20-Mar 26, 2011 (4)

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and is a list of book blogs who want to share the books that came into their home in the past week.

Paperbacks:
Heart of Darkness by Gena Showalter
Unmasked by C. J. Barry
Unleashed by C. J. Barry
Eternal Rider by Larissa Ione
Chick with a Charm by Vicki Lewis Thompson
Lady of Skye by Patricia Cabot

Library books:
Breaking the Rules by Suzanne Brockmann
Size 12 is Not Fat by Meg Cabot
Black Wings by Christina Henry
The Mediator: Darkest Hour by Meg Cabot
The Mediator: Haunted by Meg Cabot
The Mediator: Reunion by Meg Cabot

No ebooks this week.

Sarah Wendell is My Hero

Hello book people! I have a confession: I've been thinking about closing up shop here at My Book Addiction. I've been losing interest lately - on blogging, not reading - and I wasn't sure there was a point to this anymore. My brain doesn't seem to want to participate these days and my review output has dwindled to a point where I feel embarrassed. Who is going to want to keep coming to this blog if I don't do anything new every now and then? Am I contributing anything to book awareness on any level? In it's current state, would this be a blog that I would visit on a regular basis? The answers I come up with are depressing and discouraging.

But then, I saw three things today. Three things that make me think that this is not a waste of my time and I wanted to share them with you.

1. Here is part of a screenshot of one of the traffic counters I use. (Click on it if you can't read the tiny print.) This tells me that several book blogs that I read on a regular basis has links to my blog. Admittedly, some of them are just links provided by a book title search on google, but still. It reminds me other people do like what I have to say.
2. Kristi, aka The Story Siren, posted a discussion she recently had with an undisclosed author about the impact that book bloggers make on the book industry. I was disappointed to read the outlook many authors/publishers/agents have on book blogs (we are their fans, after all). Now, I am not interested in doing interviews and such but I do participate in a few memes/hops that are almost solely for bumping up follower counts. (Hey, every little bit helps.) And it may be my contrary nature but I didn't like the part about how book blogs don't affect book sales. So, I decided that I'll keep doing my part to make sure the word gets around that books are awesome and totally worth your time and money. I'll also be taking off the Followers widget from my blog. If you want to follow me, follow me, but stats don't lie - My Book Addiction gets more hits than total visitors - so I know people are coming back.
3. Here's where I mention where I got the title for this post. Earlier today, I read Sarah Wendell's latest column on Kirkus reviews. I check out Smart Bitches, Trashy Books regularly for her savvy insight into the goings on in publishing and her intelligent reviews of romance novels but she caught my eye today on Kirkus because there was a picture of the cover of Jennifer Crusie's Bet Me under her byline (a sure thing to catch my attention). Sarah recently gave the keynote address at SXSW's Kirkus Book Reviews PubCamp conference and it was about why readers are so important to publishing. She cited examples about how the book industry is doing it's hardest to keep us from reading: charging more for books; restricting ebooks using DRMs and not providing diversity in languages; the dwindling number of actual bookstores. The point? We readers love our books and will always love our books no matter what. When I finished reading this article I wanted to stand up and cheer! In my heart, I am a reader, not a writer, but I do want to share my thoughts on the books I read. So thank you, Sarah Wendell. Thank you for reminding me why I'm here. I needed it.
   

In My Mailbox, Mar 13-Mar 19, 2011 (3)

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and is a list of book blogs who want to share the books that came into their home in the past week.

The Witch's Daughter by Paula Brackston (from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers)
Monkeewrench by P.J. Tracy (from Bookmooch.com)
Alien Tango by Gini Koch (from Paperbackswap.com)
Ruthless Game by Christine Feehan (from Paperbackswap.com)

Library Books:
Size 12 is Not Fat by Meg Cabot
Shadowland by Meg Cabot
Ninth Key by Meg Cabot

On the Nook:
Millie's Fling by Jill Mansell

On the Kindle:
Julia Spencer-Fleming's Letters to a Soldier: A Free Preview of One Was a Soldier with letters and a special note from Julia Spencer-Fleming
Turned at Dark: A Bonus Shadow Falls Short Story by C. C. Hunter
Fallen from Grace: A Bonus Dark Mirror Short Story by M. J. Putney
Staying at Daisy's by Jill Mansell

In My Mailbox, Mar 6-Mar 12, 2011 (2)

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and is a list of book blogs who want to share the books that came into their home in the past week. Here's week two for me. It appears to have been more reasonable than last week.

Hardback books that I bought: (from amazon.com)
Pale Demon by Kim Harrison
River Marked by Patricia Briggs
The Pioneer Woman Cooks by Ree Drummond

Paperback books that I bought: (from my local Walmart)
Primal Bonds by Jennifer Ashley

From BookMooch.com:
Wild Man Creek by Robyn Carr
The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber

From Paperbackswap.com:
Burning Bridges by Laura Anne Gilman
A Rake's Guide to Seduction by Caroline Linden

Ebooks:
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (from bn.com)
Grave Illusions (Jess Vandermire, Vampire Hunter) by Lina Gardiner (amazon.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)
No Fear by Allie Harrison (amazon.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)
Wild Sight by Loucinda McGary (amazon.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)

In My Mailbox, Feb 27-Mar 5, 2011 (1)

Here's a new feature that I'll be attempting to make a (hopefully consistent) weekly addition here on My Book Addiction:

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and is a list of book blogs who want to share the books that came into their home in the past week. I'll be doing this on Sundays and wholly expect to be shocked/surprised/horrified at the volume of books that I get each week. Still, it's something to talk about. (Let's hope the DH doesn't read this.) So...

Paperbacks that I bought (from thebookdepository.com):
How to Flirt With a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper
Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch
Never Again: Wizards of Nevermore by Michele Bardsley
Late Eclipses by Seanan McGuire

Paperbacks received from Paperbackswap.com:
Touch of Surrender by Rhyannon Byrd
It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas
What a Rogue Desires by Caroline Linden
Killing Rocks by D. D. Barant

Ebooks downloaded:
A Lot Like Love by Julie James (from B&N.com)
For the King's Favor by Elizabeth Chadwick (from amazon.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)
Darcy's Voyage by Kara Louise (from B&N.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)
What a Demon Wants by Kathy Love (from B&N.com via blog.booksontheknob.org)

From the library:
The Painted Darkness by Brian James Freeman
Insatiable by Meg Cabot
Reckless by Cornelia Funke
Barefoot Contessa at Home by Ina Garten
Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Oh, my.

Where is The Bookworm?

Since it has been weeks since I last posted, I thought I might check in and say hey. February has bit, my friends, truly bit. I started it with a cold I got at the tail end of January and then last week, my teeth all decided they hate me and turned me into something from a monster movie. I'm afraid to leave my house lest I make little children cry. A root canal, an abscess, and extraction later, I am on the mend, but having lived the last week in a vicodin haze means that I haven't done hardly any reading in the last several days. Now that hurts.

And the Pale Demon ARC Giveaway Winner Now Is...

Jen D!

Your name was chosen using a highly sophisticated method of picking your name out of a hat (well, a box really).

Please email me your snail mail address at myfavoritebookworm@gmail.com so I can Priority Mail it to you ASAP. Uh, scratch that :)

Thanks to everyone who participated!

Thanks again for reading this blog!

Please Excuse Me While I Hack Up This Lung

I am not necessarily a silver-lining type of girl but for me, there is only one perk of being sick: having the perfect excuse to do nothing but read. So, while I lay here suffering this week, not only am I going to read read read but I plan to get some reviews written too. What else have I got to do while I wait for Amazon.com to send me the next two Adrian Phoenix books I ordered (plus a few more)? I have read lots of good books lately and I want to share my thoughts on them with everyone. There may also be another giveaway too. (Not an ARC this time!)

It is now time for a nap. Please stand by :)

Cover Watch!

HER ONLY HOPE FOR SURVIVAL...

Handsome, wealthy and respected, Sir Mark Turner is the most sought-after bachelor in all of London—and he’s known far and wide for his irreproachable character. But behind his virtuous reputation lies a passionate nature he keeps carefully in check… until he meets the beautiful Jessica Farleigh, the woman he’s waited for all his life.

IS TO RUIN THE MAN SHE LOVES...

But Jessica is a courtesan, not the genteel lady Sir Mark believes. Desperate to win free of a life she despises, she seizes her chance when Mark’s enemies make her an offer she can’t refuse: Seduce Mark and tarnish his good name, and a princely sum will be hers. Yet as she comes to know the man she’s sworn to destroy, Jessica will be forced to choose between the future she needs—and the love she knows is impossible.

...COMING OCTOBER 2011
(From courtneymilan.com.)

Cover Watch!

See Meljean's post about it HERE. Nothing on amazon yet.

October, baby!

Countdown to Shadowfever!

ARE YOU READY?! I know I am. I have reread the first four Fever books. I have read the first two chapters of Shadowfever; someone leaked them last week and to keep her readers from being too upset about a certain spoiler, KMM posted them herself on her website. Like a diabetic with a candy bar, I couldn't NOT, you know?

Here's my opinion: if KMM keeps you-know-who dead, I will not be a happy woman. I can't see it happening. There's just too much invested in this character and KMM will have some serious 'splaining to do.

Can you tell how hyped I am for this book? It feels like it's right up there with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It's going to rain here tomorrow and I'm still going to go out and get me a copy. If that doesn't say it all, I don't know what will.

Tomorrow, I'm turning off my phone. I'm locking the front door. I'm going incommunicado until I finish it!

Happy reading tomorrow!

Update: I would also like to add some links here to other book blogs who have been doing some awesome work with the reviews and discussions:
http://www.smexybooks.com/2011/01/dreamfever-discussion-and-giveaway.html
http://www.fictionvixen.com/2010/12/welcome-to-the-faefever-discussion.html
http://www.smexybooks.com/2010/12/welcome-to-bloodfever-discussion.html

Look! LOOK!

There's no blurb yet but we do have a release date of June 21, 2011! Woot! Already, my ear infection in my left ear and the crick in my neck from sleeping funny are so much better :) 

Letting Go and New Beginnings

It's the beginning of a new year so you know what that means: it's time for my annual recataloging of my library. I simultaneously loathe and enjoy this yearly reckoning; giving up books is never easy for me as I get unreasonably attached to my library. But it's a necessary evil. I bring in WAY more books than I send out and something's gotta give. Reclaiming any space is good though.

The question is...which books do I get rid of? If I have them then there was a reason, right? I mean, I wouldn't have bought/borrowed/traded/downloaded them if I wasn't interested or they didn't sound like a good read. What I really need is a more judicious eye when it comes to accumulating them. More often than not I know my reasoning is along the lines of "yes, I could get this from the library but that's only for a limited time. What if I can't get to it in that time period? Wouldn't it just be easier if I had my own copy?" Seriously, people, I can rationalize almost anything when it comes to books. It's time to stop and get control! *sobs*

Oh hell.

Now you know why I only do this once a year.

2010 in Review: My Favorites

Here we are in the end of another December. How many of us think at the end of each year, "Boy this year went by fast! It seems like it was just January!" I know I do. So, here's a few of my favorite things that happened around me this year. Imagine what 2011 will bring.

This is Harley. In May, we foolishly went into the local Petsmart for flea stuff for our other cats and ended up in the kitten room. There, we found a little girl kitty who had her arms sticking out of her kennel, waving them around as if to say "Over here! Over here! I've been waiting for you all day!" Mind you, she was meowing as fast and as loudly as she could manage. (She still does.) So we brought her home and (eventually) named her Harley. She's a stinker (literally and figuratively) but we love her anyway.

Media gurus may be saying that 2010 is NOT the year of the ereader but I must disagree. I became the proud owner of not one but two ereaders this year and I love them both. How could I not like anything that allows me to buy books at the touch of a button and actually have them in seconds? Oh yeah.

NYCC 2010 was so fun! I got lots of free stuff, got to see lots of cool stuff, but most of all I got to meet Jen D. from Not Now...I'm Reading! We had a blast at the con for two days plus a trip to Chinatown - hmmm...dim sum :) Can't wait to hit Philly in August at Authors After Dark!

Netgalley.com is one of the coolest ideas that the book industry has come up with in YEARS. In love at once with Netgalley last summer when I saw that a fellow book blogger got an ARC of Dark Road to Darjeeling by Deanna Raybourn, I instantly joined and as soon as I got my copy of DRtD, I rushed to my local B&N to get my very own nook. By that evening I was in love. They have an extensive catalog of authors by well-known publishers like HarperCollins, Harlequin (my fave!), and Hachette Book Group. I check a few times a week to see what's new and usually let a squeal or two if I find something good. Thank you Netgalley for making my 2010 an awesome year of reading!

I would also like to thank the PTB for letting my father catch his colon cancer before it spread. That was a hairy couple of months there and I thank God every day for his recovery. Amen!