In Summation

This year has been a fun year, if a stressful one. I started out strong in January, reading 27 books in a month, and ended strong in December with 20 books. In between- I had some bad months. This past year was rather busy, and I didn't come close to the 155 books that I read this year, but this was also the first year that I wasn't in a hospital. So I have an excuse.
I really enjoyed reading and writing about what I read. I watched my blog views spike during the summer and then essentially disappear again (Russian viewers, where did you go?). But that's okay. I did this for me. And I'm glad I did.

Some Facts:

*In total, I read 100 books including:

• 27 Nonfiction
• 29 Young adult fiction
• 28 Normal fiction
• 14 Plays
• 2 Graphic novels

*Of those, I was rereading 33 and reading 67 for the first time.

*Of the nonfiction, I read 14 books about neuroscience/psychology.

*The authors who I read the most books from:

• Lemony Snicket (15)
• J. K. Rolling (6)
• William Shakespeare (4)
• John Green (3)
• Jim Butcher (3)

*My favorite books that I read this year were (in no particular order):

• The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat- Oliver Sacks
• Atlas Shrugged- Ayn Rand 
•  Looking For Alaska- John Green
•  East of Eden- John Steinbeck
• Cocktail Party Cheat Sheets - Mental Floss Magazine
•  What's the Difference?- Mental Floss Magazine
•  Paper Towns- John Green
•  The Fountainhead- Ayn Rand
•  Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex- Mary Roach
• The End- Lemony Snicket
•  Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar- Thomas Cathcart & Daniel Klein
• Mrs. Warren's Profession- George Bernard Shaw
• A Mind of It's Own- Cordelia Fine
• "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman"- Richard P. Feynman
• And the list goes on... lots of things are my favorite.

*I had the most views from the US (700 in the past 6 months). Then 60 from Russia, 35 from Thailand, 30 from Italy, 30 from Poland, 25 from the Ukraine, Columbia, and India, and 15 from France and Bulgaria.

*Most of my views came from internet explorer, though I got quite a few from Chrome as well (mostly from YOU, one specific awesome reader). Plus a handful from Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Glue. And a few from Java, Jakarta, and Netscape. Wee.

*My biggest traffic sources were facebook, blogger, nerdfighters.com, and yandex.ru (the russian search engine).

*I got hits from google Guatemala, Canada, UK, China, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and more.

*Funniest search that led to my blog- "Women Sex Animals" from Saudi Arabian google. I died. Hello, person who searched that. I'm sorry that I'm not a sex animal, but I hope you enjoyed reading about literature!

*I got 2 views from ipods. Question- who cares enough about this blog to check it from their ipod?

I'm going to continue to track my books in excel, and I may write here from time to time. But I'm no sure that'll I'll make a regular thing of it this year, writing for every single book. Maybe just when I really have something to say.
Oh lovely blog readers, I have enjoyed your occasional views and rarer comments. Keep reading!

--Jackie

The Final Three- Finally

No Exit by Jean Paul Sartre is a play about three people, together in hell, making the best (or worst) of it. It is most famous for the quote:

"Hell is other people."

I  think that this statement, for me at least, is true. This is not to say that I dislike people- I think I'm a relatively social person. Rather, I think that Sartre's intended message rings true for me. It is hell to depend on other people for self-worth or to define yourself by other people.
Throughout the play, the different characters are forced to rely on each other in order to decide how they feel about themselves. Ines acts as a mirror for Estelle and Garcin seeks validation from the other two that he is a good man. I too, in my life, seek validation far too frequently. I have a friend who likes to joke that I equate grades with love, that I equate the judgement of others in the form of letters and number with my own self-worth. My friend is correct. If I get a bad grade, it ruins my day, and occasionally, my week. I depend on praise from teachers to know that I am a decent person and have a difficult time being proud of what I accomplish at times. I make my own hell for myself, by allowing people to become my hell.
I really liked this play, and the themes it touched on. I thought that it was slightly shocking at times, but also extremely realistic. Also, I feel that some of Sartre's work can just be "Mehmehmeh, I'm an existentialist," but this wasn't that way at all. It was subtle, yet clear.

The Girl With the Flammable Skirt by Aimee Bender. My sister, you is a total freaking hipster (who I love), gave it to me for Christmas because
A. It has "skirt" in the title, and I only wear skirts.
B. It's her favorite author.
Extremely postmodernist in style, the book was certainly different from what I typically read. It was a collection of short stories, many of which were sexual, made little sense, or ended really abruptly. I enjoyed the different pacing and style. Usually, I can't read collections of short stories straight through, but I actually read this in one day (partially because I had to in order to hit 100, yes). The book was weird though. Weird as hell.
There was a story about a girl watching her boyfriend go un-evolve, going from man, to ape, and eventually to guppy. There was a story about a man with a physical hole in his stomach. There was a story about a mermaid and an imp, which ended extremely abruptly with the mermaid telling the imp that she knew what he was, but saying nothing else.
Then there were the stories about sex. The girl in the fancy dress, who followed a man home and made him cut it off of her only to find that he wouldn't have sex with her. Or of a librarian who, following the death of her father, had sex with nearly every man who walked into the library, letting them play out their librarian fantasy. Bender's sex stories were the least weird, because sex is far more natural and realistic than a boy turning into a guppy.
Recommended.

The Master Builder is a play by Henrik Ibsen, one of my favorite playwrights. It is centered Harvard Soleness, a builder who is fighting against the incoming youth and attempting to get ahead. He carries on a sort of affair with a woman, Hilda, from his younger days after she tells him that he once kissed her and promised to build her a castle. Also, his wife and a doctor think he's mad. And he refuses to let his assistant, Ragnar Brovik, move forward with career even as his father, Knut Brovik, is dying. When he finally lets Ragnar get ahead, he decides to climb the tower of his newest building to hang the wreath, even though he is terrified of heights. He falls and dies, which I think sort of symbolizes the ultimate failure that he met by letting youth get ahead.
Like all of Ibsen's plays, it's extremely well written, but it is less thematically straight-forward then, say, A Doll's House. It's fairly symbolic in a way, with Hilda acting as both a source of inspiration for Soleness and a temptress.
It reminds me a bit of Hamlet, as the other characters think Soleness is crazy, and of The Fountainhead, as Hilda is Dominique-like and it's about architecture.
I intend to do my research paper for my English class on it. Should be fun.
BUT- OH MA GAWD IBSEN USES "THAT" INSTEAD OF "WHO"
Seriously my biggest grammar pet peeve. That is a thing. Who is a person. You should never use the phrase "She is a girl that..."
No. She is a girl who. Because she is a girl. Damn it. I blame the translator. Ibsen could not make such a grave error.
This is mad choppy. But I am tired. Way to go out with an anti-bang, right?

Total Books: 100
NonFic: 27 (27%)

Summation post soon!

The Series of Unfortunate Events- In 6 days and 2500 Words

I READ 100 BOOKS THIS YEAR!!!!!! Yay. :) I will put off my celebrations for now and actually finish writing about all I read:

Over the course of about 6 days, I read the entire Series of Unfortunate Events, plus the two companion books Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography and The Beatrice Letters. Although they are children's books, I am rather proud of myself for devouring them so quickly. Plus, I truly enjoyed reading them- they brought me back to my childhood and I was able to pick up on things that I had missed when I read them years ago.

I suppose I'll just go in order, starting with book 4 (as I talked about 1-3 here), listing some of my thoughts on each:

4- The Miserable Mill

• Main Premise: The orphans work in a dangerous lumber factory, Klaus gets hypnotized by the optometrist, who is evil and working with her secretary "Shirley" (Count Olaf in disguise). The orphans meet "Sir," the boss at the lumber mill, his partner Charles, and Phil, an optimistic worker.
• I like that "Georgina Orwell" the optometrist, can be linked to George Orwell's 1984. She can essentially be thought of as a sort of "big brother," as she hypnotizes and controls Klaus. Cool.
• Although I don't like the earlier books in the series, as VFD hasn't been introduced yet, I still really enjoyed MM. I like when characters in earlier books pop up in later novels. Both Sir and Charles reappear in The Penultimate Peril and Phil Reappears in The Grimm Grotto. Olaf, of course, appears everywhere (drat). Most interestingly, in The End, KitSnicket mentions that Charles used to send her maps and other helpful material, implying that he is a member of VFD.

5- The Austere Academy

• I really like this book because it is the first time that the orphans are introduced to the concept of VFD. However, I never really liked the two Quagmire triplets. I thought that, as far as characters go, they were absurdly flat and boring, only existing as a plot device.
• However, it is interesting to note that the triplets, named Duncan and Isadora, were named after the dancer Isadora Duncan. Clever, Lemony.
• I preferred reading about Carmelita Spats, the bothersome little girl at the school and the favorite of both Olaf and Principal Nero. She amused me, as least somewhat. Certain articles that I read suggested that her constant use of the the word "cakesniffers" to describe people was based of Holden Caulfield constant use of the word "phony." I'm sorry, theorists, but no. I love Holden Caulfield, and Carmelita is exceedingly unpleasant. I refuse to believe that.
• The motto on the entry way to the school, "memento mori" has always... interested me, I guess. Meaning "Remember, you will die," I feel that it is appropriate for the story, and especially appropriate for this book. Prior to book five, the Baudelaire orphans spend all of their times running from Count Olaf, keeping their heads down and their noses clean. From the fifth book on, the Baudelaires have a reason to stir up trouble, so to speak. They must go after the Quagmire triplets and actively attempt to gain knowledge about VFD. As there mission becomes more dangerous, I think that the school motto is rather appropriate. Entering into the dangerous world with an active mission, the orphans must remember that they could die.

6- The Ersatz Elevator

• Now it gets interesting. The second JS, Jerome Squalor, is introduced along with his evil wife Esme Squalor. This book is perhaps the last one in which the orphans really experience a sort of freedom that isn't completely overshadowed with anxiety and despair. For there first few days in the penthouse, they are able to do as they wish, for the most part, and are able to live in the city where they grew up. Additionally, in this novel, none of them are ever explicitly threatened by Count Olaf, who is disguised as an auctioneer.
• I think that this is the first book where you get a glimpse of Fernando (the hook handed-man) acting kindly towards the Baudelaires. Although he eventually helps to steal the Quagmires at the auction, he is kind to the children while acting as doorman.
• Esme Squalor's name is taken from J. D. Salinger's Story "For Esme- With Love and Squalor." Still, I refuse to believe that cakesniffers is a JD reference.

7- The Vile Village

• For some reason, this book has always been my least favorite in the series. Excluding the section in which Jacques Snicket is present, I found it to be rather boring, possibly due to the fact that I have never liked the Quagmire triplets and I did not like Hector, the Baudelaire's main caretaker.
• The scene in which Jacques Snicket dies is the first one that I remember crying over when I read the books as a child. Jacques, a man representative of love, life, and information, died and he was mistaken for Count Olaf. I remember bawling.,
• This book also serves as a sort of turning point in the novel, as after this book, theBaudelaires are thought to be criminals and Olaf is thought to be dead. Thus, they can no longer even attempt to rely in Mr. Poe for help.

8- The Hostile Hospital

• Also not my favorite book, but still solid. There are a ton of anagrams in this book, as all of Count Olaf's assistants are given fake names when they work in the hospital and Violet gets a fake name as well. Anagrams are always fun. At one point in the story, there is a list of hospital patients, and all of the names are anagrammed. The names of the author, illustrator, and publisher are all used.
• There is a picture at the beginning of one of the chapter about the "Volunteers Fighting Disease." It depicts a volunteer, holding a guitar that says "This Volunteer Fights Disease." I actually took out my phone and sent a picture of it to several friends, as I was quite amused. It was, of course, a reference to Woodie Guthrie's guitar, which bore the message "This Machine Kills Fascists." This is why I love Lemony Snicket. His references are just amazing.
• Also, I really like the illustrations. I am a fan of sketchy drawings, and Brett Helequist (the illustrator) is excellent. I might try to blow up some of his pictures to frame.
• As far as the rest of this book goes, the portion about the Snicket file was interesting, but other than that, there's not that much to comment on. But OOH, in this book it appears that a Baudelaire parent is alive, according to the Snicket file. But then, it turns out to beQuigley Quagmire, who is equally awesome, so no complaints here.

9- The Carnivorous Carnival

• I am most definitely a fan of this book. The orphans learn a fair amount about VFD and they begin to realize that they commit acts that are not necessarily noble (although this sort of starts in HH).
• The psychic at the carnival is named Olivia Caliban, but she is never mentioned with Friday or Miranda Caliban, who are mentioned in The End. I wonder if they're related.
• The hunchback in the freak show is named "Hugo" just as the author of The Hunchback ofNotre Dame is named Victor Hugo.

10- The Slippery Slope

• This is possibly my favorite book in the series, although it's very difficult to decide. I like how much they learn about VFD, and I like that in this book, the reader is able to see Count Olaf alone more, when he is atop the mountain with Sunny. The reader is able to understand his weaknesses and his fears a little bit more, as Olaf is clearly scared of the evil man and woman who join him.
• Yay Quigley Quagmire! He's my favorite Quagmire, by far. He's the most intelligent and interesting, and is able to provide vital material about VFD.
• In this book, when Violet and Klaus find a bowl of strawberries in the refrigerator, they feel that they are slightly useless. However, the narrator comments that if a man came and began to poke you repeatedly until you gave him strawberries, they would be very helpful. I use a modified version of this concept quite often to explain the usefulness of seemingly useless things. For example, you were to learn, for instance, that the word "nerd" may come from drunk spelled backwards, which is "knurd," you may think that this piece of information is useless. However, if an ax murderer ever approached you and same "Tell me the etymology of the word 'nerd' or I shall kill you!" You would be able to survive. So congratulations, I may have just saved your life.

11- The Grimm Grotto

• Damn... this is getting really long. But I will persevere.
• I like this book to. :) I thought that learning about Anwhistle Aquatics and the medusoidmycellium, a reference to Medusa. I really like the scene in which the orphans and Fiona are in Anwhistle Aquatics looking through the detritus. They find so much that is linked with other books, from newspaper articles to lamps.
• The name of the ship, the Queequeg, is a reference to the name of a character in Moby Dick. I only remember this because I read Moby Dick around the same time that I readThe Grimm Grotto (because I felt like being an impressive 12-year-old).

12- The Penultimate Peril

• I nearly forgot to write about this book. Which is weird, because it's one of my favorites.
• The book definitely explains the most about VFD and answers the most questions. Nearly all of the characters are reintroduced and the reader finds that nearly everyone is connected with VFD in some way.
• This is also an interesting book because the orphans begin to seriously struggle with their own nobility. They had to burn down the hotel, give harpoon guns to children, and commit other potentially cruel and dangerous acts.
• This book also reinforces the theme of death for trios. One of the Quagmires was thought to be dead, one of the 3 Snickets siblings died, and one of the Denouement triplets died. I totally expected one of the Baudelaires to die in the last book, but nope.
• The use of the Dewey Decimal system to organize the hotel was cool. You could actually guess what was going on in different rooms based on the room numbers.

13- The End

• I was so furious when I first finished this book, because it barely answered any of the questions I had and actually introduced far more. I don't know if the islanders survived as they sailed away. I still don't know what was in the sugar bowl, what was in the Snicket file, and exactly how the Beatrice-Lemony thing went down. I don't know why Lemony Snicketwas on the run from the law and I don't really know what happened to most of the characters. I don't know if VFD survived, and I don't know if Sunny became a world renowned chef.
• Yet, it is my favorite book in the series (I may have said that about other ones... I take it back. This one. For sure.) Although it doesn't answer a lot of questions, it does answer some and it provided so much more material for theories. This series is left so open, the reader can really think of whatever he or she wants. Which is fun, but frustrating.
• I really liked all of the references to Moby Dick in this novel. The head of the island is Ishmael, and there are various references to boats and whales and crews and stuff. There are also a lot of references to Robinson Crusoe and the Tempest. Once again, I love reading references that I get. There were also references to the story of Adam and Eve, as there is a sort of tree of knowledge on the island that holds powerful apples. And a snake brings the apples to the people.
• I thought it was sweet how it ended, with Count Olaf and Kit Snicket sort of making up. Kit is heroic, as always, and Olaf actually shows that he has another side, a side that is not purely evil. It's sweet. I also like that the Baudelaires raise Beatrice, Kit's child, and that the reader finally discovers that Beatrice was the Snicket's mother and Lemony's lover.

Lemony Snicket- The Unauthorized Biography

• I liked this book far more the first time I read it, when I was actively searching for clues. Other than identifying some of the members of VFD through clues, it really doesn't provide any information central to the plot. Just VFD tidbits. It's still very fun though.
• The format is interesting, as well. A mix of letters, pictures, songs, transcripts, and scribbled notes, it really feels like a secret file rather than a book. Which totally works for the subject material.

The Beatrice Letters

• This was the only book in the series that I had not already read. Although not essential to the plot, it provided a fair amount of background information explaining the love between Lemony Snicket and Beatrice Baudelaire. Essentially, it seems that Lemony and Beatrice were engaged to be married, as they had loved each other since they went to VFD school together. Yet, Beatrice believed an article in the Daily Punctilio that Lemony was dead after Captain Windershins convinced her of the truthfulness of the article. She went ahead and married Bertrand, only to discover that Lemony was in fact alive. She then wrote a 200 page book to him, explaining her reasons for not marrying him. It is a sad story, although no more sad than the story of the Baudelaires.
• I think it is interesting to note that in Dante's Inferno, Beatrice was Dante's true love. Fun connection.
• I felt like such a child when I was reading this book, because it really is meant for ages 9-12. But it was good, so what evs. I even punched out the letters that come with the book and rearranged them to find the secret message "Beatrice Sank." Gawd. I felt like I was 9, spread out on my bedroom floor, doing a puzzle. Wow. But fun.

Other assorted things that I love:

• I love how Snicket deals with death in the book. He isn't overly sentimental and dramatic. He just states what happens, and allows the Baudelaires to react appropriately.
• I love the way that Snicket defines words throughout the story. It's an excellent tool for building kids' vocabulary.
• I love the references throughout the book to other works of literature and music. I always feel so clever when I catch them. :)
• I love the words that Sunny uses. Often times, they mean something in another language, are an anagrammed version of a word related to what she means, or are just funny. Like in one of the books, when Sunny makes a comment about a ring, she says "neiklot," which is Tolkien backwards. Other times, she says things like "media res" when referring to the middle of the story and "quid pro quo" when referring to a fair trade. Good stuff.
• I love Lemony Snicket.
• I love these books, and I love being reminded of my childhood.
• I love the wikipedia pages for this series. They're insanely detailed. It's pretty ridic.
• Btdubs... you should read this series.

This whole thing is likely a mess of typos and grammatical errors, but perhaps I shall fix it later. For now, I must work.

Total Book Count: 100

Nonfiction: 27 (27%... duh)