Miss Potter, Downton Abbey, Human Planet

ByJohn Brown

Miss Potter, a true romance

How many shows are good enough that you can walk into them partway through and within a minute become completely engrossed? I found two this week. The first is the 2006 film Miss Potter, which tells the story of Beatrix Potter (1866-1943), who is the best selling children’s author of all time. You might know her by the most famous of her 23 illustrated children’s stories: The Tale of Peter Rabbit.

As a side note, Potter spent a lot of time at her family’s country home in the Lake District. I was lucky enough to be able to vacation there once, but never knew until I saw this film that the gorgeous landscapes that had been preserved were partially due to her donation of 4,000 acres.  

The movie opens with the fact that Potter, who is played so well by Renée Zellweger, has missed her early chances of marriage. She’s a young spinster, and, having a number of her illustrations purchased, is determined to make some money publishing her own illustrated stories. The movie follows her journey to publication, which met with opposition from both publishers and her family, but the real heart of the film is the story of her meeting and falling in love with Norman Warne, whom her parents, especially her mother, don’t approve of because he’s a tradesman. The film is full of wonderful drama, humor, tragedy, and solace. I can’t recommend it highly enough. In fact, I found myself watching it a second time two days later with my girls with just as much enjoyment.

Downton Abbey, a period drama

The second show is the BBC miniseries Downton Abbey.  Its first season of seven episodes aired last year in the USA on PBS’s Masterpiece Theater.  The second season will air at the beginning of 2012.  

The series is set in the fictional Downton Abbey and follows the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants. The stories take place over the time period that starts with the sinking of the Titanic in April 1912 to the outbreak of the First World War on 4 August 1914.

The main story line running through the episodes is the fact that the Crawley family must give up the estate to a distant relation because they have no male heir. But what I find so refreshing is that the stories of various servants are included. Some are funny. Some pull at your heart strings.

So far I’ve met and enjoyed some truly delightful characters as well as a couple of villains. If you enjoyed the BBC’s Pride & Prejudice or the Cranford series, I think you’ll enjoy this.

Human Planet, an amazing documentary

These last two weeks I’ve watched with fascination the eight episodes of the BBC and Discovery documentary series Human Planet. One species on our planet has adapted to every environment on earth—that’s us. The series looks at a number of remarkable ways humans have adapted to the various habitats.

You’ll see people from all over the globe who do things you never would imagine. Here’s just a small sample:

 

  • -Folks in Churchill, Manitoba Canada who trick or treat on Halloween with hungry polar bears stalking the streets
  • -A man in Papua New Guinea practicing the ancient art of shark calling in a small canoe
  • -Dolphins that help humans fish in Brazil
  • -A wild honeyguide bird working with Maasai boys to steal honey from wild African bees
  • -Mongolians using tamed golden eagles to hunt fox
  • -People in the eastern Amazon who love their pet monkeys so much they breastfeed them
  • -Inuit Canadians who risk death going under the arctic ice during low tide to gather mussels
  • -Three Dorobo in Kenya stealing food from a lion pride of more than twenty lions

 

Oh, and how could I not mention the three children who hunt tarantulas in Venezuela, roasting them up as tasty treats that taste a little like crab. I could go on and on. There are sixty-three of these stories in all, grouped into eight episodes that each focus on a certain habitat, including deserts, the Arctic, jungles, mountains, grasslands, rivers, and cities. Each episode also includes a behind-the-scenes story about the filming of one of the episodes. And some of these are as thrilling as the stories themselves.

In fact, that’s one of the things I love about this series. In addition to showing me fascinating things I’ve never seen, a number of the stories also raise the adrenaline just a bit. And yet, that’s not all. Because while presenting “strange” cultures, the stories humanize these folks so that instead of presenting aliens, these people feel more like fascinating distant relations. This is storytelling at its finest. If you like nature shows at all, you’ll be totally delighted with Human Planet.

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  • Short Reviews: Icefall, Gravity, 42, Z, and Lynda.com

    ByJohn Brown

    The last few weeks I’ve been burning the candles at both ends with publication tasks. So no time for long reviews, but I still wanted to share.

    Icefall by Matthew KirbyIcefall by Matthew Kirby

    Wow. I loved this book. LOVED IT! It’s Norse historical fiction. A war is coming, and the king sends his children away to a remote fjord steading to keep them safe. He also sends a number of trusted warriors, a company of beserkers, a cook, a thrall, and a skald. But the fjord isn’t remote enough.

    It’s a fine tale full suspense, wisdom, surprise, and two lovely character arcs. It’s told from the point-of-view of Solveig, the king’s plain daughter. And her voice and the details Kirby includes totally transported me to their world. A wonderful tale, wonderfully told.

    Gravity

    I don’t know if I like 3D very much, but Bullock and Clooney do a marvelous job. Do you remember Tom Hanks in the excellent Castaway where he’s marooned on a tiny island? This is Bullock’s Castaway, except the physics of space are deadly. A great film.

    42

    This film is about Jackie Robinson, the first Black man to play in the White leagues of American baseball, and recounts his first year. It stars Harrison Ford as the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, the guy who is determined to bring Blacks into the game he loves, as well as Chadwick Boseman who is new to me. I watched this with the whole family, and we were all enthralled. What a great story.

    World War Z

    I not a big zombie fan. So for me to recommend this means it had to be good. It was good. A delicious thriller with plenty of scare. I really liked the thriller feel to this. My wife and two youngest daughters sat on the couch holding each other’s hands. I sat in my La-Z-Boy throne heart pumping with the action.

    Lynda.com

    As I mentioned above, I’ve been working hard trying to get my books out the door. (Please, boys, just get out! It’s time for you to make your way in the world!) I’m using Adobe InDesign to format them for Kindle and EPUB, but I barely know the program. That caused some big problems. But then I subscribed to Lynda.com–a training website. I can’t tell you how happy I am that I did.

    For $25 per month (and you can just subscribe for one month), you get access to hundreds of high-quality online classes recorded by experts. Each class is usually a few hours long, made up of videos that are usually each shorter than ten minutes. The site allows you to create playlists of various courses you want to take, makes recommendations, and lets you know which videos in a class you’ve watched. It also includes a verbatim transcript so you search for the part of the video that’s interesting to you.

    The workhorse I’ve been using is “InDesign CS6 to EPUB, Kindle, and iPad” by Anne-Marie Concepcion. It’s 7.5 hours long.  I’ve also been referring to parts of “InDesign CC Essential Training” by David Blatner and “Creating Long Documents with InDesign” by Mike Rankin. And I have 16 other courses in my playlist that I can’t wait to get to like “Designing a Book Cover” by Nigel French and others on graphic design, typography, and logos.

    If you need training on some software product, go out to Lynda.com and see if they have a course for you.

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  • Good Stuff! 4 Delightful Movies

    ByJohn Brown

    If you’ve been looking for some good movies to watch, I have four here that I think you’ll enjoy.

    Wives And Daughters CoverThe first is for fans of Downtown Abbey and Pride and Prejudice. It’s a four-episode, BBC TV miniseries called Wives and Daughters, and is based on the novel by Elizabeth Gaskell, who was a popular English novelist in the mid-1800s. Gaskell is the one who also brought us the delightful Cranford and North and South, which all my daughters love.

    Wives and Daughters is about Molly Gibson, the daughter of a country doctor, who suddenly has to deal with a new stepmother and a stepsister who becomes Molly’s good friend but brings a lot of baggage with her, mostly concerning men. It’s also about a man whom Molly falls in love with, but who only thinks of her as a sister.

    But it’s about even more than that. It’s about the enjoyable relationship Molly has with her father and the local Squire and his family, and the issues the Squire has with his own sons. It’s also about how the women in the town and the local gentry deal with Molly.

    Gaskell has a knack for showing both the good and bad about people and still making you love them. She also writes a fabulous ending. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the ending, for me, was just brilliant in so many ways. If you enjoy period romances, you’re going to love this.

    *

    The-Hundred-Foot-JourneyThe next movie is called The Hundred Foot Journey and is a humorous story about a contemporary Indian family down on its luck. The father leads them to England, but things don’t work out. So he takes them on a trip through France looking for the place to set up their restaurant. Except it’s a bit of a hare-brained idea because France doesn’t do Indian food.

    The family’s vehicle breaks down outside a little town, and the father decides this is the place where they will try to build their life again. The problem is the spot he’s chosen is right across the street, the titular hundred feet, from a posh French restaurant. And the battle between the two restaurant owners begins.

    You’ll laugh and fall in love with the characters in this story. And when it’s over, you’ll immediately want to go out and get some Indian food. It’s a great film.

    *

    The_Good_Lie_posterAnother wonderful fish-out-of-water story is The Good Lie, which is about three of The Lost Boys of Sudan, refugees who are resettled in America.

    In 1983-2005 there was a civil war in Sudan, which lies on the southern border of Egypt. During the war, government troops and rebels of the south systematically attacked villages in southern Sudan, killing 2.5 million and displacing a million others. The Lost Boys and The Lost Girls were children who escaped the attacks and traveled by foot in search of safe refuge. For many that was over 1,000 miles across three countries to refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya. Over half died along their epic journey, due to starvation, dehydration, sickness and disease and attack by wild animals and enemy soldiers.

    In 2001, as part of a program established by the United States Government and the United Nations, approximately 3,800 Lost Boys were given the chance to leave the camps and resettle in the United States. This film is inspired by their experience. In fact, a few of the actors are actually some of those who were resettled.

    The beginning of the film is about their journey. The rest is about what happens when they come to America. There are many poignant moments in this film, but there is also a good dose of humor and goodness. It’s a wonderful film to watch with the family.

    *

    McFarland,_USA_posterMy last, but certainly not least, recommendation is McFarland, USA, made by Disney and starring Kevin Costner. My family and I simply loved this movie. We loved it so much some of us ended up watching it three times because we couldn’t coordinate our schedules and so watched it again with the family members who weren’t there the first time.

    It’s based, with a little literary license, on a true story about Jim White, a teacher who re-starts a cross country running program in 1980 in McFarland, a small agricultural town at the south end of California’s Central Valley. It’s another fish-out-of-water film with this White coach being introduced to Hispanic culture.

    Now I know what you’re thinking—oh, jeez, another sports film. And, yes, it has many of the same story beats that you find in many sports stories. But this one seemed to make them all fresh again. All I can say is that we loved it. In fact, immediately after the third viewing, two of my daughters were so juiced about running, they went out on a run of their own.

    If you like sports at all, you’ll like this one. But even if you don’t love sports, you’ll like it because it’s not really about sports. It’s about the human spirit and seeing value in the things everyone else overlooks.

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  • Top 200 YA Novels of 2010

    ByJohn Brown

    USA Today just published their list of the top 100 bestsellers of 2010. Publishers Weekly  and other places will soon follow. But sales don’t always capture the full picture. Some books may be purchased once and read once. Others are passed around until they’re ragged. Furthermore, many books sell well over a number of years but don’t get the volume in any week or year to put them on the list. That’s why I like to also look at circulation numbers. And I just happen to have the YA circulation numbers for the Logan, Utah library (thank you Super Librarian Melanie), which serves the 115,000 folks of Cache County, 50,000 of which are in Logan itself. Not a bad population size to get an idea of what’s being read.

    Of course, I know each area in the country will have a slightly (or hugely) different list, which makes sense because tastes differ from region to region (for example, I’m betting Chris Heimerdinger isn’t really big in, say, Alabama), but also because collections differ as well. For example, I was surprised Dan Wells didn’t show up with I Am Not A Serial Killer, but the Logan library doesn’t even have that book. So this method does have limitations. It would be nice to get a national breakdown. But until someone is able to cobble that together, this gives a good picture of what’s being read in this part of the world. Regardless of where you live, this should constitute a list of books that ought to be great reads for teens and adults.

    In 2010, 3,574 YA titles were checked out a total of 33,156 times (by adults and youth–whoever has a card). Books in the collection but not checked out didn’t make the list, of course. Here are the top 200 books. The Total column shows how many times the book was checked out. % shows what percent of the total circulation that represents. Rank is rank. I was very happy to see quite a few Utah authors (or former Utahans) on this list. Congrats to the following (# titles in top 200):

    • Shannon Hale (6)
    • Jessica Day George (6)
    • Stephenie Meyer (5)
    • Brandon Sanderson (3)
    • Mette Ivie Harrison (3)
    • Aprilynne Pike (2)
    • Lisa Mangum (2)
    • Chris Heimerdinger (2)
    • Jack Weyland (1)
    • James Dashner (1)

    BTW, here are the companion lists: Top 200 YA Authors of 2010 (showing total volume, not by book, but by author) and Top 200 YA Authors of 2010, Part 2 (showing the authors with the most readers per book)

    The List

    EDIT: 1/13/2011 11:42 AM. I just found out the first set of data I posted included more than checkouts: things like renewals, searches, bills, etc. So the numbers were wacked. This changed both the rankings and the numbers of books included by some of the authors. What you see now are the correct numbers for checkouts.

    EDIT: 1/14/2011 3:31 PM. Okay, one more edit. Silly us–we left off books shelved in the “New Book” category. These numbers are checked, double-checked, and rock solid.

    Title Total % Rank
    The hunger games / Suzanne Collins 374 1.13% 1
    Catching fire / Suzanne Collins 273 0.82% 2
    Mockingjay / Suzanne Collins 241 0.73% 3
    The lightning thief / Rick Riordan 197 0.59% 4
    The last Olympian / Rick Riordan 194 0.59% 5
    The short second life of Bree Tanner : an Eclipse novella / Stephenie Meyer 181 0.55% 6
    Harry Potter and the deathly hallows / J. K. Rowling  160 0.48% 7
    Forest born / Shannon Hale 155 0.47% 8
    The red pyramid / Rick Riordan 143 0.43% 9
    The sea of monsters / Rick Riordan 139 0.42% 10
    Princess of glass / by Jessica Day George 113 0.34% 11
    The Titan’s curse / Rick Riordan 110 0.33% 12
    City of bones / Cassandra Clare 109 0.33% 13
    The book thief / by Markus Zusak 108 0.33% 14
    Brisingr / Christopher Paolini 101 0.30% 15
    The battle of the Labyrinth / Rick Riordan 99 0.30% 16
    Book of a thousand days / by Shannon Hale 96 0.29% 17
    New moon / Stephenie Meyer 94 0.28% 18
    Harry Potter and the half-blood prince / by J. K. Rowling 87 0.26% 19
    Breaking dawn / Stephenie Meyer 87 0.26% 20
    Tempted : a house of night novel / P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast 86 0.26% 21
    Eclipse / by Stephenie Meyer 86 0.26% 22
    Twilight / by Stephenie Meyer 81 0.24% 23
    Night world / L. J. Smith 81 0.24% 24
    River secrets / by Shannon Hale 79 0.24% 25
    City of ashes / Cassandra Clare 79 0.24% 26
    City of Glass / Cassandra Clare 78 0.24% 27
    Princess Academy / Shannon Hale 76 0.23% 28
    Uglies / Scott Westerfeld 69 0.21% 29
    Chosen : a house of night novel / P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast 69 0.21% 30
    Princess of the Midnight Ball / by Jessica Day George 68 0.21% 31
    The hourglass door : a novel / by Lisa Mangum 65 0.20% 32
    Pretties / Scott Westerfeld 63 0.19% 33
    Shiver / Maggie Stiefvater 62 0.19% 34
    The lost hero / Rick Riordan 62 0.19% 35
    Witch & wizard / James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet 61 0.18% 36
    The dark Divine / Bree Despain 61 0.18% 37
    Untamed : a house of night novel / P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast 59 0.18% 38
    The golden spiral / Lisa Mangum 59 0.18% 39
    Enna burning / Shannon Hale 59 0.18% 40
    Fire / Kristin Cashore 58 0.17% 41
    Erak’s ransom / John Flanagan 58 0.17% 42
    Wings / Aprilynne Pike 57 0.17% 43
    Spirit bound / Richelle Mead 57 0.17% 44
    The siege of Macindaw / John Flanagan 57 0.17% 45
    Blood promise : a Vampire Academy novel / Richelle Mead 57 0.17% 46
    Syren / Angie Sage 56 0.17% 47
    Betrayed : a house of night novel / P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast 56 0.17% 48
    Specials / Scott Westerfield 54 0.16% 49
    The golden compass / by Philip Pullman  54 0.16% 50
    The awakening / Kelley Armstrong 54 0.16% 51
    Marked : a house of night novel/ P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast 53 0.16% 52
    Magyk / Angie Sage  53 0.16% 53
    Fang : a Maximum Ride novel / James Patterson 53 0.16% 54
    The burning bridge / John Flanagan 53 0.16% 55
    The ruins of Gorlan / John Flanagan 52 0.16% 56
    The goose girl / Shannon Hale 52 0.16% 57
    The alchemyst : the secrets of the immortal Nicholas Flamel / Michael Scott 52 0.16% 58
    The maze runner / James Dashner 51 0.15% 59
    Inkdeath / Cornelia Funke  51 0.15% 60
    Hush, hush / Becca Fitzpatrick 50 0.15% 61
    The Looking Glass Wars / by Frank Beddor 49 0.15% 62
    Burned : a house of night novel / P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast 49 0.15% 63
    What I saw and how I lied / Judy Blundell 48 0.14% 64
    Eragon / Christopher Paolini 48 0.14% 65
    The merchant of death / by D.J. MacHale 47 0.14% 66
    Graceling / Kristin Cashore 47 0.14% 67
    The necromancer / Michael Scott 46 0.14% 68
    Beauty sleep / Cameron Dokey 46 0.14% 69
    Artemis Fowl / Eoin Colfer 46 0.14% 70
    A great and terrible beauty / Libba Bray 45 0.14% 71
    The demigod files / Rick Riordan  45 0.14% 72
    The Van Alen legacy : a Blue Bloods novel / Melissa de la Cruz 44 0.13% 73
    Spells / Aprilynne Pike 44 0.13% 74
    The sorcerer of the north / John Flanagan 44 0.13% 75
    The battle for Skandia / John Flanagan 44 0.13% 76
    Artemis Fowl. The Atlantis complex / Eoin Colfer  44 0.13% 77
    Theodore Boone : kid lawyer / John Grisham  43 0.13% 78
    Evermore / Alyson Noèel 43 0.13% 79
    Clockwork angel / Cassandra Clare 43 0.13% 80
    Physik / Angie Sage  42 0.13% 81
    Eldest / by Christopher Paolini 42 0.13% 82
    Captivate / Carrie Jones 42 0.13% 83
    Twice upon a Marigold / Jean Ferris 41 0.12% 84
    The Shadow Project / by Herbie Brennan 41 0.12% 85
    The reckoning / Kelley Armstrong 41 0.12% 86
    The kings of Clonmel / John Flanagan 41 0.12% 87
    Gone / by Lisa McMann 41 0.12% 88
    Fallen / Lauren Kate 41 0.12% 89
    Don’t judge a girl by her cover / Ally Carter 41 0.12% 90
    Tennis shoes among the Nephites / Chris Heimerdinger 40 0.12% 91
    The princess and the hound / Mette Ivie Harrison 40 0.12% 92
    Heist society / Ally Carter 40 0.12% 93
    Golden / Cameron Dokey 40 0.12% 94
    Dragon spear / by Jessica Day George 40 0.12% 95
    Dragon flight / Jessica Day George 40 0.12% 96
    Queste / Angie Sage  39 0.12% 97
    Need / Carrie Jones 39 0.12% 98
    Messenger / Lois Lowry 39 0.12% 99
    Bloodhound / Tamora Pierce 39 0.12% 100
    Wild orchid : a retelling of “The ballad of Mulan” / by Cameron Dokey 38 0.11% 101
    The chronicles of Vladimir Tod : eleventh grade burns / Heather Brewer 38 0.11% 102
    Terrier / Tamora Pierce 38 0.11% 103
    Revenge of the witch / Joseph Delaney 38 0.11% 104
    Inkheart / Cornelia Funk 38 0.11% 105
    Howl’s moving castle / Diana Wynne Jones 38 0.11% 106
    The diamond secret / by Suzanne Weyn 38 0.11% 107
    Darklight : a novel / Lesley Livingston 38 0.11% 108
    Pretty little liars / Sara Shepard 37 0.11% 109
    Just Ella / Margaret Peterson Haddix 37 0.11% 110
    The icebound land  / John Flanagan 37 0.11% 111
    Harry Potter and the goblet of fire / by J.K. Rowling 37 0.11% 112
    Dreamhunter / Elizabeth Knox 37 0.11% 113
    Destiny’s path / Frewin Jones 37 0.11% 114
    Crocodile tears / Anthony Horowitz 37 0.11% 115
    The body finder / by Kimberly Derting 37 0.11% 116
    Violet eyes : a retelling of “The princess and the pea” / Debbie Viguie 36 0.11% 117
    They never came back / Caroline B. Cooney 36 0.11% 118
    The summoning / Kelley Armstrong 36 0.11% 119
    The soldiers of Halla / D.J. MacHale 36 0.11% 120
    Shadowland / Alyson Noèel 36 0.11% 121
    The princess and the snowbird / Mette Ivie Harrison 36 0.11% 122
    The magician / Michael Scott 36 0.11% 123
    The luxe / Anna Godbersen 36 0.11% 124
    Gathering blue / Lois Lowry 36 0.11% 125
    Blue moon : the Immortals / Alyson Noèel 36 0.11% 126
    Sun and moon, ice and snow / Jessica Day George 35 0.11% 127
    The princess and the bear / Mette Ivie Harrison 35 0.11% 128
    Once upon a Marigold / Jean Ferris 35 0.11% 129
    The lost city of Faar / D.J. MacHale 35 0.11% 130
    Lord Sunday / Garth Nix 35 0.11% 131
    Linger / Maggie Stiefvater 35 0.11% 132
    The Forest of Hands and Teeth / Carrie Ryan 35 0.11% 133
    Extras / Scott Westerfeld 35 0.11% 134
    Betraying season / Marissa Doyle 35 0.11% 135
    Thirteen reasons why : a novel / by Jay Asher 34 0.10% 136
    Squire / by Tamora Pierce 34 0.10% 137
    Midnight pearls : a retelling of  “The little mermaid” / Debbie Viguie 34 0.10% 138
    Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix / by J.K. Rowling 34 0.10% 139
    Ever / Gail Carson Levine 34 0.10% 140
    The dead-tossed waves / Carrie Ryan 34 0.10% 141
    Clash of the demons / by Joseph Delaney 34 0.10% 142
    Cameron Meets Madison./ Jack Weyland 34 0.10% 143
    Belle : a retelling of “Beauty and the beast” / by Cameron Dokey 34 0.10% 144
    Before midnight : a retelling of “Cinderella” / by Cameron Dokey 34 0.10% 145
    Beastly / Alex Flinn 34 0.10% 146
    Artemis Fowl : the Arctic incident / Eoin Colfer 34 0.10% 147
    The Amaranth enchantment / Julie Berry 34 0.10% 148
    Alcatraz versus the Knights of Crystallia / by Brandon Sanderson 34 0.10% 149
    Alanna the first adventure / by Tamora Pierce 34 0.10% 150
    Splendor : a Luxe novel / Anna Godbersen 33 0.10% 151
    Shadow kiss : a Vampire Academy novel/ by Richelle Mead 33 0.10% 152
    Seeing Redd / by Frank Beddor 33 0.10% 153
    Claim to fame / Margaret Peterson Haddix 33 0.10% 154
    Beautiful creatures / by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl 33 0.10% 155
    White cat / Holly Black 32 0.10% 156
    The sweet far thing / Libba Bray 32 0.10% 157
    Radiant shadows / Melissa Marr 32 0.10% 158
    Incarceron / by Catherine Fisher 32 0.10% 159
    Gadiantons and the silver sword / by Chris Heimerdinger 32 0.10% 160
    Dragon slippers / Jessica Day George 32 0.10% 161
    A coven of witches / by Joseph Delaney  32 0.10% 162
    Being Nikki : an airhead novel / Meg Cabot 32 0.10% 163
    Artemis Fowl. The time paradox / Eoin Colfer 32 0.10% 164
    The woman who rides like a man / by Tamora Pierce 31 0.09% 165
    Winter’s child / Cameron Dokey 31 0.09% 166
    The sorceress / Michael Scott 31 0.09% 167
    Rules of attraction / Simone Elkeles 31 0.09% 168
    Radiant darkness / Emily Whitman 31 0.09% 169
    Once a witch / by Carolyn MacCullough 31 0.09% 170
    A kiss in time / Alex Flinn 31 0.09% 171
    Heroes of the valley / Jonathan Stroud 31 0.09% 172
    First test / Tamora Pierce 31 0.09% 173
    The crimson thread : a retelling of “Rumpelstiltskin” / by Suzanne Weyn 31 0.09% 174
    Blue bloods / Melissa de la Cruz 31 0.09% 175
    Before i fall / Lauren Oliver 31 0.09% 176
    Alcatraz versus the Scrivener’s Bones / by Brandon Sanderson 31 0.09% 177
    The warrior heir / Cinda Williams Chima 30 0.09% 178
    Vampire rising / Jason Henderson 30 0.09% 179
    Rebel angels / Libba Bray 30 0.09% 180
    Princess Ben / Catherine Murdock 30 0.09% 181
    The never war / D.J. MacHale 30 0.09% 182
    Max : a Maximum Ride novel / James Patterson 30 0.09% 183
    In the hand of the goddess / by Tamora Pierce 30 0.09% 184
    Flyte / Angie Sage 30 0.09% 185
    Faerie wars / by Herbie Brennan 30 0.09% 186
    Dreamquake : book two of the Dreamhunter duet / Elizabeth Knox 30 0.09% 187
    Cross my heart and hope to spy / Ally Carter 30 0.09% 188
    Cirque du freak : a living nightmare / by Darren Shan 30 0.09% 189
    Birthmarked / Caragh M. O’Brien 30 0.09% 190
    Artemis Fowl : the eternity code / Eoin Colfer 30 0.09% 191
    Alcatraz  versus the evil Librarians / by Brandon Sanderson 30 0.09% 192
    Wicked lovely / Melissa Marr 29 0.09% 193
    Water song : a retelling of “The frog prince” / by Suzanne Weyn 29 0.09% 194
    Wake / Lisa McMann 29 0.09% 195
    Violet wings / Victoria Hanley 29 0.09% 196
    Strange angels / Lili St. Crow 29 0.09% 197
    Princess for hire / Lindsey Leavitt 29 0.09% 198
    Maximum Ride : the final warning  / James Patterson 29 0.09% 199
    Maximum Ride : school’s out– forever / by James Patterson 29 0.09% 200
    Lament : the faerie queen’s deception / Maggie Stiefvater 29 0.09% 201
    Lady knight / Tamora Pierce 29 0.09% 202
    House of many ways / Diana Wynne Jones 29 0.09% 203
    Going bovine / Libba Bray 29 0.09% 204
    The enchanted quest / Frewin Jones 29 0.09% 205
    The dragon heir  / Cinda Williams Chima 29 0.09% 206
    Black water / D.J. MacHale 29 0.09% 207
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  • Tales From Earthsea

    ByJohn Brown

    Tales from Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5) 

    When I was in 7th grade I read Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Of course, I wasn’t the sharpest literary tack back then, and so great sections of The Two Towers and The Return of the King went over my head and, therefore, bored me. But, with the help of the Hildenbrant calendars, enough came through to thrill. I wept at the events in the mines of Moria with Gandalf, geeked out over the elves, orcs, and Nazgul, was fascinated with the Ents and wizards, and generally wanted to stay in that world forever.

    When I finished the trilogy, I mourned–the dream was over. I read Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham. Both were delightful, but neither was the same as LOTR. Then I saw The Silmarillion. It had a cool cover, a map.

    Oh, joy! I bought it and took it home.

    Alas, that book was about as much fun as reading a ten-pounder on the history of baroque cornices. I tried mightily to push through, but I don’t think I was able to finish more than 15 pages total from all the sections. So I mourned again, and then, still feeling the loss, went looking for something else that might whisk me away.

    One of those whisking stories was Ursula LeGuin’s A Wizard of Earthsea. Of course, the fact that there was a wizard in it was important, but as equally delightful to my then puny literary prowess, was that the story was a slim thing. As were its two companions The Tombs of Atuan and The Farthest Shore.

    Here’s the cover the drew me in so long ago.

    I relished all three and moved on to other stories.

    Time passed and I forgot about LeGuin. Almost 10 years later I was newly married. My wonderful new wife started reading to me as we’d drive. And on one of the three-hour drives to her parents, she pulled out this little book and began to read.

    It was A Wizard of Earthsea! And it was just as marvelous the second time with a bigger brain as it was the first time with a smaller one. In fact, Nellie’s reading to me was so enjoyable I slowed down to 40 mph so I could extend the 3-hour drive. Of course, she quickly caught on to my scheme, shut the book, and told me she wouldn’t read another word unless I drove 65 mph, at the very least.

    What can a guy do? I kept it at 65 (well, 60) and joyed in the wonderfulness of a new wife who would read aloud to me (you mean this model reads, too?!), the night and the stars spread above those lonely Utah and Wyoming roads, and the amazing story unfolding before me.

    And this is the cover of the one my wife read to me.

    We read all three to each other and moved onto other stories.

    More than 15 years passed and I’d mostly forgotten LeGuin (I really never could get into her Hainish stuff). I was in the library looking for some good audio. And there on the shelf stood Tales from Earthsea by Ursual LeGuin.

    Just a little slim container of cassettes. Why not? I thought.

    Holy heroes, Batman—it was gold. LeGuin’s a master of building that feel: the wonder of fantasy, the mystery of things long forgotten or rumored to exist, the pull of learning arcane powers. I loved every minute of it (well, except for the slogging first four pages of backstory, but get through that, which isn’t too bad with Karr’s reading, and you’re into the kingdom). The first story, “The Finder,” read by Amanda Karr was incredible. It takes us back to how Roke became was it was in the first trilogy. But the delights do not end there. Four more stories follow.

    I liked them all so much, I just checked the audiobook out again so I could listen a second time. And, it appears, LeGuin was busy in my absence because she has more Earthsea than this.

    • A Wizard of Earthsea, 1968
    • The Tombs of Atuan, 1971
    • The Farthest Shore, 1972 (Winner of the National Book Award)
    • Tehanu: The Last Book of Earthsea, 1990 (Winner of the Nebula Award)
    • Tales From Eathersea, 2001 (a collection of short stories)
    • The Other Wind, 2001

    I just got the last two from Amazon. I can’t wait to enter into LeGuin’s magic spell yet again.

    More cool Earthsea stuff.

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  • Top 200 YA Authors of 2010, Part 2

    ByJohn Brown

    Okay, I’ve really got to get some writing done. But since I posted the idea of seeing which authors have the highest average checkouts per book, I now feel obligated to share it because some of those on the top 200 authors list drop off while others appear. So this one shows the authors getting the most readers per book. For more information on the lists and source of the data, please see the previous two posts.

    BTW, a number of Utahans made this list that we hadn’t seen on the others.

    1. Stephenie Meyer (3)
    2. Shannon Hale (4)
    3. Lisa Mangum (8)
    4. Jessica Day George (10)
    5. Aprilynne Pike (13)
    6. James Dashner (21)
    7. Bree Despain (32)
    8. Mette Ivie Harrison (40)
    9. M.L. Forman (52)
    10. Brandon Sanderson (64)
    11. Chris Heimerdinger (112)
    12. Julie Wright (145)
    13. Ally Condie (146)
    14. Kiersten White (151)
    15. Jack Weyland (188)

    If I’ve missed any Utah (or former Utah) authors, please let me know. Holy schnitzel, look at them all.

    EDIT: 1/16/2011 9:32 AM: Informed that Bree Despain is also a Utah author.

    EDIT: 1/18/2011 6:21 PM: Turns out Kiersten White grew up in Utah, but moved to San Diego after she married. I’m still claiming her, although I often wish I could trade subzero land for beaches and 70 degrees

    EDIT: 1/18/2011 10:20 PM: just informed that M.L. Forman is a Utah author.

    The List

    Author Times Checked Out Number of Titles Avg Check Outs per Title % Rank
    Suzanne Collins 888 3 296 2.68% 1
    Rick Riordan 989 8 124 2.98% 2
    Stephenie Meyer 529 5 106 1.60% 3
    Shannon Hale 517 6 86 1.56% 4
    J.K. Rowling 318 4 80 0.96% 5
    Cassandra Clare 309 4 77 0.93% 6
    Christopher Paolini 191 3 64 0.58% 7
    Lisa Mangum 124 2 62 0.37% 8
    P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast 393 7 56 1.19% 9
    Jessica Day George 328 6 55 0.99% 10
    Kristin Cashore 105 2 53 0.32% 11
    Cornelia Funke  51 1 51 0.15% 12
    Aprilynne Pike 101 2 51 0.30% 13
    Judy Blundell 48 1 48 0.14% 14
    John Flanagan 413 9 46 1.25% 15
    Kelley Armstrong 131 3 44 0.40% 16
    John Grisham  43 1 43 0.13% 17
    Michael Scott 165 4 41 0.50% 18
    Angie Sage 246 6 41 0.74% 19
    Maggie Stiefvater 153 4 38 0.46% 20
    James Dashner 75 2 38 0.23% 21
    Kimberly Derting 37 1 37 0.11% 22
    Frank Beddor 110 3 37 0.33% 23
    Carrie Ryan 69 2 35 0.21% 24
    Gail Carson Levine 34 1 34 0.10% 25
    Jay Asher 34 1 34 0.10% 26
    Becca Fitzpatrick 68 2 34 0.21% 27
    Libba Bray 136 4 34 0.41% 28
    Julie Berry 34 1 34 0.10% 29
    Richelle Mead 202 6 34 0.61% 30
    Elizabeth Knox 67 2 34 0.20% 31
    Bree Despain 66 2 33 0.20% 32
    James Patterson 257 8 32 0.78% 33
    Cornelia Funke 63 2 32 0.19% 34
    Lisa McMann 94 3 31 0.28% 35
    Carolyn MacCullough 31 1 31 0.09% 36
    Markus Zusak 124 4 31 0.37% 37
    Lauren Oliver 31 1 31 0.09% 38
    Emily Whitman 31 1 31 0.09% 39
    Mette Ivie Harrison 123 4 31 0.37% 40
    Ally Carter 152 5 30 0.46% 41
    Cameron Dokey 271 9 30 0.82% 42
    Jason Henderson 30 1 30 0.09% 43
    Caragh M. O’Brien 30 1 30 0.09% 44
    Scott Westerfeld 354 12 30 1.07% 45
    Carrie Jones 88 3 29 0.27% 46
    Lindsey Leavitt 29 1 29 0.09% 47
    Lois Lowry 86 3 29 0.26% 48
    Philip Pullman  57 2 29 0.17% 49
    Lauren Kate 57 2 29 0.17% 50
    Lili St. Crow 56 2 28 0.17% 51
    M.L. Forman 28 1 28 0.08% 52
    Alison Goodman 28 1 28 0.08% 53
    Marissa Doyle 55 2 28 0.17% 54
    Eoin Colfer 302 11 27 0.91% 55
    Rachel Hawkins 27 1 27 0.08% 56
    Joseph Delaney 240 9 27 0.72% 57
    Cyn Balog 26 1 26 0.08% 58
    Christine Johnson 26 1 26 0.08% 59
    Anna Godbersen 127 5 25 0.38% 60
    Shauna Cross 25 1 25 0.08% 61
    Veronica Bennett 25 1 25 0.08% 62
    Betty Smith 25 1 25 0.08% 63
    Brandon Sanderson 100 4 25 0.30% 64
    Melissa Marr 99 4 25 0.30% 65
    Tamora Pierce 634 26 24 1.91% 66
    Aubrey Mace 24 1 24 0.07% 67
    N.D. Wilson 70 3 23 0.21% 68
    Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl 46 2 23 0.14% 69
    Lesley Livingston 68 3 23 0.21% 70
    Alex Flinn 68 3 23 0.21% 71
    Sara Shepard 181 8 23 0.55% 72
    Cinda Williams Chima 113 5 23 0.34% 73
    Melissa de la Cruz 154 7 22 0.46% 74
    Kay Cassidy 22 1 22 0.07% 75
    Louis Sachar 44 2 22 0.13% 76
    D.J. MacHale 328 15 22 0.99% 77
    Heather Brewer 108 5 22 0.33% 78
    Beth Fantaskey 43 2 22 0.13% 79
    Kimberly Pauley 43 2 22 0.13% 80
    Diana Wynne Jones 128 6 21 0.39% 81
    Herbie Brennan 106 5 21 0.32% 82
    Dia Reeves 21 1 21 0.06% 83
    Heather Hepler 21 1 21 0.06% 84
    Susanne Dunlap 21 1 21 0.06% 85
    Erica S. Perl 21 1 21 0.06% 86
    Linda Buckley-Archer 63 3 21 0.19% 87
    Lise Haines 21 1 21 0.06% 88
    Alyson Noel 188 9 21 0.57% 89
    Eva Ibbotson 41 2 21 0.12% 90
    Anne Osterlund 41 2 21 0.12% 91
    Sherrilyn Kenyon 20 1 20 0.06% 92
    Kenneth Oppel 80 4 20 0.24% 93
    story by Tohru Kai  20 1 20 0.06% 94
    M.R. Bunderson 20 1 20 0.06% 95
    Robin Palmer 59 3 20 0.18% 96
    Claudia Gray 59 3 20 0.18% 97
    Frewin Jones 155 8 19 0.47% 98
    Carl Hiaasen 58 3 19 0.17% 99
    Lisa Greenwald 19 1 19 0.06% 100
    Catherine Gilbert Murdock 76 4 19 0.23% 101
    Suzanne Harper 19 1 19 0.06% 102
    Suzanne Weyn 150 8 19 0.45% 103
    Rosalind Wiseman 18 1 18 0.05% 104
    Jen Nadol 18 1 18 0.05% 105
    Thomas W harton 18 1 18 0.05% 106
    Margaret Peterson Haddix 144 8 18 0.43% 107
    Ellen Schreiber 160 9 18 0.48% 108
    Patricia C. Wrede 158 9 18 0.48% 109
    Robin McKinley 105 6 18 0.32% 110
    Zoèe Marriott 35 2 18 0.11% 111
    Chris Heimerdinger 280 16 18 0.84% 112
    Amy Huntley 17 1 17 0.05% 113
    Rachel Ward 17 1 17 0.05% 114
    Sarwat Chadda 17 1 17 0.05% 115
    Nina Malkin 17 1 17 0.05% 116
    Chris Heimerd 17 1 17 0.05% 117
    Elizabeth Eulberg 17 1 17 0.05% 118
    Kathi Oram Peterson 17 1 17 0.05% 119
    Megan Whalen Turner 68 4 17 0.21% 120
    Chelsea M. Campbell 17 1 17 0.05% 121
    Rachel Vail 51 3 17 0.15% 122
    Becca Wilhite 34 2 17 0.10% 123
    Sarah Dessen 150 9 17 0.45% 124
    Debbie Viguie 100 6 17 0.30% 125
    Garth Nix 182 11 17 0.55% 126
    Michael Grant 49 3 16 0.15% 127
    Rachel Vincent 49 3 16 0.15% 128
    Jonathan Stroud 97 6 16 0.29% 129
    Lucy Christopher 16 1 16 0.05% 130
    Kay Lynn Mangum 48 3 16 0.14% 131
    Anna Jarzab 16 1 16 0.05% 132
    Sarah MacLean 16 1 16 0.05% 133
    Josh Berk 16 1 16 0.05% 134
    Lisa Klein 16 1 16 0.05% 135
    Jackson Pearce 16 1 16 0.05% 136
    Jacqueline Kelly 16 1 16 0.05% 137
    Caroline Goode 16 1 16 0.05% 138
    Kirby Larson 16 1 16 0.05% 139
    Lisa Shanahan 16 1 16 0.05% 140
    Katherine Applegate 16 1 16 0.05% 141
    Marthe Jocelyn 16 1 16 0.05% 142
    Ann Brashares 64 4 16 0.19% 143
    Holly Black 78 5 16 0.24% 144
    Julie Wright 31 2 16 0.09% 145
    Ally Condie 93 6 16 0.28% 146
    Juliet Marillier 31 2 16 0.09% 147
    Janet Lee Carey 46 3 15 0.14% 148
    Donita K. Paul 90 6 15 0.27% 149
    Tera Lynn Childs 45 3 15 0.14% 150
    Kiersten White 15 1 15 0.05% 151
    Jane Eagland 15 1 15 0.05% 152
    Sophie Jordan 15 1 15 0.05% 153
    Maureen Daly 15 1 15 0.05% 154
    Debbie Vguie 15 1 15 0.05% 155
    Leah Cypess 15 1 15 0.05% 156
    Jessica Brody 15 1 15 0.05% 157
    Rosie Rushton 15 1 15 0.05% 158
    Rachel Caine 134 9 15 0.40% 159
    R.D. Henham 104 7 15 0.31% 160
    Hilari Bell 178 12 15 0.54% 161
    L.J. Smith 326 22 15 0.98% 162
    Carol Lynch Williams 44 3 15 0.13% 163
    Laini Taylor 44 3 15 0.13% 164
    John Boyne 29 2 15 0.09% 165
    Victoria Hanley 58 4 15 0.17% 166
    Guillaume Prevost 43 3 14 0.13% 167
    Michelle Zink 28 2 14 0.08% 168
    Andrea R. Cremer 14 1 14 0.04% 169
    Lynn Weingarten 14 1 14 0.04% 170
    Kristopher Reisz 14 1 14 0.04% 171
    Andrew Klavan 28 2 14 0.08% 172
    Jessica Verday 14 1 14 0.04% 173
    Kim Harrison 14 1 14 0.04% 174
    L.K. Madigan 14 1 14 0.04% 175
    Heather Davis 14 1 14 0.04% 176
    Lauren Conrad 42 3 14 0.13% 177
    Sherman Ale 14 1 14 0.04% 178
    Alexandra Adornetto 14 1 14 0.04% 179
    Martine Leavitt 14 1 14 0.04% 180
    Morris Gleitzman 14 1 14 0.04% 181
    Charmian Hussey  14 1 14 0.04% 182
    Douglas Rees 14 1 14 0.04% 183
    Stephanie Hem 14 1 14 0.04% 184
    C.J. Omololu 14 1 14 0.04% 185
    Aimee Friedman 42 3 14 0.13% 186
    Kate Coombs 28 2 14 0.08% 187
    Jack Weyland 151 11 14 0.46% 188
    Michael Carroll 41 3 14 0.12% 189
    Philip Caveney 41 3 14 0.12% 190
    Pamela Wells 27 2 14 0.08% 191
    Grace Cavendish 27 2 14 0.08% 192
    Elizabeth Scott 54 4 14 0.16% 193
    Ridley Pearson 54 4 14 0.16% 194
    Laurie Halse Anderson 108 8 14 0.33% 195
    Gillian Shields 40 3 13 0.12% 196
    Simone Elkeles 93 7 13 0.28% 197
    Lisi Harrison 304 23 13 0.92% 198
    Patrick Carman 66 5 13 0.20% 199
    Darren Shan 313 24 13 0.94% 200
    Gary D. Schmidt 26 2 13 0.08% 201
    Gena Showalter 26 2 13 0.08% 202
    Michael Young 13 1 13 0.04% 203
    Miyuki Miyabe  13 1 13 0.04% 204
    J.V. Hart  13 1 13 0.04% 205
    Dandi Daley Mackall 13 1 13 0.04% 206
    Beatrice Gormley 13 1 13 0.04% 207
    Dodie Smith 13 1 13 0.04% 208
    Jaclyn Moriarty 52 4 13 0.16% 209
    Angela Morrison 26 2 13 0.08% 210
    James A. Owen 52 4 13 0.16% 211
    Nick Lake 13 1 13 0.04% 212
    E.E. Richardson 13 1 13 0.04% 213
    Fern Schumer Chapman 13 1 13 0.04% 214
    Priscilla Cummings 13 1 13 0.04% 215
    Stuart Hill 39 3 13 0.12% 216
    Jen Calonita 78 6 13 0.24% 217
    Valerie O. Patterson 13 1 13 0.04% 218
    Julie Kagawa 26 2 13 0.08% 219
    William golding 13 1 13 0.04% 220
    Lisa M. Klein 13 1 13 0.04% 221
    Lisa Mantchev 26 2 13 0.08% 222
    Gerald Morris 129 10 13 0.39% 223
    Cory Doctorow 25 2 13 0.08% 224
    Janette Rallison 125 10 13 0.38% 225
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  • The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi

    ByJohn Brown

    The Drowned Cities by Paolo BacigalupiI just finished The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi, and, holy cow, folks—this story rocked.

    It’s set in the future in the area around Washington D.C. which is the titular drowned cities. They’re drowned because the climate has gotten warmer, the seas have risen, and D.C. is half under water, permananetly flooded. It’s more like Georgia or Florida—gators, kudzu, the works. But this is not another dumb book about global warming. If it were, I wouldn’t be writing this.

    No, the United States has fallen apart. Up north there’s some alliance with money and power and the ability to keep those in the Drowned Cities out. South, who knows? West? Don’t know. But right around D.C. everything has gone to hell.

    It’s like Mogadishu, Somalia in the 1990’s (Blackhawk Down) with warlords fighting each other, tearing the place apart.

    It’s like Sierra Leone at the end of that decade with different factions butchering locals and forcing kids to fight as soldiers.

    Except instead of the U.S. or Europe or the U-freaking-N sending in peacekeepers to stabilize the situation, it’s China. And just like the U.S. in Somalia, the warlords send the Chinese peacekeepers packing. And so now it’s just chaos.

    Talk about a setting for a story. But Bacigalupi doesn’t stop there. He adds in genetically modified creatures. He starts the book with one named Tool. A creature that’s got the DNA of humans, mastiffs, tigers, reptiles and who knows what else all combined to make him smarter and stronger than humans ever could be—a monster that’s the ultimate killer, the ultimate soldier, the ultimate war machine. One that was bred to submit to a master, but something went wrong with Tool. And he was able to break free of that bond.

    Tool is trying to escape prison and death. But as mighty as he is, he’s weak and injured. And then two kids from a village run into him while in the jungle. He knows they’re going to reveal his whereabouts to the warlord searching for him. In his weakened state, Tool is only able to grab the small boy named Mouse.

    Mahlia, the girl, promises to bring medicine if Tool will only spare the boy. He knows she’s lying.

    And so starts a rich tale of the monster, the boy, and the girl: a tale that is filled with friendship, triumph, loss, heroism, cowardice, and earthy sci-fi coolness all set in the midst of a guerilla war. The beginning sucks you in. The ending leaves you breathless. Along the way you get to see into the character of all three plus some of the bad guys. In the end you get a story about sacrifice and love.

    If you liked A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah’s memoir of his time as a child solider in Africa; if you liked The Hunger Games, and not primarily for the romance; if you like person in jeopardy fiction or war flicks where a small group has to fight for its life, I think you will love this book.

    This is the second book set in the same world. The first was Ship Breaker. Tool, one of the most interesting characters I’ve come across, is in that one too. But you don’t need to read that to enjoy this. And I wouldn’t put this read off to do so. Go give The Drowned Cities a try. Three or four pages in, I suspect you’ll be completely lost in the wondrous tale.

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