Kate Linnea Welsh: John Green

Happy Friday!

Promising news: Twitter is working with an advocacy group to investigate the harassment of women

There's a new Into the Woods trailer, and . . . fine. I'm in.

If your Friday could use twenty minutes of pure delight, I highly recommend I Ship It, a romantic comedy set in the world of wizard rock, by Yulin Kuang, who's making a good case for become The Nora Ephron of My People. It stars Mary Kate Wiles of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Sean Persaud of Shipwrecked Comedy, and Joey Richter of StarKid. (If none of those words made any sense to you, you might not entirely get this, but it will still be funny and adorable.)

Ooh: Vlogbrothers Bring “Crash Course” Videos to PBS Digital Studios

I read this oral history of Sports Night and now I need to rewatch the entire show immediately.

OPI has Peanuts nail polish and I want "WHO ARE YOU CALLING BOSSY?!?" with every fiber of my being.

Speaking of things I want, look at this Rainbow Brite bib necklace.

20 Style Tips On How To Wear a Plaid or Flannel Shirt I didn't necessarily realize this was a difficult subject requiring 20 tips, but this is absolutely speaking my language.

Two Words: Kitten Graduation

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Morning Coffee (10/30/14)

Me elsewhere: Review of this week's Sleepy Hollow

Tim Cook: "So if hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it’s worth the trade-off with my own privacy."

Oh good: Suspect named in national park vandalism across 4 states

Do you know about Jian?

Intriguing: A documentary is claiming that some of Bach's most famous music was written by his wife.

John Green's Zena Sutherland lecture on the state of YA is worth a read.

Person from a portrait: Ira Frederick Aldridge, the first black Othello

Perfect: The Secret Fantasies of Adults

Women Having A Terrible Time At Parties In Western Art History

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

What I Read: August 2014

Trying something new . . . at the beginning of each month I'll post a list of books I finished the preceding month, with a few thoughts on each. (They're in the order in which I finished them.)

Judgment in Death by J.D. Robb (In Death #11): I love this series of sci-fi mysteries starring one of my favorite fictional couples. This was a strong entry in the series; I read it while traveling (so mostly on planes) and it was perfect for that - interesting enough to keep my attention without requiring too much brainpower.

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black: I haven't read Holly's earlier faerie books yet - I'll get there! - but goodness, I loved this one. It has interesting magic systems, diverse characters, a well-drawn setting, great friendship and sibling stuff in addition to romance, and two elements that almost always win my undying love: gender-flipped tropes and the ability to make me both laugh (repeatedly) and cry (at the end, in a good way).

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson: I've mostly got dystopian fatigue at this point, but this one caught my attention with its non-U.S. setting, fascinating political and religious systems, and interesting take on technology. The writing was lovely, and I really enjoyed this even though I had a little trouble connecting with most of the characters.

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins (Anna/Lola/Isla #3): I love love loved this one SO much. Even more than the first two! Somehow! I think my favorite thing about Steph's romances is how they're so joyful without ever seeming saccharine or fake - plenty of bad stuff and complicated stuff and just real life stuff happens, and that makes the happy endings even more satisfying.

Paper Towns by John Green: I enjoy John's writing, but this one took a while for me to get into - the characters and plot didn't really hook me until about halfway through. I was much more into it by the end, though.

Pagan Spring by G.M. Malliet (Max Tudor #3): I continue to love Max Tudor and the village setting and supporting characters, but the actual mystery in this book didn't grab me QUITE as much as the ones in the other books in the series. But it was still a great cozy, comforting read. (Except for the very end, which made me VERY CONCERNED ABOUT MAX'S PERSONAL LIFE and very eager for the next book!)

Salvage by Alexandra Duncan: Ava is a teen girl living in a traditional, patriarchal society on a deep space merchant ship who breaks the rules, flees from her community, and winds up back on an earth that is both wildly different from our own and completely recognizable. The multiple societies Duncan creates (both in space and on earth) are completely fascinating, especially in regards to gender roles and the interplay of science and religion, and she made me deeply care about her characters.

To Marry an English Lord: Or How Anglomania Really Got Started by Gail MacColl and Carol McD. Wallace: This was full of fascinating information, but the format made it a very slow read for me. The whole book is presented in little snippets, with headings every few paragraph and lots of insets, etc., and I found it impossible to really get any momentum.

(Disclaimers: I know Holly, Alaya, Steph, and John, and chat with Alexandra on Twitter occasionally. I freelance for Steph and Alexandra's agent, who sent me an ARC of Salvage. I got Holly's ARC at LeakyCon; the rest of the books I either purchased or got from the library.)

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Morning Coffee (6/24/14)

John Green was on The Colbert Report and it was great.

Awesome: "One of the nice perks about being president is that anybody will hand you their baby. I get this baby fix 2 or 3 times a week."

Update: Into the Woods changes possibly less terrible than previously reported.

Oh good: Judge Upholds Policy Barring Unvaccinated Students During Illnesses

The Supreme Court doesn't understand software, and that's a problem

"David Glowacki, a theoretical chemist, was forcibly ejected from a performance of Handel’s Messiah last week when he attempted to crowd surf."

Heh, this is perfect: The Convoluted Calculus of Rating Books

There's a quidditch documentary coming!

Discarded Descriptions of Women from My Contemporary Hard-Boiled Detective Novel

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Morning Coffee (6/11/14)

A bunch of MLB teams had a Taylor Swift singalong on Twitter and it's basically the best thing ever.

Some Canadian kids hacked into an ATM on their lunch hour - the bank had left the default password - and rather than stealing anything, they told the staff and had their tardiness back to school excused because they were "assisting BMO with security." That's adorable.

Whoa, the Frick is expanding.

Hey look, an actually good piece about The Fault in Our Stars and YA!

Aww, Eric Hill (creator of Spot the Dog) has died.

I really like the new Matt Nathanson song.

Fascinating: The Trials of 'Entertainment Weekly': One Magazine's 24 Years of Corporate Torture

Oooh: Buckland Abbey Rembrandt self-portrait is genuine