BTT: Online Book-Cataloguing Sites

(From 13 December 2007): Do you use any of the online book-cataloguing sites, like Library Thing or Shelfari? Why or why not? If not an online catalog, do you use any other method to catalog your book collection? Excel spreadsheets, index cards, a notebook, anything?

I love making lists and being organised so combining that with my love of books means that book-cataloguing sites are often frequented by me :) I joined up with LibraryThing first and it remains my favourite site for cataloging my books. It has a well-designed layout and it's so easy to navigate around and edit my books with tags, ratings, reviews etc. When I buy a new book I can't wait to catalogue it, tag it and find the correct cover. A sure sign that I'm impressed with the site can be seen by the fact that I paid for lifetime membership - I NEVER usually do that sort of thing with websites!

I tried Shelfari for a little while but didn't find it as easy to use. It wasn't able to import all of my books from LibraryThing and it didn't have covers available for an awful lot of my books. I liked some aspects of the site, but ultimately I preferred LibraryThing, so I deleted my account.

I signed up with Goodreads last week and it remains to be seen whether or not I'll stick with it. Goodreads also wasn't able to import all of my books from LibraryThing so at some stage I'm going to have to go through them all and see what's missing and then add them manually. I'm happy to see that finding the correct cover is easier here than it was on Shelfari. I like the ability to add quotes to one's profile, but I'm having trouble adjusting to parts of the layout, such as the font (there seems to be quite a few different fonts and font sizes used, which makes it a little tough on the eyes).

I like the community aspect of all three sites. There are discussion groups for just about anything, and while I don't usually make a habit of posting in them, I like to read what everyone else is saying. I also find the reviews invaluable.

And as if all that isn't enough, I also have an Excel spreadsheet cataloging my books. Along with the name and author, I also have fields for the genre, ISBN, year of original publication, year my edition was published, number of pages, and whether the book has been read or remains unread. These details come in handy when I'm doing book reviews. The spreadsheet isn't actually complete yet, but it's almost there!

Snugglepot and Cuddlepie by May Gibbs

Rating: 7/10

Published: 1918
Number of pages: 220

Started: 26 January 2008
Finished: 27 January 2008



Summary (taken from blurb):
May Gibbs' enchanting bush world, peopled with gumnut heroes and heroines, solid friends like Mr Lizard and Mrs Bear, and, of course, the villainous Banksia men, has played as important a part in the imaginative background of Australian children as The Wind in the Willows or Alice in Wonderland...It includes most of the original illustrations, which contribute as much as the stories to the charm, humour and character of May Gibbs' classic.

Comments:
Along with Norman Lindsay's The Magic Pudding, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie is one of the greatest children's novels in Australian literature. My hardback copy consists of the complete adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, Little Ragged Blossom, and Little Obelia, and comes complete with the original gorgeous black and white illustrations.

I loved this book as a kid and this has been the first time in many years that I've read it (I rashly decided to give away most of my childhood books years ago, but this was one of the few I kept). As a discerning adult, I can now spot obvious flaws that I never noticed before. There are gaping plot holes and unbelievable coincidences that are never satisfactorily explained, but ultimately it's a charming and fast-paced story of the adventures of the engaging Snugglepot and Cuddlepie and all of their friends.

The illustrations are plentiful and gorgeous (examples can be seen here). May Gibbs has created a beautiful world full of bush creatures inspired by Australia's flora and fauna, and she displays her passion for them by sprinkling subtle messages throughout the book about being kind to all plants and animals. Well worth a look, if only for the beautiful illustrations.

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Rating: 9/10

Published: 1811
Number of pages: 407

Started: 17 January 2008
Finished: 25 January 2008



Summary (taken from blurb):
Sisters Marianne and Elinor couldn't be more different. Marianne is desperately romantic and longing to meet the man of her dreams, while Elinor takes a far more cautious approach to love.

When the two of them move to the country with their family, miles away from London, there is little prospect of them finding anyone at all. But then they meet their new neighbours - including kind Edward Ferrers and the good-looking, dangerous Willoughby - and it seems happiness may be just round the corner after all.

Things aren't always as they appear to be, though. Soon, both sisters will need to decide who to trust in their search for love: their family, their new friends, their heads - or their hearts?

Comments:
Another beautiful work by Jane Austen. No-one can capture romance and heartache quite like she can and, as always, her writing is a joy to read.

I didn't find myself particularly liking Elinor and Marianne until near the end of the book, which is unusual for me when reading Austen because I usually love all of her heroines (even Emma, with all of her flaws!). That didn't detract from the enjoyment of the book though.

There are also some great quotes in there reminding us that some issues are timeless. I prefer Pride and Prejudice and Emma, but Sense and Sensibility is still a very enjoyable read. Highly recommended.

Books Added to Wish List

I've added the following books to my wish list. I've been wanting some of them for a while now but just hadn't formally added them to the list.

Dante Alighieri: The Divine Comedy
Richard Bach: Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Geoffrey Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales
Michael Crichton: Jurassic Park
Jared Diamond: Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Jared Diamond: Guns, Germs, and Steel
Umberto Eco: Foucault's Pendulum
Umberto Eco: The Island of the Day Before
Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose
Homer: The Iliad
Homer: The Odyssey
Aldous Huxley: The Doors of Perception
Erik Larson: The Devil in the White City
Ovid: Metamorphoses
Dorothy Parker: The Portable Dorothy Parker
Shel Silverstein: The Light in the Attic
Shel Silverstein: Where the Sidewalk Ends

Like I really need all these extra books! (Actually I do need them. They keep me happy!)

BTT: Out-of-Print Books

I've decided to start participating in Booking Through Thursday. I always see interesting questions popping up that I would love to answer. According to the website, I don't necessarily have to answer the questions on a Thursday, so I'm just going to post the last couple of months worth of answers over a period of a week or so until I get caught up.

(From 6 December 2007): Do you have a favourite book, now out of print, that you would like to see become available again?

YES! Well, not so much a favourite book as many books that I would like to read but never see in shops. Until a couple of days ago, there was one in particular that stood out above all others, and that was '1985' by Anthony Burgess. It was originally published in 1978 as a tribute to George Orwell's '1984'. It's published in two parts: the first is a collection of essays and interviews discussing aspects of '1984'; and the second part is a novella set in 1985. I thought it sounded like an interesting read but despaired of ever finding it in a shop (new or second-hand) or on ebay. Then, a couple of days ago I did a search on ebay that I was expecting would be fruitless. But there it was! In excellent condition and reasonably priced. It was one of my happiest book purchases :)

There are quite a few other books that I would like to see given a new lease on life:
Anthony Burgess: The Wanting Seed (and anything else of his that isn't currently in print)
Graham Greene: The Third Man (I've seen an expensive version of this in shops, but would like to see it reissued properly and given the attention I think it would deserve)
Aldous Huxley: The Doors of Perception (and anything else of his that isn't currently in print)
Kathryn Kenny: Trixie Belden series (they've started reissuing these, but it's going to be years, if ever, until they get to the last, and rarest, books in the series)
Stanislaw Lem: The Futurological Congress/Memoirs Found in a Bathtub
Nancy Turner: Sarah's Quilt/The Star Garden
John Wyndham: Chocky
Yevgeny Zamyatin: We

Found: One Rare Book

I'm so excited today! I did a search on ebay earlier for Anthony Burgess (author of the brilliant A Clockwork Orange) in the remote hope that I would find one of his more obscure works that I've been dying to get my hands on, and there it was!

The book has been out of print for I-don't-know-how-long and I've never seen it in secondhand bookshops or heard much discussion of it anywhere. I've had it on my wishlist for a while but I didn't really have any hopes of being able to track it down! I am so terribly excited!

The book is called 1985 and it was originally published in 1978 as a tribute to George Orwell's 1984. From my understanding, it's published in two parts: the first is a collection of essays and interviews discussing aspects of 1984; and the second part is a novella set in 1985. It should make for some very interesting reading.

I am just so thrilled at finding this book! And it wasn't too expensive either! This is one happy little book-lover!

I'm an Amazing Blogger!

Kell has very kindly bestowed upon me the above award. What an honour! Especially coming from Kell, who has an incredible blog herself over at Life Gets in the Way.

Apparently I now have to confess seven weird or random facts about myself. Well, here goes!

1. I love almost everything about the 60s: music, fashion, cars, the peace movement. It is my greatest regret in life that I was not born several decades earlier. Instead, I got to be born in the early 80s; the decade with the worst music, fashion etc. I also love old movies (prior to 60s as well).

2. I can't roll my 'r's. It's completely unfathomable to me how people do it and I would love to be able to do it but have never managed it. I just kind of go 'llll' instead.

3. I had a lot of trouble learning to tie my shoelaces when I was little. I could never manage to do it the way everyone else did it (I still can't figure it out!) I found my own way instead, and I think it's much simpler than what everyone else does. I have recently found out that my way is called 'bunny ears'.

4. My favourite food has always been meat pies. Usually plain, but sometimes potato. And always with tomato sauce on the plain, but never on the potato (for some strange reason!).

5. I'm quite particular about what chips I eat (hot chips). I don't like them too cooked or undercooked, and I avoid the crunchy ones and ones with pointy ends. So: soft, golden brown and square ends, please! I'll eat the others, but generally leave them till last in case I get full. Luckily my Mum is the opposite so we work well together when eating chips!

6. I loathe cheese and can only tolerate it when it's melted (and then I love it!). If I get a burger with unmelted cheese sticking out the sides, I have to pull it off but leave the melted part in the middle. My Mum once tricked me into eating a cheeseburger that she accidentally bought by telling me it was butter. Oh, how young and naive I was!

7. I was once in a school production where I dressed in overalls and danced to 'Karma Chameleon' as part of Boy George and the Culture Club (one of the guys dressed up as Boy George). In other school productions, I have dressed up at different times as a fairy in the Nutcracker, a beach ball in Santa's toy workshop, a crow in an Aboriginal dreamtime story, and Jesus.

OK, now that I've let you in on all my deep, dark secrets, it's time to pass this award on! I'm not sure how many people I'm supposed to pass it on to, and at any rate, most of the blogs I frequent (which isn't very many) have already received the award. So I'm just going to pass it on to one blog that I think is particularly awesome. And the winner is...(drum-roll please)...

Kimbooktu
A wonderfully unique book blog full of quirky book news and interesting ideas. I wish my blog was half as interesting! Described by the owner as 'Gadgets for readers. Bookish products every book lover will lust for!'

Congrats, and thanks again to Kell!

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Rating: 7/10

Published: 2002
Number of pages: 319

Started: 8 January 2008
Finished: 17 January 2008


Summary (taken from blurb):
After the tragic sinking of a cargo ship, one solitary lifeboat remains bobbing on the wild, blue Pacific. The crew of the surviving vessel consists of a hyena, a zebra (with a broken leg), a female orang-utan, a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger and Pi - a 16-year-old Indian boy. The scene is set for one of the most extraordinary pieces of literary fiction of recent years.

Yann Martel's Life of Pi is a transformative novel, a dazzling work of imagination that will delight and astound readers in equal measure. It is a triumph of storytelling and a tale that will, as one character puts it, make you believe in God. Can a reader reasonably ask for anything more?

Comments:
***Warning! Spoilers!***
I thought Life of Pi was a pretty entertaining read, but there was nothing that really knocked my socks off or that will stand in my memory for a long time (other than a few slightly gruesome scenes).

There was quite a bit of background story leading up to the lifeboat section, which got a little tiresome, but mostly I found Pi's comments on animals and religion to be quite interesting, even if I didn't completely agree with what he was saying. Like others have said before me, the whole island part was most puzzling - it seemed very out of place! (Although probably not as out-of-place as the short incident with the Frenchman that preceded it!)

I know the ending has come as a disappointment to some people but luckily I knew beforehand how it would end so I wasn't disappointed. Highlight to view spoiler: Which story do I believe? Well, of course we'd all like to believe the version with the animals, but I'm inclined to think his second story was true. If you had spent 227 days at sea, it would certainly give you ample time to think up a story to explain away your actions (which in other circumstances would be atrocious), and perhaps it would also help you to maintain your sanity.

Perhaps I enjoyed it more than some people because I didn't try to read too much into it and find symbolism everywhere. I took it at face value and enjoyed it as a good story, well told.

I am Legend by Richard Matheson

Rating: 9/10

Published: 1954
Number of pages: 176

Started: 7 January 2008
Finished: 8 January 2008


Summary (taken from Dymocks website):
Robert Neville is the last living man on Earth, but he is not alone, for every other man, woman and child on the planet has become a vampire and they are hungry for Neville's blood. By day he is hunter; by night, the prey. How long can one man survive like this?

Comments:
Often the shortest books can pack the biggest punch, and I am Legend is no exception. It's quite fast-paced and had me on the edge of my seat several times. I thought Matheson did a great job of exploring the psyche of Robert Neville and a world without people. I found the medical descriptions dull, but knew they were necessary in order for the author to logically explain the appearance of vampires. An ending to a story like this has the potential to be hugely disappointing, but happily this wasn't the case with I am Legend: the ending was simply brilliant. An excellent read.

No-Balls and Googlies: A Cricket Companion by Geoff Tibballs

Rating: 8/10
Published: 2006
Number of pages: 192

Started: 5 January 2008
Finished: 6 January 2008



Summary (taken from blurb):
Cricket, or 'the elegant game', occupies a long-established and distinguished position in the annals of sporting history. Skilful and graceful, technical and tactical, the intricacies and multi-faceted nature of the sport have enthralled and baffled spectators in equal measure over the centuries. Delving into its rich and varied history, No-Balls and Googlies uncovers the origins of this captivating game, and explores its traditions, records, milestones and memorable moments through a fascinating array of facts and figures, anecdotes and curiosities.

...

For cricket fanatics the world over, No-Balls and Googlies also provides an amusing insight into the sport's many quirky characters, and presents a wealth of facts, trivia, quotations and stories taken from this great sport's illustrious history.

Comments:
This is a charming little book full of fun facts and trivia regarding the long history of cricket. It's not a book one would usually read straight through; rather, it's one that can be dipped into occasionally. That said, I read the entire thing while watching (what else?) the cricket.

Some of the stories and incidents mentioned in the book make the current spat between Australia and India seem not so bad. Just another colourful event in the long history of the game. It's really given me a greater appreciation for the sport, its rules, its origins, and the people who have represented their teams over the year. Highly recommended if you're a fan of the sport (and if you're not, it might help you see the game in a new light!)