Books
Trickster’s Queen by Tamora Pierce - I like this series so much more than some of Pierce’s other recent work. It seemed a bit more grown-up and less formulaic. I think breaking out of the 4 books in a series convention that she’d been working with for so long was very good.
Bait and Switch : The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream by Barbara Ehrenreich - This was an advance copy picked up at ALA. Ehrenreich goes undercover in her search for a white collar job. This was a grim book, I didn’t realize that kooky personality tests and Christianity were so important in corporate culture
Chronicles of Chrestomanci vol 2: The Magicians of Caprona and Witch Week - I’m glad I started reading Diana Wynne Jones so late, because I have plenty of her books to look forward to.
Manga
Tramps Like Us #3, 4, 5
Full Metal Alchemist #1
Threads of Time #3
X-1999 #18
Tsubasa #5
Yotsuba& #1
9:25 am on July 5th, 2005 1
I read The Magicians of Caprona when I was about 10 or 11 and absolutely loved it. I was too young then to spot the clever riffs on the Romeo and Juliet story and on Italian history; I suspect it would be even more fun now. (Must now go reread it and track down everything else Diana Wynne Jones ever wrote…)
10:06 am on July 5th, 2005 2
I’ve read Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce and what ever the next book was after that. I usually like to read them in order though it does seem that most of her books might jump around a bit. I like to series at the beginning as I guess most people do.
I liked the books but they did seem kind of young and formulaic. What would you recommend stating with? I’d love to give them a second try.
10:11 am on July 5th, 2005 3
I think that the Alanna series was her strongest work, although it it is for a young audience. If you liked Alanna you might want to try Trickster’s Choice and Trickster’s Queen. They are about Alanna’s daughter and seemed a little more sophisticated than her other works. They are still Young Adult novels though.
5:48 pm on July 6th, 2005 4
I felt the end got a little cheesy but that’s just me. I thought the end of A Wrinkle in Time was cheesy as well. I love Young Adult novels but I have a low tolerance for cheesiness. The last one I finished was Mortal Engines which I loved and I’m almost done with Feed and Son of the Mob. Thanks for the advice!