Shakespeare Bats Cleanup, by Ron Koertge

Summary:While Kevin is sick with mono, he writes some poetry to pass the time. This book shows the change that that has on him.

Thoughts:Not what I was expecting. Sure it's poetry, but much of it was free verse, which is bascially prose that's been reshaped so it takes up more room than it would otherwise. Still, not a bad story; I just expected poetry to be more ...poetry-like.

Son of the Mob, by Gordon Korman

Summary: Lessee how much I can say without giving away anything important. Um, well, Vince's father is a mob boss. So besides the usual sorts of high school problems, he also has some ...more unusual issues. And things get horribly complicated. Or something.

Thoughts: OMG that book is so conveluted it isn't even funny. No wait, actually it is. Or at least I was kinda laughing randomly at some of the plot twists. But that doesn't necessarily mean anything. And I'm not sure I should say any more because half the fun is discovering the plots twist and seeing if you can find them in advance.

Wyrd Sisters, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: After the king is murdered, a loyal guard spirits the crown and the young prince out of the castle and entrusts them to the care of three witches. The new king, the previous king's murderer, the duke, a man with little respect for witches or for the kingdom itself, pisses off a great many people. The aforementioned three witches decide to take action.

Thoughts: Squee, lovely story, quite conveluted, which makes it all the better. And, to some extent, a rip-off of Macbeth, but that's okay because it has so much of its own spin that it's only in the large elements and some specific lines of dialogue. Wait, no, it's like that other tragedy we had to read last quarter. Was it Hamlet? Yeah, I think it was. Anyway, it may be similar, but it's also far different, and that's what counts, unless it isn't. Um, apparently I'm incapable of rational thought at the moment. Which a) doesn't surprise me and b) means I should probably shut up now.

Equal Rites, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: A wizard about to die entrusts his staff to an eighth son of an eighth son, not realizing that the child is actually a daughter. Her being entrusted with said staff means magic happens around her. She heads off to Unseen University to learn to be a wizard, never mind that there's never been a female wizard and no one with any authority seems interested in changing that.

Thoughts: Squee, I like the civilization of ants. And the dreadful battle followed by everyone living happily ever after was nice too. I think this book falls into the category of books I don't mind reading but might not read again on account of there being better books and unknown books out there.

Good Omens, by Terry Pratchet and Neil Gaiman

Summary: The Apocalypse is about it happen. This book follows the lives of the Antichrist, an angel and a demon stationed on earth, and assorted other individuals.

Thoughts: Squee, amusing comments, happily ever after, commentary on nature vs nurture, and the necessity of conflict in one's life. All in all, a highly amusing book. I rather enjoyed it.

The Last Continent, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: Um, most of the action involvs gods creating continents and wizards making a mess of things and Rincewind being an unintentional hero. And I'm not sure what else I can say except that it takes place in a country not entirely unlike Australia.

Thoughts: Aww, isn't that nice, the bumbling fool manages to live happily ever after thru no fault of his own. It's all so convenient. In an "I don't follow" sort of way. And, of course, lots of satirizing Australia.

I think the trick to not killing my attention span is to not try to read the entire book in one day if it's over 250 pages.

Mort, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: Mort is Death's apprentice. But when he botches a job, things start getting complicated.

Thoughts: Aw, they all live happily ever after. Quite a lovely book. I can't be bothered to think at the moment. It's probably worth rereading. And I'm not going to say that's because it was ~250 pages rather than ~350 like some of the others where I lost interest before I finished. I like learning more about Death and how thinks work on the Discworld.

Jingo, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: When a new island suddenly appears in the middle of the sea between Ankh-Morpork and Klatch, both states wish to claim it for their own and are willing to go to war over it.

Thoughts: It all wraps up quite nicely, I must say. Amazing how everything fits together after going off in so many different directions and attempting to cover its tracks. Maybe not the best book I've read, but not bad at all (then again, that seems to be my usual reaction: "not bad. What's next on my far too large pile of library books?")

Thief of Time, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: Waddaya mean I have to summarize that book? People interact and wierd stuff happens. Okay, I'll try. Jeremy is determined to make a glass clock. But said clock will be so perfectly timed that it will stop time (no, I don't quite understand that bit either). So various other characters are hoping to prevent this from happening. And I'm not sure I can say anything more without either giving away major plot twists or taking a very long time to do so.

Thoughts: One of those books where by the time I got to the last 20 pages or so, I just wanted to find out what happened and be done with it. But I think that reflects more on my attention span than on the book itself. Especially considering that when I was reading it last night, I couldn't put it down, or at least doing so was a challenge once I quit reflecting on various things that were preoccupying my mind. Anyway, quite a lovely book, like any Pratchett book, really. It's amazing the random stuff that gets fun poked at it in this and other books.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon

Summary: After Christopher discovers the death of his neighbor's dog, he's determined to figure out whodunit. But the truth is not at all what he expected.

Thoughts: A thoughtful book, a different book. But still interesting. It was a bit of an eye-opening experience reading a story narrated by an autistic kid. I think it's best if one doesn't start out with any ideas about what the book is like because then one can experience it without continually comparing it to expectations.

Feet of Clay, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: Two people turn out to be dead and the Patrician is being slowly poisoned. It's up to Sam Vimes and his Watchmen (and Watchwomen and Watch dwarves/trolls/gargoyles) to figure out what happened.

Thoughts: Squee! Wonderful book, really. Quite enjoyed it--the mystery, the feminine dwarf sub-plot, the random amusing comments, everything. Even if it is one of those books where you know that something seemingly insignificant is going to turn out to be important. Unless it's just there to be amusing/random/interesting. This is another book that I'm threatening to buy a copy of so I can have it on my bookshelf. I really should make a list somewhere of all those books.

Amusing Quotes: (Yes, I actually thought to write some down this time)
-"People look down on stuff like geography and meteorology, and not only because they're standing on one and being soaked by the other. They don't look quite like real science <footnote> That is to say, the sort of thing you can use to give something three extra legs and then blow it up </footnote> But geography is only physics slowed down and with a few trees stuck on it, and meteorology is full of extremely fashionable chaos and complexity." (p4)
-"You can't shoot servants for putting your shoes the wrong war round, you know. It's too messy. He'll have to learn right from left like the rest of us. And right from wrong, too." (p10)
-"We're all lying in the gutter...But some of us're looking at the stars..." (p176)

The Truth, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: William de Worde writes a newsletter to leaders of nearby cities. Or at least he did until he encountered a newfangled printing press, and one thing lead to another and a mysterious crime also popped up, and voila, a conveluted plot.

Thoughts: Squee, good book. Amusing comments. Random plot twists. Stuff happens and seems to have impaired my ability to comment on it.

Maskerade, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: People are dying under mysterious circumstances in the Opera House, and people are claiming it's because of the Ghost. Nanny Ogg, Granny Weatherwax, Agnes aka Perdita, and/or other various characters hope to unmask the Ghost before anyone else dies.

Thoughts: Yay, mystery! I won't pretend Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax don't get on my nerves, exspecially when they're together, but still, it's a mystery. And it's got plot twists. And that means it can't possibly be a bad book (okay, maybe it is possible, but it would take some effort on someone's part. Kinda like failing band). *thinks a little more* I guess there being clues is also important. And of course the making fun of opera stuff doesn't hurt either.