Alaska, by James A. Michener

Summary: A fairly complete summary of the history of Alaska, as told through the stories of assorted fictional characters who played different roles and filled different niches in it.

Comments: It was kinda cool learning the history of Alaska. And the fact that it was a novel rather than a true history meant I almost felt like I was part of it. And of course it was far more engaging than the average history book. But maybe not any shorter (this book is ~1000 pages). However, I may have been getting annoyed with the frequency of things like "Now we return to the story of the guy from the last chapter" or "who just so happens to be the grandson of the guy we were followed 300 pages ago" (i.e. I'm not sure the whether the number of recurring characters or recurring lineages was believable). Other than that, I enjoyed it. Just be warned that it's a long book.

And Another Thing, by Eoin Colfer

Summary: Ford, Arthur, Trillian, and Zaphod are once again wandering the galaxy having wild adventures. And I shall refrain from saying any more for fear of ruining any surprises.

Comments: First, let me say that this being a continuation of Douglas Adams's trilogy by a different author, one really ought to be skeptical of whether the new author can do a good job of making the new book mesh with the old ones. But I think Colfer does a marvelous job of that, both in staying true to the characters and in continuing the pattern of random amusing comments that comprise a large portion of Adams's books.

And the book does an excellent job of just being an amusing book independent of any context it might have. It's a gripping story line (come on, don't these characters have to somehow manage to escape sudden death at some point in the story?) with random amusing comments. What's not to like? Okay, I'm done with my random squeeing

Unseen Academicals, by Terry Pratchett

Summary: Something is going on in the city of Ankh-Morpork with respect to the game of foot-the-ball, or football, as it is sometimes called. And it's not just that the wizards of Unseen University are putting together a team. And add to the mix Nutt, who is probably one of the most erudite individuals at the University but might not actually be human. 

Comments: Given the usual insanity of Ankh-Morpork and Terry Pratchett's amusing comments, you have a book that's hard to put down. Another amazing Pratchett book. I quite like the cast of characters. They're all so real and varied. And capable of surprises. Quite the page turner (and there were lots of pages to turn...)

Jasper Dash and the Flame-Pits of Delaware, by M. T. Anderson

Summary: When Jasper telepathically hears a call for help, he knows it is one of his friends from the monastery of Vbngoom, presumably under attack by his arch-enemy, Bobby Spandrel. He and his friends Lily and Katie must make their way through the jungles of Delaware to whichever mountain contains the fabled monastery (the mountains have been known to switch places when no one's looking).

Comments: How anyone can say things that outrageous with a straight face, I may never know. It seems like this book is usually poking fun at something, and it's just chock full of amusing comments. The goat in the shower, for instance.

The Orange Girl, by Jostein Gaarder

Summary: Once again, a moving tale. This one is about a 15 year old boy, Georg who has just found a letter from his father, who died when Georg was 4. Most of it is the father's story about the mysterious Orange Girl, but Georg makes some interjections as well.

Comments: the mysteriousness of the first half really kept me reading. And by then I was so interested in the characters that I wasn't going to stop anyway. This book may not have the level of messing with my mind as Gaarder's other books, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Regardless, I enjoyed it. And that's what really matters, right?

Weird Washington, by Jeff Davis and Al Eufrasio

Summary: random stuff one might not know about the state--random stories and places. Can I come up with any adjectives other than "random"?

Comments: all kinds of stuff that I didn't know. And some number of small towns I'd never heard of... I rather enjoyed reading about all everything, especially some of the things that I had some hope of imagining (ie references to places I've been).

City of Glass, by Paul Auster

I don't think I can say anything about this book without ruining the ending. And I'm not sure it's worth reading if you know the ending in advance. I suppose the very abridged version is that the book is on crack and/or was/is messing with my mind.

Devil in a Blue Dress, by Walter Mosley

Summary: We have Easy Rawlins, the reluctant black detective, trying to find a white woman because DeWitt Albright, a shady white guy, is willing to pay him to do so. And Easy needs the money. Things end up more complicated than that though...

Comment: As much as I enjoyed the mystery and the unexpected plot twists, I'm not sure I'd read any of his other books simply because the glimpse into the black community was too depressing. I think it boils down to "if you're black, you're guilty. Give us time, and we'll figure out something specific that you're guilty of." Among other things. It was definitely a glimpse of blatant racial inequality, at least as it existed in LA in 1948.

3001: The Final Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke

Summary: Remember Frank Poole, drifting out into infinite space in 2001? Well he's back. Watch as he learns to interact with a society of the future.

Comments: Of course I have to say nice things about the book. Like, for example, that I enjoyed it (which I did). Possibly "omg you have to read it", but only if I think I have an audience interested in sci-fi (all kinds of nifty technology). Is this also when I admit that I read most of it before/during various classes? Very much an action story, and very much enjoyable. And we learn more about that enigmatic Monolith. Kinda.

The Long Goodbye, by Raymond Chandler

Summary: The summary of Philip Marlowe's involvement with Terry Lennox. And also with a drunk author named Roger Wade, and Roger's wife Eileen. After Terry's wife is murdered and Terry disappears, things start getting very messy indeed. But Marlowe is a private investigator. He know how to get to the bottom of things.

Comments: I actually enjoyed this one. That's unusual for required reading... Marlowe is kinda amusing. He won't take any crap from anybody, and dishes out far more than his share of insults. I'm thinking Chandler might make is onto my list of authors to look for in the future. Assuming I ever get near the bottom of my to-read pile...

The Secret Agent, by Joseph Conrad

Summary: We have an anarchists, the Embassy-lead intrigue, a mentally challenged brother-in-law, and a shop of shady dealings. But things don't go as planned, and death is the result.

Comments: I don't know how much I have to say about a book for school that I actually finished a week ago. The short version is that it was a challenge to read and I didn't much enjoy it.

The Looking Glass War, by Frank Beddor

Summary: It turns out that Alice in Wonderland was based on a true story, but horribly mangled. This is the story of Alyss and her struggle against Queen Redd.

Reaction: I rather enjoyed it. It was rather neat how it was a new take on a somewhat familiar tale. The fact that I might describe it as an adventure doesn't hurt either...

The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama

...a book that too me over an entire quarter to read, a book that I only read because I got it for Christmas (over a year ago), a book that I only finished now because my computer is going annoyingly slow and giving me time to read, but still a book I enjoyed.

Basically, he laid out his view of that should be done to improve America, or something along those lines. And I found myself agreeing with most of his points. Whether this was because he was very persuasive, I'm easily persuaded, or I already agreed with much of what he had to say I don't know. Still, I enjoyed it. It's nice to know what our president wants to do to our country.