So, the blog posts I like to write are the ones that don’t have anything to do with news. They’re the posts about random thoughts, the poetry or poll posts, the posts in which I answer FAQs or talk about writing and life. They are NOT the posts in which I say, guys, here’s what’s happening to my books in the world. And recently I’ve felt overwhelmed by news in my own posts…. and that’s why I’ve decided to make a link on the left for news, and put all news there. If anything spectacular happens, of course I’ll mention it in a blog post (I’ll let you know if I win the Nobel Prize in physics, make the Olympic figure skating team, or sprout an extra head, all of which are equally likely), but from now on, any news will be recorded behind my News link, and not here. Make sense? We’ll see how it works.

This leaves me free to talk about the three most recent books I’ve read and loved!

So, I’m really terrible at writing book reviews, and I also happen to find it torturous, so instead I’m just going to blather.

Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith (YA fantasy)
Crown Duel takes place in a medieval fantasy world of relative gender equality! *flops* It’s a damn good read and it did the thing I love fantasy novels to do most, which is to help me rethink, and get re-excited about, the book I’m writing. My copy of Crown Duel is now packed with post-it flags and notes to myself about things to think about regarding Bitterblue — things like how castles and governments work, how to convey emotion, and how to write a beautiful sentence.

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork (YA realism)
At the beginning of this book, I wanted one thing for Marcelo, but by the end, what I wanted for him had changed completely — because Marcelo grew SO MUCH. What a beautiful coming of age story this is, and how I came to love Marcelo. I also felt like he was teaching me how to process my own stuff in my own life; this book was therapeutic for me ^_^. And beautifully written, and gentle, and the title and the cover are also perfect. One of my favorite 2009 books so far, if not my favorite.

Black Stars in a White Night Sky by JonArno Lawson (poetry)
Some of these poems are silly, some are just plain beautiful, and all of them play games with language. Why don’t I just share a couple to give you an idea?

Bigger and Better

I’m going to do something bigger and better,
bigger and better
and bolder, but first,
I’m going to do something
smaller and worse.

Are You Worried?

Are you worried you’re not
like everyone else?
Your worries will only worsen
when you find
that the path to conformity
is different for each person.

What are you reading these days?