2009 Book List Part 2

Here are the audiobooks I listened to in 2009:

The Sword of Truth Book 10: Phantom
The Sword of Truth Book 11: Confessor
Pontoon (Lake Wobegon Novels)
Service With a Smile (A Blandings story) - PG Wodehouse
"A" is for Alibi
"B" is for Burglar
"C" is for Corpse
"D" is for Deadbeat
"E" is for Evidence
"F" is for Fugitive
"G" is for Gumshoe
"H" is for Homicide
Anansi Boys
Catch Me If You Can
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
The Anglo Files - A Field Guide to the British
Patriot Pirates: The Privateer War for Freedom and Fortune in the American Revolution
Wikipedia Revolution, The: How a Bunch of Nobodies Created the World's Greatest Encyclopedia
The Monkey's Raincoat
Three Cups of Tea - One Man's Mission to Fight Terrorism and Build Nations... One School at a Time
Calendar Quest, A 5,000 Year Trek through Western History with Father Time
Orbit

I'll remember this year as the year I discovered non-fiction on audio disc.
After several years of long-format fantasy, [The Wheel of Time (well worth a listen), the Magic Kingdom of Landover (a classic comedy fantasy series) and The Sword of Truth (some interesting ideas but there were long parts of books 6 and on that I was bored stiff during)] I wanted a change. I dabbled in thriller/mysteries - the Kinsey Millhone Alphabet series, The Monkey's Raincoat and also in Sci Fi - Orbit, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, but for some reason the non-fiction portions of my library's web page kept calling me, and I'm glad I answered.

Non-fiction Highlights for the year:
Patriot Pirates about the war at sea during the American Revolution
The Wikipedia Revolution about the founding of Wikipedia
Three Cups of Tea, the story of a mountain climber and how he created a foundation to build girl's schools in Afghanistan and Iraq.
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXXXXX - the audio book I finished today so I won't talk about it until next year's round-up

Fiction highlight of the year:
Anansi Boys a book by Neil Gaiman, read by Lenny Henry of Chef

2009 Book List Part 1

So last Jan 1st, 2008 I decided to keep track of all the books I read or listened to using my LibraryThing profile. You can see the 2008 list here.

The big news this year on my reading situation was the arrival of my Kindle DX in June.

Books I have finished in 2009:
Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep Book 1: Blackstaff Tower
Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep Book 2: Mistshore
The Citadels Book 4: Sentinelspire
The Dark Disciple Book 3: Amber and Blood
Draconomicon: Chromatic Dragons
Adventurer's Vault
The Empryean Odyssey Book 2: The Fractured Sky
Small Gods [library]
The Tales of Beedle the Bard
Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War, Vol. 1 [library]
Opening Atlantis [library]
Dragon Magic
The Immortal Iron Fist, Vol. 1: The Last Iron Fist Story [library]
Abolethic Sovereignty Book 1: Plague of Spells
The United States of Atlantis [library]
The Lanternlight Files Book 1: The Left Hand of Death
Jack Kirby's Fourth World Omnibus, Vol. 3 [library]
Ravenloft: Shadowborn
The Haunted Lands Book 3: Unholy
Thorn of Breland Book 01: The Queen of Stone
Martial Power
Cairo, A Graphic Novel [library]
The Complete Persepolis [library]
Flight Volume 5 [library]
The Savage Sword Of Conan, Vol. 5
Kong, King of Skull Island
The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island
Open Grave: Secrets of the Undead
Dungeon Delve
The Making of Star Wars, Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Pathfinder Chronicles: Classic Monsters Revisited
Grantsville Gazette II
1634: The Ram Rebellion
Ruled Britannia
The Wilds Book 01: The Fanged Crown
Red Sands
Player's Handbook 2
The Little Nugget
Book: The Sequel
Bill The Conqueror
Money In The Bank
***June 15th Kindle DX arrived***
The Adventures of Sally [Kindle]
1632 [Kindle]
1633 [Kindle]
The Ring of Fire [Kindle]
Grantsville Gazette I [Kindle]
The Clicking of Cuthbert [Kindle]
For Love of Mother-Not [Kindle]
Pride and Prejudice [Kindle]
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance - Now With Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem[Kindle]
A Princess of Mars [Kindle]
The Gods of Mars [Kindle]
The Warlord of Mars [Kindle]
Down and Out In The Magic Kingdom [Kindle]
Thuvia, Maid of Mars [Kindle]
The Chessmen of Mars [Kindle]
Eberron Player's Guide
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy [Kindle]
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe [Kindle]
Life, the Universe and Everything [Kindle]
The Briar King [Kindle]
The Charnel Prince [Kindle]
The Blood Knight [Kindle]
Monster Manual 2
The Lost Symbol [Kindle]
Divine Power
The Savage Sword Of Conan, Vol. 6
Revenge of the Giants
The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1) [Kindle]
Thorn of Breland Book 2: Son of Khyber
Wheel of Time Book 12: The Gathering Storm
Barmy In Wonderland
The Draconic Prophecies Book 1: Storm Dragon
The Draconic Prophecies Book 2: Dragon Forge
City of Ember
The Fall of Highwatch
Urusei Yatsura Volumes 1-15
Arcane Power
Eberron Campaign Guide
The Plane Below: Secrets of the Elemental Chaos
James Cameron's Avatar: A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora - An Activist Survival Guide - finished Dec 31st.

Just like last year, a lot of fantasy, D&D books and graphic novels.
But new this year were some classics - Jane Austin, more Sci Fi - Alan Dean Foster, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Douglas Adams, and some mainstream fiction - Dan Brown, James Patterson, JK Rowling.

This year's new to me PG Wodehouse's novel was "Barmy In Wonderland".

Highlights for the year were "Book: The Sequel", "Pride and Prejudice", "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies", and "The Gathering Storm" - Book 12 in the Wheel of Time and the first published since Robert Jordan's death which Brandon Sanderson helped finish.

Most Disappointing goes to Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol" which is very similar to the other books and since it takes place in Washington DC and deals with the Free Masons felt an awful lot like the novelization of the movie "National Treasure 3".

Looking at the list today I noticed I have stopped going to the library since June. I can check out audio books through my library website and I have a NetFlix subscription so I'm not going for movies or TV shows. Since Amazon offers 10-15 free books every month for download to the Kindle I am getting eBooks faster than I can read them.

My 2009 audio book list tomorrow!

So long 2009...

What? 2010 already? It can't be.
It seems like only a year or two ago we were running around Rockwell testing each PC and marking it with either a Green Y2K compliant sticker or a Red Non-Y2k compliant one. (As a side notes it's scary but some of those PCs are still in use on the manufacturing floor 10 years later!)
And then on New Year's Eve 1999 we were watching the massive fireworks from around the world, starting in Sydney, then Tokyo, and so forth to welcome in the new millennium (a year early). I remember rushing home to see the Paris and then the London displays, and the rows of fireworks running up the reflecting pools in Washington DC.

I guess I've been a little lazy about updating here but here's a dozen blog posts I never actually posted but meant to:

1) My Kindle DX review (amazing piece of equipment I love it!)
2) My Kindle Cover from Oberon Design review (even prettier in person!)
3) The Kindle DX screensaver Author Challenge (Try to read at least one book by each author who's picture is part of the screen saver. Of the 15 authors I had read 7 before getting the Kindle, and finished one since - Jane Austin, and started another - Alexander Dumas)

4) my reviews of the 3 free books I got from the Early Reviewers program at LibraryThing:
Dance in a Buffalo Skull
Dragon Forge
Any Given Doomsday

5) NetFlix and how I love discovering new TV shows (Castle, Big Band Theory, Leverage, Doctor Who, Sarah Jane Adventures, Heroes, Chuck) or revisiting old ones (To the Manor Born, The Grand, Flambards, Brideshead Revisited, The Good Life/Good Neighbors, Keen Eddie)

6) Monty Python For the First Time (One of the guys I work with told me he has never seen Monty Python. None of the TV shows or movies! So I took the TV show DVDs in to work and we are watching them at lunch. It's fun watching him encounter the dead parrot, Johann Gambolputty de von Ausfern -schplenden -schlitter -crasscrenbon -fried -digger -dangle -dungle -burstein -von -knacker -thrasher -apple -banger -horowitz -ticolensic -grander -knotty -spelltinkle -grandlich -grumblemeyer -spelterwasser -kürstlich -himbleeisen -bahnwagen -gutenabend -bitte -eine -nürnburger -bratwustle -gerspurten -mit -zweimache -luber -hundsfut -gumberaber -shönendanker -kalbsfleisch -mittler -raucher von Hautkopft of Ulm, the Nudge-Nudge Wink-Wink Guy and the animation of Terry Gilliam for the first time.)

7) Return To Marching Band (I played in the South Milwaukee Heritage Days parade)

8) Return To The DM's chair (I had so much fun running the Free D&D days sponsored by Wizards of the Coast that I started a 4th Edition campaign with 4 of my friends. We're meeting roughly every other Saturday.)
(On another side note today Dec 31st, 2009 is the 32nd Anniversary of the first time I ran D&D. Peter Nelson got the basic set for Christmas 1977 from his uncle and I read and ran it at our family's yearly New Year's Eve get together.)

9) Return of the Owls (they are back in the neighborhood, I heard two of them in the woods hooting at each other while I shoveled snow for the first time this season.)

10) Root Canals Are No Fun (I really don't recommend them)

11) TurkeyCon 2009 (Our annual board game event the day after Thanksgiving, attendance down a little from last year but a good time was had by all)

12) The summer cats - this I feel the worst about, I don't have pictures of all of the foster kittens from this summer and I'm sure I've forgotten some of their names.
Rosamund (who is still with us)
The Great American Composers - Cole, George, Irving, Vivian and Jerome
The UK Counties - Stafford, Claire, Cornwall, Devon and Kent
The Tea Babies - Darjeeling & Jasmine (both adopted Dec 20), Oolong and Rooibos who died before they could be adopted and the two unnamed ones who died before we got them from the barn
Arwen from the same barn who only lasted a week and Brambles who lasted barely 4 hours
Ovaltine (adopted Dec 20th)
Frodo Baggins who was adopted but then returned and we kept him (Michelle scooped me on this story)

Guess what arrived a day early!

My Kindle DX is coming!

So I have been waiting for *years* for a decent ebook reader.
Back around 1992 I bought an Apple PowerBook 100 as my first notebook.
I purchased several electronic books in HyperCard format including Sara Paretsky's Indemity Only and Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
At a little over 5 pounds in weight it was not very comfortable reading in bed, etc.

I have tried several PDAs over the years including the Apple Newton, the HP Jornada and the Dell Axim but the screens were all too small for easy reading. The main problem has been my rate of reading is faster than I could change screens.

I almost bought a Sony 505 Reader in December 2007 after seeing a first-generation Kindle which I thought was just ugly. At that time I heard from someone who knew someone that Apple was coming out with their own version. Since then Amazon has released their Kindle 2 which looks much better physically and Sony has released their new 700BC which has a touch screen with a slight loss in letter clarity, but no official word from Apple.

Last month Amazon released the specs for their Kindle DX and I was hooked. This version is the size of a hardcover, rotates the screen automatically when you turn it and has native pdf support so I can read my RPG documents and anything else I create. I just got word today that it is being officially released on June 10th and mine should ship the 15th!
Go watch the video on Amazon's site, it's amazing!

I'm going to be able to download for free any of the thousands of public domain books from Project Gutenberg and many other places around the web.

Now the question is what to read first?
PG Wodehouse? ER Burroughs? Book: The Sequel?

I'm a published author!

My submission was accepted and will be included in Book: The Sequel!

You can get more info here at their website!

Or check out the widget on the right ----->>>

Book: The Sequel

My sister sent me a link to very interesting website called Book: The Sequel where people are invited to write a short one sentence sequel to a famous book.

They have a couple of examples like:
HappyMeals are all alike; each unhappy meal is unhappy in its own way.
—From Anna McKarenina (sequel to Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy)
Bob Marley was dead, to begin with.
—From Kwanzaa Tunes (sequel to A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens)

Anyone can submit one and this one popped into my head almost immediately:
73X7 m3h 15HM3al — From m08Y d1CK 11 (The L33T edition)
(sequel to Moby Dick by Herman Melville) Submitted by Frank Laycock

L33T or Leet is a way of writing on the internet that use symbols and number to stand for letters. More info can be found on Wikipedia.
My line translates as "Text me Ishmeal" - From Moby Dick II.

Submitted versions scroll up along the right hand side of the site and Mary emailed me this evening to let me know she saw mine!
Now I just need to wait until the end of the month to find out if mine makes it into the compilation book!

2008 - A Year's Worth of Reading

So last Jan 1st I decided to keep track of all the books I read or listened to using my LibraryThing profile.

Here is what I read:
The Forge of War
The Grand History of the Realms
The Doom of Camelot
Skreyn's Register: The Bonds of Magic
Wizards Presents: Worlds and Monsters
The Savage Sword of Conan, Vol. 1
Jonathon Strange & Mr. Norrell
Heirs of Ash Book 2: Flight of the Dying Sun
House of M Complete Collectors Edition
Black Wind
Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold - The Batman Team-Ups, Vol. 1
Showcase Presents: Metamorpho, Vol. 1
The Twilight War Book 1: Shadowbred
Erevis Cale Book 1: Twilight Falling
Erevis Cale Book 2: The Dawn of Night
Erevis Cale Book 3: Midnight's Mask
Showcase Presents: Green Lantern Volume 1
Drawing the Line: Tales of Maps and Cartocontroversy [library]
Heirs of Ash Book 3: Rise of the Seventh Moon
The Twilight War Book 2: Shadowstorm
The Blade of the Flame Book 2: Forge of the Mind Slayers
Tales from the War of Souls Book 1: The Search for Magic
The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop [library]
The Blade of the Flame Book 3: Sea of Death
The Pythons: An Autobiography by the Pythons [library]
The Haunted Lands Book 2: Undead
Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall
The Order of the Stick Volume 0: On the Origin of PCs
The Legion Companion
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 1
The Order Of The Stick Volume 1: Dungeon Crawlin' Fools
The Order of the Stick Volume 2: No Cure for the Paladin Blues
Dork Tower Volume 1: Dork Covenant
Secrets of Xen'drik
Earth (A New Perspective)
The Barrytown Trilogy Book 1: The Commitments
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 2
Stardust (Gaimen/Vess)
The Best of the Legion Outpost
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 3
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 4
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 5
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 6
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 7
Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 8
Pathfinder Player's Guide: Curse Of The Crimson Throne
Pathfinder 07 Curse of the Crimson Throne: Edge of Anarchy
The Barrytown Trilogy Book 2: The Snapper
Pathfinder 08 Curse of the Crimson Throne: Seven Days to the Grave
The Barrytown Trilogy Book 3: The Van
Pathfinder 09 Curse of the Crimson Throne: Escape From Old Korvosa
Dance in a Buffalo Skull
The Draconic Prophecies Book 1:Storm Dragon
Ptolus: Secrets of the Delver's Guild
The Knights of Myth Drannor Book 2: Swords of Dragonfire
The Citadels Book 2: Obsidian Ridge
Pathfinder 10 Curse Of The Crimson Throne: A History Of Ashes
Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master's Guide: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
Dungeon Master's Guide II (3.5 Edition)
Dork Tower Volume 03: Heart of Dorkness
Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
Dork Tower Volume 06: 1D6 Degrees of Separation
Dork Tower Volume 07: Dork Side of the Goon
Castle Waiting
Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
The Savage Sword of Conan, Vol. 3
City of Stormreach
Showcase Presents: Teen Titans, Vol. 1
Bathroom Book of Wisconsin Trivia: Weird, Wacky and Wild
Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition For Dummies
Confessions of a Part-time Sorceress: A Girl's Guide to the D&D Game
Dungeon Survival Guide
Storm of the Century: The Labor Day Hurricane of 1935
Pathfinder 11 Curse Of The Crimson Throne: Skeletons Of Scarwall
Dragons of Faerun
A Practical Guide To Dragon Riding
Denizens of Freeport
Pathfinder 12 Curse Of The Crimson Throne: Crown Of Fangs
The Inquisitives Book 4: The Darkwood Mask
Forgotten Realms Player's Guide
Red Hand of Doom
The Savage Sword of Conan, Vol. 4
Races of the Dragon
The Savage Sword of Conan, Vol. 2
The Citadels Book 3: The Shield of Weeping Ghosts
Sandstorm: Mastering the Perils of Fire and Sand
Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide, 4th Edition
Cocktail Time
Manual of the Planes, 4th Edition - finished Dec 31st!

A lot of fantasy, D&D books, graphic novels and a little science and history.
I read Dungeon, Dragon, Budget Travel and AAA Living magazines every month, the Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel every Sunday and probably close to a literal ton of comic book and manga.
I also read PG Wodehouse's "Cocktail Time" a novel of his I had not read yet. It's getting harder to track down his last 15 books or so that I don't have of the 96+ he wrote.

In late 2007 and early 2008 when I was driving to Munster Indiana every week for work I got even more hooked on audio books than I was previously. In late 2007 I finished listening to all 11 of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series so I needed something new. My library system has an online service where you can check out books and burn them to CD to listen to in the car.
Here is the list from 2008:
The Sword of Truth Book 01: Wizard's First Rule
The Sword of Truth Book 02: Stone of Tears
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The Sword of Truth Book 03: Blood of the Fold
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
The Sword of Truth Book 04: Temple of the Winds
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
David Attenborough - The Early Years: Zoo Quest For A Dragon
Eva March Tappan - When Knights Were Bold
The Sword of Truth Book 05: Soul of the Fire
Penny Arcade / PvP D&D 4E preview
Magic Kingdom of Landover Book 01: Magic Kingdom For Sale - Sold!
The Sword of Truth Book 06: Faith of the Fallen
Penny Arcade / PvP D&D 4E preview (repeat listen)
Al Franken - The Truth (with jokes)
The Sword of Truth Book 07: The Pillars of Creation
Magic Kingdom of Landover Book 2: The Black Unicorn
The Sword of Truth Book 08: Naked Empire
Magic Kingdom of Landover Book 3: Wizard at Large
Magic Kingdom of Landover Book 4: The Tangle Box
Magic Kingdom of Landover Book 5: Witches' Brew
The Sword of Truth Book 09: Chainfire - finished Dec 31st!

So that's all of Harry Potter, the whole Magic Kingdom of Landover series, and 9 of the 11 books in the Sword of Truth series, plus a little science, history and politics.
I also listened to "This American Life" from Chicago Public Radio almost every week. You can download the current episode for free from iTunes.

So what's in store for 2009?
On the audio front I have the last two Sword of Truth novels, then I might start getting the Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries by Sue Grafton (A is for Alibi, B is for Burglar, etc.) or maybe the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. I'm getting a little over loaded on fantasy mega-series.
On the book front I have a whole shelf in the computer room of unread books, several boxes of unread in the basement and a pile of 10 or so by the bed in various levels of doneness. A couple of Clive Cusslers, JK Rowling's new book Beedle the Bard, etc. etc. etc.
I also need to read and review the 3 books I got as an Early Reviewer from LibraryThing - I guess I am a Late Reviewer by this point :)

Woo Hoo! I'm an Early Reviewer again!

I got another email from LibraryThing today!

"Congratulations. You've snagged an Early Reviewers copy of Dragon Forge: The Draconic Prophecies, Book 2 by James Wyatt.You should get your copy in the mail shortly. The publishers ship the books directly--some are speedier than others, so please be patient!

We hope you find the time to read the book and review it on LibraryThing. You are free--indeed encouraged--to put your review on your blog, or wherever else you want, and to talk about it in the Early Reviewers group. I want to repeat that, although writing a review will help your chances of getting more books, the actual content of your review will not.

We hope you like the book! Let me know if you have any questions.

Best,
Abby"

Here is the link to Wizard's of the Coast's description of the book.

I really should post my reveiw of the first book I got which I have about 85% written :)
Watch for it this weekend!

Kitten update 4/17/08

Kitten update 4/17/08: All five kittens are doing fine.

After two days of KMR we have switched them to kitten kibble and kitten canned food.
I do not have any more pictures yet because these are some of the messiest kittens we have had.
They have food all over their faces (and tummies) (and tails) (and paws) and they would be too embarrassed to be seen in public yet.
They should shortly learn how to clean themselves and will be camera ready then.

One of the little grey and white boys has figured out how to climb up the side of the cage and get onto the second level, where he can sit and gaze down on his brothers. He then has to time it just right so he lands on one of them when he jumps off.


In other news I received by free book from the South Dakota Historical Society, which I read this weekend and then will be reviewing.

Woo Hoo! I'm an Early Reviewer!

When I logged into LibraryThing.com today I had a private message.

"Congratulations. You've snagged an Early Reviewers copy of Dance in a Buffalo Skull by Zitkala-Sa.You should get your copy in the mail shortly. The publishers ship the books directly--some are speedier than others, so be patient!

We hope you find the time to read the book and review it on LibraryThing. You are free--indeed encouraged--to put your review on your blog, or wherever else you want, and to talk about it in the Early Reviewers group. I want to repeat that, although writing a review will help your chances of getting more books, the actual content of your review will not.

We hope you like the book! Let me know if you have any questions.

Best,
Abby
private comment posted by ablachly at 10:23 pm (EST) on Apr 10, 200"

Every month or so publishers offer early review copies of books to Library Thing and you can request the one you would like.
I have put in my requests every month and was finally picked!

Here is the description from the ER list:
"Dance in a Buffalo Skull by Zitkala-Sa (South Dakota State Historical Society)

Dance in a Buffalo Skull is a tale of late-night frolics, danger, and survival on the prairie. Join tiny field mice for a great feast and dance inside an old buffalo skull. Out of the dark, two fiery eyes glide through the prairie grass, drawing closer to the mice who are oblivious in their merrymaking. What happens next reveals as much about the mice as about their unexpected guest.

This Prairie Tale recreates a world in miniature, with elements of classic fairy tales and traditional fables, and its messages still resonate today. A traditional American Indian story passed orally from generation to generation, it was translated in English and written down by Zitkala-Sa in 1901.
Contemporary Lakota artist S. D. Nelson has created vibrant pictures that add drama to the story. He fuses traditional Lakota Indian styles with modern interpretations to provide visual clues to ancient words.
"The art blends Lakota tradition and modern styles to match the tall tale and bring it to life."—The Midwest Book Review

"Nelson's illustrations add to the tension between the creeping wildcat and the celebrating mice."—School Library Journal

"The narrative tension builds deliciously . . . This tale would be perfect in a scary story time, told with the lights down low."—School Library Journal

"An enjoyable story faithful to the original legend."—The Midwest Book Review"

When I get the book I will post my review here as well as at Library Thing!

@pp1e eBook? Where are you?

I want an eBook reader!
I have been looking at the Sony Reader for over year now, saving all my change.

But I knew that Amazon was coming out with one so I was waiting.
Amazon has now released the Kindle except that I think that it is just ugly, like a miniature Apple IIe with the qwerty keybaord stuck on the bottom.

I had decided to go ahead and buy the Sony but I got an email from an unnamed source who had some info from another source that a certain large computer company named after a fruit was going to introducing their own version.
The annual MacWorld Expo (which I attended in San Fran in 1990 and 1993) is this week and so far I have not seen any mention of in the coverage.
Inside Mac TV has posted the Macworld 2008 Steve Jobs Apple Keynote Highlights but nothing there :(

So do I wait another 6 months and see what Apple will do?
Or get the Sony now and take advantage of the 100 free classic books they are offering through the end of January?
Or do I forget the whole thing and start saving for this?

Wowio.com Free Books • Free Minds

One of the only things I like better than buying books is Free Books!
I recently found a free legal online source for pdf books and comic books.



Wowio.com has a huge selection of books and you can download 3 a day.

They have everything from mysteries to textbooks to comedy to comic books to classics to travel to romance, etc. etc.

Several comic books series well worth downloading: Inverloch, Swords of the Swashbucklers, and The Dreamland Chronicles.

Recent books I downloaded include: Ancient Natural History: Histories of Nature, Soldier and Society in Roman Egypt: A Social History, The Songs of Robert Burns (originally $335.00!), The Early Works of Dr. Seuss - Volume 1, The Early Works of Dr. Seuss - Volume 2, The Land That Time Forgot - Three Book Special Edition by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

If you check out their site and find some book or series you find interesting please leave me a comment!

LibraryThing.com Part 2

I have books.
Lots of books.
Lots and Lots and Lots of books.
I checked and the only room in my house that does not have books in it is the dining room.
(Yes, there are books in both of the bathrooms.)
I have tried numerous ways of keeping track of what I have, from notebooks to index cards to spreadsheets to FileMaker databases.
And then I found LibraryThing.com

LibraryThing allows you to enter your books into their database using either the title or the ISBN.
They pull data from Amazon.com, the Library of Congress, Oxford University and over 200 more libraries around the world.
The British Library was just added on January 9th!
You can enter your own books manually if LibraryThing can't find a source for your particular book.
Every book can have "Tags" added to it like nonfiction, Poirot, not read, or anything else.
Once you have entered books, LibraryThing can compare your collection to everyone else's showing you how popular a book is or whose library is most similar to yours.
It has both a "Suggester" to find books you might like and an "Unsuggester" to find books that will probably not be in your library.
People have currently added over 22 million books into the system!

It's fun poking around the site because they keep adding new features.
Most owned book: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (26,381)
Most reviewed book: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (550 reviews)
There are authors who are staring to post their libraries on LibraryThing.
Even Thomas Jefferson, our third president has his library posted on LibraryThing!

I changed my LibraryThing sidebars so now you see 6 random books plus the last 6 books I entered.
(Can you tell I was bored in the hotel last night???)

LibraryThing.com Part 1

See that yellow box over there? ------>

That is a random selection of 5 books we own out of the 1300+ books I have entered into My Library at LibraryThing.com. I think this is about 25% of the books in our house.

Unfortunately I need to work some overtime tonight and can't explain anymore about LibraryThing today but I promise I will soon.