It’s a new year, and a new set of lists! I’m going to continue my monthly culture consumption, and I’m adding a bit of commentary to a few of the categories. Not much, nothing like my old reviews, but they’re better than nothing! If you want me to talk further, or if I don’t talk about something you’re really interested in, just comment and let me know.
CULTURE CONSUMPTION: March 2014
Books
My goal for 2014 is essentially one book a week. In March, I totally failed this goal. In my defense, there’s been plenty of other things clamoring for my attention, but still.
12) Curties & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger: I enjoyed the previous installment to this series quite a bit, and finally settled down to read this sequel, which was a lot of fun. One of the things reading these prequel novels does is make me want to re-read the Parasol Protectorate series to even more fully enjoy all the Easter Eggs found in these YA novels. But some of the best Easter Eggs don’t need refreshing, as Carriger brings back Lord Akeldama, which was quite fun. (YA/Steampunk)
13) Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: I enjoyed Fangirl quite a bit, and I’d heard such rave reviews for Eleanor & Park that I had to snatch it up when it went on sale for my Kindle. I flew through the thing when I first started, but once life got in the way and kept me from picking up my Kindle as often as I’d like, I wasn’t engaged in quite the same way. I don’t think that’s a fault of the book so much as it is a commentary on the state of my mind, but I was engaged more at the beginning than I was the end, though the entire book was an utterly engaging read no matter when I picked it up. The ending was a wee bit more ambiguous than I’d like, but overall, it was a very enjoyable read. (YA)
Short Fiction
None this month. I know, shame on me….
Comics
Graphic novels first:
None. And I’m officially behind on graphic novels I need to read….
Individual Issues:
So I’ve got a ginormous pile of comics to read thanks to my husband spend a single Sunday going through EVERYTHING, and I’ve just not had the time or proper focus to really tackle it. But I did get to read some. Black Widow continues to be a fave, but I’m not wholly on board with Loki: Agent of Asgard and the verdict is still out on Captain Marvel, which was the first time I’ve been able to grab one of her titles.
Batgirl #29
Black Widow #4
Captain Marvel #1
Fatale #20
FBP #7
Jupiter’s Legacy #4
Loki: Agent of Asgard #2
Magneto #1
Rover Red Charlie #4
Star Wars #14
Star Wars: Legacy #12
The Wake #6
The Walking Dead #122
The Walking Dead #123
Trillium #6
Trillium #7
Wonder Woman #28
Movies
In Theaters:
Nothing in March. There’s movies I wanted to see, but none I had the time for.
At home:
Not much in March. American Hustle was quite enjoyable, and Twenty Feet from Stardom definitely deserved its Oscar.
American Hustle
The Hangover III
Twenty Feet from Stardom
Television Shows
It’s the time of year that shows are starting to wrap up, so for the next few months, expect to see quite a few of these:
Almost Human, Season 1: despite episodes airing out of order, I was quite engaged with this show, if only for the dynamic between Detective John Kennex (Karl Urban) and his android Dorian (Michael Ealy). Loved, loved, loved the dynamic between those two. The world-building was also quite interesting, and I loved the futuristic yet gritty sheen that was the show’s trademark. The season (series?) ended on an up moment, not so much a cliffhanger, though previous episodes introduced plot elements that obviously have not had time to develop, which will get time to develop if the show gets picked up for a second season. I hope it does, but I’m not holding my breath. Regardless of whether or not it gets a pick-up, though, it’s worth watching.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 1: what a delightful comedy. It never tweaked my radar initially because I wasn’t interested in an Andy Samberg-fronted comedy. But I kept hearing so many good things that the husband and I marathoned it on Hulu Plus during the holidays, and we’ve been hooked since. I can honestly say it’s become one of my favorite comedies, not just because it’s good-hearted, but because it’s funny in unexpected ways and because the characters are actually competent, and that’s where the humor happens. Loved, loved, loved this show, and I can’t wait for season two.
That’s it from me! Also, feel free to share whatever 2014 stats you’ve got! How many books? How many movies? What were your favorites? Lay them on me!
Cheers!
Calico Writes 
So this month I read:
1. The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin. 5 stars. A letter written by James Baldwin, who is black, to his nephew. It is a discussion of race and racism in America. Written in the 1960s but very relevant to today. An excellent book.
2. Winter’s Tale, by Mark Helprin. 4.5 stars. Read for my local book club. An ambitious, wonderful door-stopper of a book. It took me over two weeks to read this, but I was grateful to my book club for getting me to do it. Nobody in my book club managed to finish this before the book club meeting. I was the furthest at 80 % done. 🙂
3. Deep Secret, by Diana Wynne Jones. 4 stars. For Mark Reads. I had not previously read any Diana Wynne Jones and enjoyed this very much.
4. Some of the Best From Tor.com. 2013 edition. 4 stars. I’ve been working through this for 3-4 months now and finally finished it. Lots of good stuff in it.
5. The Color of Magic, by Terry Pratchett. 3 stars. For Mark Reads. I basically liked this, but remain ambivalent about Terry Pratchett. Mark Reads is going to be doing all 40 Discworld novels and I will be reading along. I’ve been told the books get better as they go along. I’ll report back.
6. Laura’s Wolf, by Lia Silver. 4 stars. This is a self-published paranormal romance, which I would not normally read, but Lia Silver is a pseudonym for an established writer that I follow on LJ and whose writing I trust. I enjoyed this book very much.
7. Dragon Brother and Other Stories, by Marissa Lingen. 4 stars. Short stories aimed at an 8-12 year old audience. I read it because I follow the author on LJ. I was clearly not the target audience, but I enjoyed the stories.
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I “consumed” 15 books in March. The more depressed I get, the more I escape into books, and March has not been very kind to me. On the plus side, hey, 15 books! 🙂
My favorite reads (or listens, as the case might be) were “Daughter of Smoke & Bone” and “Days of Blood & Starlight” by Laini Taylor, and “Saga: vol. 3” by Bryan K. Vaughn.
Also very good: “Night Broken” by Patricia Briggs and “Concealed in Death” by J.D. Robb.
I went on a Dennis Lehane listening spree, too – first five Kenzie/Gennaro book, plus “Shutter Island”.
And then there were 3 DNFs: “Freedom” by Jonathan Franzen (ended up really hating the characters, and the guy who read the audio-book annoyed me, too), “Steam & Sorcery” by Cindy Spencer Pape (could not get into the writing style), and “All These Things I’ve Done” by Gabrielle Zevin (the world was not believable, and the audio-book narrator kept butchering Russian words).
Oh, and my husband and I watched and enjoyed season 4 of “Archer”, since it’s finally on Netflix 🙂
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The hubby and I have just started Season 4 of ARCHER. Much fun. 🙂
I wasn’t big on ALL THESE THINGS I’VE DONE when I read it. Never had any urge to read the sequels either.
Glad you had a good reading month, despite what inspired it.
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I want to read A WINTER’S TALE. One of these days….. so many things to read! I’ve got the Tor.com anthologies on my Kindle too.
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