Island of the Lone Sane Thought

Since there are so many voracious readers on my flist, I thought I might dust off one of my old entries about my favorite books. I've completely revised and updated it, and it got a little long so I'm breaking it up into smaller entries.

( Classics I love )

So I'm back now, happy, happy, joy, joy.

The company (owned by my dear friends) in WI has decided to downsize a little next year. We did well at both shows, but one show (the one I ran) is fifteen days long, and we've decided to narrow it down to just one, which is five or six days long. So next year we'll be home earlier. Yippee!

( Anyway, more babbling. )

Next...the pictures.

There is a library that holds used book sales twice a year.

The sales are so great that many used book vendors show up on the preview night and push you out of the way so that they can load their carts up with books. It's pretty crazy.

In the basement they have an "old book" set of shelves, which I always check through. This sale I didn't go on preview night, because my sister had the passes, so I had to go today instead, and they've been picked over already. But I did find some interesting books.

I love certain types of books, like turn of the century atlases and dictionaries and collections of Shakespeare's works.

Thing is, there were a few books there that were just begging for good homes, so I've purchased them. But I don't want them for myself. So here's the deal: I am posting pictures of three books that are fairly interesting. Two of them might already have a home (I think one will be for junediamanti if she wants, and the other my sister might want). So comment if you're interested in any of the first three, and if June or my sister doesn't take them, then I will send them to you, no charge.

The rest of them I'm just showing so that you can squee with me. ;)

( Here are pics of the books (eight pics total) )

I love bookstores. I worked at a Waldenhell for several years, and it was wonderful to be introduced to the world of bookselling. Later I ended up working at an independent bookstore, where I still go in from time to time for a shift or two.

Bought some lovely, lovely books last night.

"Bound for Glory: America in Color, 1939-43" by Paul Hendrickson. Oh, it is lovely beyond belief. The early years of World War II, the end of the Depression, IN COLOR. You have to see it to believe it. Those years are so indelibly imprinted in my head in black and white that they seem like they happened in black and white. When you see Depression-era migrant workers and diners in color, it is astonishing. It is an unbelievable shift in perception. I love this book.

Bought "Woe Is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English" by Patricia T O'Conner. Yes, I have read "Eats, Shoots, and Leaves", but for some reason that wasn't meaty enough. It was a bit too flippant and dry. I really want more. It didn't go into enough history, or enough humor. It kind of straddled the line and was unsatisfying. I looked through a little of Woe and it looks much more up my alley. After I finish it I'll know for certain.

"Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2004" Can't live without Ebert. Enough said.

And for my "popcorn" tastes..."High Score! the illustrated history of video games, 2nd Edition". by Rusel Demaria & Johnny L Wilson. I used to work in a video game rental store, and I was the proud recipient of a TI 99 4A when I was a little girl, so my love of video games runs deep. This book is exhaustive, and covers all the major players, Broderbund, EA, LucasArts, etc. I love it to death. I own so many of the old (and new) systems...though fanfic has kind of eclipsed my crazy video game obsession.

Interesting topic, though, video games.

Favorite "old school" games, and system they were released on: Phantasy Star, on the Sega Master System. Oh, did I love that game. And I ended up with my Worst Ever RPG Mistake on that system. I needed money to buy the hovercraft. If you've ever played the game you know how incredibly challenging it is, and how many hours it takes to raise money. Well, I played for eight hours straight one day, got enough for the hovercraft, and was returning to town to save. Unfortunately, I was running low on supplies. Fortunately, I only had two more steps to take to get out of the dungeon and into town. The chances were low for an encounter. Of course, I have miserable luck, so I got into an encounter on the second step, and had no healing stuff. For the first time ever in the game, I attempted to run, which didn't work. And because I did, I missed a chance to do damage, and ended up dying from this stupid, low level encounter. Eight hours wasted. I was in shock.
Other faves? Phantasy Star II and IV on the Sega Genesis. II was the first RPG I'd ever played. Love at first sight. IV kicked butt. Also loved Arcana for the SNES, and the Final Fantasy series (of course!) for NES and SNES. Secret of Mana for the SNES. Legend of Zelda for NES. Mystic Defender for the Sega Genesis.

"Next Generation" Games: Final Fantasy VII for PS. Ocarina of Time (Zelda)...was that for N64? Can't remember. Oh, Xenosaga is one of the most awesome games of all time. Loved that game.

And Skies of Arcadia...for Dreamcast/PS2...oh, magnificent, fabulous, more fun than anything. So inventive, so wonderful!! The replay factor is surprisingly high. It is just a blast. Truly. I love it to death. I can't wait for the sequel.

What next? I want to play Fable, which means I'll have to complete the triumvirate and purchase an Xbox. I'm not really into the online thing, so hopefully FF XII will be a traditional one-person RPG.

Check out the new icon. A pic I took earlier this year. The only thing I had on the computer to use at this moment. I'll try to find better ones.