The Lemming Returns…

Okay, so I haven’t updated this blog since early July last year. I’m not even going to try to explain that. ^_^; Suffice to say, I haven’t blogged, and now I’m back.

With changes!!! ^_^

Starting today, this blog is no longer dedicated just to my various interactions with and impressions of written and spoken word. That will still be a big part of the blog (especially the monthly roundups). Not so much the reviews for every single thing I touch. Probably not even the roundup part for the drama cds and manga… (Though I may still throw in the occasional review of those.)

But in addition to the book/manga/drama cd stuff, there will now be… YARN!! I returned to crocheting (which I used to do when I was little, like age in the single digits little) last fall, and I haven’t stopped since. I’ve gotten myself quite the obsession going, actually. I’ve also tried twice to teach myself to knit… and actually succeeded this last time! So, I guess I’m saying that the newly renamed “The Lemming’s Obsessions” will be a mixture of media and yarn craft.

And fangirl. Lots and lots of fangirl. Because no matter what I’m doing, I’m always a fangirl at heart. ^_^

That said, there won’t be any new content tonight (or should that be early this morning?). Not enough brain. But look for my first yarny posts in the near, near future. And maybe even some rambling about how I joined the DMG as a translator (OMG, real experience!!) and have a September 30th deadline for my first translation. ^_^;

Coming Up – July 2010

Still summer, still warm. And my laptop is starting to die. But I’m also playing a lot of games, so I think it might end up all evening out. Maybe. I’m not sure. But here’s what I have planned at the moment.

My Reading and Listening – June 2010

It’s July, and that means it’s time to look back at June. In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m taking a little break in writing reviews and everything at the moment. Probably not the greatest thing to do with such a young blog, but I’m still trying to get my brain settled in a good schedule for posting updates and such.  ^_^; But I’m getting an idea of the kind of schedule my brain will let me go with, so I think I might start back up on reviews in the near future. I hope. (Probably not on everything, and probably a lot of minis, but still, back.)

Of course, even though I stopped reviewing, I didn’t stop reading and listening, so I do, in fact, have a list to put up for June that consists of more than just the single book I’ve reviewed since I put up my May roundup and June preview. ^_^;

To start off, the current situation: Still haven’t gotten anywhere on Belgarath the Sorcerer (never caught up on both podcasts and drama cds ^_^;; ). My Japanese book is Hanazono wo Tooku Hanarete by Suzuki Ami, which is the fifth book in the Hanafurirou series. I started that earlier today, but it shouldn’t go too slowly, because I’ve already listened to the drama cd version. (For the record, I’m actually translating this series over on my livejournal. I’m near the beginning of the second book, but it’s going slow for much the same reason my reviews are going slow. ^_^; ) My "main" book at the moment is The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, which I’m reading for the Sword and Laser book club. I’m about 40% done with that, if I remember correctly. And finally, I’m also reading Danse Macabre by Laurell K. Hamilton… when I’m in the mood for urban fantasy and sex. ^_^;; I forget exactly how far I am – probably about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way done.

That said, 10 books for June. (Cold Fever almost made it, but I finished it on July 1st.) Not so good for the summer (for me), but I’ve been playing a lot of video games instead of reading. ^_^;

Taking a Break…

Okay, so I don’t know how many people are actually coming back here and all, but maybe there are some of you out there… But for those of you who do care, I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’ve been more than a little inactive recently. And, unfortunately, that’s going to continue for a little longer.

I’ve decided to make it official that I’m going to continue with this break for at least the rest of the month, possibly longer. I’m still reading and listening to drama cds, but my life is kinda hectic at the moment, and I just haven’t felt like writing up reviews lately. Hopefully a little more of a break will get my motivation back on track.

That said, I do have the latest tankoubon from my favorite mangaka (Mishima Kazuhiko) to read, and I may end up reviewing that once I read it, even if I’m still on my break. Because Mishima deserves it. ^_^_v

Bitter Seeds

title: Bitter Seeds

author: Ian Tregillis

finished: June 4, 2010

my rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

why?: Because Sword and Laser decided to read it (and I actually felt interested in it).

Tags: 4.5 stars, author: Ian Tregillis

Coming Up – June 2010

It’s summer, which means it’s getting warm. (I’ve lived in Wisconsin since I was 4 1/2, so warm weather and I just don’t get along very well…) And when it gets warm, I want to spend much less time on my laptop, because it makes life so much warmer. …I read instead. (Or game, but that doesn’t figure in as much here.) So, unless things go really oddly, I’ll probably be reading much more in the coming months. I hope.

That said, here is what I have coming up in June (planned) in terms of books and drama cds.

My Reading and Listening – May 2010

Welcome to June. Yeah, I’m a couple of days late, but oh well… ^_^; Time to wrap up May.

Current situation is… still at the same point in Belgarath the Sorcerer. But, I’m blowing through drama cds at the moment (listening to them while I game, in the non-story parts), so I might get to some audiobook listening this month. ^_^; Maybe. Not working on any Japanese books at the moment, but I plan on starting Cold Fever ASAP, since I have the drama cd waiting for me. And my "main" book is Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis. I’m about halfway through, and I think I’ll be done either tonight or sometime tomorrow. (And then I can listen to the latest Sword and Laser podcast, which is the wrap up for this book. ^_^;; )

12 books total for May. Not bad, but it’s summer now, which means I get warm when using my laptop, so I’ll probably be reading even more now.

The Ask and the Answer -mini-

title: The Ask and the Answer

author: Patrick Ness

series: Chaos Walking #2

finished: May 23, 2010

my rating: 4 of 5 stars

why?: I enjoyed the first book.

Following directly after the cliffhanger ending to The Knife of Never Letting Go, this book sees Todd and Viola in the hands of Mayor Prentiss (or rather, President Prentiss, as he has declared himself). The two are held separate, and Todd is forced to learn the Mayor’s ways, even as Viola finds herself among a group of defiant women. And then the bombs start… as the Answer (a group that seems to be best described as terrorist) starts its own struggle against Mayor Prentiss’s new order.

Like the first book, this is a quick and brutal read. It adds a definite shade of gray to the story that wasn’t there in the first one, with the main opposition to Prentiss and his men being a terrorist organization… and some bad choices on all parts. The style of the first book (deliberately misspelled words and bad grammar) is back, though it’s offset by the addition of Viola’s point of view (because Viola is at least literate… ^_^; ), and both styles still fit with the immediacy of the story. And yeah, another cliffhanger.

Tags: 4 stars, author: Patrick Ness

Curse of the Mistwraith

title: Curse of the Mistwraith

author: Janny Wurts

series: Wars of Light and Shadow #1

finished: May 23, 2010

my rating: 4 of 5 stars

why?: Ships of Merior, the second book in this series, was chosen by the Fantasy Book Club as one of the June reads. I figured I should probably read the first book before that. ^_^

Tags: 4 stars, author: Janny Wurts

明日はマのつく風が吹く! -mini-

title: 明日はマのつく風が吹く! (Ashita wa Ma no Tsuku Kaze ga Fuku!

author: 喬林知 (Takabayashi Tomo)

finished: May 15, 2010

my rating: 4 of 5 stars

why?: I’ve been in love with this series (of which this is book #4) since I first saw the anime based on it.

To start off, let me repeat that this is the fourth book in a series, so it’s probably best to keep that in mind here. This book in particular is not the best choice of a place to pick up the series, since it follows a little more strongly from the previous book than some of the others. And, as far as I know, this book is not available in English. I may be mistaken, but I believe the novels (which came first) are not translated, though both the anime and the manga based off them are. That said, on to my mini review. ^_^

Yuuri has been stranded in Shinmakoku for several months since his unfortunate failure to return to his home world (otherwise known as modern-day Japan). He’s getting used to it, though he does miss his family… and baseball. Then one day a human girl shows up claiming to be his illegitimate child, only to make an assassination attempt as soon as he agrees to see her (even though he knows very well that there’s no way he, at age 15, could possibly have a child). This leads to a hot springs trip (to recover from his slight injuries) that turns into much more than just that.

As I stated earlier, I’ve been in love with this series since I saw the first episodes of the anime. It’s light and fun… and the books are easy enough language-wise that I can read them without resorting to my dictionary more than once or twice every several pages. ^_^; It’s got just the right blend of fantasy and quirkiness to keep me interested even though I’ve already been exposed to the actual story several times now. And I care about the characters, a lot. ^_^

Tags: 4 stars, author: Takabayashi Tomo