Tuesday, January 1, 2019

2018 Book Review and 2019 Plans

As is my habit, I pick out some books each year to read so I can keep whittling down my shelf of shame. It's fun to have a challenge and I try not to pick too many books or else I can't do any spontaneous reading. Here's the list of my planned books from last year, with some bolded notes for unfinished books:

Fiction
  • The Christus Experiment by Rod Bennett--a time travel novel where the travelers plan to visit and possibly kidnap Jesus Christ! Reviewed here.
  • The Bradbury Chronicles edited by William F. Nolan and Martin H. Greenberg--an anthology of stories written by sci fi and fantasy writers inspired by and in honor of Ray Bradbury. Reviewed here.
  • After the King edited by Martin H. Greenberg--an anthology of stories written by sci fi and fantasy writers inspired by and in honor of J. R. R. Tolkien. Reviewed here.
  • Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset--I found this classic at the church rummage sale for a dollar. I've been meaning to read it for a while, and at 1100+ pages I will be reading it for a while.  I only started this book in December, so no review but it will go on the new list!
Science
  • Seven Ideas that Shook the Universe by Nathan Spielberg and Bryon D. Anderson--this has been sitting on the shelf for a while. Reviewed here.
  • Christianity and Extraterrestrials? by Marie I. George--another long resident of the bookshelf that bridges nicely into the next category. Reviewed here.
Faith
  • Spiritual Excellence: How to Make Progress in Prayer and Love by Alban Goodier, S.J.--it's got to be helpful, right? Reviewed here
  • Essays of a Catholic by Hilaire Belloc--Belloc was back in the day with Chesterton, so this should be really good. Reviewed here.
  • A History of the Church in 100 Objects by Mike Aquilina and Grace Aquilina--highly recommended by Happy Catholic.  Reviewed here.
  • Crossing the Goal: A Saint Goes Marching On by Danny Amramowicz--football and faith? Reviewed here.
  • Saint Joseph: Shadow of the Father by Andrew Doze--my patron saint, so this is obvious. Reviewed here.
  • The Life and Times of Fray Junipero Serra by Msgr. Francis J. Weber--Reviewed here and tied to the next book...
  • Saint Junipero Serra's Camino by Stephen J. Binz--also recommended by Happy Catholic! Reviewed here.
Board Games
  • Dice Games Properly Explained by Reiner Knizia--Knizia has a doctorate in mathematics and has published over thirty board games. Reviewed here.
  • GameTek by Geoff Englestein--From the Dice Tower podcast, a bunch of essays on gaming with a scientific bent. Reviewed here.
 Other Stuff
  • Your Child's Writing Life: How to Inspire Confidence, Creativity, and Skill at Every Age by Pam Allyn--my kids are getting interested in writing, so this should be good. Reviewed here.
  • The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer. Reviewed here.
  • News from Tartary by Peter Fleming--brother of Ian Fleming (creator of James Bond) who had a life just like his brother's superspy hero. Whoops, didn't get to this one. Maybe in a future year.
  • Cabinet of Curiosities: My Notebooks, Collections, and Other Obsessions by Guillermo del Toro and Marc Scott Zicree--a lot of the chapters are based on movies, so I will probably read a chapter and watch a movie. Reviewed here.
  • Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence--might as well get credit for it! Reviewed here.
Only two misses isn't too bad, especially considering a bunch of other books I read this year.

I also read graphic novels and manga (basically, graphic novels from Japan). Here's last year's graphic novel challenge list:
  1. Fairy Tail Volume 17--reviewed here.
  2. Superman: Brainiac--reviewed here.
  3. Run for It--reviewed here
  4. Fairy Tail Volume 18--reviewed here.
  5. Asterix and the Golden Sickle--reviewed here.
  6. The Walking Dead Vol. 28--reviewed here.
  7. Asterix at the Olympic Games--reviewed here.
  8. Fairy Tail Volume 19--reviewed here
  9. Black Panther Prelude--reviewed here.
  10. Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea--reviewed here.
  11. Runaways Volume 2--reviewed here.
  12. Fairy Tail Volume 20--reviewed here.
  13. Castle in the Stars--reviewed here.
  14. Black Panther: The Complete Collection Vol. 1--reviewed here.
  15. Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. 1954--reviewed here.
  16. Captain America: Winter Soldier--reviewed here.
  17. Asterix and the Chieftain's Shield--reviewed here.
  18. The Infinity Gauntlet--reviewed here.
  19. She-Hulk Volume 1--reviewed here.
  20. Attack on Titan Volume 1--reviewed here.
  21. The Walking Dead Volume 29--reviewed here
  22. Wires and Nerve Volume 2--reviewed here.
  23. Black Hammer Volume 1--reviewed here.
  24. Full Metal Alchemist Volume 1--reviewed here.
  25. Batman: His Greatest Adventures--reviewed here.
  26. Rise of the Black Flame--reviewed here.
  27. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 2--reviewed here.
  28. Monet: Itinerant of Light--reviewed here
  29. Hellboy in Hell Volume 1--reviewed here.
  30. Asterix the Gaul--reviewed here
  31. Dept. H Volume 1--reviewed here
  32. Hellboy in Hell Volume 2--reviewed here.
  33. Doctor Radar--reviewed here.
  34. Trinity--reviewed here.
  35. Ant-Man: Astonishing Origins--reviewed here.
  36. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 3--reviewed here.
  37. Hellboy Omnibus Volume 1--reviewed here.
  38. The Comic Book Story of Baseball--reviewed here.
  39. Spill Zone Volume 2-reviewed here.
  40. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 4--reviewed here.
  41. Asterix and Obelix's Birthday--reviewed here.
  42. Ant-Man/Giant Mant Growing Pains--reviewed here.
  43. DC Comics Bombshells Volume 1--reviewed here.
  44. Delilah Dirk and the Pillars of Hercules--reviewed here.
  45. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 5--reviewed here.
  46. Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. 1955--reviewed here.
  47. The Mighty Captain Marvel Volume 3--reviewed here.
  48. Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant--reviewed here.
  49. Castle in the Stars Book Two--reviewed here
  50. Wolverine--reviewed here.
  51. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 6--reviewed here.
  52. Delilah Dirk and the King's Shilling--reviewed here.
  53. Amulet Book Eight--reviewed here.
  54. Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Lafayette!--reviewed here.
  55. My Hero Academia Volume 1--review here.
  56. The Walking Dead Volume 30--review here.
  57. Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 7--reviewed here.
  58. Asterix and the Secret Weapon--reviewed here.
  59. Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Raid of No Return--reviewed here.

Here's next year's plans:

Fiction
  • Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset--Something to finish up from last year.
  • The Fall of Gondolin by J. R. R. Tolkien--Another "edited together by his son" work, it should be interesting.
  • The History of Rasselas Prince of Abyssinia by Samuel Johnson--Sitting on the shelf of shame for too long.
  • The Adventures of Robin Hood by Roger Lancelyn Green--This is a leftover from our time in England.
  • English Fairy Tales and Legends by Rosalind Kerven--More leftovers that should be fun.

History
  • The Medieval Myths by Norma Lorre Goodrich--One of the included myths is Beowulf, which I am interested in revisiting.
  • Visiting the Past by Gillian Hovell--A book for amateur archeologists!
  • The Anglo-Saxon World by Kevin Crossley-Holland--Yes, yet more leftovers from England.
  • Ellington at the White House 1969 by Edward Allan Faine--Jazz and politics, should they mix? In 1969 the occupant of the White House was...Richard Nixon! Nixon and Ellington sound like a weird combination. 

Theology
  • Showings by Julian of Norwich--After reading Medieval Women Mystics, I added this to my wish list and got a copy!
  • Humility Rules by J. Augustine Wetta--Bragging about humility has got to be interesting, right?
  • Means to Message by Stanley Jaki--Scientist, priest, and theologian Jaki wrote a bunch of essays on truth.
  • St. Thomas Aquinas by Ralph McInerny--Most famous for the Father Dowling Mysteries, McInerny was an astute medieval philosopher, so this is more theology than biography, I suspect.
  • The Right to be Wrong by Kevin Hasson--Another paradoxical title!
  • Psychology and Religion by Carl Jung--Maybe not theology, but I didn't want to leave Jung hanging all by himself.

Fun Stuff
  • The Geek Dad Book for Aspiring Mad Scientists by Ken Denmead
  • The Bluffer's Guide to Beer by Jonathan Goodall

I am planning on the graphic novels challenge again. Attack on Titan is much better as a TV show than a manga, so I switched to My Hero Academia and Fullmetal Alchemist, both of which are extremely popular (and thus readily available from the local library!). I'll probably re-read some Hellboy in anticipation of the movie.

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