bookishwench | General 2014 thoughts and book list

Yeah, I know, the new year is now nearly a week old, but I wanted to process some of the last year.

In 2014, my health did get better. I started off fairly terrified, but the prednisone did work pretty well. I had to juggle side effects and weird vitamins and blood tests and EMGs and an MRI and got cataracts, but overall I'm doing decently now. I'm not 100% for a regular person, but I'm pretty close to what I think is probably going to be 100% for me. Even that's an adjustment, but I'll definitely take it.

Tinkerbell died in July, of course, which was deeply sad, particularly since it was so abrupt. After a few months, we adopted Captain Hook and Chaka (now Crookshanks), and they're wonderful friends. Of course nothing will ever replace Tink, but the Captain and Crooky make it a lot less lonely around here.

I got the chance to teach a non-composition literature course in 2014, which was fun (I'll be repeating that next semester as well). Connected to that, I read a heck of a lot more than I have for a while, with Goodreads totaling it at 119 books (12,993 pages). I also wrote a bit more than I have in the preceding 2 years, actually completed a chapter of Shadowed Lives, and wrote Yuletide treats. So that went pretty well.

I turned 40, which is better than the alternative.

I applied for a full position at my college and was turned down without even an interview. While that was both depressing and made me angry, it also put a few things in perspective so far as what I can expect out of the upper echelons at the other campus, which actually suggests that maybe it was a good thing I didn't get the job there. I did get very nice letters of recommendation for people who were quite highly regarded (a teacher of 35 years, a doctor I worked on a education project with, the national head of a charity, the director of a library, etc.), so that did make me feel a bit better.

I finished paying off my car, and I used that savings in part to upgrade to a smart phone since I was starting to need more options just for my job (for example, if there's an emergency like a fire or a closed road on campus, that's sent out via text to staff, which I really didn't have).

I finally learned all the kana in Japanese, and I now know about 70 kanji as well, so that's moving along okay.

I actually got to meet one of the Snert Slayers I've known for 14+ years, my friend Mina who came into town for a couple days. I was really happy about that.

I started lectoring at church and was on the ballot for the parish council. I didn't get that (which is decided via picking out of a hat), but I have been asked to join the worship commission. Still debating that one.

I taught a college seminar for seniors on fairy tales, and they really seemed to enjoy it. I've been invited back for the next session as well, so I'm looking forward to that (a lot of work, and no actual money, but fun).

So, even though there were some sad, bad, or scary things in 2014, the overall outcomes actually were pretty good. That's a good thing.

So, having mentioned the books I read, I'm going to give a quick top ten list of the best books I read in 2014

1. Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones - Exhaustive, interesting, balanced, and a wonderful look at an imperfect man who lived a wonderful life. While Jim Henson: The Works remains my favorite on the topic since it focuses so much on the different projects he accomplished, this volume almost completes it, dealing more with his life. Jones did excellent research here.

2. Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidwell - This was one of the poetry selections I went through for the children's lit class, and it's delightful. One side has a poem on some aspect of nature at night (owls, bats, that sort of thing) that is really beautifully written, and the other side deals with the science behind what shows up in the poem, like echolocation or phases of the moon. It was seriously neat.

3. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selnick - Wonderful, stunning, compelling... I loved this book, part graphic novel, part traditional book. I basically want to read everything else this writer has done now.

4. Scribble by Deborah Freedman - Again, this is a kids' book that I used in my seminar, but it's freaking adorable. Two sisters argue over whose drawings are better, and the drawings come to life and act out their own version of Sleeping Beauty, complete with a kitty kissing the princess awake.

5. Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery by Russell Freedman - Just a darn good basic bio of a truly fascinating person. Freedman does loads of biographies at all levels, from children's books to adults (this was in the adult section of the library), and from what I've seen, he does a great job practically every time.

6. Cinderella by K. Y. Craft - Yes, another from the seminar, but I'm really including it for one reason: the illustrations are absolutely stunning. This is one of the most beautiful picture books I have ever seen. It practically glows.

7. Briar Rose by Jane Yolen - Based on the Sleeping Beauty story, but this is not a children's book. I've seen it put in YA, but I'm not really sure why since it could easily be an adult book. A granddaughter goes looking for the truth behind her grandmother's strange story of being Briar Rose. The reader finds out it is both true and horrific. The book does have flaws, but it reads pretty well.

8. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin - Somehow I had never read this book, part mystery, part comedy, part something I can't even define, but it was a lot of fun.

9. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka - Again, this is one I had never read before, but I'm glad I did. Poor Gregor. There really isn't much hope in this, but it's well written.

10. The Stuff of Life: A Graphic Guide to Genetics and DNA by Mark Schultz - This one was suggested for high school students interested in science by the children's lit textbook. I read it and was stunned at how clearly, creatively, and completely the entire book managed to be in regards to what DNA is, how it works, how it was gradually discovered, and all kinds of information. It IS a heavy read, even being a "comic book," but if you can get through it, you learn a lot.