Half of what I say is meaningless...

[searchsoleil]

My life is incredibly screwed up right now. I don't even know how to conceive of how far in denial I am about some things, yet, at the same time, I can sense the part of my subconscious that is screaming in panic mode. Quite the interesting mix. Obviously, I am in the throes of some sort of lost boy complex, to which I say to myself, you are an utter imbecile.

I cannot keep up with the Intranets anymore. I don't know how this is possible, considering how I am skating through RL, but, then again, my definition of skating is probably harsher than others.

The point being, I am avoiding stuff and getting settled into a "NO, I SHALL NOT GROW UP" mind set and I cannot use the Internet for my escape route, as usual. Where do I turn? To the next best haven, of course!

Progress:

Books:

14 / 50 (28.0%)

Pages:

4,570 / 15,000 (30.5%)

What's Been Read:

The Passion of Artemisia: I have a great respect and admiration for Artemisia Gentileschi, and Susan Vreeland did a lot to make her story come alive. I am quite fond of the book, but would be fonder of it if the ending wasn't such a letdown. I know it was a fictionalized biography, I know the whole point of the book was to resolve Artemisia's lingering angst over her rape as a young woman, but that does not change the fact that if you write a novel, there should be a climax. Artemisia never got one and it left the end of the book feeling sort of dreary.
Tender is the Night: HOMG, FITZGERALD LOVE. To quote my own paper, "for the better portion of the novel, the imagery, eloquence and true psychological drama of Fitzgerald’s tale captivated and enthralled me to the point of incoherence." Really, there were probably a hundred lines that literally reduced me to spazz-tastic squee. I cannot express how much I loved that 95% of the book. The other 5% is reserved for the end of the book, which I thought was disappointing in its lack of emotional payoff. To quote my notes: "GAH. THERE WAS NO EMOTIONAL RESOLUTION. THERE WAS THE OPPOSITE OF EMOTIONAL RESOLUTION. THE END OF THIS BOOK WAS SOME SORT OF EMOTIONAL BLACK HOLE. OMG, ANTI-CLIMACTIC MELANCHOLY IS SO NOT WHAT I WANTED TOBE LEFT WITH AT THE END OF THIS ORDEAL."
Avalon High: Meg Cabot, goddess of my tween years (no doubt I would have done ritual sacrifices if it got the next Princess Diaries book out faster), does some pretty cool stuff in this book, I must admit. Basically, she takes the legend of King Arthur and sets it as a modern day reincarnation fantasy. Elaine is an awesomely incredulous heroine, her professor parents are hilarious, and WILL IS HOMG GORGEOUS. Seriously, he is like some perfect composite of Peter Pevensie and Harry Potter, aged to the status of 18 year-old Adonis, which means he is the man of my literary dreams and I love him without end. This was a re-read, by the by, but it was still great.
Teen Idol: Another Meg Cabot book. The great thing about Meg Cabot is that she always does everything to just the right degree. Her heroines are always a perfect mix of quirk and spunk, her leading men are always flawless yet human, and her stories are always full of fascinating mayhem. This one stands out brilliantly in the last category. It isn't my favorite book of hers, but I can't say I don't love it to pieces. Another re-read.
Heart of Darkness: For reasons mysterious, I actually really enjoyed this book as opposed to its other "HUMANITY IS HOPELESS, YOU SHOULD SLIT YOUR WRISTS NOW" compatriots. I think, perhaps, the fact that it was not little children going crazy and killing each other had something to do with it. Also, Marlow was a brilliant voice and the symbolism was quite fun to try to pick apart. Also, the absolutely incredible amount of homoerotic subtext between Marlow, the Rainbow Russian and Kurtz provided me with no end of amusement.
Pride and Prejudice: Ah, Mr. Darcy, I do love you so. I think the funniest thing about this book is that my hate for Lydia grows with each re-reading—not because she is a horrible person, but because she keeps Elizabeth and Darcy apart for such an UNBEARABLY LONG section of the book. I am utterly incapable of skimming, so I believe my hatred is justified.
Twilight: Ha, I just finished this and while I first thought Bella was a somewhat annoying heroine, she grew on me by the end. I will admit that I generally avoid vampire books like the bubonic plague, but I got a couple of very forceful recommendations and a friend who was more than willing to lend it to me. How fortunate, as it was quite charming. Edward and his family make the story shine. Now to pester said friend for New Moon!
Manga Batch #5: Menkui 2; Tramps Like Us 10; Dramacon 2; Trinity Blood 1; Prince of Tennis 15, 16; Full Moon 7 -- I read Menkui 2, finished the series online, and was rather shocked. Basically, it fell victim to a frequent indulgence of manga-kas: The Inexplicable And/Or Occult Plot Development. W Juliet gets away with it because it does more realistic stuff on the whole and Emma gets away with it because it is supposed to be a fairytale of sorts. I was looking forward to Menkui being a straightforwardly cute Sho-ai and that is not what I got. In fact, the only really satisfying chapter in the last two volumes was the side story about Chikage's younger brother. I'm really disappointed in this series. Tramps Like Us just keeps getting better though. Even though a part of me knows that Sumire and Momo will end up together, another part of me is in agony every volume thinking how unspeakably horrible it would be if they didn't. Regarding Dramacon: HOMG UNENDING LOVE. Trinity Blood is another of those few exceptions to the vampire rule, but only because Abel is part Vash and part Remus and all woobie love. Also, the art is ajkalfhdsg pretty. Prince of Tennis, amazingly, still has yet to get old. I love this series, but please to be shutting up about how much I need to watch the anime. If I cannot be arsed, I cannot be arsed. OMG FULL MOON ENDED AND I CRIED BUCKETS. I have never cried at a manga before. Novel, check, movie, check, anime, check, manga, this was the first AND IT WAS ALL EICHI'S FAULT. I was doing fine until the last ten pages, thinking "Hey, I can get out of this unscathed!" and then he had to go and SMILE and I WAS CRYING LIKE A CHILD. I JUST LOOKED AT IT AGAIN AND TEARS HAVE SPRUNG TO MY EYES, GODDAMNIT.