Carolyn Nicita

2010 read/watched/heard

As an introduction–People read for different things.  Some people read for adrenaline.  They like the rush.  I like this in metered doses, but not to the exclusion of everything else.

I read for dopamine.  I like a sense of wonder, a peek at the divine, insight, artistic excellence, some new perspective to chew on.  I especially like humor: the “aha!” type of humor.

I also read for norepinephrine.  I get this when the hero feels that life is worth living and he/she rises to the challenge.

And I enjoy the serotonin.  Yes, that means the happy ending, the satisfying conclusion, and all the bits tying together at the end.

Books I’ve Read in 2010

­The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Excellent retelling of The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling.  Read it.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling.

I reread this to study the way Ms. Rowling uses description.

Books I got partway through…

The Hidden Hand, or Capistola the Madcap.

I found this lying around my mom’s house; one of the college students renting a room had been assigned this for a 19th Century Women’s Literature class.  I could tolerate the melodrama but not the complete disregard for characterization.

Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz.

I have to take adrenaline books in small doses; otherwise, I feel as if I’ve drunk a Red Bull just before bedtime.

I think Mr. Koontz approached writing this book as an exercise in foreshadowing.  I’m certain that next time I read it, I’ll learn loads about creating anticipation and dread for my readers.  This time, however, I’m too busy anticipating and dreading.

Sink Trap by Christy Evans.  I think I’ll get a copy for my mother-in-law as well, who’s a sweet person and an avid reader.

Unseen Academicals (a partial read on the Little, Brown publisher’s  site.  I must acquire the book and read the rest.  Usual Pratchett, meaning, of course, unusually good.

Cesar’s Way (bought the audiobook for a dog owner and listened to part of it with her)

T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton

This is a cozy mystery which would appeal to middle-aged women living conventional lives.  Hmm, guess that’s why I couldn’t finish it.  Excellent character development, though.

I attended Kris Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith’s Master Class last year.   I suspect you can get a great portrait of Dean by reading Kris’s The Perfect Man.  I also suspect that you can get a pretty good view of Kris from reading All Eve’s Hallow’s.   It’s just a suspicion I have, mind you.

I’m slowly chewing through Terry Pratchett’s Discworld books.

Soul Music and Maskerade have helped me acquire some ideas on how to describe music with words yet still give a reader an emotional impact.

Movies

Avatar — James Cameron

IMAX 3D.  Niiice.

Up — (Andrew Stanton)

The Iron Giant — Brad Bird

Movies not finished