Wednesday, March 30, 2011

A Book in Review: Executricks

Executricks or How to Retire While You're Still Working By: Stanley Bing
Non-fiction: humor, business, memior 175 pages
Book Count: 22

This is about about how to enjoy you're working life by using executive tricks that make work more like retirerment. It covers things like getting others to do your work, working outside of the office, travel, working lunching and other non-working work.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

A Book in Review: So Now You're a Zombie A Handbook for the Newly Undead

So Now You're a Zombie A Handbook for the Newly Undead By" John Austin
Non-fiction: humor
Book Count: 21

As the title states this is a handbook for the recently zombiefied. It covers such important subjects as how you became a zombie, the food pyramid for zombies (Hint BRRAAINNSS top it), how to fight zombie style, and the zombie code. It is working from a unstoppable virus as cause of zombies and fits in with most modern zombie stories worlds.

Monday, March 28, 2011

A Note to Self: The Late Renaissance and Mannerism

The Late Renaissance and Mannerism By: Linda Murray
Non-fiction: art, history 199 pages
Book Count: 20

This book is on art of the late Renaissance and the Mannerism art style that followed it. It deals with Italian art as well as the art of Flanders, France, Germany, England and Spain. It starts after most of the Ninja Turtles had died, beginning with the end of Michelangelo's life and his work in Rome and continuing on to the how the reformation affected art in the north and the works of El Greco.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

A Book in Review: Drinking with George

Drinking with George By: George Wendt with Jonathan Grotenstein
Non-fiction: Autobiography, food, humor 225 pages
Book Count: 19

This book is by the guy who played Norm on Cheers. And it is about beer. It turns out that he did not have to do much acting for the show, as he loves beer. As in he thinks there are 2 type of beer, "good" and "even better". It is also about his life and how drinking played a role in it, from how going to school got in the way of his drinking to how looking for a pub in Ireland ended up with him hanging out with Bono. It also has useful lists of world drinking toasts, ways of saying you are drunk, beer factoids and the 1st beer recipe/poem/hymn.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

A Book in Review: Cooking for Geeks

Cooking for Geeks: Real Science, Great Hacks, and Good Food By: Jeff Potter
Non-fiction: cooking science 398 pages
Book Count: 18

This is a book about all things geeky for good cooking. (And ordering pizza when a experiment doesn't turn out the way you want.) It includes information on the science of cooking, people testing old wives tales about food, new tools and ideas for cooking, interviews by chefs, food scientist, Adam Savage and other people that are known for cooking and/or science, a comic from xkcd.com about units of measurement (and how they relate to Summer Glau), and much much more. This book is useful for people who are just learning how to cook, as well as people who have been cooking for years. It is also full of information, so full that it could be read again and again.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Happy Pi Day !!!!

Remember to eat your 3.14 pies today.

A Book in Review: The Total Money Makeover

The Total Money Makeover By: Dave Ramsey
Non-Fiction: money, 249 pages
Book Count: 17

This is a book on money that has two main sections. The first part deals with money myths that people may believe and the reasons why they do not add up. The second part is a plan on how the get out of debt, save for the future and otherwise deal with money. Although, the writer feels that this change in how you deal with money should include all of you (soul too) and notes many times that they are writing as a Christian, this book is actually a lot less preachy then other religious money books. Also, unlike other books on money systems that seam like they may not work in the real world (this one because it sounds too easy for the results it talks about) it includes stories of people it worked for in the book, and I have heard of people that use the system from things outside of the book. In fact, I only picked up the book from all the time the author was mentioned in a couple of blogs I read and the fact that its what the people from "(X number) of Kids and Counting" used to build a house without a loan. (Which would be impressive even without 2 dozen people to feed.)

Sunday, March 13, 2011

An Audio Book in Review: Coyote Blue

Coyote Blue By: Christopher Moore
Fiction: Humor, Fantasy, Religion

In this story Sam Hunter (Samson Hunts Alone) a Crow Indian who is living life as a white, insurance salesman has his life turned upside down when Coyote (as in the trickster god) shows up. Because of this he meets a woman he falls in love with, losses his home and job, gets his home and job back, goes to Vegas and has Coyote loss thousands of his money gambling. After that point things get weird. This book also has a couple of characters from other books of Moore's in it, Minty Fresh and Detective Sergeant Alphonso Rivera. Although, this was written before Minty became a death merchant it gives you extra information on how he ended up with that job.





9 C.D.'s 10.5 hours

Saturday, March 12, 2011

A Book in Review: How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire (Love at Stake, Book 1)

How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire (Love at Stake, Book 1) By: Kerrelyn Sparks
Fiction: paranormal, romance 384 Pages
Book Count: 16

First, this book was completely misnamed. The main female character didn't even know that there were vampires when the story started. Also when she meets the millionaire vampire she doesn't know who he is or even that he is rich. In fact if it wasn't for other people pointing out that the book is horribly misnamed and that the blurb on it is also misleading I wouldn't bother to read it. However, the book itself it much more interesting then what it says it was. This is a book of a dentist who is afraid of blood after seeing her best friend get killed by the mob. She's in witness protection, but they still find her. Luckily a vampire testing a sex toy turned into a vampire feeding toy lost a fang and needed a 24 hour dentist. He finds her working the night shift before the mob does and rescues her. It turns out that the person sent to kill her is also a vampire and the enemy of her rescuer, so he is determined to protect her. And then they fall in love, etc,etc.

Friday, March 04, 2011

A Book in Review: TCIGT: Personal Finance in Your 20s & 30s

TCIGT: Personal Finance in Your 20s & 30s By: Sarah Young Fisher & Susan Shelly
Non-fiction: economics 362 pages
Book Count: 15

As this book is both for people who are just out of school and older a lot of it is geared for people just starting out with information for things you might need later, that for people in their 30's might already need/already done. That being said it is a good collection of basic information with information on where to get more information. This book was the second edition with was made in 2002, so if there was a newer one out it would be better as it would have more websites and up to date phone numbers and addresses (not that most of them would have changed, but some might be different by now.)