Top Ten Tuesday: My Auto-Buy Authors

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. Today’s theme was:

Top Ten of Your Auto-buy Authors

Books

1. Ian Rankin – Who’s surprised?
2. Matt Haig – I know you are all shocked.
3. Maggie Stiefvater – Oh, man. I’m just a bag full of surprises today.
4. Stephanie Perkins – Wuuuuut?
5. Jennifer E. Smith – No way!

Comics

1. Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead) – aka 1 of the 2 authors who got me into comics.
2. Brian K. Vaughan (Saga) – aka the other author who got me into comic.
3. Peter J. Tomasi (Batman and Robin, Robin: Son of Batman) – aka the author who writes my favorite comic book character.

Authors who have only written one book but will be auto-buy in the future

1. Becky Albertalli
2. David Arnold
3. Jasmine Warga
4. Nicola Yoon
5. Adam Silvera
6. Renee Ahdieh

Authors who are automatic reads but not necessarily auto-buy

1. Sarah Dessen
2. J.K. Rowling (though I haven’t read her Robert Galbraith stuff yet)
3. Oliver Jeffers
4. John Green

Okay, this list is super long, but whatever. Who are your auto-buy/auto-read/auto-grabby-hands authors?

SUNDAY FUNDAY (on Monday) – 1,500 Miles

So Sunday Funday is something that the lovely Cristina over at Girl in the Pages started as a way to recap the bookish (and not-so-bookish) things that have happened that week. I only tend to do it on weeks that actually have something really exciting happen. I also tend to do them on Monday instead of Sunday. Oops. But this past week was so ridiculously awesome that I had to write a post about it.

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I took TWO road trips this week. Yeah, I’m pretty much dead, but it was well worth it. On Tuesday, I went to Birmingham, Alabama (a little over 3 hours each way) to go see AWOLNATION for the second time and the first time in the States. I had an incredible time and the show was absolutely amazing. Not that they weren’t already, but this show just solidified in my mind that they are tied for first (with twenty one pilots) as my favorite band. Here are a few pics.

Then on Saturday I drove over to Decatur, Georgia (a little over 5 hours) for a little getaway. On Saturday, I had lunch with the absolutely lovely Becky Albertalli (and her ridiculously cute son, Henry) at a place called Thumbs Up Diner. Then we headed to Little Shop of Stories (you’ve probably seen me mention this place about fifty times on the blog – I love it so much), where Becky BOUGHT ME TWO BOOKS. If she wasn’t already one of my favorite people (she was), she made me love her even more with this. I had a fantastic time talking to her about books (my TBR grew even more because she told mem about some awesome books she’s blurbing), the Decatur Book Festival, and so much more. Plus, I got to hold Henry and he’s the sweetest kid.

For anyone who’s ever asked me about Little Shop of Stories, here’s a few pictures. It’s the cutest place ever!

After lunch with Becky, I went over to a brewing company in Decatur where I was going to take a tour but when I pulled up no one was there and it was kind of sketchy and I didn’t want to go by myself. I actually think the place was closed because as I was pulling away, two people with the company logo on their shirts pulled up to put a sign on the door. Oh well. So I headed to B&N for a coffee and then went ahead to Little Shop of Stories for the book club. They were discussing The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh, who WAS THERE. I’m really glad Vonya (the woman who usually runs the book club) told me about it at Becky’s book launch, because I had a fantastic time. Renee was really nice and I enjoyed the discussion we all had about her book. Plus, she called Sabaa Tahir for Kim (Little Shop’s store manager) because Kim’s pretty much in love with Sabaa. As you can imagine, we had a great time.

After the book club, a few of us headed down to Colbeh, a Persian restaurant, for dinner. We had some delicious food (Renee pretty much told us what to order!) and some great conversation.

I can’t even really put into words what an incredible time I had on Saturday. Lunch with Becky and dinner with Renee, Kim, Rachael Allen (author of 17 First Kisses), Ricki Schultz (editor and hopefully soon-to-be author), and MaryAnn Dabski (also a hopeful author). The food was delicious at both places, as was the conversation.

After dinner, Kim and I went back to Little Shop to get my stuff, and she let me go through their collection of ARCs and take a few. I told you she was awesome. I had a pretty freaking amazing haul, if I do say so myself. LOOK AT WHAT I GOT!!!

On Sunday, I spent a little time with Kim at her house (she kindly let me stay with her Saturday night) then went to two comic shops in Decatur (Oxford Comics and Criminal Records). I was looking for two specific issues, which I didn’t find, BUT I had a pretty awesome haul anyway!

Then I drove home. Overall, I drove at least 1,300 miles this week, and that doesn’t include going to work on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. So probably about 1,500 miles in a week. To say I’m exhausted is an understatement. I’m one of those people that HAVE to travel to stay sane, but even I’m done with travel for a bit (you know, like a month or so. Haha). In the end, these trips were TOTALLY worth it.

How was your week?

#ReadingMyLibrary Challenge | Week Three Update

Before I start, don’t forget that our Twitter chat is TODAY, April 18 at 2 p.m. CST!! I’ll be hosting and we’ll be using the #ReadingMyLibrary hashtag!

This was National Library Week! We did book dominoes at my library which was so much fun! I’ll be posting a video of it later. As for reading, I finished the Jackaby audiobook yesterday, and I really liked it. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series. I’ll probably review the book soon. I also read some comics!

I’m still currently reading Deadpool & Cable, and I also started Watchmen – though that seems to be one you take a while to read. I don’t think it’s one to read in one day. I also decided to DNF The Orphan Queen. I feel like I’ve already read it even though I haven’t. It’s too similar to a lot of other books I’ve read and I’m just not in the mood for it right now. I might try again at a future date.

This week, I saved a total of $142.91 – $22.95 (Jackaby Audiobook), $34.99 (Deadpool: The Complete Collection – Vol. 1), $14.99 (Tress Vol. 1), $39.99 (Deadpool & Cable Ultimate Collection – Book 1), $29.99 (Superman: Earth One). Comics are expensive, dude.

Overall in the challenge, I have saved a total of $194.30! (Still counting The Orphan Queen even though I DNF’ed).

Each week during the Challenge, we’ve chosen a topic to discuss during our weekly update. This week’s topic is:

Why you love libraries or why you love being a librarian.

I love libraries because there are whole worlds contained in them. They can inspire, teach, console, and relate. They’ll make you laugh, cry, and realize you aren’t alone. You can visit places all over the world or places not of this world. You can meet someone who understands you completely or learn about someone who is completely different from you. I love libraries because they are full of friendly, helpful, interesting people (I’m not just tooting my own horn here, promise) who will introduce you to your next favorite read. I love libraries because you can apply for jobs, apply for a passport, send in your taxes, make copies of your research, print out you application to college, and more.

I love being a librarian because I can inspire, teach, relate, and recommend. I can help you apply to college or find your next favorite read. I love being a librarian because of the look on my patrons’ faces when they return a book they loved that I recommended. I get to help with homework or job applications. I get to order books I know my patrons will love (or that I’ll be able to passionately recommend). I get to discover new worlds, new characters, new books and comics and movies. Being a librarian is basically having a book blog in real life.

Why do you love libraries?

LINK YOUR WEEK THREE UPDATE BELOW!

And don’t forget to enter the #ReadingMyLibrary Challenge giveaway!

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Comics for Readers who would LIKE to try them

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. For today’s theme we had to choose a topic and give ten books for readers who liked that topic (Ten Books For Readers Who Like _________). I’ve decided to put a little spin on this and I’m going with:

Ten comics for readers who would like to try them

I know it’s kind of cheating, but as I did my freebie TTT post on Reasons to Read Comics, I thought I’d actually give you some comics to read! Please note that I have only been reading comics for approximately seven months, so my list is obviously not exhaustive nor am I say I’m an expert comic reader. If you have more suggestions, please feel free to leave them in the comments! I’m always looking for more to read. I’m going to link to some of my reviews, but I kind of cringe at them now – my comics reviews have improved as my reading and understanding of them have grown. These are in the order in which I first read them:

Saga – When I first told my branch manager at the library (who is a HUGE comics reader) that I wanted to try comics, he shoved the first trade of Saga at me. The very first line was “Am I shitting?” and I cracked up. Saga is a huge, sweeping fantasy about a war between a planet and its moon and the consequences of two people falling in love when they shouldn’t. But it’s also offensive, hilarious, weird, and super awesome. I know have Saga on my pull list at my comic book shop. [volume 1] I [volume 2] I [volume 3]

The Walking Dead – I love TWD so much that it had its own reason on that TTT post I linked to above. I devoured all 20 (at that time) trades – including buying several that were not in my library’s system because some jerk stole them – and I’m pretty sure it was the first comic I added to my pull list. It’s incredible, you guys. [volume 1] I [volume 2] I [volume 3]

Batman: Arkham Asylum – This is one of those books that as you read it, you feel as if you’re going crazy with the characters. I’m still (six months later) not really sure what I even read, but I love it. It’s also illustrated by the absolutely amazing Dave McKean who creates dark, bizarre, incredible illustrations. My super newbie review is on WPR.

Batman and Robin – Okay, I’m going to attempt to tone down the obsession here because I could go do a whole post about how much I love Damian Wayne, you guys. In case you weren’t aware, that’s Bruce Wayne’s son, and he’s the focus of this Batman and Robin series I’m talking about. He’s such a sassy, stubborn, smug little punk, but he also just wants to live up to his dad and he loves his dog and…ugh. I love him. And not in a weird way. Just in a “I completely love this character and Patrick Gleason draws him SO perfectly” kind of way. He’s such a fun character to read each month.

Bodies – This mini-run from Si Spencer and Vertigo just ended and I’m still a little sad because of that, BUT this series is a whirlwind of craziness, timelines, open-mindedness, and I would highly recommend it. Seriously, the trade comes out soon and you need it. You can read all of my reviews for all eight issues (as well as my interview with Si) on WatchPlayRead.

Chew – So I’ve only read the first ten issues of this one (waiting on my hold to come in!), but it’s so freaking weird but totally awesome, you guys. It’s about a guy who can tell where ANYTHING came from and what happened to it right before it died – so when he eats chicken he can how it died. Doesn’t that sound sucky? Yeah. BUT then he gets recruited to work in this special police department where he takes “samples” of PEOPLE to find out how they died. EW. But it’s so funny and odd too.

Wild’s End – Marketed as a mix of War of the World and A. A. Milne. If that doesn’t sound like something you want to read, just move on to the next one. If you stuck around, WHAT?! Doesn’t that sound amazing?? It was. It was only a six issue mini run but it was full of so much Britishness and I just love it.

Through the Woods – I reviewed this one on the blog. It’s creepy and dark and so so good.

Thor – The new Thor is a freaking woman, ladies and gentlemen (mostly ladies)! If that doesn’t sound appealing to you, boo on you. It’s a really cool story so far and I’m enjoying seeing new Thor and male-Thor who’s no longer worthy of Mjolnir duke it out.

Superior Iron Man – Tony Stark’s mind has been messed with and his already present arrogance and intelligence have been amplified. He believes he needs to make the world a smarter and more beautiful place – by hooking SanFran’s residents on a drug that makes them smarter and prettier. Fun times.

Do you read comics? What other books would you recommend? If you are interested in seeing more comics I’ve read, you can head over to WatchPlayRead to read my reviews. 

Stacking the Shelves – Comics from the Library, Giveaway Prizes, and my #OTSPSecretSister!

It’s been a while since I did a Stacking the Shelves post, but I got some really cool stuff this week I wanted to share!

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Stacking the Shelves – This week I checked out Shutter, Chew Omnibus Volume 1, and Ms. Marvel from the library, received The Glass Arrow through a giveaway, and was gifted Eleanor & Park from my #OTSPSecretSister! #books #comics #bookstagram #comicbookhaul #bookhaul #reading #bookgram #booknerdigans

A post shared by Stefani (@stefanisloma) on Feb 7, 2015 at 11:09am PST

On Monday, I got my first package from my wonderful On the Same Page Secret Sister and got a SIGNED copy of Eleanor & Park, which I’m definitely looking forward to reading. Then on Thursday, I got The Glass Arrow in the mail from Kristina aka Gone Pecan (Thanks again, Kristina!) through one of her giveaways. On Friday, the library system I work for had an all day training at a library that is at least three or four times the size of the one I work for, so, of course, I explored and found a few things to check out: Shutter Volume 1, Chew, The Omnivore Edition Volume 1, and Ms. Marvel Volume 1 (which I’d already been wanting to read but was described as “It’s a female, teenage, Muslim superhero. What more could you want?” My answer – nothing, which is why I checked it out!).

What did you add to your shelves this week?

First Monthly Link Up for My WatchPlayRead Reviews! – January 2015

I was supposed to be (according to my own schedule, not anyone else’s) posting a review of Jasmine Warga’s debut My Heart & Other Black Holes today, but for several reasons I can’t. I haven’t been able to write it because I will probably be sucked up into my own black hole if I try to write about it this week (not in a great place this week) and because I just haven’t had time. SO instead, I’m going to do a link up for WatchPlayRead. Some of you might know that, in addition to my blog, I write comic reviews over on WatchPlayRead. I know a lot of you aren’t interested or don’t read comics, so I don’t post many of them here, but for those of you that do, I decided to start a monthly link up to all the reviews I’ve done on WPR that month. Feel free to check them out and any other posts on WPR – we do a mix of books, comics, video games, movies, and nerdy products. 🙂

I started off the year with a review of Capture Creatures #1, a quite young all-ages comic featuring barely any creatures in the first issue but lots of exaggerated fun!

Next up was Feathers #1, another all-ages comic from BOOM! Studios (probably my favorite comics publisher – or at least closely tied with Image). Feathers (cover to the left) is a fun adventure comic for fans of Peter Pan or fairy tales.

Then I reviewed Bodies #6 – I’ve been having a love affair with Bodies for six months now and it’s coming to an end soon. I’m not sure how I feel about this as I mostly don’t want it to end but I can’t wait to see how it all comes together. (Bodies #6 cover to right)

After Bodies #6, I reviewed the Cutter mini-series from Image and it wasn’t that great. Mostly like a bad slasher film.

I reviewed the Memetic run from BOOM! Studios (do you see a pattern?) next. It’s all about a killer meme, you guys. How could you not want to read it? I also posted this review on the blog, so you might’ve seen it.

Reyn #1, from Image Comics, is an accessible, fun fantasy comic with a self-sufficient, awesome female character and some lizard men. Also, it has lizard dudes. (Cover to left)

And finally, I posted a review of Creature Cops #1 yesterday. It wasn’t for me but it might be good for you.

I usually post 2 reviews per week, sometimes more but sometimes less. I love being able to talk comics, and I’m sure you’ll find my reviews are just as passionate as they are here. If you are interested in reading comics or already do, make sure you head over to WatchPlayRead to check out my reviews (and everyone else’s! We are all pretty cool over there).

I hope you all have a wonderful Friday (TGIF!) and I’ll see you tomorrow. 🙂

Top Ten Tuesday: Freebie – Ten reasons to read comics

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. This week’s theme was a freebie, so I decided to do a post on ten of the comics you should try if you’re thinking about starting comics.

1. Pretty pictures – alright, that’s a HUGE oversimplification, but comics are beautifully illustrated by people like Fiona Staples (Saga), Jock (Judge Dredd, Green Arrow: Year One, and most recently Wytches), Jaime McKelvie (The Wicked + The Divine), Dave McKean (Arkham Asylum), Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), and SO MANY MORE.

2. Creative stories – whether you’re a fan of superheroes, horror, anthropomorphic animals, zombies, or blasphemous preachers, I can pretty much guarantee that you’ll find a story to love.

3. Comics teach you that you can be a superhero too, like Batman – that is if you happen to be a billionaire with access to grade-a technology and a kick ass butler

4. Free Comic Book Day – Once a year you can go to your local comic book shop and get FREE comics. I’ll say that again: FREEEEE comics.

5. Wednesdays are no longer just the middle of the week – New comics come out every Wednesday. I never make it out to my comic shop on Wednesday, but I love perusing ComicList to see what new comics will be in my pull.

6. The Walking Dead – For me, this is a big reason. I started reading TWD comics in June, powered through all of the (then) 21 volumes of issues and added them to my pull list. I’ve now read all of the issues and am completely caught up on the TV show, which I didn’t start watching until after I’d read all of the comics that were out at the time. The best part about this is that the show and comics are so different – character arcs, plot lines, deaths, and the characters themselves are not always the same, so it’s like you get two completely different and unique stories! It’s awesome. It is sometimes difficult to match up the characters in the comics or show at first, but then you just become obsessed. A comic I’d recommend to those who aren’t sure if they want to try comics. Do you. You really do.

7. The book is always better than the movie – ‘Nuff said.

8. You’ll know what you’re talking about – When the next superhero movie comes out, you’ll be able to talk about the characters backstories like you’re old friends. You’ll know who the new character is in the Marvel post-credit scenes, so you won’t have to pretend you know who it is when everyone freaks out. Knowledge is power, you guys. 🙂

9. Improve your imagination – Although comics have the settings and characters drawn out for you, the minimal dialogue and little-to-no wordy descriptions, leave a lot of the world-building and character development to your imagination. You have to read between the lines (or, in this case, panels), which is a lot of fun.

10. It’s even more reading – if you like to read, comics are beautifully illustrated stories. They are books, whether you think so are not. The only difference is they are usually only 24 pages long. Unless, of course, you buy a trade paperback.

Have I convinced you? Do you agree with my reasons? What did you use the Top Ten Tuesday Freebie for? Link me up!

Comic Book Review: Memetic #1-3

I don’t post a lot of comic reviews on my blog, which is something I want to do more of in 2015. So why not start with a recent favorite? Memetic was a limited run series of three issues from BOOM! Studios.

    WRITER: James Tynion IV / ARTIST: Eryk Donovan
COLORIST: Adam Guzowski / LETTERER: Steve Wands

When your comic book shop tells you they think you’d like a new comic about a killer meme and asks if you want them to order you a copy, you say yes. I mean, a killer meme?! Of course you say yes. Then, when you’ve read all three of them, you wish there were more and can’t believe it’s over.

What am I talking about? Memetic, of course! A three-part mini-series from James Tynion IV and Eryk Donovan, Memetic was scary, you guys. It felt too real, as if it could happen any day now. To sum up without spoiling it (you should really just read them; it’s only three issues!): one day in the near future, a meme spreads on the internet. Seemingly harmless and strangely adorable, the meme is that of a sloth giving the viewer a thumbs up. Nothing that special, right? Somehow the image makes the viewer feel ridiculously happy, making people around the world want to share it with everyone they love. On and on it goes until almost everyone with access to the internet has seen it. But then people start dying. Can they find the source and get him/her to flip the image and save humanity? Or will we die out because of our obsession with social media?

Memetic was so good. It was a little confusing at times, with a little too much happening at once, but I was expecting that as they had to shove an entire story into three short issues. Though it was a lot all at once, this didn’t annoy me. I wanted more! The issues were intense, thrilling, terrifying. It felt like a logical story coming from our current society; it never felt preachy or like Tynion was shoving his message down our throats. Obviously it felt a bit like a cautionary tale against what could happen when you become addicted to the internet.

The artwork was really great. Not over the top but sensationalized enough in all the right places. It’s simple in the beginning, to bring out the story and let it say what it needs to, but later, when things get crazy, it comes out in full force to scare the crap out of you. Eryk Donovan’s art is creepy but feels realistic. Adam Guzowski coloring brings it to life.

Overall, Memetic was an unnerving, modern-day cautionary tale. It probably wasn’t healthy how into it I was. But comics aren’t going to kill me, right? RIGHT? …Totally worth checking out this (way too short) run from BOOM! Studios.

I’m also posting this review on WatchPlayRead. Check out my contributor page on WPR if you are interested in seeing more of my comics reviews. I usually post two a week, so there’s a bunch over there!

WWW Wednesday [11] – The Rosie Effect, Batman, and Firecracker

WWW Wednesdays are hosted by Should Be Reading. To play along, just answer the following three questions: (As always, all titles are linked to their corresponding Goodreads pages)

• What are you currently reading?

I’m currently reading The Rosie Effect, the follow up to Graeme Simsion’s super amazing book, The Rosie Project. I’m enjoying being back with Don and Rosie. I’m reading it pretty quickly and I’m laughing just as much as I’d hoped I would. Don is just so awkward. If you want a little teaser from the book, check out my Teaser Tuesday from yesterday.

• What did you recently finish reading?

I read a bunch of Batman comics on Monday. My boss lent them to me at least two months ago and I just hadn’t gotten around to them. I read: Batman: Year One and Year Two, A Death in the Family, Lovers & Madmen, and Batman: RIP.

• What do you think you’ll read next?

I’m not sure. I’d planned to read The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare, but my lovely friend Annette sent me three awesome books for Christmas (Firecracker by David Iserson, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin, and A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness). The way that she’s talked about Firecracker (and her review) have made me really interested, so I think I’ll read that next!

What are you reading?

WWW Wednesday [9] – A Thousand Pieces of You, The Book of Strange New Things, & Comics

WWW Wednesdays are hosted by Should Be Reading. To play along, just answer the following three questions: (As always, all titles are linked to their corresponding Goodreads pages)

• What are you currently reading?

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray. I’ll be starting this one today so I don’t have too much to say about it yet. I’ve heard mixed things but several people I trust have said they loved it. I’m looking forward to starting it.

• What did you recently finish reading?

I finished Michel Faber’s The Book of Strange New Things yesterday. It wasn’t at all what I expected, but I really, really enjoyed it. More literary than I usually read, but it was refreshing and a nice change from my norm. I’ll be reviewing it next week.

• What do you think you’ll read next?

I haven’t decided yet. I’ve just started my current read, so I don’t know what I’ll feel like after, but I have a big stack of new comics that I’ll probably dive into after my current book. I’ve got the latest issues of Gotham Academy, Memetic, Thor, Superior Iron Man, Batman and Robin, Fiction Squad, Arkham Manor, and a few others I can’t think of right now. So I’ll be reading all of those next.

What are you reading?