L.A.O.S.: A Serial Novel-Thing

Guys, GUYS! I am SO EXCITED about this announcement! I'm so excited I don't even know what to say! But nonetheless, I should say something, because if I don't then you won't know what I'm squeeing about, and that would just be awkward. So I guess I will just get to the point, which is that starting Friday, Inkfever will be home to a brand new, hopefully shiny, serialised novel!

No doubt you are now gripped with pressing questions (which are talented, in that they can press while gripping) such as, "What is this marvel of which you speak?", "How often can we expect this delight?", and, "What on earth possessed you to do this mad thing, you mad, mad person?" I shall now endeavour to answer these questions satisfactorily, and hopefully in a manner that will excite your... excitement. Incite excitement? Blah. Something like that.

1) This marvel is L.A.O.S., which stands for the League of Absolutely Ordinary Superheroes. They are a group of teens who have no superpowers (bwa ha ha) and their motto is saving the world through science. Superheroes + science = #FUNWIN!

2) I'd love to feed you chunks of gorgeously tasty LAOS, dripping with delectable delight, twice a week. However, I think we all know that's not going to happen, given my history with blogging. So I'm going to be aiming for once a week, but as always, I reserve the right to be completely and utterly erratic in my posting. Ha. As if you didn't see that coming.

3) Um, yeah, about that. This is pretty much me forcing myself to have a 'just for fun' project the only way I possibly can - i.e. in public. Because if I try to write something 'just for fun' by myself, it INEVITABLY ends up a Real Project, For Serious, Like Proper, because my brain is secretly plotting against me and wants to spaz me out. It likes plotting. And if I start writing just for fun stories by myself, it gets carried away with the plotting, and before we know it the just for fun short story is the beginning of a ten-part series with 900 years of prehistory, fifty-three main characters and seventy-nine continents, and I'm stalled out because all of a sudden I Got Stuck. (I wonder why? *sigh*)

But see, if I am drafting in public, then I can't care about it too much, because if I do, I will totally and utterly freak out over the fact that YOU GUYS HELLO I WILL BE DRAFTING PUBLICALLY, and mistakes Will Be Made (and capital letters Abused). So the only solution is to do it, and not care, and then I will have fun.

If that sounds twisty and insane, that's because it is, and I am. Hai.

Bonus) LAOS will run in episodes and series. Five episodes per series, about 20k per episode. No idea how many series (until I get bored, and you do to?), but five would be fun, because then the whole thing would have Balance and Symmetry (and I swear, I have been away from the English teaching for too long, because that's like the third word I've had to double check the spelling on so far in this post o.0). See above, re ten-part series-es with 900 years of history. And yes, there will be a way for you all to participate if you want to, and I plan to release each episode as an ebook (edited, ha!) as they are completed.

So. HURRAH!, and see you Friday :o)

My Shameful Secret

Don't forget to enter the contest to win a copy of Michelle Davidson Argyle's awesome debut, Monarch.

My name is Amy, and I’m an English teacher, and I have not read To Kill A Mockingbird. Or One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. Or All Quiet On The Western Front. Or anything by Dickens, or Tolstoy, or any Russian authors full stop actually.

I’ve only read two Austen novels. I’ve read one Hemmingway story – a short one. I hate The Turn of the Screw. I loathe Heart of Darkness with an undying passion. Wuthering Heights bored me so stupid I never finished it.

I threw Gone With The Wind at the wall with two chapters to go and never picked it up again.
I am a Bad Person.


What books haven’t you read that you really feel like you should have? What books would you kill me for not reading before I die? And what books have you read because people told you you had to, only to mourn the fact that you’ll never regain those hours of your life again?

Spring Reading Challenge

So, I've decided that, as I appear unable to write at the moment, I can at the very least READ lots. To that end, I've signed up for the Spring Reading Challenge on Good Reads. Note that's Australian spring ;)

Here are the rules, along with my choice of book for each category:

"With spring at our doorstep the temperature is starting to warm up, so shed those woolly blankets and grab a book that warms the heart instead..."

1. Spring clean your bookcases by reading a much loved, but yet unread book - either novel or biography.

We all know I have a bazillion unread books on my shelves, but for this category I've chosen To Kill A Mockingbird, because I need to read it for school anyway ;)

2. Choose a book that features a new life - a baby (animal or human) on the cover/in the story.

Zombies vs Unicorns. What? Zombies are 'new life', right? O:)

3. Choose a book for it's cover - a spring image with all it's colour.

You know, I have a really lack of springy, flowery kind of covers on my shelves. I found, in fact, only three. The most springish is the non-fiction, I'm Not Good Enough, and given I'm in the mood for a happy-cheery pick-me-up kind of book, this the one.

4. The Royal Adelaide show is on 2nd - 10th September, so a book about a show/carnival rides/handicrafts/cookery/livestock - anything to tie into the event.

Also lacking books on this sort of topic, and without close scrutiny I couldn't determine if any of the novels might have a show or a fair or something in them. Hence, I picked How Dogs Learn, which is livestock-related, right? Plus, Royal shows totally have a dog showing component, so you know. I say it fits.

5. The Brisbane Writers Festival is on 7th - 11th September, so choose a book written by an Aussie author, released somewhere in the 3 months of Spring.

Look, really? I've just spent over half an hour searching the internet for somewhere that will tell me what Aussie authors have coming out in the next few months, and I got NOTHING. I hit the Spring Reading Challenge list to see what others had posted, and I'm fairly uninspired, PLUS I don't really want to shell out money for a book just so I can fill this space on my list. SO, I'm going to cheat, but only a little. I just finished reading Blood Song, which is coming out Sept 1, by Rhiannon Hart, who is an Aussie author - so this book fits this section, I just happened to accidentally read it two weeks early. Right? Right.

6. Seeing as Spring colours are predominantly red and yellow, pick a book with either a red or yellow cover, and post the book cover as well, so everyone can see (and get colourful suggestions).

I also lack red and yellow books o.O I have about 5 options, but Seven Little Australians is the shortest, and conveniently fits the theme ;) Plus, you know, flowers on the cover and all... O:)

7. Sydney Eisteddfod is running until 20th September and they are searching for the best young Australian talent, so pick a Young Adult book, not necessarily by an Aussie author, for this event.

I found If I Stay in a remainders bin the other day and snaffled it up, so this is my YA book for spring.

8. The Spring Racing Carnival culminating with the Melbourne Cup is in November, so a book about horses/horse racing/betting/money won and lost.

Dark Horse - I've had this one for a while and am curious.

9. How about a book with the title beginning with the first letter of your name, e.g. I could choose Black Wave: A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them.

A Zest for Herbs, because I was going to use this for #10, but realised it fits here too and is shorter than the other options O:) Plus it gets rid of another non-fic on my TBR list, and the non-fics take FOREVER to move.

10. For the last one, you have a choice: a book with a garden connection for spring or a non-fiction/biography, again with a spring connection!

As I do actually really want to reread Backyard Self-Sufficiency, this is the perfect excuse.

Not a bad list: 1 reread, 1 cheat, and 4 non-fiction. And I'm sure I'll squeeze another book in there in place of the 'cheat', so you know. All in all, I'm looking forward to this :o) What do you plan on reading over the next few months? Anyone care to join me in the Spring Challenge (even if it's not spring for you)?

Random Fun, And The GTTBRPU200 Effort Continues

So, my darling laptop Sapphire has been through a bad break up. Two weeks ago she split with my home wireless internet - which, really, I have to say I understand. He was lazy, slow, and really just couldn't bring what was required.

Today, I took Sapphire to work and introduced her to real wireless internet. He was smooth, he was fast, and he gave her everything she needed.

(Updated anti-virus software, in case you wondered. I mean, I know your minds wouldn't wander off in unsavoury directions, so this clarification is, I know, totally unncessary. But still.)

And now, she's back to being her perky self, and she's feeling so good she's even agree (somewhat cautiously) to just sometimes, only-if-we're-never-alone-and-don't-think-this-means-I-changed-my-mind-okay, try being friends with my home wireless.

Good girl. *applauds*

So, on to today, and more random miscellania in keeping with the spirit of how I feel two days before Christmas with a head cold in the middle of summer. o.O

First up, some very exciting news: the wonderful Merc's most wonderful story Hero's Choice is out! It's a serial, so you'll have to check back in each Monday to read it, but I promise you, it's worth it. I read this story when it was only a baby, and let me tell you, it's every bit as good looking as an adult ;)

In this week's installment:

On a cold and starry night, Dark Lord Mrakota finds the Chosen One prophesied to kill him. Being unconventional, Mrakota adopts the boy and names him Hero. This does not go over so well with the Guild of Old Mentors or the rangers...

Click! Link! Here!

Secondly, stories of my own. Work on anything writerly has stalled out in the last week due to insane Christmas busyness, but we leave for holidays tomorrow and Sapphire is Coming With Me. As are a whole swag of books. Huzzah :D Huzzah also for a week of nothing-to-do-except-occasionally-be-sociable-with-the-in-laws, and therefore a chance to recoup brain power so that things like writing can actually occur.

So, in lieu of actual progress, I updated my WIPs page for you all O:) There's now a blurb there for The Hunter Hunted, aka "That tiger novelette I finished the other week and squeed about". Yay :) (Yes, you have to scroll down. What is this, Lazyville?)

Finally, the GTTBRPU200 loving continues. Today I bring you three books, bringing my total books read in the challenge so far to 11, and the books remaining to 219. ... And I'm getting a couple more for Christmas. Ouch.

... I should quit blogging and go read, shouldn't I? Ahem. Well. About those three books...

GTTBRPU200 #9: No Small Thing by Natalie Ghent

This is one of those awesomely quiet books that, when you read it, you think are 'nice': a good read, a satisfactory story and conclusion, but nothing... sparkling. And yet, somehow the
impact of the book doesn't quite mesh with that initial impression. Another book that did this to me was The Thirteenth Tale; it's quiet and unassuming, with (objectively) nothing to really keep you intrigued - and yet, somehow, it does, and you remember it for the rest of your life.

No Small Thing is like that. It is, essentially, a book about a boy from a struggling single-parent story who sees an ad in the paper: Pony, free to good home. They used to have ponies, back when Dad was around, but Queenie, his younger sister, was too little then to remember. And she wants a pony more than anything. And he wants one too.

This quiet story follows (MC) through a year of his life, showing the effects that one small act - responding to the ad, bringing home the pony - has on both his life and the lives of his family. It reminded me of the way that sometimes, even when everything else in life is rubbish, all that's needed is for one thing to go right, and that's enough. It's a beautiful story about a boy and a horse, set against the backdrop of a broken and real family that somehow connected with me deeply, and left me satisfied after what was superficially a quick, light read.


GTTBRPU200 #10: Heidi by Johanna Spyri


So, there's this whole pile - well, half a shelf full - of childrens classics that somewhere had on sale once for like $5 each in matching hardcovers. For those of you lucky enough to be Bibliophiles living anywhere OTHER than Australia, let me point out here that your standard MG/YA mass market paperback (MMP) is $15-$20, and hardcover anywhere from $20-$50 bucks. Adult book prices are similar for hardcover, and MMPs retail for $19-$25. Whole set of matching hardbacks for $5 each? Yes please!

That was like a year ago, and now, watch me finally sit down to read them. *grin*

Anyway, Heidi. Cute story, very quick read that reads exactly like a classic should: lovely simple yet stately language, 'perfect' storyline where everything turns out exactly as it should, and characters right out of a fable. *pats the story fondly* If you like fables and classics, this one should be on your to read list :)


GTTBRPU200 #11: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

I picked this one up cheap at the uni bookstore one day because someone (I think Angela?) mentioned on their blog that it had been influential to their own writing - so I was naturally curious. Curiosity = rewarded. This is an AWESOME little book (v. quick read, only took me 30 mins) that is fully illustrated by the author and just makes me go *shine*. This is one I'll definitely be reading and rereading.

Told from the POV of a man (or woman? I don't think it's ever explicitly stated. Given the time period, we assume male, but, you know.) stranded in the desert after his plane breaks down, it details his encounters with the little prince, who is a traveller from another planet - a very tiny planet that he alone inhabits. On the face of it it's such a simple tale; and it's pretty enough to be enjoyed as such. But this is a perfect example of 'literature', IMO: not only can it be enjoyed on the brain candy level, it's also packed full of allusion and meaning, and philosophical musings on the nature of the human condition. I'm positive I didn't pick everything up on the first read through; like I said, this is a book to reread.

So there you have it: this week's booklog :) I have a 5 hour car trip coming up tomorrow and the next day, so hopefully by next week I'll have a bunch more books to review for you :)

In the meantime, thanks for reading my meanderings, and I hope you all have a fantastic holiday. See you next Monday!

Across the Genre Fences

Gah! My post for Friday didn't post! I'm terribly sorry about that. I'll post the movie I had lined up later this week instead.

Well, my week away was extremely, extremely busy - but it was fun. Good times with friends, some successful productions, and much happiness all round.

However, I am still exhausted from it all, so I beg your forgiveness... I'm not going to ramble like I usually do. (Ha, stop cheering. It isn't nice, you know :P).

What I'm going to do is respond to Liana's post from the 16th about genres.

I'm the first to admit that I used to be a genre snob. There were certain areas in the bookshop that I just didn't frequent - and I'd never even heard the term 'genre fiction', let alone read any of it. Until, that is, a dear friend, to whom I have a lifelong debt, introduced me to the wonderful world of fantasy via Terry Pratchett - Moving Pictures, to be precise.

And now I am as unsnobby as it is possible to be when it comes to reading. I am, in fact, a genre whore %-) I'll read everything, anything, something, so long as it has words on it - and yes, sadly, this extends to things like food cartons where no other reading material can be found O:)

So now it irks me when people say, "I don't read sci fi," or, "I don't read fantasy." I dislike the implication that a book's value is predicated on which shelf it sits on in the bookstore. To me, that's too much like predicating a human's worth on what country they come from. There will be people of every race and nationality that you don't like, of course - but there will also be people you do like. It's not enough to write a whole genre off because you've read one or two bad eggs - or worst, because you're scared of the idea of it, and haven't read anything in that genre.

So, in a celebration of diversity, here are my favourite books in as many genres as I can think of (restricted to books currently in print):

Literary: The Shadow Lines, by Amitav Ghosh.
Epic Fantasy: The Wheel of Time series, by Robert Jordan.
Urban Fantasy: Magic Lost, Trouble Found, by Lisa Shearin.
Science Fiction: Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card.
Space Opera: The Rings of the Master, by Jack Chalker.
Romance: Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.
Comedy and Satire: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams and Lords and Ladies (or anything else) by Terry Pratchett.
Middle Grade: the first three Artmis Fowl books, by Eoin Colfer, or the Harry Potter books that count as MG.
Young Adult: Gallagher Girls series, by Ally Carter, and Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling.
Mainstream: Swallows and Amazons, by Arthur Ransom (also classed as YA), and the Anne of Green Gables series, by L.M. Montgomery.
Fable/Mythic: The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho

I suspect I've forgotten a few genres. If that's the case, let me know in the comments, and I shall amend the list :D

Meanwhile - what are your favourite books that fall in genres you DON'T write in, and why?

Link Salad Round Three

Today you get Link Salad, because as this posts, the hairdresser and make-up person will be arriving, and we will be running around like frantic chickens getting Beautiful before the wedding. Posts might be a bit light on this week, but will hopefully return to normal next week :)

So, in the latest rounds of assessment procrastination, here are some goodies I found.

Missing a loved one? Miss no longer - you can now turn your loved ones into diamonds. And never fear, your loved one doesn't have to be deceased - some hair will do. They even do pets!

Some creepy creatures from the sea, like the oarfish, a real live sea serpent, and the gulper eel...

Calculate your real age based on diet, exercise, family history etc. I'm 3.8 years older than my calendar age; I need to exercise more and eat more fruit! (No surprises there!)

Perhaps this site will help me out - it comes highly recommended by my good friend Liana.

Ah well, if all else fails I can do what I jolly well ought to be doing anyway - walk the dog!

And on a writing-related note, I'm not the only one who "hates writing." :)

See you next time - don't forget to Breathe ;)

Random Post of the Week: Link Salad

So, I spent yesterday afternoon procrastinating, but it was at least useful procrastination - I trawled the web, reading interesting articles on writing and following linkies till I was lost amid the maze of the internet and up to my ears in opinions, thoughts and advice.

To celebrate, I thought I'd offer you a sampling of my link salad.

I have discovered an awesome blog by a fellow Australian - what's not to love? ;) - by the name of Justine Larbalestier. The name is a mouthful, but the site is lots of fun - opinions, insights, and randomicity in roughly equal proportions.

Some sad news for those of us hoping to finance our lives from writing - according to Tobias Buckell's Author Advance Survey the average advance for science fiction or fantasy is $5000 for a first timer, rising to about $12,500 after 5-7 years. When you're writing one book a year - see the comments especially in Nathan Bransford's post - well, you do the math...

Elizabeth Bear discusses the 'you're-good-but-not-great' stage of the writing career, where you're getting personalised rejections with encouraging comments... but they're still rejecions.

And finally, I discovered Storytellers Unplugged, which has an awesome array of tasty articles, not least of which these on layering reality and writing serial characters.

Have fun!

The Towering TBR Pile of Doom

On the 9th of October 2008 I set a goal for myself to read every book on my shelves that I hadn't yet read within a year. What I didn't realise at the time of making that goal was the sheer monstrous number of books I own that I haven't yet read: as of October 9 2008, 157 books.

In December 2009 I did a recount: about 230 books. Ouch. I think books must breed in the dark. So I moved on to a new challenge: get the pile of books down below 200 by Jan 25, 2010, when I started a new full time job. I didn't quite make it - discounting the new books added to the pile, I had 3 books to go - but I did smash my previous number of books read in a year, so that's something.

The 2010 challenge (besides to really seriously get the list under 200!) is to read 50 books this year. That way it will only take me 4 years to read all the books I own, instead of seven... o.O

July 2010 Update: Due to the overwhelming amount of books lurking around in my 'study', I have decided - lo! gasp! behold! - to cull. I've given away about 90 books to various places, and have a couple I may offer as prizes here on the blog. But either way, the list is looking much more respectible now - to a degree O:)

1. A Breath of Snow and Ashes ~ Diana Gabaldon
2. A Study In Scarlet ~ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
3. A Zest for Herbs ~ Caroline Holmes
4. Across the Top ~ Sorrel Wilby
5. An Eye For Dog ~ Robert W. Cole
6. And Another Thing... ~ Eoin Colfer
7. And The Angels Were Silent ~ Max Lucardo
8. Artificial Sunshine ~ Maureen Dillon
9. Assassination: Political Murder Through The Ages ~ Xavier Waterkeyn
10. Australian Bush Ballards
11. Bakewise ~ Shirley O. Corriher
12. Beowulf
13. Bewitched & Betrayed ~ Lisa Shearin
14. Black Markets ~ Goodwin
15. Bridget Jones’s Diary ~ Helen Fielding
16. Buy-ology ~ Martin Lindstrom
17. Christ in the Old Testament ~ James A. Borland
18. Christmas Every Morning ~ Bergren
19. Collapse ~ Jared Diamond
20. Collected Short Stories of Henry Lawson ~ Henry Lawson
21. Command Decision ~ Elizabeth Moon
22. Cordelia’s Honor ~ Lois McMaster Bujold
23. Courageous ~ Jack Campbell
24. Crime in Literature ~ Vincenzo Ruggiero
25. Cure For The Common Life ~ Max Lucardo
26. Dark Alchemy ~ Various
27. Darksong ~ Isobelle Carmody
28. Dead White Males ~ David Williamson
29. Death's Acre ~ Bass & Jefferson
30. Deep Water ~ Debi Gliori
31. Desire of Ages ~ Ellen G. White
32. Do I Really Have To Teach Reading? ~ Chris Tovani
33. Emma ~ Jane Austen
34. Engaging The Enemy ~ Elizabeth Moon
35. Eucalyptus ~ Murray Bail
36. Fallen Gods ~ Quintin Jardine
37. Fearless ~ Jack Campbell
38. Flying Stories ~ Various
39. Fool's Fate ~ Robin Hobb
40. For The Love Of A Dog: Understanding Emotion In Your Best Friend ~ Patricia McDonnell
41. Grimm's Fairy Tales
42. His Last Bow ~ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
43. His Needs, Her Needs ~ Willard F. Harley
44. How Dogs Learn ~Burch & Bailey
45. How To Behave So Your Dog Behaves ~ Yin
46. How Weather Works ~ Rene Chaboud
47. Huckleberry Finn ~ Mark Twain
48. Hunting Down the Universe ~ Michael Hawkins
49. Ice Bird ~ David Lewis
50. In The Living Forest
51. Intelligence in Animals ~ Reader's Digest
52. Ironside ~ Holly Black
    
53. Jane Eyre ~ Charlotte Bronte
54. Johnny and the Dead ~ Terry Pratchett
55. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell vol. 2 ~ Susanna Clarke
56. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell vol. 3 ~ Susanna Clarke
57. Jurassic Park ~ Michael Crichton
58. Just One Look ~ Harlan Coben
59. Lady Susan ~ Jane Austen
60. Last of the Wilds ~ Trudi Canavan
61. Life, The Universe and Everything ~ Douglas Adams
62. Light - Science and Magic ~ Fil Hunter
63. Love & Respect ~ Eggerichs
64. Lucky Man: A Memoir ~ Michael J. Fox
65. Malafrena ~ Ursula Le Guin
66. Malicious Cryptography: Exposing Cryptovirology ~ Young and Yung
67. Malinche ~ Laura Esquivel
68. Mansfield Park ~ Jane Austen
69. Marque and Reprisal ~ Elizabeth Moon
70. Marrying Mozart ~ Stephanie Cowell
71. Mercy Alexander ~ George Tiffin
72. Midnight's Children ~ Salman Rushdie
73. Mission Canyon ~ Meg Gardiner
74. Mostly Harmless ~ Douglas Adams
75. Mrs Dalloway ~ Virginia Woolf
76. Murano Glass ~ Gianfranco Toso
77. Murano: The Glass-Making Island ~ Rosa Barovier Mentasti
78. Must Love Hellhounds ~ Meljean Brook (ed)
79. Mysteries of the Rainforest ~ Reader's Digest
80. Nature and Art ~ Inchbald
81. Nature's Masterpieces ~ Reader's Digest
82. No Wonder They Call Him Saviour ~ Max Lucardo
83. Northanger Abbey ~ Jane Austen
84. Notes from A Big Country ~ Bill Bryson
85. One Night With The King ~ Tommy Tenney
86. Only You Can Save Mankind ~ Terry Pratchett
87. Parasite Rex ~ Carl Zimmer
88. Patriot Games ~ Tom Clancy
89. Persuasion ~ Jane Austen
90. Possessions ~ Nancy Holder
91. Pretty Little Devils ~ Nancy Holder
92. Rampant ~ Diana Peterfreund
    
93. Relentless ~ Jack Campbell
94. Resistance to Civil Government ~ Thoreau
95. Search for Life ~ Monica Grady
96. Secrets of the Sea ~ Reader's Digest
97. Sense and Sensibility ~ Jane Austen
98. Seven Little Australians ~ Ethel Turner
99. Shaman’s Crossing ~ Robin Hobb
100. Ship of Destiny ~ Robin Hobb
101. Six Hours One Friday ~ Max Lucardo
102. Smokescreen ~ Robert Sabbag
103. So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish ~ Douglas Adams
104. Somebody’s Horse ~ Morrison
105. Son of a Witch ~ Gregory Maguire
106. Speaking For Myself Again ~ Cheryl Kernot
107. Spook’s Mistake ~ Joseph Delaney
108. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer ~ Mark Twain
109. The Architecture of Happiness ~ Alain De Botton
110. The Art of Racing In The Rain ~ Garth Stein
111. The Brain That Changes Itself ~ Norman Doidge
112. The Conspiracy Club ~ Jonathan Kellerman
113. The Count of Monte Cristo ~ Alexandre Dumas
114. The Da Vinci Decode ~ Kent & Rodionoff
115. The Dark Is Rising Sequence ~ Susan Cooper
116. The Dead-Tossed Waves ~ Carrie Ryan
     
117. The Five Love Languages of Children ~ Chapman & Campbell
118. The Forest of Hands and Teeth ~ Carrie Ryan
     
119. The Ghost With Trembling Wings ~ Scott Weidensaul
120. The God of Small Things ~ Arundati Roy
121. The Golden Fool ~ Robin Hobb
122. The Great Game ~ Frederick P. Hitz
123. The Hunger Games ~ Suzanne Collins
124. The Intelligence of Dogs ~ Stanley Cohen
125. The Jesus I Never Knew ~ Philip Yancey
126. The Lizard Cage ~ Karen Connelly
127. The Mad Ship ~ Robin Hobb
128. The Making of Love ~ S & S Biddulph
129. The Man With The Lead Stomach ~ Jean-Francois Parot
130. The Name of The Rose ~ Umberto Eco
131. The Official CIA Manual of Deception and Trickery ~ Keith H. Melton
132. The Physical World of Late Antiquity ~ Sambursky
133. The Picture of Dorian Gray ~ Oscar Wilde
134. The Prelude ~ William Wordsworth
135. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe ~ Douglas Adams
136. The Ruins of Gorlan ~ John Flannagan
137. The Sense of Being Stared At ~
138. The Shipping News ~ Annie Proulx
139. The Silmarillion ~ J.R.R. Tolkein
140. The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Fantasy ~ foreword by Terry Pratchett
141. The World’s Most Mysterious Places ~ Readers’ Digest
142. The Zookeeper’s War ~ Steven Conte
143. Thunderhead ~ Mary O’Hara
144. Tithe ~ Holly Black
     
145. Tommo and Hawk ~ Bryce Courtney
146. Trading in Danger ~ Elizabeth Moon
147. Trainspotting ~ Irvine Welsh
148. Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone ~ Mark Winston
149. Turtle Island ~ Sergio Ghione
150. Unseen Academicals ~ Terry Pratchett
151. Valiant ~ Holly Black
     
152. Valiant ~ Jack Campbell
153. Vellum ~ Hal Duncan
154. Victory Conditions ~ Elizabeth Moon
155. Walden ~ Thoreau
156. Weather ~ Various
157. Weatherwise ~ David Ellyard
158. What Colour Is Your Parachute? ~ Bolles
159. Why Spy? ~ Frederick P. Hitz
160. Why Youth Is Not Wasted On The Young ~ Bjorklund
161. Wicked ~ Gregory Maguire
162. Wicked: Curse ~ Nancy Holder
163. Wicked: Legacy ~ Nancy Holder
164. Wicked: Resurrection ~ Nancy Holder
165. Wicked: Spellbound ~ Nancy Holder
166. Wicked: Witch ~ Nancy Holder
167. Wild Animus ~ Rich Schapero
168. Wild At Heart ~ John Eldridge
169. Wings ~ Aprilynne Pike
170. Wolves ~ L. David Mech
171. Wormwood ~ G.P. Taylor
172. Young Miles ~ Lois McMaster Bujold
173. Young Zaphod Plays It Safe ~ Douglas Adams
174. Zombies vs. Unicorns ~ Holly Black (ed)