Cracking a Goddamn Book & On the Wrong Side of the 4th Wall - Stiches

              Yeah, I count this both as a novel and a comic, so it goes in both. Stitches is a memoir by artist David Small. I was assigned to read this for my ENGL2 class, and read it I did. This is great book. It has some very funny moments, but on the whole it is a dark, depressing, strange, and just plain interesting ride down this man's past. What really propels it forward is the fact that it's portrayed from how he remembers the events, making them exaggerated. And not in the funny way. His imagination is trippy as fuck. It's funny, because as I told the class I can't really relate to David at all. My childhood was happy, in pretty much every aspect. Reading this was like listening to some of my friends tell me how shitty their childhood's were. I listen, and I feel bad, but I can't ever reciprocate any understanding, because I don't. The art is good, the writing is amazing, it's just a great book. heavily recommended to everyone reading this.

Cracking a Goddamn Book-Future Sight

 

                Ahhh, finally. The end of the Time Spiral trilogy. And let me tell you, I think it ended on a high note. This is probably my favorite book in the trilogy. I think all the characters pretty much peaked in awesomeness here. The dialogue was at it's best, the story was kick-ass, and just in general it didn't suffer from the problems Planar Chaos did. Very good, can't wait to start another book in the franchise. But to do so, I'll have to go back, back to the beginning!

Cracking a Goddamned Book-Planar Chaos

                    This book is very similar to it's predecessor. Because of that, I won't mention all the things it does right, because they're the same things as the first book. Instead I'll talk about what pisses me off: Teferi. I love him as a character, but for most of the book he is wasted. He acts exactly like he did in the first book, but now, for some reason, no one trusts him at all. It is eventually explained, but I spent the majority of the book hating all the characters for being massive dicks to Teferi. An okay book, but it could have been so much better if it hadn't suppressed it's best character.

Cracking a Goddamned Book-Time Spiral

                Hell yeah! I love Magic: The Gathering, and have been a fan since 7th Grade. (To those in the know, I am a total Timmy Vorthos.) I love the storylines, the gameplay is fun, and smashing things with my Darksteel Colossus is so much fun. This is the first Magic novel I've read in a while, and I love it. Time Spiral is one of my favorite blocks in the series, so I was pretty excited to read this.

              For those not in the know, Magic is all about the Multiverse, the infinite number of planes of existence. The planes have only one constant: 1 out of every 1,000,000 sapient beings is born with the Spark. When a being with the Spark is incredibly stressed, sad, or angry their Spark ignites, and becomes a Planeswalker. A Planeswalker is a super powerful magic user, with the ability to planeswalk between the planes as simply as if they were walking to the next room. The center of the multiverse is a plane called Dominaria, which is featured in far more sets than any other plane.

           The Planeswalker Teferi is thousands of years old, and is mostly a kind and joking guy. One day he goes to his eternally young friend Jhoira, to tell her something important and serious. Their home plane of Dominaria is in danger. You see, over the course of the series, it has had three Apocalypses. (Apocali?) This has caused huge tears in the fabric of space and time, and will  tear Dominaria and the Multiverse apart.

          I love the case here. Teferi is made of epic win, and Venser is awesome. Radha is a bitch, but hilarious and Jhoira is pretty cool too. To writing is pretty good, it definitely helps build a mental picture of the landscape. The dialogue is damn good. I really enjoyed the story, and can't wait to tear through the next book. Overall, a great read for fantasy fans, especially those already enjoying the card game.

Cracking a Goddamned Book-The Wavering of Haruhi Suzumiya

                    Live Alive: It's the school's cultural festival. Haruhi is showing off their 'movie', Yuki is a fortune teller (Who is too accurate for her own good), Mikuru is a maid/waitress, and Kyon is bored, walking from room to room, trying to find something to do. Then he goes to the band's concert, where a surprise hits him sqaure in the jaw. This is one of three chapters I would say is far better in the anime than in the books. Here, it is of no fault of the book. It's a fun chapter, but the problem is that it attempts to describe rock music, when the anime has rock music playing. And let me tell you, it is amazing. Another oddity, this is the only episode I always have to watch in Japanese, simply because the lyrics are translated and sung not nearly as good as the original. Fun story.

                   The Adventures of Mikuru Asahina Episode 00: this is the movie the Brigade made over the course of Sigh, and screened last chapter. Like the preceding chapter, this one is far better in the anime, where you can hear Kyon's exasperated narrating, see the terrible effects, and hear the painfully bad acting.

                   Love at First Sight: Some guy Kyon used to know in middle school calls him up outta the blue. Seems he saw Kyon walking with a girl a while back, and fell in love immediately. When he tries to pry, he discovers the girl was...Yuki Nagato. This chapter is funny, cool, and the ending is a beautiful mixture of sadness and humanity. I always love Yuki-centric chapters, and this one is no exception.

                  Where Did the Cat Go?: After the chapter Snowy Mountain Syndrome, the Brigade arrives back at Tsuruya's resort and Itsuki treats them all to another murder mystery, but this time they'll know it's fake the whole time. This chapter really fails to compare well to it's predecessor, Remote Island Syndrome. The mystery there was cool, the characters had good interactions, and it was a tense ride. The same can not be said for this story. The mystery is pretty simple, and because we know from the start it isn't real, it lacks any real tension. The only saving grace for me is a great conversation between Kyon and Itsuki, that allows them to play off each other well, and get a bit more of Itsuki's character.

                  The Melancholy of Mikuru Asahina: Mikuru takes Kyon on a...date. But she is sad the entire time, and things are not as they seem. Ties with the third for my favorite chapter of the book. It goes more into Mikuru's character then any other chapter, period. It also alludes to something bigger coming up, and I think I know what it is. It definitely ended with me wanting the next book.

                 Which is just me being impatient. The next book, The Intrigues of Haruhi Suzumiya, won't out until June. This really depresses me, as I am now caught up with this great series, waiting like everyone else for the next release. This book is definitely a mixed bag. Some chapters are great, and some of my favorites in a while. Others are much better done is the anime, or just mediocre stories in general. Tomorrow is the big wrap-up, where I lay down what I like, and don't, about this beloved franchise. Until then, laters.

Cracking a Goddamned Book-The Rampage of Haruhi Suzumiya

               This is another anthology book, so I'll once again break things down by story.

                Endless Eight: Unlike the anime, which had this as 8 EPISODES this is one 54 page chapter. It's two weeks until summer vacation ends, and for some reason Kyon keeps getting deja vu as Haruhi drags the Brigade around to do 'summer' things. It turns out that they...

                  ...yeah that. Basically Haruhi isn't happy with how summer vacation has turned out, and is looping it over and over again until she is satisfied. How many times? This happens to be the 15,495th loop. And poor Yuki experienced every single one, and remembers all of them completely clearly. This all takes place before the previous novel, and I think it did contribute in a way to what happened there, but I won't say here. Overall, I really love this story. Funny stuff, time travel, and a focus on Yuki all equals a thumbs up from me.

              The Day of Sagittarius: Another one of my favorites, both in the anime and novel. The president of the computer club shows up, and is very mad about the...incident at the beginning of the series. He wants his computer back, and is challenging the S.O.S. Brigade to a game they made. If the Club wins, they get their computer and Yuki. If the Brigade wins, they get 4 new laptops. It goes on from their, but it's a lot of fun. I prefer the anime version, mostly because of the stellar visuals and tiny details. Also this:

Yes, those are Haruhi's legs. THE GREATEST ENTRANCE OF ALL TIME!

                   Snowy Mountain Syndrome: Now, this is the first part of the story I've read in the novels that I haven't either already seen in anime form, or known that it existed in that form already. This chapter has not been adapted, and because of the sad cancer diagnosis of Haruhi's star seiyuu Aya Hirano, it is likely it never will be. Because of that, it is the first time I've left of Haruhi story confused and scared. I don't know what happened here, and have no clue what will happen next. Basically, Tsuruya and the Brigade (plus Kyon's sister) go to her family's ski resort for the weekend. In the middle of walking back after skiing, a huge blizzard hits, and after walking for hours they haven't seen a single landmark. And then they find a mansion, stocked with everything needed to live, and no one home. I won't go beyond there, but holy shit. I still don't know how much I love this chapter, but it is really good. I'm left at the end with no explanation of how this all happened, only speculation from the characters and myself. I cannot wait to start on the next book, which should be tomorrow.

             Overall, this is my favorite anthalogy book I've read. I really like all the stories here, and they seem to be related...somehow. Only time will tell. Laters.

Cracking a Goddamned Book-The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

               This is the 3rd, and newest in America, plot book in the series. It is...wow. Let's start with the plot. Basically, Kyon wakes up one day to find it...normal. Haruhi and Itsuki are just...gone, and noone remembers them but him. Yuki is a shy bookworm, but otherwise normal. Mikuru is the same naive girl, but you won't hear the word classified from her. She isn't a time traveler, she's normal. Every person in this world is normal. Everyone except Kyon.

              I won't go beyond there in the plot, because trust me, it needs to be experienced. I l-o-v-e the story here, easily my favorite in the series. The writing is still top notch, turning are usual perspective through Kyon for fun, now instead of snark, we feel his confusion, terror, and rage. It works absolute wonders. This is easily my favorite book in the series I've read. So highly recommended, I might buy extra copies for people who want to read it. Laters.

Cracking a Goddamned Book-The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya

               Now, unlike the last two, this is the first 'anthology' book in the series, so instead of talking about it as a whole, I'll focus on each individual story. Before that though, a quick note that this book takes place before Sigh, and if you think it's confusing now, just wait until later.

               The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya-Basically, Haruhi gets bored and signs the brigade up in a baseball tourney. It's fun, silly, and mostly time-wasty nonsense. There are two exceptions to this. The first is this is chronologically the first time Kyon met Tsuruya. The second is when Kyon asks Yuki if she can make it rain and cancel the game. She says no, because it would have horrible environmental effects several hundred thousand years from now. It's significant because of the way she says it, with Kyon noting a tad of determination in her voice, another sign of her growing emotions.

                Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody-It's Tannibata, a Japanese holiday, and Haruhi throws a small party. Kyon soon discovers that this is the 3 year anniversary of Haruhi defacing her middle school's field with chalk, which was mentioned in the first episode. Mikuru and him go back to that date, where Kyon must do something. I won't spoil from there, but this one is good. I always love a good 'whipply-wobbly timey-wimey' story, and this one's okay. I can't say specifically what is important here, because pretty much all of it is, and far more so then you would guess on first reading.

               Mysterique Sign-Haruhi draws a symbol for the S.O.S. Brigade, and sticks it up on their site. The computer club president apparently has a girlfriend, and she's turned to the Brigade to find him after he's gone missing. How are these connected? Read and find out. I really like this one. The interplay between characters is great in some scenes, and the things the happen (no spoilers here) are awesome. I think this is one of the few times I prefer the anime to the books, as what happens seems so much more awesome there. From everything I hear about the upcoming books the president's girlfriend, Emiri Kimidori, becomes important later on. We also learn that the clubroom is in a place where so many odd things class just right, that it cancels out all weirdness within. Cool.

           Remote Island Syndrome-It's summer break, and Koizumi invites everyone to his rich relative's mansion on a remote island in the middle of the sea. They stay, and when they do a murder happens. This story takes up nearly half of the book, and was the only 2 parter in the anime. It definitely makes use of the time, and both the story and episodes are some of my favorite in the series. I'm a huge mystery fan, and this episode is a very fun one. This is the only time when there was a large change from book to anime, where in the anime they added Kyon's sister going. The reason why is there's a scene in the book (a very funny one mind you) that they all get drunk. Apparently they thought that went too far, even in Japan. So instead of them not doing it because they're saints, they brought Kyon's sister, and who would get drunk around an 8-year old kid. The only really significant thing I can think of right now is that this is the first appearance of a group of 4 people who we'll be seeing a lot of over time.

        That about raps up this book. It's very funny, and pretty good for the first 'anthology' book. Laters.