Bridge to Terabithia - Katherine Paterson

I absolutely loved this book as a child but had only a vague recollection as to it's actual content so I wanted to reread it before seeing the movie. Sometimes when you go back to watch a movie or read a book that you loved as a child, seeing it as an adult with all of it's flaws ruins the memory for you (I'm looking at you "Goonies"). This was not the case for Bridge to Terabithia. While I may not have enjoyed it as much as when I was a kid, it took me back for a good look at who I was then and I understood what I got out of it. I can remember sobbing at the sad parts and thrilling at the exciting parts and while these emotions did not hit me as deeply as an adult, they were still a part of the experience. This is truly a well-crafted book, deserving of its awards.

You Suck: A Love Story - Christopher Moore

I didn't realize when I picked this one up that it was a continuation of Bloodsucking Fiends with a cameo of Charlie from A Dirty Job. Looking at the order in which Christopher Moore's novels were written explains a lot. The ones that I didn't like so much were his older work, which sharply improved with Lamb and progressed through Fluke, The Stupidest Angel, A Dirty Job and now, You Suck.

I found You Suck to be an entertaining and enjoyable light read. Exactly what I needed.

Ysabel - Guy Gavriel Kay

I was incredibly excited that Kay, author of one of my all-time favorite books: The Lions of Al-Rassan, had finally published a new novel. Boy, was I disappointed in this one.

Ysabel was somewhat of a continuation of The Fionavar Tapestry trilogy, although it wasn't advertised that way. I kind of wish it had been so that my expectations would have been lower. While the premise was good and some of the characters were interesting, it just wasn't very well executed. It felt like it needed some serious editing to realize it's potential. I was particularly turned off by the weird sexual attraction that materialized out of nowhere at the end of the story between the high school kid and the woman who acted like his mom. When the author implied that they were having sex, I almost stopped reading the book in absolute disgust. Since it was only a few pages to the end I persevered and it redeemed itself somewhat, but I was seriously not impressed. In all, this novel was a disappointment.

Moab is my washpot – Stephen Fry

I didn't realize that this was an autobiographical novel until I already had it out of the library. I can't decide if I liked it or not, but judging by the expression on my face while writing this, I didn't. It definitely isn't "the story of how great I am" or "the story of how I overcame adversity", which is good because I find those a bit off-putting (and which is why I seldom read autobiographies). If there is a quota for gay reading, I have filled it in the last month. If there is a quota for reading about poo I have reached that too. I'm sad to have read this because it seems to have somewhat tainted my view of "Making History". Drat.

Making history – Stephen Fry

A complete turnaround on Fry. I loved this book! I enjoyed the concept (what effect would it have on the world if you send a male contraceptive pill back in time to Hitler's father well) and the characters, who I was both interested in and attached to. What a comeback!