Items about books I want to read, #33

Posted by: A. Rivera on: October 12, 2012

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I have not posted one of these in a while, but with the move to a new town and a new job, blogging here fell by the wayside. I do have a lot of book clippings to go through, so I have material for future posts. Now that I am settling into the new job, I am starting to feel that I have some time to read for fun and learning as well as blog here and in the other blogs. So, without further disclaimers, here is the 33rd list of items about books I want to read. As always, if anyone out there finds something useful to read from these lists, feel free to leave me a comment and let me know what you thought of a particular book.

 

Items about books:

• Featured at The Advocate, a book of photographs of drag performers around the world by Christopher Logan. The book is Dr.a.g. I am adding this because I always like a good photography book, and I am curious to learn more on the topic.
• The topic of how neo-nazis and other assorted right wing hate groups as well as criminals and gang members have been infiltrating the U.S. military is not really new. However, there is a new book on the topic. The book is Irregular Army: How the US Military Recruited Neo-Nazis, Gang Members and Criminals to Fight the War on Terror. Given the U.S. persists on fighting wars abroad, something had to give, and it in this case, what gave were the standards to join the military forces. You can read an excerpt of the book here at AlterNet.
• Boing Boing mentions that one of their friends had work featured in the book The New Erotic Photography, Volume 2. I happen to like erotic photography, so adding the book to my list.
• Via Readers Read blog, a short review of the graphic novel The Art of War.
• Some science fiction. Via Bookgasm, a review of the anthology The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume 6 edited by Jonathan Strahan. I tend to prefer science fiction over fantasy,  but this may be worth a look, especially since it is by volume 6, so it is showing signs of surviving. I know the Better Half, who reads in both genres pretty voraciously, would probably like it.
• Also via Bookgasm, something for the old school men. The book is The Gentry Man: A Guide for the Civilized Male. It is a compendium of articles from Gentry magazine. The reviewer makes it sound like it will also appeal to fans of the show Mad Men.
• Alison Bechdel has another memoir, this time focusing on her mother. The graphic novel is Are You My Mother? A Comic Drama. You can read an interview with her discussing the book and the writing of memoirs at Lambda Literary.
• A little something that may go nicely with the 2012 U.S. election season. Via Readers Read blog, a review of a new book from the Library of Congress. The book is Presidential Campaign Posters from the Library of Congress.
• Staying a bit more with the politics and government theme, a book on comic books issued by government agencies, usually for educational reasons. Highlighted at Free Government Infomation blog here. The book is Government Issue: Comics for the People, 1940s-2000s.
• Via A Case for Suitable Treatment, a review of the short story (rakugo) collection Fallen Words.
• Via My Bookish Ways, a review of the first book of the Alex Verus series, Fated. If you like Jim Butcher, you may like this one as well. I have read Butcher’s work in graphic novel form, but not in full prose.
• The next item is a romance novel set in a steampunk environment. It may be something more suited for the better half, but it sounds intriguing enough I may give it a spin. I am fairly willing to try things out when it comes to books. Anyhow, the book is Geared for Pleasure by Rachel Grace. You know the title already gives a hint or two. The book is highlighted in Reading Between the Wines. For some reason it makes me think of the Kushiel series (link to first book in series), but I would not know for sure until I read it.
• On a different track, a book on bookshelf design. I think this one is more of an art or coffee table book, which may be a nice contrast to The Book on the Bookshelf, which I recently read. The book in question is Alex Johnson’s Bookshelf, and it was reviewed on NPR here.
• The folks at Guys Lit Wire review China Miéville’s Railsea.

Lists and bibliographies:

• Via Comics Alliance, a very useful and interesting list of “50 Comics and Characters That Resonate with LGBT Readers.” There are some titles I have read, but there are others I will be adding to my TBR pile.
• Via Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, they have highlighted “An Annotated Bibliography of Contemporary Romance Scholarship on Romance Readers.“
• The Manga Critic has some “Short Takes” on a couple of titles.
• Via Lambda Literary, a list of new books in May 2012 (yea, I know, I am running a bit behind). There are some titles on this list I may be interested in later.

Tags: books and reading, lists