The First 30 Days, by Ariane de Bonvoisin

How do you deal with change? With stress?

Although I have many fears, I’m proud to say that change isn’t one of them. Then again, little beyond my age and hairstyle has changed much over the years. I’d like to think that I handle change well, but I really can’t be sure.

Mostly, though, I hide from change (or even just stressful things in general), doing anything in my power to avoid dealing with the situation. When this isn’t possible, I’d like to say that I always deal positively, like by exercising or reading. Sometimes this is true, but I’m also liable to shove food and/or alcohol down my throat instead. Good times.

When You Are Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris

My latest review is available at Pajiba, this time on the latest by David Sedaris, When You Are Engulfed in Flames.

Many critics complain that this latest collection of personal essays isn't as hilarious as previous collections, such as Naked, which, to be fair, made me wet my pants from laughing too hard. However, comparing Engulfed to Naked is, in my mind, a bit unfair, and you can read what I say in response to such criticism here.

In a nutshell: Perhaps not as hilarious as previous works, but that doesn't mean When You Are Engulfed in Flames isn't worth the read.

Bibliolatry Scale: 5 out of 6 stars

Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity, by Kerry Cohen

Like all bibliophiles, I have my pet peeves when it comes to books. One such peeve involves the dust jackets which accompany hardcover books. In general I find them annoying, and never do I read with them on -- they get all flimsy and wonky and they're just generally a pain in the ass. Needless to say, immediately upon reading a hardcover book, the first thing I do is remove the dust jacket and store it atop a bookshelf in my library. Priorities, and all that.

Dead Star Twilight, by Chez Pazienza

I've just had the honor of being the first person to have ever reviewed Dead Star Twilight, the self-published memoir by Chez Pazienza, author of Deus Ex Malcontent.

Dead Star Twilight is a frenetic, wild ride that describes the true-life downfall and resurrection of the author. It's insane, it's debauched, it's frequently disgusting -- and if it didn't make Chez look like a piece of shit I'd doubt it was true. Thankfully, Chez has firmly closed the door on that period of his life, and his description of these dark days is both touching and entertaining.

Click here to read the review, which is posted over at Pajiba, and be sure to check out Deus Ex Malcontent to download Dead Star Twilight when you're finished.

In a nutshell: I think that if I ever [..........SPOILER REMOVED..........] I would have taken that shit to my grave.

Bibliolatry Scale: 5.5 out of 6 stars

Soldier's Heart, by Elizabeth Samet

How do you convince an eighteen-year-old cadet that poetry has any relevance to his life? Poetry seems pretty unimportant in the face of roadside bombs and suicide bombers. Hell, I have a hard time justifying poetry to my eighteen-year-old students, and none of them will ever come close to Iraq. So I read Samet’s Soldier’s Heart with a special interest, although one does not need to be an English teacher to enjoy this memoir.

Larryisms: Book One, by Larry John

For the record, Larry John seems like a nice guy. He seems like the type who could swig back a few beers, tell a few stories, and eat so much off the grill that you feel like an anorexic supermodel standing next to him. And to that I say: Bravo, Larry John.

However, a good drinking buddy does not a good author make, so I’m just gonna call this one like I see it right from the get-go: at best, this is a bathroom book, plain and simple. At worst, well, it’s a waste of money, but I got it for free, so no worries on my end.

The second of my Book of the Month posts for our student services blog went up yesterday. Fiction next month, Nonfiction again in May (both TBD at this point). I need to have an every-other rule so that I don't focus too much on fiction.

Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

Subtitled "The Fates of Human Societies", Guns, Germs, and Steel won the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction in 1998. Diamond, a professor of geography at UCLA, sums up the 480-page book with the following sentence: "History followed different courses for different peoples because of differences among the peoples' environments, not because of biological differences among peoples themselves" (25).

Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography, by Andrew Morton

I remember being a wee lass and seeing commercials for L. Ron Hubbard’s Dianetics on tv. It was such a neat commercial – there was a volcano, and a loud, booming voice, and so it seemed to me like a really cool book. Then again, I was eight.

The Fall of the House of Bush, by Craig Unger

My latest review for the good people over at Pajiba is up, for a book that is astounding for, among other things, its amazingly long title: The Fall of the House of Bush: The Untold Story of How a Band of True Believers Seized the Executive Branch, Started the Iraq War, and Still Imperils America's Future.