i can't really sing, so

This is a meme going around facebook. I like lists, but I also like annotating lists. I, in fact, have made annotated tracklists for mixtapes/CDs I've given to friends. So, this. Notably, this is in "no particular order". It also considers that I have been a "reader" since I learned to read. Ostensibly, this list should be much longer & books that have stayed with me have been edited from here. "Stayed with me" is sort of a hard designation. There are books I love, books I consider my "favorites" that aren't on this list. This is because sometimes I read something and love it, but the plot/characters/etc. go out the window when I think back on it. Often I can tell you why I know I love the book, but not much else about my own personal relationship with it. Does that mean it has "stayed with" me? Not so much as the books on this list, which I can relate facts about AND tell you why I loved it. I tried to avoid books that stic...

I am a bit "late" on this post. My December has been quite busy. Onwards... Mission:  to read 52 books in 2012 Books Read in 2012 thus far : 57 # of Books Read, November:  4 MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Notes on Books Read: 54)  Sherwood Forest by Camille Roy This was a strange, very sexual, book of poetry that I felt picked up speed towards its second half. Roy puts her more "obvious" poems towards the front of the collection, though I would be amiss to say that any of them are truly obvious. They are all there for a reader to unravel. My favorite poems were "Lucky Fortune is Good", "Princess & Salt: A Ballad", and "Artifact". In my unique, personal way of "ranking" books, it received a plus sign and an ellipses.  55)  NW  by Zadie Smith It's no secret Zadie Smith is my favorite. This being said, I wanted to like this book more than I did, but I sti...

September was a recovery month for my book-reading habits. After it took me nearly the entirety of August to read Don Quixote , I was ready to read a variety and a lot of books for September. Also, I'm jealous of everyone who got to go back to school, so I tried to self-educate as much as possible... books read: September The Second Elizabeth by Karen Lillis I must, unfortunately, refrain from commenting on this lovely little joy of a novel in order to encourage you all to buy Gigantic Sequins issue 1.2 and read my review there! Eragon / Eldest / Brisingr by Christopher Paolini Eragon and Eldest were rereads in order that I could finally, after purchasing it last fall the DAY it came out, read the third part of this series, Brisingr . I believe there is only one more book left in it, and I look forward to rereading these three again in anticipation of the fourth. Something about young adult fantasy always does it for me-- when it's well-done. Paolini truly capture...

i have officially handed in my masters thesis / special project to the NYU English department and hope that i will pass and therefore graduate, well, today. commencement is today. therefore, as far as i know, i have earned my MA from NYU in English. yes, and i still do not like to write using capital letters. because of my insanely busy April schedule that bled into March, (masters thesis, issue 1.1 of Gigantic Sequins release and release parties, etc.) i thought i wouldn't be able to read much, but i wound up finishing more books than i thought i would. books read: april Cultural Theory & Popular Culture: An Introduction by John Storey I read this for my thesis to get a better background of cultural theory from a British point of view. It was effective, except I wish I had gotten through the middle of it quicker than it took me because all of the more interesting and pertinent points of view came towards the end. I learned some new names and relearned some older ones. This b...

...in addition (i typed "addiction" first, ha,) to writing one poem per day for poetry month, i have been trying to read a poem a day (mostly yes have done this, mostly have read many poems each day, as it should be) and also write a sentence about a poem each day, a poem i liked a lot. usually me liking a poem involves me paying a lot of attention to it. i think that these sentences have so far turned out rather good. ... i passed my Foreign Language Proficiency Exam, which means if i pass my thesis, i will have my masters degree in May. that's soon. ...GIGANTIC sequins arrived at my house YESTERDAY. and it's WONDERFUL. if you can't make it out to our NYC release on 4/25 (8pm-??) or our Boston release on 4/28 (9pm-??) or our event at Emerson College on 4/29 (3-5 pm) ... you can order a copy by emailing us at [ giganticmagazine@gmail.com ] ...SOON, you will be able to order copies from our website [ www.giganticmagazine.org ], but for now, email invoices it is. ...

in April, everything is poetry. i was interviewed by thunk blog. read all about it here . thank you ryan manning . i want to know how to do the tinyurl thing. sometimes it does it by itself. sometimes it doesn't. this confuses me. i read almost all fiction in month. totally weird. but this is my blog post for... books read: march How to be alone by Jonathan Franzen this book of essays consistently teaches its title with grace and goodwill. i liked the one about the post office in Chicago a lot because i love the post office. i liked this book. i like being alone. i might like being alone more now that i've learned to appreciate it via completion of this excellent book. the paperback one i read has an extra essay in it that the hardcover doesn't. read the paperback. The Proof of the Honey by Salwa Al Neimi read a review of this book that sounds like part of an academic essay in GIGANTIC SEQUINS volume 1.1, which is coming out so soon, so soon. Ghosts by Cesar Aira this ...

there is a first time for everything. this is the first week since i began weekly to blog my book purchases from the strand where i work that i haven't broken any self-imposed book-buying rules. i also only bought two books. i might write more about mens' ncaa basketball tomorrow, but today this post will be short and about the books i bought today. i am feeling a bit under the weather. i did not get a lot of sleep last night. my birthday was thursday and fun. justin left today to go back to boston. all of the bands are booked for our boston release at All Asia on tuesday, april 28th. we will post all of the information for that very soon. Rothenberg, Jerome and Pierre Joris. Poems for the Millennium: Volume 2, From Postwar to Millennium. Berkley, CA: University of California Press, 1998. [paperback] Last week I bought volume 1 and 3 of these excellent poetry anthologies, so by purchasing this one I am all caught up, I now own each of them that has already been published. I ...

Books Read: February Usually, I have to say, I read more than this. I have been consumed with Gigantic Magazine [now Gigantic Sequins] for most of this month, and also my masters thesis. I should have worked more on both my thesis and relearning the French language for my foreign language proficiency exam on Friday, but. Here’s the deal. I keep track of the books I read on pieces of paper I keep in a folder I’ve had since 8 th grade. I have kept a list of every book I've ever completed reading since July of 2000. There are some rules. I have to actually finish the book, cover to cover, for it to go on the list. When I was younger, I would put, for example "read four stories from James Joyce's Dubliners ." Yeah, no longer allowed to do that. I should probably keep track of the specific editions I read of each book instead of just the title, author and date finished (oh and my 'rating', but that's a funny little Kim-system I won't bore you all with). I ...