more blame to dole out...

Just a quick update on the blame game.

*Rudyard Kipling's Tales of Horror & Fantasy edited by Stephen Jones. Carl mentioned this one a couple years back and it has been on my PaperbackSwap wish list ever since. Well, until now, as it finally became available, and then became mine. :)

*The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill. Okay, I have no idea if darling Heather has even read this book, and yet I'm still making her suck up a point for it. Reason being, she told me that I really needed to read The Man in the Picture. At the time, I'd never even heard of Susan Hill. But I immediately went and put her books on my PaperbackSwap wish list, and this one just came up. Sorry if this seems unfair, Heather dear, but it really is your fault. :P

*Drood by Dan Simmons. I resisted this for a long time (mostly because of its length), but finally Pat's enthusiasm over this book just got to me and I had to order it from PaperbackSwap.

*Miracle and Other Christmas Stories by Connie Willis. Again that old wish list on PaperbackSwap finally came through. I added this just about this time last year when dear Ana reviewed it. It was the perfect time of year for it to come available...if only I'd left myself any time for reading during the hustle and bustle of the holidays.

*Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link. If I'd seen this book at a used book store or a thrift store, I likely would have picked it up anyway. But it was Ana's review that made me actively seek it out. Thanks yet again, PaperbackSwap. And thanks again, dear Ana, though it also comes with a bit of "Must you keep doing this to me???" :P

And now, the Christmas loot that came attached with blame:

*One Girl Cookies by Dawn Casale & David Crofton. There was never any doubt in my mind that I would buy this book, it being Chris's favorite cookbook. The fact that he gave it to me before I had a chance to buy it does not save him from shouldering the blame for it.

*I Hunt Killer by Barry Lyga. After reading Christina's review I practically begged Rich to get me this one for Christmas. And he did. :D

*After: Nineteen Stories of Apocalypse and Dystopia edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. First heard about this book from Susan. It was going to be mine--apocalyptic/dystopian, short stories, edited by Datlow and Windling--no question.

And as this wraps up last year's blame-laden acquisitions, I guess it's time to call this round finished. Anyone surprised to hear that Ana is the winner??? See!!! This is why I have to devote the entire Long-Awaited Reads Month solely to books she's made me buy! :P (Ana, I shall email you to find out if there's a book you're dying to get or if I should just surprise you.)

a quick blame game update...

...so I can finally put these books away. :P These first three came from PaperbackSwap.

*Mallory's Oracle by Carol O'Connell sees Susan being stuck with her second point from this post. Haha--the evil of series, huh?

*Labor Day by Joyce Maynard. Honestly not a book that normally would catch my eye, but dammit Chris made me think I had to have it with his review, so he must suck up a point as well.

*The Tricksters by Margaret Mahy. Yep, the lovely Ana who could probably convince me to read book on lawn mower repair. :P This review--no resisting.

...and this one came from one of the funniest bloggers on the planet.

*The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan. And yes, Jill is being shouldered with the blame despite her kindness in sending it to me. Despite the fact that I'm not much of a paranormal girl, her review left me wanting to read this one badly.

I will say that I'm mighty proud of myself though...only four books in about two months! I know, I know--who is this woman?!! :P (Okay, okay, I did also get three books that I couldn't pawn off blame for, but still, you gotta admit I'm showing impressive restraint lately!)

back to the blame game...

I've decided to pick up with the blame game again. It's been a few years, but these days it should be much more manageable because I really am better at *not* accumulating books than I once was. So starting today, I shall again start keeping track of who is to blame for the books coming into my home. I'll probably post about once or twice a month, and end up this round at the end of the year. End it up by saddling the winner with a book so that their bookshelves can sag a little more, just as mine do thanks to their book-pushery.

Sorry for the lousy picture (didn't realize it was so bad until I uploaded it, and well, I'm just far too lazy to do it again). These are the books that came into the old abode yesterday. And no, I wasn't lying about the "getting better" thing--HONEST!--it's just that yesterday was the start of our library sale. Supporting a good cause and all that. Okay, the blame:

*Find Me by Carol O'Connell. Susan is to blame for her review. And I gotta say I'm a tad worried that she'll be picking up a bunch more points, because this book is just one in what looks like a pretty long series, and I suspect I'm going to enjoy it quite a bit. Oooh, and I'm being such a rebel here--this isn't even the first book in the series, but I'm going to read it first anyway!

*Self-Made Man: One Woman's Year Disguised as a Man by Norah Vincent. Chris is sucking up the blame for this one. Yep, even though he hasn't read it yet. But see, he really made me want to read another of Vincent's books, Voluntary Madness, which yes, I already bought. And you know how these things are...sometimes the desire for one book leads to the desire for another book which leads to the desire for another book... Well, all that damn desiring is getting laid squarely at the feet of the original pusher--I am shirking all responsibility.

*The Girls by Lori Lansens. Okay, this may seem profoundly unfair--ask my dear friends to make these beautiful lists of books for me to read for my happiness project and then saddle them with the blame when I actually buy the book. You know what, tough! Sorry, Kelly, but you're stuck with it.

*Still Alice by Lisa Genova. Wow-I've been wanting this one a long time, as in early 2009. Ever since I read Staci's review. Seems it doesn't matter how much time has passed, huh, one is never safe from blame.

*Affinity by Sarah Waters. Okay, this is the fifth Sarah Waters book I've bought. And every single one of them, I bought because of Ana. You know, because I'd buy a washing machine manual if she recommended it. Anyway, one of these days, I really will get around to actually reading a Sarah Waters book...

*Cereus Blooms at Night by Shani Mootoo. Surprise, surprise...Ana gets another point. Absolutely powerless to resist this review.

*Then by Morris Gleitzman. Sorry Ana. What can I say? You made me read Gleitzman's Two Weeks with the Queen, which I promptly fell passionately in love with. So it's no surprise that I now pick up Gleitzman's books whenever I see them.

*Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. Yep, you guessed it. Ana's review. One of those classic cases of Ana leaving me dying to read a book that I wouldn't have touched with a 10-foot pole before her review. :P

I tried really, really hard to find a way to blame people for the other books, but I guess I'm just not clever enough. I especially would have loved to do that for the book I bought but already owned...yeah, I've got more problems than just not being terribly clever, huh? But I've now got a spare used copy of The Wooden Sea by Jonathan Carroll, so if anyone would like it, just speak up. (Though I'm still really horrible about actually making it to the post office, so it could be a couple weeks.)