how strange it is to be anything at all

AthFest was wonderful, as always. A lot of great bands, and, as always, running into friends everywhere.

I also saw Mates of State at the 40 Watt. A great (and adorable!) band who put on a really high-energy show! A comedian named Nick Thune did stand-up before the show- he was pretty hysterical.

I finally got around to reading Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Angel's Game and The Shadow of the Wind. Both excellent and well-crafted gothic novels with suspenseful, character-driven plots. I stopped about halfway through Justin Cronin's The Passage. I have a lot of books on my plate right now and may return to that one later. I can see why Cronin has received so much praise for the novel- he takes a rather tired genre and uses well-developed characters and excellent writing to give it new life. That being said... I think it's just not really my thing.

On the childrens' book front.... My work website has a review of "Lost and Found" by Oliver Jeffers who, along with Peter Sis, is my favorite childrens' author. He is apparently incapable of writing a book that fails to amaze. From the off-beat and amusing "The Incredible Book-Eating Boy" to the moving "The Heart and the Jar," Jeffers's simple, lovely illustrations and sparse prose ensure that each of his books strikes a powerful chord with the reader.

Here's the trailer for "Lost and Found" (it won a BAFTA!)

Which leads to another short I like...

I also recently learned that I will be spending an hour a week in the Young Adult section, which I think is a good enough reason to get to know their collection a little better! That, and the lovely people over there have excellent taste. Thus far, I have read: Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestly (with illustrations and prose evoking Edward Gorey's morbid faux-Victorian/Edwardian works, it's a deliciously chilling collection of short stories all connected in some way to the eponymous Uncle Montague); The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan (the first book in his post-Percy Jackson Kane Chronicles- although an intriguing idea, I was not as immediately attached to the characters or their quest but have decided to withhold judgement until I finish the series); The Neverending Story by Michael Ende, beautifully translated by Ralph Manheim (WHERE has this book been all my life? When my friend recommended it, she told me it "completely blew her mind" when she was younger and read it for the first time and has been one of her favorite books ever since. Speaking as an adult [kinda] I can attest that it is completely mind-blowing at any age); and I FINALLY started reading the Scott Pilgrim books (why I waited so long, I have no idea- it's awesome!).

Music-wise, I'm enjoying Florence + the Machine's Lungs (really lovely album, great female vocalist) and The Black Keys' new album Brothers (crazyawesomesexy).

Film-wise, Ponyo (Respect your father! I have a cape!):