On the Bookshelf

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Go here to find out more.

 Wicked by Gregory Maguire
I'm going to see Wicked next weekend! I'm going to see Wicked next weekend! I'm excited. Can you tell that I am excited? =D

Naturally, before seeing the stage show in Sydney I want to read the book and find out Maguire's take on things first.

Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire
It's the sequel to Wicked. See above.

I really do love the rare occasions that I get to go to the theatre. I wish I could go more often.

Now excuse me while I go do my happy dance.

Terra

Golden Globe Award-winning actress Jennifer Garner is Sydney Bristow. Syd's not exactly your average grad student. Her life might appear normal, but she is hiding a secret life working as a spy for the CIA.

Sydney's world is turned upside down when she learns she may work for the very enemy she thought she was fighting. Now she's entangled in a covert lifestyle where she is forced to question the allegiances of everyone, including those closest to her.

Before J.J. Abrams got us all Lost he took us undercover in the world of international espionage. Season One of Alias introduces us to Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) who works for what she believes is a black-ops division of the CIA until they murder her fiancé. She discovers that she was tricked into working for the bad guys all along and now must work as a double agent for the CIA, working to bring SD-6 down.

Watching this show a second time around, I find that I am getting sucked in just as easily as I did when I first saw it being aired on television. Alias has a unique and non-traditional episode formatting where a new story will start around middway through the episode instead of at the beginning so that each show can end in a cliff hanger. This always used to keep me hanging on waiting for a new episode when the show was first out and it made it very easy to keep watching episode after episode on DVD. One slightly off-putting aspect of the formatting is how late the opening credits play. The opening credits can play anywhere from right after the opening scene but quite often are not thrown in until fifteen (15) to even twenty (20) minutes in, as though they nearly forgot to include them at all. Watching episodes consecutively I also got sick of the introductory "My name is Sydney Bristow..." sequence that plays at the very start of each episode.

I really enjoy the plotline involving the creations of Milo Rambaldi, the (fictional) fifteenth century artist and inventor with seemingly prophetic abilities. Rambaldi adds a mystical element to the show setting it apart from other "spy-fy" dramas while remaining within believable boundaries.

The soundtrack is also of great strength to the show and, combined with Garner's snappy wardrobe, you can almost forgive that so many valuable items and secrets are kept in nightclub basements.

Terra

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

His breaths were coming too quickly, and his skin was now more pallid than mine. Of course, I had become rosy and flushed with the life I had stolen from the guy I loved.

From page 68 of Hourglass by Claudia Gray.

I will try to get up a review tomorrow. Anyone who has been following my saga of numerous injuries might be aware that I am wearing a hand brace at the moment and it makes typing a bit awkward when it is on but it's a touch painful without it hence why things continue to be so sloooow here at the moment.

Terra

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Go here to find out more.

The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
The Angus & Robertson store in town is having a big moving sale - 40 to 50 per cent off! My budget is rather tight at the moment but seeing as I had been lusting after this book for ages I took advantage of the opportunity to snag it cheap. I really look forward to reading it. The book that comes before it, The Forest of Hands and Teeth, was actually the first book I reviewed for this blog!

Alias Season One
I loved this show back when it was on the air and am really enjoying the chance to watch it again. I've basically spent the last week revisiting season one instead of my usual reading and blogging tendencies. It is just so easy to get sucked in again! Look for my  review in the next day or so.

Terra

In my first Active Readers post we talked about the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge but before we jump in and get exercising it is important to know how to start off your routine if you want to avoid injury. If you don't realise how important it is to warm up before your exercise routine and cool down afterward it can be pretty tempting to just throw yourself in to it and go straight for giving it all you've got. Making sure you include warming up and cooling down in your exercise routine can go a long way to helping to make sure that you avoid muscle strain and injury.

Your warm up routine should last five (5) to ten (10) minutes with the goal to slowly increase your heart rate.
The increased blood flow oxygenates your muscles and prepares them for the coming exercise. Your blood will vessels dilate which means less stress on your heart and the increased body temperature helps improve muscle elasticity. This site can give you some ideas on some easy to moderate warm up stretches to get you started.

Cooling down at the end of exercise is just as important as warming up. For something that so many people overlook, I am now finising it be one of my favourite parts of working out - a good cool down routine always leaves me feeling good! The goal of your cool down routine is to slowly bring your body temperature, heart rate, and breathing back down to their normal levels. One way to cool down is to continue with your exercise but slow it down. Then follow that up with some giving those muscles a good stretch. This site suggests some easy to moderate cool down stretches to give you some ideas.

Remember, guys, you should talk to your doctor before making any changes to your diet of fitness regime. In the meantime I hope everyone is feeling happy, healthy, and active.

Terra

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

As he was growing up, the symbol had always surrounded Alek - on flags, furniture, even the pockets of his nightgown - assuring hum of who he was. But now it only filled him with despair.

From page 218 of Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld.

Terra

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. Go here to find out more.

The Last Witchfinder by James Morrow
Not a big book week for me but this one caught my eye when I was shelving at work. Set in 1688, The Last Witchfinder promises a "showdown between old superstition and new science."

The cover also is part of what caught my eye with the quirky concept of the book details being worked into the image by having them on the book pictured on the cover.

Terra

A copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them resides in almost every wizarding household in the country. Now, for a limited period only, Muggles too have the chance to discover where the Quintaped lives, what the Puffskein eats and why it is best not to leave milk out for a Knarl.

Proceeds from the sale of this book will go to Comic Relief, which means that the pounds and Galleons you exchange for it will do magic beyond the powers of any wizard. If you feel that this is insufficient reason to part with your money, I can only hope that passing wizards feel more charitable if they ever see you being attacked by a Manticore.

- Albus Dumbledore


Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is presented as an exact duplicate of the one owned by The Boy Who Lived and is complete with cute comments doodled in the margins by the Golden Trio (Harry, Ron, and Hermione).

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is not only an A to Z guide to magical beasts, but an explanation of how they fit into the magical world and how they impact on its politics. Rowling cleverly uses this book to explore the nature of prejudice in the Wizarding world in regards to non-human sentient beings, helping further to bring the Harry Potter universe to life. The depth of the world that she is has created is really just amazing, as are the ways that she finds to express it.

This quick and funny read is a must have for all Harry Potter fans. My edition was purchased bundled together with Quidditch Through the Ages in adorable packaging designed like a book carry bag.

Quidditch Through the Ages by J.K. Rowling as Kennilworthy Whisp
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Terra