I can read, I can READ, I CAN READ!

Well you would bloody hope so since I am a librarian but what I'm really getting at is that I have finished NaNoWriMo for another year.  52,371 words submitted and validated.

And 2 days early I might add.

Yes, Yes, Yes.

I can finally get into the ever increasing pile of books that has been giving me accusing looks for the past 30 days.  So much so that I swear they have been talking to me.  Tempting me with their words of adventure and excitement and far off places.  It has been a real test of wills.  Me writing and doing NaNo or picking up one of the many alluring books that has been staring at me with bedroom eyes, saying read me, read me, read me.  Now, Now Now.

Thank god NaNo is over and I can get stuck in and read something other than my own writing.

Now the only hard decision is deciding which one to start with first…

Everyday Heroes: A book that will restore your faith in humanity

Scott Harrison from Charity: Water is bottom left

Everyday Heroes: 50 Americans changing the world one non profit at a time 

Photographs by Paul Mobley ; text by Katrina Fried 

I'm a huge fan of Charity: Water so I picked up this book just to have a quick look at how Scott Harrison started a non-profit that has provided clean drinking water for over 2.7 million people in developing countries. His story is completely fascinating to me so I decided to get this book out and read the whole thing.

The people in this book are completely amazing. The subtitle pretty much tells you what this book is about but it's incredible to read about how everyday people can make a difference. A big difference.

Everyday Heroes features stories of people selflessly working to improve the lives of others their stories are a necessary reminder that everyone can and should contribute to bettering the world.

We can't do everything, but we can do something.

Fun summer reads

The holidays are coming soon (yay, one month to go!), and if you've been waiting a while since your last one, your brain probably resembles something like...hmm, I'm thinking pan drippings left out overnight. Burnt crunchy bits included, if you're feeling particularly fried.

At this time of year, it's nice not to have to think too much about what you're reading. Your mind should just drift peacefully on a soothing, gentle sea of words as it washes you along. There are two kinds of book that do this:

1) Action novels.
You know the ones I mean. The ones where everything follows a certain pattern: bad guys, good guys, no doubting who's who, and the good guy always - always wins. There's a girl somewhere too, so the hero can prove how hot he is in every way. Stand up, Clive Cussler and Lee Child.

2) Romances.
Don't need to spell this one out. Some can be erotic, some can be screwball (whoops, no pun intended), and some can be "sweet" like a Nicholas Sparks. Whatever you're into, you know pretty much exactly what you're getting. Like a Griffins sampler.

So here is a list of new and forthcoming books that might just put the sauce on your chips this summer.

Fifty Bales of Hay - Rachael Treasure

Just love the title of this one! Saddle up for a collection of "agricultural erotica" from Australia, featuring lots of luscious cowboys, cheeky farmhands and fun with a stock and a whip. Whoa, Nelly.









Friends and Rivals - Tilly Bagshawe

Record label Jester boasts some of the hottest musicians on the planet, but their shining star is super-diva Kendall Bryce - the girl with the voice of an angel and the attitude from hell. To the world it seems like owners and old college friends, Jack and Ivan, are living the dream - until the betrayal. Jack has no choice but to walk away from Jester and start up his own label and with the help of his own new discovery - the talented, beautiful and sweet Ava Klein - he is ready to take on Ivan. As passions rise and the desire to win becomes all-consuming, the two young and brilliant pop beauties and the two bitter ex-friends race for the Christmas number one record.


Dirty Little Secret - Jon Stock
Described as one for fans of Jason Bourne and James Bond. Salim Dhar, the world's most wanted terrorist, has disappeared after an audacious attack on an American target in the UK. The CIA believes Daniel Marchant, renegade MI6 officer, was involved. But Marchant has a bigger secret: Dhar has agreed to work for MI6. In return, Marchant must help him with a final strike against America. Should Britain sign up to this Faustian pact or hunt them both down? Fast and furious with the inevitable romance thrown in.

Threat Vector - Tom Clancy and Mark Greaney
Jack Ryan has only just moved back into the Oval Office when he is faced with a new international threat. An aborted coup in China has left President Wei Zhen Lin with no choice but to agree with the expansionist policies of General Su Ke Qiang. They have declared the South China Sea a protectorate and are planning an invasion of Taiwan. A new breed of powerful Chinese anti-ship missile endangers the US Navy's plans to protect the island. Meanwhile, Chinese cyberwarfare experts have launched a devastating attack on America. Jack Ryan, Jr. and his colleagues at the Campus may be just the wild card that his father needs to stack the deck. There's just one problem: someone knows about the off-the-books intelligence agency and threatens to blow their cover sky high.

It Happened in Venice - Molly Hopkins
For fans of sweet and funny romances. Evie has a handsome fiance and a fantastic job that takes her to fashionable Dublin, in-vogue Marrakech, cool Amsterdam and romantic Paris. But her fiance hates her job and her flatmate hates her fiance. And when an unexpected event strikes the epicentre of her happiness, Evie is driven to gin and tonic. If she doesn't sort herself out, her liver and her bank manager will hate her. So when she's offered a luxury trip to the sensual city of Venice, with its shifting silver canals and rose and vanilla hued architecture, Evie jumps at the chance. Four days in the city of light and love is exactly what she needs. The sumptuous Grand Hotel, the gondolas, the wine, the Italian men...But within hours of Evie's arrival, her life is poised to change for ever...

Newton's Fire - Will Adams

Luke Hayward is adrift. Blacklisted out of academia, he is in no position to refuse when a client asks for his expert help in recovering some lost Isaac Newton papers. But a chance discovery in a dusty attic plunges Luke into a race to uncover the truth behind some seemingly random scribblings - a race which pits Luke against a fundamentalist madman with dangerously powerful friends. Luke discovers connections between Oxford, London and the Old City of Jerusalem in a breathless chase to uncover a secret hidden in the eccentric ramblings of a mathematical genius; a secret that, in the wrong hands, could be used to spark the holy war to end all holy wars.

The Husband List - Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly

A historical romance that evokes the glittering world of the Rockefellers and the Vanderbilts. New York City, 1894. Caroline Maxwell would like nothing more than to join her brother, Eddie, and his friend, Jack Culhane, on their adventures. While they are off buying up businesses and building wildly successful careers, Caroline's stuck at home frightening off the men her mother hopes will ask for her hand, like the questionable Lord Bremerton. She longs for adventure, passion, love, and most of all, Jack, an Irish-American with new money and no title. But Caroline's dark hair, brilliant eyes and quick wit have Jack understanding just why it is people fall in love.

The Hunters - Chris Kuzneski
A team of renegades - an ex-military leader, a historian, a computer whiz, a weapons expert and a thief - financed by a billionaire philanthropist are tasked with finding a vast treasure lost nearly a century ago. Fearing a German victory in World War I, the Romanians signed a deal with the Russians to safeguard their national treasures. In 1916 two trains full of gold and the most precious objects of the Romanian state - paintings, jewellery from the Royal family, ancient Dacien artifacts - were sent to the underground vaults in the Kremlin, only to be lost after the Russian Revolution. With a haul valued at over $3.5 billion, everyone wants to claim the vast treasure, but its location has remained a mystery - until now.

Ultimatum - Simon Kernick

8am: an explosion rocks a London cafe. Minutes later a call is made to a local radio station: 'We've just detonated a bomb. Another will explode shortly to prove what we are capable of.' The government has until midnight to meet all of the terrorist demands before a far greater attack takes place. Sixteen hours is all DC Tina Boyd and Mike Bolt have to find and stop the killers - before it's too late.







Bianca - Bertrice Small
Florentine silk merchant Giovanni Pietro d'Angelo and his wife want nothing more than to marry their daughters to wealthy men of distinction. But when their son's dangerous indiscretion implicates him in a tragic accident, it is their eldest daughter who must pay the price. Blackmailed by the powerful and debauched Sebastiano Rovere, the Pietro d'Angelos must give beautiful Bianca in marriage to Rovere to buy his silence. It is the shocking murder of her husband that allows her to find the possibility of love at last. But Florentine society would never approve of the man she's chosen: Prince Amir, grandson of Memhet the Conqueror. Two passionate lovers...two different cultures...two worlds determined to keep them apart.

Do enjoy, won't you?

Planning your summer feasts #3

Celebrating three awesome Auckland eateries who've launched cookbooks this year. These books also give you a behind-the-scenes look at the experiences of those visionaries who set out to do something a little bit different in the Auckland foodie scene.

A life at Mudbrick : stories and recipes from Waiheke's famous Mudbrick Vineyard and restaurant by Robyn Jones. Over 20 years ago, Robyn & Nick Jones planted a small vineyard on Waiheke Island. This book details their journey and shares award-winning recipes from Mudbrick.

La Cigale : recipes and stories from the family who brought a slice of France to New Zealand by Elizabeth Lind. If you've not yet had the pleasure of perusing the French-style markets in Parnell, then you're missing a real treat. Get yourself along to experience a slice of France here in Auckland.

The Engine Room : No. 115 eatery by Natalia Schamroth and Carl Koppenhagen. Based in Northcote Point, this restaurant has become a drawcard for foodies across Auckland. My highlights from the cookbook include Ricotta Gnocchi with tomato basil sauce, Balinese Pork Belly with Tumeric Rice & Tamarind Salad and Salted caramel & chocolate tart.

Treat yourselves to a little bit of decadence & difference this Christmas, try out some of the delicious recipes on offer in these books. Be inspired by the people who've taken a different path to create the foodie magic.

Attack of the Munchies i.e. Zombies Take Over the World

I've recently developed a relationship with The Walking Dead.

And surprisingly I mean that quite literally.

Now I've never been much of a horror fan.  All that blood and guts and gore just freaks me out and not in a good way.  And yes I know it's kind of weird considering how much I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BTVS), The Vampire Diaries (VD...mmm unfortunate acronym) and Supernatural.

Then again none of these shows have much to do with horror and instead are all about great characters, great story lines and great music.  The blood letting is in fact quite minimal, which is just the way I like it.  Gore has never been my thing and I've mostly kept away from anything stomach churning.  I know, it's very wussy of me and wuss that I am I've avoided watching The Walking Dead.

Until recently that is.

It's a love/hate relationship at best. 

I love the tension and excitement and some of the characters and hate all the rest... you know the blood and guts bits... of which there are several... which of course means that I generally watch the show with my eyes half covered and my fingers in my ears because yes the sound effects can be pretty yucky as well, all that squishing and oozing and splashing of blood well it's enough to give you nightmares... which again  means I generally watch this show in the daylight.

As I said it's all very wussy of me. 

As my good friend Xander (from BTVS) would say "I laugh in the face of danger and then I hide until it goes away"

Of course this new found love/hate of The Walking Dead has led to some rather strange conversations with my other half, such as me informing him that if he were to ever become a zombie I wouldn't hesitate to shoot him in the head, which he thought was a) rather sweet and b) just a tad worrisome...

I, of course, would probably be first on the menu.  The life of a wuss never ends well.

The Walking Dead

"After an epidemic turns people around the world into zombies, a police officer leads a band of survivors as they look for safety and try to find a cure."

Based on the hugely successful comic by Robert Kirkman, The Walking Dead craze has taken over the world.  Gory it is, but it is also exciting and tension filled, with characters that you either loathe and wish the munchies would just take a bite out of or love and cheer on as they fight for survival.

Zombieland

A zombie movie that is funny too, featuring the always awesome Woody Harrelson as a gun-toting zombie slayer, a guess appearance by Bill Murray and Jesse Eisenberg as a wuss who learns to fight back.

Now this is my kind of zombie movie, violent yes but low on gore and with a sense of humour.

The Return Man / V. M. Zito.

"The outbreak tore the USA in two. The east remains a safe haven. The west has become a ravaged wilderness. They call it the Evacuated States. It is here that Henry Marco makes his living. Hired by grieving relatives, he tracks down the dead to deliver peace. Now Homeland Security wants Marco, for a mission unlike any other."

A serious zombie book, if you can have such thing, and one that is really good.

Outpost / Adam Baker.

"They took the job to escape the world, they didn't expect the world to end. A derelict refinery platform moored in the Arctic Ocean with a crew of 15 who must battle not only the elements but the hell that awaits them on the mainland."

Personally I think if a zombie apocalypse broke out, the last thing I want to do is to stay on the mainland and an oil refinery in the middle of nowhere sounds like a great haven to me, then again wuss here speaking so you'd know I'd be the first one heading for the hills if things went bad...

World War Z: an oral history of the zombie war / Max Brooks.

"The Zombie War came unthinkably close to eradicating humanity. This is a firsthand account of the experiences of the survivors from those apocalyptic years."

Considered one of the greatest zombie books ever written this classic (can a book that is only 6 years old be considered a classic?) is now headed to the big screen with a highly anticipated release due out next year.

Rot and Ruin / Jonathan Maberry

"In a post-apocalyptic world where fences and border patrols guard the few people left from the zombies that have overtaken civilization, fifteen-year-old Benny Imura is finally convinced that he must follow in his older brother's footsteps and become a bounty hunter."

The first in a series of three this book aimed at teens but more than suitable for adults follows the tale of Benny a teenage zombie hunter and saviour of the world. 

And we thought our life as a teenager was hard.

Knit Your Own Zombie: over 100 combinations to rip 'n' reassemble for horrifying resullts / Fiona Goble.

"Forget stress balls: next time things get tough, express your feelings by ripping a zombie apart. No need to feel guilty about it afterward, either - fitted up with Velcro strips, its just as easy to put him together again. 8 full zombie characters are laid out here in neat little sets, each part knitted quickly and separately."

Feeling the need to cuddle up with your very own zombie, then look no further.  These zombie toys are the perfect Christmas present for that Goth Girl (or Guy for that matter).

Zombigami: paper folding for the living dead.

"Easy to follow, step-by-step instructions show you how to fold simple origami paper into some of the most revolting creatures of the night. This origami crew of the undead includes Starvin' Marvin who hungers for a sip of fresh blood; Idle Hands, whose hands are no longer attached to his body and Suzie Gravemaker, everyone's favourite zombie mum!"

And the zombie craze continues with this origami book.  Why you would want to I have no idea but each to their own.

Zombies Hate Stuff / Greg Stones.

"Zombies hate clowns. They also hate hippies, penguins, nudists, weddings, and kittens but strangely don't mind Canadians. Each ghoulishly colorful painting reveals a funny and unexpected scene of zombie disgruntlement, cataloging the stuff that really riles up the walking dead with wit, humour, and, of course, brains."

Just when you thought the zombie craze couldn't get any stranger a book like this comes along. 

Forget about vampires, Zombies are taking over the world.