What I liked about 2012

A friend pointed out to me that as a blogger it was expected that I do a 'Top 5 of 2012' blog post. I like the sound of this and it seems fairly straight forward so I thought I'd give it a try; really it's just an excuse for me to be opinionated. 

So here is my top 5 Albums, TV shows and books and my top 10 songs for 2012. They're in no particular order and some of them aren't even from 2012 but I discovered them this year so I think that counts. 

Songs  
It was so hard to only pick 5 songs so I cheated and picked 10. It was still tricky deciding but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. There's a lot of country music on this list but I think that just reflects what a great year it's been in country music. Also, I don't like dub-step or most of the stuff they play on the radio. 


Better Dig Two – The Band Perry
Southern Comfort Zone – Brad Paisley 
Kiss Me – Ed Sheeran
Treacherous – Taylor Swift
Who Am I Drinking Tonight – Eden’s Edge
Cruise – Florida Georgia Line
Pontoon – Little Big Town
Hell on Heels – Pistol Annies
Here I am Alive – Yellowcard
Bonfire - Childish Gambino

Albums  I picked this list by choosing the albums that I put in my car stereo and they stayed there for a long time. Seemed a fairly straight forward way to choose. 

+ - Ed Sheeran
Red - Taylor Swift
Hell on Heels - Pistol Annies
Camp - Childish Gambino
Edens Edge - Edens Edge

TV  
30 Rock will always be my favourite show so that was a no-brainer. Community and P and R too (I really like NBC comedy). I still don't understand American Football but I've loved watching FNL and as I re-watched all of Buffy this year (and it was awesome) so I couldn't leave that off of the list! 

30 Rock
Community
Parks and Recreation
Friday Night Lights
Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Books
TFIOS is hands down the best books of the year Oprah, Time Entertainment, The NY Times and I say so.Also,  I never realised how much I like dystopian novels until I compiled this list. 

The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
Poison Study - Maria V Snyder
The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Perks of Being A Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky

So there it is the cliché blog post about my favourite things of the year. Hopefully you like some of this too and if you've never heard of some of it that's okay! Make sure you check it out. I promise I have excellent taste.

Merry Christmas.

2012 Lit Quiz - how much do you know?

Hi everyone,

Apologies for my absence the past few weeks. It has been manic here at West HQ - Santa's workshop has nothing on it. In any case, I've decided to give your brains one last, valedictory workout before the Christmas shutdown. Let's see how much you remember about the literary year that's been.

Send your answers to my helpful elf, andrea.jutson@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz. She will collate and mark them, and the winner gets...

Well, the winner will get feted as the literary genius of 2012, along with the chance to rave about their favourite books in my next blog post. I would have given away a box of chocolates, except they appear to have gone missing. It's most upsetting. Answers will be announced on January 8, 2013.

Sharp minds? Sharp pencils? OK go.

Oh, and cheating is totally legal.

Summer Reads Just For Us Chicks

There are times when I almost hate my job or, more accurately, regret my job.

Just when I think I've got my reading list under control I start browsing through web pages and book lists hunting for new titles to blog about and suddenly I find myself adding more and more titles to my own reading list.

It's a bit like the finger in the dyke story only the idea of being flooded with books actually sounds quite nice.  Though if they were to come all at once it could, I think, be quite painful.

Death by book avalanche anyone?

There is, I fear, no hope for me and my never ending reading list.

Even if I wasn't a librarian my reading list would still be out of control.  There's just something about their glossy covers and blurbs that tempt me with whispered words that I can't resist.

I'm an addict I know and it's an addiction that I hope never leaves me however much I sometimes regret my endlessly long reading list.

This year there seems to have been particularly busy year in the book world with a plethora of new titles streaming out or perhaps it's just that my reading has reached epic proportions, either way I know that I'm going to be having a very busy summer working my way through an increasingly large pile of books.

From fashion to murder to romance hopefully there is something here for everyone.

Summer Reads For The Man In Your Life

"It's not the men in your life that matters, it's the life in your men."
- Mae West

Men.

They say that we're mysterious but really it's them who are the confusing ones.

There's their unconditional love of sport for one thing.  Even when their team is losing they are there cheering them on and yelling at the TV all sorts of bad words about the ref.

Then there's their love of gadgets.  From cellphones to chainsaws to cars nothing seems to give them more pleasure than playing with whatever new toy that has caught their latest fixation.  It's kind of sweet really how their faces light up as if they have seen the holy grail or something.  Weird but sweet.

And don't get me started on the truly weird phenomenon of how they can never find things without our help even when said "missing item" is staring them right in the face.

Still we wouldn't want to be without them.  From father to son to brother, to lover and BFF, they are there for us providing their unique attitude to life and their unconditional support.

They take care of the scary monsters even if they are only tiny little daddy-long legs.  They tell us we're beautiful even when we are looking our worst and they're the strong shoulders we cry on when we've had a bad day.

One way we are the same is that like us they like to read. 

From sports books to science books to spy thrillers there is a wide selection to choose from so here are some picks for that man in your life.

Happy reading! 

Richie McCaw : the open side / Richie McCaw with Greg McGee.

Even I know who Richie McCaw is, non-sporty person that I am, and here in his own words is the story of his career so far.

Rockin' garages : featuring Billy Joel, Keith Urban, Brian Johnson, Nick Mason, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Sammy Hagar, and more/ by Tom Cotter and Ken Gross 

As a wanna-be rock chick this book appeals even to me featuring as it does interviews with some of the biggest names in rock music who talk about their passion for cars all highlighted with wonderful photos throughout.  One for any music fan or petrol head.

The last man / Vince Flynn

Joe Rickman, head of CIA clandestine operations in Afghanistan, has been kidnapped and his four bodyguards executed in cold blood. But Mitch Rapp’s experience makes him wonder if something even more sinister isn’t afoot when he is dispatched him to Afghanistan to find Rickman at all costs.

Newton's fire / Will Adams

A chance discovery in a dusty attic plunges academic Luke Hayward 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.

50 years of James Bond.

What can we say except James Bond rocks.  The greatest spy ever created.  50 years after the first movie Dr No screened Bond is still going strong.

A little history of science / William Bynum.

A look at what some consider the greatest adventure of all - the quest of science discovery.


The Stig : the untold story / Simon du Beaumarche.

Who is The Stig? Where did he come from? Why does he never speak?  These questions and others are answered in this tell-all-book.

I suck at girls / Justin Halpern.

A humorous collection of stories about the author's relationships with the opposite sex told chronologically, from his first kiss to getting engaged.

Red country / Joe Abercrombie.

Joe Abercrombie is considered one of the fantasy authors to watch out for out.  His books have consistently appeared in top ten fantasy must reads and his latest book is proving to be just as popular.  A stand-alone book this time, it sees the return of one of the fans favourites.

 The devil in silver : a novel / Victor LaValle

Placed in a mental institution, Pepper discovers that the terrifying creature he sees might not be a delusion and with three other inmates plots to fight back against the the monster that is stalking them, but can the Devil ever really be killed?
 
Petrolheads in sheds : unique kiwi car collections / Steve Holmes.

A look at the the hidden and private world of kiwi car collectors.

The Kiwi man cave / Steve Hale with Matt Elliott.

Man caves?  Mmm I'm not sure what they are but this book is sure to tell me.  Sounds very blokey, which is exactly how our kiwi men are and we love them for it.

The best show in the world: 30 Rock

It's Christmas time and apparently that's the time for giving so I'm going to give you the best gift of them all: 30 Rock.


30 Rock is one of my favourite things in the whole world. I've said on multiple occasions that I like 30 Rock more than I like some of my friends. I'm not joking.

The show revolves around a sketch comedy show called TGS with Tracy Jordan which is filmed in 30 Rockefeller Plaza (hence the name) in the famous GE building in New York City. Tina Fey was the head writer of Saturday Night Live for 7 years so the show is loosely based on her time working there.

30 Rock is also what they would call 'critically acclaimed  with 14 Emmys 6 Golden Globes and 9 Screen Actor's Guild awards and Newsweek magazine naming 30 Rock the best comedy of the past decade.

Please check it out! The show is my best friend (along with Taylor Swift and Duckie from Pretty in Pink).

Season 6 has just come into the library with the 7th and final season is on channel Four on Thursday Nights.