Mcfly's Christmas Giftorium Part 1: Books!

It's a lovely winter-y day here in the great country of Albany, the snow is falling blindingly, its cold, windy and frigid, the ability to make snowballs is to the point of sweatshop labor intensity and efficiency, and I am sitting in the Quad Office, while Mikela is on the great hunt for shoes and the like.

She says hi.

I mentioned before that I would be making a list of things that I think would make great Christmas gifts, things that fall under my domain, like books, video games, comics and so on. I would like to pretend to be an expert on all things sophisticated, like suggesting a nice bottle of wine or perhaps a new monocle for Christmas, yet this blog is not entitled, "It's All A Fancy Bottle of Wine or Perhaps A New Monocle To Me," so I shall just have to be honest with myself.

Just noticed, students are making a giant snowman outside of the office, further pushing my theory that as old as we become, we are inevitably five year olds on the inside. But if that goddamn snowman comes to life, I'm going to freak out . . . seriously.

Also, Chris says hey.

So, books, books, books! Here are a couple of books, that I think would make some great holiday gifts!

1: American Gods by Neil Gaiman: Neil Gaiman, as we all know, is one of my favorite fantasy authors out there. Not to say that I do not have other favorites ranked right up there with him, but he is ostensibly, the man who got me into this type of fantasy. American Gods is a great read, exploring the true nature of forgotten gods, and new incarnations of the gods we make for ourselves, through Shadow's journey. Dark, moody, hilarious, sexy, mysterious and downright breath-taking, American Gods is a great gateway novel into the realm of dark fantasy.

2: Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss: And on the other end of the spectrum, Patrick Rothfuss has a book that does the same for traditional fantasy. Name of the Wind is an exploration of the hero's tale and journey, told by the hero himself. Kvothe recounts his life's story, in an attempt to reconcile people's view of him, with how he views himself, confronting his own struggles and demons as he tells it. It is a fresh, new and compelling look into the traditional hero's journey and how the quest for vengeance must sometime take a backseat to survival. And maybe love. Go read it, and find out!

Also, on a sidenote, Patrick Rothfuss is offering a new type of Christmas-Giftorium-Opportunity over on his blog. It is a fundraiser through Heifer International, an organization that uses donations to purchase and give livestock, and materials to needy families, to help them live and thrive. Pat is holding a fundrasier/raffle, to help raise money for this great cause. I myself will be putting some money in, and whether or not I win anything, I win something, if ya catch my da-rift =)

Check it out over here! http://www.patrickrothfuss.com/blog/2009/12/worldbuilders-2009.html

3: Peter and Max By Bill Willingham: Bill Willingham writes this great little comic called Fables, you might have heard of it. It's a story of our fables, our fairy tales, as they live in the modern world, fighting and struggling to survive. Bigby Wolf, Boy Blue, Snow White and so many more. Peter and Max is the story of Peter Piper, who picked a pickled pepper, and his brother, Max Piper, the Pied Piper of Hamelin. It is the story of two brothers, and the paths they go down, accompanied with the great illustrations of Steve Leialoha. Great read, done in one novel and if you're a Fables buff, you'll love it.

4: Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson: Brandon Sanderson is one of my favorite new authors this year, among Joe Hill and Pat Rothfuss. Brandon does some amazing things with his Mistborn trilogy, a story of rebellion and action, magic and destiny, religion and fate. Sanderson manages to create memorable characters, a great world, three distinct yet wholly connected magic systems, and he manages to tie it all together in three books. It's really well-done, go check it out!

And there are plenty more books out there, man there's almost too many, but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. They're all great reads, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. I'm off for now, but I'll be back soon to discuss some comics!

Also, I just witnessed a ResLife snowball fight. Mikela is pissed; hell hath no fury like an irish woman who got snow in her hair.