BookCrossing: Darwin's Radio

Another catch! I released Greg Bear's Darwin's Radio at Coquitlam Centre on November 26 and received the following journal entry from goochie (a new member from Edmonton, AB) on December 15:

the book has gone from van to edmonton alberta. i'm going to read it and pass it on.

BookCrossing: The Birth of Venus

The third and final instalment of today's catch-up catches is The Birth of Venus. I released it in late September at Vancouver's Word on the Street book festival and the catch just came in yesterday. Leading up to the day of WotS, I had entertained thoughts of riding my bike from our new Coquitlam abode. I'd bring along some books in my pannier, arrive at WotS (held at the central library branch downtown), and take in the sights and sounds while scattering the books. So that's what I did.

And then I rode my bike back home, which was a lot easier and faster than the bike ride there, because I didn't stick to the Trans-Canada Trail on the return trip. Phew. The one bad thing is that upon my arrival at WotS I realized that I had forgotten to bring the pen and stickypad that I had wanted to bring, therefore I released the books without any front page indication that they were BookCrossing books. I took solace in the fact that I had written - in blue marker - www.bookcrossing.com on the top and bottom page-ends of the books, so at least there was some sort of outside-of-book marker (no pun intended). Anyway, having released ten books at WotS, I was hoping for at least one semi-quick catch to make me feel better about their sticky-less covers. Yesterday's was the first of the ten. I hope it's only the start. Here's the catch:

I'm not usually a fan of historical fiction, but this book really grabbed me. I found the book on a bench at Word on the Street (book festival) at the Vancouver Public Library. I plan to give it to a friend to read and take to Amsterdam to release it there.

BookCrossing: Silver Bells

We were paying an early-December visit to Metrotown on a Saturday, so I thought it appropriate to release my second copy of Silver Bells, a collection of four Christmas-themed stories. I'm happy it found an appreciative reader, even though they haven't yet joined BookCrossing:

I love to read new, fresh stories, and this book appeared in the middle of a crowded mall. It was sitting right there, I put down my Christmas gifts and bags, and slowly picked it up. I'm so happy I'm part of this, and can't wait to share it with someone else. Thanks for sharing!

BookCrossing: Blue Belle

I'm behind on posting catches from wild releases. First up is a book I released a fortnight-plus-a-day ago (and is noteworthy as my first ever Coquitlam release): Blue Belle. A journal entry was made by a new member before I arrived back home to make release notes, and that might just be the first time that's happened to me. Here's the catch:

I was leaving work in Pinetree Village at 7:00pm after a long day serving. I was waiting for my ride and decided to have a cigarette so I walked over to the tables in front of Chapters Book store and to my surprise the novel was sitting at the table I sat down at. I plan to read the book and leave it randomly at an anonymous location with hopes someone else will find it, read it, and pass it on!

act boastfully

"Why don't we give him a medal?" Colonel Korn proposed.

"For going around twice? What can we give him a medal for?"

"For going around twice," Colonel Korn answered with a reflective, self-satisfied smile. "After all, I suppose it did take a lot of courage to go over that target a second time with no other planes around to divert the antiaircraft fire. And he did hit the bridge. You know, that might be the answer - to act boastfully about something we ought to be ashamed of. That's a trick that never seems to fail."

"Do you think it will work?"

"I'm sure it will. And let's promote him to captain, too, just to be certain."
-- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

It's a trick that modern governments know too well.

people who enjoyed climbing into an airplane

Doc Daneeka hated to fly. He felt imprisoned in an airplane. In an airplane there was absolutely no place in the world to go except another part of the airplane. Doc Daneeka had been told that people who enjoyed climbing into an airplane were really giving vent to a subconscious desire to climb back into the womb.
-- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

What about the enjoyment of crawling into a warm bed?

BookCrossing: The Day of the Storm

Are you from Tennessee? Because you're the only ten I see! Finally, another catch. I released The Day of the Storm at the Seattle Premium Outlets in Tulalip, WA, way back in October of '09 and it wasn't until many, many, many weeks later (okay, just three weeks later) that a catch hit my inbox. Catch rate sits at 12.526096033402923%. The book was caught by a new bookcrossing member from the fine state of Tennessee. The catcher and a friend brought the book up to.. well, let's let the catcher tell the story:

I was traveling to Canada for a visit with friends in Abbotsford Canada. I flew into Seattle Wa and then drove up to Abbotsford. We stopped at an outdoor outlet mall and my friend June saw the book sitting on a bench. She explained how the Traveling Books work and I decided to bring it back to Tennessee with me. I really like Rosamunde Pilcher and I am staring the book now. This is such a great idea. So, this book has been to Canada and now to Tennessee.

refused to admit that the dead man even existed

The dead man in Yossarian's tent was a pest, and Yossarian didn't like him, even though he had never seen him. Having him lying around all day annoyed Yossarian so much that he had gone to the orderly room several times to complain to Sergeant Towser, who refused to admit that the dead man even existed, which, of course, he no longer did.
-- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

There are some things that don't exist that annoy me. Affordable personal rocket packs for one, mainly for the very reason that they don't exist... yet.

Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

Any book that prominently features a dog is a good book in my books. Get that dog a-talkin' and, well, it's a nice novelty now and then but I wouldn't read many of those books. Barrowcliffe does a fine job in creating a storyline and situations that bring about some clever passages, both with and without the dog's presence. He does appear to be fond of dogs. I don't know if there's anbody out there who could write a full-length novel of this type who wasn't fond of dogs, no matter how great the idea. All in all, I'd rate this as a lighthearted book with some areas of depth.

Lucky Dog on BookCrossing.

a dog is honesty

He was right, I knew. A dog doesn't act honestly, a dog is honesty.
-- Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

The best line (of many great lines) in the book. While it makes me think of my first dog - coincidentally named Lucky - it also makes me think of my eight-month-old son, who is nothing but pure honesty. He knows no other way. That'll last forever, right?!

child control

'Let me see Santa!' said Sebastian.

'If you disturb him he won't leave his gifts,' said John who, after God knows how many years of training as an analyst, had seemingly just woken up to the child control possibilities of Father Christmas.
-- Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

With our little monkey butt almost ready to walk, the days and years ahead are going to be glorious.

A single tin-opener

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. To suggest I'd defraud an old lady, no matter what the inducement, was ridiculous.

'One million pounds,' said the Cat. 'There are eight of us here and that's a sixth of the profit due to even the highest investors. It's absolutely our ceiling.'

'One million hounds?' said the dog, who had clearly misheard. 'That is an army, sir. The world would be yours, though the logistics of feeding them all would be astounding! A single tin-opener just wouldn't be up to it.'
-- Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

To be honest, I'd sooner defraud an old lady for one million hounds than one million pounds. One million ponds would also be nice, but at that point why not put them all together for a nice lake. Paddle a canoe across the lake by moonlight.

a cheeky giggle

Lucy looked at me and gave me a cheeky giggle. Unlike most things that people give you - socks, underwear, under-sized shirts - I was actually in some need of it.
-- Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

I know a Lucy, and she's given me an under-sized shirt or two in the past. She's also given me a few giggles (some cheeky, some not), and I am very appreciative of that. Here's to you, Lucia.

just heard a dog speak

'Did you hear that?' I said.

'What?' she said, which is as good as a 'no'. I had no previous experience in the matter but I felt sure that those who had just heard a dog speak were unlikely to reply 'What?' to such a question. Swooning, exclaiming 'Egad!' or at the very least phoning major circuses would be the response I was looking for.
-- Lucky Dog by Mark Barrowcliffe

Forget phoning the circus - phone The Dogs of Babel's Paul Iverson.

Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor

After buying Stanley Park on October 22, 2004, I finally got around to reading it. I started it shortly before moving, and made sure to keep track of it during all the packing and relocating of boxes so I could pick it up without too much elapsed time and still be able identify characters' names. That's my main problem with books, even books I love. If I set it down for too long, say a fortnight or so, then continue on, I'll have to rack my memory to recall who so-and-so is. Usually I have to flip back several pages to be sure they are who I think they are. Didn't have that problem with this one. It kept my attention, even through all the cooking/restaurant/chef details which is a testament to the writer's ability to wruite about it so even the laypeople among us could keep up. At the same time, I noticed there were (brand)names that the insiders would know about.

The storyline of Stanley Park - the actual park - was very well done. The true story bit about the babes is heartbreaking. I've long known pieces of the story, but being the father of a five-month-old baby makes it much tougher to ponder.

Stanley Park on BookCrossing.

condolences about The Monkey's Paw

Jeremy left Dante and Benny to explore by himself, to chat with the chefs and winery reps he knew. Almost to a person he was greeted with condolences about The Monkey's Paw, and about half of those people tagged on an additional coment along the lines of: "Inferno Coffee, though. Wow." The meaning of the wow varied widely depending on the speaker.
-- Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor

Really? No way! That's great. How does that make you feel?

BookCrossing: The Rich are Different

Here's the pitch, and it's hit hard to rightfield. Hard and deep. Ichiro has a bead on it as he turns and heads to the wall. He's getting close to the warning track, sneaks a peek at the fence, leaps, aaaaannnnnd it's a catch! My oh my, what a wild (release) catch! Mid-June I released The Rich are Different, by Susan Howatch, on a bench in Vancouver's Pacific Spirit Park. Three and a half weeks later, a journal entry hit my inbox - well, technically my BookCrossing folder I have setup to receive BookCrossing mail. Yeah, I know - it's pretty fancypants. Even more fancypants, though, is the fact that the book has already been to Europe and seems destined for Africa! Soo-EE! My catch rate has inched higher to 12.77533039647577%.

The catch:

My sister picked this book up off a bench in Vancouver BC and she took it on our annual vacation to Europe. This is where she told me about it and I decided to read it. Normally a book like this wouldn't be of interest to me but because someone thought it was good enough to pass on I thought I would give it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised! The Rich are Different is well written and has a very interesting plot. It is written in a way that is different from most books I come across in the sense that it is written from different perspectives. I plan on taking a last minute deal to Egypt or Tunisia and I plan to leave this book there even though it has already been in a different continent and country than it started in. To the next person that finds this book..Enjoy:)

BookCrossing: Rising Sun

Another catch! This time it's catch number three from my five Las Vegas-in-March releases. 60% catch rate from those five books and it's only been three months - wow. I gotta go to Vegas more often, if only to wild release books. Michael Crichton's Rising Sun was left at the MGM Grand Pool and received a journal entry on Wednesday saying that it's now in the UK and is going to be left in Yorkshire! My catch rate has elevated slightly to 12.582781456953643%. Here's the latest catch:

Did the typical...oh look someones left their book by the pool...then I saw that it was a 'bookcrossing' book...so picked it up and brought it home to Northants, UK - it was the last day of our holiday at the MGM Grand.

Good story...but unfortunatly i'd seen the film so was waiting for each of the next bits to happen.

Finished it now and we are going away on the weekend so going to leave it in the hotel in Yorkshire. Happy travels. L x

Here's a link to Rising Sun on BookCrossing.

BookCrossing: Rock Springs

I released two books on Main Street during Vancouver's Car Free Day and one of them - Rock Springs by Richard Ford - received a journal entry two days later by a new member. My catch rate now squats at 12.36%. Here's the journal entry:

A lovely little find at car free day on Main Street. I'll be sure to pass on the gift. Only a couple pages in, but so far so good.

Here's a link to Rock Springs on BookCrossing.

BookCrossing: The Villa

I got a catch yesterday on a book I released at Granville Island on Sunday, May 10, 2009. The journal entry for The Villa by Nora Roberts was made by new BookCrosser swoop, who lives in Winnipeg. The catch:

I caught the book on a bench at Granville Island on May 14 at about 4:00 PM. I was just sitting down to have a bite to eat and noticed the book lying there, with a note that it wasn't lost, and looking to travel. So, now it is in Winnipeg. I'm just about to start reading it. This was my first experience with bookcrossing, but now that I know about it, I will release the book in Winnipeg, when I'm done.

Here's a link to The Villa on BookCrossing.

the ray she had beamed out

Oblivious but for one, who folded her arms across her rib cage under her sweatered breasts. She lowered her chin as if to listen to the current monologue, lids set in an expression of rigorous boredom. But with her head turned slightly to observe Jeremy at the back of the restaurant, to assess whether the ray she had beamed out had been received.
-- Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor

Rays were beamed out on bicycles and buses, at school and sea, at work and in woods. To name a few places.

Choose Me by Evelyn Lau

The second collection of short stories I've read recently, and I found this one to be much more enjoyable. I don't have bad things to say about the other collection (Rock Springs), but this one grabbed me a whole lot more. From the first story to the last, Lau had me engrossed; her story-telling abilities outshine many other authors. She expresses so much emotion and sets such a detailed scene in so few words. Remarkable.

Choose Me on BookCrossing.

you deserved so much

He wandered into the kitchen and Becky opened the sliding doors to the deck which circled the building. It was a pleasant day made beautiful by the height and panoramic view. The clouds in the blue sky were faintly pink-cast. The city below was mountain and architecture, forest and ocean. She wondered what it would be like to live like this. To feel you deserved so much in life. Would there be any room left for fear?

-- "Blue Skies" in Choose Me by Evelyn Lau

like copious tears

She pictured him writing on a notepad propped on the meal tray, his elbow occasionally bumping the passenger seated next to him, one hand steadying his plastic cup of ice water when the plane encountered a patch of turbulence so it would not spill, like copious tears, onto his letter.

-- "Suburbia" in Choose Me by Evelyn Lau

Rock Springs by Richard Ford

A good collection of stories, but I would've liked more variety of setting and pace. Huh, I just realized that with a collection entitled Rock Springs, I shouldn't be expecting the setting to change much. Good stories with good thoughts. The first few stories absorbed me the most, and "Communist" was a good closer.

Rock Springs on BookCrossing.

lose the reasons for it

Though he had begun to wonder, after a certain period of not working, if you couldn't simply forget how to work, forget the particulars, lose the reasons for it. And once that happened, it could become possible never to hold another job as long as you lived. To become a statistic: the chronically unemployed. The thought worried him.

-- "Fireworks" in Rock Springs by Richard Ford

BookCrossing: Towards Zero

Another Vegas catch! We were just there last week and I already have a 40% catch rate for the books I released in Sin City (2 of 5). My all-time catch rate now sits at 12.558% (54 of 430).

The second Vegas catch came yesterday and is for one of the two books I left - on different days - in the pool area of MGM Grand. Towards Zero, by Agatha Christie, was picked up by a new BookCrossing member (my twentieth new member referral!) from the far east state of New York. The journal entry made by jujucafarini is superb:

I found this book sunning himself at the pool at the MGM Grand Hotel on March 23, 2009. I had just finished a book I received as a gift and was getting desperate for something, anything to read. And there he was getting all sunburned & needing my attention. So I enjoyed his company for the rest of my trip & brought him with me to Coram,Long Island, New York, where he is now going to visit my sister in Blue Point, N.Y.

Here's a link to Towards Zero on BookCrossing.

BookCrossing: Dynasty

My wife and son and I were in Las Vegas from Monday to Thursday and during that time I released five books into the wild. Just like last year, I knew we wouldn't have web access so I would have to wait until we were back home to make release notes. It was possible to make all five release notes before departing for Vegas, but since I didn't know where I'd be leaving each book I decided to wait until after. Preferably no one would have made a journal entry catch before I made it onto BookCrossing, but hey, I wouldn't have been unhappy if I came home to a catch or two. Just would've edited my last journal entry and it's all good.

Got home and checked BookCrossing and no catches. Good, I guess. Being very tired at about 1:30am Friday, I considered making release notes after catching a lot of winks, but decided to do them then and there and am glad I did because a journal entry catch was made on Eileen Lottman's Dynasty sometime that day. That was the first book released - on Monday in MGM Grand. The journal entry:

I was in the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas and found it on a table there. As an avid reader i hought it was a neat idea so picked it up. I am going to read it and pass it on

Here's a link to Dynasty on BookCrossing.

an idea that stops existing

"He didn't say that," I said. But I'd said it enough, and I didn't care if she believed me or didn't. It was true that trust was not a big issue between us then. And in any event, I know now that the whole truth of anything is an idea that stops existing finally.

-- "Great Falls" in Rock Springs by Richard Ford

without getting drunk beforehand

"Oh, I'm sorry"

He grabbed at her wrist in apology.

"No, it's fine."

Zoe raised her wet glass and drank from it, smiling to show him everything was all right. They were not, she realized, bad people, either of them. They could not do what they were about to do without getting drunk beforehand.

-- "Family" in Choose Me by Evelyn Lau

BookCrossing: Thelonius Monk His Life and Music

This book - Thelonius Monk His Life and Music by Thomas Fitterling - has never passed through my hands, but yesterday I saw it under Recently Caught on BookCrossing's left sidebar. Because it was caught by AnonymousFinder, I clicked on it to read about its journey.

Turns out it was released by Queen-Kitty in Olympia, Washington, USA, in June 2002. S/he released three books that month, with those being his/her only releases thus far. None of the three had been heard from since their respective releases, until yesterday's journal entry. The length of time between release and catch - 6 years, 9 months, 2 days - is an unofficial new BookCrossing record. "Unofficial" because it's impossible to know what each book's length of time is without going through each of them individually. Of the known lengthy release-to-catches, this one is the longest. Here's yesterday's journal entry:

Can you believe I have been sitting on this book for years. Ah, what bad kharma. I'm going to read and release this month, returning it to the Great River of Chance.

Here's a link to Thelonius Monk His Life and Music on BookCrossing.

Between the Bridge and the River by Craig Ferguson

I started reading this on August 31, 2008. Man - it takes me forever to finish a book, eh? Several times I went several weeks without touching this one, and didn't get into the flow of it until a couple of weeks ago. It was entertaining enough as it was going, but in hindsight - having finished last night - there could have been more. While I enjoy watching Craig Ferguson on his Late Late Show television program, his writing style - much like his standup at Richmond's River Rock - didn't grab me.

Between the Bridge and the River on BookCrossing.

ho-mo-sex-uality

Cherry took a little bow. The applause was building, the Reverend really had to yell now to be heard. He pointed at T-Bo. "He cured this young man of ho-mo-sex-uality!"

T-Bo didn't feel it was the right time to correct the preacher.

-- Between the Bridge and the River by Craig Ferguson

BookCrossing: Dragonslayer

Another catch! Last July, I made release notes for Wayland Drew's Dragonslayer, noting its downtown placement outside Vancouver Art Gallery. On our recent Friday the 13th (BOO!), I found Dragonslayer on our bookshelves. Oops. I released it - for real this time - later that same day inside a Georgia Straight box on Dunbar, near my parents' place.

On Monday the 23rd (BOO!), a journal entry was made by a brand-new BookCrossing member. Here's what ChrisB12 wrote:

Found on top of that Georgia Straight box on Dunbar Avenue at 18th Avenue, Vancouver, BC. Saw the movie, haven't time to read the book, too busy surviving, finding a job, etc. Would have read it in my 20's, I'm 60 now. I'll set it free in Burnaby. That was Feb 22, 2009 (2/22/09). BTW: This is very cool. I've been reducing my library - I'll release a few gems to the Universe soon.

Here's a link to Dragonslayer on BookCrossing.

engineers and referees

"Time is only linear for engineers and referees," said V.

-- Between the Bridge and the River by Craig Ferguson

BookCrossing: In Pale Battalions

Horseshoes up my butt. Yesterday's wild release number 423 - Robert Goddard's In Pale Battalions at a bus stop in downtown Vancouver - received a same-day journal entry catch. Consecutive days with catches - I could get used to this!

My catch rate now sits at 12.05%.

Yesterday's journal entry:

I found this book at a bus stop on Davie and Burrard, and I have begun reading it, not sure where I plan to leave it.

Here's a link to In Pale Battalions on BookCrossing.

BookCrossing: Waking Raphael

On Friday I wild released three books in three different locations. As I usually do after releasing several books at once, I kept checking my BookCrossing profile to see if my releases caught number had increased. C'mon c'mon, don't be 73, don't be 73. BookCrossing does email notifications, of course, but I only get end-of-day summaries and sometimes I'm just a little too impatient.

Sunday morning I checked and, sure enough, my releases caught stood at 74. Yes! I checked my recent releases to see which one it was and was surprised to find that none of my most recent three had received journal entries. So I kept scrolling down the page and it wasn't until I reached the last book on the first page (book 50!) that I saw a "set by [username]" that didn't ring a bell. Waking Raphael by Leslie Forbes was released by yours truly last June during Car-Free Day on Commercial Drive. I released it right onto the street itself, on the yellow centre line. My first thought was that the journal entry was made by a new member, but no - s/he's been a member since last February.

It's appropriate that the book was the 50th on the page, as this was the 50th catch of my wild releases. Today I performed wild release number 423, and some quick calculations shows that as of this sentence being written my wild release catch rate is 11.82%. The aforementioned number for my releases caught (74) includes all my wild releases, but also all the books that I have made journal entries on that subsequently received journal entries by others - books that were mailed to other BookCrossers or given to friends, for example.

Here's the journal entry for Waking Raphael:

I picked this up on Commercial Drive in Vancouver, right where it was left. I have had it since then and haven't had the chance to read it. After I have read it, I will release it.

Waking Raphael on BookCrossing.

love through concern and interference

And she was right. It wasn't that her mother didn't love her, it's just that Janice could only express love through concern and interference, and you can't really apply that to someone who's doing fine.

-- Between the Bridge and the River by Craig Ferguson

BookCrossing: Different Seasons

I've been busy and haven't done much BookCrossing lately. I have a whole lot of books that need releasing but they first need labelling and the past few months I've been too work busy to have time, or energy. And, hey - I became a dad on Thursday! One might think that would decrease my spare time even more, but I'm on pat leave for a few months and plan on sending a lot of books out into the wild during that time. There are also a lot of books on my to-be-read shelves.

Last Saturday I released Different Seasons at Metrotown, and author Stephen King got a positive review by the book's catcher (a new member!) in Wednesday's journal entry:

i have not read the book yet, but i admire with the reputation of Stephen king. fubulous! THANK YOU SO MUCN!

Here's a link to Different Seasons on BookCrossing.