Most recent 21 books read

Since I can't resist book lists, here is a list of the most recent 21 books I have read. The idea comes from C.W., who did in her blog over here. She got it from some other place,who got it from some other place. You get the idea. Anyhow, here goes my list, from most recent working back, with brief notes on where I got them.

• Kazuo Koike, Crying Freeman (manga. I own the five volume set. I think I bought the first volume at Borders in Arlington. By some lucky chance, someone sold a set back to Hastings, so I got the rest of the set locally, used and in good condition. A true example of chance, since finding a decent book selection means a trip out of town, especially for mangas. And don't even get me started on the joke that is the local public library).
• Marc Gascoigne, ed., Let the Galaxy Burn (Warhammer 40,000 short story anthology. Borders).
  
• Gustavo Arellano, Ask A Mexican (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
  
• Ryan Sager, The Elephant in the Room: Evangelicals, Libertarians, and the Battle to Control the Republican Party (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
  
• Jennifer 8 Lee, The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
• Koushun Takami, Battle Royale, Ultimate Edition, Vol. 5 (manga. I own the five volume set. Bought at Books-A-Million in Texarkana).
  
• Koushun Takami, Battle Royale, Ultimate Edition, Vol.4 (manga. see note above).
  
• Brian Augustyn, Batman by Gaslight (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
  
• Angela Watrous, ed., 50 Ways to Support Lesbian and Gay Equality (MPOW copy. I ordered this earlier for LGBT Pride Month as well as because we need more of this in our collection).
• Paul Pope, Batman: Year 100 (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
  
• Andy Mangels, Star Wars: Bounty Hunters (graphic novel. I own this one. Half Price Books in Arlington).
  
• John Wagner, Star Wars--Boba Fett: Enemy of the State (graphic novel. I own this one. Half Price Books in Arlington).
• Koushun Takami, Battle Royale, Ultimate Edition, Vol. 3 (manga. see note above).
• Siku, The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation (manga. I own this. Bought at TLA Conference two years ago).
• Gary Paul Nabhan, Tequila: A Natural and Cultural History (via Interlibrary Loan at MPOW).
• William B. Whitman, The Quotable Politician (I own this one. Bought bargain priced at Borders in Arlington).
• Gabriel García Márquez, Cien Años de Soledad (I own this one, given to me by my mother. She bought it from the now defunct Club de Lectores in Puerto Rico. Copy is tattered and barely in one piece, but it is one of my treasured possessions. This is a reread for me this year).
• Alice M. LeGrow, Bizenghast, Vol. 2 (manga. MPOW library. The local anime club made a small donation of mangas. We should consider adding to it. I may have to request the rest of the series on ILL).
• Alice M. Le Grow, Bizenghast, Vol. 1 (see note above).
• Charles M. Schulz, The Complete Peanuts 1971-1972 (a rare find in our local public library. However, they have not kept up with collecting the rest of the set).
  
• Elizabeth J. Wood, Beyond Survival: Managing Academic Libraries in Transition (via Interlibrary Loan from MPOW).
  

Seven items were ordered via Interlibrary Loan. ILL can be a good option as long as you do not want anything recent and popular. I have had orders canceled because other libraries either did not have it available (checked out on their end) or just flat out refused to lend it while it was "hot." This rarely applies to academic LIS titles no matter how recent (apparently interest level in those is fairly low).

For my graphic novels and manga, I can get some of it locally (there is fairly decent comics store I recently discovered), but a good amount comes from out of town trips. What I may want to read but not own I get via ILL if possible. I do buy a good amount of mangas, manwhas, and graphic novels second hand (once in a blue moon, Hastings gets a shipment in from out of town, but rarely. More likely they come from Half Price Books). Also for more rare titles, I go out of town.

And there you have it, the latest 21. If you stay tuned, I will put up the complete list for 2009 at the start of next year over at The Gypsy Librarian.