Oscar Wan Wan itibaren Gërdec, Arnavutluk itibaren Gërdec, Arnavutluk

Another great story by Stephanie Perkins! A lot of people liked Lola better than Anna, and while I liked Cricket, my vote goes to St. Claire ;)

Somehow the ad in Velo News for this book slipped past me, but not my wife. She noticed the promo and noticed that the local Borders had one more copy and picked it up for me. I am loving it! This memoir of a 1990s era pro cyclist is captivating. This is about the sometimes ugly underbelly of the sport as it's experienced in Europe. Joe moved to Belgium before he was 21 and became sort of a Belgian. He was never a household name. In fact, I'm a pretty hard core cycling fan and followed the sport pretty closely during his time and hadn't heard of him before this book. He was a domestique for most of his career and takes pride in his contributions to other's success. Reminds me of myself as a basketball player, enjoying the assist and the rebound as much as the drive to the basket. Anyway I totally identify with him and have learned a lot about pro racing.

3.5 stars. This collection of short - mostly erotic - stories fills some blanks in the "Nightrunner" books. But it's not as good. I don't know, I found some of the stories lacking a bit. "Misfit" tells the story of Seregil's first sexual relationship in Rhíminee and how Seregil became Nysander's pupil. I felt so, so sorry for Seregil in this one. Great story but rather painful to read in places, especially when you know how his apprenticeship ends. 4 stars. "The Wild" tells the reader about how Alec's parents met. I found it a bit boring. I would like to know why Alec's mother's people wanted to kill him, that's true, but the love story of Amasa and Ireya never interested me much. 2 stars. "By the River" tells us how Seregil and Micum met. Cute little story. 3 stars. "The Bond" depicts Alec and Seregil's first night together. Unfortunately, a good half of the story is a word-for-word copy of what happened in "Stalking Darkness". 3 stars. "The Summer Players" is an excerpt from the upcoming "Nightrunner" book that should come out in 2011. I definitely wanted to read more! 5 stars. All in all, I expected more but liked it nonetheless. Though I don't think the anthology would have much to say to somebody who hasn't read the "Nightrunner" books first.

If you're wanting an interesting read...pick up anything by Vonnegut. He is the master of stream of consciousness and anti-authoritarian writing - anything goes (not to mention, the book's pictures certainly make me feel like I'm reading at an elementary level once again). Breakfast of Champions is my go-to book when I'm bored and I highly suggest it to anyone in the mood to be entertained.