[[[Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you've read that will always stick with you. They don't have to be the greatest books you've ever read, just the ones that stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 minutes.

Copy these instructions and tag your friends - because I'm interested in seeing what books are in your head. ]]]

Ok, here goes....

ravenShadow by Win Blevins
The Temple of My Familiar by Alice Walker
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Calling the Circle by Christina Baldwin
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham
All Quiet on the Western Front by Eric Maria Remarque
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
Orientalism by Edward Said
The Vulnerable Observer by Ruth Behar
Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future by Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards
Fargo Rock City by Chuck Klosterman
Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War by Tony Horowitz
Cane River by Lalita Tademy
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
Dance of the Dissident Daughter by Sue Monk Kidd

If you're interested in my review of Kim Edward's The Memory Keeper's Daughter, posted to 50bookchallenge , it can be found here.  

If you're interested in what I've been reading, you can find my latest post to 50bookchallenge here

You will find reviews of:

The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory
The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant
Sex with the Queen by Eleanor Herman
Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis
Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brookes
March by Geraldine Brooks
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie 

Reviews of books 23-28, also posted at 50bookchallenge can be found here

I'm helping a friend who is clearing out her belongings from her parents' house. She's bequeathed to me a couple large boxes of books, to keep or sell as I see fit. It's a lovely collection, but I cannot keep them all, and will be listing them on Amazon very shortly.

There is an abundance of Queer Studies classics, so I wanted to make an offer here -- if you're interested in getting first dibs (and probably a better price) than through Amazon, drop me a comment and I'll send you the list of what I have. (Or, if there's enough interest, I'll just post it here.) Also, if there's a particular queer studies title you've been looking for, drop me a comment and I'll see if I have it.

Among the titles are Postively Gay, Out For Good, The Lesbian Body, Does Your Mama Know? An Anthology of Black Lesbian Coming Out Stories, and many others.

Trust me when I tell you it pains me that I cannot keep all of these, but I want to send them to good homes.

If you want to see my reviews, they can be found here 

A little fiction, a little queer studies, a little spiritual memoir...something for everyone!

I'm doing the challenge again. So anyone who wants to read my latest book reviews, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find them here 

Anyone who wants to read my reviews of books #33-37, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find them here

Anyone who'd like to read my latest reviews, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find them here 

Anyone interested in reading my review of Phillipa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find it here

Anyone who'd like to read my review of Stonehenge: A Novel by Bernard Cornwell, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find it here.

Ugh. I should be working on class prep or job applications, but I'm just not into it. I did a guest lecture for a colleague up at SMU today and I'm sort of worn out now. It was a great class and my talk went well, but I just can't face down anymore work right now. Talk to me in a hour or two.

I just wanna go read my book. Admittedly, it's an ethnography, so that technically qualifies as "work".....

Anyone who'd like to read my thoughts on The Queen's Fool by Phillippa Gregory, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find it here

More detailed updatage, plus some yogic musings, to come this week.

Anyone who wants to see my review of The Virgin's Lover by Phillippa Gregory, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find it here.

This is a well-researched fictionalized account of the relationship between Elizabeth I and Sir Robert Dudley, beginning just after Queen Mary's death.

Anyone interested in my reviews of Rita M. Gross's Feminism and Religon: An Introduction and Chris Bohjalian's Midwives: A Novel, also posted at 50bookchallenge, can find them here

Guh, writing application letters for academic jobs sucks ass. Imagine having to write a letter about why you rock, and provide copious examples of why you rock, and how much you would rock at a given campus -- all without sounding too fake, using the appropriate academe-ese, and without using the actual phrase, "I rock so hard" once. On top of that, some places want sample syllabi and some don't, some want statements of pedagogy and some don't, blah blah blah. 

I guess I know what I'm doing this weekend.

On another note, I'm participating in 50bookchallenge and am 6 books in. I haven't been linking or cross-posting any of my reviews here, and I got to wondering if anyone would be interested in what I've been reading and what I've thought about it. I know there are a lot of well-read folks who stop by my LJ who might not necessarily be participating in 50book, so if you're interested in seeing what I'm reading, I'm happy to start cross-posting or linking. I've read mostly novels -- which is unusual for me -- so far this year, but I'm per usual working on about three books simultaneously, and at least two are more scholarly books on religion. Just comment here with either your interest in seeing my reading related rambles, or a "Dear Goddess, no! I only read you for the memes!" and I'll let the majority rule.

Tomorrow's Friday. Which means only two classes to teach, and done by 11. I'm planning a nice home lunch with Bird and Di, and then we're off to hit the big thrift stores in Arlington. Sounds like a perfect afternoon.