Full disclosure

So I'm feeling a little awkward about the quasi-anonymity I maintain on this blog. Since I am neither a superhero nor a secret agent, it seems a little. . . well, dumb to cloak myself in a veil of secrecy as though I were some kind of Very Impressive Personage or Dangerous Rogue. Many people, especially those in the Cybils community, already know who I am, and I know some of my authors keep tabs on this blog, too. (Hi, Anastasia!) And after the lovely shout-out from Eisha after we met at my company's open house last week, the Dumb factor is just compounded.

So. Hi. I'm Emily, and I edit books for Charlesbridge.

Careful readers will note that I almost never review any books that my company has published. I feel a little weird about receiving review copies from authors and other publishers, so I won't do that either. (Note to the few folks who emailed me lo these many moons ago about sending review copies: Sorry I just left you hanging in the ether. Sometimes I suck.) I do not aspire to the lofty editblogrial heights of Alvina or Cheryl or Stacy, so don't look here for writing advice or tales from the slush pile. I'll just keep writing silly poems about the books I read, and occasionally write about my kids or post some meme that all the cool kids are doing.

Wow. I feel so much better now.

P.S. Note to aspiring authors: I don't accept or read unsolicited email submissions. Sorry.

Better: Review Haiku

Doctor Gawande
takes the sad state of healthcare
and makes it better.

Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande. Metropolitan, 2007, 273 pages.

Brave New World: Review Haiku

Who's the real Savage?
I'll never look at khaki
the same way again.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Harper, 1932, 259 pages.

#4 on The LIST.

Sheep and Goat: Review Haiku

Meet Sheep. Now meet Goat.
Simplicity itself, in
translation (they're Dutch).

Sheep and Goat by Marleen Westera. Front Street (Lemniscaat), 2007, 99 pages.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Review Haiku

Shrill moral lessons
dipped in sugar and coated
with chocolate sprinkles.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. Knopf, 1964, 155 pages.

#3 on The LIST.

Happy birthday to me

Note to the grounds crew at Fenway:

When the announcer says, after a 2 1/2-hour rain delay, that they'll be trying to squeeze in the game before more showers come through, do you think you could, uh, speed things up a bit and not spend forty-five more damp and chilly minutes combing the infield for the fifteenth time? Some of us have babies to feed at regular intervals.

At least we won. And the beer was free.

Okay, I'll play

Your Score: Pure Nerd

91 % Nerd, 39% Geek, 21% Dork

For The Record:

A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia.
A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one.
A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions.
You scored better than half in Nerd, earning you the title of: Pure Nerd.

The times, they are a-changing. It used to be that being exceptionally smart led to being unpopular, which would ultimately lead to picking up all of the traits and tendences associated with the "dork." No-longer. Being smart isn't as socially crippling as it once was, and even more so as you get older: eventually being a Pure Nerd will likely be replaced with the following label: Purely Successful.

Congratulations!

Link: The Nerd? Geek? or Dork? Test written by donathos on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

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Note: I'm currently reading Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope, which is interesting but dense and not really bloggable. More LIST items to come soon. (And hi, Auntie G. I am so embarrassed that you're reading this.)

On Wings of Heroes: Review Haiku

Peck, nostalgia king,
captures small-town wartime life.
But will kids read it?

On Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck. Dial, 2007, 148 pages.

You Suck: Review Haiku

It's Moore's f'd-up world;
the rest of us are just glad
we don't live in it.

You Suck: A Love Story by Christopher Moore. Morrow, 2007, 336 pages.

Incidentally:
Munchkin: What's that book called, Mommy?
Me, stalling: Uh . . . it's a love story.
Munchkin: But what's it called? [spelling] Y-O-U-S-U-C-K.
Me: That spells LOVE STORY. Really.
Munchkin: No, it doesn't, Mommy.
Me: Redirect! Redirect! Here's a cookie!

This I Believe: Review Haiku

It takes courage, skill
to state Weltanschauung in
a few hundred words.

This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women. Edited by Dan Geliman. Holt, 2006, 281 pages.

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret: Review Haiku

It's all coming back --
Periods, "we must!" -- and yet
I'd forgotten God.

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume. Dell, 1970, 149 pages.

#2 on The LIST.

Cures for Heartbreak: Review Haiku

Mourning becomes her--

Don't let the cover fool you:

This is loss writ large.

Cures for Heartbreak by Margo Rabb. Delacorte, 2007, 238 pages.

Dramarama: Review Haiku

The drama onstage
is nothing compared to all
the drama offstage.

Dramarama by E. Lockhart. Hyperion, 2007, 311 pages.

Boomsday: Review Haiku

All government prob-
lems should have such an
easy solution.

Boomsday by Christopher Buckley. Twelve/Warner, 2007, 318 pages.