Just as I was vowing to stop spending so much money (both mine and Odious's), Charles de Lint's latest book came out. So of course I had to buy it in hardcover--but it was definitely worth the price. Spirits in the Wires is set in Newford, but features some lesser known residents of the city. In fact, my biggest complaint about the book was that my favorite character Jilly never appeared. Still it was nice to get to know Christy and Geordie Riddell better, as well as their friends of unusual origin. The novel builds off a great story from Moonlight and Vines about Christy's girlfriend Saskia, who emerged one day from the wilds of the Internet--specifically the website "The Wordwood". The site was created by another Newfordian, Holly Rue, and some of her friends, but when it suddenly seemed to grow a mind of its own they lost contact and control of it. De Lint explores just how that happens in this new book, and it is a terrific read--definitely one of his best.

Since my mother informed me that she no longer wanted to provide storage space for me (perfectly understandable, but rather dismaying), I came back from CA with five boxes of books from pre-college years. This is, of course, just what I need--more books to cram our little house to bursting! I went through them the other day and managed to sort out a box to dispose of, as well as cleverly rearranging shelves to accomodate the rest. These activities always put me in the mood of wanting to read everything, and wondering why on earth I'm wasting my time doing anything but reading. Nevertheless, my reading has been shockingly intermittent lately (due in part to lack of sleep and a generally distracted mind), and I've managed to finish few books besides old childhood favorites and fantasy anthologies. Also I'm re-reading Anna Karenina, which is a marvelous book but for some reason is difficult to read for large periods of time. All this to say, when I finish something of note, I'll blog about it.