2 and 1

We're down to the next to last books.

Summerland: Michael Chabon --Chabon is sort of hit and miss with me. I loved "Wonderboys" and "The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay," but couldn't really find my give a damn about "The Yiddish Policemen's Union." I may give the last another try.

However, I didn't much like Summerland. It was a flabby fantasy tale built around the game of baseball, including elves, giants, magic and a lot of various mythological references. In parts, it read like a story arc in the comic book "Fables." At others, it felt like a lazy knock-off of Stephen King and Peter Straub's "The Talisman."

I read it because I had to, not because I wanted to.

The Rock and The Pebble: Mark Defoe -An extremely brief book of poetry by local poet Mark Defoe and really not all too terrible. I'm not really sure how well his work scans and I miss the beat on a couple of his poems, but I like his use of language. I'm a sucker for a well-turned phrase.

Just one more book to go... Then we turn in the list and get the magic gold card. Yippee.