The Dark Tower (Stephen King). My belief that King works better in audio book format than in print format stands -- the verbal ticks would have driven me crazy if I had to read them, but worked well (thankee sie) when performed. I'm strangely addicted to these books weird blend of fantasy, sci-fi, and western. Who is in that room atop the Tower?

Eragon (Christopher Paolini). This is one of those "I liked the cover and I was in the mood for some fantasy" purchases. It turns out that this book was started by the author when he was 15 (he's 19 now), and unfortunately it kind of shows. I mean, sure, mad props to him for writing such a competent book at such a young age, but ultimately the book has no heart and nothing new to say -- it's all a technical exercise in "elves and dragons are cool."

But I'll probably listen to the damn next book in the trilogy when it comes out.

His Dark Materials (Philip Pullman). I just finished reading this for the second time, and I think this ranks as one of my favorite all-time fantasy series. It ranges from adventure to philosophy to love with armored bears, rebel angels, and dimension jumping. The first time I read it, I had trouble getting into the first book -- I guess because I wasn't sure what to expect. The second time through, the whole thing fell into place as a brilliant, grumpy, and yet hopeful story about -- quite literally -- the human spirit.  1:55:25 PM  (comments [])