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	<title>The Rad Librarian</title>
	<link>http://radlibrarian.com</link>
	<description>Thoughts on Books By a Metropolitan Librarian</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 14 Dec 2011 21:35:05 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Top Ten 2011</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Five of the titles were on the blog already this year, so I&#8217;ll start with the new ones and list the others at the end.  I try and read less, but it&#8217;s like breathing-need to continue to be alive. Hark! A Vagrant- Kate Beaton History and literature pared down to the funny bits.  She is [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/12/14/top-ten-2011/</link>
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		<title>The Magician King- Lev Grossman</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I always judge sequels more harshly than an original work.  If I&#8217;m thrilled with the freshness of a book, why would I want anything else or risk critically re-evaluating a beloved text.  So when the sequel is as good as or better than the first, it&#8217;s a cause for celebration.  This is a long way to [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/09/21/the-magician-king-lev-grossman/</link>
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		<title>The Family Fang- Kevin Wilson</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang have always used their children as unwilling participants in their public pieces.  The siblings need each other to keep themselves sane, and try and move on with the lives.  Yet, when circumstances put them back home at the same time, they know their parents are up to another major [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/09/08/the-family-fang-kevin-wilson/</link>
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		<title>Ready Player One- Ernest Cline</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The geektastic 80&#8242;s pop culture book of the summer!  Virtual gamers around the world try and find the Easter egg left in OASIS- a full immersive digital world to win billions in this near future tale.  Our teen hero must solve the puzzles by immersing himself in 80&#8242;s culture to look for clues to help [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/08/29/ready-player-one-ernest-cline/</link>
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		<title>Down the Mysterly River- Bill Willingham</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Just when I thought I was too tired for another talking animals YA book, this sweet and charming tale won me over.  Max the Wolf, who is not a wolf, and his animal friends are trying to understand why they don&#8217;t have any memories of their lives before they meet in a big forest.  They [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/07/23/down-the-mysterly-river-bill-willingham/</link>
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		<title>The Quantum Thief- Hannu Rajaniemi</title>
		<description><![CDATA[All the buzz on this debut SF title is true.  The thief is trying to recover memories.  Some gamers have evolved into billion souled megaminds.  Exomemories can be shared with others through neural pathways, and the Detective is trying to figure what has been corrupted.  Engaging from start to finish- can&#8217;t wait to read what&#8217;s [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/07/05/the-quantum-thief-hannu-rajaniemi/</link>
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		<title>Lover&#8217;s Dictionary- David Levithan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[One of my favorite YA authors creates a unique novel for adults from an A to Z dictionary of words about love. What I liked the most was the absence of information that forces the reader to fill in the blanks.  I&#8217;m often suspicious about gimmicky novels, but this one works really well at telling [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/04/16/lovers-dictionary-david-levithan/</link>
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		<title>You Killed Wesley Payne &#8211; Sean Beaudoin</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This is a Semi-Hard-Boiled Noir parody placed in a high school to maximum effect.  Great puns, inventive use of language,  and social hierarchy commentary make this a fun and engaging read.  Even though it&#8217;s marketed as a YA novel, much of the humor is more accessible to middle aged readers- so I would recomend it to teens [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/04/13/you-killed-wesley-payne-sean-beaudoin/</link>
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		<title>Open City- Teju Cole</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Another first novel that&#8217;s leaving a tremendous impression on me.  Mostly a walking tour of New York City and Brussels with flashbacks to Nigeria as our protagonist ruminates and interacts with the build environment.  This is W G Sebald territory, but I for one, welcome philosophical meanderings when done with real history and thoughtful reflections.  Lovely [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/04/11/open-city-teju-cole/</link>
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		<title>Hold Me Closer, Necromancer- Lish McBride</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A fresh take on the slacker coming of age story, &#8220;I&#8217;m learning I&#8217;m a very powerful Necromancer, but my friend&#8217;s severed head in the bowling bag is really hard to stomach&#8221;, yet it remains delightfully tongue in cheek.  And I dare you not to sing the title out loud over and over again.  Fun, fun, fun. For teens [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://radlibrarian.com/2011/04/11/hold-me-closer-necromancer-lish-mcbride/</link>
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