Planet Simpson, by Chris Turner

Yesterday I finally was able to finish reading this huge book that is all about my newest obsession (for want of a better word), The Simpsons. It's just incredible. This cartoon show has been on T.V. for 21 Seasons (and counting!) and I never knew how good it really was, until quite recently.

I'd never really seen the Simpsons before, so I used to think that this show belonged in the same category as Family Guy, or South Park. Stupid, bad animation, crude humor, rotten characters, and not funny AT ALL! (Incidentally, I've never watched Family Guy. I saw a tiny bit of South Park long ago, and I know I hated that show. Never watched it since then.) Well, let me tell you, after watching the Simpsons as much as I have by now, my opinion for them has done a total 360. ^_^ I should have known there was a reason behind this show being the longest running cartoon ever.

This book explains the universe of the Simpsons incredibly well. There's a whole chapter devoted to each member of the Simpson family (well, except Maggie, I guess), Mr. Burns and all the other important characters. The book also talks a lot about the show's history and it's huge effect on America and the rest of the free world, so it's all really fascinating. I don't think any good Simpsons fan would forgive themselves if they didn't read this book.

I'm really glad that I'm a Simpsons fan now. Through watching the show, I've discovered that their brand of humor is very good natured and satirical, and that Springfield is a smart and accurate reflection of the real world, which is what makes the show so funny. I've also learned that the Simpsons aren't the most rotten, most dysfunctional family ever depicted on T.V. Despite all their differences in personalities and not being able to stand each other in one way or another most of the time, they are a family who loves each other.

2 Awesome Books!

Okay, I'm really, really sorry for not writing about any books for weeks! I've been very busy, and the books I have been reading are actually really big and bulky, and I'm reading them at the same time! These two books are The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown (I am very close to finishing this, so a review will soon be in order, I expect) and Planet Simpson, by Chris Turner (This book is incredibly huge! But I love it, because it continues to feed my new obsession over the Simpsons. ^_^)

I have also been quite lucky and honored to be a beta-reader for my good friend, Graham. (I'm sorry to be taking so long, buddy! ~,~) Plus I've been having many thoughts and ideas on the story I will write for NaNoWriMo. (If anyone feels curious about what my ideas are, just comment and show your interest.) As you can see, I've got a lot of stuff on my mind presently.

But today I finished a couple of short, quick books that I really liked, so here is my review of both of them at the same time. First, I read Simpsons Comics Royale, a book that, obviously by the title, had Simpson comics in it. That was really funny. ^_^ Reading comics of the Simpsons is just about as good as watching the show. (My sibs have recently taken to watching short clips of Simpson episodes on hulu.com. Some of them are really hilarious!!!)

Besides the comics, dispersed within the book are page-long insights, commentary, and personal stories by Simpson creator, Matt Groening. (How is the guy's name pronounced? I automatically think it's groaning, but I don't think that's exactly it. =P) Matt sounds like a really fun guy.

I think my favorite comic in the book was "Lisa's Adventures in Wordland," which was a spoof on Alice's adventures in Wonderland. Very funny. I hope to find more Simpson comic books soon. ^_^

The other book I read was one I picked up from the library yesterday, but finished today in only one sitting! It's called Dancing the Dream, by Michael Jackson. Yep. That's right. MICHAEL JACKSON WROTE A BOOK!!! (He actually wrote another book before this one, Moonwalk, which I hope to read very soon, because that book is biographical!) I loved Dancing the Dream! It was a book full of pictures of Michael and poetry that he wrote!!! Oh my god, if he wasn't already a poet in the way he wrote his awesome songs, he has become my favorite writer of poems ever!

Michael has such a way with words in this book. Most of his poems are prose and stories. They don't necessarily rhyme. But whenever he does choose to rhyme, the result is just... beautiful. No other word can do it justice. I love Michael Jackson's poems. It's incredible that I found yet another reason to love him. ^,^ I wish he'd written more.

Actually, I was a little vexed to discover that the copy I read was missing many pages, throughout the book! Where did these pages go? And what was written on them?! I can see that I will someday have to get another copy of this book, so that I can read it in it's entirety.

I would really like to share my favorite poems of his, so you can share in my incredible enthusiasm, but they are a bit too long, and I don't want to just post excerpts, because you simply must read the whole poem for the full effect. So I suppose I can't do anything more than hope that this review has inspired you to look for this book in your local store or library, because if you happen to be a big Michael Jackson fan, like I am, you just HAVE to see the incredible things Michael has to say to us.