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Really bad dubs.  It hurts my ears when I hear really bad dubs for movies that originated in a different country.  Main case in point being anime from Japan.

I was watching Howl’s Moving Castle this weekend and saw the preview for My Neighbor Totoro.  The way they said “Totoro” made my skin crawl.  Suffice it to say, I watched Howl’s Moving Castle with the original Japanese voice cast and English subtitles.  Funny how it’s okay for me to listen to Japanese pronunciation of western words but not vice versa.

I heart Hayao Miyazaki’s films.  I’m ashamed to say I’ve never read the novels by Diana Wynne Jones on which some of his anime is based.  I think that’s a short term goal for 2008, read something by Diana Wynne Jones before the Miyazaki movie comes out.  Part of the reason why I want to read Howl’s Moving Castle is that there was quite a bit of ambiguity and not enough closure for my taste in the anime version.  I know that’s asking for a lot and why mess with near perfection, but I have to say that it’s pretty cool that a movie version actually makes me want to read the book.  I’m usually in the school of the book is way better than the movie and reading the book is far more fulfilling in the long run, so I tend to read the book first and lament the missed parts in the movie.  Who knows, maybe this is a positive new trend for me, watch the movie then read the book.  Seems to have worked in getting me hooked on Harry Potter.

Okay call me stupid, but I’ve just come to the realization that I like New Wave music.  *Trisha and Jolene are probably rolling their eyes and shaking their heads as they read this.*  I was surfing around the iTunes store this weekend and found a bunch of cool 80’s songs that I had forgotten about. 

Flock of Seagulls, check

Thompson Twins, check

The Police, check

Blondie, check

XTC, check

Now what about Depeche Mode, The Cure, The Pet Shop Boys, Duran Duran, and Red Flag?  Are those considered new wave?  I’m thinking they are more electronica, but who knows what I like anymore?  Jolene can probably help me sorting this one out.   

Anyway our library system has some pretty cool “old” music.  Check out our catalog for some of your favorite groups.  Haha!  We have OMD!

Just when you think you’ve caught up with anime and manga, there’s news that the industry is dying a not so slow painful death.  We’ve read it in the papers that the manga industry in Japan is on a steady decline, now read this article from one of the US anime industry’s insiders about how anime may go the way of the dinosaur. 

So just when you think you’ve caught up with what’s cutting edge and somewhat new and cool with the YA/teen crowd, start looking again, because it’s a matter of time before this little niche market disappears.

What’s next?  Your guess is as good as mine. 

The “s” word in young adult literature is not the synonym for fecal matter, rather it’s that oh so snide remark that you and I have probably heard one too many times, slut. I’m not saying that anyone has ever called me a slut, but I’ve heard the term hurtfully used enough in my life to think of it as one of those pejoratives where there needs to be a movement to reclaim it. In Laura Ruby’s Good Girls the protagonist and her friends seem to get about as close to reclaiming the word as they can when they dress as virginal brides to the prom.

I recently read Sara Zarr’s Story of a Girl which also deals with this particular issue. What strikes me both in Good Girls and Story of a Girl is that neither girl is the dictionary definition of slut, rather they are mislabeled and maligned as such because of a specific event that changes their lives.

Webster.com defines slut as:

Main Entry:

slut

Pronunciation:

\ˈslət\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English slutte

Date:

15th century

1chiefly British : a slovenly woman

2 a: a promiscuous woman; especially : prostitute b: a saucy girl : minx

Audrey in Good Girls is photographed in an intimate situation and this photo circulates throughout school ruining her “good girl” reputation. Deanna in Story of a Girl is caught by her father making out with a guy in the backseat of a car. Neither girl is in a “committed” relationship and thus they are open to attack from their peers.

So here’s my little rant. Is sexual liberation limited to those who are 18 and older? Are we promoting literature that maintains the status quo where young women can have sex in stories but only if they’re in committed monogamous relationships? Good Girls and Story of a Girl do a great job of questioning the term slut and applaud both Laura Ruby and Sara Zarr for their brave stances. I can imagine that they’re getting a fair share of flack for their scrutiny of societal conceptions. Anyway, I’d like to write more, but my thoughts still aren’t totally fleshed out.