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My Favorite Books of 2024

Posted on December 23, 2024 by jekief01

Being that I commute to and from work every day it’s probably not going to surprise you to hear that I spent a fair amount of this year reading and listening to books. For several years now I’ve listened to a fair amount of nonfiction but I’ve gotten back into the habit of adding Fiction into the rotation and it’s really been nice. Fiction helped me to escape the doldrums of reality during some particularly grueling weeks this year so I’ve got some old favorites and new ones to share.

I will say, It’s rare that I’m reading a NEW “new book” so these are not my favorite books PUBLISHED in 2024, just the ones I ENJOYED in 2024.

I’d be interested to hear if you’ve read any of these and how they’d rank in your yearly faves or not. Also several of these links are affiliate so if you feel inclined to buy yourself something nice I greatly appreciate anyone who uses my links to do so. With all of that out of the way let’s begin with DRAGONS!

DRAGON BOOKS!

https://amzn.to/41MmZFq

Slaying the Dragon: A Secret History of Dungeons & Dragons

I listened to this one using my local library so big ole reminder that you don’t even have to pay cash money to listen and read. You can hoard your money away like… I dunno… a DRAGON! IN A DUNGEON!

So this book is actually non-fiction and it’s about the rise and fall of the game Dungeons and Dragons from its humble beginnings to a thriving gaming company to a crumbling mismanaged gaming company to its ultimate buyout and resurgence.

For a book that is basically just a timeline and chronological retelling of events it’s pretty fascinating, in fact just like the rise, fall, and ultimate meteoric rise of apple computers, this kind of story is fun for me to read. It reminded me of several Dungeons and Dragons settings I remember being enthralled with and some I was even perplexed by. It was a really fun read so if you enjoy this kind of nonfiction the way I do I’d say give it a go.

https://amzn.to/3VTrcDz

Dungeons & Dragons: ART & ARCANA A Visual History

Man! If the book above had the goods prose-wise, this one brought back all the feels with the visuals. They say history is written by the victors so this one is fun as a companion to the book above but this one is written by people who OWN the game so they are going to paint a different picture in that they want you to buy their games when they ultimately RERELEASE everything they show in the book. To that end the images and art in this book are awesome. They brought in the right people to make this book into a thing of beauty.

For the price? This is a fun book to have, I often find myself pulling this one off the shelf and just thumbing through the pages to marvel at some art or to reread a blurb or two about my favorite eras. So fun, this would be my “reference book of the year?” yeah I’m kinda surprised I have a pick for a category like that too.

https://amzn.to/49TFcTh

Wings of Fire: The Dragonet Prophecy (book 1)

Kid-Lit Book of the year! Yeah, I’m late to this one. Your kids already read most of these and are already onto Warrior Cats or something I’m sure but I thought I better see what all this Wings of Fire buzz is all about and at first I thought I wasn’t getting the appeal but it quickly became apparent that this series IS onto something.

As a DnD kid (see above) I am no stranger to the idea of good dragons and bad dragons but every story I’ve ever read with Dragons made them the minority. Dragons living in a human world, dealing with humans. Well I have to admit it was dang good clean fun to have a world where the humans were a curiosity in a DRAGONS’ world!

You likely don’t need my stamp of approval as this series is several books deep but I’ll second what your kids have been telling you about Wings of Fire. They ARE in fact cool. There is a fancy limited edition version of this book, and a graphic novel adaptation of this book, but I’d say get them reading this the ole fashioned way with an affordable paperback. (or again… there’s libraries)

NON-DRAGON BOOKS!

https://amzn.to/3DsCfx0

Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age

I found this one in a roundabout way, one of my friends was about to read “Wintering” and in my efforts to find it I came across this one and noted that it seemed shorter. Also it was written post-pandemic and spoke to the anxiety we’re either claiming has passed or are still dealing with. Her formatting is wonderful, her lyrical prose is wonderful, this book is wonderful.

If there is a problem with her work it is that I am ADHD so everytime she dives into something fascinating I put the book down and I google it and climb thoroughly down into a rabbit hole. I don’t know if I am any closer to Enchantment or Awakening Wonder after reading this book but she did take me on a journey that had me investigating several subjects so in that regard this book did its job in a thoroughly entertaining way. As Nonfiction goes she’s a delightful memoir-esque read.

https://amzn.to/409a5zO

The Gap and the Gain: The High Achievers’ Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success 

AUDIOBOOK over PHYSICAL Book of the YEAR! Yeah, we’re getting really niche now! So this one gets frequent relistens from me. I’ve been prone to toxic positivity in the past. Claiming: you just have to look on the brightside, things aren’t so bad, yadda yadda yadda. I’ve set myself back over and over again by trying to deny reality in the pursuit of a better vibe. I was really resistant to the idea of toxic positivity but I came around and I think there are definitely unhealthy ideas about staying positive all the time and in the face of actual changes that need to be made. Some things just can’t or shouldn’t be “bright sided”.

But this book gets at something that people really aren’t good at, and that’s giving credit where credit is due. Gaining the wisdom out of the stuff that isn’t very fun. Reframing the past as something you learn from, progress from, and measuring backwards instead of chasing some ideal you can never reach, feeling more and more like a failure for never reaching the horizon line.

I recommend the audiobook version of this one even if you love your real deal books because the audio version is fleshed out with interviews and conversations between the authors which offer valuable insights and contexts for the ideas. AND some interesting debate and defense for the idea behind living in the Gain and not wallowing in the Gap.

https://amzn.to/4fvVza4

Fairy Tale by Stephen King

Fiction pick of the year! Holy wow! I haven’t read a Stephen King book in quite some time. This one sucked me right in. I’ve always loved King’s “less horror” books some would even claim he has books that aren’t horror but I’d argue that he’s never far from horror. For a book called Fairy Tale it spends an awful long time telling the story of a high school kid taking care of an ailing old man. But you know what? I loved that part too.

This book captured my imagination and my emotional attention in a way that most books just haven’t in a long time. I was rarely, if ever, distracted. I always wanted more. I wish this book was set up for obvious sequels. But it is what it is and that’s more than enough. I don’t want to give anything away so I’ll be vague. King created a wonderful fantasy yarn giving us familiar threads to pull us along without it ever feeling like he was just reskining something old.

I like to put some time between initial read and a re-read especially for fiction but I’m excited to re-read this one.

https://amzn.to/3VTAy29

Storming Heaven

Trying something different book of the year! This one was another surprise pick for me this year. I was crawling down a Appalachian horror rabbit hole this year and thought: you know what? I want to know more about Appalachia not just the “scary version”.

I traveled to the east coast back in high school and I’ve been kind of enthralled with the wild nature of the place. I don’t think the Appalachian mountain range gets enough love, so many talk about the rockies as “the mountains” and it irks me. As if other mountains are somehow lesser? No thank you, I love me an underdog.

This historical fiction is all about unions and the coal towns and the “redneck” rebellion. I was surprisingly drawn in. No dragons, no magic, just people. I really enjoyed this brief lil foray outside of my comfort zone. I can’t say how accurate to history this was but it was very compelling and a little frightening how quickly we jump to attacking our own countrymen because their version of rights doesn’t always coincide with our vision.

https://amzn.to/3BEC0hV

Kaiju Preservation Society

The most ON BRAND FOR JESSE book of the year! Look I like to have some good dumb fun, I read to be inspired or moved but mostly I read just to get out of the NORM. This book was so fun, you know right away when you read the title that you are going to check your skepticism at the door. Disbelief is NOT allowed beyond that point. Reading this book? I understood the assignment.

I’m a John Scalzi fan, he’s in my opinion one of the best living sci fi authors of our time. He’s a throw back in the sense that in the early days sci fi was the purview of children and dreamers. It did not take itself so seriously. Now we get in lengthy heated online debates about star wars. Well you don’t have to worry about that here. There is a world, it has Godzillas, and we need to keep it secret and safe. Tell me you don’t wanna know more?

Conclusion:

Okay so this isn’t even scratching the surface I read a LOT more of all sorts of genre but this gives you a good sampling and more than enough Dragons to last you awhile. I wonder what you’re reading…. after seeing my list do you have any recommendations? I’m always ready to discover a book that will keep me up at night either with fear or just because I refuse to leave the world contained in the pages. 2024 was a good year for books in my world, how about yours?

2025 Calendars I’m Pumped about!

Posted on December 1, 2024 by jekief01

Ladies and Gentlemen as I get older I notice I’m actually oddly pumped about flipping the month on a cool or funny wall calendar.

Why? I’m not completely sure, the main calendar that I ACTUALLY use is google calendar on my phone or computer, that has been my go-to calendar/planner for years now.

That being said, it is now December of 2024 and I have to admit I’m kinda bummed to retire the 3 wall calendars that have been with me all year: The Pokemon calendar I use at work, the Dungeons and Dragons calendar I have in my home office, and the Dollar General Peanuts calendar I have in my kitchen. All 3 have been a joy.

Looking ahead though, I find their successors lacking… Specifically the new 2025 Dungeons and Dragons calendar just doesn’t excite me the way the 2024 calendar did.

So here we are, shopping for new wall calendars that I’ll either buy or put on my Holiday wish list and admire from afar. As I’m searching, as always, I find myself stumbling upon some real gems and wondering: “Is there anyone that reviews yearly calendars?” I laugh at the thought of calendar reviews and then I immediately type in a google search for exactly that. You know what? There really isn’t a lot of calendar reviews. I mean I would be surprised if there was a glut of them but really there’s almost none. The top search results I got were, of course, people who SELL calendars. So of course they are ready to tell you about the best calendars for 2025 but they have skin in the game. They either designed the calendar they are trying to sell or they bought a crud-load of calendars that will become more and more worthless each day past January 1st.

Me? I just want a cool picture of a dragon that I can ADHD stare at for about a month and then get a momentary dopamine hit when I realize “OH I get to change the month!” Look, it’s oddly satisfying and I’m pumped anytime I can get a dopamine blast that doesn’t come from 1. my phone 2. eating something I shouldn’t 3. buying something I shouldn’t.

Speaking of which, it’s time for some disclaimers, some of these links ARE affiliate links so if you DO buy one of my ridiculous recommendations I will get a kick back. DO NOT feel obligated to use my links, but if you do I’m super grateful and I promise you that, for my part, anything on this list I definitely WOULD buy. (Heck by the time you’re reading this I just may have purchased one or two of them) I equally would smile big if I saw any of these on the wall if I walked into one of my friends, family, or coworkers’ office, kitchen, or she-shed and saw one hanging. Also not everything on my list will be an affiliate link. Several of these are just awesome and I want you to know about them… THAT is the real point of this list.

Second disclaimer: I didn’t do research on any of these choices so IF they are swiping images or engaged in any shady practices? I’m unaware of it. I wouldn’t knowingly promote something that steals art, but I might accidentally do that and If I do? Please feel free to set me straight on it, but remember I’m just a man who sees a shiny squirrel and as a service to you I report the shiny squirrel, so be gentle please. So let’s get started.

https://amzn.to/4g43Sumhttps://amzn.to/4g43Sum

Mewsic Legends!

Oh man you had me at “Hello” with this one. Why? First of all the pun is right there in the title, I love a good pun.

Then it’s cats dressed up as Iconic music personalities? What’s not to love?

The art style is super minimalist, with a Eric Carle Painted Paper vibe! I would be so looking forward to Freddie Mercury and Prince as I flipped through the months on this one and I don’t even have a cat!

https://amzn.to/3ZeZRML

1d12 Wooden Dice Desk Calendar!

Yes I know I said I like Wall Calendars for the cool pictures but I ALSO told you about my Dungeons and Dragons calendar. I did say I was ADHD right? Well I am and this was too cool not to throw on the list.

This one is just fun, I’d enjoy changing the month on this as much as I’d enjoy changing a wall calendar, unfortunately the calendar IS the image. You only get one. Beyond being a dice and beyond showing the months of the year? That’s the joy that you’d get out of it.

Unfortunately after the year is over it kinda loses all of its charm and feels a little wasteful, but a clever artist could definitely repurpose this pretty easily without needing to just throw it away at the end of December.

Another plus on this one is that it’s classy looking, in fact… this might just be the classiest calendar I put on this whole list. Don’t hold me to that but yeah that’s just a likelihood.

https://amzn.to/4eTfgYV

2025 Enter the Ninja

Speaking of NOT classy! Man this one even wears its trashiness right in the item description! (if you’re confused you have to click the link to see that) I’d argue, however, that this one wears a sort of ironic cult classiness but then I don’t think I’m the best arbiter of class so take that with a grain of salt.

This one sells itself or disqualifies itself, if you love old Ninja or Kung Fu movies then I don’t need to sell this one to you; but if you DON’T like those things then this one isn’t for you.

That being said? This one TOTALLY IS for me.

Spider-Man Across the Spider-verse

https://amzn.to/3VhW6Vz

Yeah, I’m probably getting this one.

Look I LOVE Spider-man and I love so many versions of Spider-man that this one just makes sense for me.

This is your box standard mass market kind of wall calendar but honestly they kinda nail it. The street art meets interdimensional travel art style of this calendar was a big part of the movie and they incorporated that into the design of this calendar in a very slick package and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way. This Calendar just works for me so I wouldn’t be surprised if this was on my wall come January 1st.

https://amzn.to/3ZyxzOwMedieval Snails

https://amzn.to/3ZyxzOw

The whole idea here is awesome, I don’t know that I have ever thought “You know what I need manuscript style images of? Snails. I need Medieval Snails and I need them every month of the year.”

But now that I’ve thought it, I really am having a hard time NOT thinking it.

Look I think at the outset I made it clear that my list was NOT for everyone. I was hoping to throw you some ideas that you’d never think to look for and I think this installment likely fits that niche very nicely. These monthly images are pretty cool while being bizarre, random, and hilarious all at the same time.

Godzilla 1954

https://amzn.to/4fXVv3N

This is a fun one that I could see next to my desk at work. The image plates have good color and incorporate a fun design style for the featured images.

Classic Godzilla monsters are just good dumb fun. These plates feature more than just Godzilla, and Mothra looks great in the mix. If you love that old school Kaiju vibe I think they did a nice job on the calendar for this year.

Biased Plea to Support Artists!

Guys I’m so prone to capitalism that I have a hard time even walking out of Walmart or Dollar General without a new calendar but if you can, I totally recommend reaching out to independent artists who make their own calendars. It’s a great way to support an actual living artist (as so many calendars are now made with AI image generation this year) and nothing beats 12 months of art from an artist you love. So I’d like to offer at least two of the artists I love below:

Check out Arden Ellen Nixon she puts out a calendar every year and if you reach out to her you may still be able to get your hands on her 2025 calendar.

Also check out Christopher R. Mihm he makes movies telling his own stories in the style of vintage drive-in or matinee films from the 50’s 60’s and 70’s. Mihm also puts out a limited run of calendars each year with still images from or based on his movies.

Charity Calendars

And while we’re talking about throwing money out there; how about some calendars that generate funds for nonprofits? Well, I found a decent list of wildlife calendars here. I think that’s a great way to help out people who are helping out. Knowhatimean?! If you find some more good ones I’m definitely interested in a cool calendar that supports a good cause.

Conclusion

There you go, in this lil blog post I showed you:

5 wall calendars that I had to fight myself not to just go ahead and order on the spot.

A desk calendar twelve sided die that’s totally wasteful but infinitely rad.

Some indy artist options and…

a link for nonprofit charity calendars.

I hope you enjoyed my browser window shopping as much as I did and more importantly I hope the rapidly approaching new year brings you twelve wonderful months and I hope there’s maybe a lil dopamine in it for you every time you flip to a new month as well.

The Perfect Lute? (A Tale of Meridian 59 by Carew)

Posted on September 17, 2023 by jekief01

Carew stood up slowly and scanned the room. What he needed was his travel pack and his sword but he couldn’t help but let his eyes dart to the lute that he had fastened to the wall of his room. Lutes weren’t all that uncommon here in the city of Tos. Quite the contrary, Jala Bards often brought lutes from lands far and wide to perform on the green just outside of the great arena of Tos.There was usually an easily captive audience for an ambitious performer to find. This Lute however, was particularly fine, in fact Carew was uncertain that he had ever seen a more perfect lute than this one. He had recently “acquired” this masterwork piece when bravely, or perhaps foolishly, fighting his way deep into the basement of Castle Victoria. 

Many adventurers and heroes made the trek to the foot of the mountain where Castle Victoria stood. The castle’s many rooms and halls became a testing ground of sorts but it’s been told that even more who wandered there have had the misfortune to meet their end staring into the spectral eyes of the mad king himself. The ghost of Far’Nohl was well known to wander the long abandoned castle, raising skeletal warriors and the corpses of his long dead servants to dissuade scavengers like Carew from staying long. It was an attempt to avoid these cackling abominations that led Carew to a certain wooden trap door set into the floor of what was an otherwise unremarkable room in a castle full of undiscovered rooms. To describe the room itself is to waste time. The room was nothing more than four stone walls and the door he entered through. He lifted the dusty wooden trapdoor, which creaked loudly with each slight movement on its hinges, until it flipped over, dropping quickly and banging loudly to the floor, the sound echoing off the walls. The impact of the door raised a large cloud of dust that Carew tried to wave away with his left arm while covering his mouth with his other hand. He’d rather not breathe in whatever molds likely inhabited this place. The opening revealed a staircase down into what Carew assumed to be a storeroom or cellar. He imagined that the musty smell coming up through that opening must be preferable to what might have been rotten food or dead rats in the early years of this castle’s abandonment but also he wouldn’t call that smell pleasant by any stretch of the imagination. If it were much more putrid he might have left the dark passage entirely to explore it another day, but his curiosity was far too strong to ignore. 

Knowing it would be pitch black darkness in the storeroom below, Carew reached into a pouch on his belt and brought out a small clump of elderberries. Placing the berries in his hand and touching his palm to a holy symbol in his pocket he whispered a quick prayer to Kraanan for what the priests affectionately called “night vision”. The process was swift and it always unnerved Carew a little. He watched the otherwise plump elderberries (he had intended to make wine from) as they rapidly dried out, cracked, popped, and blew into ash, a sacrifice to Kraanan himself for his aid. His eyes filled with a stinging sensation as they slowly adjusted, the room and passage transitioned from darkness to being lit as brightly as day. He couldn’t help but think “this is how the orcs, and shadowbeasts of the deep see the world.” That thought made him shudder but he knew this foreign sensation was far more efficient than fumbling with a torch or other magical illuminations.  

With that he crouched low and entered the trapdoor. He found the opening was barely large enough to accommodate the stairs below. The degree of difficulty excited Carew, while he tried not to get his hopes up he couldn’t help thinking that if this hatch was meant for daily use it would have been designed for servants to easily climb through with arms full, whatever this storeroom’s intended purpose, it was clear the opening was made more for secrecy than for accessibility. The stairs widened as he cautiously descended, his sword at the ready. He peered into a massive room with a very high ceiling. Carew marveled at the size of the room. If he did not see the blocks of the stone walls themselves he might have guessed that this was merely a repurposed cave or cavern but no, this room was clearly built to be a vast open space. It was too plain to have been a secret ballroom, although it reminded him of one. Was this once the secret meeting place for some dark cabal? The questions merely let Carew’s thoughts spiral into even more questions. What was apparent however, is that at least in the final days of Castle Victoria this room was indeed used as a storeroom. In the middle of this immense mostly empty space there were several large stacks and wooden crates. And spider webs, so many spider webs. Carew noted there appeared to be the opening to a large spider nest not unlike the kind you might see in the twisted woods to the south of Tos. He crept slowly towards the crates hoping not to disturb anything that might want to greet him from that nest.

Planning not to stay long he hastily scanned the crates for something that might fetch him a good price. It became immediately discouraging as many of the open crates and sacks seemed to hold parchments or diplomatic trinkets. These items might have held some significance during the King’s reign but, without being composed of some precious metal, most of these items he knew would only hold interest to the scholars of Marrion. He had learned, far too well, that scholars who could pay to acquire such artifacts, seldom did manage to pay anything. Citing instead that the goodwill and understanding such academic research might provide for the realm would be “priceless” and afterall, what else were you planning to do with it? No sir, Carew did not crawl down here risking zombies, skeletons, and spiders for “debate fodder.” Despite his stubborn determination however, he was about to give up hope when he spied a small crate without a latch, this one nailed completely shut. He slipped his sword back into his scabbard and produced a smaller dagger from his boot. He slid this blade up under one of the boards and used it to pry the side of the crate away, the wood groaning as it reluctantly let go of the nails. Inside lying on a bed of fabric there it was, an immaculate lute made of a strange dark wood that Carew couldn’t identify but noted, as he lifted it from the crate, that the lute was definitely heavier than it appeared and it seemed to almost fill his mind with a song as he held it. The strings seemed in perfect shape. He doubted any normal instrument could remain in storage strung so and in such perfect condition. He even found himself wondering if Jala herself might not play a lute so beautiful as this.

He was roused suddenly from his memory by a slight nudge. He shook the past away and was back in the present of his rented room above the tavern known as Familiars. He looked down to see his friend and companion the curious clump of mushrooms and fungal matter known as “Woo.” The fungus beast looked up at him, the arrangement of brown, green and gray fungus clumps that made up his face seemed to almost form browlines which set Woo apart from most of his kin. The fungus beast used those implied eyebrows in concert with his green pool-like eyes to affect an expression of curious concern.

Carew knelt down and patted Woo on the side giving him the slight squeeze of a side hug.“Nothing to be worried about my friend, I was just lost in a memory.” 

“Take a look at it Woo!” He stood and  gestured over to the lute with a melodramatic flourish of his arm. “To some this might just be a musical instrument, or a conduit to sing praise to Jala, but to me?…” He leaned down as he paused and said with a grin, “it’s the perfect loot.” He winked and chuckled at what he knew was a terrible pun.

The fungus beast shook his head rapidly as if in pain and made a sound like the cross between a cough and sneeze, spores shot from its face up into the room as it did… Carew knew that was as close to a groan as his friend could manage, which caused him to erupt with bellows of laughter that echoed out through the open window of his room up into the starlit night of the wider world.  

BRB!

Posted on January 29, 2019 by jekief01

Pro Tip! Don’t let your wordpress website’s plugins and themes get so old that they no longer update. I’m not sure what happened but I had to take the old site down. I’ll need to decide what to do with Tank-Monkey but for now it’s kind of a landing page. Please checkout one of these projects while I get my life in order. Thank you for your patience!

http://jessekiefer.com

http://nerdsounds.com

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