It's about to get steamy in here...

So... ever since the GGBC started, there has been requests for steampunk titles. I had no idea that there were so many different books in this genre, and I became a bit obsessed looking through the suggestions and trying to pick our first foray into the mechanical abyss. Thanks to all of you amazing geeks and your super human knowledge of all things steampunk, I am really excited to announce our book for June 2012:

"Leviathan" by Scott Westerfield, which is a series that people seem to absolutely freak out over. I can't wait to read my first steampunk book and get into a whole new area to love and obsess over. Thanks Geeks! 

We will be chatting about The Lord Of The Rings starting the last Saturday of the month, I hope that you are enjoying your trip to The Shire, and avoiding not simply walking into Mordor. 

This is shaping up to be another most excellent reading year for GGBC, thanks to all of you for your suggestions and passions guiding our literary journey so far!

We've come a long way baby...

Well, Here it is. Happy 1st Birthday to The Geek Girls Book Club! One year ago, a small minded article in The New York Times told us we hated to read The Hobbit, so we got really fed up with that inane blather and we read it together. Then we read another book, and another, until we can look back on a whole, glorious, geeky year of books.

It turns out it is much more than books though. That is what has surprised me most. It has turned out to be a collection  of the most remarkable people, people with amazing stories of their own and hilarious blogs and never being in a book club before. Friendships were formed. Actual, meaningful friendships between wildly amazing geeks started happening, all over the world. In the last year, I have received so many notes about what the GGBC has meant to them, how it has helped them find new friends, share their passion of reading, of stories, of geekery at its finest, most joyful level.

The support that the group has gotten has been astonishing. We are now over 1,000 members strong, with more joining every month. A group that I thought would be just a few geeks has turned into an army. So many have been so supportive, I could not even begin to say thanks enough, but I will try. Thanks to all of you for sharing us, blogging about us, taking time to pass out cards and fliers in your city. Your enthusiasm makes me proud to be among you, without your passion for the group, it would not have been so strong for an entire year. To Cara for her Gigi logo for GGBC, thank you for giving us a face and a girl to pin on our bags, and wear proudly wherever we go. Thanks to all of you for wearing those pins and tshirts, fielding questions about GGBC with energy and being so proud as to wear us around with you.

I would like to thank amazing authors Neil Gaiman and Joe Hill for their kind support, spreading the word about us and being so gracious when we were reading your books. Your support brought so many to us, and book club aside, being a huge fangirl of you both and having you bother to let others know about us meant so much to me. Thank you for your generosity, it truly made my year.

I look forward to our return to The Shire this month. It will be good to visit the place we began. I hope Gandalf brought fireworks. Don't forget to share your geeky passions with us here in the comments or on FB or Twitter at #GGBC, sharing your passions and excitement is what I love most about this group. We also have a sweet surprise for us this month... keep your eyes peeled on Chef Kittie for the details!

And thank you again most excellent Geeks, it is true indeed, not all who wander are lost.

~Nikki

Because we're cool like that.

Oh and for next month's LOtR read? It is totally acceptable to watch the movies. I am a sucker for those movies. And make a snack. And let's all agree that I can have Boromir for an imaginary boyfriend.
I know that for some the book is hard to get through, so just enjoy this story however you'd care to, just don't google "Boromir Fan Fiction" because, WOW.

Update: I am unable to respond to comments for some reason, so I wanted to absolutely agree that the movies are not the same as the books, but if the books are just not the writing style you enjoy, or you find the read simply not for you, please enjoy the movies; because this story is too good to miss.

We've been there, now we're going back again...

May 1st will be the one year anniversary of the GGBC. I can hardly believe it. Stay tuned for a full on chock full of thanks and geek love blog about that later, but for now I need to announce the book for such an occasion. We started one year ago with The Hobbit, because according to a certain NY Times journalist, women don't read that. I thought it was appropriate that a year later we dance with the one who brought us, so our read for May is:

We are going back to the shire my precious, oh yes we are. I also have another May Anniversary request. There has been a whole lot of "who's geeky enough to be called a geek" discussion out there. You all know that I believe that we can be geeky about many things;  movies, comics, math, science, ewoks, swords, LARPing... the list goes on and on. What I would like you to do is either here in the comments, at the Goodreads or Facebook group or on twitter with #GGBC, tell us what you really get your geek on about, and a favorite book to go with it. It can be fiction or non-fiction, a graphic novel or whatever. But loud and proud say, "I am a geek about _____, and this book is my favorite about such awesomeness." 

I'll go first. I am a geek about gardening and farming (I KNOW!) and this book is my favorite about such awesomeness: The Fabulous Beekman Boys. If you have seen their TV series you understand my love of these men and taking a historic farm to new, amazing heights. It is the most fun and real account about farming I have ever read, so please check it out if you are so inclined.

Let us all share each others geeky loves, and be inspired to learn more about things to add to our obsessive arsenal. 

There will also be a geeky, sweet surprise from our own @ChefKittie. All will be started and revealed May 1st. Please join us for the interwebby festivities, and let your geek out to play.

National Library Week!

To all of us who love reading and love our local libraries, this is a week to celebrate. I'm so grateful we live in a nation with such incredible libraries and staffed with so many knowledgeable and amazing librarians. To all who work for, volunteer and support our local reading treasures, thank you from all of us at Geek Girls Book Club!

Click here for more information on National Library week.

The Call Sounds Today...

Art by: DeviantArt user DrFaustusAU for TheMarySue.com

     So today begins our dive into the murky, Cthulhu infested waters of H.P. Lovecraft. You can get your free copy right here thanks to cthulhuchick.com Ebook. The copy is free, but please think about donating to her page for being so cool as to put this work out there for all to enjoy. There are also lots of Lovecraft works available at your local library and bookstores, so feel free to choose what works best for you. The discussion starts Saturday, April 28th.

     We really want to get some exposure to this incredibly important author, so read what calls to you, pardon the pun. If you'd like to read more about Lovecraft, the Cthulhu Chick website is full of information. He was a very odd and interesting man, and his work has influenced much of what came after him.

     This month is going to be a wonderfully creepy one. Enjoy the journey dear Geeks.

I'm A Princess And This Is My Tiara

(No clue who made this, but I adore it)

Thank you to Natali, who sent me this awesome art today. It reminds me how it sometimes takes just one little thing  to make us feel special, and there are almost 1,000 of you in GGBC. That makes me feel like my tiara is made of Geeky joy. Thanks to you all for being excellent to each other. (And for those who missed it, here is The Geek GIrls Book Club Tiara post.)