Incidentally, if you own a Kindle and have Amazon Prime, you're able to get at least one free pre-release book per month (occasionally more than one) from Amazon First Reads:

 

https://smile.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/firstreads/

 

That page is worth a bookmark because I didn't find it easy to navigate to there quickly from the Amazon home page.

 

Combine that with (i) the Kindle Owners Lending Library (which allows one free loan per calendar month through your Kindle from a fairly broad selection), (ii) Prime Reading (allowing up to 10 items to be checked out at time through the regular Amazon interface and delivered to your Kindle), (iii) the ebook lending programs at most Ohio public libraries right now, most of which I think now work through Amazon (I know for a fact that ASCPL does), and (iv) sites like Gutenberg for classic out-of-copyright novels and other texts, and you can make your Kindle a pretty well-stocked library on the go for no additional money on top of Amazon Prime.  (And if you're OK with just public library and out-of-copyright ebooks, you don't even need that, but Prime is so worth it.)

19 minutes ago, Gramarye said:

On a much more escapist note, I've been plowing through Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels urban fantasy series, which starts with Magic Bites, though I'm several installments deep into the series now: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38619.Magic_Bites.  

I read a seemingly very similar series years ago. Except the story lines all took place in Cincinnati. 

 

I'll try and remember the name...senility. 

13 hours ago, surfohio said:

I read a seemingly very similar series years ago. Except the story lines all took place in Cincinnati. 

 

I'll try and remember the name...senility. 

 

That's most likely the Hollows series by Kim Harrison.  Many similar plot elements.

Dresden Files has been my urban fantasy of choice. Supposedly a new book is finally coming out soon...

On 9/7/2019 at 4:53 AM, Gramarye said:

 

That's most likely the Hollows series by Kim Harrison.  Many similar plot elements.

That's it. Thanks!

 

Surprised it hasn't been turned into a movie or Netflix series yet. 

3 hours ago, surfohio said:

That's it. Thanks!

 

Surprised it hasn't been turned into a movie or Netflix series yet. 

 

The failure of the Dresden Files on SciFi (before it was imaginatively renamed to SyFy, IIRC) probably soured a number of potential producers on trying a lesser-known urban fantasy series.  The Magicians is a crossover urban-high fantasy and has a strong enough following to keep getting renewed, at least for the moment, but there hasn't been a pure urban fantasy success that I can recall since Buffy the Vampire Slayer (which was obviously quite a bit different than Dresden Files, the Hollows, or the Kate Daniels series).

 

(That said, I'm still definitely awaiting the new Dresden Files book and I even thought the TV series was a lot better than most other people thought, apparently.)

17 hours ago, Cavalier Attitude said:

Dresden Files has been my urban fantasy of choice. Supposedly a new book is finally coming out soon...

 

Baen releases electronic "Advance Reader Copies" on their website several months before general release, usually for $15.  I just finished the new anthology set in Michael Z. Williamson's "Freehold" world, it comes out in December.  Never got into Dresden Files, but JB has written in Monster Hunter International (Larry Correia) anthologies.

 

They also have a free library which contains the first books of serieses like Freehold, MHI, and 1632.

Benjamin Franklin's autobiography.  When you consider that witchcraft was still a capital crime when he was born in Massachusetts, his attitudes and opinions were amazingly 'enlightened', and in tune with comtemporary liberalism. 

my spouse got me barbarian days a surfing life by william finnegan the new yorker writer as a stocking stuffer.

 

its off to a very good start.

 

 

 

^ good choice. That guy sure got the most from his travels. 

I got Charles Bukowski's Hot Water Music for Christmas. Very scatological so far, but good.

On 1/4/2021 at 6:49 AM, Ineffable_Matt said:

I got Charles Bukowski's Hot Water Music for Christmas. Very scatological so far, but good.

 

 

^ if you like him 'post office' is by far my favorite. its great.

 

'ham on rye' is good too.

 

imo the rest is scattershot good and bad.

 

come to think of it his last book 'hollywood' was ok too as it is about after he got more famous.

 

 

***

 

 

i just bought patti smith 'm train.'

 

it looks like its about the rock goddess hanging out in the usual hipstery places around the world.

 

'just kids' about her and mapplethorpe was good, so it caught my eye -- and also we have an upcoming hotel staycation in willamsburg, brooklyn, so i thought it would be fitting for that lol.

This has been great - and has taught me so much about our genetics. It's particularly an interesting read in light of the mRNA vaccines we're all receiving. 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Code-Breaker-Jennifer-Doudna-Editing/dp/1982115858 

17 hours ago, mrnyc said:

^ if you like him 'post office' is by far my favorite. its great.

 

'ham on rye' is good too.

Definitely want to read Ham on Rye. I'll add Post Office to the list. I just finished The Invention of Morel and Last Exit to Brooklyn. Both great, but damn is Last Exit ROUGH.

On 3/25/2021 at 8:28 AM, Ineffable_Matt said:

Definitely want to read Ham on Rye. I'll add Post Office to the list. I just finished The Invention of Morel and Last Exit to Brooklyn. Both great, but damn is Last Exit ROUGH.

 

oh yeah ‘last exit,’ that was bad news and sensational, but a great book.

 

i am so glad you mention ‘invention of morel.’ i love that little sci fi masterpiece. and the fallout about it:

 

have you seen the early 60s classic french resnais movie ‘last year at marienbad’? its beautiful and haunting, but nobody could ever figure out what the heck it was about. for its existence resnais the famed director and robbe-grillet the famed modernist author/screenplay writer were coy about it, yet tried to take credit for it.

 

so if you watch it now, having read ‘morel,’ its obvious lol. turns out ‘the invention of morel’ story was lost or obscure and was only rediscovered fairly recently, and as an aside solving the famous ‘marienbad’ movie plot mystery. 

4 hours ago, mrnyc said:

 

oh yeah ‘last exit,’ that was bad news and sensational, but a great book.

 

i am so glad you mention ‘invention of morel.’ i love that little sci fi masterpiece. and the fallout about it:

 

have you seen the early 60s classic french resnais movie ‘last year at marienbad’? its beautiful and haunting, but nobody could ever figure out what the heck it was about. for its existence resnais the famed director and robbe-grillet the famed modernist author/screenplay writer were coy about it, yet tried to take credit for it.

 

so if you watch it now, having read ‘morel,’ its obvious lol. turns out ‘the invention of morel’ story was lost or obscure and was only rediscovered fairly recently, and as an aside solving the famous ‘marienbad’ movie plot mystery. 

Last Year at Marienbad is one of my favorite movies of all time, full stop. Caught it at the Cinematheque, then immediately bought the Criterion edition. It's a straight up masterpiece, and absolutely a visual feast. Delphine Seyrig is stunning in those Chanel dresses. Still haven't seen Jeanne Dielman, but with three year old twins its hard to find three and a half hours lol.

 

And I'm not so sure that Morel "solves" it as much as it offers another explanation. But is great to come across someone else who loves the film!

On 3/27/2021 at 8:12 AM, Ineffable_Matt said:

Last Year at Marienbad is one of my favorite movies of all time, full stop. Caught it at the Cinematheque, then immediately bought the Criterion edition. It's a straight up masterpiece, and absolutely a visual feast. Delphine Seyrig is stunning in those Chanel dresses. Still haven't seen Jeanne Dielman, but with three year old twins its hard to find three and a half hours lol.

 

And I'm not so sure that Morel "solves" it as much as it offers another explanation. But is great to come across someone else who loves the film!

 

 

its pretty clear. it turns out robbe-grillet actually reviewed the book when it was published in french in the 1950s and i find it interesting famed director jacques rivette called him out on it when marienbad came out, but robbe-grillet was coy about it. he didn’t want it known he stole the idea from a low brow sci fi source lol. apparantly resnais was mostly unaware or didn’t care about this. anyway, yes regardless they certainly made marienbad its own thing. and it still is uniquely striking looks-wise and pace, even if it isnt totally incomprehensible anymore.

 

https://www.waggish.org/2004/marienbad-and-morel/

@mrnycI know that Robbe-Grillet lifted much of the plot from Morel. I was just saying that I think the ending and explanation aren't a one for one match with Morel.

^ its true, but i think the differences are a minor issue as compared to the big issue of the movie going from being notoriously completely incomprehensible to making sense once you know the book.

in retrospect it shouldn't have been such a surprise since its not like the french new wave filmakers didn't like sci fi. just look at alphaville and la jetee -ha.

speaking of sci fi -- i'm finally getting around to reading ted chaing's second short story collection exhalation. the guy really hasn't written very much, but he gets a lot of hype. its pretty good so far. he's a bit short on the human interaction side, but he is really off the charts on big ideas. i had read story of your life, which is what the movie arrival was based on, and enjoyed that. 

 

^ That looks interesting. Speaking of Morel, I just got Lulu in Hollywood, which is a collection of writings from Louise Brooks, who was the actress that inspired Casares. She led quite the life!

 

^ if you like that definitely check out the old kenneth anger books like ‘hollywood babylon.’ its mindless, addictive trash of the best kind. i was just out recently and saw someone reading it so we talked about it.

 

***

 

attention lord of the rings fans. you have read the books and seen the movies and probably seen the old animated versions.

 

but you haven’t seen this lol. comrades, may i present newly rediscovered 1991 soviet russia version!:

 

 

https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/tldr/2021/4/7/22371380/soviet-era-lord-of-the-rings-tv-adaptation-low-budget-delight

https://www.amazon.com/Code-Breaker-Jennifer-Doudna-Editing/dp/1982115858/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1617979083&sr=8-1

 

This was the best book I've read in a while. It's about the race to develop Crispr / Cass-9 gene editing technology (which eventually led to our Covid [ and now HIV] vaccines). 

 

The story itself is compelling - and if anyone tells you these vaccines were rushed, this research began in 2011. 

I've never seen Kenneth Anger's name and trashy in the same sentence :p I'm finishing Easy Riders, Raging Bulls right now. 

 

@YABO713It seems that you like the science-y kind of stuff. If so, I heartily recommend The Idea Factory by Jon Gertner. Its crazy how much stuff got created there. And, to appeal to your lawyerly side, I think they go into Hedy Lamarr's contributions to wireless technology.

 

 

Edited April 9, 20214 yr by Ineffable_Matt

7 hours ago, Ineffable_Matt said:

I've never seen Kenneth Anger's name and trashy in the same sentence :p I'm finishing Easy Riders, Raging Bulls right now. 

 

 

 

you obviously haven't gotten to the hollywood babylon books or reviews yet. i envy you, it's a ridiculous treat. how much is really true? who cares lol.

1 hour ago, mrnyc said:

 

 

you obviously haven't gotten to the hollywood babylon books or reviews yet. i envy you, it's a ridiculous treat. how much is really true? who cares lol.

I was being facetious. Hollywood Babylon’s reputation precedes itself lol

I'm enjoying John Boehner's memoir.  It's not going win any literature prizes - it's easy to believe he actually wrote it without much help - but it's fun and a quick read. I think people of any political persuasion will find a lot to like.   Is it worth the money???  Well, you might want to get it from the library.

I just finished up Michael Rothman's latest, and it occurred to me that Lois McMaster Bujold may be the only living author on my frequent read list that isn't a Facebook friend or Twitter follow.

On 4/14/2021 at 4:16 PM, Dougal said:

I'm enjoying John Boehner's memoir.  It's not going win any literature prizes - it's easy to believe he actually wrote it without much help - but it's fun and a quick read. I think people of any political persuasion will find a lot to like.   Is it worth the money???  Well, you might want to get it from the library.

Oh...You weren't joking... 

"Hail Mary" by Andy Weir. If you liked "The Martian," also by Weir, you'll like "Hail Mary" which is the name of a space ship on a do-and-die mission.  I think of Weir's writing as science semi-fiction.

I've really been into the Decker series by Baldacci. They are perfect read-for-an-hour-in-the-gym-hot-tub books, which is actually what I've been doing.

i am reading the old classic ‘four for tomorrow’ by sci-fi author and clevelander roger zelazny (he’s from euclid and went to case). i picked it up for a quarter at a thrift store in queens.

 

its a short story collection and bit of its time, but its interesting so far. like ted chaing he seems to be better on the big ideas than the human interactions, but he’s better than chaing at that. to be fair that’s kind of a fault of almost all sci fi vs other writers tho.

i picked up haruki murakami’s first person singular in the los angeles kinokuniya bookstore in little tokyo to read on the plane. its a collection of his recent short stories originally in new yorker magazine. its breezy and as good as usual from my favorite living author.

 

i also pick up the penguin japanese short stories collection book, but haven’t started it yet.

I'm on the most recent Decker book by David Baldacci. It's an easy-reading, popcorn series about a former Cleveland Brown (for one play), then cop, then homeless, and now FBI agent who has perfect memory. 

 

I just can't get into the Puller series as much. Baldacci doesn't exactly shift his writing style, which I like in Decker, but the character Puller and his ensemble are just not that interesting. This one feels like a lesser version of Reacher.

 

I also vaguely remember reading a few of Baldacci's Camel Club books too. At least the first. I don't think I liked them to be frank, but they're worth another shot.

This is what I’ve been reading the past month or so 😂

 

"Boltzmann's Atom" by David Lindley describes the state of physics (mostly atomic and energy theories) as reflected in the life of Ludwig Boltzmann and his 19th and 20th century contemporaries.  It's amazing to me that as late as the early 20th century a belief in theories of atomic structure was still optional in most scientific fields.

Edited September 20, 20213 yr by Dougal

 

i just finished reading "The Construction of Social Reality" by John Searle, who believes in a reality outside of human consciousness. I wanted to read something from the other side of the issue (maybe currently-trendy Kastrup?).  I walked over to my local library to pick up something and was astonished. Under file number 190 (philosophy) were FOUR books.  FOUR!!!  So thanks to Amazon, I'm now reading "Science Ideated: The Fall Of Matter And The Contours Of The Next Mainstream Scientific Worldview" by Bernardo Kastrup.   It's challenging but enjoyable.

I just finished (for the first time; lots of starts and stops in high school) The Grapes of Wrath. Turns out that Steinbeck guy could write. Starting The Man With the Golden Arm becuase I need to read some Algren.

"Paradise Lost" by John Milton.  I had only read excerpts, but the whole thing is amazing.  The introduction said to read it aloud, even if just whispering it to yourself, which is good advice. "Whereto with swift words the arch-fiend replied ..."  It's got great lines.

Had a trip to Panama last week, so I got to knock out a couple of books, and they made for quite a two-hander: Ask the Dust by John Fante and Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski. Ask the Dust is better, but hot damn both are great. Fante's influence on Bukowski is clear from the jump, and I can only thank god Bukowski stumbled upon him. The quote on the cover of Ask the Dust sums up my feelings pretty well: "Either the work of John Fante is unknown to you or it is unforgettable. He was not the kind of writer to leave room in between."

Can't remember if I mentioned this one earlier, but I just re-read Incredible Victory by Walter Lord, one of two major military history books (the other being Shattered Sword) of the Battle of Midway, where the U.S. got its payback for Pearl Harbor and turned the tide of the Pacific theatre in WWII.  A real page-turner for anyone into military history.

 

And since I need my quota of YA escapism, next up is A Court of Thorns and Roses. 😅

I just read a terrific first novel called The Rabbit Hutch by author Tess Gunty. It's a little hard to describe adequately, except to say it's equal parts funny, absurd, riveting, surreal and a bit disturbing and a bit cryptic (there's some stuff about evil developers planning to bulldoze a popular park and build yuppie-style housing in order to revive the town some here might appreciate lol). I've included the Kirkus review (they always have the most concise summaries) and it was recently long-listed for the National Book Award--

 

also trying to catch up on Colson Whitehead's oeuvre. I read one of his earlier books--The Intuitionist--I think that was over 20 years ago, and though well written. found it a bit too esoteric.  So I picked up his last one--Harlem Shuffle. I now understand why he's won pretty much every major and minor literary award in the past few years, including two Pulitzers for Fiction (has anyone else ever done that??). I'm now halfway though The Nickel Boys. 

 

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/tess-gunty/the-rabbit-hutch/

“The Titanium Economy” by Asutosh Padhi, Gaurav Batra and Nick Santhanam. 

 

Summary: Hey, Gen Z, why do you want to open a coffee shop when a machine shop is so much more profitable and likely to succeed? 

7 hours ago, Dougal said:

“The Titanium Economy” by Asutosh Padhi, Gaurav Batra and Nick Santhanam. 

 

Summary: Hey, Gen Z, why do you want to open a coffee shop when a machine shop is so much more profitable and likely to succeed? 

 

Sounds interesting indeed, but I'll have to wait a while to check it out: The only two copies in the Ohio library system (per SearchOhio) seem to be at the Old Worthington Library and both are checked out. 🤯

54 minutes ago, Gramarye said:

 

Sounds interesting indeed, but I'll have to wait a while to check it out: The only two copies in the Ohio library system (per SearchOhio) seem to be at the Old Worthington Library and both are checked out. 🤯

 

20 bucks as an e-book on Amazon,.

On book 2 of the Poppy Wars trilogy. It's a good hot tub read.

1 hour ago, E Rocc said:

 

20 bucks as an e-book on Amazon,.

 

This feels more a library book than a "keep on your bookshelf forever" book.

 

Also, for those who want to quantify just how kickass the Ohio statewide library system is:

 

https://olc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/The-Return-on-Investment-of-Ohios-Public-Libraries-and-National-Comparison-08.21.pdf

• "Registered borrowers" are approximately 73.7% of the Ohio population: #1 in the nation percentage-wise.
• At 239 million total transactions, Ohio's total public library usage is #2 in the nation, not per-capita, total use, behind only #1 California that is basically guaranteed the top spot because of its population.  The same applies to total circulation transactions instead of just all transactions (the latter would include things like Wi-Fi sessions and computer uses): Ohio at 179M circulation transactions is second nationally only to California's 228M.
• In terms of transactions per capita, Ohio is #1 in the nation by a massive margin, at 20.79 transactions/year/person; Maryland is second at 16.86, and the difference between #9 Wisconsin and #2 Maryland is smaller than the difference between #1 Ohio and #2 Maryland

Meanwhile, our cost-per-usage-transaction is at #37 in the nation at $3.27, in part because the volume is so high and many library costs are fixed (so the more they're used, the more cost-efficient they become).

 

tl;dr Ohio's library system is f***ing amazing and you're shortchanging yourself of one of the biggest benefits of living here if you don't milk it.

I recently read American Demon: Eliot Ness and the Hunt for America's Jack the Ripper, about Ness's time in Cleveland and the horrific murders that were gripping the city at the time. The book starts with his origins in Chicago and his "Untouchables" fame before coming to Cleveland as the safety director in the 30's. I don't know if I would give the book 5 stars, but definitely worth reading, if just for the portrait of corruption and crime generally that defined the city then (has anything changed? lol). Eliot is also depicted as a flawed figure, unlike the glossy image most people have based on his earlier years (wow, he really drank a lot). Admittedly after a while I got a bit of "serial-killer fatigue" after each subsequent discovery and detailed description of the umpteenth corpse!

Edited December 1, 20222 yr by eastvillagedon

3 hours ago, Gramarye said:

 

This feels more a library book than a "keep on your bookshelf forever" book.

 

 I bought it because in the review it sounded as if it might be close to a text book; but it isn't. Nor is it very long. Hence, I agree with you: borrow it