So I’m back on the five-books-per-review thing because let’s face it, a dozen-ish (as per my previous entry) is a bit much, even if you’re into the kind of stuff I write. Or the books I read. Or me, really.
It’s a mixed bag. I’ve had a lot on since I last updated here, and reviewing books has fallen by the wayside, surprising no-one.
What is surprising, though, is that I’ve kept up the reading! I’m up to about thirty books for the year thus far, which is why you’re getting a baker’s dozen (plus a few extra) in this post. I had some enthusiasms make themselves known through this brace of books, as you’ll see. It’s, uh, a lot. Hopefully there’s something in there to pique your interest. And if not, hopefully you’ll heed my low-scored warnings .
Well, another five books have come and gone, so it’s time for my thoughts on the same. They run the gamut from experimental fiction to weird memoir and scientific history to gothic fantasy, so you can’t accuse me of being particularly genre-monogamous in the last little while, if that’s even a thing.
This five-books-then-review idea seems to be working pretty well. Pressure’s off and I’ve a little more time to gather my thoughts. Will I still write too much? Probably. Will you read all of it? I’ve no idea.
But join me, won’t you? For a coffee break-sized meditation on books that, for some reason, seemed to concern mass destruction and mass production, along with some nice tunes.
In an attempt to get the year off to a snappy start, I decided to begin this reading trip with some lighter works rather than launching into frog eating from Day One. (The frog, in this case, is Finnegans Wake and so there is a lot of Kermit-chomping action to go.)
Anyway, I knocked over five books in roughly as many days, which was a pleasant change from some of the, uh, involved tomes of last year. What were they? I’m glad you asked.
Once more, dear friends, it’s time for me to remark that time has really flown this year, and that it seems as if I had only written last year’s one of these a couple of days ago.
Yep, 2023 went fast. It’s been a good year in a lot of ways, and absolutely atrocious in many others. The world continues to go to shit, and so I continue in my mission of providing distraction to those who enjoy it (thankfully, a treasured few do) through writing up what I consumed this year, culturally speaking. If this isn’t you, then punch out now. I’m not sure if this one’s going to be as long as previous editions, but let’s give it a whirl, shall we?
Once again, it’s been a while since I wrote. Call it life. Call it work deadlines. Call it the second round of COVID-19 I’ve had this year. Regardless, slackness ensurs and so now I’m going to try to make up for it not by humbly begging your indulgence, but by putting together a bunch – a decet? – of book reviews that may be of interest.
The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson. My rating: five stars
A short review for a short book: read it.
Look, I should probably do a bit more than that.
This is the first collection of short stories by Shirley Jackson that I’d read, and from what I gather it’s the only one I really need to. (That’s not to say that I won’t, just that this seems to be the prevailing sentiment.)