Book reviews: wo-hoh we’re halfway there

By which of course I mean through the year.

(If I was referring to the grave then I’m more than halfway there, which is a sobering thought to open a post about books with. But you know, I’m a happy boy.)

Hubba hubba hubba hubba hubba.

Halfway through the year and we’re up to 42 books read. I’m sure there’s some kind of deep Douglas Adams-ian import could be made from that. Regardless, I’m both happy that I’ve read that many books (particularly given that there’s been so many four/five star reads in there) and annoyed that I haven’t read more.

There’s two books I’ve read (in the past two days) that haven’t made it into this review, but that’s only because I’m a) trying to get this one in before the month ends, b) keeping the books as close to multiples of five per review and (most of all) c) lazy.

(Though not too lazy to have started using a fucking book Gantt chart, it seems.)

Hey ho, let’s go.


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Book (and movie?) review: Solaris

Solaris by Stanisław Lem
My rating: three stars

Apparently this wasn’t the first time I’d read Solaris.

After I’d finished this Kindle edition – one with the Lem-approved translation, executed by Bill Johnston – I discovered an older, dog-eared copy of the work on my shelves. I must have read that version from the time in university when I had a Russian partner who was interested in getting me into Russian literature, to the extent that I wrote some essays for her. (On Goncharov, I think? I can’t quite remember.)

Anyway, being unable to remember treading those star-paths before seemed to be very in keeping with the work itself, and I assume Lem would approve.

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