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What are you reading these days?
What are you reading currently? Fiction or non-fiction or poetry, any genre, any language! Tell us what you're reading, and talk about it a bit.
What are you reading currently? Fiction or non-fiction or poetry, any genre, any language! Tell us what you're reading, and talk about it a bit.
Finished Food Intelligence by Belluz and Hall a bit ago. I felt like it was a book with good data but definitely had an agenda, so the narrative was slightly disconnected. The main one I have an issue with is the demonization of ultra-processed foods. They suggest that the level of processing might be the issue, present compelling data showing that it's not the level of processing, but the palatability and calorie density, then keep on talking about ultra-processed foods like they're the problem, occasionally calling them "ultra-processed foods that are hyper-palatable and calorically dense" so they won't be technically inaccurate. The section on supplements was a little opinionated too, but seemed like it had less of an agenda, which I liked. Ultimately, I like reading about an interesting topic like this without having to dig into academic research, but I wasn't a fan of the presentation.
Just finished Failure to Disrupt by Justin Reich. It's basically a summary of recent trends in educational technology such as MOOCs, adaptive tutors, microlearning (like Duolingo), etc. Long story short, they're all helpful, but haven't lived up to the hype, more like smaller step changes in a continuous process of improvement rather than hugely transformative and disruptive changes to how we learn.
Currently a little past halfway through Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. The setting is that there are a bunch of corporate compounds that separate the haves from the have-nots, and a lot of resources go into making frivolous things for the haves. The frivolous things giving me a bit of an Idiocracy vibe (the book came out first, so....). Seems like it takes the concept of a k-shaped economy to an extreme future with an apocalyptic ending, which is an interesting take given the popular discourse these days, where the top 10% of earners make up about half of consumer spending. Reading the headline about the fart-sensing underwear today also seemed relevant.
In the last couple weeks I finished Project Hail Mary and am now thoroughly waiting in anticipation for the film adaptation. I've got tickets for an early 70mm screening in a couple weeks.
I also read We Are Legion (We Are Bob). Really fun, but not entirely to my taste. I may continue with the series eventually, but I'm in no rush. Reading about a programmer who loves making Star Trek and other contemporary nerdy references just didn't engage me.
A few days ago I picked up There Is No Antimemetics Division after seeing @HelmetTesterTJ mention it in the last thread. Really enjoyed the blend of sci-fi and cosmic horror! I may circle back to their other recommendations of The Ministry of Time and Lexicon.
The general premise of forgetting important things lead me to my next pick, The Memory Police. I'm just over halfway through and it's a very fun change of pace from all the sci-fi I've been reading, focusing more on magical realism I suppose.
I was going to throw a mention at you for what I'm reading presently (and the foreseeable future):
In the spirit of bureaucratic horror, I just started the 15+ story series the Laundry Files. I'm just finishing book one, the Atrocity Archives, and it's fun. It's a bit pulpy, or maybe post-pulpy (?). It's about a British secret governmental organization, the Laundry, which deals with eldritch horrors. But they aren't just battling them all the time; they're utilizing the mathematical and scientific realities that a lovecraftian multiverse implies to develop technology - basically hijacking lesser entities in a controlled fashion to do human bidding. Veeeeeeeery Pratchett - think enslaved imp inside the cameralike device, but mathier.
So, yeah, one book down, fourteen to go.
The description sounds right up my alley! I've got these bookmarked after I get through a couple other things first.
I'm trying out Ursula K. Le Guin after hearing her work recommended so often from friends and online. Rocannon's World felt like a good start since it's the first entry in the Hainish Cycle.
The City We Became by N K Jemisin.
Overview: When Cities get old enough, they become actual metaphysical creatures, with a human avatar. New York gets born this way, but because NY is NY, it gets six avatars instead of the usual one, one for NY and one for each of the 5 boroughs. Also, there's an evil thing that tries to eat baby cities!
I'm about 70% of the way through, and it's been fun so far. I wish I had more knowledge of NYC (I've never even been there), as there's obviously a lot of emphasis placed on the cultures and soul of the city and it's various boroughs that I am only passingly familiar with, but even then it's continued to be great and has some good commentary.
[As a side-note not related to the book itself necessarily: there's a much larger proportion of BIPOC/queer/otherwise marginalized characters, especially main characters, and Im finding myself still being surprised by this. It's just a marker of my white privilege that I'm used to most characters being white/straight coded, or if they are something else it's more a footnote rather than core to how they act. I'm going to try and read more black/BIPOC/queer authors to work on this myself.]
Related to the sidenote above, a housemate and I are working through Me and White Supremacy by Layla F Saad, the workbook for people with white privilege to help unpack and work on stuff. We're both white dudes, so there's been a lot so far. We're only a few chapters in at this point. Happy to discuss chapters with any peeps who want to work on it together, if there's interest.
The Hundred Years War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi. Picked this one up as I'm generally aware of the situation in Palestine, but realized I didn't know any of the history or details, so I googled some reading lists and picked this one. Only halfway through the first chapter and I've already learned a lot (I thought Israel was a post WWII invention, but turns out it's been cooking since the late 1800s). Heavily detailed and footnoted historical account. It is political (as any history book must be), but I think it does a fair job of presenting the historical complications and pressures that led to the situation today. (Or, again, to the 1920s so far, as that's what I've read).
In lighter news in comic land, I'm reading some Cyberpunk comics I got off the Humble Bundle still running. Trauma Team by Cullen Bunn et al was a really captivating read, it's real short (less than 100 comic pages) but it really captures the feel and hopelessness that makes cyberpunk (the genre) so interesting to me. Neat to see more Trauma Team too, as you barely get to view them in the game, and they are one of the more interesting corporate-dystopia aspects imo.
In Manga Land, working my way through Lone Wolf and Cub on volume 11. This is a beautiful series, it really drips with subtle and complex feelings and characters, would highly recommend. [One trigger warning: the series does feature many instances and depictions of sexual assault and rape, always at women. The main character never does, and it's never glorified, exclusively done by evil dudes to show how evil and awful they are, but it is there, so if that's something you can't see you may want to steer clear.]
When you finish City We Became, check out and feel free to contribute to the Tildes Book Club discussion of that book, found here
Don't read it this minute because of spoilers, but I hope you enjoy the discussion.
Ha! I look forward to necro-ing that year old thread, thanks for the shout!
I started on Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series, the first of which is The Way of Kings.
I'm a bit disappointed, because this book was the highest rated one on my todo-list, and the prose is weirdly simple, and not in a good way. But it's an easy read, and perhaps it'll work out in the end. I'm halfway through right now.
But why the incredibly high score on Goodreads? 4.66/5 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7235533-the-way-of-kings
I've loved the series, I'm currently caught up on Stormlight and it's also the only Sanderson I've read. Imo the books don't have prose that's anything special, it's fine as you've noted but I wouldn't call any of it particularly clever wordplay or evocative imagery. Where the series stands out to me is in the character design and development, especially over the course of the books, and the mystery/world building that gets doled out. I became highly invested in the characters and figuring out what was going on and what was happening as the series continued.
I finished The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, and that book was really messed up. It was beautifully written and such a good book, but what happened in the story is messed up. Think Holes by Louis Sachar, but for adults and set in Jim Crow-era Florida, and more paranormal. But also so so much worse than you can imagine.
Then I read Freaky Folklore which is just a collection of stories on cryptids from around the world.
Yesterday, I finished A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James. Another novel I couldn't put down, full of ghosts and horror. I've said before she's one of my favorite modern authors, and I will read anything she writes. This was no different.
I'm currently reading Ugly Fashion by Karolina Zebrowska. It's funny, and the "chapters" are fairly short. I'm enjoying her sense of humor, but I also love her YouTube channel, so no surprise there that I'm enjoying her book, too.
The next book on my list is Strange Pictures by Uketsu. I like his curt writing style of horror.
Caliban's War (Expanse, book 2) is my commute audiobook. Dungeon Crawler Carl #4 is my sit-down paper read. I am looking forward to Gentlemen Bastards #3 after I burn the rest of the DCC entries.
Oh I loved The Expanse! I did ebooks rather than audiobooks, but the series is so charming and enjoyable, probably my favorite sci-fi series to date. Funny enough I think the second was the weakest, still good but it feels a little out of place in the narrative (the 1, 3rd and 4th form the opening trilogy imo, and the 2nd is like a side quest; still has important lore and whatnot, and of course Bobby! But just know it gets better)
One of the best overall things I've read, and one of the best things to watch. I very rarely re-read anything, so I won't be reading it again most likely. That makes me somewhat melancholy to think of.
Can't wait! I've seen and enjoyed the show greatly, but there are obvious differences from the book I'm still processing (and may not be noticing since it's been awhile since I've seen it).
I kinda wish I'd read it before the show, though, as I'm pigeon-holed on how I picture everybody...
To be fair, Wes Chatham as Amos was not at all how I pictured book Amos. But he really sold me on Amos and now when I re-read, I still see and hear Wes lol
I'm reading Terry Pratchett's The Truth for Tildes Book Club.
I just finished the 7th in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series This Inevitable Ruin. The next one comes out this year.
I'm reading Wolf Hall by Mantel A historical fiction about the court of King Henry VIII of England.
I'm nearly finished with Homegoing by Gyasi It's a little bit like the book Roots but Homegoing traces family stories both in the US among slaves and in West Africa.
Finished Mikhail Bulgakov's 'Heart of a Dog' Published in 1968. I enjoyed this silly romp through Bolshevik Russia. Ridiculous premise (A criminal's testes and pituitary glad are transplanted into a dog who then becomes a foul-mouthed rude human) A commentary on the idea of creating the 'perfect Russian peasant' and that society at large. Fun, short and has something to say.
Finished David Egger's 'What is the What' Published 2006. Digested as an audiobook with the idea of learning something about the Sudanese civil war in the 80's. I enjoyed it overall, wasn't expecting a deep piece of literature and it wasn't, but it was a good story, a good novelized biography and well read as an audiobook. I enjoyed the bits of situational humor in the book, it helped pace the obviously difficult experiences told in the book. I learned a lot about a topic I knew nothing about.
Started Henry James' 'The Wings of the Dove' Published 1902. I've really been neglecting Henry James, for some reason I have false memories of reading more of his books so I've repeatedly passed him over on the shelf, but checking my records I've only ever read 'Portrait of a Lady' Published 1881.
Turns out there is a big difference between James' early writing and his later writing because I really enjoyed 'Portrait of a Lady' but this later work I'm finding really difficult, the intricate sentence structure is very hard to follow and I've moved between lucid chapters and chapters where I really couldn't follow it. I think it started to click around 70 pages in, but is still proving to be a lot of work. I think I'm around 170 pages in now and there has been very little plot, almost nothing but dense character development. I like this sort of thing, but this will be one of those books that requires at least a second reading to grasp.
Next up for an audiobook: Who knows, that is next week's problem.
Previously, the Vorkosigan Saga.
Got to a book which introduced Mark, and didn't enjoy it at all. I found the whole character dislikable and uninteresting. This was my reading order: of mostly omnibus editions:
So I got as far as the "Miles Errant" omnibus, and read Brothers In Arms, which (for me) introduced Mark. Disliked that a lot. Then "Mirror Dance" continued the Mark thing and I just switched off.
I really liked the Cetaganda, Ethan of Athos, all of Young Miles. And of course the three Cordelia books.
Enough of what I /was/ reading, now I /am/ reading the start of the Bobiverse. I saw it pass by in Book Club here, but then I saw the cover (I judge books by their covers a lot) of volume 2 in a local book store and decided to jump in with "We Are Legion".
Fascinating rapid fire start to the story, Earth seems to be in a bit of a pickle. Can't wait to see where it goes next.
Finishing up Ernest Hemingway - The Old Man and the Sea (1952, 96pg), then I'm back to whichever Sherlock mystery is next, then I think I'm gonna crank through Mary Oliver - Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver* (2017, 456pg), then maybe H. Jon Benjamin - Failure Is an Option: an Attempted Memoir (2018, 245pg)... maybe.
* edit: yes, this was on S19 of Taskmaster -- I read a few poems and they seem great.
I started on Solenoid by Mircea Cartarescu, and I cannot get really used to this book.
First off: It is a book about a teacher that wants to be an author, and I get the feeling that this defines a whole subgenre: Writers writing about writers and how they struggle. I guess it makes sense, as one of my favorite rappers once said: "You can only pee with the dick that you have" (I guess that sounds better in german...), but still, it feels a bit repetitive. I noticed this theme in Min Kamp, (ofc), but also in Allegro Pastell.
Another issue is that I really like reading physical books, and with 890 pages, this gets quite unwieldy.
But: The prose is beautiful! A bit psychedelic, very imaginative comparisons, and rich references to a manifold of themes like religion, arts, mathematics, without being too far-fetched just for the references sake.
We will see how I hold up or if I have to drop it, literally.
The newest novel in Mark Greaney's Gray Man series: The Hard Line. About 40% through it, and really enjoying it. It's got some new stuff it brings to the series, as well as reusing old in a fun "new" way.
On a side note, I've become a member of the site Hardcover, and have really enjoyed it for its high quality curation of books and content. A very nice alternative to Good Reads.
A few days ago I read Thinking in Systems, by Donella H. Meadows. It's nothing revolutionary, and a lot of the concepts in this book have "entered the drinking water" so-to-speak, but it's still good to get a refresher that puts you into the mindset of systems thinking for a couple hours. It's an excellent short read that I strongly recommend.
Absolute Superman 1 and 2.
DC's Absolute imprint recreates heroes in another universe with significant differences from the mainline. It is a great way to get back into reading DC comics without having to make sense of years of continuity. Up until now the titles are also independent so you don't need to follow several titles to understand the stories.
It recently started being published in Brazil.
Absolute Superman is awesome and vibrant. The art is gorgeous and the story is full of energy. In this universe, Kal-El only leaves Krypton as a teenager. Krypton itself is different too, with a rigit caste system. Kal-El is not from a wealthy family. This Superman is younger and Earth's reality, darker and more complex. Lois Lane is not a journalist, but an agent in an organization hunting Superman.
I am loving Absolute Superman. It introduces enough different elements to make it fresh while remaining faithfull to the core values of the characters. They made Krypton a lot more interesting and it would be a shame to not explore it any further. The title brilliantly reintroduces Superman to older fans and I am excited for the other issues!