Sunday Morning Book Thread - 08-21-2022 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]

"It is not wide reading but useful reading that tends to excellence." -- Aristippus

Welcome to the prestigious, internationally acclaimed, stately, and illustrious Sunday Morning Book Thread! The place where all readers are welcome, regardless of whatever
guilty pleasure we feel like reading. Here is where we can discuss, argue, bicker, quibble, consider, debate, confabulate, converse, and jaw about our latest fancy in reading material, even if it's nothing more than Liz Cheney's "concession" speech. As always, pants are required, especially if you are wearing these pants...(great for the end of summer)

So relax, find yourself a warm kitty (or warm puppy--I won't judge) to curl up in your lap, tuck into that quiche, and crack open a new book. What are YOU reading this fine morning?

Today's pic came to me courtesy of KT (who provides most of the content on the Saturday threads until the afternoon Hobby Thread). KT sent me several different pics of the Livaria Lello bookstore in Porto, Portugal. It looks like it's quite a happening place. Lots of local events and lines out the door to get in. Salman Rushdie was scheduled to visit in early September, but I suspect that event is probably going to be canceled. The storefront is a rather modest, yet beautifully decorated façade. The interior is quite deep and contains its famous red staircase.

EDUCATIONAL PRIMERS

Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing sent me the following email, based on a comment he made in a thread:

Perfessor,
The book I was talking about is called The Way of Democracy. The edition I have is from 1950, but it was originally published in 1940 as part of the "Democracy Series" from the MacMillan Company. The book doesn't list any of the other entries in the series, however.
It's broken down into 11 parts, with titles such as "Foundation of our liberties," "Rule by the majority," "Trial by jury" and so on. Each part is then broken down into stories explaining the subject heading - for example, "Foundation of our liberties" is divided into five smaller bits: "A New Day Dawns at Runnymeade," "John Hill Saves the Charter" (which is about 'protecting the rights of the people of Connecticut'), "What Happened in Philadelphia," "The Sun Rises on the United States" and "A More Glorious Fourth."
I don't know what grade this book was aimed at - at a guess, perhaps third or fourth. What depresses me about it is the almost willful innocence with which American democracy is presented. For instance, let me quote from the "Democracy at Work" section:
"Most important of all is the fact that the people in the United States have the right to vote. When the people know they are being cheated, they can vote the dishonest men and women out of office. The voters have the final word. The government cannot be bad for long, unless the people do not care. Americans can have the kind of government the majority wants. To have good government the people must do at least two things: They must take an interest in what their officers are doing, and they must vote."
Except for the last sentence, does anyone not on the NeverTrump payroll believe that hogwash?
It appears you can find a copy on Amazon for $14, but who knows? Anyway, hope this helped a bit.
https://tinyurl.com/2s4b48jr

The excerpt above paints a very rosy picture of government and the citizen's role within the state. If everything worked as intended, this might be enough. There was a time when kids were taught at a very basic age to have a healthy respect of government institutions, as well as their rights and responsibilities as citizens of the United States of America.

Educational primers as a genre have been around for a long, long time (centuries). According to this article, primers have been around since the 15th or 16th century. The intent seems to have been to develop children into good, moral, and responsible adults, according to the Judeo-Christian values prevalent in Europe at the time. Perhaps the most famous primers is The New England Primer, which was first published in the American Colonies.

I love this quote from The Eclectic First Reader: "[g]reat pains have been taken to select Lessons in which the language is simple, and the subjects interesting and natural to childhood; as we have learned from actual experience, that a child's progress is more rapid when the subjects are agreeable, and he can understand the terms in which they are conveyed." (p. 5.)

Although we usually associate primers with reading and vocabulary skills, they can be used for virtually any subject as a primer is just the foundational knowledge within a discipline. A chemistry book that introduces students to the periodic table is a primer, for instance, since understanding the periodic table is the bedrock upon which modern chemistry is built.

A lurker sent me some images from McGuffey's Eclectic Reader, one of the most famous primers around:

Front Cover

Back Cover

What would an AoSHQ Primer look like? What sort of content should be included? Should we write one? We could probably put together a kickass book of language skills, civics, science, and much, much more.

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FEATURED MORON REVIEW

Since I don't have any Books by Morons this week, I thought I'd try something a little different. Moronette March Hare sent me the following review of a book mentioned by a Moron:

One of the books mentioned by the Morons is O Lost: A Story of the Buried Life. Arlyn and Matthew Bruccoli used the original manuscripts, both typewritten and handwritten, that Thomas Wolfe submitted to Maxwell Perkins at Charles Scribner's Sons. Mr. Perkins worked with Mr. Wolfe to refashion the manuscript into Look Homeward, Angel. Mr. Perkins' edits changed the focus of the novel from an epic of the Gant Family to the life of Eugene Gant, the youngest son and the stand-in for Thomas Wolfe himself.
O, Lost is more obviously autobiographical, e.g., the names of the Gant Family, except Eugene, are the same names as Mr. Wolfe's siblings and parents and is more epic in scope, covering more family history and more characters.
O, Lost is not a quick read. The story itself is just under 700 pages, but there are extensive notes (which I didn't read) and a preface explaining why the Brucollis decided to put O, Lost back together (which I did). The novel is meant to be savored for its lyrical descriptions, although I was ready to reach through the pages and slap some sense into the characters a time or two. Written in 1927-28 and published in 1929, the novel reflects the attitudes and prejudices of the South during that era. IOW, the language is often not "PC." I haven't read Look Homeward, Angel, so I can't comment on the differences or opine on which version is better. Perhaps other Morons can do that. Overall I enjoyed the look back to a specific time, region, and a dysfunctional family who loved and cared for each other, but didn't know how to express it. (Again--another theme in Pat Conroy's writing.)

If you would like to write a review of a Moron-written book or a Moron-recommended book, feel free to do so. I can't promise I'll post them all if I get a lot of them, but sometimes it's nice to have a review of one of these books that's a bit longer than the comments will normally allow.

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MORON RECOMMENDATIONS

I started to re-read The Screwtape letters but had to put it back on the shelf. Like parts of Lewis' That Hideous Strength, the cynical evil it deals with is too close to our current situation. I read for many reasons but reinforcing the rage I feel about the cultural corruption and nihilism inundating us isn't one of them. I'll read them some other day.
Posted by: JTB at August 14, 2022 09:14 AM (7EjX1)

Comment: When it comes to understanding the nature of evil, C.S. Lewis was exceptionally perceptive. In work after work, he just nails tha banality of evil and how it can manifest here on earth. I read That Hideous Strength during the height of the pandemic (early 2021) and was freaked out by just how accurately it portrayed the mindset of the evil we are facing today, even though it was written many decades ago.

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Finally taking a break from all things China. I picked up two different editions of Small Arms of the World (9th and 12th) because they are very different in focus.
The 9th is from 1969 and contains extensive discussions of WW II weapons (and even some before that). What I like is that this is no mere picturebook, it shows how to field strip many of the weapons and contains advice for collectors and warnings against certain ammunition/weapon combinations.
There was an amusing aside about a particular design having lots of variants and that with sufficient spare parts, one could bedevil collectors.
The 12th has removed most of that in favor of looking at emerging technologies. It is from 1983, so it is more focused on Cold War weapons and operating systems. They compliment one another nicely.
These are not cover-to-cover reads, but I like to hop around them and find entries that interest me.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 14, 2022 09:19 AM (llXky)

Comment: I tend to categorize these types of books as "reference" material. And yes, they can be very fun to read because you can bounce around from entry to entry, almost like a "choose your own adventure" book.

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I am reading Don't Go to College: A Case for Revolution by Michael J. Robillard and Timothy J. Gordon.
We are so fooked. Neo-Marxists as far as the eye can see.
They make a great argument for High School grads to go immediately into trades and technical training. Marry young. Start a family (while the young lady's eggs are fresh). Grow up, be a mature and happy person.
Don't waste $200k getting a worthless degree and submit to the brainwashing.
Posted by: Chatterbox Mouse at August 14, 2022 09:58 AM (JVCkA)

Comment: A couple of high school kids were part of the crew that put a new roof on my house this summer. They worked just as hard as the more seasoned members. I think they would both do better to learn the contracting trade than going to college these days unless they want to pursue an engineering degree (I work at a STEM institution).

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There's a book published back in '60 or '61 if memory serves -- The Priceless Gift, by Cornelius Hirschberg. The guy wanted a good college education, but circumstances kept him from being able to do that. So he decided to get that education through independent reading. He wanted to cover it all, literature, math, history, the sciences... He didn't know that only Isaac Asimov could cover that much ground, and not knowing it couldn't be done, he went and did it. The Priceless Gift told how he did it, how he approached the subjects, & what books he used (a lot of 'em still available). If I ran the world, it would be required reading in high school, but it's long out of print.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 14, 2022 11:11 AM (a/4+U)

Comment: The ability to read truly is a priceless gift we can give our children and grandchildren. In grad school, I read some anecdotes about illiterate (or nearly so) adults who were able to finally learn to read. They wept with joy when they discovered whole new worlds opened up to them. It's criminal (and evil) that so many students in school are being denied this priceless gift by groomers who only see their students as prey for their sexual deviancies.

More Moron-recommended reading material can be found HERE! (357 Moron-recommended books so far!)

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WHAT I'VE BEEN READING THIS PAST WEEK:

All of the books in the list below are part of my continuing effort to whittle down my TBR pile from my epic library book hauls earlier this year. Still got a long way to go!

On the Steel Breeze by Alistair Reynolds -- Pretty decent "hard" science fiction (no FTL drives) about some horrible conspiracy involving AIs gone rogue...Conclusion was a bit "meh."

The Dragon Men by Steven Harper -- Book 3 in The Clockwork Empire series. Victorian steampunk, where Western tech meets Chinese authoritarianism. Heavy focus on yin-yang, as one might expect in a book that involves Chinese culture.

Devil Said Bang by Richard Kadrey -- The second volume of the Sandman Slim series. A mortal somehow overthrows Lucifer in Hell and now has his job.

The Crossroads of Destiny by John P. Ritter -- This was written in 1901 and it's a great little homage to chivalric romances...

That's about all I have for this week. Thank you for all of your kind words regarding my Sunday Morning Book Thread. This is a very special place. You are very special people (in all the best ways!). The kindness, generosity, and wisdom of the Moron Horde knows no bounds. Let's keep reading!

If you have any suggestions for improvement, reading recommendations, or writing projects that you'd like to see on the Sunday Morning Book Thread, you can send them to perfessor dot squirrel at-sign gmail dot com. Your feedback is always appreciated! You can also take a virtual tour of OUR library at libib.com/u/perfessorsquirrel. Since I added sections for AoSHQ, I now consider it OUR library, rather than my own personal fiefdom...

PREVIOUS SUNDAY MORNING BOOK THREAD - 08-14-22 (hat tip: vmom stabby stabby stabamillion) (NOTE: Do NOT comment on old threads!)

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Hey Perf!

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 08:59 AM (Dc2NZ)

2 Whoa! Nice woodwork there.

Posted by: Tonypete at August 21, 2022 09:00 AM (LsEU/)

3 Good morning middle of the roaders!

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:01 AM (EZebt)

4 Tolle Lege

Posted by: Skip's phone at August 21, 2022 09:01 AM (b7Nw0)

5 Good Sunday morning, horde!

Those pants are fine. I would wear them to a barbeque at the disco.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:02 AM (OX9vb)

6 A prayer for peace for Vic and Insom and absent friends.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:02 AM (EZebt)

7 Top 10?

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:03 AM (c6xtn)

8 What would an AoSHQ Primer look like? What sort of content should be included? Should we write one? We could probably put together a kickass book of language skills, civics, science, and much, much more.

You didn't just do that, did you?

(face palm)

You know what kind of responses you'll get, don't you?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:04 AM (7bRMQ)

9 Finished King Bullet by Richard Kadrey. The concluding book in the Sandman Slim series. Not going to spoil the series for you. But is it REALLY the final book in the series? You decide after you read it.

Posted by: Stacy0311 at August 21, 2022 09:05 AM (VfLe7)

10 Christopher Tolkien on the charge against fantasy as "escapism":

"Escape has often been used as a means of attack on the very conception of fantasy, of the secondary world. In a sense [Tolkien] said 'Of course it is an escape, if you like, because its a movement out of the primary world, which isn't such a pleasant place, into a secondary world that may not be very much more pleasant but it's very very different. There are terrors as well as beauties in the secondary world. He said that his critics had chosen the wrong word. He said they were perhaps maliciously confounding the escape of the prisoner with the flight of the deserter. And why should what he offered, if it is escape, not be the escape of the prisoner, which in other contexts is considered a very noble thing to try to do to get away?"

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:05 AM (Dc2NZ)

11 Those pants are fine. I would wear them to a barbeque at the disco.
Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs!

And you'll be smashing in them. I'll be the bonehead that accidently burns you on the forearm and spills my drink on your sparkly shoes because I'm waving my cigarette around while shouting above the music.

Posted by: Tonypete at August 21, 2022 09:06 AM (LsEU/)

12 I finished "Cold Storage," and you can add me to those who recommend it. This novel by David Koepp moves right along. One chapter could have been cut with no harm to the story, but I guess Koepp felt that he had to show his "woke" credentials. (How I hate that term!) Luck plays a part in the resolution, but we could say that it does that in real life, too.

I picked it up because the Book Thread reviews mentioned its hilarity, but none of the humor made me laugh, just smile. These days, I'll take that.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:06 AM (Om/di)

13 This week I finished Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson. This is the fifth book in the Misborn series, and once again Sanderson has written an exciting story with lots of action and Mistborn magic. I've started the sixth book, Band of Mourning. The seventh and final book in the series, The Lost Metal, has a publication date of November 15th.

Posted by: Zoltan at August 21, 2022 09:07 AM (0ipkK)

14 Those pants are fine. I would wear them to barbeque chicken and sing "De Camptown Racist".

Posted by: Guy just asking for trouble at August 21, 2022 09:08 AM (sn5EN)

15 Still on a re-read of the Recluce Saga. On book 4 now

Posted by: vic /s at August 21, 2022 09:08 AM (mZwKe)

16 Reading Vixen, one of Bill Pronzini's later "Nameless Detective" novels. The guy has a name -- in one scene a co-worker refers to him as "Bill" -- but we have never been told what it is any more than Robert Parker ever told us Spenser's full name. The series is set in the Bay Area of SF, and in another nod to Hammett, the hero is a pulp fiction collector. He ages, though slowly, as the stories go along. In this 2015 outing, he's married with a stepdaughter, and has reached the age where he cheerfully admits he's not one to do the wearying legwork any more.

Trivia bit: One of Pronzini's early sales was a Man From U.N.C.L.E. novelette in that magazine, late in its 1966-1968 run. His might have been the last one published before the magazine folded. He wrote it under the house name of "Robert Hart Davis." He was in good company: John Jakes and Dennis Lynds also wrote MfU novelettes for the magazine.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:09 AM (c6xtn)

17 Little more to go in
The Curious Disappearance of Seamus Muldoon

Picturing it as a Saturday Matinee similar to The Christmas Story movie as Ralphie's dreams

Posted by: Skip at August 21, 2022 09:11 AM (k8B25)

18 I love that Larson's female characters, be they humans, chickens, or amoeba, where those cat glasses.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:11 AM (Dc2NZ)

19 You know what kind of responses you'll get, don't you?
Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:04 AM (7bRMQ)
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Oh, I'm well aware of the proclivities of the Moron Horde...I look forward to their...eccentric...contributions.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 09:12 AM (K5n5d)

20 Good morning all. I have also been reading a fair number of Alistair Reynolds's books. Pushing Ice and House of Suns are two recent examples. "Hi-def wide-screen Sci-Fi" would be a good elevator summary of his style. Deep space and deep time.

I ain't gonna click on the pants link. Wouldn't be prudent.

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at August 21, 2022 09:12 AM (PiwSw)

21 Yay book thread!

Post-writing decompression continues. The test readers are working away so I've got a bit of a break before I take on the final sprint of making edits and formatting for publication.

Still reading Evelyn Waugh's short stories, which vary in tone and amusement. Some of them have a fairly trite twist at the end, but the joy of reading Waugh is his use of language, particularly his withering observations the cut right to the core.

I'm currently reading "Scott-King's Modern Europe" and among the hilarious asides is a list of all the curses that have befallen a fictional country. Among the paragraph-long laundry list of wars, famine and revolution, Waugh tucks in "endemic syphilis" for good measure.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:12 AM (llXky)

22 Bookstore looks like they bought themselves the interior of an English Church

Posted by: REDACTED at August 21, 2022 09:14 AM (us2H3)

23 Booken Morgen Horden!
Byooteeful lieberry

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:14 AM (ibF8s)

24 hiya

Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022 09:15 AM (T4tVD)

25 RE: Kaiju Preservation Society, which I mentioned last week -- I just learned Will Wheaton narrates the audio version. Perfect! No wonder I heard his unctuous soylent tones in my head.

Scalzi said he wrote it to get back in the groove during the madness of the COVID lockdown, but he lives in a small town in Ohio, not New York, right? Life was not upended in small towns.

But I rag on him too much. It was a fine fluffy diversion.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:15 AM (Dc2NZ)

26 Oooh , bookstore, not lieberry

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:15 AM (ibF8s)

27 "What would an AoSHQ Primer look like?"

Am I in or out?

Posted by: Gary Busey at August 21, 2022 09:16 AM (sn5EN)

28 And you'll be smashing in them. I'll be the bonehead that accidently burns you on the forearm and spills my drink on your sparkly shoes because I'm waving my cigarette around while shouting above the music.
Posted by: Tonypete

Oh, that was you? LOL

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:16 AM (OX9vb)

29 Booken Morgen Horden!
Byooteeful lieberry

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:14 AM (ibF8s)

It was the History Book Club, vmom. I read the blurb for Flow and thought what the heck it had to do with history. Sent it back unopened.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:16 AM (7bRMQ)

30 I've been catching up on Paxton Locke urban fantasy series by Moron Daniel Humphreys .
Book 4 ended on a shocker - gotta get book 5 soon (The Dragon and His Wrath). I think it just came out. They are on KU.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:18 AM (ibF8s)

31 I'm also dipping into Arrogance and Scheming in the Big Ten: Michigan State's Quest for Membership and Michigan's Powerful Opposition by David J. Young M.D.

This is the deepest of deep dives into Big Ten football and the histories of Michigan's two largest universities. It is choked by footnote citations and jumps backwards and forwards in time as the author tries to trace certain storylines.

He also contradicts himself from time to time. It feels like a first draft.

Still, it's got lots of neat anecdotes and as someone already familiar with the topic, I'm able to make sense of what the author is trying to say.

Other than documenting the implacable hatred between the University of Michigan and Michigan State, the book clearly demonstrates that college athletes have *always* been getting paid in one way or another.

Also, those programs whose fans insist they win "the right way" (as opposed to everyone else who is supposedly cheating) have in fact always been the worst offenders. I think the NCAA was created to whitewash these crooks.

Anyway, not for everyone, but I'm enjoying it.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:18 AM (llXky)

32 6 A prayer for peace for Vic and Insom and absent friends.
Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:02 AM (EZebt)

Ditto. I know Insom is taking some time away, but I'm not aware of Vic's status. Did something happen?

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:18 AM (OX9vb)

33 I recall mentioning O, Lost, a few months back when I found out about it. I read a lot of Wolfe, and love his long descriptive passages and character analyses. All the "Gant" family names were changed, of course, as Max Perkins was far more sensible of the law than his writers. Somewhere along the line Wolfe and Scribner were sued by an angry person who didn't like the way Wolfe "immortalized" him or her, anyway.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:19 AM (Zzbjj)

34 It was the History Book Club, vmom. I read the blurb for Flow and thought what the heck it had to do with history. Sent it back unopened.
Posted by: OrangeEnt

Hah. I remember this topic. I haven't started on Flow yet.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:20 AM (ibF8s)

35 You know what kind of responses you'll get, don't you?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:04 AM (7bRMQ)
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A whole chapter will be needed to address crossbows vs longbows.

Carrots in chili gets its own volume.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:20 AM (llXky)

36 VNN was not broadcast today or yesterday

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:21 AM (EZebt)

37 Those pants are fine. I would wear them to a barbeque at the disco.
Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs!

Yeah ?

If a guy wears them he doesn't own a weedwhacker (if you catch my drift)

Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022 09:21 AM (T4tVD)

38 Another thing about Wolfe and his creations is that often recognized themselves

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:21 AM (Zzbjj)

39 The seventh and final book in the series, The Lost Metal, has a publication date of November 15th.
Posted by: Zoltan at August 21, 2022 09:07 AM (0ipkK)

Yay!

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:22 AM (ibF8s)

40 32 Ditto. I know Insom is taking some time away, but I'm not aware of Vic's status. Did something happen?

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:18 AM (OX9vb)

I did not get up in time to do the Sunday Morning links today.

Posted by: vic /s at August 21, 2022 09:22 AM (mZwKe)

41 I did not get up in time to do the Sunday Morning links today.
Posted by: vic /s

Hey Vic!

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:23 AM (ibF8s)

42 Good morning, Vic!

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:23 AM (OX9vb)

43 I did not get up in time to do the Sunday Morning links today.
Posted by: vic /s at August 21, 2022 09:22 AM (mZwKe)
===
But now I have no clue what's going on.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:23 AM (EZebt)

44 Hah. I remember this topic. I haven't started on Flow yet.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:20 AM (ibF8s)

Didn't see you on any other threads at the same time last week, but I thought you wanted to know the book club.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:24 AM (7bRMQ)

45 But now I have no clue what's going on.
Posted by: San Franpsycho

See also: Step 1 when becoming a Moron.

Posted by: Tonypete at August 21, 2022 09:24 AM (LsEU/)

46 @40 --

How dare you slack off on a purely voluntary endeavor.

Posted by: Ingrate at August 21, 2022 09:25 AM (Om/di)

47 Did not read this week. Still focused on new house.

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 09:26 AM (BRHaw)

48 Book thread! Thanks perf.

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 09:26 AM (+bU7k)

49 Chapter One: Vic

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (sn5EN)

50 Didn't see you on any other threads at the same time last week, but I thought you wanted to know the book club.
Posted by: OrangeEnt

I did! It just tickled me up that you picked up a week old convo and I remembered exactly what we were talking about. I guess my memory isn't as bad as it usually pretends to be.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (ibF8s)

51 I don't use the word 'anathema' in conversation very often because it's almost always proceeded by 'an' and 'an anathema' is alliteratively awkward.

Posted by: Bitter Clinger at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (rtDiB)

52 The seventh and final book in the series, The Lost Metal, has a publication date of November 15th.
Posted by: Zoltan at August 21, 2022 09:07 AM (0ipkK)

Yay!
Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:22 AM (ibF8s)
---
I just pre-ordered it right now!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (K5n5d)

53 I'm sorry, but I cannot be expected to do my own research. How else do you think I maintain my blissful ignorance??

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:28 AM (EZebt)

54 I did! It just tickled me up that you picked up a week old convo and I remembered exactly what we were talking about. I guess my memory isn't as bad as it usually pretends to be.
Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (ibF8s)
---
AoSHQ is a weird place...Kind of like The Muppet Show with less explosions.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 09:28 AM (K5n5d)

55 38 Another thing about Wolfe and his creations is that often recognized themselves
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:21 AM (Zzbjj)

My dog posted this before it was finished. Wolfe, being a story teller, changed otherwise recognizable people to suit his story. One of his brothers was very demonized in LHA, and a sister was made pathetic in LHA and Time and the River, but the reality was apparently less dramatic, and Tom had a great relationship with the demon brother and his son. I don't know what he could have done differently to his saga to calm the few ruffled feathers.
The review of O, Lost, is true for quite a few authors from that period. Wolfe gets slammed quite a bit by the PC crowd, but if you've read To Have and Have Not, Hemingway was at least as bad.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:29 AM (Zzbjj)

56 We had no EMT yesterday.

Posted by: vic /s at August 21, 2022 09:30 AM (mZwKe)

57 Vic nothing wrong with extra sleep

Posted by: Skip at August 21, 2022 09:30 AM (k8B25)

58 An AoS primer will need a glossary of terms: Corgis, willowed, elbows -- what else?

(Is it pronounced PRIM-er or PRIME-er?)

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:31 AM (Om/di)

59 Good morning!

Let's smile & be happy & strike fear in the hearts of killjoy leftists everywhere.

Reread Red Army by Ralph Peters. This 1989 book looks at the people in the USSR army as they fight NATO and win. It is well done, with strong characterizations, and is the anti-Red Storm Rising.

This was from the early period when Ralph Peters was an interesting author, full of human insight. He failed to select for Colonel in the US Army, retired, married a leftist, and his writing suffered the "brain-eater" disease common in older science fiction writers.

I wanted to contrast the extensively practiced Soviet era doctrine with the current failing Russian Army in Ukraine. Quite the contrast.

Posted by: NaCly Dog (u82oZ) at August 21, 2022 09:31 AM (u82oZ)

60 I did! It just tickled me up that you picked up a week old convo and I remembered exactly what we were talking about. I guess my memory isn't as bad as it usually pretends to be.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (ibF8s)

Book thread, Art thread, Gun thread, any recurring thread is easier to recall compared to a random thread on a random day. It's the quality of the threads and posters that makes it so.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:31 AM (7bRMQ)

61 Mom and Dad bought me an edition of W. H. B. Smith's Small Arms of the World, probably about 1964. It had the WW2 sections for the major belligerents, which was handy with all the WW2 surplus stuff coming into the country at the time (ride bicycle to Army Navy store to pick out Enfield from a 55 gallon drum, had note from Mom and Dad).

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:32 AM (lz5hY)

62 51 I don't use the word 'anathema' in conversation very often because it's almost always proceeded by 'an' and 'an anathema' is alliteratively awkward.
Posted by: Bitter Clinger

*nod*

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 09:32 AM (g1EEm)

63 I'm at the part in Pliny's Natural History where he talks about insects. He spends a lot of time on bees, and apparently the ancients knew a good bit about bee behavior, but then I got to this part about bee reproduction:

"Many persons have expressed an opinion that they must be produced from flowers, aptly and artistically arranged by Nature; while others, again, suppose that they are produced from an intercourse with the one which is to be found in every swarm, and is usually called the KING. ( my emphasis added)

Uh oh.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 09:32 AM (sn5EN)

64 Last Sunday, I started (on audio) Dark Corners, by Ruth Rendell.

I'm annoyed with it, and am not sure I'll finish. The main character is paralyzed with fear that he will be exposed for a "crime" that is not truly a crime. Could be damaging to his reputation, but not prosecutable. It's going on too long, and I want him to man up and ignore the person who threatens him.

The other reason I'm annoyed is that the main character is a writer, and the writer-who-writes-about-a-writer is a tired theme that doesn't interest me. Maybe I'll try one of Rendell's other books.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:33 AM (OX9vb)

65 @54 --

Haw!

Now that's funny.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:33 AM (Om/di)

66 Got two by the delightfully crass and blunt Clay Martin on dealing with the future unpleasantness: Concrete Jungle (urban) and Prairie Fire/i] (rural).

It's hilarious that I'm even reading this. My defense will be to burrow in deeper and try to avoid detection.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (Dc2NZ)

67 51 I don't use the word 'anathema' in conversation very often because it's almost always proceeded by 'an' and 'an anathema' is alliteratively awkward.
Posted by: Bitter Clinger

*nod*
Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022

***
I've rarely seen it preceded by "an." Usually it's "Going to Walmart is anathema to me" -- no article at all.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (c6xtn)

68 Whoops

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (Dc2NZ)

Posted by: Tonypete at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (LsEU/)

70
The other reason I'm annoyed is that the main character is a writer, and the writer-who-writes-about-a-writer is a tired theme that doesn't interest me. Maybe I'll try one of Rendell's other books.
Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022

***
Rendell is very good. I don't recall that particular novel, though. Usually she does not write about writers.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:35 AM (c6xtn)

71 👼HBD JC

All that night Mary was restless so that neither of them slept much. By the break of day the pangs of childbirth were well in evidence, and at noon, August 21, 7 B.C., with the help and kind ministrations of women fellow travelers, Mary was delivered of a male child. Jesus of Nazareth was born into the world, was wrapped in the clothes which Mary had brought along for such a possible contingency, and laid in a near-by manger.
-The Urantia Book, p1351

Posted by: Midwayers at August 21, 2022 09:35 AM (3Yj85)

72 Perfesser, I have yet to read an Alastair Reynolds work that wasn't "meh" at the end. The whole Revelation Space saga just collapsed in a heap in the final 20 pages or so, and I picked up another book of his for a beach trip that wound up the same, unsatisfying way.

May I suggest to all 'The Silver Waterfall' by Kevin Miller. Excellent book!

Posted by: Brewingfrog at August 21, 2022 09:35 AM (UwP5D)

73 (ride bicycle to Army Navy store to pick out Enfield from a 55 gallon drum, had note from Mom and Dad)
-----

The past is a different country.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:36 AM (Dc2NZ)

74 I've rarely seen it preceded by "an." Usually it's "Going to Walmart is anathema to me" -- no article at all.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius

Spoke vs written language for the less erudite among us?

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 09:36 AM (g1EEm)

75 I'm annoyed with it, and am not sure I'll finish. The main character is paralyzed with fear that he will be exposed for a "crime" that is not truly a crime. Could be damaging to his reputation, but not prosecutable.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:33 AM (OX9vb)

Reading current events, are you?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:36 AM (7bRMQ)

76 *spoken*

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (g1EEm)

77 Been away a couple of weeks on a great vacation to Maine. I let sightseeing, fresh lobster, and breweries interfere with my reading. But I did finish Eminent Victorians by Lytton Strachey. I thought it was great. I knew nothing about him other than he was somehow connected to Virginia Woolf and I found out he was very concise and lucid writer. I really enjoyed the book and before I was finished I went out and added his "Elizabeth and Essex" to my TBR pile on the kindle.

Posted by: who knew at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (4I7VG)

78 No books this week. But, the new kitty, aka little kitty, looks like she doubled in size overnight and has become less prickly. She should be ready for reading with in the near future.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (UUBmN)

79 *Bespoke*

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (Dc2NZ)

80 Possibly book related- someone is asking for knife fighting resources for fiction writing.
Any suggestions?

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:39 AM (ibF8s)

81 Possibly book related- someone is asking for knife fighting resources for fiction writing.
Any suggestions?

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:39 AM (ibF8s)

Check your nic?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:40 AM (7bRMQ)

82 Found out this week I have a collection of "Dad books"... "Dad movies"... and like "Dad rock".
I guess it's a Millennial semi insult type thing. I had to do some research to find this out as my kid isn't a typical Millennial.

I'm honored. I am DAD. Welcome to my Dadibrary.
Strictly BYOB.

Posted by: Reforger at August 21, 2022 09:41 AM (aoVP+)

83 AoSHQ Primer would be the AoSHQ 1227 page Style Book summarized into a light reading, two volume set of just under 900 pages.

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 09:41 AM (BRHaw)

84 I'm currently reading L is for Lawless by Sue Grafton.

Never read her before. Its pretty guldang good !

Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022 09:41 AM (T4tVD)

85 80 Kill or Be Killed by Col. Rex Applegate would be a good source.

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:41 AM (lz5hY)

86 Check your nic?
Posted by: OrangeEnt

I wish!
My nic is more about goalzzz than accomplishments, sadly

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:42 AM (ibF8s)

87 vmom, YouTube has an Army training film from WW II on knife fighting.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:42 AM (Om/di)

88 Possibly book related- someone is asking for knife fighting resources for fiction writing.
Any suggestions?
Posted by: vmom
---
Chicago, El Lay, NYC..... oh, you said fiction, never mind.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:42 AM (UUBmN)

89 After reading two of the Hemingway related memoirs that CBD recommended, I turned to a more traditional biography by Mary Dearborn. It's more comprehensive, but honestly, I did not get the impression that Hotchner whitewashed his friend. The part dealing with his hospitalizations and death were well done.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:43 AM (Zzbjj)

90 *Bespoke*
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes

Bothered and bewildered ?

Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022 09:43 AM (T4tVD)

91 Good morning fellow Book Threadists. I hope everyone had a great week of reading.

Posted by: JTB at August 21, 2022 09:43 AM (7EjX1)

92 Our home school co-op had more than forty families this year. Every year we decide on a book for the whole family to read over the summer, and then get together for a day of camaraderie and book discussion before the school year begins. As civilized homeschoolers, we of course wait until after Labor Day to begin Fall semester.

So I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen', a book made into a movie that I personally always confuse with 'With Six You Get Eggroll' and "Yours, Mine, and Ours".

It was really a lot of fun, and quite a throwback to an earlier, much more innocent time in America, when the future held such immense promise. The father is clearly a precursor to the moron horde, opinionated, bombastic, bloody-minded, and very, very funny. I recommend it highly.

Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (fWbjv)

93 . . . the new kitty, aka little kitty, looks like she doubled in size overnight and has become less prickly. She should be ready for reading with in the near future.
Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022

***
Stirling the Evil Black Kitten of War and Pestilence is like that too -- growing like black-furred kudzu. He's not prickly but wants to play rough sometimes.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (c6xtn)

94 When I see beautiful bookstores such as today's, I cannot envision something as crass as a cash register on the premises.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (Om/di)

95 I've rarely seen it preceded by "an." Usually it's "Going to Walmart is anathema to me" -- no article at all.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (c6xtn)
---
Yeah, or you declare something to be anathema.

Like all of Disney's recent products, for example.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (llXky)

96 Bespoke > Artisanal

Posted by: San Franpsycho at August 21, 2022 09:45 AM (EZebt)

97 *Bespoke*
---
Made to order, custom made for a single individual.
I.e. a bespoke suit. Another word for expensive! 😁

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:45 AM (UUBmN)

98 Reading current events, are you?
Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 09:36 AM (7bRMQ)

Ha! Except that our current protagonist is not afraid to stand up for himself, unlike the character in this book.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:46 AM (OX9vb)

99 I picked up an O. Henry collection on double-discount at B&N this week, and read it over two days. It has a lot of his better-known New York stories, but also a bunch of his Westerns which I never saw before.

They're all good stories, but if you read a whole bunch at once they do start to seem kind of similar. Overall, they're good, and are a great window into late 19th century life.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 09:46 AM (QZxDR)

100 *Bespoke*
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes

A nice little term for custom made.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:46 AM (Zzbjj)

101 I'm currently reading L is for Lawless by Sue Grafton.

Never read her before. Its pretty guldang good !
Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022

***
I've read the first 2 in that series and found them entertaining. Some fans have suggested that Kinsey Millhone, her hero, may actually be the daughter of Ross Macdonald's Lew Archer. Perhaps they point to evidence in the series beyond the fact that they both live in the same part of S. California.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:47 AM (c6xtn)

102 Re: Christopher Tolkien and escape of the prisoner - flight of the traitor. At one point Evelyn Waugh's son Auberon took up his old man's stick and beat Tolkien in critical reviews - out of snobbery and spite. (From Stewart Lee's Tolkien companion).

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 09:48 AM (+bU7k)

103 Yeah, or you declare something to be anathema.

Like all of Disney's recent products, for example.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022

***
Similar to declaring something to be poison -- box-office poison, for instance!

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:48 AM (c6xtn)

104 97. Not always expensive. I wanted a leather notebook cover that wasn't embossed with stupid dragons or similar crap, so I had a plain one made. It was cheaper than the dragon and insect covered stuff put out by Oberon.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:49 AM (Zzbjj)

105 I guess it's a Millennial semi insult type thing. I had to do some research to find this out as my kid isn't a typical Millennial.

I'm honored. I am DAD. Welcome to my Dadibrary.
Strictly BYOB.
Posted by: Reforger
----
Don't feel bad. I got the, "don't care, ratio!" This week and I'm still not exactly sure what it means....

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:49 AM (UUBmN)

106 Good morning horde!
Currently listening to Robert Greene's "The Laws of Human Nature." He is a rather loved/despised writer of books such as "Seduction" and "The 48 Laws of Power."

Listening to the author's intro, his voice made me wonder if he might be a demon. I don't know. Definitely cold and creepy.
But I'll give the man this- his observations and analysis are spot on. In my line of work, I have to be a very quick judge of character and motivations. So far in "The Laws of Human Nature" I have found his key observations on body language and motivation are right on. He uses historical figures to tie in the various lessons on behavior. Worth a read or listen to- you know the bad guys are studying this too.

Posted by: Secret Squirrel, author of sci fi, kids books and one silly army play on Amazon at August 21, 2022 09:49 AM (NgoNq)

107 Stirling the Evil Black Kitten of War and Pestilence is like that too -- growing like black-furred kudzu. He's not prickly but wants to play rough sometimes.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (c6xtn)
---
Our older cat is generally mild-mannered to the point of being neurotic about things she doesn't like, but every now and then, she decides its time for Kitty Fight Club and of course there is no warning.

It doesn't happen often, but a week ago I was reading with her on my lap and giving her a good scratch and she was purring and then it was LET'S FIGHT!

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:49 AM (llXky)

108 I picked up an O. Henry collection on double-discount at B&N this week, and read it over two days. It has a lot of his better-known New York stories, but also a bunch of his Westerns which I never saw before. . . .

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022

***
I seem to recall that the Cisco Kid first appeared in one or two of his stories. O. Henry's Kid was not much like the one in the kids' '50s TV series, though.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:50 AM (c6xtn)

109 99 Somebody sent a large box of western paperbacks to one of the guys while in Vietnam, all Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour. When you start reading a bunch of those, they tend to run together. Guy's on a horse. Guy's searching for something or somebody. Guy has to kill a couple people. Guy finds who or what he's looking for. The End.

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:50 AM (lz5hY)

110 Well done, perfessor squirrel!

About the kids doing doing the roof on your house: It's not unusual for people to start out doing grunt work for a contractor, learn the business, start working side jobs based on what they've learned, and, build a business from there.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 09:51 AM (5pTK/)

111 The Cisco Kid does indeed appear in an O. Henry story. He is not a nice person.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 09:52 AM (QZxDR)

112 So I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen'...
Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (fWbjv)

That just flashed me back to a memory of my mother reading this to five little children at bedtime. Sitting on the bed, all of us crowded around her. One of us was still a baby, so we all had to be under 8 years old. We thought it was hilarious, too.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:52 AM (OX9vb)

113 About the kids doing doing the roof on your house: It's not unusual for people to start out doing grunt work for a contractor, learn the business, start working side jobs based on what they've learned, and, build a business from there.
Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 09:51 AM (5pTK/)
---
Yep. That's exactly how my contractor started his own business. He worked for other contractors to learn the necessary skills and then was able to start his own business about a year or so ago. He's a really great guy.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 09:52 AM (K5n5d)

114 So I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen'...
Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022 09:44 AM (fWbjv)

That just flashed me back to a memory of my mother reading this to five little children at bedtime. Sitting on the bed, all of us crowded around her. One of us was still a baby, so we all had to be under 8 years old. We thought it was hilarious, too.
Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 09:52 AM (OX9vb)
---
My own mother read that book to us kids at breakfast when I was a wee lad...

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 09:53 AM (K5n5d)

115 Philippe Gerard's biography of Haiti's liberator Toussant Louverture is very interesting just for the history of the island and its inhabitants (I'm only about halfway through). Saint-Domingue, the western end of Hispaniola, had a very mixed but stratified society composed of white planters, free people of color, those of mixed race, lower class whites (mainly descendants of pirates) and the vast underclass of black slaves, a much higher percentage of the population than in American colonies.

In practice France had little control over its colony. Saint-Domingue was originally a pirate colony and they switched allegiances based on whichever power would benefit the colony. When they finally chose France, they viewed the colonial bond as a contract between two equal partners, and viewed their island as an allied state rather than a colony.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:53 AM (Dc2NZ)

116 I keep telling my middle son, find something you like doing and learning everything you can about it. Then when you finish HS you can go to a trade school for it. In the end, you'll be better off.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:54 AM (UUBmN)

117 Somebody sent a large box of western paperbacks to one of the guys while in Vietnam, all Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour. When you start reading a bunch of those, they tend to run together. Guy's on a horse. Guy's searching for something or somebody. Guy has to kill a couple people. Guy finds who or what he's looking for. The End.
Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022

***
Probably why the Western genre, in print, is in about the same place that written SF was in the '60s: in bookstores, they were relegated to one bookcase worth if you were lucky. In libraries now, Westerns are usually stuck away on 2-3 short shelves. Like SF, too, Westerns unfairly are judged by their worst examples instead of their best (Elmore Leonard, Loren D. Estleman, Jack Schaefer).

Western movies are moribund, as far as I can tell. Or they are so "woke" that they might as well be.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:55 AM (c6xtn)

118 Such a great leap of faith to go into business for oneself.

I, for one, am leery of hiring a first-timer, yet that's the only way a business gets established.

One of the sadder things in the newspaper is the bankruptcy filings.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:56 AM (Om/di)

119 113 Journeyman plumbing training in Ohio was first year, municipals (the ditch). Second year, industrial (get real dirty). Third year commercial (things are getting better). Last year residential (this is how you make the big bucks). I bet it's changed, but probably not woke.

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:56 AM (lz5hY)

120 So I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen'...
Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee

Both the book and the movie were good.

Posted by: Blue Hen at August 21, 2022 09:56 AM (cY9wR)

121 Re: Christopher Tolkien and escape of the prisoner - flight of the traitor. At one point Evelyn Waugh's son Auberon took up his old man's stick and beat Tolkien in critical reviews - out of snobbery and spite. (From Stewart Lee's Tolkien companion).

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 09:48 AM (+bU7k)
---
The Waugh family famously enjoys hereditary vendettas. See also "Crutwellism."

I also think there is an element of jealousy insofar as Tolkien is now the most widely read English author of the 20th Century while Waugh is sadly receding (and Auberon Waugh a virtual unknown).

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:56 AM (llXky)

122 So I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen', a book made into a movie that I personally always confuse with 'With Six You Get Eggroll' and "Yours, Mine, and Ours".
=====

Life With Father is another one.

Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 09:57 AM (MIKMs)

123 Don't waste $200k getting a worthless degree and submit to the brainwashing.

Posted by: Chatterbox Mouse at August 14, 2022 09:58 AM (JVCkA)

There are still a few worthwhile degrees out there, and it's a damn shame that universities haven't had their feet to the fire for selling the shitty ones for the same price, and for their abandonment of most of Western Civ.

Does "everyone" need to go to college, of course not, and fortunately employers are noticing that a degree doesn't make you a good employee, just as the lack of one does not signify uneducated and semiliterate.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (Zzbjj)

124 Reading this week: I took a brief break from Anna Karinina and read, "The Gray Man" and "The Terminal List."

"The Terminal List" was far better written than "The Gray Man," though I plan to get the next book in both series before I pass final judgement.

The lead characters in both books were pretty well done, but, unfortunately, I found the action and man on a mission sequences in "The Gray Man" to be lacking.

Interestingly, though, I thought some facets of "The Terminal List" were handled a bit better in the Amazon series verus the book, though, in the end, I prefer the book.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (5pTK/)

125 102 Re: Christopher Tolkien and escape of the prisoner - flight of the traitor. At one point Evelyn Waugh's son Auberon took up his old man's stick and beat Tolkien in critical reviews - out of snobbery and spite. (From Stewart Lee's Tolkien companion).
Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 09:48 AM (+bU7k)
---

I think people forget that Tolkien had many critics, since he was out of step with the ironic/shades of grey/modern lit crowd. Critic Edmund Wilson famously penned "Oo, Those Awful Orcs!". Of course Wilson hated fantasy in general.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (Dc2NZ)

126 o I just finished 'Cheaper By The Dozen'...
Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022

***
Cheaper is a delight. Side note, the father, Frank Gilbreth, was a pioneer in the study of time and motion -- I forget what the technical term is. He named the basic unit of motion to accomplish any given task after himself backward (sort of) -- the therblig. Heinlein has Lazarus Long say, "Minimize your therbligs until it becomes automatic. This doubles your effective lifetime."

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (c6xtn)

127 I keep telling my middle son, find something you like doing and learning everything you can about it. Then when you finish HS you can go to a trade school for it. In the end, you'll be better off.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 09:54 AM (UUBmN)
---
My youngest is starting her senior year in high school this fall. We've talked about the future and she is looking at a "gap year" after graduation. Both of her sisters did this and it has been very useful in getting a sense of what one wants in life.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:59 AM (llXky)

128 bill in AK, weak geek, thanks for the suggestions

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 10:00 AM (ibF8s)

129 Critic Edmund Wilson famously penned "Oo, Those Awful Orcs!". Of course Wilson hated fantasy in general.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022

***
He also hated mystery fiction, penning "Who Cares Who Killed Roger Ackroyd?" way back in the Forties, I think. He disliked Rex Stout as well as Christie. I have a feeling the guy was not much fun at parties.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:00 AM (c6xtn)

130 Does "everyone" need to go to college, of course not, and fortunately employers are noticing that a degree doesn't make you a good employee, just as the lack of one does not signify uneducated and semiliterate.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (Zzbjj)
------------

Even STEM degrees are suffering at the college level, I believe, due to the "electives" colleges force on students in order to make sure the college turns out a "well rounded" student.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:00 AM (5pTK/)

131 Western movies are moribund, as far as I can tell. Or they are so "woke" that they might as well be.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:55 AM (c6xtn)

Sad, isn't it? The Western is "our" genre, no one else's. I object to the ghettofication of everything in our culture. It's not good, decent, or kind, even for those who live it. We're being debased by it, I won't even use their words and I try to avoid their idioms unless in a mocking tone. We're being destroyed on purpose.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:01 AM (7bRMQ)

132 "I keep telling my middle son, find something you like doing and learning everything you can about it."

I wish my dad had said that. He thought I needed to go to college though. All that did was delay me from what I really wanted to do.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 10:01 AM (sn5EN)

133 Somebody sent a large box of western paperbacks to one of the guys while in Vietnam, all Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour. When you start reading a bunch of those, they tend to run together. Guy's on a horse. Guy's searching for something or somebody. Guy has to kill a couple people. Guy finds who or what he's looking for. The End.
Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:50 AM (lz5hY)

Isn't there often a misunderstood son-who's the most honest son but not seen that way.

Posted by: N.L. Urker, at August 21, 2022 10:01 AM (eGTCV)

134 My youngest is starting her senior year in high school this fall. We've talked about the future and she is looking at a "gap year" after graduation. Both of her sisters did this and it has been very useful in getting a sense of what one wants in life.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:59 AM (llXky)

My oldest is starting her junior year in HS. She enrolled in a cyber program at one of the technical schools in our area. She's figured out that cyber stuff is the way of the future and big bucks can be made. Best part is she gets college credits and a bunch of certifications knocked out....for free. I've told my kids college is a total waste unless you go for a technical program (or law or medicine). The juice just ain't worth the financial squeeze.

Posted by: Secret Squirrel, author of sci fi, kids books and one silly army play on Amazon at August 21, 2022 10:02 AM (NgoNq)

135 "Such a great leap of faith to go into business for oneself."

It is scary. 29+ years for me though.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 10:02 AM (sn5EN)

136 128 You're welcome. That training film recommended by weak geek is probably one of Col. Applegates. Tough cookie. Got jumped by three yutes when in his eighties and beat the hell out of them with his cane.

Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (lz5hY)

137 I just finished The Crossroads of Destiny by John P. Ritter. It's an excellent example of chivalric romance. Just a fun little romp across 15th century Italy while a knight escorts a beautiful maiden to her betrothed. Naturally, they fall in love with each other during the journey. And God/Fate steps in to remove the lady's original betrothed so that the two lovers can live happily ever after...

It's a tale that would *NEVER* be written today.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (K5n5d)

138
I think people forget that Tolkien had many critics, since he was out of step with the ironic/shades of grey/modern lit crowd. Critic Edmund Wilson famously penned "Oo, Those Awful Orcs!". Of course Wilson hated fantasy in general.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:58 AM (Dc2NZ)
---
Yes, I have a Tolkien Treasury that quotes some of his critics and there seems to be a clear sense of jealousy that he could achieve such success with *that* kind of writing.

On the one hand, fear of his critics' wrath made him very cautious about declaring a project finished, which is why so much of his work remained unpublished at his death.

Conversely, the work that was finished was polished to a high gloss.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (llXky)

139 Western movies are moribund, as far as I can tell. Or they are so "woke" that they might as well be.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:55 AM (c6xtn)
---

Not to turn this into a movie thread, but I watched "Yojimbo" yesterday (Hail Toshiro!) and laughed at all the tropes common to westerns: the lone gun-/swordsman blowin' into town, warring gangs, corrupt lawmen, cowardly civilians paying for protection, booze, and brothels.

I know there's been a lot of cross-fertilization between the genres of samurai flicks and westerns, but all "Yojimbo" lacked was tumbleweeds.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (Dc2NZ)

140 Don't waste $200k getting a worthless degree and submit to the brainwashing.

Posted by: Chatterbox Mouse at August 14, 2022 09:58 AM (JVCkA)

I've always been a bit disgusted by the idea that a college degree confers membership to an upper caste to those who have one.

Growing up, I did not always live in a stratified suburb, but in a smaller town where everyone, except some of the Catholic kids, were funneled into the same schools (which, btw in the 60s and 70s were still very good). So the ownership/employer/ professional group sent their kids to school with the kids of their employees. It worked out well.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (Zzbjj)

141 Sad, isn't it? The Western is "our" genre, no one else's. I object to the ghettofication of everything in our culture. It's not good, decent, or kind, even for those who live it. We're being debased by it, I won't even use their words and I try to avoid their idioms unless in a mocking tone. We're being destroyed on purpose.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022

***
The peculiar thing is that the same people who slam Westerns often love crime fiction, especially the hard-boiled kind (Chandler, Leonard, Hammett, et al.) that is first cousin to the Western. Many crime writers either began their careers writing Westerns, like Leonard, or write them alongside their crime stories as Estleman does and Robert Parker did.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:04 AM (c6xtn)

142 It's a tale that would *NEVER* be written today.
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (K5n5d)

Except for all the romance novels.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 10:05 AM (Dc2NZ)

143 I am eternally grateful to my parents for encouraging my brother and me to read whatever we wished.

There were few restrictions (no porn being paramount), anything else was open season. As a result we acquired decent vocabularies, a definite plus.

Posted by: irongrampa at August 21, 2022 10:05 AM (KATBx)

144 I seem to recall Robert B. Parker's Spenser phoning someone and indentifying himself as being an IRS guy named Purvis J. Anathema.

Finished War & Peace. Advice to anyone considering it -- don't bother with the second epilogue; the story ends with the finish of the first epilogue. There will be stretches where you ask yourself just why you're doing this, and others where you resent being interrupted. And it would probably help if you're more up on the history of the period than I am.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 10:06 AM (a/4+U)

145 My problem is I can't find a book that engages me anymore. I use to read and love Jordan, Goodkind, etc. I use to love that type of fantasy. I could read most apocalyptic or dystopic fantasy. But now I start books and abandon most of them. The ones I have read through I can't remember anything about them. I can still read Correira but I'm finding his language is a bit course for me now. I guess I'm just getting old and the fantasy is becoming too close to reality in a not good way.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (UUBmN)

146 My reading this week has been a combination of poetry and how-to books about drawing and painting. The two volumes of CS Lewis' poetry, one for narrative poems, continue to be a pleasure. And they fit in so well with Chesterton's "Ballad of the White Horse" that I finished recently. Lewis, as always, takes and demonstrates delight in the English language.

The how to draw and paint books won't substitute for talent (alas!) but they provide a path for improvement. I'm focused on painting with colored pencils, artist quality, not the kind used by grade schoolers, have added value because many of the techniques of color choice and blending because the same approaches work with watercolors and soft pastels.

Posted by: JTB at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (7EjX1)

147 It's a tale that would *NEVER* be written today.
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:03 AM (K5n5d)

Except for all the romance novels.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 10:05 AM (Dc2NZ)
----
"Chivalric romance" is a little bit different than the modern romance novel, though there are elements that they share, of course.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (K5n5d)

148 I cannot recall whether I read "Cheaper By the Dozen" in its entirety or just selections from it in one of the old high school readers that Dad brought home from the grade school where he was the principal. The books were going to be thrown out, and he always took one.

(Yes, high school books from a grade school, which apparently included a high school at one time, before district consolidation.)

I do remember certain episodes from the book.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 10:08 AM (Om/di)

149 We've talked about the future and she is looking at a "gap year" after graduation. Both of her sisters did this and it has been very useful in getting a sense of what one wants in life.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 09:59 AM (llXky)

Make sure you stay on it, or have her sisters help. Mine was considering one, but her music teacher said not to. Too many people with potential wait a year then never go back. I don't want mine to do that and end up working for wages for fifty plus years.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:08 AM (7bRMQ)

150 145 My problem is I can't find a book that engages me anymore. I use to read and love Jordan, Goodkind, etc. I use to love that type of fantasy. I could read most apocalyptic or dystopic fantasy. But now I start books and abandon most of them. The ones I have read through I can't remember anything about them. I can still read Correira but I'm finding his language is a bit course for me now. I guess I'm just getting old and the fantasy is becoming too close to reality in a not good way.
Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (UUBmN)

I've never read much fantasy, but I enjoyed Piers Anthony's series Apprentice Adept series. First book is "Split Infinity."

Posted by: Secret Squirrel, author of sci fi, kids books and one silly army play on Amazon at August 21, 2022 10:09 AM (NgoNq)

151 I wish my dad had said that. He thought I needed to go to college though. All that did was delay me from what I really wanted to do.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 10:01 AM (sn5EN)
---
My parents treated college as 13-16th Grade. There was no choice on my part save where to go, and because I'd already moved around a bit growing up, I opted to go to the university across the street.

Of course, as an only child with divorced and remarried parents, student loans were unnecessary and tuition back then was quite reasonable.

For my kids, the situation has changed dramatically and that's why I don't expect them to go. My middle kid is starting art school this fall, but she has the GI bill to pay for it. I have the Post 9/11 GI Bill as well, and if any go, I will use that.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:09 AM (llXky)

152 Has anyone read the book "Atomic Habits?" I've heard its good. Just curious. 100K+ reviews on le Amazon.

Posted by: Secret Squirrel, author of sci fi, kids books and one silly army play on Amazon at August 21, 2022 10:10 AM (NgoNq)

153 I guess I'm just getting old and the fantasy is becoming too close to reality in a not good way.
Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (UUBmN)
-------------------

I had the same problem, finding fiction that really engaged my interest. I put it off to the fact I've read so much history, with all of its weird twists and turns, I've come to believe it's hard for a writer of fiction to compete with actual events.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:10 AM (5pTK/)

154 "Devil Said Bang by Richard Kadrey -- A mortal somehow overthrows Lucifer in Hell and now has his job."

This is about me, isn't it? lol

Posted by: Berserker-Dragonheads Division at August 21, 2022 10:11 AM (VwHCD)

155 I'll delurk for a minute to report on my reading. I'm nearly finished with volume 2 of the Harvard classics. Specifically, The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. At the rate I am going I'll be reading this collection for the rest of my life. It's on my Kindle and I keep it bedside for the middle of the night when I can't get back to sleep. I can report that it works pretty well at that.

Posted by: Pod Hamp at August 21, 2022 10:12 AM (NhzYe)

156 Even STEM degrees are suffering at the college level, I believe, due to the "electives" colleges force on students in order to make sure the college turns out a "well rounded" student.
Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:00 AM (5pTK/)

That seems to be a current failure, though. When I started college in 1975, we still had to take "Humanities" and " Social Science", but neither of these were as indoctrinating as they seem to be now. I enjoyed reading Greek plays and learning about Athens and Sparta, and I found the sociology stuff tolerable too, as it was created with a more classical lens that focused on personal responsibility and upbringing, an unrevised Oscar Lewis, if you will.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:13 AM (Zzbjj)

157 Think I read Cheaper by the Dozen in high school, but barely remember a page of it now. The movie with Clifton Webb was shown on the tube frequently in the early 60s, and if memory serves it was delightful. Think there was a remake, but I have no idea if it was any good.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 10:13 AM (a/4+U)

158 I guess I'm just getting old and the fantasy is becoming too close to reality in a not good way.
Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (UUBmN)
---
Here are some of my favorites:

Chronicles of the Kencyrath by P.C. Hodgell
Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (actually, anything by these two is worth reading)
Codex Alera by Jim Butcher
Shadowmarch by Tad Williams (anything he writes is worth reading)
Agatha H series by Phil and Kaja Foglio

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:13 AM (K5n5d)

159
I do remember certain episodes from the book.
Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022

***
There is one scene where the strait-laced lady from a local "family planning group (smaller families = better) shows up, all unknowing, to enlist Mrs. Gilbreth. The scene builds as the 12 kids march in, one after the other, until the family planning woman turns pale and flees.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:14 AM (c6xtn)

160 Make sure you stay on it, or have her sisters help. Mine was considering one, but her music teacher said not to. Too many people with potential wait a year then never go back. I don't want mine to do that and end up working for wages for fifty plus years.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:08 AM (7bRMQ)
---
It's her life. If she wants to be a clerk, that's her choice. I was fed down a chute and it worked out only because my parents paid the bills. I can't do that for three kids on our income and I don't want them taking on crippling debt.

My father made a great point all those years ago: a job is what you do for money, nothing more. Don't expect to be paid for your hobby. If you can swing it, great, but be realistic. I've been very up front with my kids that while I am good at my job, I have no particular affection for it. It pays for my hobbies and fed and clothed them when they were little.

It's now their turn to see what they want to do.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:14 AM (llXky)

161 "Devil Said Bang by Richard Kadrey -- A mortal somehow overthrows Lucifer in Hell and now has his job."

This is about me, isn't it? lol
Posted by: Berserker-Dragonheads Division at August 21, 2022 10:11 AM (VwHCD)
---
You might enjoy this series. Sandman Slim rides a Hellion Hog (a motorcycle crafted in Hell, with all that implies).

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:15 AM (K5n5d)

162 hink I read Cheaper by the Dozen in high school, but barely remember a page of it now. The movie with Clifton Webb was shown on the tube frequently in the early 60s, and if memory serves it was delightful. Think there was a remake, but I have no idea if it was any good.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022

***
Remake starred Steve Martin? Is that right?

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:15 AM (c6xtn)

163 I read _Cheaper By the Dozen_ when I was a kid, and didn't realize the Gilbreths were real until many years later.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:15 AM (QZxDR)

164 @145 --

lin-duh, try an autobiography. Or a business history, such as "Barbarians at the Gate," about the RJR/Nabisco leveraged buyout.

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (Om/di)

165 For those interested I excerpted critical reviews of Tolkien's work and posted it at archive.org/details/critical-approaches

I'm currently reading a book about the Finnish civil war 1918. The Whites dragged the Bolsheviks out of their homes and summarily shot them. By the hundreds. That's why Finland is free and not a post-Soviet vassal state shythole. So now the Marxists historians have posed the Bolsheviks as victims. Imagine that. Bolsheviks as victims. It's absurd and insulting.

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (+bU7k)

166 Why did Trump take nuclear secrets to Maryland and why did he refuse to return them when asked?

Posted by: Paul at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (5qkYi)

167 51 I don't use the word 'anathema' in conversation very often because it's almost always proceeded by 'an' and 'an anathema' is alliteratively awkward.

Posted by: Bitter Clinger at August 21, 2022 09:27 AM (rtDiB)
----
Try for anathema and plethora in the same sentence. Ever since 'The Three Amigos' my house has fits of laughter whenever plethora is used.

Posted by: Ciampino with a [lethora of comments usually at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (qfLjt)

168 145 ... "My problem is I can't find a book that engages me anymore. I use to read and love Jordan, Goodkind, etc. I use to love that type of fantasy. I could read most apocalyptic or dystopic fantasy."

lin-duh,
Maybe expand your idea of fantasy into the past. The Conan stories are still great reading. The H. Rider Haggard books (She, King Solomon's Mines, etc.) were the fantasy of their day and continue to entertain. And GOOD translations of Jules Verne (there is a ton of crappy ones out there) qualify. Try the Naval Institute sponsored translations for the best ones. Post-LOTR fantasies have left me cold but the delightful language of the older books keeps the stories fresh for me.

Posted by: JTB at August 21, 2022 10:17 AM (7EjX1)

169 Chronicles of the Kencyrath by P.C. Hodgell . . .

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022

***
Many years ago I read her first novel, God Stalk, and was impressed by how well her scenes flowed one into the other. She sort of reminded me of the way Rex Stout keeps his Wolfe stories moving. She herself said it was modeled on Victorian fiction, and since she is a Ph.D. in English lit, I'm not surprised.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:18 AM (c6xtn)

170 Even STEM degrees are suffering at the college level, I believe, due to the "electives" colleges force on students in order to make sure the college turns out a "well rounded" student.
Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing

Exactly. If the point is to adequately train engineers, nurses, programmers, etc. so that employers trust the graduate has a certain level of basic knowledge, we should move in the trade school direction. Focus those students on a rigorous education in relevant topics and send them into the workforce quicker. Although I enjoyed many of my non-major courses, I could have gotten the same learning out of personal reading.

Posted by: She Hobbit at August 21, 2022 10:18 AM (ftFVW)

171 I had the same problem, finding fiction that really engaged my interest. I put it off to the fact I've read so much history, with all of its weird twists and turns, I've come to believe it's hard for a writer of fiction to compete with actual events.
Posted by: blake - semi lurker
----
I'm just sad because I love to read. I use to read several books a month, if not a week, when younger. Maybe I'm suffering from the modern issue of having a shorter attention span. I've been mainly lurking here these days and I guess that fills my "reading" quota these days. I need/want an escape from reality, that's another reason why I'm sad about not being able to find engaging books.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:18 AM (UUBmN)

172 I'm currently reading a book about the Finnish civil war 1918. The Whites dragged the Bolsheviks out of their homes and summarily shot them. By the hundreds. That's why Finland is free and not a post-Soviet vassal state shythole. So now the Marxists historians have posed the Bolsheviks as victims. Imagine that. Bolsheviks as victims. It's absurd and insulting.

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (+bU7k)
---
One thing I learned while researching the Spanish Civil War was that there was this fascinating "roving White Army" that toured Europe fighting Communists wherever they were a problem. Apparently a bunch of Finns went to Spain because that's where the Reds were.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (llXky)

173 Bolsheviks as victims. It's absurd and insulting.
Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (+bU7

With a different slant, it could be a training manual?

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (Zzbjj)

174 My father made a great point all those years ago: a job is what you do for money, nothing more. Don't expect to be paid for your hobby. If you can swing it, great, but be realistic. I've been very up front with my kids that while I am good at my job, I have no particular affection for it. It pays for my hobbies and fed and clothed them when they were little.

It's now their turn to see what they want to do.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:14 AM (llXky)
------------------

Scott Adams made what I consider to be a decent observation about jobs. Basically, he said something along the lines of, "Don't underestimate the satisfaction of being able to pay the bills in a timely manner."

Having gone from living paycheck to paycheck to the bills most definitely being paid in a timely manner, I believe Mr. Adams may have a point.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (5pTK/)

175 You might enjoy this series. Sandman Slim rides a Hellion Hog (a motorcycle crafted in Hell, with all that implies).

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:15 AM (K5n5d)

Yeah I saw that on the cover. Looks good.

Posted by: Berserker-Dragonheads Division at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (VwHCD)

176 The 2023 Old Farmer's Almanac comes out on August 30. I already have my copy ordered. (The damn local Barnes and Noble didn't get their copies on time the last couple of years. Now I preorder.)

Posted by: JTB at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (7EjX1)

177 Finally finished Book four of the Raj Quartet. I had my mini stroke in the middle of it and used progress in it to gauge how well I was recovering (probably not the most accurate way to measure these things but it had its uses) so it had more than the usual significance in reading it. Even under the best circumstances it had more than its share of dotty Brits to deal with which was a struggle of sorts but at least I can claim to have finished it for whatever that's worth.

Also finished The Conscience of the Rich by C. P. Snow, the third book of his Strangers and Brothers series. For whatever reason this didn't strike me as as good as the previous ones so maybe it's time to terminate this series prematurely. Or maybe this is why the library only has really really old editions of these.

Posted by: Captain Hate at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (y7DUB)

178 I finished Bugles and a Tiger by John Masters, an officer from an Indian Army family, who was an officer in the Indian Army joining in 1934. He served with the Gurkha Rifles on the Northern Frontier
It is an autobiography of a sorts, and it goes from his enrollment at Sandhurst, the conditions of service in India, fighting on the Norther Frontier and training his Gurkhas, until the beginning of WWII

He writes about his fellow officers, the troops, the situation of the dependents and family of the soldiers, the heat, fighting in the freezing weather, shooting a tiger that invaded the cantonment, and his furlough that he took the opportunity to sail to San Francisco, drive across the US, and then sail back to England from New York

Masters is not moralistic, mostly commenting on the valor and ability of his Gurkha troops and his brother officers, and the situation that the British had serving in India. He disliked the causal racism from all sides and the petty rule-bound nature of the colonial and native governance.

The last chapter is about the final field maneuvers by the highly trained Indian Army on the Frontier, just before being mobilized for WWII

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 10:20 AM (xhaym)

179 Wolfus - Yep, Steve Martin was in the remake of CBTD. IMDB description doesn't sound like something that was done with the original even remotely in mind.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 10:21 AM (a/4+U)

180 It's her life. If she wants to be a clerk, that's her choice. I was fed down a chute and it worked out only because my parents paid the bills. I can't do that for three kids on our income and I don't want them taking on crippling debt.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:14 AM (llXky)

Fortunately, she's interested in her subject, always has been. In fact, I think her music teacher was prepping her to take over her job in a few years. She's going to a nearby out of state school that gives area discounts, so she's only paying about $16k per year, she has a couple of scholarships and grants plus work study, so her loans won't be all that big.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:21 AM (7bRMQ)

181 "My problem is I can't find a book that engages me anymore. I use to read and love Jordan, Goodkind, etc. I use to love that type of fantasy. I could read most apocalyptic or dystopic fantasy."
*
lin-duh,
Maybe expand your idea of fantasy into the past. The Conan stories are still great reading. The H. Rider Haggard books (She, King Solomon's Mines, etc.) were the fantasy of their day and continue to entertain. And GOOD translations of Jules Verne (there is a ton of crappy ones out there) qualify. Try the Naval Institute sponsored translations for the best ones. Post-LOTR fantasies have left me cold but the delightful language of the older books keeps the stories fresh for me.
Posted by: JTB at August 21, 2022

***
I write the stuff myself -- what I call "hard-boiled fantasy" -- and a lot of the published fiction, both now and in the past, has bored me. Fred Saberhagen's Empire of the East and his Books of Swords series are both fantastic. Plus Larry Niven's The Magic Goes Away and his earlier short stories, "Not Long Before the End" and "What Good Is a Glass Dagger?" are grand tales.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:21 AM (c6xtn)

182 Taking a few years to work and maybe travel between HS and college isn't a bad idea. Dr. Mrs. T. teaches at a local college and she absolutely adores her older "nontraditional" students -- they have good habits, they want to be there, they're interested in the subject matter, and they READ THE DAMNED SYLLABUS.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:22 AM (QZxDR)

183 Many years ago I read her first novel, God Stalk, and was impressed by how well her scenes flowed one into the other. She sort of reminded me of the way Rex Stout keeps his Wolfe stories moving. She herself said it was modeled on Victorian fiction, and since she is a Ph.D. in English lit, I'm not surprised.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 10:18 AM (c6xtn)
---
There's also a lot of Fritz Leiber in that novel. I think her following books are much better, but God Stalk is pretty awesome. Her world building and characterization are just incredible.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:22 AM (K5n5d)

184 they READ THE DAMNED SYLLABUS.
Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:22 AM (QZxDR)

------------------

Isn't that the instruction manual for the class?

Pass.

Posted by: Male non traditional student at August 21, 2022 10:23 AM (5pTK/)

185 lin-duh, when I feel that way I usually switch to a different genre. Cozy mystery, historical fiction, even regency romance.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (ibF8s)

186 Having gone from living paycheck to paycheck to the bills most definitely being paid in a timely manner, I believe Mr. Adams may have a point.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:19 AM (5pTK/)
---
My father was a copy editor for 35 years, several of those spent on strike/locked out, whereupon he became a substitute teacher.

He did what he was good at. His passion was (and is) music. Loves collecting and learning instruments. He has a baby grand piano, functioning player piano with shelves of scrolls, countless harmonicas and enough vinyl records to fill a shipping container.

That was what his job paid for. I'm hoping my daughters learn the same lesson.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (llXky)

187 58 An AoS primer will need a glossary of terms: Corgis, willowed, elbows -- what else?

(Is it pronounced PRIM-er or PRIME-er?)

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 09:31 AM (Om/di)
----
otters, bats, fartclam, italicans
A whole section on boob fascination (it will be dog-eared quickly). The optional wearing of trousers (I encourage the ladies and discourage the men - yes I am also a Biologist).
PRIME-er

Posted by: Ciampino with a plethora of comments usually at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (qfLjt)

188 Greetings:

Back in the joy of my youth, the "gap" year was two courtesy of my Uncle Sam Ain't Released Me Yet (US ARMY) status. Got to do lots of interesting stuff that I wouldn't have otherwise and kept me out of Mother's basement.

Posted by: 11B40 at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (uuklp)

189 I have been writing free urban fantasy here:

https:://simulastra.com

That's all me, my site my name my code my writing. Images are pixabay. . I am going to start a links page and add other moron authors and friends like Taylor Hoyt and Correia.

Happy Sunday book thread.

Posted by: David Prince at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (UUOOq)

190 Those stairs look deadly...

Posted by: setnaffa at August 21, 2022 10:25 AM (bYETr)

191 @lin-duh-well, please lurk less and comment more.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:25 AM (5pTK/)

192 Time for church. Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I'll read the rest of the comments later.

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:25 AM (UUBmN)

193 lin-duh I've found shorter fantasy works are easier to get thru, plus I end up with "junk food" reading i.e. young adult fantasy! those are easy easy to get thru

anyway I'd recommend Richard Adams' Shardik and Maia. they are pretty gripping I think. I've re-read them a bunch of times.

also Jack Vance has quite a few lovely shorter books.

Lyonesse/Madouc/The Green Pearl is a nice fantasy series of shorter (and gripping!) books

Posted by: BlackOrchid at August 21, 2022 10:25 AM (w0NJk)

194 Fritz Leiber? There's a name I haven't heard in a while.

Time for a re-read of "Our Lady of Darkness".

Posted by: Additional Blond Agent, STEM Guy at August 21, 2022 10:26 AM (ZSK0i)

195 lin-duh, try an autobiography. Or a business history, such as "Barbarians at the Gate," about the RJR/Nabisco leveraged buyout.
Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 10:16 AM (Om/di)

This. Maybe you just need a change of genre.

Posted by: April--dash my lace wigs! at August 21, 2022 10:26 AM (OX9vb)

196 Fortunately, she's interested in her subject, always has been. In fact, I think her music teacher was prepping her to take over her job in a few years. She's going to a nearby out of state school that gives area discounts, so she's only paying about $16k per year, she has a couple of scholarships and grants plus work study, so her loans won't be all that big.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:21 AM (7bRMQ)
---
Music is a perishable skill and without some sort of framework (playing in a band, for example), those skills can atrophy quickly.

I show my kids the music I used to be capable of playing in college and shake my head that I was ever that good.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:26 AM (llXky)

197 My father made a great point all those years ago: a job is what you do for money, nothing more. Don't expect to be paid for your hobby. If you can swing it, great, but be realistic. I've been very up front with my kids that while I am good at my job, I have no particular affection for it. It pays for my hobbies and fed and clothed them when they were little.

It's now their turn to see what they want to do.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:14 AM (llXky)

Good points. When some kids get to college they are swayed by profs who want to push them toward art, literature, creative writing. It nearly happened to kid1. We had to yank he rug out from that pretty hard and fast, "No, you will not major in poetry, fts." It's, as you said, a hobby. Too many people come out of the universities convinced that it entitles them to be poets and philosophers, and highly paid ones.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:27 AM (Zzbjj)

198 Other great old fantasy: _The Moon Pool_ by A. Merritt. He was the guy that RE Howard and HP Lovecraft wanted to be. Absolutely OWNED the pulp fiction market.

And don't forget Burroughs's Mars novels!

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:28 AM (QZxDR)

199 A comics editor -- Mark Gruenwald? -- wrote, " When your hobby becomes your job, find a new hobby."

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 10:29 AM (Om/di)

200 And I'm finishing my chronological reading of the Pern series with "The Skies of Pern", in which the threat of Threadfall is soon to disappear, the old technology is coming back, and the dragonriders are looking for new ways to contribute to society.

I've enjoyed dipping my toe back into fantasy.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 10:29 AM (Dc2NZ)

201 Well, you all have a great day.

Thanks for the great weekly thread as always, P. Squirrel.

Posted by: Secret Squirrel, author of sci fi, kids books and one silly army play on Amazon at August 21, 2022 10:29 AM (NgoNq)

202 Fritz Leiber? Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long, long time.

Posted by: Old Ben Leiber at August 21, 2022 10:29 AM (QZxDR)

203 Thanks for including O, Lost, perfessor, even if I'm the only Wolfe fan of the thread.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:30 AM (Zzbjj)

204
Back in the joy of my youth, the "gap" year was two courtesy of my Uncle Sam Ain't Released Me Yet (US ARMY) status. Got to do lots of interesting stuff that I wouldn't have otherwise and kept me out of Mother's basement.

Posted by: 11B40 at August 21, 2022 10:24 AM (uuklp)
---
I'm sure my father (who footed the bill for my tuition) appreciated the irony of me joining the National Guard in my mid-20s. He pushed me hard to become an officer, but I preferred the enlisted ranks.

Despite that, he supported my decision to enlist. My mother didn't really come round to it until I made E-7, at which point she realized I liked it and was good at it.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:30 AM (llXky)

205 Too many people come out of the universities convinced that it entitles them to be poets and philosophers, and highly paid ones.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:27 AM (Zzbjj)
---------------

Much like too many people have fallen for the, "Everyone needs to go to college" mantra, they've also fallen for the "Follow your passion and the money will come" nonsense.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:30 AM (5pTK/)

206 74 I've rarely seen it preceded by "an." Usually it's "Going to Walmart is anathema to me" -- no article at all.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius

Spoke vs written language for the less erudite among us?

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 09:36 AM (g1EEm)
----
The more erudite Grammar Nazi says 'spoken'

Posted by: Ciampino - a plethora of comments usually at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (qfLjt)

207 One more thing, todays woke and mainly female writers....hard pass!!
I know there a great female writers out there but modern, militant feminazi's have ruined everything.
I have tried changing genre's. I spend more time looking for something to read than reading.🤔🤨

Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (UUBmN)

208 I can't get interested in most modern fantasy. They're no longer pastiching history or fairy tales, they're doing knockoffs of knockoffs of knockoffs of Tolkein imitators.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (QZxDR)

209 When I was a kid I always hated going to Aunt Nethema's house.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (sn5EN)

210 I'll delurk for a minute to report on my reading. I'm nearly finished with volume 2 of the Harvard classics. Specifically, The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. At the rate I am going I'll be reading this collection for the rest of my life. It's on my Kindle and I keep it bedside for the middle of the night when I can't get back to sleep. I can report that it works pretty well at that.

Posted by: Pod Hamp at August 21, 2022 10:12 AM (NhzYe)

I have the complete set in a non-Kindle version, and will "sample" it from time to time. A very interesting and eclectic collection. Wait until you get to volume 38, a collection of writings by Harvey, Jenner, Lister and Pasteur (Circulation of the Blood, Theory of Fermentation, etc.). A real page-turner, that one. On the bright side, volume 49 includes a pretty good translation of Beowulf, so you have something to look forward to.

Posted by: HTL at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (meAg6)

211 Good points. When some kids get to college they are swayed by profs who want to push them toward art, literature, creative writing. It nearly happened to kid1. We had to yank he rug out from that pretty hard and fast, "No, you will not major in poetry, fts." It's, as you said, a hobby. Too many people come out of the universities convinced that it entitles them to be poets and philosophers, and highly paid ones.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:27 AM (Zzbjj)
---
Got a couple of profs in my department who are bound and determined to teach the course I'm also teaching *their* way, focusing on creative writing. However, the department really wants them to teach the course with a focus on practical writing. Virtually ZERO of our students will become professional novelists. They're good teachers, but not team players.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (K5n5d)

212 I am reading "The End of the World is Just the Beginning" by Peter Zeihan.

LOL. We are so fooked (still).

The collapse of globalization ain't gonna be pretty. In many places in the world, think "decivilized."

Posted by: Chatterbox Mouse at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (JVCkA)

213 Too many people come out of the universities convinced that it entitles them to be poets and philosophers, and highly paid ones.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:27 AM (Zzbjj)
---
The profs I had convinced me NOT to go to grad school because the History Dept. was under too much budget pressure and my particular interest - military history - was a dead end.

They were right, of course. I can't imagine having gotten my doctorate and having to put up with all the crap on campus. I'd have been canceled long ago.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (llXky)

214 they are swayed by profs who want to push them toward art, literature, creative writing.

Engineering is also a more rewarding hobby than profession. And most "engineers"? Don't. Many appear to spend their time bitching a blue streak about the arts majors they actually work for.

Posted by: Way, Way Downriver at August 21, 2022 10:33 AM (x61Im)

215 Having (finally) read the Divine Comedy with indispensable help from notes, commentaries, 100 Days of Dante youtube videos and Tom LA Books videos, I have moved on to T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets.

What the hell was I thinking? But thank goodness I just read Dante before cracking the cover of Four Quartets.

For the lighter stuff, I have been revisitng Dorothy Grant's Combined Operations (collection of four loosely related sf), early Patricia Briggs (hurog means 'dragon'), and a little spicy Thea Harrison for the sex scenes.

Posted by: sinmi at August 21, 2022 10:33 AM (A5IVt)

216 Greetings:

My father was not a great fan of debt. Frugality and saving up was his preferred M.O. He taught that for an honest man, taking on debt (borrowing) always involved the sale of some of your freedom.

Posted by: 11B40 at August 21, 2022 10:33 AM (uuklp)

217 I confess the recent scourge of Wokeness in science fiction means I shy away from female and diversity writers unless I've seen a review from someone I trust. Basically I just assume they're crap published for virtue-signaling points unless proved otherwise.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:33 AM (QZxDR)

218 20 I ain't gonna click on the pants link. Wouldn't be prudent.
Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at August 21, 2022 09:12 AM (PiwSw)

They're funny; they are! It's safe. I promise.

Posted by: m at August 21, 2022 10:34 AM (8rTNG)

219 I can't get interested in most modern fantasy. They're no longer pastiching history or fairy tales, they're doing knockoffs of knockoffs of knockoffs of Tolkein imitators.
Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (QZxDR)
----
I'm the same way. It's to the point that I really don't care about current fantasy, unless it's an author that I've been reading for years (or decades).

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:34 AM (K5n5d)

220 I can't get interested in most modern fantasy. They're no longer pastiching history or fairy tales, they're doing knockoffs of knockoffs of knockoffs of Tolkein imitators.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (QZxDR)
---
You left out the fact that these are invariably "woke."

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:34 AM (llXky)

221 Virtually ZERO of our students will become professional novelists. They're good teachers, but not team players.
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (K5n5d)
----------------

What they taught: "The happy little 2 wandered around, wondering what life was all about. Then, one day, another 2 came along, they got together, and, soon, 2 and 2 became 4."

What was needed: "2 + 2 = 4"

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:35 AM (5pTK/)

222 "A couple of high school kids were part of the crew that put a new roof on my house this summer. "

Last year we had a standby generator installed. Crew of 3, the boss, a journeyman, and an apprentice. Journeyman and apprentice were both young men. I think the apprentice was 19. You couldn't meet a pair of friendlier, well-spoken, as well as competent and professional young men. They knew their business well and worked hard. Maybe there's some hope after all. I'd like to think so.

Posted by: George V at August 21, 2022 10:35 AM (ugbqN)

223 "I ain't gonna click on the pants link. Wouldn't be prudent.
Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes
They're funny; they are! It's safe. I promise.
Posted by: m"

I thought they were pretty seedy.

Posted by: fd at August 21, 2022 10:36 AM (sn5EN)

224 The more erudite Grammar Nazi says 'spoken'
Posted by: Ciampino - a plethora of comments usually at August 21, 2022 10:31 AM (qfLjt)
-----------

Would that make a clever turn of phrase, "bespoken?"

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (5pTK/)

225 Any Neil Gaiman fans here? I picked up Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances at the library for whatever reason and am just about to dive deeply into it.

Posted by: Captain Hate at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (y7DUB)

226 What they taught: "The happy little 2 wandered around, wondering what life was all about. Then, one day, another 2 came along, they got together, and, soon, 2 and 2 became 4."

What was needed: "2 + 2 = 4"
Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:35 AM (5pTK/)
---
Very few English professor can truly grasp the complexities of the engineering mindset. It's a wonder to behold. Engineers can be very creative. But they are also very practical.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (K5n5d)

227 Any Neil Gaiman fans here? I picked up Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances at the library for whatever reason and am just about to dive deeply into it.
Posted by: Captain Hate at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (y7DUB)
---
He's almost always a great read. You'll enjoy the ride!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (K5n5d)

228 Maybe not so odd my Fantasy novel reading stops after Tolkien

Posted by: Skip at August 21, 2022 10:37 AM (k8B25)

229 Fritz Leiber was terrific. Most of his work should be available for the Kindle or other ebook readers. If you don't care for ebooks, try to find Night's Black Agents, The Leiber Chronicles, or Selected Stories -- any of those will give you a nice sampling of his work, and believe thee me you'll want more.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (a/4+U)

230 Engineering is also a more rewarding hobby than profession. And most "engineers"? Don't. Many appear to spend their time bitching a blue streak about the arts majors they actually work for.
Posted by: Way, Way Downriver

So true. At my very large company that employs a shit-ton of engineers there is a small percentage that do the sexy stuff they told you you'd do in engineering school. The rest of us are well-paid clerks that need to have an understanding of the science/engineering work that our subcontractors and vendors do along with regulatory compliance. Lame.

Posted by: She Hobbit at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (ftFVW)

231 Virtually ZERO of our students will become professional novelists. They're good teachers, but not team players.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (K5n5d)
---
How many people who get those masters degrees in creative writing actually write anything interesting?

If you want to learn how to write books, spend your time reading the kind of books you want to write. At the same time, go collect life experiences related to what you want to write about.

The cardinal rule is: write what you know. When people break that rule, it shows - badly.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (llXky)

232 AH - I think the Finns you're talking about were trained in Germany and known as the 27th or 24th Jagers or some such. A bunch of them came home and kicked the stuffing out of the Soviets during the Winter War. CN - Some Finns are still actual tough guys and read The Manual lol.

{typing on my kindle paperwhite is murder}

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (+bU7k)

233 I just finished Simon the Fiddler, by Paulette Jiles. I loved her previous book, News of the World, and this one is terrific as well. Simon was a minor character in News, and here we get his story, well told.

Posted by: DIY Daddio at August 21, 2022 10:39 AM (64aAI)

234 205. That "money will come" book did a lot of damage, as did the idea of work providing great "fulfillment". In fact, it causes a lot of anger and depression for people.

I recall talking to one of my kid1's friends who was sad and whiny that her well paid job did not bring fulfillment. I wasn't very "kind", but it did get the point across quickly. Employers don't pay for the opportunity to fulfill you or cater to your ego, they pay you to do the job. There was certainly no "experience fulfillment" goal listed in my job description.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:39 AM (Zzbjj)

235 AH - I think the Finns you're talking about were trained in Germany and known as the 27th or 24th Jagers or some such. A bunch of them came home and kicked the stuffing out of the Soviets during the Winter War. CN - Some Finns are still actual tough guys and read The Manual lol.

{typing on my kindle paperwhite is murder}

Posted by: 13times at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (+bU7k)
---
Stanley G. Payne references them. Some were Freikorps, some just adventurers. Fins, Balts, Germans - an eclectic mix to be sure.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:40 AM (llXky)

236 The cardinal rule is: write what you know. When people break that rule, it shows - badly.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:38 AM (llXky)
---
Agreed. "Life experiences" sets a lot of Moron-authored books ahead of many other books. It's very clear that the authors either have read extensively on certain topics or have extensive life experiences that inform their writing, or both (the best option)

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (K5n5d)

237 Music is a perishable skill and without some sort of framework (playing in a band, for example), those skills can atrophy quickly.

I show my kids the music I used to be capable of playing in college and shake my head that I was ever that good.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:26 AM (llXky)

She's done voice for years, now she has to learn the piano. I think this is what she wants, so I expect her to succeed. Funny enough, the music teacher says she only has to know how to play the piano, she doesn't need to be a concert quality player.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (7bRMQ)

238 I thought they were pretty seedy.
Posted by: fd

And perhaps a little pithy.

Posted by: She Hobbit at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (ftFVW)

239 Time for Mass. Back later!

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (llXky)

240 @200 And I'm finishing my chronological reading of the Pern series...

In my opinion, one of the best sci-fi fantasy blend series of all time. I must have read through it 6 times and I hang on to the books because I want to read it one more time before the bucket is kicked.

Posted by: George V at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (ugbqN)

241 I took a gap year. Nothing like working minimum wage jobs to motivate me to go back school. My parents were very gracious and understanding.

I went to the local UC and lived at home. My Dad got off very, very light.

Posted by: Chatterbox Mouse at August 21, 2022 10:42 AM (JVCkA)

242 100 *Bespoke*
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes

A nice little term for custom made.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 09:46 AM (Zzbjj)
----
Until I looked it up I always thought that meant reserved for someone, similar to 'spoken for'.

Posted by: Ciampino - a plethora of comments at August 21, 2022 10:42 AM (qfLjt)

243 Fins + destruction = "Beyond the Press" youtube channel.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:43 AM (5pTK/)

244 Contemporary fantasy: Alec Baldwin Finds the Real Killers.

https://bit.ly/3PN4rva

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 10:44 AM (FVME7)

245 Thanks for another fine Book Thread, Perfesser Squirrel and company!

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 10:46 AM (Dc2NZ)

246 The profs I had convinced me NOT to go to grad school because the History Dept. was under too much budget pressure and my particular interest - military history - was a dead end.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (llXky)

I learned that on my own. The state of scholarship for classical studies even in the 80s was surveying the uses of cheese imagery in the works of Tibullus.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 10:48 AM (7bRMQ)

247 I recall talking to one of my kid1's friends who was sad and whiny that her well paid job did not bring fulfillment. I wasn't very "kind", but it did get the point across quickly. Employers don't pay for the opportunity to fulfill you or cater to your ego, they pay you to do the job. There was certainly no "experience fulfillment" goal listed in my job description.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater

That's why they call it "work" instead of "play", " fulfillment", or "sex" or something.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 10:48 AM (FVME7)

248 I know a bunch of professional writers who also teach creative writing. I don't think any of them actually got degrees in creative writing. Creative writing programs exist to subsidize writers, not train them.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:50 AM (QZxDR)

249 Music is a perishable skill and without some sort of framework (playing in a band, for example), those skills can atrophy quickly.
I show my kids the music I used to be capable of playing in college and shake my head that I was ever that good.
=====

Math is another. Unless you use it all the time, you'll end up calling a high schooler to show you how to accomplish the functions.

Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 10:51 AM (MIKMs)

250 I think a better rule than "write what you know" would be "know what you write."

The first gives you lots of short stories about middle-aged literary men in New York contemplating adultery, or stories about young women in creative writing programs unsure how what to do with their lives.

The second gives you Patrick O'Brian.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:52 AM (QZxDR)

251 "The novel is meant to be savored for its lyrical descriptions, although I was ready to reach through the pages and slap some sense into the characters a time or two."

I think I would like this- it reminds me of one of my favorite novels, Kristen Lavransdatter. The three books of that one's plot can be described as
I. Oh, honey, No
II. Alright, hard head
III. So you finally got it...

Posted by: sal at August 21, 2022 10:52 AM (y40tE)

252 Good Sunday to you all.

The Horde Primer would include lovely, important things, but especially: pets, GAINZZ, hot irons, guns, book, sou vide, bats, gardens, and instructions on how to throw a MoMe.

Posted by: Flyover at August 21, 2022 10:54 AM (Rbu5d)

253 Finishing up reading Sister Beckett's Story of Painting. It's really good until she gets to the abstract art period. You have to believe she's just calling it in when she attempts to explain why certain abstract art is art. Good try Sister.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 10:54 AM (KTOXl)

254 Employers don't pay for the opportunity to fulfill you or cater to your ego, they pay you to do the job. There was certainly no "experience fulfillment" goal listed in my job description.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 10:39 AM (Zzbjj)

Fulfillment comes in many forms. Nobody does anything unless they're getting some type of fulfillment for it... unless they're being coerced.

If you work to eat and put a roof over your head, that's basic fulfillment. If it gives you an opportunity to do the OTHER things that give you pleasure, that's fulfillment. If you both LOVE your job and are fulfilled by what it affords you... well, that's possibly the best option.

I never do any work because the boss said so. I don't really care what the boss thinks, as long as he pays me. Now, I might care a lot what the customer thinks, but again, that's a type of fulfillment, whether I "enjoy" the actual work I do or not.

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 10:56 AM (i3yPZ)

255 Isn't "do your passion and the money will follow" much like telling a kid who plays halfway decent HS football that he can make it in the NFL?

Posted by: Helena Handbasket at August 21, 2022 10:56 AM (llON8)

256 Music is a perishable skill and without some sort of framework (playing in a band, for example), those skills can atrophy quickly.
I show my kids the music I used to be capable of playing in college and shake my head that I was ever that good.
=====

So true. I'm looking to take some saxophone lessons so I can return to some semblance of competence after many years of not playing.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 10:57 AM (KTOXl)

257 I started to re-read The Screwtape letters but had to put it back on the shelf. Like parts of Lewis' That Hideous Strength, the cynical evil it deals with is too close to our current situation. I read for many reasons but reinforcing the rage I feel about the cultural corruption and nihilism inundating us isn't one of them. I'll read them some other day.
Posted by: JTB at August 14, 2022 09:14 AM (7EjX1)

I must agree with JTB.

I'm not reading anything terribly interesting, except maybe the Foxfire books my FIL gave us from hos library.

Posted by: Flyover at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (Rbu5d)

258 You can download a .pdf of The Priceless Gift here...
https://az.1lib.limited/book/5393636/634f43

Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (B4Nkq)

259 Scalzi said he wrote it to get back in the groove during the madness of the COVID lockdown, but he lives in a small town in Ohio, not New York, right? Life was not upended in small towns.

But I rag on him too much. It was a fine fluffy diversion.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:15 AM (Dc2NZ)

Isn't Scalzi hard Left?

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at August 21, 2022 10:59 AM (kL59d)

260 The first gives you lots of short stories about middle-aged literary men in New York contemplating adultery, or stories about young women in creative writing programs unsure how what to do with their lives.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:52 AM (QZxDR)

Young women who do everything well, usually better than men, and all the men want to sleep with them.

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 10:59 AM (i3yPZ)

261 fantasy as "escapism":

-
Who would want escape from Bidenirvana?

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 10:59 AM (FVME7)

262 otters, bats, fartclam, italicans
A whole section on boob fascination (it will be dog-eared quickly). The optional wearing of trousers (I encourage the ladies and discourage the men - yes I am also a Biologist).
PRIME-er
Posted by: Ciampino with a plethora of comments usually at August 21, 2022

***
PRIM-er is the pronunciation for a beginner's work, e.g., "A Primer on AoSHQ Linguistics." PRIME-er is the word for the base coat used in painting cars and the like, e.g., "We used some gray primer on the Dodge, but it looked so good we left it as the main paint job."

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:00 AM (c6xtn)

263 Good morning! My suggestion to young people is to do a variety of jobs, cultivate a variety of skills. Jobs tend to become more or less needed as the economy evolves so, don't be a specialist. Specialization is for ants.

Posted by: gourmand du jour a rare sunny day at August 21, 2022 11:00 AM (jTmQV)

264 >>> 259
==
Isn't Scalzi hard Left?
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at August 21, 2022 10:59 AM (kL59d)

Yes, lefty and apparently a bit soy too from what I can tell (eg bragging because his daughter could lift more than him).

Posted by: Helena Handbasket at August 21, 2022 11:00 AM (llON8)

265 Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:52 AM (QZxDR)

Young women who do everything well, usually better than men, and all the men want to sleep with them.
Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 10:59 AM (i3yPZ)

I guess that's not "write what you know" but more like "write what you wish you knew."

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 11:00 AM (i3yPZ)

266 How many skills aren't perishable? Sometimes I think 'use it or lose it' applies straight across the board. Helping home-school the grandkids in math for a bit, I was appalled at how much I had to look up preparing for that. Took a couple of years of tae-kwon-do, and if I had to throw a head-high roundhouse kick now they'd haul me away on a stretcher. As a kid I used to read Verne and Dumas and Dickens, but when I discovered science fiction I dropped almost everything and all my pleasure reading was pulp-based sf; after a while it became more and more difficult to read someone like Henry James. In high school I knew enough basic chemistry to be dangerous, but that's all gone.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (a/4+U)

267 The profs I had convinced me NOT to go to grad school because the History Dept. was under too much budget pressure and my particular interest - military history - was a dead end.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at August 21, 2022 10:32 AM (llXky

This is what guidance should mean, reality based. Too often it's money for the department based.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (Zzbjj)

268 *Bespoke*

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (Dc2NZ)

It's like Pig Latin: Ibe goingbe tobe thebe storebe

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (xhaym)

269 You can download a .pdf of The Priceless Gift here...
https://az.1lib.limited/book/5393636/634f43
Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (B4Nkq)
---
Thanks! This is great!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (K5n5d)

270 I've rarely seen it preceded by "an." Usually it's "Going to Walmart is anathema to me" -- no article at all.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 09:34 AM (c6xtn)

The canonical usage is "Let him be anathema", also no article.

Posted by: sal at August 21, 2022 11:02 AM (y40tE)

271
"The new aristocracy was made up for the most part of bureaucrats, scientists, technicians, trade-union organizers, publicity experts, sociologists, teachers, journalists, and professional politicians. These people, whose origins lay in the salaried middle class and the upper grades of the working class, had been shaped and brought together by the barren world of monopoly industry and centralized government. As compared with their opposite numbers in past ages, they were less avaricious, less tempted by luxury, hungrier for pure power, and, above all, more conscious of what they were doing and more intent on crushing opposition." - Emmanuel Goldstein, "The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism"

Sound familiar?

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at August 21, 2022 11:02 AM (yrdGv)

272 258 You can download a .pdf of The Priceless Gift here...
https://az.1lib.limited/book/5393636/634f43
Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (B4Nkq)

I got a "may not be safe" warning on that site.

Posted by: m at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (8rTNG)

273 An engineer joke you can tell to your art major boss that will get them to feel all superior and leave you alone for a hot minute:

How can you tell when an engineer is warming up to you? When he talks to you, instead of looking down at his shoes, he looks down at yours.

You can get bonus points by changing the genders but I refuse at this point.

Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (fWbjv)

274 109 99 When you start reading a bunch of those, they tend to run together. Guy's on a horse. Guy's searching for something or somebody. Guy has to kill a couple people. Guy finds who or what he's looking for. The End.
Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:50 AM (lz5hY)

Pulps had The Plotter, which did exactly that.

Posted by: sal at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (y40tE)

275 *Bespoke*

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at August 21, 2022 09:37 AM (Dc2NZ)

It's like Pig Latin: Ibe goingbe tobe thebe storebe
Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (xhaym)

Pig Latin, or just British nonsense? The Brits don't do English terribly well. They should go get their own language already.

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (i3yPZ)

276 Good morning, Perfessor, Horde

Posted by: callsign claymore at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (AIHT7)

277 I think a better rule than "write what you know" would be "know what you write." . . .

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022

Write what you know is fine, but it tends to give us mystery writers whose detectives have the exact same day jobs and backgrounds as the authors. A good one too is "Write what you are prepared to learn about." Sometimes the only, or best, way to learn the subject is to live it, i.e., being in the military for writing military fiction or about war (though see Stephen Crane for an exception). But you can learn plenty through research. If it fascinates you, and you tell your story well, the reader will be fascinated too.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:04 AM (c6xtn)

278 I found a good salary "fulfilling" even if the work was rarely so. But most kids and millennials seem to define it on a more spiritual intellectual level.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 11:05 AM (Zzbjj)

279 Re: Scalzi, yes definitely a hard lefty, and also published by Tor.

I do not buy any Tor books - they are the avant garde of the red fascists who destroyed sci-fi.

Posted by: motionview, a National Divorcee at August 21, 2022 11:05 AM (fWbjv)

280 Possibly book related- someone is asking for knife fighting resources for fiction writing.
Any suggestions?

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:39 AM (ibF8s)

Get Tough by William E Fairbairn

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:06 AM (xhaym)

281 PRIM-er is the pronunciation for a beginner's work, e.g., "A Primer on AoSHQ Linguistics." PRIME-er is the word for the base coat used in painting cars and the like, e.g., "We used some gray primer on the Dodge, but it looked so good we left it as the main paint job."

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:00 AM (c6xtn)

I agree. Primer, pronounced like Simon Brimmer.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:06 AM (7bRMQ)

282 My Dad always encouraged me to follow my passions but insisted I have a backup plan. Not his fault but that warning sort of made me lean toward being more responsible than putting everything into a passion that always result in some irresponsibility in favor of that passion.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 11:07 AM (KTOXl)

283 The first gives you lots of short stories about middle-aged literary men in New York contemplating adultery, or stories about young women in creative writing programs unsure how what to do with their lives.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 10:52 AM
*
Young women who do everything well, usually better than men, and all the men want to sleep with them.
Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022

***
In fantasy and Westerns, it leads to too-frequent scenes set in taverns, inns, and saloons.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:07 AM (c6xtn)

284 Reading Vixen, one of Bill Pronzini's later "Nameless Detective" novels.

-
The only thing certain in Len Deighton's Harry Palmer spy novels, The Ipcress File, Funeral In Berlin, etc., is that our hero's name is not Harry Palmer.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:07 AM (FVME7)

285 I found a good salary "fulfilling" even if the work was rarely so. But most kids and millennials seem to define it on a more spiritual intellectual level.
Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 11:05 AM (Zzbjj)

Which is fine, as long as they find spiritual fulfillment working at Bugger King.

No but seriously, clearly another consequence of that lack of actual, you know, spiritual fulfillment from the traditional sources.

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 11:09 AM (i3yPZ)

286 The only thing certain in Len Deighton's Harry Palmer spy novels, The Ipcress File, Funeral In Berlin, etc., is that our hero's name is not Harry Palmer. Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:07 AM (FVME7)

I love those books. I wish he'd written more of them. The world of W.O.O.C.(P) was so real and even mundane, like working for an actual spy agency actually is.

Posted by: Caesar North of the Rubicon at August 21, 2022 11:09 AM (7B5FA)

287 It's like Pig Latin: Ibe goingbe tobe thebe storebe

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (xhaym)

I think that's Mush Mouth, not Pig Latin.

https://tinyurl.com/ycksku6k

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:10 AM (7bRMQ)

288
The only thing certain in Len Deighton's Harry Palmer spy novels, The Ipcress File, Funeral In Berlin, etc., is that our hero's name is not Harry Palmer.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022

***
I wonder if JK Rowling grew up reading those? "Harry Potter," "Harry Palmer " -- you gotta wonder.

Another point about not necessarily writing what you know. I doubt Ms. Rowling is really an expert magician. But she knew junior high and secondary school, as we all do, and she knew human nature, and she knew how to tell a compelling story aimed exactly at the right audience.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:10 AM (c6xtn)

289 So true. I'm looking to take some saxophone lessons so I can return to some semblance of competence after many years of not playing.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 10:57 AM (KTOXl)

I don't know about horns, but I got back into playing guitar/keys by getting a daw and interface and playing w/backing tracks.

Posted by: BignJames at August 21, 2022 11:11 AM (AwYPR)

290 The family unit has been destroyed, youngsters are being discouraged from starting families, so, perhaps the younger generation is looking to their job to fill the family void?

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:11 AM (5pTK/)

291 No but seriously, clearly another consequence of that lack of actual, you know, spiritual fulfillment from the traditional sources.
Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 11:09 AM (i3yPZ)

_________

A servant with this clause
Makes drudgery divine:
Who sweeps a room as for Thy laws,
Makes that and th' action fine.

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at August 21, 2022 11:12 AM (yrdGv)

292 Another point about not necessarily writing what you know. I doubt Ms. Rowling is really an expert magician. But she knew junior high and secondary school, as we all do, and she knew human nature, and she knew how to tell a compelling story aimed exactly at the right audience.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:10 AM (c6xtn)
---
None of us are "magicians" or "wizards" or "sorcerers." But we can read A LOT of fantasy literature to gain a knowledge and understanding of the tropes necessary to craft a tale in the fantasy genre. Same goes for any other genre. Read A LOT in the genre you wish to write and you will eventually be able to publish your own stories in that genre with time and LOTS of practice.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (K5n5d)

293 You can download a .pdf of The Priceless Gift here...
https://az.1lib.limited/book/5393636/634f43
Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (B4Nkq)
---
Thanks! This is great!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 11:01 AM (K5n5d)

The Priceless Gift? Wasn't that an episode of Police Squad?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (7bRMQ)

294 Another point about not necessarily writing what you know. I doubt Ms. Rowling is really an expert magician. But she knew junior high and secondary school, as we all do, and she knew human nature, and she knew how to tell a compelling story aimed exactly at the right audience.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at August 21, 2022 11:10 AM (c6xtn)
-----------

I give J.K. Rowling a lot of credit. Her books helped create a new generation of readers.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (5pTK/)

295 These people, whose origins lay in the salaried middle class and the upper grades of the working class, had been shaped and brought together by the barren world of monopoly industry and centralized government.
=====

Yep. But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie. I have never heard any of the kids of my acquaintance say it, so I don't know the current pronunciation.

Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (MIKMs)

296 272 258 You can download a .pdf of The Priceless Gift here...
https://az.1lib.limited/book/5393636/634f43
Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 10:58 AM (B4Nkq)

I got a "may not be safe" warning on that site.
Posted by: m at August 21, 2022 11:03 AM (8rTNG)
---------
I'm on an iPhone using Brave browser and didn't get any warnings; I don't know what would set that off.
I downloaded the PDF file into my phone and I'm reading it now. No issues.

Posted by: Lurkerette the Bookish at August 21, 2022 11:14 AM (B4Nkq)

297 RE: Kaiju Preservation Society, which I mentioned last week -- I just learned Will Wheaton narrates the audio version. Perfect! No wonder I heard his unctuous soylent tones in my head.

-
Will was a special guest on Svengoolie last night so we know his career is going fine. Of course, he's special wherever he goes.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:14 AM (FVME7)

298 145 My problem is I can't find a book that engages me anymore... I guess I'm just getting old and the fantasy is becoming too close to reality in a not good way.
Posted by: lin-duh at August 21, 2022 10:07 AM (UUBmN)

I'm finding this a problem as well. Do you think that possibly, we've simply read so many books over the years that we can see the plot unfolding?
I know I now read for interesting style. If I can tell where this is going and the writing is only fair, I don't finish it.

Posted by: sal at August 21, 2022 11:15 AM (y40tE)

299 I agree. Primer, pronounced like Simon Brimmer.
Posted by: OrangeEnt

"She was prim. Primmer than thou."

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 11:15 AM (g1EEm)

300 Yep. But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie. I have never heard any of the kids of my acquaintance say it, so I don't know the current pronunciation.
Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (MIKMs)

Boo- G

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 11:16 AM (KTOXl)

301 But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie.

It's boor-zhwah-zee. But I did have a football coach who taught world history who pronounced it bur-goy-zee.

Posted by: Caesar North of the Rubicon at August 21, 2022 11:18 AM (7B5FA)

302 Yep. But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie.
Posted by: mustbequantum

Boojie. With a soft "j". As in "joie de vie".

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 11:18 AM (g1EEm)

303 Whoooo...I got up late this morning. 286 comments and counting....Ah, its alright, as I don't have much productive to add. But it's raining outside, so maybe I'll get some quality reading in today...

Posted by: Castle Guy at August 21, 2022 11:18 AM (Lhaco)

304 I doubt Ms. Rowling is really an expert magician. But she knew junior high and secondary school, as we all do, and she knew human nature, and she knew how to tell a compelling story aimed exactly at the right audience.
=====

Due credit to Rowling for her talent, she also knew how to read YA literature. I remember someone named Ibbotson writing about the same.

Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 11:19 AM (MIKMs)

305 OrangeEnt

Police Squad. In COLOR.

Best script writing and direction on TV. IMHO.

Posted by: NaCly Dog (u82oZ) at August 21, 2022 11:19 AM (u82oZ)

306 But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie.

*******

Eh-PIT-uh-mee

Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:19 AM (kXYt5)

307 'Cheaper By The Dozen',

one of two books at my g'mother's house that i could/wanted to read. The other was ghost stories of new orleans. I don't know how many times I read both of those. my sister had library privileges, i only had those two books.

Posted by: yara at August 21, 2022 11:20 AM (hBsVD)

308 I overslept so trying to catch up but wanted to let Zoltan know there is a Sanderson book to tide you over til November.
Reading Mistborn:Secret History. He calls it book 3.5 in the series but I wouldn't read it til after you finish book 6. I'm reading it in my browser which I hate so slower than usual so can't really comment yet. I've read a number of his novelettes and they often fill in detail but do just seem like filler. OMG, did I just say a negative word?

Posted by: Sharon(willow's apprentice) at August 21, 2022 11:21 AM (Y+l9t)

309 None of us are "magicians" or "wizards" or "sorcerers." But we can read A LOT of fantasy literature to gain a knowledge and understanding of the tropes necessary to craft a tale in the fantasy genre. Same goes for any other genre. Read A LOT in the genre you wish to write and you will eventually be able to publish your own stories in that genre with time and LOTS of practice.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (K5n5d)

Hmmm, so those of us with children should be able to write sex scenes?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:21 AM (7bRMQ)

310 Life With Father is another one.
Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 09:57 AM (MIKMs)

Yes!
There's a book about a wonderful mother, too, but I can't remember the title offhand.

I think Irene Dunn statred in the movie. Barbara BelGeddes was the narrator-writer-daughter.

Posted by: Flyover at August 21, 2022 11:22 AM (Rbu5d)

311 Best script writing and direction on TV. IMHO. Posted by: NaCly Dog (u82oZ) at August 21, 2022 11:19 AM (u82oZ)

Speaking of which, yesterday I had the PGA golf tournament on for white noise more than anything else, and the return from commercial break on NBC was about a minute of really, really well-produced TV, from the visuals to the script Jim Nantz was reading, and it occurred to me that this producer's talent was totally wasted, but then it occurred to me that well, I was watching it, so maybe not.

Posted by: Caesar North of the Rubicon at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (7B5FA)

312 Lurkerette - thanks for the link. It's been a while since I looked anywhere but archive.org for that title. I'm using Chrome OS and I get no warnings, but it wouldn't surprise me if the site was a bit dodgy. After all, I don't think the Hirschberg is public domain yet...

Posted by: Just Some Guy at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (a/4+U)

313 Hmmm, so those of us with children should be able to write sex scenes?

*******

sex scenes ≠ hydraulics

Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (kXYt5)

314 "an athame"

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (xhaym)

315 I give J.K. Rowling a lot of credit.

-
I thought Harry Potter did an excellent job playing the billionaire, narcissistic yet insecure villain in The Lost City.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:24 AM (FVME7)

316 Posted by: Caesar North of the Rubicon at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (7B5FA)

Spieth is so aggravating to root for.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 11:24 AM (KTOXl)

317 Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour. When you start reading a bunch of those, they tend to run together.
Posted by: bill in arkansas, not gonna comply with nuttin, waiting for the 0300 knock on the door at August 21, 2022 09:50 AM (lz5hY)

and in Louis L'Amour, always about page 75, there's a sermon on why a man needs a gun.

Posted by: yara at August 21, 2022 11:24 AM (hBsVD)

318 I'm not alone in saying this, but this is well stated and very true:
I think a better rule than "write what you know" would be "know what you write."

The first gives you lots of short stories about middle-aged literary men in New York contemplating adultery, or stories about young women in creative writing programs unsure how what to do with their lives.

The second gives you Patrick O'Brian.
Posted by: Trimegistus

Posted by: who knew at August 21, 2022 11:25 AM (4I7VG)

319 Hmmm, so those of us with children should be able to write sex scenes?
Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:21 AM (7bRMQ)
-----------------

Are we talking before children sex scenes or after children sex scenes?

Because those are definitely two different genres of coitus.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:26 AM (5pTK/)

320 Best script writing and direction on TV. IMHO.

Posted by: NaCly Dog (u82oZ) at August 21, 2022 11:19 AM (u82oZ)

Sometimes I can still see stuff I missed in earlier viewings.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:28 AM (7bRMQ)

321 "I think Irene Dunn statred in the movie. Barbara BelGeddes was the narrator-writer-daughter."

I Remember Mama

Posted by: Tuna at August 21, 2022 11:28 AM (gLRfa)

322 I thought Harry Potter did an excellent job playing the billionaire, narcissistic yet insecure villain in The Lost City.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:24 AM (FVME7)
--------------

Not a good movie, had its moments. And yes, Daniel Radcliffe did a pretty good job.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:29 AM (5pTK/)

323 I just finished Pressfield's "Man at Arms", which tells a (fictionalized) account of first century Christians over a wide ranging tour of the eastern Mediterranean. Wonderful book.
Waiting for me to start is Amor Towles "The Lincoln Highway." Towles wrote "A Gentleman in Moscow" which I loved. (I both read it, then we listened to it as a family on one of our marathon road trips.) Towles really has a deft touch: Very descriptive, sentimental with out being sappy or manipulative, sexy without being obscene. I guess he doesn't get a lot of serious play, as (I guess) he's reviewed as top-shelf airport fiction. Well worth the read, IMO.

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at August 21, 2022 11:29 AM (7Fj9P)

324 285: I agree. When one lacks a sort of instruction manual about how to behave, or a hierarchy of values, the search for this will not just vanish.

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 11:30 AM (Zzbjj)

325 Are we talking before children sex scenes or after children sex scenes?

Because those are definitely two different genres of coitus.
Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing

And are we talking longbows or crossbows?

Posted by: quantum mechanic at August 21, 2022 11:31 AM (g1EEm)

326 I thought Harry Potter did an excellent job playing the billionaire, narcissistic yet insecure villain in The Lost City.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:24 AM (FVME7)

I especially liked how Harry Potter railed against the insane trans zealots.

Posted by: BurtTC at August 21, 2022 11:31 AM (i3yPZ)

327 My neighbor has those pants.
I figure the only guys who would wear them would be gay, or have four or more kids.
He's got four kids.

Posted by: Diogenes at August 21, 2022 11:31 AM (anj39)

328
Yep. But I do need the Horde wisdom in how to pronounce 'bougie' -- or bourgeoisie. I have never heard any of the kids of my acquaintance say it, so I don't know the current pronunciation.

Posted by: mustbequantum at August 21, 2022 11:13 AM (MIKMs)

bourgeoisie is a marxist term, it is a shibboleth to prove you ain't one of them.

Bougie is a shibboleth to prove you ain't one of them, AND you ain't the sort to say bourgeoisie

I pronounce it boogie because I am one of THESE

https://youtu.be/tiHuKsxHwLw

Posted by: Kindltot at August 21, 2022 11:32 AM (xhaym)

329 sex scenes ≠ hydraulics

Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:23 AM (kXYt5)

Oh come on. There's fluid dynamics involved!

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:32 AM (7bRMQ)

330 I Remember Mama

Posted by: Tuna at August 21, 2022 11:28 AM (gLRfa)

I recall when that film came out. Each patron got an "Upchuck Cup" at the theater door.

Oh wait. That was I Dismember Mama. Sorry

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:34 AM (7bRMQ)

331 Hmmm. Barbara Bel Geddes reminded me of Dallas. Thumbing through the show pictures on IMDB.com brought up one of the AOS favorites by association:

https://tinyurl.com/BBD-BDennehy

Posted by: Additional Blond Agent, STEM Guy at August 21, 2022 11:34 AM (ZSK0i)

332 I'm looking to take some saxophone lessons

-
I've been watching a lot of Poirot on BritBox. In one episode, he's on the Island of Rhodes and they changed his theme music to the same harmony and melody but played on the zither. The subtitles continually referred to it as guitar music. Worse, during the end credits using the regular theme, the subtitles referred to the saxophone as a trumpet. Apparently, they have deaf people doing the subtitles.

P.S. Although not precisely fantasy, I think that what attracts me is that the show allows me to escape into another world plus I love all the old cars and whatnot.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:35 AM (FVME7)

333 221
What they taught: "The happy little 2 wandered around, wondering what life was all about. Then, one day, another 2 came along, they got together, and, soon, 2 and 2 became 4."

What was needed: "2 + 2 = 4"

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 10:35 AM (5pTK/)
----
Yes but while you taught by rote, they were required to prove that 2+2=4 and had labs in which much fun was had.
/s

Posted by: Ciampino - 2+2=5 for large values of 2 at August 21, 2022 11:35 AM (qfLjt)

334 Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at August 21, 2022 11:29 AM (7Fj9P)

Man at Arms another disappointing Pressfield novel. I'm so cynical now I could only see girl power in it.

Posted by: polynikes at August 21, 2022 11:35 AM (KTOXl)

335 Bookstore still open? Hi.

PRIM-er is the pronunciation for a beginner's work, e.g., "A Primer on AoSHQ Linguistics." PRIME-er is the word for the base coat used in painting cars and the like, e.g., "We used some gray primer on the Dodge, but it looked so good we left it as the main paint job."
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius

I watch many videos with Australians or British, and I often have cause to wonder, is that really their pronunciation (frequently, accent on different syllable). There are some USA-folks videos where I know they're pronouncing something incorrectly, so I wonder if them furriner accents might also be incorrect?

Of course, I can't think of a single example at the moment.

Posted by: mindful webworker, just another cruel and eccentric Moron at August 21, 2022 11:36 AM (VfnjD)

336 Are we talking before children sex scenes or after children sex scenes?

Because those are definitely two different genres of coitus.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:26 AM (5pTK/)

Well, both. One usually leads to the other.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at August 21, 2022 11:36 AM (7bRMQ)

337 Morning.

Those are the fruitiest pants I've ever seen.

Posted by: Robert at August 21, 2022 11:36 AM (1Yy3c)

338 Well, good afternoon, all. I'm off to cut the grass.

Posted by: Trimegistus at August 21, 2022 11:37 AM (QZxDR)

339 Don't Go To College...

20 years ago I hired a fence company to put up my fence. An 18 yo kid shows up with another guy. Both are seniors in high school. Fence goes up in two days.
Turns out the kid helped his dad in construction for a few years and was hired a year previously to put in a fence. Dad supervised and the kid did a great job. That led to other jobs so his dad set him up in with his own business.
The kid is still putting up fences.
My fence is still standing.

Posted by: Diogenes at August 21, 2022 11:37 AM (anj39)

340 238 I thought they were pretty seedy.
Posted by: fd

And perhaps a little pithy.

Posted by: She Hobbit at August 21, 2022 10:41 AM (ftFVW)
----
Trousers eh! I thought they were on the 'seamy' side.

Posted by: Ciampino - what a crease - definitely make a fine president at August 21, 2022 11:38 AM (qfLjt)

341 Here are twelve quotes on liberty and freedom from the late Spanish philosopher, lawyer, and essayist Antonio Escohotado (1941–2021).

"Human nature is only creative when it learns to enjoy the uncertainties of liberty."

the others:
https://tinyurl.com/mteb93sw

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 11:39 AM (BRHaw)

342 Boogie > bougie

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:39 AM (FVME7)

343 WOW

#10

"Having the status of (victims) releases them from having to learn how to make sacrifices... releases them from assuming responsibility for their own actions."

Just described ever Progressive out there!

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 11:40 AM (BRHaw)

344 193 lin-duh I've found shorter fantasy works are easier to get thru, plus I end up with "junk food" reading i.e. young adult fantasy! those are easy easy to get thru

Posted by: BlackOrchid at August 21, 2022 10:25 AM

On that note--short fantasy--I'll throw out a recommendation for Harold Lamb. Particularly his Cossack Adventures. "Wolf of the Steppes" and other "____ of the Steppes" collections. Pulp historical fiction, set deep in mysterious central Asia. I've seen a couple sources cite Lamb's works as an inspiration for Robert E Howard.

Posted by: Castle Guy at August 21, 2022 11:40 AM (Lhaco)

345 so I wonder if them furriner accents might also be incorrect?

Of course, I can't think of a single example at the moment.

********

the word 'medicine' springs to mind.

Brits (and my former partner, from South Africa by way of Canada) pronounce it as two syllables (med-sin) as opposed to three (med-i-sin)

Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:41 AM (kXYt5)

346 Just finished book 4 in Christopher Nuttall's Marines in Space series The Empire Corps: Semper Fi.
Yes, I am obsessed with these books. They are fun well crafted reads with very satisfying endings. Earth is broken and the many planets in the system now up for grabs, but the system is vast. Because of the failure of Earth's governance, they are trying to create a system that will actually serve the people. This is threatened by a rogue military group which has claimed a planet by force and ruling by fear.
They set out to create a revolution.
It is fascinating.

Posted by: Sharon(willow's apprentice) at August 21, 2022 11:45 AM (Y+l9t)

347 I've enjoyed dipping my toe back into fantasy.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes

Big toe ?

Posted by: JT at August 21, 2022 11:45 AM (T4tVD)

348 so I wonder if them furriner accents might also be incorrect?

-
Another funny, though more understandable, subtitle error in Poirot in Rhodes occurred when he is arguing with an Italian Fascist official and the official shouts, "Basta!"; i.e. "enough!" The subtitles rendered it as "Bastard!" You don't call Poirot a bastard!

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:46 AM (FVME7)

349 Brits (and my former partner, from South Africa by way of Canada) pronounce it as two syllables (med-sin) as opposed to three (med-i-sin)
Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:41 AM (kXYt5)

Brit put like 2 extra words in aluminum!

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 11:46 AM (BRHaw)

350 335 Bookstore still open? Hi.

PRIM-er is the pronunciation for a beginner's work, Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius

I watch many videos with Australians or British, and I often have cause to wonder, is that really their pronunciation (frequently, accent on different syllable). There are some USA-folks videos where I know they're pronouncing something incorrectly, so I wonder if them furriner accents might also be incorrect?

Of course, I can't think of a single example at the moment.

Posted by: mindful webworker, just another cruel and eccentric Moron at August 21, 2022 11:36 AM (VfnjD)
----
British English (Oxford or Queen's English) predates American English so if anyone is incorrect then it is us. A favorite is tomato and potato.

Posted by: Ciampino - schedule pronounciation at August 21, 2022 11:48 AM (qfLjt)

351 Not to Movie Thread
but Irene Dunne reminded me of an old movie blogger who would decree virtual death matches between similar actors/actresses. The loser and their entire oeuvre would disappear.

Worst one for me was Irene Dunne vs. Jean Arthur.

See: Sweating Button-Pushing Guy meme

Posted by: sal at August 21, 2022 11:50 AM (y40tE)

352 Just to the middle of McMeekin's "Stalin's War", due to not devouring it in large chunks, but just nibbling 10-20 pages at a time.

Just got to June 22, 1941. He nicely debunks the myths about Stalin going into shock and disappearing for a week to his dacha. But in the lead-up to the day, he tremendously understates the degree to which Stalin refused to go on a war footing despite plenty of intel and warnings and even pleas from his military.

In the section just prior he seems to toy with the idea that Stalin was preparing his own offensive, though he frustratingly leaves the issue to a note, where he unhelpfully states that Glantz and others who have shown the lack of a basis for this theory have failed to deal with "new" evidence brought up by two authors. He acknowledges, but partly and sideways, that the Red Army was in no condition to go on the offensive, and that it's paper strength was very misleading.

There are some head-scratchers and actual (I think) errors here and there, but it's interesting and am learning a lot, especially about Soviet-German wrasslin' pre-Barbarossa.

Posted by: rhomboid at August 21, 2022 11:50 AM (OTzUX)

353 Possibly book related- someone is asking for knife fighting resources for fiction writing.
Any suggestions?

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 09:39 AM (ibF8s)

There's a police training video called "Surviving Edged Weapons" out there. It's developed a bit of reputation for being amusing in a bad-movie sort of way, but I hear there is some actual survival/consequences/mechancis-of-a-stabbing information in it...

Posted by: Castle Guy at August 21, 2022 11:50 AM (Lhaco)

354 Just finished the fourth Jack Carr book, The Devil’s Hand. How does an author go from creating the evil Sec Def, Lorraine Hartley, as a thinly-disguised Sec State Clinton, in The Terminal List, to praising John Dingell and the d President, who was elected by his Silicon Valley friends? The political slant went from “they are all evil” to d’s merely lost their way and are fighting to get the blue-collar back w their charismatic CA president. Very strange reveal from the author, who originally got his helping hand from folks in the conservative world.

Posted by: EveR at August 21, 2022 11:50 AM (MUpk6)

355 Does everyone conflate job training with education?

Posted by: Brett at August 21, 2022 11:51 AM (2ndRB)

356 The political slant went from “they are all evil” to d’s merely lost their way and are fighting to get the blue-collar back w their charismatic CA president. Very strange reveal from the author, who originally got his helping hand from folks in the conservative world.
Posted by: EveR at August 21, 2022 11:50 AM (MUpk6)
-------------

I stop at book 3? Good to know.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 11:52 AM (5pTK/)

357 This 99-year-old Pennsylvania woman just welcomed her 100th great-grandchild

https://bit.ly/3PNagc0

And she's supposed to remember all their birthdays!

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:53 AM (FVME7)

358 And she's supposed to remember all their birthdays! Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? at August 21, 2022 11:53 AM (FVME7)

2 a week.

Posted by: Caesar North of the Rubicon at August 21, 2022 11:55 AM (7B5FA)

359

The wood on that railing looks kind of distressed.

Posted by: Semi-Literate Thug at August 21, 2022 11:56 AM (qOuMB)

360 356 blake

Carr had no reason to refer to Dingell. It was if he wanted to pay him homage. Very insightful to who Carr is. He repeatedly mentions Black Rifle Coffee. I think they are fellow travelers, sad to say. I did like his books, but the political stuff bothers me.

Posted by: EveR at August 21, 2022 11:57 AM (MUpk6)

361 Five years sine the eclipse

Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at August 21, 2022 11:59 AM (CdZ4i)

362 349 Brits (and my former partner, from South Africa by way of Canada) pronounce it as two syllables (med-sin) as opposed to three (med-i-sin)
Posted by: Muldoon at August 21, 2022 11:41 AM (kXYt5)

Brit put like 2 extra words in aluminum!

Posted by: rhennigantx at August 21, 2022 11:46 AM (BRHaw)
----
In South Africa I've usually heard it as med-ee-sin. That included the various Schools of Medicine.
Now aluminum (USA only) and aluminium is another matter. They were named both ways at about the same time. Since we name newer metallic chemical elements with an -ium ending ... lithium, calcium, plutonium, thorium - I favor the IUPAC and global name.

Posted by: Ciampino -- schedule pronounciation at August 21, 2022 11:59 AM (qfLjt)

363 NOOD

Posted by: Skip at August 21, 2022 12:01 PM (k8B25)

364 I think they are fellow travelers, sad to say. I did like his books, but the political stuff bothers me.
Posted by: EveR at August 21, 2022 11:57 AM (MUpk6)
---------------

I find it interesting Carr did that, because the preface he wrote in book 1 is spot on.

Well, Carr got a television series from book 1, which means he probably no longer cares, or, more likely, never really cared, about his audience.

Posted by: blake - semi lurker in marginal standing(5pTK/) at August 21, 2022 12:03 PM (5pTK/)

365 Hello fine people. It has been awhile. Thanks for the book thread. Have a good one.raining in southeastern okie-land.

Posted by: Halito at August 21, 2022 12:05 PM (RwBXn)

366 Ah well, late to the show.

Auberon Waugh was mentioned upstairs.

He wrote a great book of essays about modern (at that time) Britain, titled -

"Brideshead Beknighted"

Excellent writing, well-thought out essays written mostly in a satirical or dark humored vein.

With this book at least, her could stand toe to toe with the old man.

Posted by: naturalfake at August 21, 2022 12:21 PM (5NkmN)

367 355 Does everyone conflate job training with education?
Posted by: Brett at August 21, 2022 11:51 AM (2ndRB)

Good topic for another day.

Posted by: m at August 21, 2022 12:43 PM (8rTNG)

368 .

Posted by: Napoleon XIV at August 21, 2022 12:44 PM (AiZBA)

369 "178 I finished Bugles and a Tiger by John Masters"

Masters also wrote a sequel about his later career during WW 2-"The Road Past Mandalay," and quite a bit of fiction (much about about India, e.g. "Nightrunners of Bengal")-several of which, "The Deceivers and Bhowani Junction," were made into interesting movies.

IIRC he was accused of stealing a fellow officer's wife; that's not always a bad thing I suppose-I think it worked out well for George O. Smith, Dona Campbell and John W.

Posted by: Pope John 20th at August 21, 2022 12:55 PM (xi3bI)

370 Whoever it was that recommended Asimov's ""Best Science Fiction Firsts" a few weeks back, thank you. Some of the stories are meh, but some of them are amazingly well done and even forgotten.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at August 21, 2022 12:55 PM (Ivdso)

371 Oh, and "write what you know" does not mean "write your life and experiences," it means to write with the wealth of wisdom, experience, and knowledge you have. Its the difference between a book on love written by a 15 year old girl and a 45 year old woman. Same content, can even be the same story and characters, but the two books will be wildly different in wisdom and truth.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at August 21, 2022 01:12 PM (Ivdso)

372 217 I confess the recent scourge of Wokeness in science fiction means I shy away from female and diversity writers unless I've seen a review from someone I trust.

---

Anything published by Tor I assume is woke.
Baen is usually cool.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at August 21, 2022 01:38 PM (E7eS/)

373 "bourgeoisie": BOOR-shaw-see

Posted by: Weak Geek at August 21, 2022 01:44 PM (Om/di)

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Posted by: Sarah at August 21, 2022 01:45 PM (XMzbJ)

375 371 Maybe. 45yos are less likely to be wise these days, 80yos for that matter

Posted by: CN, the deer-hater at August 21, 2022 02:13 PM (Zzbjj)

376 #194, your mention of Fritz Leiber's excellent "Our Lady of Darkness" reminds me of an interesting experience that resulted from my reading of that book. I read it when it was first published in the '70s. The story is set in then-contemporary San Francisco. A key locale is a sinister hill called "Corona Heights". I had then lived in the SF Bay Area for some years and had never heard of Corona Heights. I assumed Leiber had made it up. Then years later I was at a service station having my car's oil changed. There was a large map of the San Francisco Peninsula posted on a wall of the customers lounge. I was idly studying the map when I was startled to see "Corona Heights" clearly marked on it. I felt a chill. It was rather as if I had been driving down a highway in New England and had seen a sign saying "Dunwich Next Exit" or "Innsmouth, 13 Miles".

Posted by: John F. MacMichael at August 21, 2022 02:54 PM (w6mSC)

377 Speaking of Fritz Leiber, allow me to recommend his novel "The Silver Eggheads". It is a science fiction satire on the writing/publishing industry. A field that offers then and now a target-rich environment for the satirist. Funny and insightful.

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