Ace: aceofspadeshq at gee mail.com
Buck: buck.throckmorton at protonmail.com
CBD: cbd at cutjibnewsletter.com
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J.J. Sefton: sefton at cutjibnewsletter.com
Sunday Morning Book Thread - 10-04-2026 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]
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 (dedicated to TRex). Here is where we can discuss, argue, bicker, quibble, consider, debate, confabulate, converse, and jaw about our latest fancy in reading material. As always, pants are required, unless you are wearing <these pants...(be sure to brush and floss!)
So relax, find yourself a warm kitty (or warm puppy--I won't judge) to curl up in your lap, and dive into a new book. What are YOU reading this fine morning?
PIC NOTE
This Sunday Morning Book Thread is dedicated to the memory of Kaylee the Calico Kitty Cat (the cutest little cat of them all. I had the unfortunate task of having her put to sleep a week-and-a-half ago.
Unlike Allie the Calico Kitty Cat (the *other* cutest little cat of them all), Kaylee was never much of a literary critic. She didn't pay much attention to me when I was reading. I just happened to have a rare picture of Kaylee sitting on the bookshelf that's behind my office chair. She's guarding F. Paul Wilson's Secret History of the World.
SECRET WORLD OF RARE BOOK DEALERS
I thought this was an interesting video about a world that most of us will probably never get a chance to experience. These are among the most valuable books in the world. Each rare book has its own history of provenance as it's been transferred from owner to owner across the decades and centuries. At the dealership exhibition in the video above, there are also huge collections of memorabilia around authors and books.
So for those of you lucky Morons and Moronettes who win the Powerball lottery, you now have a place to go to spend your newfound wealth!
Have any of you been to the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair? If so, tell us about your experience!
++++++++++
(My students' first major assessment was due on Friday...)
++++++++++
MORON RECOMMENDATIONS
In Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis, the wizard Gavrax wakes up in a smoke-filled, fire-damaged workshop with no memories, no idea who he is, and no eyebrows (he finds a container with spare eyebrows that crawl up his arm like caterpillars and attach themselves, painfully, to his face -- apparently singed eyebrows are a hazard of the job). He gathers, from the fearful and/or obsequious responses of his flunkies, that he is something of an asshole.
He learns there is a princess being held in the dungeon for some nefarious plan cooked up with other evil wizards. All he can do is fake it until his memories return. But with his real personality memory-holed, he isn't responding with his default nastiness, and it's frankly puzzling to those around him.
This is a fun read.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at September 20, 2026 09:26 AM (kpS4V)
Comment: The amnesiac main character can be interesting because he (or she) literaly has no idea of who they are as a person. Are they good? Bad? They often feel a very strong motivation to recover their identity, which would only be natural. Unfortunately for them, they often learn a lot about their previous life that might better be left buried. What was the cause of their amnesia? Who are their enemies? Will the be able to restore themselves to their full identity before the villain carries out their evil plan? Is the main character actually the villain?
+++++
whew! well I finally finished (all of) House of Leaves. it was a slog but a very interesting slog. it's weird because it's not like the writing is difficult per se ...
Since I did finish HoL I watched Backrooms (the film) and really enjoyed it. I don't think you HAVE to have read House of Leaves but I think it added something. the film is from an online thing (post) that was written after reading HoL and the author openly credits the book with "inspiring' Backrooms.
lol well. it's pretty heavily inspired.
that said it's a neat little film. with the content of HoL I'm not sure the guy doesn't have an argument in favor of using that world freely
Posted by: Black Orchid (j+aD2) at September 20, 2026 09:19 AM (j+aD2)
Comment: I've had House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski sitting my shelf for years. I'm afraid to read it. It's a very, very strange book. It's NOT a standard linear story structure where you start at page 1 and end at page 300 (or whatever). No, it's a tangled skein of a story, with little side quests sprinkled throughout the text. In some parts you have to literally turn the book upside down to read the notes. Oh, and parts are even written in BRAILLE (but the editor provides a translation footnote). It's a weird book.
Hierarchy II - The Strength of the Few by James Islington
We find out what happens to Vis after the climax of the first book in the series. Turns out he was split into three distinct copies across three different worlds that are connected (somehow). Each world has a distinctive flavor based on Earth cultures. The main world from the first book is mostly Romanesque. The second world that Vis 2 starts out on in this book is based on Egyptian mythology. The third world in which Vis 3 ends up is clearly based on Celtic mythology. In each world, the different versions of Vis have to solve various challenges as they all try to understand what happened to them. Apparently Vis is the "Chosen One" destined to face the main villain of the series, but we don't see much about the villain yet.
New Cthulhu 2: More Recent Weird edited by Paula Guran
I hadn't read Lovecreaftian horror in some time, so I decided to do a re-read of an anthology based on H.P. Lovecraft's distinctive mythos. Most of the stories were pretty good in their own way. I was surprised to see that around half of them were all inspired mostly by "The Shadow over Innsmouth," a Lovecraft story where the main character finds out he's part of a cult of Dagon worshippers (Deep Ones) that live in a small fishing village on the coast of Massachusetts. The cult was supposedly destroyed back in the 1920s, but there were survivors, who show up in many of the short stories in this book.
They Thirst by Robert McCammon (WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW!)
For some reason, I could picture a "Pitch Meeting" scenario around this book:
Editor Guy: So, you have a new book for me?
Author Guy: Yes, sir, I do. It's Dracula but instead of Victorian England, he's come to modern day Los Angeles in 1980. Oh, and the main villain is a Hungarian vampire lord instead of a Transylvanian Count.
...
Author Guy: At the climax, the four main characters are captured by the head vampire and he takes them to his lair where there is no possibility of escape.
Editor Guy: It's going to be tough for them to get out of that situation!
Author Guy: Not at all. Super easy. Barely an inconvenience. There's going to be a massive earthquake that collapses the castle, dropping it off a mountain, but sparing the two real main characters. And a flood will sweep over LA, killing all the vampire minions, who are susceptible to seawater, which acts just like holy water.
The Shadow of the Avatar 1 - Shadows of Doom by Ed Greenwood
This series takes place shortly before the Avatar Trilogy, which is set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for Advanced Dungeons and Dragons.
Mystra, the goddess of magic, senses that her doom is swiftly approaching. But armed with this foreknowledge, she's able to divest herself of most of her power amongst her Chosen, humans who have been granted great boons by Mystra as a reward for being her champion in the Realms. Foremost among her Chosen is Elminster the Sage, the greatest archmage in the Realms.
Unfortunately for Elminster, being the receptacle for Mystra's power means that he's now unable to use his own magical powers. Seeing as he's one of the main forces for good in the Realms, this causes quite a few problems once his enemies discover he's been magically neutered. Now they can unleash their own schemes without having to worry about Elminster meddling in their plans. Elminster does have a very large network of friends and allies to support him, however, and it's up to them to take on the burden of protecting Shadowdale and the Realms at large from the forces of evil until the current crisis is resolved.
Tips, suggestions, recommendations, etc., can all be directed to perfessor -dot- squirrel -at- gmail -dot- com.
It's a book that's bigger on the inside...
Disclaimer: "This is the first time I've seen a Word document eat a man's soul." -- Laundry Agent Bob Howard
Anyway, I have something to post other than stupid, unfunny comments about nothing in particular, but I'll wait to see if the comments get blasted before doing it.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 08:52 AM (1Ff7Z)
Morning, book people. I am currently reading with great hascination The Way Home by George Pelecanos, whose work I have recently discovered. It stars a teenager who, after multiple brushes with the law, finds himself in a reformatory, and what he has to deal with there. (No, this is not a "prison rape" story.) Then he goes to work for his father, who owns a carpet installation business. At one old house he and his partner, who was in the reformatory with him, find $50,000 in cash under the floor boards.
I'm waiting to see what happens next.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (wzUl9)
Posted by: San Franpsycho at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (RIvkX)
9
Amongst my most depressing days were the days when the family dogs were put down. I’m sorry to hear about Kaylee.
Posted by: Cow Demon at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (6jna9)
10
Pants link be broke.
Posted by: Person who looks at the pants at October 04, 2026 08:55 AM (2Ez/1)
Worked for me. Just rechecked. Still there. Halloween appropriate.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (1Ff7Z)
11
My mother stopped by looking for a book. I suggested Nabokov’s Invitation to a Beheading. She usually reads romance
Posted by: Accomack at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (9H7EW)
12
Posted by: Cow Demon at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM (6jna9)
Yes, CD, I did twenty years on graveyard. Haven't worked for five years, but still on the schedule.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 08:59 AM (1Ff7Z)
13
Also this week, having learned here last week that there have been continuation novels starring Robert B. Parker's female private eye Sunny Randall, I have read the first two by Mike Lupica, Blood Feud and Grudge Match. And I am impressed. Not only does he have the voice and dialog and characters right -- but he provides us with better mystery plotting and twistier endings than Parker himself often did.
I think there are a couple more Sunnys done by Lupica, and I intend to find them. And I may try other "continuations," perhaps the "Appaloosa" Virgil-and-Hitch Westerns.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 08:59 AM (wzUl9)
14
Halfway through Pat Frank, Alas, Babylon. It takes its title from a passage in John's Revelation which predicts the destruction of that city in an hour.
Which happens when some pilot named Peewee fires a heat seeker at a too-fast bogey over a city (Latakia). There goes Latakia. And there goes Tampa, and every other American city.
The story is a clear influence on Fortschen's "One Second Later", as the survivors deal with criminals on the loose, no Congress to employ the criminals, and no Federal Reserve to do their counterfeiting for them. Another reader of this book is arguably the new Battlestar Galactica as some unimportant (female) flunky is now acting President since she was ordered to get coffee before the office was bombed.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 08:59 AM (sDWtc)
I went from HoL to another Nick Cutter book - The Dorians. I am curious what you guys think of it.
it was a super easy read after House of Leaves but ... I like Cutter usually and this one seemed rushed. And more Canadian than usual for him lol.
Now I'm going to try those stupid Carl books bc my kids have been bugging me about them. I don't have high expectations!! but hopefully fun and light hearted?
btw out 70s-horror October started last night with The Sentinel. I know this isn't a movie thread but - hm it was way more interesting than expected? lots of soon-to-be and had-been famous faces in that thing!
Posted by: Black Orchid (j+aD2) at October 04, 2026 09:00 AM (j+aD2)
16
I'm waiting to see what happens next.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 08:56 AM
++++
Spoiler alert.
Posted by: Hookers and blow at October 04, 2026 09:00 AM (2Ez/1)
17
Church duties this morning. Thus the early posting.
Posted by: Perfessor Squirrel at October 04, 2026 09:00 AM (ppvE/)
18
"Hascination" = "fascination." This morning I have a bandage on my left FU finger from accidentally flicking a razor blade, and it makes it tougher to type.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:01 AM (wzUl9)
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at October 04, 2026 09:01 AM (kpS4V)
20
Good morning fellow Book Threadists. I hope everyone had a great week of reading.
Posted by: JTB at October 04, 2026 09:02 AM (yTvNw)
21
Kaylee was a cute pussycat but looks perplexed.
Posted by: San Franpsycho at October 04, 2026 09:02 AM (RIvkX)
22
Read the first part of “1776” by David McCullough. It gives background to the situation in Boston and the characters involved, from the king to citizens of Boston and British officers serving there, and the political opposition by members of Parliament such as Edmund Burke. We remember these famous names who supported American liberty, but there were also powerful voices for “reducing” America to obedience, like Edward Gibbon. In fact, even with the loud opposition of newspapers in London and well-known members of the Commons, Parliament easily passed the resolutions to punish the “rabble” in America by sending more troops to Boston and contracting for the hated Hessians.
McCollough then brings in the players on the American side: Nathaniel Greene, the patriot with the most prepared and ordered troops, compared to most of the other New Englanders, and introduces various reports from more minor sources about the conditions of the camps around Boston, and how slovenly many of the soldiers were and undisciplined.
(con't)
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:02 AM (1Ff7Z)
23
Enter George Washington. The commander-in-chief had a low regard for most New Englanders, mostly because of his more genteel Virginia upbringing clashed with the more egalitarian Yankee ways, but he did come to value them—especially the Marbleheaders and Greene, whom he eventually sent south later in the war.
(cont)
Having the British bottled up in Boston, Washington had to build up his siege defenses under threat of Redcoat attacks. The patriots had hardships and shortages of military supplies, enough to keep going, but not enough for an attack on Boston. The British could receive supplies by sea, but had to deal with privateers raiding their shipping. Winter brought hardship to both sides—expiring enlistments in camp and a lack of supplies in town. Henry Knox suggested to Washington that he bring cannon from Fort Ticonderoga, recently captured from the British, and fortify Dorchester Heights outside of Boston, where they could bombard the city and the British ships in the harbor.
(con't)
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:02 AM (1Ff7Z)
24 I'm waiting to see what happens next.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026
++++
Spoiler alert.
Posted by: Hookers and blow at October 04, 2026
***
So far no sign of either. In a switch, Chris, the young hero, makes his partner *put the money back under the floorboards*, and they carpet over it. But I am only one-third of the way through the novel!
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:03 AM (wzUl9)
25
When William Howe, the British commander, discovered Washington had fortified the heights in one night, he gave the order to evacuate Boston, sending shockwaves to London. Loyalists and Redcoats alike scrambled to leave—many Tories abandoning everything they owned. The British tried to destroy all stocks of food, clothing, and weapons to keep them out of Washington’s hands. Howe threatened to burn the city if the Patriots interfered with their evacuation. Once complete, they sailed away to Halifax, and General Artemus Ward, who had been commander at Bunker Hill, rode into the city at the head of the Continental Army, an honor given to him by Washington.
Will take a while to read, Finished part one.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:03 AM (1Ff7Z)
26Kaylee was a cute pussycat but looks perplexed.
Posted by: San Franpsycho at October 04, 2026
***
Many cats have that look as they observe human antics.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:04 AM (wzUl9)
27
The week's reading: another one of Lansdale's Hap & Leonard books (and fyi for fans, the last novel in the series is coming out this week). Couple of short stories. And Simenon's The Cat.
I once flipped through a copy of House of Leaves while browsing in a Joplin bookshop. Didn't have the guts to give serious thought to buying it. It'll be just another book that I've never read.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at October 04, 2026 09:04 AM (q3u5l)
Posted by: SpeakingOf at October 04, 2026 09:04 AM (6ydKt)
29
I have a pair of affectionate and sort-of-literary lap cats: Augie-Doggie (ginger and white) and his son by Miso-the-Siamese (who lives with my daughter) Prince Fluff the Magnificent, who is not just pure-white and long-haired, but has odd eyes, one blue and the other amber. So sorry to hear of you feline loss, Perfesser.
As for reading this week - Richard Dillon's "Shanghaiing Days" - all about the villainous and rather cruel (as well as unlawful!) goings on in various waterfront districts during the days of sailing ships. A great many ports in the 19th century basically winked at the drugging, kidnapping and forced labor of men who unwarily were tricked into serving as sailors. Research for the current work in progress, in which my teenaged main character is kidnapped from a waterfront district street in San Francisco by a local crimp desperate to fill out a quota...
Posted by: Sgt. Mom at October 04, 2026 09:05 AM (Ew3fm)
30
Samuel Johnson also said something like I might entirely accept the brotherhood of man if I could except the Americans thereform.
Probably why the Americans contracted Webster to do their own dictionary.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:05 AM (sDWtc)
31The week's reading: another one of Lansdale's Hap & Leonard books (and fyi for fans, the last novel in the series is coming out this week). . . .
Posted by: Just Some Guy at October 04, 2026
***
I just got the TV series DVD from the library. Curious to see how the casting and dialog work out.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:05 AM (wzUl9)
32Kaylee had a very nice face for a cat.
Posted by: SpeakingOf at October 04, 2026
***
Beware of the ones with sweet expressions. They'll fool ya.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:07 AM (wzUl9)
33
No personal knowledge, but this might be interesting to some among the Horde - coming in March 2027:
The 39: Uncovering the Secret Heroes of the CIA
"Prize-winning author Toby Harnden reveals the astonishing exploits of the recipients of the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Cross, a classified award for the highest valor, leading readers on an unprecedented journey into the clandestine world.
America’s rarest award for valor, equivalent to the Medal of Honor, is presented in secret, then immediately taken back and locked in a vault. In almost eight decades, only 39 people have earned it. The Cross is almost unknown to the American public, who have never heard of these hitherto anonymous heroes.
The 39 is the product of four years of relentless investigation—a kaleidoscopic narrative stretching from World War II to the post-9/11 era."
34
Samuel Johnson also said something like I might entirely accept the brotherhood of man if I could except the Americans thereform.
Probably why the Americans contracted Webster to do their own dictionary.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:05 AM (sDWtc)
Ha ha!
/Munz
He lived long enough to see us whip his country's ass. Had a sad about it.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:08 AM (1Ff7Z)
35Samuel Johnson also said something like I might entirely accept the brotherhood of man if I could except the Americans thereform.
Probably why the Americans contracted Webster to do their own dictionary.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026
***
And exactly how many Americans had Dr. J. known personally?
I can imagine him and Boswell carousing with Ben Franklin.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:08 AM (wzUl9)
36
I foisted House of Leaves on my book club; one of my friends had read it a long time ago and said if he could forget any book and read it again for the first time, HoL would be it. Related, apparently someone wrote a modded Doom level based on it. Highly recommended.
Posted by: KnownIssue at October 04, 2026 09:09 AM (E0Uer)
37
I finished a comic collection entitled "Zorro; Remastered Edition." It features some recolored late-50's comics from Alex Toth, and it's based on the tv-version of Zorro. I bought it because I'm always up for some good swashbuckling comics, and because Toth has a good reputation. Alas, reading it from a modern perspective, Toth doesn't seem all that special, and the comic is a bit light on the action sequences. The book is never bad or annoying or cringy, just never as good as I had hoped.
One interesting aspect, however, is the villain's second-in-command. Naturally, the main villain is an evil military governor, but his sidekick is a hapless, fat, and mostly-incompetent buffoon. You know the stereotype. What is interesting is that the buffoon is not actively evil himself, and never realizes how bad his superior is. He thinks he's just doing the legitimate work of the government! Then his superior gets called away/vanquished, leaving the buffoon in charge. As a leader, the buffoon is very half-hearted in his pursuit of Zorro, his schemes to do so never really don't hurt any innocents, and he is very easily duped into doing genuinely good things. It's a....unique dynamic.
Posted by: Castle Guy at October 04, 2026 09:11 AM (3v7ra)
38
RIP, Kaylee. My own house tiger, Lily, has taken possession of the ottoman again, which is why I call her Ottoman Empress.
So, I finished the fourth book of Wil McCarthy's near future Rich Man's Sky series, "Thief's Sky". Somebody is using stealth ships to steal satellites, which is disrupting communications, but worse, they also stole a satellite containing a highly volatile and dangerous energy source that was placed in high orbit to keep it away from people, and the pirates are bringing it back to their lair...
One new character is Iteration Four, a sentient AI originally established to streamline a drug cartel's operations. Iteration Four ran with it and began hiring, firing, and assassinating in the name of efficiency. It has amassed so much under-the-table influence and wealth that I believe it will effectively become the "sixth horseman" in the series. I can't wait for the next book.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at October 04, 2026 09:11 AM (kpS4V)
39
I read I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes. This is another book that has been on my TBR list for several years. It's an excellent thriller involving ten thousand doses of smallpox, modified to be immune to vaccines, labeled as flu vaccine; and the search to find the man responsible and to stop the shipment to the United States.
Posted by: Zoltan at October 04, 2026 09:11 AM (KUWG/)
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:11 AM (sDWtc)
41
I think Mike Lupica's been doing quite a bit of mystery writing over the past several years (maybe a decade?). Haven't read him except for a book he wrote quite some time ago with William Goldman called Wait Till Next Year, IIRC about NY sports during a particularly bad season. Lupica had been a sportswriter for one of the NYC papers, I think.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at October 04, 2026 09:12 AM (q3u5l)
42
Here's something that may be of interest to lonely Book Threaders: there's a book readers dating app. Probably run by leftists, though.
https://archive.ph/DyfNy
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:12 AM (1Ff7Z)
43
I was reading marinas warners memoir which reads like a novel daughter of a british offficef and an italian girl who grew up in cairo in the 40s
Posted by: Miguel cervantes at October 04, 2026 09:12 AM (kk6gQ)
44
Prize-winning author Toby Harnden reveals the astonishing exploits of the recipients of the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Cross, a classified award for the highest valor, leading readers on an unprecedented journey into the clandestine world.
America’s rarest award for valor, equivalent to the Medal of Honor, is presented in secret, then immediately taken back and locked in a vault. In almost eight decades, only 39 people have earned it. The Cross is almost unknown to the American public, who have never heard of these hitherto anonymous heroes.
Posted by: TRex
It seems strange to hand out a prestigious award to someone who cannot brag about it.
Posted by: Thomas Paine at October 04, 2026 09:12 AM (0U5gm)
45
gahh, brave AI is showing me the wrong Samuel Johnson. the English one died 1784.
complete fail from the AI, which put the English one in the search results and the American one on the right sidebar
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:13 AM (sDWtc)
46
I'm wrapping up Washington by Ron Chernow, so one down in my project of reading about all of the American presidents.
John Adams is next. Any recommendations from the history buffs?
Posted by: AMY BISHOP at October 04, 2026 09:14 AM (sDWtc)
48
I think i recommended i am pilgrim a few years ago that firsr few pages are grim and you dont discover what happemed to the character till about 200 pages in turkey
Posted by: Miguel cervantes at October 04, 2026 09:14 AM (kk6gQ)
49
And exactly how many Americans had Dr. J. known personally?
I can imagine him and Boswell carousing with Ben Franklin.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:08 AM (wzUl9)
I don't know, Wolfus, but he seemed to have a low opinion of us who lived here. I think the treaty of Paris put him over the edge. Thought the empire was falling apart. Wonder what the old git would think about GB today?
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:16 AM (1Ff7Z)
50I finished a comic collection entitled "Zorro; Remastered Edition." It features some recolored late-50's comics from Alex Toth, and it's based on the tv-version of Zorro. . . .
One interesting aspect, however, is the villain's second-in-command. Naturally, the main villain is an evil military governor, but his sidekick is a hapless, fat, and mostly-incompetent buffoon. . . . What is interesting is that the buffoon is not actively evil himself, and never realizes how bad his superior is. He thinks he's just doing the legitimate work of the government! Then his superior gets called away/vanquished, leaving the buffoon in charge. As a leader, the buffoon is very half-hearted in his pursuit of Zorro, his schemes to do so never really don't hurt any innocents, and he is very easily duped into doing genuinely good things. It's a....unique dynamic.
Posted by: Castle Guy at October 04, 2026
***
That was Sergeant Garcia, I believe? I got to see some of the old shows on Grit recently. Guy Williams was a *great* Zorro.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at October 04, 2026 09:17 AM (wzUl9)
51
Those pants are fine. I would vear them to soock your blood.
Posted by: Drak at October 04, 2026 09:18 AM (MWfyi)
52
It seems strange to hand out a prestigious award to someone who cannot brag about it.
Posted by: Thomas Paine at October 04, 2026 09:12 AM (0U5gm)
I imagine those winners use that award to impress girls.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:18 AM (sDWtc)
53
I also read Hotel Ukraine: The Final Arkady Renko Novel by Martin Cruz Smith. Moscow police investigator Renko becomes involved in Russian politics as he tries to solve the murder of a Russian deputy defense minister as the invasion of Ukraine takes place. Soon the murderers, members of a paramilitary group, look to dispatch Renko and his lover, journalist Tatiana Petrovna.
Smith like his protagonist, Renko, both suffered from Parkinson's Disease. After living with the disease for over 30 years, this was Smith's last work before passing on July 11, 2025
Posted by: Zoltan at October 04, 2026 09:19 AM (KUWG/)
54
The border between the U.S. and Mexico has been a zone of contention since before Texas was a nation. The most violent period outside of the 1846 war occurred in 1916-1917 when Pancho Villa led his men in attacks on U.S. soil, which resulted in U.S. forces entering Mexico. Jeff Guinn details these events in War on the Border.
Mexico has always disliked her northern neighbor, and when Mexico fell into civil war, Villa wanted to use that antipathy to gain support from the people in his quest for power. He attacked Columbus, New Mexico and also raided several Texas towns. In response, Gen. Pershing was sent into Mexico to capture him. This was the first U.S. mechanized expedition, and the last with the legendary Buffalo soldiers. In battles across northern Mexico, many of Villa's troops were killed, though he was never taken. He was eventually assassinated by one of his Mexican rivals.
An interesting aspect related here is all of the machinations by Germany, who wanted to embroil the U.S. in a war with Mexico to keep us out of WWI. There were dozens of attempts, one of which was the Zimmerman telegram, which ultimately led America to declare war on Germany instead.
Posted by: Thomas Paine at October 04, 2026 09:19 AM (0U5gm)
55
And edmund burke wasnt always right see the hastings impeachment
Posted by: Miguel cervantes at October 04, 2026 09:20 AM (kk6gQ)
First season of Hap & Leonard is best of the three, and the casting's really nice. There are points where the series plays fast & loose with some of the stories, but on the whole it's faithful in spirit to the source novels.
Lansdale didn't originally plan those two characters for a series, but a couple of years after the first book, Savage Season, they kept popping up in his head so he started writing about them again. I've not read the whole series yet, only the first 4; so far that first book is best, but they've all been fun.
Posted by: Just Some Guy at October 04, 2026 09:20 AM (q3u5l)
57
I've been meaning to tackle House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski for a while. Maybe when I'm snowed in this winter.
His sister is the singer known as Poe. Her 90's album "Hello" is one of my favorites.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at October 04, 2026 09:21 AM (kpS4V)
58
America’s rarest award for valor, equivalent to the Medal of Honor, is presented in secret, then immediately taken back and locked in a vault. In almost eight decades, only 39 people have earned it. The Cross is almost unknown to the American public, who have never heard of these hitherto anonymous heroes.
Posted by: TRex - historical dino at October 04, 2026 09:08 AM (XfIK1)
Been inside the HQ. There's a wall of nameless stars for each agent killed. And that big CIA shield on the floor you see in movies, yeah, it's there and real.
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:22 AM (1Ff7Z)
Posted by: Dr. T at October 04, 2026 09:22 AM (lHPJf)
60Samuel Johnson also said something like I might entirely accept the brotherhood of man if I could except the Americans thereform.
"Why is it that we hear the loudest yelps of liberty from the drivers of slaves?" quoth the doctor.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing (aka Eloquent Depression) at October 04, 2026 09:22 AM (qRla/)
61
Perfessor, I'm so sorry about Kaylee. She was a lovely cat.
I've just about finished reading Eleanor, a 200 mile walk in search of England's lost queen by Alice Loxton, a gift from Cow Demon. I've really enjoyed it. Loxton retraces the funeral procession of Queen Eleanor (of Castile), who died in 1290, from Lincoln to London. It's a mix of Eleanor's life, death, and times; vivid description of medieval funerary and embalming practices and the construction of the Eleanor Crosses (of 12, only 3 of the originals survive); Loxton's experience retracing the route; history of the places the procession passed through (including other interesting people connected with that place). It sounds disjointed as I write it down, but it really works for me and my (lack of) attention span these days.
Loxton refreshingly refrains from judging the past by today's mores. My only complaint is the photos are b&w and grainy.
I've watched some of Alice Loxton's Youtube videos and I like them as well.
Posted by: screaming in digital at October 04, 2026 09:23 AM (FpydE)
62
48 I think i recommended i am pilgrim a few years ago
Posted by: Miguel cervantes at October 04, 2026 09:14 AM (kk6gQ)
You did, and I read it then. It's one of my all time favorites now. I am likely to read it again.
63
Prof, my sympathy on the loss of Kaylee. The only good aspect of having to euthanize a pet is how quickly it takes.
********
I'm slogging through "Star Trek: Log Eight," the Alan Dean Foster adaptation of the animated episode "Eye of the Beholder." Assigned to find a missing survey team on a newly discovered planet, Kirk, McCoy, and Spock are taken captive by sluglike creatures and placed in a zoo. (It seems like a resort, consisting of cottages with swimming pools. But no communications devices? Boo!)
I thought this was the slowest of the animated episodes, and even with Foster's writing, the book is dull.
OK, you all have fun -- this is my church's Mission Sunday, and I have to leave early for my assignment.
But not before I crow: I scored a collection of Charles Addams cartoons yesterday in a Vintage Stock store. The price? Two bucks!
Posted by: Weak Geek at October 04, 2026 09:23 AM (VuAhH)
64
Johnson was a quote machine. He would have been an excellent troll at the HQ.
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:24 AM (sDWtc)
65I'm wrapping up Washington by Ron Chernow, so one down in my project of reading about all of the American presidents.
John Adams is next. Any recommendations from the history buffs?
Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at October 04, 2026 09:14 AM (CjHsb)
The David McCulloch bio is the gold standard, IMO.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing (aka Eloquent Depression) at October 04, 2026 09:24 AM (qRla/)
66
54 The border between the U.S. and Mexico has been a zone of contention since before Texas was a nation. The most violent period outside of the 1846 war occurred in 1916-1917 when Pancho Villa led his men in attacks on U.S. soil, which resulted in U.S. forces entering Mexico. Jeff Guinn details these events in War on the Border.
...
Posted by: Thomas Paine at October 04, 2026 09:19 AM (0U5gm)
Either my grandfather or the next brother down was part of the Missouri National Guard and ended up doing Border service at that time. Since my Mom was born in Mexico, the joke was that one side of the family was chasing the other side during that time...
Posted by: jim (in Kalifornia) at October 04, 2026 09:24 AM (l3cgK)
67
Johnson died January 6 as it happens (1772)
Posted by: 88C+u at October 04, 2026 09:11 AM (sDWtc)
Well, wiki, but
Samuel Johnson (18 September [O.S. 7 September] 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson,
Posted by: OrangeEnt at October 04, 2026 09:25 AM (1Ff7Z)
68
While reading an old Zorro comic book, I was reminded that I also had the original "Mark of Zorro" novel (by Johnston McCulley) as part of one of those big prose-omnibuses that you can get cheap at Barns and Noble. I'm about a third of the way through the novel...
I think I liked the comic book adventures better. So far, the novel is spending way too much time on romance. More the page-time has been devoted to Zorro/Deigo Vega wooing a woman than to him thwarting/avenging evil. And while the secret-identity thing is pretty much cliched nowadays (thanks in part to how well it worked in Zorro) it is amusing to see how this old story handles it. Zorro delights in doing what Diego Vega can't or won't, and will also do things that will actually make Vega's life worse. At this point in the book, Zorro is basically trying to steal the girl that Vega is courting, and seems to be winning...
Also of note, the main character is named 'Don Diego De La Vega' in the comic, but just 'Don Diego Vega' in the novel. I think the longer name has a better ring to it.
Posted by: Castle Guy at October 04, 2026 09:26 AM (3v7ra)
69
Another interesting fact from War on the Border, Pershing was dating the sister of a certain lieutenant, who wanted to go on the expedition. Lieutenant George Patton was eventually allowed to go as Pershing's aide de camp.
Posted by: Thomas Paine at October 04, 2026 09:26 AM (0U5gm)
70
Maybe I'm remembering wrong, but didn't Johnson have a fairly low opinion of just about everybody?
IIRC Johnson once said something like: 'I loathe mankind, for I think myself among the best of them and I know how bad I am."
Posted by: Just Some Guy at October 04, 2026 09:26 AM (q3u5l)
71
John Adams is next. Any recommendations from the history buffs?
Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at October 04, 2026 09:14 AM (CjHsb)
The David McCulloch bio is the gold standard, IMO.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing (aka Eloquent Depression) at October 04, 2026 09:24 AM (qRla/)
Concur. I read it back in 2001.
Posted by: Cow Demon at October 04, 2026 09:26 AM (6jna9)
72
In other news, my recliner broke. That's the chair in which I do most of my reading. My reading schedule is going to be out-of-whack until I can get a replacement...
Posted by: Castle Guy at October 04, 2026 09:27 AM (3v7ra)
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