My enchantment with the Lord of the Rings series notwithstanding, I’m not a big fan of the fantasy literary genre. So I was surprised at how quickly I was sucked into George R.R. Martin‘s epic A Song of Ice and Fire, which has grown to five volumes, with two more on the way. The preceding… Continue reading “A Dance With Dragons” – An unsatisfying ending
Category: Reading & Writing
Another 15 seconds of “fame”
Remember this post? No? Can’t say that I blame you; it dealt with some pretty obscure subject matter. Well, unless you’re a musician and music historian who’s writing a scholarly book about the musicians of Alabama including Gene Sullivan and who had almost despaired of finding a photograph of Mr. Sullivan…until he stumbled across this… Continue reading Another 15 seconds of “fame”
Book Review: “Feed” and “Deadline”
Imagine a scenario where every mammal on earth is infected with an incurable mutant virus that generally remains dormant until the moment of death, at which point the virus springs into action. Its goals are simple – survive and replicate – and it achieves these goals by taking over the dead host’s neural and muscular… Continue reading Book Review: “Feed” and “Deadline”
Reading List
Here’s what I’m reading now. Well, not right now, because I’m writing this. Don’t be so literal (pun intended). Also, because I know you care about such things, I’m including a parenthetical note about the method of word delivery. The Dark Design – The third installment of Philip José Farmer’s Riverworld saga. Riverworld is ridiculously… Continue reading Reading List
Character Development in Serial Novels
I wrote a bit late last year about Tim Dorsey’s series of novels in this Random Thursday post. At that time, I had read three of the installments and was starting on the fourth. As of earlier this evening, I’ve now finished a dozen, and have just downloaded the 13th (and last) in the series.… Continue reading Character Development in Serial Novels
A Cornell Professor Writes About “A Death in Texas”
I received an email yesterday from Josh Wallaert, the web editor for Places, which is described as an interdisciplinary journal of contemporary architecture, landscape, and urbanism, with particular emphasis on the public realm as physical place and social ideal. Josh wanted to draw attention to a new essay by Cornell University architecture professor Jim Williamson. I was… Continue reading A Cornell Professor Writes About “A Death in Texas”
Random Thursday
Scattershooting while making frantic preparations to defend the Gazette against the inevitable attack by WikiLeaks sympathizers who are targeting high profile websites. While most people probably look for novels to read during summer vacations, the year-end holiday season is also a good excuse to look for some light reading, especially when curled up by a… Continue reading Random Thursday
Amazon reluctantly does the right thing
Amazon.com’s “commitment to principle” lasted about twelve hours, and then it showed that it’s still in the business of turning a profit and dependent on the good graces of its customers to do so. In pulling from its virtual bookshelf the disgusting The Pedophile’s Guide To Love & Pleasure: A Child-Lover’s Code of Conduct, Amazon… Continue reading Amazon reluctantly does the right thing
In Progress Book Review: “Warriors”
I’m about halfway through a compilation of short stories and novellas entitled Warriors. It’s edited by acclaimed sci-fi/fantasy authors George R.R. Martin (whose Wild Cards series I’ve been devouring whenever I can find a volume in e-book format) and Gardner Dozois. The anthology is filled with stories that go beyond the genres that its editors… Continue reading In Progress Book Review: “Warriors”
What I’ve Been Reading (Instead of Blogging)
There are a number of reasons for the absence of posts around here, but at least one of the more valid ones is that I’ve been reading more books lately. I figured I’d break the blogging drought and share a bit about those books, which fall into two categories: memoirs and zombies. In the former… Continue reading What I’ve Been Reading (Instead of Blogging)