Tag: Miscellany Page 1 of 133

The worst day of the year to work in an Adolescent Drug Rehab facility is April 20. It’s been years since I left and I still tense up with I write the date.

I had so many plans this week for the blog, and I don’t think I accomplished any of them (but boy, oh, boy do I have several drafts in some stage of incompletion). I have a Tour Stop on Monday for a strong read. Let’s hope I can put something together for that at least. Stay tuned.

I can tell you that May is going to be a great month around here, thanks to some very generous authors, bloggers, etc. (see this post for details). Hopefully, I can keep things interesting enough until then.

In the meantime, here’s a quick Saturday Miscellany.

Oh, wait…one more thing: Jo Linsdell is trying to start up a new Weekend Link Up Party. Drop by, leave a link, and follow a few.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Who doesn’t look to Forbes magazine for their literary news? They recently released their list of The 30 Greatest Book Series Of All Time—(it’s actually a pretty good list) “rankings are based on specific factors, including critical acclaim, commercial success, mass appeal, and cultural impact among readers of all ages over the years.” The box set they use for the Narnia image is the one I grew up with.
In honor of the 637th Anniversary of The Canterbury Tales on Wednesday (who knew?), Lit Hub asks: What if Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales came out today?
On Writing a Book When The World is On Fire: Sara Koffi on turning to thrillers when justice is missing.
“Bad” Books, and the Readers That Love Them
On Narrative Weight and Moral Arguments
A Guide to Blog Commenting —A good post on the subtle art of blog commenting from Jo Lindsdell (for people who aren’t trolls or spammers). I’m pretty sure I should’ve read until the end of this one before I left a comment on her latest post. Oops. Will try to do better!
Addictive tropes in books — Found Family—a good look at Found Families
Why is Sherlock Holmes so Popular? It’s Elementary (Updated)—from Witty & Sarcastic Bookclub
Love And The Male Redemption Arc: A Ramble Through Fantasy Literature—on a week where I struggle to finish anything, Peat Long puts up a post as good as this one and the one about Moral Arguments (above). Show off.
What to expect from Wyrd & Wonder
The Joy of Book Blogging from an Introvert’s Perspective—I can identify with a lot of this (shock!)
Yeah, it’s a little mean—and maybe even a little lazy—but you’re going to chuckle if you click this link for at least a moment
A cute little song with a message that needs to be heard

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Christa Comes Out of Her Shell by Abbi Waxman—I dunno what this is about, I stopped reading at “Abbi Waxman.” Seriously, it’s about an antisocial scientist dealing with the media spotlight, family drama, and possible romance. I’m certain Waxman can do a lot with those elements.
Bad Actors by Mark Pepper—the taxi driver you do not want to cross is back in action in L.A. of all places. Not surprisingly, it appears that he brought his personal brand of chaos with him. I cannot wait to get to this.
Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz—Horowitz and Hawthorne are back in action.

A new local bookstore opened pretty close to me this week. I stopped in last night and it won’t be the last time I do that (and not just because they’re holding a book for me). Welcome to the world, Shared Stories!

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Lynne Reid Banks obituary—The Indian in the Cupboard was one of those books I returned to over and over and over again (and somehow, I don’t think I’ve ever talked about the book).
One of the Best Things We Can Do for Ourselves as We Age: This will help feed your soul and boost your overall health.—betcha can’t guess what “this”  is
Books are trash too: Remember to throw them away during spring cleaning—I endorse almost none of this. But it’s something to consider. (I suppose)
Autistic Literature Will Flourish When We Stop Insisting That Writers Qualify Their Autism: Wouldn’t it be a relief if we could stop asking authors to meet a specific set of diagnostic criteria? —Especially in Autism Acceptance Month, a good read
Sherlock’s Double: At William Gillette’s Castle—barely qualifies for this list, but I don’t care
Inheritance of Magic – Six Month Mark—Benedict Jacka talks about the sales numbers for his new series—and what those numbers likely mean for its future (spoiler: good news all around). I appreciate when authors can be this open (but understand when they don’t, I doubt I’d be able to).
The new book, health, and a few other updates—a similarly open update from Harry Connolly
Hello, my name is D I Jolly—a nice intro to this author who keeps popping up on the blog (and hopefully continues to do so)
Can a Book Really Be For Everyone?: What makes a book for everyone? Is it the presence of universal themes? Approachable prose?—Templeton’s latest is reliably good.
Chet and Bernie Tribute—a fan-made Spotify playlist. And yes, I will be listening to this when I dip into the upcoming Chet and Bernie book.
Considering the cosy turn in SFF: who gets to be comforted?
Booktok And Consumerism: For The Filthy Book Buying Capitalists Out There…
Seven books that I reviewed when this blog started thirteen years ago—A cool way to look back on an anniversary (happy 13th, Mike Finn!)
Good Books With Disappointing Endings—this was supposed to go up last week. Ooops. Great idea for a list.
Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub got on her Twitter soapbox about policing reviews and was absolutely correct

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Bridge to Bat City by Ernest Cline—”a mostly true tall tale about an unexpected friendship between a young girl and a music-loving colony of bats.” A departure from Cline’s usual, but something tells me this is going to work really well.
Status Drift by Ian Robinson—the second in the re-issued Sam Batford series is not to be missed.
Rain Falls Hard by David Nolan—to commemorate the news about the TV adaptation, Farenheit Press is issuing Nolan’s Manc Noir trilogy in one handy (and cheap) volume. If you missed buying (and reading) these separately, now’s your chance to remedy that.
The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann—true stories of “the superheroes of reading”

Not a lot of things to post about this week–incidentally, I took most of April 2014 off, so my flashbacks are going to be sparse until May. But, a new week is on the horizon, I have many plans to fill it, annnnd I get to go to the 2nd Annual Treasure Valley Book Fair in a couple of hours. That should re-energize me.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Why I wrote an AI transparency statement for my book, and think other authors should too
A Garden of Verses: As commonplace books evolved into anthologies, they developed reputations as canonical works, their editors curating tomes as vibrant as the loveliest bouquets.
Don Winslow Reflects on Writing His Final Novel: Winslow discusses ‘City in Ruins,’ crime in Las Vegas, and how to write an epic trilogy.—Friend of the Blog, Nick Kowlakowski, talks with Winslow. It’s a doozy (as should be expected)
Speaking of Winslow, earlier this week, he tweeted his Five Must Read Books—I should move on a couple of these
The Big Bang! Prize Anthology—I don’t know when this was announced, but I saw it for the first time yesterday. This should be fun.
Oups, I Spend Way Too Long Writing Reviews
Tough Questions with Bookstgram—Bookstgram gets to be on the business end of the tough questions this week.

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
The Thriller Zone Episode 175, Season 6: Don Winslow, New York Times Bestselling Author of City In Ruins —a fun and insightful discussion with the great one.
Speaking of Mysteries Episode 257: Don Winslow—another good interview with Winslow. (although, if you’re only going to listen to one…make it the previous one)

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
City in Ruins by Don Winslow—The last book in the Danny Ryan trilogy (a modern-day take on the Trojan War and The Aeneid) and the last book Winslow is publishing before retiring. A bittersweet release to be sure.
The World Entire by Jo Perry—follows up Perry’s Pure (which was possibly her best book yet), “Ascher returns in a fast-moving, intense, and layered mystery about a dog accused of murder and a violent group who are targeting the man Ascher loves.” Cannot wait to get my grubby hands on this.
The Tenacious Tale of Tanna the Tendersword/ by Dewey Conway & Bill Adams—A Champion-in-Training, her Chronicler-in-Training, and a sword-yielding rooster (with a prosthetic leg) take on an Epic Quest in this fun MG fantasy with some great art to boot. I’ve written a little bit about it (but I feel like I should’ve written more).
Rites of Passage by M.D. Presley—kicks off a new UF series about a dowser on the run from the law, hired for a difficult challenge, but equipped with “his trusty dowsing rod, a defaced 50-cent piece, and enchanted iPod.” I asked Presley a Few Quick Questions about it earlier this week.
An Inconvenient Wife by Karen E. Olson—A crime novel inspired by the intrigue of the Tudor-era features Kate Parker, the sixth wife of billionaire Hank Tudor, dealing with the discovery of a headless corpse near his property and two of Hank’s exes (with suspiciously familiar names). Mrs. Irresponsible Reader and I have been fans of Olson for a long time, this looks like it could be a lot of fun.