Saturday Miscellany—8/19/23

I had so many plans for this week that dematerialized so thoroughly even Miles O’Brien couldn’t reassemble them. As I said earlier in the week, I had to go out of town for a few days—but leading up to that I found myself so energy-less that I accomplished little.

I knew I wouldn’t need a backup book on my trip, but I took one anyway. The progress I made in my current read makes me wonder if it was worth even bringing it. I was able to play around a little online, so, I did get material for this post (although, I was really hoping Peat Long would’ve had a Friday post to help…).

Hope you all had a good week and are staying cool (the A/C at home died while I was gone, so it’s going to be a fun month while we get that replaced). I’m off to figure out how to best catch up and regroup.

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:
Now AI is helping ban books.—sure, why not?
Series VS Standalone: Cage Match—Chuck Windig opines a bit…he makes a point or two I hadn’t encountered before from the author’s POV. JCM Berne has an interesting point on the topic when it comes to indie publishing
The Best Graphic Novels for Beginners and Already-Obsesseds—this is a pretty good list
In Loving Memory of the Books I’ll Never Read Again—This is a very nice and relatable piece on consciously not revisiting beloved books. I’d have liked it even if Rush hadn’t started with two of my all-time favorite books (that I have reread), but I enjoyed knowing we were kindred spirits right away.
On Learning to Read Generously
Comfort Food (Rex Stout, Nero Wolfe, Archie Goodwin)—Quite the breakdown of the series—I’d quibble with a lot of Iverson’s points—but I can appreciate where he’s coming from.
Joe Abercrombie Must Be Stopped—this is a fun idea for a post (and a good kick in the pants for me to get moving on post-First Law books)
30 Fantasy Books Featuring Dragonriders—And, really, aren’t these the best kind of fantasy books?
Five Pieces of Verbal Lambasting That Live On In My Head
Why Don’t Readers Leave Reviews of Books?

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher—promises to be a very interesting take on a Sleeping Beauty story