Saturday Miscellany—11/29/25

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:
Napoleon’s Kindle: See the Miniaturized Traveling Library He Took on Military Campaigns—Ooooh! I want one! I want one! Sure my tablet is a technological marvel that I could’ve only dreamed about as a kid, but…come on. This is just cool. (yes, Samuel T. Cogley, is possibly my favorite ST:TOS character)
The best mystery novels of 2025—I learned ages ago that when Oline Cogdill speaks, I should listen
Does Rating a Lot of Books Low Mean You’re “Bad at Choosing Books?”—With all due respect to Pages Unbound, this is a stupid question. But if you’re going to answer one of those, this is a good way to approach it.
Captivating Characters of November—I’m enjoying these posts…I just need to contribute 🙂
It is that time of year:
Manga Gift Suggestions—from the Firsty Duelist via Wity and Sarcastic Book Club
2025 Holiday Gift Giving Guide—from This Dad Reads (so you know it will be a little heavy on a particular fandom based in a galaxy far, far away)

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Get It Write talks to Mike Chen about writing for existing IP.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple—note to self: read this again
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
Funny Girl by Nick Hornby
The Burning Room by Michael Connelly
Hit by Delilah S. Dawson—I’m glad Dawson put this out a decade ago, it was harrowing then. Updating it to fit 2025 would be…well, I dunno, “worse” seems obvious and not stark enough.
Indexing: Reflections, Episode Eight: Holly Tree by Seanan McGuire
And I mentioned the releases of: Luke Skywalker Can’t Read by Ryan Britt; Thing Explainer: Complicated Stuff in Simple Words by Randall Munroe; and Santa 365 by Spencer Quinn

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Robert B. Parker’s Showdown by Mike Lupica—”Spenser may have uncovered an explosive secret that threatens the career of a controversial figure” (which is mostly correct). I enjoyed it, and have a post drafted for Monday about it.
Queen of the Dead by Sarah Broadway—”Speaking with the dead is nothing new for Lou. It’s a curse she’s learned to hide from everyone – sometimes even herself. After running away from a past that took advantage of those abilities, Lou finally carves out a normal life for herself. That is, until she receives a mysterious message from a ghost – the Veil is thinning – and a cult of necromancers infiltrates her small town.””