Music Monday’s originated at The Tattooed Book Geek‘s fantastic blog and has shown up here and there since then.
(yeah I chickened out with the name, I don’t need those kind of clicks…)
Between Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber-Monday, this seemed appropriate
How to Be Eatenby Maria Adelmann, Lauren Ezzo (Narrator)
DETAILS:
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Publication Date: May 31, 2022
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 8 hrs., 39 min.
Read Date: November 16-17, 2024
According to the Publisher’s site:
…This darkly funny and provocative novel reimagines classic fairy tale characters as modern women in a support group for trauma.
In present-day New York City, five women meet in a basement support group to process their traumas. Bernice grapples with the fallout of dating a psychopathic, blue-bearded billionaire. Ruby, once devoured by a wolf, now wears him as a coat. Gretel questions her memory of being held captive in a house made of candy. Ashlee, the winner of a Bachelor-esque dating show, wonders if she really got her promised fairy tale ending. And Raina’s love story will shock them all.
Though the women start out wary of one another, judging each other’s stories, gradually they begin to realize that they may have more in common than they supposed . . . What really brought them here? What secrets will they reveal? And is it too late for them to rescue each other?
Dark, edgy, and wickedly funny, this debut for readers of Carmen Maria Machado, Kristen Arnett, and Kelly Link takes our coziest, most beloved childhood stories, exposes them as anti-feminist nightmares, and transforms them into a new kind of myth for grown-up women.
Let me get this out of the way: it had nothing to do with Ezzo’s narration. The characterizations, the pacing, the performance, and so on were at least perfectly acceptable, perhaps they were really strong, depending on the element you were focused on. Overall, everything fits in between those two extremes.
It wasn’t necessarily even Adelmann’s text–it could be a problem with me. I don’t think so, because I can usually tell when that’s the case and I’ll put the book on a mental “try again” shelf. I won’t be doing that here.
Now, I didn’t go into this with expectations of loving it–I thought it could be a frequently entertaining and even-more-frequently provocative novel. I do appreciate when authors take something as old as one of the tales immortalized by the Grimm Brothers and tweak it to a contemporary meaning, setting, or use (in this case, seemingly all of the above). This had the makings of a book that I’d probably appreciate, and maybe find insightful (and possibly becoming something I truly liked). Alas, it was none of the above. I thought the areas that were provocative (or I think were supposed to be) were tawdry in the attempt to be so. The characters were flat and not likable in uninteresting ways.
I thought Bernice’s story was intriguing enough. I got most of the way (I think) through Ruby’s tale as well before I pulled the plug. There was just something…ugly about the book (best word I could come up with). I couldn’t muster up vague curiosity about the individual characters’ endpoint, just what the point of the trauma therapy was (I have a hunch it was some sort of exploitation on the part of the therapist, that was hopefully going to be thwarted by the participants), or if we were going to find out finally that all of this was wholly naturalistic or if there was some sort of supernatural force at work.
I wasn’t enjoying myself. I was forcing myself to hit “play” after each time I had to hit pause for work. I kept thinking about playing music instead. I really had no idea if or when that might change, and decided that life was too short to keep this particular experiment going.
I think it’s wholly possible that I’m wrong about the book–and post this in the hope that someone will see it and be intrigued enough to try it anyway, or that one of my readers will fill up the comments with some spoilery comments telling me what I missed (including a list of the reasons I was short-sighted to DNF). Oh, also, because I try to point out the times I do actually DNF something because it is rare, and I appreciate the novelty.
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
I’m supposed to be posting about the latest book in this series tonight, but I just don’t like the way the post turned out. So I’m taking another crack at it (which almost never works, but I have to try). So here’s a rerun while I try to remember how to string sentences together.
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Faithful Theology: An Introductionby Graham A. Cole Paperback, 106 pg. Read: June 27, 2021 |
…faithful theology is a human project that arises from wise reflection on the self-revelation of God. Because it is our reflection on God’s revelation, it is always to be reformed and corrected by that revelation…it is one thing to have an evangelical’s high view of Scripture. It is quite another to know how to derive teaching (doctrine or theology) from Scripture.
Cole’s purpose in this is to give his readers a method to use in “doing faithful theology.” Moving from Scripture to doctrine. Trying to balance orthodoxy, orthokardia, and orthopraxy (right opinion, right-heartedness, right practice of life), Cole organizes his approach through five elements, exploring each in a chapter. The first element is the foundation on which the others are built—God’s self-revelation in Scripture. The second is reflecting on the witness of the theology and practice of the Church through history—not on an equal footing with Scripture, but it should inform how we approach doctrine. The third element is realizing our context as we do theology—we’re in a fallen world, yet we are redeemed and are awaiting the return of Christ. Our thinking, our theologizing needs to be done fully aware of what that means. The fourth is centered on wisdom. We need to be wise in our application of the previous. The last element puts all of the above together and focuses it in a doxological direction—our theology should be a service to God.
Throughout, Cole uses examples of these principles applying to Christological and Trinitarian thought. There are some other examples, too, Which is a tremendous help—if for no other reason than they’re bedrock doctrines on which there should be no disagreement. He brings up baptismal practices at one point as an example of something where there’s an opportunity for a divergence of opinion, standing in contrast to Trinitarian dogma.
This is an easy read, full of solid, useful advice. I found it a little wanting, a little…uninspired? A little basic? I’m not sure precisely what word I want but it’s somewhere in that vicinity. But it’s supposed to be basic—it’s an introduction. It’s a tool to be used as someone begins working on their theology. So, what do I know?
The for Further Reading and books/articles suggested in the footnotes are helpful, but I didn’t feel inspired to track any of them down right away, but they seemed like solid and useful recommendations.
The last chapter, where he brought all the ideas together and gives a great example of how to use his elements in shaping our Trinitarian dogma is great. It makes all the rest of the book worth it.
It’s good stuff, I think it’ll be helpful to a lot of readers. I just wanted a bit more. I think Swain’s book on the Trinity left me with higher expectations. I’m looking forward to the next book I get in this series to see which of these first two are more representative of the series as a whole.
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.
I’ve thrown this up on a couple of the social media platforms, but I thought I’d ask here, too. I’ve been using Evernote for drafting blog posts, to-do lists, shopping lists, mental notes, etc. for over a decade–but I need a replacement. Any recommendations?
Moving along to the point of this post, the miscellany:
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:
Censoring Kids’ Worlds: Laurie Hertzel on the Danger of Banning Books for Children
Exclusive Cover Reveal of “Loose of Earth” by Kathleen Dorothy Blackburn: We spoke to the designer and the author about the design process for the book—Yup. I’m still a sucker for a look at cover design
Your definitive guide to Goodreads ratings. (Or: why does your favorite book have 3 stars?)—probably my favorite link of the week (no disrespect to any of the others)
Using Popular Culture in Crime Fiction by Lee Goldberg
Audiobooks Have Taken Over My Life, and I Love It—many of us can relate, no?
#R3COMM3ND3D2023 continues, so I continue linking to them (and adding to my TBR):
…with Sam Johnson of My Cosy Book Nook
…with Mags of @magslouisethebookworm
…with Anne Coates, author of the Hannah Weybridge series
…with Karen of Hair Past A Freckle
…with Yvonne of The Coycaterpillar Reads
…with Deb of dds_book_reviews
…with Babs Wilkie of Book Escapes with BabsW67
Vote Now for Fantasy-Faction’s Best SFF Books of 2023!—looking forward to these results
When You Don’t Feel Like a “Real” Bookworm
Let’s Discuss Bookworms vs Readers and Bookish Phobias
A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Patrick Rothfuss interview: Part two (of three)—Grimdark Magazine’s overgrown interview with National Treasure, Patrick Rothfuss
Lastly, I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to JK Joy, who followed the blog this week. I hope you enjoy the content and keep coming back.
Sundry Notes of Music:by Ian Shane
DETAILS: Publisher: 45rpm Media Publication Date: December 26, 2023 Format: eARC Length: 248 pg. Read Date: October 27-30, 2023
Ian Shane takes a break from fiction to bring us a memoir that’s unlike most you’ve read. These began as a series of blog posts looking at his life through songs. Forty-six songs connected to forty-six stories from various parts of his life—an almost-memoir, as he puts it.
Some of the essays are tied to a particular version of a song, how a particular copy became part of his collection (or how he hunted for it), and others are because a particular episode or person became entwined with a song.
Almost everyone can relate to this book—everyone has those songs that when you hear them make you think of a particular place, person, time of life—or an old cassette tape, CD, or beat-up vinyl (maybe I should add pirate site or streaming service, too). It doesn’t take much for anyone to start listening to music and start reminiscing. Shane’s just been a bit more formal about the process than most of us and has written them down in these essays.
I hesitate to admit this because I’m afraid I’m going to lose a lot of credibility with Shane. But I know less than a quarter of the songs from this book (at least the ones he devotes a chapter to—I know some of the others referenced).* Even worse, I disagree with him about the quality of more than one of those.
* I may know a few others if covered by another artist, or by hearing them on the radio or in the background somewhere without knowing the artist/title.
Does this matter? Not really, no. What matters is the connection and how Shane expresses it. What he says about his life and the song. This is why books like High Fidelity, Eddie and the Cruisers, Juliet, Naked, Thank You, Goodnight, The Rome of Fall, etc., etc., etc. work—because we can connect to music and music makers even when they’re fictional. We all know how it feels when we click with a song, how it can reflect and shape memories, how it can make you feel on several levels at once.
Sure, those handful of chapters involving songs (or artists) that I’m familiar with hit on another level or two. But not in a way that made things significantly different.
Also, it must be remembered—this is not a book of music criticism, as often as it may feel like it. It’s a memoir—it’s about how a song is connected to a time or event in the life of Ian Shane. So even if he made up “Supertheory of Supereverything” by Gogol Bordello (and come on…how hard would it be to believe that?), that wouldn’t particularly impact the way that chapter worked for the reader.*
* Aside from the fact that in a memoir things should be as close to true as possible while protecting privacy and allowing for fuzzy memory.
I love the concept for this book—and wish I could read more like this. I think people exchanging track listings for their version (to be expanded upon by request) would make becoming friends much easier.
I also think this helps me understand shades of Shane’s novels (not just the parts that he points to in this book, either). As he’s one of those authors at the top of my list from the last few years, I particularly appreciated that—but since not enough of the world has heeded my calls to buy and read his work, I won’t expect many to see a similar appeal in this book. And as I’ve learned these last few years, you really don’t need to know much about the life or work of someone to be able to really enjoy a memoir, if the memoir is good enough. This one is.
Sure, I’d have liked another few chapters about the Tom Petty show. Do I think his estimation of The Beatles is lacking (however apt calling them the equivalent of a boy band may be)? Yes. Do I wish (primarily for his sake) that some of these chapters had ended on a “happier” note (particularly the chapters “talk tonight – oasis” and “life fades away – roy orbison”)? Sure, but’s not a comment on Shane’s writing, it’s reality rearing its head.
You can see traces of Hornby’s Songbook/31 Songs in these pages. Possibly Al Young’s Drowning in the Sea of Love (I don’t know, I hadn’t heard of it until Shane mentioned its influence). But this struck me as something more like Rob Sheffield’s Love Is a Mix Tape and Talking to Girls About Duran Duran—just involving a longer period of time. I may have grinned and chuckled more at Shane than Sheffield (those who’ve read the former will roll their eyes at me there, of course).
There are parts of this book that are very funny—some bittersweet, some tragic, some simply thoughtful. Multiple essays will hit all of those points and more. They’re all engaging in various ways. Not one track on this playlist is going to leave you looking for the skip button.
Readers of Hornby, Young, or Sheffield should appreciate this approach to memoir. Those who find this approach intriguing likely will, too. Readers of Shane’s novels will definitely find something to enjoy here. People who simply appreciate well-written memoirs/personal essays should give this a look, as well. Really, anyone who finds good writing appealing should give this a glance. Yes, I’m casting the net wide on that last sentence—that’s my point.
The Ballad of Bonaduke—DETAILS: Series: The Ballad of Bonaduke, #39 Format: Kindle Vella Story Read Date: November 24, 2023
“You don’t remember?”
“Haven’t tried to yet. Everything hurts.”
Om came over and picked up a cane from next to the couch that I had failed to notice then handed it to me. “Probably for the best. Death is an experience most would want to forget.”
A drunken Michael Bonaduke decides to use a grift (with maybe some sort of magic/magic-like “help”) to win on a scratch-off lottery ticket so he has money to buy more to drink. He pulls off whatever he did, gets his money and some booze and stumbles off into the darkness to drink himself into oblivion so he can start again the next day. He’s hit by dark memories (probably what’s driving him to the drinking) of fire, pleading, and screaming. There’s going to be a price to pay for his grift, and he’s trying to be ready.
He’s abducted by some representatives of a mysterious group who subject him to a test—if he passes, everything will be explained to him (and hopefully the reader, too). He passes—and is brought somewhere for answers, or maybe training, or maybe another test. Time will tell (or things are going to get really annoying). Answers aren’t quick to come—but the mysteries and questions keep piling up.
Things get hairy and Bonaduke leaves and finds himself back in the neighborhood he started from. He takes refuge in a homeless encampment shortly before a police raid. He’s apprehended and finds himself an interrogation room and shortly escapes after using his grift (but with results he didn’t quite intend). He finds himself by a group of squatters who seem to have strapped a woman to a chair for reasons that can’t be good. He attempts to rescue her before he even realizes what he’s doing, and seems to have succeeded—well, the two of them got away from the group anyway—breathing but bruised. They make their way to a fast-food taco joint and Bonaduke really needs to refuel to keep going. He tries, but fails to get food because he keeps passing out. Thankfully, the clerk is the same guy from the liquor store and he both recognizes him and gives him first aid. The woman (Zero) wakes up and shows some abilities of her on as she helps them escape from her captors who’ve tracked her down. One thing leads to another—Zero and Bonaduke’s magics don’t mix well (at least until they understand what each other can do?), and they end up in a video-game race against the squatters in a tricked-out version of Eric (the clerk’s) car. Note, I said video-game race, not a video-game-style race. They’re actually in one. When dumped back into reality, he’s surrounded by bruised and broken bodies (of people and cars). And then he gets into a supernatural fight and survives…just.
Or maybe not.
Bonaduke wakes up, not remembering being in the apartment—actually, he doesn’t remember much (see above). To say that he’s weak is an understatement—think Westley during his final confrontation with Humperdinck. Alan and Om are packing up and leaving the apartment, for reasons alluded to, but not fully explained.
Bonaduke mostly watches things, given his strength, and then gets to use his magic just a touch.
And that’s basically it.
The whole he/she thing about Zero is addressed briefly in a way that confirms I was right to be confused.
Yes, I’ve complained a bit in the past about these transition episodes. This one seems more blatant than usual—Slaywood is moving the saga from one section to another, being coy about the details (as per usual). I’m not going to do that this time.
This is a good point for the transition, particularly when it comes to the whole death thing. Isn’t that what the Death card represents in Tarot readings? (at least the ones I’ve seen in print and on TV say that). So let’s move (literally, for Alan and Om) to something else.
Now, if we’re not given more information about his coming back to life, why they’re moving, and what the ritual, etc. they referenced at the end of the episode are about soon. Then I’ll complain. But for now, let’s let everyone catch their breath and call it a good day.
Happy Thanksgiving/Turkey Day/Thursday
(depending on your practice/preference/location)
On this day that has been set aside these U.S. for expressions of gratitude, it’s been my custom to take a moment or two and mention a few of the things that The Irresponsible Reader is thankful for. This is just about my favorite of my annual posts typically, but this year I feel even more grateful than usual.
So, this year, I’m thankful for:
The readers of this blog. If I knew your names, I’d thank you all personally.
The authors who’ve corresponded with me, encouraged me—even promoted this here project.
Those authors, publishers, and/or publicists provided books for me to read.
Books (print, electronic, or audio)—the stories, characters, and/or things I learn are what keep me sane, entertain, and inspire me.
Authors! If not for them, I wouldn’t have the above.
Talented narrators and illustrators—ditto
Coffee (and other beverages both caffeinated and adult)
All the authors who’ve stopped by for a Q&A or a Guest Post this year. I’ve really been blown away by the work you’ve put into making my patch of cyberspace better.
Time to read
The Nampa Public Library, The Caldwell Public Library, (and The LYNX! Consortium)
Rediscovered Bookshop and Libro.fm
My supportive, understanding, and encouraging wife and kids. They all do a pretty decent job pretending to care when this old man drones on and on about what he’s reading or what’s going on with the blog. They’ve also continued to step up on the brainstorming front lately.
Again, all of you who read this page, follow, like, tweet, comment, email, etc.—you have no idea how much every little bit is appreciated.
For my fellow Americans, I hope you have a pleasant day with your friends and/or family. As for the rest of you, I hope you enjoy today and that you enjoy having the same pant size tomorrow as you do today.
I’m very pleased today to welcome The Write Reads Blog Tour for fourth volume of D.H. Willison’s Arvira series, Wings of the Wild, as the Tour kicks off! Over the next week and a half, you should check in on https://twitter.com/WriteReadsTours to see a lot of bloggers write interesting things about it.
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Paperback/Ebook
Length: 584 pages
Publication Date: November 22, 2023
It’s easy to stand up for your friends. What about for anonymous creatures nobody else cares about?
With their homes apparently safe from the magical storms, Darin and Rinloh venture to an isolated elven village and another ancient mystery: ruins of an imperial city whose entire population vanished centuries ago.
The duo befriend a host of eccentric new characters, from a chipper ogress and hipster troll to a deadpan griffin. Yet the Forest of Nightmares challenges them as never before. Merciless carnivorous trees, subterranean horrors, ethereal creatures no mortal weapon can slay… and most sinister of all, the greed and ambition lurking within the human heart.
Darin and Rinloh’s empathic connection grows stronger the deeper into the wilderness they go, but will it be enough to stop a dark conspiracy from ravaging the land?
Arvia: Wings of the Wild challenges the harpy-human duo with their grandest adventure yet. They must balance their deepening relationship as they sharpen their skills and work together as never before to unravel a deadly new plot.
Amazon UK ~ Amazon ~ Goodreads
D.H. Willison is a reader, writer, game enthusiast and developer, engineer, and history buff. He’s lived or worked in over a dozen countries, learning different cultures, viewpoints, and attitudes, which have influenced his writing, contributing to one of his major themes: alternate and creative conflict resolution. The same situations can be viewed by different cultures quite differently. Sometimes it leads to conflict, sometimes to hilarity. Both make for a great story.
He’s also never missed a chance to visit historic sites, from castle dungeons, to catacombs, to the holds of tall ships, to the tunnels of the Maginot Line. It might be considered research, except for the minor fact that his tales are all set on the whimsical and terrifying world of Arvia. Where giant mythic monsters are often more easily overcome with empathy than explosions.
Subscribe to his newsletter for art, stories, and humorous articles (some of which are actually intended to be humorous).
Website ~ Instagram ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads
My thanks to The Write Reads for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.
The Mysteriesby Bill Watterson and John Kascht
DETAILS:
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Format: Hardcover
Length: 72 pgs.
Read Date: October 31, 2024
Here’s the Publisher’s Description, if I try, I’m going to end up telling the whole, brief story:
In a fable for grown-ups by cartoonist Bill Watterson, a long-ago kingdom is afflicted with unexplainable calamities. Hoping to end the torment, the king dispatches his knights to discover the source of the mysterious events. Years later, a single battered knight returns.
I’m not going to say more, even though I think we could use a teensy-weensy expansion to really sell the story. But the story isn’t the important part because…
This is why you pick up this book. Period. You’re curious about what Watterson’s been up to for the last umpteen years, how his art has changed and developed. What’s got his attention? And we won’t really know much given how short this book is and how atypical it is, but still, that curiosity is there.
Maybe you know John Kascht’s work and want to see what he’s been dabbling in.
Either way, this is why you come to this book—and you will be well rewarded for it.
I’m not going to try to explain how these black-and-white images capture so much—and yet, leave so much to the imagination. But I’ve already gone through this book a few times just to see the art without caring about the words (which, yeah, I’ve read twice—but not as often). There are a couple of samples here.
Here’s a video put out by the publisher where the two artists describe how they worked together (and no, you don’t get to see any faces. Just hands and the works in progress).
Honestly, the story doesn’t do much for me. It’s fine—good enough to justify your time, but that’s it. It feels like the first 50-70% of a Neil Gaiman story (but told in far fewer words). Honestly, anyone who described something like that to me would be enough to get me to pick it up—but I wanted a little more from Watterson.
But the more I think about it, I’m always going to want more from Watterson than he seems willing to give. So I should shut up and be happy about it.
I cannot say enough good things about these images, though—the visual look of the book as a whole, either. I’m so glad I got this just for that experience. And it’s an experience I can repeat frequently.
I’m not going to give this a rating, because…I don’t know. I can’t assign a number to this. I’m just happy to see that Watterson is still out there doing creative things and hope he decides to share some more in the years to come.
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
It’s a weird week here in the States–a day off on Thursday (for most of us) followed by that “why did I bother to show up?” day on Friday. Thankfully, I have plenty of things to hide in/distract myself with. I hope you all have the same. Or that you live somewhere that the rest of the week is just Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That seems like a good alternative.
This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.
The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?
Easy enough, right?
I’m reading–and should be finishing soon—Calico by Lee Goldberg, a heckuva stretch for Goldberg—I’m impressed with it (still not sure how much I’m enjoying it) and am listening to the funny, geeky, and insightful Nerd: Adventures in Fandom from This Universe to the Multiverse by Maya Phillips (Narrator) on audiobook.
I just finished Spencer Quinn’s Up on the Woof Top, and Things My Son Needs to Know about the World by Fredrik Backman, Santino Fontana (Narrator) on audio—a quick hit of humor and heart that I really needed after DNFing a mess last week.
My next book should be Evil Valley by Simon Hall, in a (surely vain) attempt to catch up on the series. My next audiobook should be The Bittlemores by Jann Arden, because it looked strange enough to deserve a look.
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