Book Blogger Hop
Tag: Miscellany Page 38 of 171
This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:
Do you consider yourself a book collector or a book hoarder?
To my ear, a collector is someone who gets pristine, early/rare editions, and displays them like a hunter displays taxidermy trophies. Ew, that sounds loaded with negative connotations there–I’m not trying for that, but I’m also too lazy to go back and edit. Collectors are serious about this, put a lot of effort into tracing down certain titles/editions—they’re the kind of people that Oliver Darkshire talks about in his memoir. The financial investment is also greater than I’m interested in.
Hoarders*, like myself, on the other hand, go for quantity. We just want all the books we want to read, those we can’t bear to give away/sell/trade, and others, too. Sure, we might get some rarities, some specialty editions, and whatnot—we might even find the wherewithal to get our hands on some Subterranean Press or The Folio Society special editions and reprints—but mostly it’s about surrounding ourselves with processed dead-tree carcasses filled with writing and characters we love. I’ve got some in nearly every room in my house, and it won’t be long before I’ll legitimately be able to remove the “nearly.” I’ll be content when I have amassed a cache fit for Smaug, and not until then.
* I’ll note that countless memes (the great and binding authority of wit and expression of vox populi to which everyone must bend the knee today)—and the sign my wife bought for my office door—insist that it’s not hoarding if it’s books, soooo ¯_(ツ)_/¯ .
What about you—collector, hoarder? Or do you have a healthy number (read: more than Marie Kondo’s 30, but not enough to nap on?)
I’m ba-aa-aa-ck. I think.
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?
Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:
What are you currently reading?
I’m reading the ARC for Moonbound by Robin Sloan (a book I’m terrified that I’m going to have to describe soon), 42: The Wildly Improbable Ideas of Douglas Adams edited by Kevin Jon Davies and am listening to Backpacking Through Bedlam by Seanan McGuire, read by Emily Bauer on audiobook.
What did you recently finish reading?
I just finished Shannon Knight’s Grave Cold (yes, I finally did it!) and After the Storm by Linda Castillo, read by Kathleen McInerney on audio.
Oh, also:
Chasing Empy Caskets by E.N. Crane, The Good Samaritan Strikes Again by Patrick F. McManus, The Secret & Hunting Virgins by Wayne Hawk, Price to Pay by Dave Sivers, The Olympian Affair by Jim Butcher, The Binding Room by Nadine Matheson, and All Systems Red by Martha Wells.
What do you think you’ll read next?
My next book should be the ARC for Assassins Anonymous by Rob Hart and my next audiobook should be Dark Days by Derek Landy, read by Rupert Degas.
WHat’ve you been up to lately?
Some housekeeping: Yesterday, I put my toe back in the blogging water (solely because I didn’t know I was going to be recovering from surgery when I signed up for that blog tour). I’m hoping to be fully back in action on Monday. We’ll see how that goes…I am surprisingly easy to tire out. Well, that part’s not so surprising. It’s probably surprising how easily I can delude myself into thinking I’m three decades younger than I am and can bounce back from stuff (like the removal of an organ).
Yes , it’s probably too soon to return to this, but it’s worth a try, I’m doing another round of Ask Me (just about) Anything for My Upcoming Blogiversary
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I didn’t read as much during my first post-surgery week as I expected to, messing around online was much better for my attention span. This week, I did read a good deal and spent far less time online. So this list is on the shorter side, but…eh. Might as well get on with things.
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:
These books offer breezy escapism. That doesn’t mean they’re silly —A look at the past and present of Beach Reads.
Ranking Science Fiction’s Most Dangerous Awards: A scientific survey of the relative heft, pointiness, and durability of SFF’s most sought-after trophies.—Reader, I snickered.
13 Weird, Fascinating Things I’ve Learned Researching Crime Novels—I’d love for more authors to do things like this. This is just great.
Humor in Mysteries and Thrillers Is No Joke
Books Are Dead! Long Live Books!
The Ultimate Guide to Fantasy Fiction: 80+ Fantasy Subgenres Explained
I Can No Longer Read More than 1 Book at a Time and Other Bookish Habits that Changed for Me in the Last 13 Years
BBNYA 2024—Marie Sinadjan is putting together a Pinterest board for the BBNYA entries…wow, that’s an impressive-looking batch.
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Ready Player One (Audiobook) by Ernest Cline, Wil Wheaton
And I mentioned the release of Hot Lead, Cold Iron by Ari Marmell
Also, I glimpsed at what’s coming up in the next week or two, and I’m really excited to revisit the posts for the end of May 2014. I remember really enjoying the books, and can’t wait to see what I said.
This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Blood Red Summer by Eryk Pruitt —This is the second book featuring the True Crime podcaster, Jess Keeler. The first book in this series is collecting e-dust on my e-Reader, and now I feel even more pressure to read it. They both look compelling as all get-out.
The Accidental Joe: The Top-Secret Life of a Celebrity Chef by Tom Straw—A chance to see him put that piece (above) about Humor in Thrillers in action: “A maverick celebrity chef reluctantly agrees to let the CIA use his hugely popular international food, culture, and travel TV series as cover for a dangerous espionage mission.”
I just remembered that I did this last year, and had enough fun that I decided to do it again. In honor of my upcoming blogiversary, I’ll be answering questions from you, my favorite blog readers in the world.
But first, you have to ask them. I’d prefer that you use this form (if only to make it easier on me to keep track of them), but you can leave a comment, Tweet at me, send me a DM, Facebook comment, IG comment, carrier pigeon, encode it into a manuscript…whatever.
I’d prefer the questions to be about books, reading, the blog—that sort of thing. But I’m feeling brave—ask me whatever. You might get a “none of your business” kind of response, but who knows? This should be fun!
I’m alive and recovering (and not reading as much as I’d expected). I’ll have more to say about that soon-ish. I’ve got some fantastic guest posts lined up for next week–be sure to come back for them. Thanks for all the well-wishes over the last week. I’ll try to personally reply soon.
There seems to be a mood, or a tone, to a lot of these links this week–I want to stress that I wasn’t trying to doomscroll. I mean, we’ve all been in a place where that is what we’ve been looking for. But that’s not where I was this week–but you can’t tell that from what I marked for this post.
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:
Inside libraries’ battle for better e-book access
Speaking of libraries, this is worth watching (if only for the running joke about a certain series of picture books) Libraries: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Against the objectification of books (or, some thoughts on The Discourse).—worth chewing on
Not Lost in a Book: Why the “decline by 9” in kids pleasure reading is getting more pronounced, year after year.—chilling
Bad Nostalgia: The book publishing industry is in crisis, so why is it so hard to talk about the labour that goes into making books?
Thriftbooks has some interesting lists of Books by State® 2023: Non-Fiction/Fiction and corresponding lists from 2013. The only one for Idaho that didn’t put a puzzled look on my face was the 2013 Non-Fiction pick. Do you have any thoughts on your state’s representatives?
Are You A Good Enough Friend To Hide a Dead Body?—Forget Enneagram types, political stances, Birth Signs, Hogwarts’ House, and so on–this is the ultimate personality test, right? (actually, not really the point of the piece, just my reaction to the title)
What Are the Rules for Lending Your Books to Friends?—Electric Literature talked to librarians for this piece. Who better?
10 Words Every Book Lover Should Know—I actually shared this back on 5/10/14, but still need to work these words into my everyday vocabulary. (and am a little shocked that the link from back then is still live)
To Write or Not to Write (In Your Books)
When Books Were Illustrious: Once upon a time, illustrations in books—all books—was standard practice.
Top Ten Tuesday: Reasons You DNF’d a Book—I don’t know how many posts about DNFing I’ve linked to over the years, but I’m pretty sure this format is a first.
Flowers or Books? Is the Special Woman in Your Life a Reader? 10 Book Recs for #MothersDay—This is a good list. And one I can actually see me using for next Mother’s Day (had already picked this year’s books when Carol posted this.) If any of my kids are looking for an idea, there’s a couple of things I can see working for their mom, incidentally.
20 Books of Summer is back—it can’t already be time to start compiling a list for this, is it??
Being a reader is so hard!—Luke Harkness speaks for many of us here.
A Book-ish Related Podcast-type thing episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Cocktails with Cav Show Ep. 32 Hollywood Grocery Clerks & a Hot Case! Great interview with Crime Fiction Author Andrew Miller!—I haven’t finished it yet, but what I have is pretty good.
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Shovel Ready by Adam Sternbergh—there’s no way that I’d write about this book in 5 paragraphs today (or if I did, I’d feel guilty about it). I also think that giving this 3.5 stars says something about how my ratings have become more inflated in the last few years. Still, it was fun to look back on this one.
I also mentioned the publication of Robert B. Parker’s Cheap Shot by Ace Atkins —Atkins’ third Spenser novel.
For the past couple of weeks, I’ve had this monologue from Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs running through my head:
EUGENE I’d better explain what she meant by Aunt Blanche’s “situation.” You see, her husband, Uncle Dave, died six years ago from (He looks around) this thing… They never say the word. They always whisper it. It was (He whispers)—cancer! I think they’re afraid if they said it out loud, God would say, “I HEARD THAT! YOU SAID THE DREAD DISEASE! (He points his finger down) JUST FOR THAT, I SMITE YOU DOWN WITH IT!” … There are some things that grownups just won’t discuss. For example, my grandfather. He died from (He whispers) diphtheria! Anyway, after Uncle Dave died, he left Aunt Blanche with no money. Not even insurance. And she couldn’t support herself because she has (He whispers)—asthma… So my big-hearted mother insisted we take her and her kids in to live with us. So they broke up our room into two small rooms, and me and my brother Stan live on this side, and Laurie and her sister Nora live on the other side. My father thought it would just be temporary, but it’s been three and a half years so far and I think because of Aunt Blanche’s situation, my father is developing (He whispers)—high blood pressure!
I’m not the whispering type, but I’ve thought about that at least daily. And it has inspired me to whisper bits of my news just to amuse myself when I tell others about it. Early last month, a radiologist who was supposed to be looking for something else, noticed that my right kidney had a tumor on it that was most likely cancerous. The treatment for this is simple: remove the kidney. I have a spare, right? There’s no sign of it anywhere else, so this simple procedure will get set right.
By the time this posts, I should be fully anesthetized and won’t come out of it for a few hours. I’m supposed to lie low for a couple of weeks, and since I don’t know how I’ll be feeling over those weeks, I’ve arranged for some friends, acquaintances, and a stranger or two to drop by with some guest posts. Some will be a new Iteration of the All-Time Desert Island Top 5 lists from last year. Some will be other lists or posts, a guest review or two, and who knows what else? Some of the contributors won’t be strangers to readers of this blog. Some are new to this space. All of them have contributed something I enjoyed reading—hopefully, you do, too.
Also, since I can’t schedule posts there, my daughter has taken control of my BlueSky and Threads accounts. There’s a strong possibility that shenanigans may ensue there.
While you’re being entertained by my guests, I have a stack of (mostly lighter) reads to work through and a few movies I’ve been putting off while doing as little as I can. I’ll likely be popping back with a post or two (how many are to be determined) along the way, and plan on being back cancer-free and one renal organ lighter by the 20th.
I borrowed the kidney above from the blog we ran about my son’s kidney transplant, etc. So I’ll thank V.X. Blackthorne for doing that again. And clearly there is something about my family and kidneys (there’s nothing other than correlation when it comes to this and my son’s issues), but we don’t know what it is.
Not much to say today as an intro. (“Phew!” is the collective response, I’m sure).
The next couple of weeks are going to be very interesting, I think, here. I’ll talk about it Monday—but I’m telling you now, reader, you’re going to want to stop by a lot (or just a couple of times, I guess—but it should read it all).
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:
We’re All Reading Wrong: To access the full benefits of literature, you have to share it out loud.—hmmmmm….
But Why a Penguin?—Who among us hasn’t wondered?
I missed the provocative essay No One Buys Books last week, where Elle Griffin dove into the data from the recent Penguin vs. DOJ case to look at what it says about book sales.
This week, there were two (at least) responses to that: The Puzzle of Publishing and Yes, People Still Buy Books: How a viral post got some key statistics wrong.—between the three of these pieces, there’s a heckuva education into the business side of book publishing.
M.W Craven up for Theakston Old Peculier Crime award for 3rd year—a quick catch-up with Craven
The Edgar Awards were this week, which means it’s time for Crime Reads’ annual nominee roundtable on The State of the Crime Novel. Part 1: Writing Life and Part 2: The Future of Crime Writing
How Fiction Became Edible: A new genre of cookbooks is reverse engineering the foods of all your favorite pieces of pop culture. Now your stomach can travel to Westeros, Tatooine, the Shire, and more.
The Author as Protagonist: Why are so many fictional writers solving crimes in detective novels?
A few good books about too-good-to-be-true tech (to read after your Tesla explodes).—a fun listicle
Andrew Miller: Namaste Mart Confidential—A quick Q&A with Miller (and a website I need to spend more time with, you will likely enjoy it, too)
Historical Fiction Pros & Cons—Reading Ladies Book Club looks at the genre
Why I No Longer Request ARCs—I absolutely get this (and agree with almost every part of it). But my stack-o’-ARCS suggests I may need to consider Krysta’s words more closely soon.
Speaking of things I need to think more about: How Negative Am I? Posing the Question of Negativity on the Internet
7 Reasons Adults Should Read Children’s Books—#1 & #3 are the big ones for me. With #4 gaining steadily, as the Grandcritter ages, I expect it’ll take first place.
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
<bOutlander by Diana Gabaldon—left me utterly unimpressed
In Defense of the Descent by Daniel R. Hyde—a short and compelling book about the controversial line in the Apostle’s Creed. I still refer to this book.
Dawn’s Early Light by Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris—steampunky fun in the U.S. of A.
This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Namaste Mart Confidential by Andrew Miller—A pair of unlicensed PIs/Grocery Store Clerks search for a missing (possibly kidnapped) woman in the L.A. of 2013. I rambled about it a little earlier this week
Takeout Sushi by Christopher Green—a collection of short stories from (mostly) contemporary Japan. I posted about it recently and managed not to make a single joke about one of the world’s least appealing (to me) types of food. That’s personal growth right there.
Crimson Arches by Rebecca Carey Lyles—in this follow-up to Shadow Ranch, Kasenia somehow finds herself in a tense situation with another polygamous bunch.
What’s Eating Jackie Oh? by Patricia Park—a YA look at cooking competitions and dealing with parental expectations.
The Vanishing Station by Ana Ellickson —”a lyrical and bold YA debut about an underground magic system in San Francisco—and the lengths one girl is willing to go to protect the ones she loves.” Intriguing setup and world.
What better day than the last day of April to finish my March wrap-up?
The Blight of Blackwings by Kevin Herne
I waved at Constable du Bartylyn, who was passing by and had absolutely no updates on my stolen furniture, save for a speculation that someone else must have farted on it by now, and if I thought about that long enough, it might make me feel a little bit better about never seeing it again.
He walked away, whistling, and I thought he was a singularly strange individual for trying to comfort me with thoughts of thieves tooting their foghorns on my property. But perhaps I should give him full Marks for innovative community policing.
“Have you ever heard of the lizards in Forn that can change the color of their skin to match their surroundings? They’re called chameleons.”
“Yes, I’ve heard of them. I’d love to actually see one someday.”
After witnessing that performance, I think grief can be thought of as a chameleon. It can change its color or pattern, but underneath it all it’s still an ugly lizard on a branch, waiting patiently for the right time to strike.”
“You realize that every time I’m sad from now on I’m going to think chameleons?”
A mob is not the best, though. It’s strange to be in one, to realize that, Hey, I’m part of a mob right now, and mobs are pretty famous for not doing anything nice to other people. No one sees a mob tearing down the street and thinks, Oh, neat! I wonder what kindness they will bestow upon our neighbors! No one wishes a mob would form outside their neighborhood.
Moonlight Mile by Dennis Lehane
It’s odd how fast a beautiful woman can turn a guy’s mind into lint storage. Just by being a beautiful woman.
I normally can’t stand vice-free people. They conflate a narcissistic instinct for self-preservation with moral superiority. Plus they suck the life right out of a party.
…I looked out the window and felt old. It was a feeling I’d had a lot lately. But not in a rueful way. If this is how twenty-somethings spent their twenties these days, they could have their twenties. Their thirties, too.
Dead Ground by MW. Craven
Poe had missed something. he didn’t know what, but his second brain, the one that ticked over in the background while his primary brain made rash decisions was working overtime. He recognized the signs, nervous energy and an inability to concentrate on anything.
Soul Taken by Patricia Briggs
“The thing that we thought might end up with Adam dead looks like it will work out okay,” I told her dryly as her feet hit the ground again. “We have another situation to replace it that might end up with Adam dead. Or me dead. Or maybe the whole pack. But at least we solved one deadly situation before we picked up another one.”
“Business as usual,” said Tad.
Heaven’s River by Dennis E. Taylor
All actions have risks. Most inactions even more so.
What it lacks in elegance, it makes up for with wads of unearned optimism. Let’s do it.
Sadly, it was like most political arguments. No one was willing to debate their base assumptions, or justify them, or compromise on them. The simple tactic being that if you repeated your assertion often enough, with enough emotion and volume, the opponents would somehow be forced to see things your way.
Podkin One-Ear by Kieran Larwood
“Stories belong to the teller,” says the bard. “At least half of them do. The other part belongs to the listeners. When a good story is told to a good listener, the pair of them own it together.”
(Image by DaModernDaVinci from Pixabay)
Music Monday's originated at The Tattooed Book Geek's fantastic blog and has shown up hither, thither, and yon since then.
I’m not the biggest fan of the original, but I really dig a good cover of this song—Haim‘s and Tourniquet‘s come to mind as examples. And now, this:
For U.S.-types, Happy Independent Bookstore Day!! Be sure to venture forth and take advantage of the fun in your area. I actually have 3 choices to go to today (and, yes, I’m tempted to hit all three, but time and money prevent that). This month has not been good for my To Be Read mountain, and I don’t think today will help a lot.
(non-U.S.-types should go and visit your local indie shop, too.)
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:
A novel experience: Why small bookstores are thriving in Canada—this seems to be a good day to celebrate those stores north of the border, too.
There’s a revolution happening in children’s publishing—you can thank the book bans—the Law of Unintended Consequences has teeth
Yes, It’s Okay to Throw Away a Book: We love acquiring, hoarding, and displaying books even more than we love reading them—That subtitle is a bit much, but the rest of the piece is worth a read. Unconvincing, I think.
The literary romantic holiday that should replace Valentine’s Day.—this one also seems like a bit of a stretch, but I’m inclined to be swayed.
Shakespeare and Fanfiction: Despite an enduring slice of audience that treats his work as precious and mythic, most Shakespeare fans have rarely met an adaptive concept they didn’t like.
The Unexpected Resurrection of Harlan Ellison
The Heyday of Pulp Fiction: Keith Roysdon on the heroes and villains of American pop culture, introduced to millions of readers in cheap magazines.
Encyclopedia Brown: A Story for My Brother, Philip Seymour Hoffman
How to Read More—Armed With a Book brings a fresh idea or two to this perennial topic.
Brian Bilston is “fed up with people pointing out all the mistakes in my poetry” and responds with Pedants—absolutely worth the read.
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
It looks like whatever was distracting me from blogging in April 2014 started to wane, and I managed to note the publication of a few books that looked promising (I read at least 3 of them—all 3 winners)
The Dragon Business by Kevin J. Anderson
Attack The Geek: A Ree Reyes Side-Quest by Michael R. Underwood
The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham
Heaven’s Queen by Rachel Bach
Dawn’s Early Light by Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris
This Week’s New Release that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Next of Kin by Samantha Jayne Allen—Annie McIntyre’s third adventure finds her looking into a client’s family history and stirring up dust that causes problems for her and the client in the present. Looking forward to diving into this one.
