Miscellany - The Irresponsible Reader

The Friday 56 for 4/7/23: The Raven Thief by Gigi Pandian

On April 7, 2023

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
The Friday 56 Grab a book, any book.
Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
Find a snippet, short and sweet.
Post it.

from Page 56 of:
The Raven Thief

The Raven Thief by Gigi Pandian

“I think she means,” said Sanjay, “that the killer could have run away, and now they’re getting farther away.”

“We all know that’s not what happened,” Kumiko said. then muted her phone so the 9-1-1 dispatcher wouldn’t hear what she said next. “This wasn’t an outsider. It was one of us.”

For the next seven seconds, the only sound in the room was the breathing of its stressed-out occupants.

Highlights from March: Lines Worth Repeating

By HCNewton

On April 5, 2023

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations

Highlights from the Month
I clearly read a lot of ARCs this month, most of what I can quote from here are audiobooks. There’s a theme about books and reading, which is nice, there hasn’t been one for a while, however accidental those themes are, I like when I can find one.

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

Wasn’t sanity like beauty, in the eye of the beholder?

Darkness, Take My Hand by Dennis Lehane

Don’t knock voyeurism. American culture wouldn’t exist without it.

We walked off the bridge and headed east along the river path. It was early evening and the air was the color of scotch and the trees had a burnished glow, the smoky dark gold of the sky contrasted starkly with the explosion of cherry reds, lime greens, and bright yellows in the canopies of leaves stretched above us.

You Took the Last Bus Home by Brian Bilston

Yeah, no. If I started I wouldn’t be able to stop.

Justice Calling by Annie Bellet

A girl needs options. To me, video games are like shoes. But with more pixels and a plot.
“We could always nerd the guy to death, I suppose,” Levi said.

“Ooh, yeah, new torture technique. We’ll make him watch nothing but Highlander II and Star Trek V!”

Levi hit the brakes and executed the quickest three- point turn I ever want to experience ever, or make that never, again.

Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide (to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons) by Quenby Olson

(Diana’s husband, the sort who lived behind a newspaper or a book or any sort of reading wall that was meant to deter people from approaching in an oh- look- he’s- reading- I’ll- not- bother- him sort of way. This, of course, did not always work, as some people [re: Diana] took the presence of reading material to mean that the person reading was obviously bored and most likely pining away for the company of others [i.e., Diana when she was in need of a receptacle for her general complaints about life and motherhood] and would certainly have no compunction against setting aside their book with eagerness to listen.)

With a sigh that carried a lifetime’s weight of disrespect and disregard and several other words beginning with a similar prefix, Mildred picked up the last of her drooping toast and pushed her chair back from the table.

Mornings were never welcome. Mildred understood their place in the world; everything must have a beginning of some sort, and things like days and weeks and years and even time could not be exempt from that. But mornings weighed on her like a burden, like a trial to be endured before she could arrive at the legitimate part of the day, with the sun fully risen and the birds already digesting their ill-gotten worms.

“So.” Mr. Wiggan looked at her. But, oh, the amount of words, the pages of description and venting of thoughts and feelings and sympathies in that single syllable.

She didn’t much care for many of the books in the study. Neither her sister nor her brother-in-law were great readers, and so the volumes stored there served more as accessories to the room rather than how Mildred believed a personal library should exist: as pieces of the curator’s character, bound and shelved but available to be read again and again, like memories brought out and pored over until they were rounded down as smooth as pebbles.

Did one read books while travelling? Of course people read books while traveling. Books had no boundaries, no sense of home or place. They were the entire world, printed in a form one could slip into one’s pocket (Well, if the pockets were large enough, which they generally were not. Mildred made a pact with herself then and there to make certain that every future gown and apron she sewed for herself came complete with at least two pockets large enough and sturdy enough to carry most medium-sized volumes.)

The sound that issued from Mr. Simonon’s throat was not something that could easily be transcribed into written English. (German, no doubt, would have a word in its lexicon capable of expressing the particular kind of pain he was experiencing. But as Mr. Simonon was not familiar with that specific branch of Teutonic languages, his unintelligible and agonized warbling would have to suffice.)

Now that Mildred was sufficiently fed and rested after her exhaustion the previous day, her own anxiety took that as a sign that it should make a return, as if it feared she might be lonely without it.

The Green Ember by S.D. Smith

Growing up is terribly wonderful. But often it’s also wonderfully terrible.

He believed he had always tried to achieve peace and was sad that he so often had to find it at the end of his sword.

Death at Paradise Palms by Steph Broadribb

No one shouts to say Lizzie shouldn’t be there. They barely glance at her. That’s the benefit of being in your sixties – you’re seen as unthreatening and assumed to be doing what you’re meant to where you’re meant to be doing it. As she’s recently started to discover, assumptions like that make it so much easier to break the rules.

Golden Son by Pierce Bron

Home isn’t where you’re from, it’s where you find light when all grows dark.

I would not have raised you to be a great man. There is no peace for great men. I would have had you be a decent one. I would have given you the quiet strength to grow old with the woman you love.

Friendships take minutes to make, moments to break, years to repair.

He always thinks because I’m reading, I’m not doing anything. There is no greater plague to an introvert than the extroverted.

Please Return to the Lands of Luxury by Jon Tilton

“Books don’t just have stories on the inside.” Chloe smiled. “Some wear is beautiful. It shows the journey to this very moment.”

Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Wasman

When the body experiences a sudden shock, it actually freezes for one twenty-fifth of a second and then deploys intense psychological curiosity, mobilizing every neuron and nerve, every sense, every possible input to work out exactly what just happened. In a microsecond or two the brain gathers the intel, sorts it, analyzes it, cross-references it, and is ready to issue directions for what to do next. It’s a miracle, really, and while it might not definitively prove the existence of God, it certainly deserves an enthusiastic round of applause.

As always, the food made everything better. Dogs and good food, universal improvers.

“I expected adult life to be long stretches of mastery, occasionally interrupted by a steep learning curve of chaos and excitement. But I learned recently it’s the other way around.” She looked at Laura and shrugged. “But what can you do?”

Laura narrowed her eyes, “You’re very philosophical.”

Nina looked around for the waitress. “Nah. I’m clutching at straws like you. I’m simply older and more resigned to it.”

“To what?”

“To life.”

“You’re resigned to life?”

“Better than resigning from it.”

(Image by DaModernDaVinci from Pixabay)

WWW Wednesday, April 5, 2023

By HCNewton

On April 5, 2023

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

Didn’t I just do one of these two days ago? I guess not. Thankfully, there’s been some movement here and the books have done a better job of changing than they have lately. Hope I can keep that up!

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?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading the follow-up to last year’s Pay Dirt Road, Hard Rain by Samantha Jayne Allen, and am having a blast listening to All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (Narrator) on audiobook. I remembered it being great, but not this great.

Blank Space

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Seanan McGuire’s Backpacking Through Bedlam and I finally bit the bullet and tried All Systems Red by Martha Wells, Kevin R. Free (Narrator) on audio (and then wondered why I waited).

Blank Space

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be The Raven Thief by Gigi Pandian (I’m already getting excited about the food) and my next audiobook should be The Widower’s Two-Step by Rick Riordan, Tom Stechschulte (Narrator).

Blank Space

How are you kicking off April?

First Quarter Check-In: 2023 Plans and Challenges

By HCNewton

On April 4, 2023

In Books, Calendar Items, Miscellany, News/Misc.

The amount of dread I’m feeling around starting this post is…okay, I’m not sure how to end this sentence. I’m dreading this. I’m pretty sure I’m not in good shape here.

My plans this year focused on the two series that I’ve started–Literary Locals and Grandpappy’s Corner–both of which are doing okay (sure, there’s the Classic Spenser series that I meant to get back to–I still have time). Then there’s the perennial, “Cut down on my Goodreads Want-to-Read list and the unread books that I own.” How am I doing on that?

	Audio	E-book	Physical	Goodreads Want-to-Read
End of 2022	5	45	42	143
Current Total	4	44	54	142

Let’s see how I’m doing with the rest of my plans and move on to the Reading Challenges…
2023 Book Challenges

Goodreads Challenge

12 Books
This year’s selections are still looking good–I’m a little behind on the reading, and more behind on the writing. Still, I think I’m doing okay on this.

2023 While I was Reading

I could be doing a little better on this—as usual, I’m not really planning the books for this challenge. When October hits, if I haven’t read everything on the list, I’ll get serious about hunting.

A book with a protagonist over 40.:
A book considered a classic.:
A graphic novel.:
A book that has been banned or challenged.:
A book set in a place on your bucket list.:
A book published before you were born.:
A book related to a goal you have for 2023.:
A book by an author of color.:
A book with a clever title.:
A book by a famous author you’ve never read:
A non-fiction book about a topic you love.:
A novella: Bad Memory by Jim Cliff

Your TBR Reduction Book Challenge

I’m on-target for this one (as much as I can be), and have even got a couple of the Stretch Goals accomplished.
January – End to end temptation I give you permission to read the most recent book you have got on top of your TBR. For many this is one we only get to read eventually but for now I want you to pick up the newest book in Mount TBR and read it. Can you remember the last time you did that? It’s a good habit to get into and January is all about starting good habits: The Perception of Dolls by Anthony Croix, Edited by Russell Day
Stretch Goal – Read the oldest book in Mount TBR it has waited long enough: Bartleby and James: Edwardian Steampunk Chronicle by Michael Coorlim
February – Short steps For the shortest month of the year I want you to read 28 short stories. This can be a TBR collection, anthology or even backlog of magazines that you have. Life is fast but use this challenge to appreciate the skill of the short story writer. Play your skills right you may get more than one book read this way. eh…I get partial credit for this, Noirville contained every short story I had unread, but it’s only fifteen stories. I did read extra novellas for the Stretch Goal, though. So I’m calling this okay?
Stretch Goal – Read four novellas one for each week of the month. Bad Memory by Jim Cliff, Anna and the Vampire Prince by Jeanne C. Stein, and Broken by Don Winslow (which is six novellas).
March – Fresh Starts This time for the beginning of spring you need to start a series you have never read before. Release this work from Mount TBR! Justice Calling by Annie Bellet

Beat the Backlist Reading Challenge;

I’ve got 2 of the 24 categories taken care of. So, I guess I’m behind–but I do have many of the rest picked out. I just need to set some time aside to knock those out.

five word title (only 5 words, count ’em up!)
won an award (the book won an award. any award!)
meant to read it last year (a book you planned to get to in 2022 and didn’t) The Night Watch by Neil Lancaster
giving an author a second chance (an author (or specific book) you previously didn’t jive with )
an author writing under a pseudonym (the author(s) is not writing under their real name)
2022 debut novel (an author’s first book that released in 2022)
standalone (the book has no prequels/sequels)
bought and forgot it (a book you bought (or borrowed) and forgot about it)
plants on the cover (any kind of plant on the cover is fair game)
first in a trilogy (the book is the first of three)
name in the title (the title has a character name in it)
set on a continent you don’t live on (the story is set on a continent (or heavily inspired by a place on a continent) you do NOT live on)

it’s a trope! (your favorite) (pick your favorite trope and read a book featuring it)
less than 170 pages (make sure it’s a short one!) – Bartleby and James: Edwardian Steampunk Chronicle by Michael Coorlim
released at least 23 years ago (that’s right, we’re taking it back to the 90’s (release dates in 1999 or before))
protagonist name starts with “M” (the main character has a name beginning with “M”)
graphic novel outside your fave genre (find a graphic novel that isn’t in one of your favorite genres)
recommended by a bookseller (ask your local bookseller for a recommendation! if you don’t have a local store, there are plenty with social media accounts to reach out to)
letter “z” in the title (the letter “z” appears somewhere in the title)
all about music or the arts (the story revolves around music or the arts in some way)
protagonist has a pet (any pet will do)
more than 450 pages (grab a tome and get reading!)
your favorite genre (a book that falls in your favorite genre)
main cover color is your least favorite color (find a book prominently featuring your least favorite color on the cover)

I’ve got about half of my list for this drafted, but I’ll save the details until later. Besides, knowing me, I’ll go through four more drafts anyway.

Basically, I’ve got my work cut out for me here.
(Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay)

Saturday Miscellany—4/1/23

By HCNewton

On April 1, 2023

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Before we kick things off today, a quick announcement: due to the success of such things as my Grandpappy’s Corner series where I read picture books (and the like), I’m starting a new series this month—A Latter-Day Victorian Reads Erotica (logo forthcoming). It’ll kick off Monday with a deep dive into the works of E. L. James, and it’ll get racier from there.

And now on to our regularly scheduled offerings (a big thanks to Celeste’s A Literary Escape for all the help with this week’s offerings!):
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:
bullet Welcome to Brandon Sanderson’s Fantasy Empire—Esquire‘s Adam Morgan didn’t set off as much controversy as his colleague at Wired did last week. I’m still Sanderson-agnostic, but it’s stuff like this that makes me not want to be.
bullet Guinness names four-year-old boy world’s youngest author—Awwww
bullet Literary baby names ranked from least to most cringey.—this is a handy list for prospective/expecting parents. Or just fun to read for whoever.
bullet An Interview With Tao Wong!—K.R.R. Lockhaven chats “with Tao Wong about cozy fantasy, food in books, and Kickstarter projects”
bullet Constructing Doom in Eli Cranor’s DON’T KNOW TOUGH—Paul J. Garth breaks down a pivotal scene (maybe the pivotal scene) in Cranor’s novel. If you’ve read the book, this is a rewarding look. If you haven’t—stay away from this post until you’ve corrected your mistake.
bullet Crazy Jobs 5 Famous Female Authors Had Before Writing—(I’m a little jealous of Octavia Butler, I’m sure the reality doesn’t match the fantasy around that job title, but man…)
bullet I don’t (often) talk about adaptations, but how do you not get excited about this announcement from Edgar Wright?
bullet Let’s Talk Bookish – Do Genres Change Over Time?—As I usually do when it comes to Let’s Talk Bookish prompts, I ran out of time to scribble anything in response. I think it’d have looked like a less thoughtful version of Peat Long’s had I managed to.
bullet The Absurd Infantilisation of Children’s Literature—The Orangutan Librarian starts with the hatchet job taken to Dahl’s works and moves on from there.
bullet Why I disagree with the Bowdlerisation of Agatha Christie by HarperCollins—Mike Finn nails it
bullet What I’ve learnt from reading fiction – part 9—as always, I love these posts.
bullet Reading is a radical act
bullet Five Science Fiction Book Recommendations for Beginners—a good starter list. Also a decent list of SF reads for people who aren’t beginners
bullet How the Pandemic Changed My Reading Experience
bullet Have Book Bloggers Been “Deinfluencers” All Along?
bullet How To Work With Book Bloggers [Marketing Tips]—I can think of a few authors I’d like to send this post to if I could only figure out a way to do it without being/coming across as a twerp
bullet On Story-Savvy Audiences and Obviousness—this is incredibly important for the Thriller/Mystery community (but holds for every genre)

A Little Help for Our Friend
bullet Kickstarter: Mrs. Covington’s: A Cozy Fantasy Novel—It’s at 81 percent with 11 days to go, if you haven’t kicked in yet, why not do it today? Pretty please?

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet Know Thy Enemy by Jeffery H. Haskell—Grimm and the crew of the Interceptor are back in death-defying action
bullet Infinity Gate by M.R. Carey—”genre-defying story of humanity’s expansion across millions of dimensions—and the AI technology that might see it all come to an end.”
bullet Strictly No Heroics by B.L. Radley—”a normal teen girl must navigate crushing on her best friend, starting a new summer job, and not being squashed during the next supervillain showdown in B.L. Radley’s young adult debut filled with humor and heart.”

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Hilarey, who followed the blog this week. I hope you enjoy the content and keep coming back.

AMENDED: Book Blogger Hop: Are Books a Must-Have in Your Home?

By HCNewton

On March 31, 2023

In Book Blogger Hop, Books, News/Misc.

My sister’s 2¢ arrived after I posted this, but I didn’t want to leave her out (I left her out of enough things when we were kids, I need to stop that*).

* That’s a joke obviously—my little sister was the cool one, I was the one with the books.

Book Blogger Hop

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Are books a must-have in your home?

This seemed like a no-brainer of a question to answer, but I was fairly certain that whatever I ended up saying would sound a lot like something I’ve said before, so I decided to crowdsource the answer and reached out to family and friends asking them to respond to, “Are books a must-have in my home?” Here are their responses:

Steve
I’ve heard of a Chinese proverb, something like “never ask a fish about water.”

I would suppose that’s because a fish doesn’t know how important water is until it’s removed from it.

I pray you never have to be removed from printed words and their life-giving nourishment.

Steve’s known me longer than anyone who doesn’t share my last name or DNA, he knows whereof he speaks

Rosemarie
My first inclination is to go full Sicilian with my answer. I’ll be polite though and ask you, “Che cavolo dici?”

Must-have…are we talking defined as an essential or highly desirable item? Let me ask you these questions in return. Does Stephanie Plum need Janet Evanovich? Is Charles Portis essential for Reuben J. Cogburn? How about Atticus, Jem, and Scout? Was Harper Lee essential to them? Would Mr. Darcy be desirable if not for Jane Austen? Would Lucy and Mr. Tumnus ever meet if not Lewis? What would H.C. have named his children if not for the books in his home?

Yes, I would say books are essential in H.C.’s home. But then I have always had a flair for the obvious.

Victor
Home? I thought he lived in a library branch!

Nicole
Initial reaction to this question
Obviously

Paul
“Are books a must-have in your home?” Does a fish need water? Car need gas….or electricity?? A camel need a hump? Or 2?? Peanut butter need jelly?? Elvis need Pike? Spenser need Hawk?? Quinn need Lily?? Rebus need Shiv?? A house of yours without books would be like the vacuum of space, nothingness hurtling at the speed of light in all directions, nothingness in chaos with nothingness…utter senselessness, utterly!!

Nisha
Yes!!

(I really hoped to have a paragraph or two, especially since I like to poke fun and be rotten. However, time and creativity escaped me!)

I was hoping for something more, honestly, but so were they. Figured Nisha would bring the funny, as they rarely pass up the chance to be rotten to their uncle–but I’ve been there, time and creativity are harsh and finicky mistresses. And, hey, “Yes!!” is accurate.

Carleigh, my daughter
Obviously

I’m sensing a theme.

Owen, my oldest
He just sent me this FB screenshot from when we were preparing to move a couple of years ago:
Obviously

A long day of work and being the family IT tech got the better of him, and he had to go with a practical answer.

My Sister
Are marshmallows a must-have for s’mores?
Is water a must-have for fish?
Is a flame a must-have for a fire?
Is oxygen a must-have to breathe?

I’m no expert on any of these things except s’mores and maybe breathing. But, I’m pretty sure books are as essential in H.C.’s home as any of these!

I would say they go together like rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong.

Be grateful that I’m not a BookTuber or a podcaster, no one wants to hear what that would’ve sounded like.)

My Dad
Q: Are books a must-have in H.C.’s home?

A: Absolutely! Yes, unless H.C. can totally reinvent himself and his home, family, and life. What kind of book? Probably doesn’t matter that much.

My Wife
That’s like asking if food, water, and clothing are must-haves.

My Mom (who goes last because she got serious and earnest about it)

H.C. has never lived without books in his home. He was read to and told stories from the time he was born.

At age 3 his readers weren’t always able to read to him when he wanted so he began reading on his own. He proved that he was truly reading, not just reciting books that had been read to him, when he began reading the local newspaper to himself. His appetite for books has continually grown. As his mother, I learned that I needed to read whatever books he was reading at the time so I could continue to talk to him about topics that were important and interesting to him. I ended up reading different genres (is that the right word?) of books than I would have on my own and found interesting topics and styles of writing. He outgrew me in High School with reading and requiring books to keep exploring and learning and enjoying. Fortunately, he had access to libraries since there were only so many places to shelve books in his home. He reads and re-reads books because he enjoyed them so much the first time. He remembers who wrote what book/s. He remembers the content of books he read yesterday, last month, and 30 years ago. He knows what books to recommend to or give to family members based on their interests. He treats books and their authors with respect and awe. He sees books as friends, as pathways to learning, and as entertainment. He shares books and his love of books with people he cares about as well as with people he doesn’t know. He thrives on books challenging him. The question of books being a must-have in H.C.’s home is not even a question. Makes as much sense as asking if H.C.’s body needs air, water, and food.

Oh, look, another theme.

What about you—is a house a home without a book?

The Friday 56 for 3/31/23: Hacked by Duncan MacMaster

By HCNewton

On March 31, 2023

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
The Friday 56 Grab a book, any book.
Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
Find a snippet, short and sweet.
Post it.

I’ve been reading a lot of ARCs lately, so nothing I can quote from, but MacMaster talking about editing book 3 in this series got me thinking about it. Ergo…

from Page 56 of:
Hacked

Hacked by Duncan MacMaster

“Let’s change the subject.”

“Well,” she said, “the rumours about you being kidnappig have really given interest in your books a big shot in the arm.”

“At least it was good for something,” I said.

I ordered breakfast, Geetha told me she already ate, so I only ordered for myself. I ordered big, waffles and Sausages with real maple syrup, coffee, and orange juice. I normally didn’t eat this big in the morning, but kidnappings really worked up an appetite.

Book Blogger Hop: Are Books a Must-Have in Your Home?

By HCNewton

On March 29, 2023