Tag: Saturday Miscellany Page 43 of 54

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Physical-book sales are staging a comeback after many years of decline — I’ve posted this kind of thing before, but it’s still good to see
• Literary fiction readers understand others’ emotions better, study finds — the details on this are important, and I’m wondering what genre titles were used. Still, intriguing.
• Why I Review Everything I Read — I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, almost to the letter — which is kind of scary. One author asked me why I do the book blog thing, and I’ve been trying to answer her. Will just forward her this (and the next) link.
• Amateur book reviews – my thoughts — Fictionfile nails it.
• 6 Reasons Why It’s Important To Read Books You Hate — Co-sign, especially #5

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• The Barista’s Guide To Espionage by Dave Sinclair — Fahrenheit Press has another off-the-beaten-path crime/thriller novel out this week, champing at the bit for this one.
• I mistakenly listed this earlier in the month, whoops! Here’s where it belongs: Repo Madness by W. Bruce Cameron — I did not expect The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man to get a sequel, it didn’t need one. But I’ll gladly read it.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to Real Tasty Pages for following the blog this week. Thanks to katknit for the interaction.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Why Book Clubs Matter in the Age of Tablets — I’m way too introverted to take part in one, but Book Clubs sound pretty cool.
• Then again…How to Start a Parent-Child Book Club
• A Message to Students: Don’t Forget Reading Is Fun — I’m making my kids read this (irony alert), you should, too
• The Sad, Strange Histories of Some of the Most Famous Kids in Literature — learned a thing or three here.
• Breaking up with books is so very hard to do for those who are avid readers — yup
• A Literary Drinking Game — I think some of these could literally kill you.

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• Rise the Dark by Michael Koryta — Koryta’s fantastic and the predecessor to this blew me away, this is going to rock.
• Dead to Rites by Ari Marmell — 1930’s Urban Fantasy — just a fun series
• The Eternity Fund by Liz Monument — something a little “out there” even by Fahrenheit’s standards
• Invasive by Chuck Wendig — techno-ish thriller that sounds like it could be an episode of Fringe, but stranger.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to BusinessandBook and DPNews for following the blog this week.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye — skimpy list this week, but what’re you gonna do? You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Why reading with your kids is more important now than ever — Kate DiCamillo has some really good insights here (and some less-good ones).
• No, you can’t borrow that book, and no, I don’t want to borrow yours either. — I’m more willing to borrow/lend than Mr. Clark is — but I get his thinking.
• Homage to George Orwell: BBC statue wins planning permission
• Lauren Graham reveals Talking As Fast As I Can book cover — not really sure why I’m including this, but I only had 3 items on the list, so might as well (and yeah, going to read the thing — her semi-autobiographical novel was pretty good, this probably will be, too).

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• How to Party With an Infant by Kaui Hart Hemmings — a new book from The Descendants‘s author
• I mentioned this a couple of weeks ago, but apparently it was released this week. Whoops. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff — after The Lotus War I’ve gotta give whatever he puts out a shot. Doesn’t hurt that this looks really good.
• Killer Instincts by Linden Chase — a creepy looking mystery from Fahrenheit Press

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Neil Gaiman on Why We Read and What Books Do for the Human Experience — Brain Pickings walk us through the highlights of a Gaiman piece from his new collection. You want to read this.
• Read Books, Live Longer? — I’d like to see the details on this research, but . . . living longer sounds good — about the only way I can start to catch up on my TBR pile.
• How To Read A Book And Walk At The Same Time — I’ve done this (it can be tricky), used to do it a lot, really. But I never put this much thought into it. Probably should have.
• Reading Lessons I Learned from GILMORE GIRLS — Cute, but not exhaustive. I’m sure there are many more lessons that Rory could teach us all.
• Imagine There’s No Fiction — This post from Mysteristas needs more eyeballs.
• 10 Famous Writers Reimagined as Professional Wrestlers

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon. Okay, that’s a lie — I don’t have time for all these this month (ignoring the stack of things on my shelf and Kindle I do need to get to) — you probably won’t see these soon, you’ve either seen them here, or maybe later this year. But I’d like to read them all now.:
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: The Official Script Book of the Original West End Production Special Rehearsal Edition by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, John Tiffany — Good thing that I mentioned this, right? None of you has heard of it. Picked up my copy today, I may get to it this coming week (assuming I have the time and my daughter lets me near it)
• Blood of the Earth by Faith Hunter — I blabbed about this before, if this isn’t the best thing that Hunter’s done, it’s in the running. I just hope book 2 is almost as strong.
• Repo Madness by W. Bruce Cameron — I did not expect The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man to get a sequel, it didn’t need one. But I’ll gladly read it.
• Enter Title Here by Rahul Kanakia — No, that’s not my placeholder text, that’s the actual title. It’s supposedly Gossip Girl meets House of Cards, but looks better than that.
• Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky — a subversive traditional fantasy. If it’s 60% as good as Jeff Somers says that it is, I’ve gotta give it a shot.
• Amaryllis and Other Stories by Carrie Vaughn — I like non-Kitty Norville Vaughn stuff, just not as much. Still, this collection of her shorter works from across genres seems pretty appealing.
• The Hike by Drew Magary — Wired says: “It’s kind of a more cynical version of The Phantom Tollbooth mixed with a game of Dungeons & Dragons.” ‘Nuff said.
• The Bad Decisions Playlist by Michael Rubens — a little more YA material. I liked Rubens’ SF work from a couple of years ago, will give this a glance when I can.
• The Coaster by Erich Wurster — Again, I’ve already talked about this, so read that if you’d like. This first novel is promising enough to make you want more from Wurster.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to alittlebirdtweets, kmelerine , and Peter Ranger for following the blog this week.

Second week in a row that I’m late with this…blame my wife insisting that I should interact with people in this “Real World” she keeps going on about. Oh, and sleep — my chief foe (and welcoming friend).

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• NPR asks: Can Serialized Fiction Convert Binge Watchers Into Binge Readers?
• Jeff Noon Signs with Angry Robot for Two Book Deal — it was ’95 I think that I read Noon’s Vurt, and there are parts of it I still remember. I’ve intended to, but haven’t gotten around to reading anything else by him. But I will read these.
• The Man Who Invented Fiction review – what we owe to Cervantes — has anyone out there actually read Cervantes? Is there a translation I should try for my umpteenth attempt?
• The Way Into Audio — Connolly’s wonderful The Way Into fantasy series is coming to Audiobooks, which means the one person I was most sure would like it will be more likely to give it a shot (and many others will be exposed, too). I haven’t encountered the Narrator before, but looking at his credits, he’s no slouch.
• ‘Iron Druid’ Author Kevin Hearne-on-his Comic Book and New Fantasy Series — squee
• 18 Terrible Book Characters I Will Always Hate — don’t think I can disagree with any of this list.

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• The Summer that Melted Everything by Tiffany McDaniel — I’ve gushed enough about this already, but it’s officially out now — get reading!
• How did I miss Outfoxed by David R last week? Seriously, what’s wrong with me? Andy Carpenter, a dog on the cover, with crime and jokes inside — a recipe for fun.
• Nevernight by Jay Kristoff — after The Lotus War I’ve gotta give whatever he puts out a shot. Doesn’t hurt that this looks really good.
• GUN by The Gun Collective — an experimental, collaborative novel put out my the mavericks over at Fahrenheit Press.
• City of Wolves by Willow Palecek — A “gaslamp fantasy noir” — I’m not really sure what that means (but I have a pretty good idea), but it looks like a fun read.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to Grace Crandall for following the blog this week. Thanks to ThemisAthena for all the encouraging likes and to Bookstooge for catching my BookLikes goof.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Hemingway’s Tough-Love Letter of Advice to F. Scott Fitzgerald on Writing and Turning Suffering into Creative Fuel — Interesting feedback on Fitzgerald’s 2nd best book, IMHO. I loved the line where Hemingway stops himself and says, “It’s a lot better than I say.” I’ve found myself in that place frequently. That’s about as close to Heminway-esque as I’ll achieve.
• What If I’m Actually a Character in a Larry McMurtry Novel? — It’s been decades since I’ve read McMurtry (it was the last century, come to think of it), but this reminded me why I should
• 7 sidekicks that improve anything by A. Lee Martinez — A. Lee Martinez brings us the first of this week’s lists.
• The Guardian gives us the second: Big Dumb Objects: science fiction’s most mysterious MacGuffins
• Five Books About Policing the Supernatural — I’ve actually read at lest one thing from each of these — I think that’s a first. I’ll have to take her word about the Hughes’ series, not sure I’m willing to try that one again.
• Bringing Literary Love Into Your Relationships
• 10 Authors with Tattoos Inspired by Their Own Books — oh, wait, there’s another list, some good ink, too.

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• Nightshades by Melissa F. Olson — Crime Fighting and Vampires — sounds like a good idea from someone (see above) who knows their way around Policing the Supernatural.
• The Dragon Lords: Fool’s Gold by Jon Hollins — the tag line definitely grabs your attention: Guardians of the Galaxy meets The Hobbit in this rollicking fantasy adventure.” And the description makes it sound like it’d be worthwhile seeing if the book is nearly as good.
• Flying by Carrie Jones — looks like I might enjoy spending an afternoon with this, and it could be a new obsession for my Doctor Who loving daughter.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to wanderlustexplored, ThemisAthena and kittensandhumans for following the blog this week.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• The Revival of Print Books Continues — no runaway blockbuster this year (yet?), but better sales over 2015
• The Reading Rules We Would Never Follow as Adult Readers — I have to admit, I’ve been guilty of holding my kids to some of these.
• Winnie-the-Pooh beats Harry Potter in best-loved book character poll — A survey in the UK says ol’ Pooh-Bear is the favorite kids’ book character.
• Is ‘devouring’ books a sign of superficiality in a reader? — I think there’s some good points made here, but I think there’s some fundamental problems.
• How audiobook narrators master their craft — I’ve been really enjoying Scott Brick’s audio work lately, so it was nice to see this piece. Also, enjoyed getting to know a bit more about the industry.
• More Than “Strong”: Why Men Need to Write More Complex Female Characters — A. Lee Martinez, who has written strong females, complex females, and strange females sounds off on the topic.
• His name is ‘Ove,’ he’s cranky, and readers love him — Loved Backman’s second novel, haven’t had the time for this one yet.
• In Praise of Humor in Fantasy and Science Fiction — Martinez is also on this list, with some other notable books.
• Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Reading Science Fiction
• ‘The Phantom Tollbooth’ Would Be Very Different If It Were Written In 2016 — *chuckle*

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• The Innocents by Ace Atkins — Quinn Colson’s back on the job, and there’s a Girl on Fire who isn’t Katniss Everdeen. Sounds like trouble.
• Time Siege by Wesley Chu — a couple of new Chu’s this week — the sequel to and a son. Not that he’ll ever read this, but ‘gratz to him on both counts. Looking forward to devouring the former, and wish the latter well.
• Salvation Lake by G. M. Ford — Leo Watterman is back to remind me that I didn’t get to the last one yet. Oh, I’m sure there’s a good mystery here, too — it’s not all about me 🙂 It seems to involve Leo’s dad, which means things are going to get dark and twisted.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and welcome to Deniz Yalım and bluecloverdust for following the blog this week.

(I got this from Geek & Sundry’s FB page, not sure the exact source)

I’m guessing the 4^th is responsible for the fact that I only gathered 2 links for the Odds ‘n ends bit this week about books and reading. Still, I liked ’em, maybe you will, too:

• Larry Correia had a great post about writers’ extra-curricular activities — in short, Larry Correia, George R. R. Martin, and their colleagues, are not your bitches.
• 17 Things That Will Take Reading To The Next Level — I could use some of these, for sure

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• Sacrifices by Jamie Schultz — I’ve been waiting for this one since about 10 minutes after I finished last year’s Splintered.
• The Last Adventure of Constance Verity by A. Lee Martinez — Martinez is a long-time fave around these parts, and for him to kick off an actual series is cause for joy. (cool looking book, too)
• Heroine Complex by Sarah Kuhn — if you haven’t heard the buzz about this one, I’m astounded. Good job, you. But man, the concept and the buzz make me want to read it.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Neil Gaiman Delves Deep Into Norse Myths for New Book
• Why I still love actual paper books — Alexis Boncy nails it.
• Reading should be about pleasure, not points or prizes
• The Evolution of the Book, Animated –Brain Pickings bring us a nifty TED-Ed video, and many other interesting links.
• A Brief History of the Audiobook — and more educational material — I learned something here.
• Confessions of a Reader: The Classics I’ve Never Read — “Life’s too short to be ashamed of the books you haven’t read.”
• Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned From Reading Fantasy — yeah, sure, almost every lesson here is horribly wrong — but it’s a fun list 🙂
• How To Tell If You Are In A J.R.R. Tolkien Book — Just in case you’ve ever wondered
• Bookish insults — Short and to the point, funny
• Hard-Core Bookish Insults — BookLikes thought this was a good post, and then made it better. Or, at the very least, longer.

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• A Hundred Thousand Worlds by Bob Proehl — where geekdom and literature collide, apparently. It sounds pretty cool to me, for more, listen to this Once & Future Podcast episode and/or read this Big Idea post. I’m hoping to post about this soon. Y’know, once I read the thing.
• Granted by Michelle Merrill — blah
• Let There Be Linda by Rich Leder — a very strong and strange black comedy, you might have noticed the 200 posts here the other day about it. Give it a shot.
• The Quest for Merlin: Magimakía by Rafael Lovato — the first installment in a new YA trilogy
• In Twenty Years by Allison Winn Scotch — a Big Chill-esque novel that’ll be charming, thoughtful, semi-depressing, and tinged with hope. Or so I guess, that seems to be Allison Winn Scotch’s thing.

Odds ‘n ends over the week about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

• Pulp Friction: If Barnes & Noble goes out of business, it’ll be a disaster for book lovers. — well, this is depressing
• Library Of Congress Collection Of “Profoundly Influential” American Books Is Eclectic, But Not All That Diverse — very interesting list, even if you’re not ga-ga over the post’s take on it.
• Women Are Writing the Best Crime Novels: They don’t seem to believe in heroes as much as their male counterparts, which in some ways makes their storytelling a better fit for the times. — huh
• 11 Great Publisher Names and Where they Came From — another piece this week where the title says it all, what am I supposed to do with these?
• 7 Geeky Love Stories That Prove Nerd Love Is The Best Love — basically, a shopping list for my daughter.
• Cover Reveal: Children of the Different — Friend of the Blog, S. C. Flynn, is one step closer to releasing his first novel by revealing his cover. I don’t know what I expected it to look like, but it wasn’t this — this is so much better.
• The Ultimate Reader’s Guide to Whiskey — infographic for the week. Very handy.

This Week’s New Releases I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
• The Pursuit by Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg — The 5th installment in the Fox and O’Hare series. It’s one of the most entertaining series going, and I can’t imagine that this is anything but good.
• Play Nice by Michael Guillebeau — how do you not want to read something described as “an Elmore Leonard-style Nancy Drew story”?
• Waypoint Kangaroo by Curtis C. Chen — a thriller with SF elements and a sense of humor. Sounds Perfect.
• New Pompeii by Daniel Godfrey — killer concept.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and thanks to bensbitterblog and Karen for the feedback — I really appreciate that.