mahsdad's (Jeff) 2022 Thread - Q1

Welcome to 2022 and my little corner of the world.

If you're new, my name is Jeff. I live in Southern California. I'm an avid reader. My wife might say I'm bordering on the obsessive. But then, I think that could apply to a lot of us in this group. I also enjoy photography, movies, hiking and playing games and hanging out with my family. Book-wise, I have a pretty eclectic taste in what I read and I hope to give you not so much reviews but my impressions about what I read.

What you will find here is mostly my rambling, way too many (according to some :) ) Wishlist and TBR pile temptations and a smattering of my photography. I don't really make a plan for what I'm going to read thru out the year. Its mostly what strikes my fancy from the TBR piles.

Past 75 Threads : 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Come on in and sit a spell...

2022 Statistics - Q1

A - Audio
ER - Early Review
GN - Graphic Novel
K - Kindle
LL - Life's Library

March
20. Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Dana :
19. Juneteenth by Ralph Ellison (A) :
18. Children of Dune by Frank Herbert (A) :
17. City of Secrets by Stewart O'Nan (A) :
16. Blindsight by Peter Watts (A) :
15. The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade (K) :
Favorite : City of Secrets


February
14. The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O by Neal Stephenson (A) :
13. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess :
12. The Princess Game by Soman Chainani (K) :
11. Speak by Louisa Hall :
10. Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut (A) :
Favorite : A Clockwork Orange


January
9. The Cold Millions by Jess Walter :
8. The Big Trip Up Yonder by Kurt Vonnegut (A) :
7. Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert (A) :
6. Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (A) :
5. Rosewater by Tade Thompson (LL) :
4. Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches by John Hodgman (A):
3. Gods without Men by Hari Kunzru :
2. Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone :
1. Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing by Neal Stephenson (A) :
Favorite : The Cold Millions

Audiobook Narrators

Jeff Cummings - Some Remarks

John Hodgman - Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches

James Marsters - Fool Moon

Simon Vance - Dune Messiah, Children of Dune

Phil Chenevert - The Big Trip Up Yonder

David Strathairn
Maria Tucci
Bill Irwin
Tony Roberts
Dylan Baker - Welcome to the Monkey House

T. Ryder Smith - Blindsight

Edoardo Ballerini - City of Secrets

Joe Morgan - Juneteenth

Pulitzer's Read

Ongoing bucket list to read all the Pulitzer winning novels. Santa was very good to me this year on this front, so I got plenty to work with

Bold : On the Shelf
Strikeout : Completed

Total Read - 33
2021 - The Night Watchman
2020 - The Nickel Boys
2019 - The Overstory
2018 - Less
2017 - Underground Railroad
2016 - The Sympathizer
2015 - All the Light We Cannot See
2014 - The Goldfinch
2013 - The Orphan Master's Son
2012 - NO AWARD
- Swamplandia - Nominee
2011 - A Visit from the Goon Squad
2010 - Tinkers
2009 - Olive Kitterridge
2008 - The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
2007 - The Road
2006 - March
2005 - Gilead
2004 - The Known World
2003 - Middlesex
2002 - Empire Falls
2001 - The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
2000 - The Interpreter of Maladies
1999 - The Hours
1998 - American Pastoral
1997 - Martin Dressler: The Tale of an American Dreamer
1996 - Independence Day
1995 - The Stone Diaries
1994 - The Shipping News
1993 - A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain
1992 - A Thousand Acres
- My Father Bleeds History (Maus) (Special Awards & Citations - Letters)
1991 - Rabbit at Rest
1990 - The Mambo Kings
1989 - Breathing Lessons
1988 - Beloved DNF
1987 - A Summons to Memphis
1986 - Lonesome Dove
1985 - Foreign Affairs
1984 - Ironweed
1983 - The Color Purple
1982 - Rabbit is Rich
1981 - A Confederacy of Dunces
1980 - The Executioner's Song
1979 - The Stories of John Cheever
1978 - Elbow Room
1977 - NO AWARD
1976 - Humboldt's Gift
1975 - The Killer Angels
1974 - NO AWARD
1973 - The Optimist's Daughter
1972 - Angle of Repose
1971 - NO AWARD
1970 - The collected Stories of Jean Stafford
1969 - House Made of Dawn : DNF
1968 - The Confessions of Nat Turner
1967 - The Fixer
1966 - The Collected Stories of katherine Anne Porter
1965 - The Keepers of the House
1964 - NO AWARD
1963 - The Reivers
1962 - The Edge of Sadness
1961 - To Kill a Mockingbird
1960 - Advise and Consent
1959 - The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters
1958 - A Death in the Family
1957 - NO AWARD
1956 - Andersonville
1955 - A Fable
1954 - NO AWARD
1953 - The Old Man and the Sea
1952 - The Caine Mutiny
1951 - The Town
1950 - The Way West
1949 - Guard of Honor
1948 - Tales of the South Pacific
1947 - All the King's Men
1946 - NO AWARD
1945 - A Bell
1944 - Journey in the Dark
1943 - Dragon's Teeth
1942 - In This Our Life
1941 - NO AWARD
1940 - The Grapes of Wrath
1928 - The Bridge of San Luis Rey

Hugos Read

Ongoing bucket list to read all the Hugo winning novels.

Bold : On the Shelf
Strikeout : Completed

Total Read - 37

2021 - Network Effect
2020 - A Memory Called Empire - Arkady Martine
2019 - The Calculating Stars
2018 - The Stone Sky
2018 - All Systems Red - Novella
2017 - The Obelisk Gate
2016 - The Fifth Season
2015 - The Three-Body Problem
2014 - Ancillary Justice (DNF)
2013 - Redshirts
2012 - Among Others
2011 - Blackout/All Clear
2010 - The Windup Girl
The City & the City
2009 - The Graveyard Book
2008 - The Yiddish Policemen's Union
2007 - Rainbows End
2006 - Spin
2005 - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
2004 - Paladin of Souls
2003 - Hominids
2003 - Coraline (novella)
2002 - American Gods
2001 - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
2000 - A Deepness in the Sky
1999 - To Say Nothing of the Dog
1998 - Forever Peace
1997 - Blue Mars
1996 - The Diamond Age
1995 - Mirror Dance
1994 - Green Mars
1993 - A Fire Upon the Deep
Doomsday Book
1992 - Barrayar
1991 - The Vor Game
1990 - Hyperion
1989 - Cyteen
1988 - The Uplift War
1988 - Watchmen - category : Other forms
1987 - Speaker for the Dead
1986 - Ender's Game
1985 - Neuromancer
1985 - The Crystal Spheres - David Brin - Short Story
1984 - Startide Rising
1983 - Foundation's Edge
1982 - Downbelow Station
1981 - The Snow Queen
1980 - The Fountains of Paradise
1979 - Dreamsnake
1978 - Gateway
1977 - Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang
1976 - The Forever War
1975 - The Dispossessed
1974 - Rendezvous with Rama
1973 - The Gods Themselves
1972 - To Your Scattered Bodies Go
1971 - Ringworld
1970 - Left Hand of Darkness
1969 - Stand on Zanzibar
1968 - Lord of Light
1967 - The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
1966 - Dune
This Immortal
1965 - The Wanderer
1964 - Way Station
1963 - The Man in the High Castle
1962 - Stranger in a Strange Land
1961 - A Canticle for Leibowitz
1960 - Starship Troopers
1959 - A Case of Conscience
1958 - The Big Time
1956 - Double Star
1955 - The Forever Machine
1953 - The Demolished Man

Retro Hugos - this are given for years when no award was given (more than 50 years ago). Of those...

1939 - The Sword in the Stone
1951 - Farmer in the Sky
1954 - Fahrenheit 451

National Book Award Winners

2015 - Fortune Smiles
2014 - Redeployment
2001 - The Corrections
1988 - Paris Trout
1985 - White Noise - Don Delillo
1983 - The Color Purple - hardback award
1981 - The Stories of John Cheever - paperback award
1980 - The World According to Garp - paperback award
1953 - Invisible Man

Man Booker Books
2002 - Life of Pi
2009 - Wolf Hall - sadly I never finished this, never hooked me.
2015 - A Brief History of Seven Killings
2016 - The Sellout
2017 - Lincoln in the Bardo

The 75'r Chunkster List

1. The Overstory by Richard Powers
2. The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
3. The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco READ
4. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
5. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell READ
6. The Witch Elm by Tana French
7. The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood
8. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr READ
9. Little, Big by John Crowley
10. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides READ
11. The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt
12. Possession by A.S. Byatt
13. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel DNF
14. The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
15. The Secret History by Donna Tartt
16. The Parisian : A Novel
17. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
18. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
19. The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami READ
20. Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson
21. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie OWNED
22. American Gods by Neil Gaiman READ
23. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay by Michael Chabon READ
24. The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu
25. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen READ
26. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
27. A Naked Singularity by Sergio de la Pava
28. An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears
29. A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James READ
30. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson READ
31. The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe
32. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
33. Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin READ
34. JR by William Gaddis
35. Almanac of the Dead by Leslie Marmon Silko
36. Mason & Dixon by Thomas Pynchon
37. Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany
38. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett READ
39. The Stand by Stephen King READ
40. Underworld by Don DeLillo
41. The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
42. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
43. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry READ
44. 2666 by Roberto Bolano
45. Sacred Games by Vikram Chandra
46. Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann
47. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
48. Parallel Stories by Peter Nadas
49. Women and Men by Joseph McElroy
50. A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

Paul's Alternative 20

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
The Far Pavilions by MM Kaye
Earthly Powers by Anthony Burgess
White Teeth by Zadie Smith
The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman
Saville by David Storey
To Serve Them All My Days by RF Delderfield
Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres
Sacred Hunger by Barry Unsworth
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
Sophie's Choice by William Styron
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving READ
The Singapore Grip by JG Farrell
Magician by Raymond E Feist
The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy
A Chain of Voices by Andre Brink

Bill's Alternative Weird Dozen

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis READ
Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi
Rabbit at Rest by John Updike
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger READ
Cider House Rules by John Irving
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo
The Book and the Brotherhood by Iris Murdoch
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak READ
August 1914 by Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Sometimes a Great Notion by Ken Kesey
Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing
The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams READ
11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King READ
His Dark Materials Omnibus (The Golden Compass; The Subtle Knife; The Amber Spyglass) by Philip Pullman
The Executioner's Song by Norman Mailer
Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling READ

2021 Reading Results

Books Read : 89
Number of Authors : 69
Authors of Color : 6
Lady Authors : 18

So who wants more graphs? I do, I do. Here's my new favorite type of graph, the scatterplot. Probably not really useful, but very interesting to look at. These are a graph of when the books I've read where published. Each dot is a book, starting from the beginning of the year at the left and proceeding on

2021 Reads


All books read for as far back as I've tracked

2021 Books of the Month

January : Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline
February : The Porpoise by Mark Haddon
March : How to Write an Autobiographical Novel by Alexander Chee
April : How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid
May : The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
June : Circe by Madeline Miller
July : Whose Names are Unknown by Sanora Babb
August : Joe by Larry Brown
September : The Rabbit Factory by Larry Brown
October : Candide by Voltaire
November : Why Fish Don’t Exist by Lulu Miller
December : MacBeth by Jo Nesbo

Fantastic Photo Chishanu

Hey everyone, I'll start down here first. (but this won't make any sense if you visit after I've filled in everything for the new thread, but nevertheless I'm starting here first). Today's greeting is a language that apparently doesn't have a word for Fantastic, or Photo, weird. It's Shona. According to the google, its a Bantu language of the Shona people of Zimbabwe. Happy New Year's Eve and Happy Friday. Today is a very pretty day, after a steady week of rain. Just came back from a nice walk with my honey. Going to see a movie and then do absolutely nothing for New Year's Eve, will be in bed by 10, I'd expect. Usually stuff. Hope everyone is as well as can be, and has a safe, enjoyable evening! Today's image is from that walk, and its a shot down the street, showing the harbor in the distance. Enjoy...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - Gods Without Men - Hari Kunzru
Listening - Some Remarks - Neal Stephenson. Pretty interesting selection of stories, interview and articles. Except for an overly long article about the submarine cable industry that could have used a bit of editting, IMO.

Happy new year, Jeff. Nice pic, as always!

>11 mahsdad: Oh, that sky...! Happy 2022's reads.

Happy new thread and new year, Jeff!

Happy New Year!

Happy reading in 2022, Jeff!

Happy New Thread!

This group always helps me to read; welcome back to the group, Jeff

Hope you have a great year of reading!

Hey Jeff, dropping off a star
Happy New Year!
Might take a crack at the Pulitzers, just realised I own a few of them (never read of course)

Happy New Year!

I'd say I feel bad about this, but I really don't. I'm dropping off a "you're being cruel again, Richard" link: https://www.wired.com/gallery/best-photography-books-2021


A few little bagatelles to whet your curiosity...they featured so much good stuff!

Thanks everyone for dropping off your New Year's wishes. Right back atcha!

>21 vikzen: The Pulitzers and Hugo lists are nice just to have as a place holder, to remember they're out there. Some of them, especially the older Pulitzers are tough reads, I've DNF'd a few, but there are some really excellent reads in there.

>23 richardderus: Nah, you're not being cruel, thanks for sharing!. If I was going to actually get any of them, I would get the Wyoming one, or the Nasa one. Very cool.

Happy New Year, Jeff. Love the topper. Wishing you a great reading year. Hope we can do a shared read or two this year.

Checkin' in, Jeff. I'm here too. 2022.

>25 msf59: Thanks Mark! A shared read would be a laudable goal this year, especially for me.

>26 weird_O: >27 Berly: Thanks Bill, Kim!

In an effort to keep up this year, which I can only assume won't last out the week, here's the 3 books I've finished so far...

1. Some Remarks : Essays and Other Writing by Neal Stephenson 8/10. (AUDIO) A collection of some random fiction writing, interviews and articles. I would have given it a higher rating, save for the 4 hour reading of a long article that was a travelogue/history of the submarine cable industry written back in the late 90's. While it was interesting, I think it was overly long and a bit of a slog. My favorite was just the first sentence of a thriller that Neal will never complete about a serial killer in the Shire (yes that Shire). Its one that I would like to read.

From the angle of the stab wounds, Under Constable Proudfoot could tell that contrary to the opinions circulating in the taproom at the Prancing Pony, the murder had not been committed by a big person

2. Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone 7/10. From Amazon Prime's Faraway collection. A short story that's a take on Hansel and Gretel and involves domestic problems and sex trafficking. A bit of a rough read, but it was okay.

3. Gods without Men by Hari Kunzru 7/10. A weird novel that I'm not too sure of. I liked it, but the ending left me scratching my head. A multi-time period story surrounding this strange stone formation out in the Mojave desert. The main focus is on a couple whose autistic son disappears for a time but comes back changed, the other focus is a weird extraterrestrial cult formed in the 60's that "communicates with their galactic overlords. I bought it used, because the title seemed interesting, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend seeking it out.

That last one sounds interesting from the summary - too bad it didn’t hold up.

Happy New Year, Jeff! I love all of your lists.

Happy New Year, Jeff! I love all of your charts and graphs.

I'm impressed! 3 books on day one!

>30 drneutron: Yeah, I agree, but they all can't be spectacular, can they? It was at least engaging enough to have me finish it.

>31 alcottacre: >32 Crazymamie: Thanks Stasia, Mamie!

>33 thornton37814: Technically 2 days. I finished the first 2 last night. It just worked out that way. The Stephenson, I'd been reading for a couple weeks, and the short story, was on my phone, and I had a long wait at the restaurant for takeout last night. The last one, I'd been reading for about 3 weeks. It just worked out that I'm padding my numbers to start off the year. LOL

Happy 2022, Jeff. You're off to a running start, I see. Love the graphs.

>35 ffortsa: Hi Judy, thanks for stopping by!

Got some karma points in today, we went on a walk around the neighborhood and added some books to a couple Little Libraries that are within a couple mile radius.

Happy ‘22, Jeff! I love that start to the non-existent Neal Stephenson thriier set in the Shire. I’d read it, too!

Is it unfair to say that I wish he’d go back to writing shorter books. Maybe that’s like wishing Robert Jordan’s wheel of Time series had been condensed to 10-11 books rather than 15. You takes what you gets.

Hey, take your head-starts as they come, right?

Hoping the week's a good one for you.

>37 jnwelch: Hey Joe, thanks for stopping by. Regarding long books, my wife and I have a completely unfounded theory that applies to Stephenson and King, and I'm sure many others), that as an author gains some acclaim, it gets tougher and tougher for their editor to get them to "settle down" and let some things go. LOL.

>38 richardderus: The fact that I'm not working today, and I'm off next week, is making it a pretty good week so far. :)

>39 mahsdad:. I completely agree with your unfounded theory. It’s too bad.

>37 jnwelch: I enjoy reading Stephenson and I mostly fine with the length, it the compulsively holey plotting that gets me. There is always something about the assumptions or possibilities that just couldn't work, though he does a great job of just ignoring all that in hopes that the reader just isn't looking there.

Trying to make the rounds, man. Sooo many stops on the route. And I'm just starting!!

>41 quondame: I like Stephenson, but TBH, I haven't read much (except for this book) after Cryptonomicon. I couldn't get thru the Baroque Cycle, and I have Anathem and Seveneves on my stack to read. I'll get to them eventually.

>42 weird_O: I hear ya Bill. Its such a flurry of activity in the new year, I visit a lot, but I'm crap at speaking up and saying Hi! But I'm happy you choose to do so on my little thread!

4. Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches by John Hodgman 10/10. (AUDIO), in an effort to keep up my streak, here's my thoughts on another book within days of me reading it... I loved this book. Its a collection of essays from Hodgman's time living in and vacationing in Maine. I found it really funny and engaging. Its only a little over 5 hours long and with the speed boost, it went by quickly. Hodgman reads the book himself.

To paraphrase him, at one point he is talking about how we should stop eating fudge, he says "But then I don't have a sweet tooth, I have an alcoholic molar". I can relate to that

>43 mahsdad: I'd toss Seveneves as complete nonsense and go for Diamond Age, much more fun! I enjoyed the weird angled history in Baroque Cycle - it was almost like Tim Power's historicals.

>45 quondame: Now I've read everything BEFORE Cryptonomicon, so I have read Diamond Age, but its been many years, if my LT data is correct, I read it last in 2013. Snowcrash is the one that I've read multiple times.

My wife enjoyed the Baroque Cycle very much, it just didn't hit right with me.

>46 mahsdad: Ah, yes. I've read Cryptonomicon more than once, although the absolute nonsense of treasure hunting in a country where you have no right to remove the treasure always annoys me. I think the best single piece of writing NS ever did was the 'joke' short story about the erotic possibilities of black stockings and heirloom furniture in Cryptonomicon.

>44 mahsdad: I've got an umami incisor, myownself; chase the fudge w/some espresso & I'm down wit' it.

>47 quondame: I think I'm going to have to reread Cryptonomicon again, maybe on audio

>48 richardderus: Ha! That sounds good.

>10 mahsdad: Hi, Jeff, Happy New Year! I noticed you named Macbeth by Nesbo as your December book of the month and I am glad to see that, as it’s coming up for me. I believe it’s one of the Hogarth Shakespeare books (yes, it is, I looked it up). I’ve read a few of them and really enjoyed them.

Karen O.

>50 klobrien2: Hi Karen, thanks for stopping by.

Yeah, I really enjoyed it, very gritty. I really like the series. I've read

Vinegar Girl (Taming of the Shrew), my least favorite
New Boy (Othello), a little creepy with the age of the protagonists. Thought they were a little too young, but I still liked the book
Hag-Seed (The Tempest), my favorite before MacBeth.

Macbeth wins so far.

You talking about Macbeth is relevant to me. I've never ventured into the play, but I read the other day about Joel Coen's new film of the play. Too, there's a graphic novel of the play that interests me. About two years ago, I stacked hot TBRs atop my chest of drawers, among them Nesbo's Macbeth and Shakespeare's Macbeth. Never got to them, but I know where they are, yes I do.

Fantastyske foto freed

Hey, the first one of 2022, and we're all still here, more or less. I'm going to try to continue my little exercise here, at least until Google runs out of languages to translate, then I'll see if I can come up with something different. Today's image is one of my "children", even though there are some around here who cringe at the site of them. I think they're adorable. :) Happy Friday, and good reading!



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - Rosewater by Tade Thompson
Listening - Fool Moon by Jim Butcher

>53 mahsdad: - Hey, Jeff. Your *child* looks like my Theo's cousin! \Except theo's eyes match his fur: orange. Keep 'em coming! ;-)

>53 mahsdad: I think he looks lovely!

>54 jessibud2: >55 SandDune: What's interesting with it being an Orange Tabby, who are usually boys, she's actually a she! Thanks for your comments. I'll have to post some other goodies of her and her sister! :)

Goodness! How peculiar. Nothing appears on >53 mahsdad: for some reason.

Well, I'm sure it was lovely, whatever it was. After all, it wouldn't be likely to be something as hideous, revolting, and horrifying as a c-a-t!

>56 mahsdad: I assumed a boy, just because of the colour.

>56 mahsdad: - Wow, I never knew that! Of all the cats I have had in my life, Theo is the first orange tabby. I did not know they were mostly male. I did know that torties are usually female (my previous 2 were torties)

>57 richardderus: That's too bad RD, but I'm glad you can't see it, I wouldn't want you to get any hives from seeing such a site. LOL.

>58 SandDune: It was a safe assumption. The color is a recessive trait so about 80% are male

>59 jessibud2: Funny you should mention it, my other daughter is a Tortie. She's 13-14 (not sure exactly). And as you say, they are almost exclusively girls.

Happy Friday, Jeff. Nice kitty photos. I also had a good time with Vacationland. I miss Hodgman.

Hey Mark, thanks for stopping by. Its the first of his I've read since The Areas of My Expertise many years ago. It was a really enjoyable read. I don't usually laugh out loud when reading, but I definitely did with this one. And of course he's an excellent narrator

>53 mahsdad: Beautiful kitty!

>44 mahsdad: That one sounds fun. I love essays and Maine is a state I would love to visit, so I am going to see if I can find a copy.

Фантастична фотографија петак

Greetings from Florida. Here for a family wedding so not doing too much other than avoiding Floridians. Lol. Here’s a picture I took the other day when visiting my Mom in Sarasota



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 books

Reading - The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
Listening - Fool Moon by Jim Butcher

>65 mahsdad: Can't see the photo, but that's okay because not seeing Florida is a sort-of life goal.

Have a "good" time!

Okay, the pictures working. First time I had a chance to use my laptop.

And RD, you don't have to look. :)

>65 mahsdad: Lovely photo, Jeff, looking over the bushes to the sky with the clouds, and the water beneath.

>41 quondame:. “Like”

>43 mahsdad:. I enjoyed his Reamde, although once again some shortening wouldn’t have gone amiss.

I’m having a good time with Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary right now.

Hey Joe, I read Reamde in 2012, which was the year before I really starting tracking so all I know was that I read it. I should probably read it again. I'm behind on a bunch of his stuff.

I'm really looking forward to Project Hail Mary, its on my definite Want list

Venres de fotos fantásticas

A quick update post, catching up on work has been "fun". I'm cautiously optimistic that I dodged the Omicron down in Florida, but every little twinge or sneeze is making me think.... Is this it? Oh well. Today's image is from our drive back from Palm Springs on Tuesday. After we returned from FLA, it was very obvious that my 86 yr old MIL should not drive home (110 miles), so Laura and I shuttled her back home. 220 miles round trip, about 5 hours or so. Not too bad. This was coming out the 10, which is pretty much directly west. Visibility got a little dicey for a while. LOL. Enjoy...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
Listening - Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

ETA - I was rushed, had a meeting, so I cleaned up my word salad

>71 mahsdad: Ooohhh, Tonga's volcanic demise makes the skies so pretty!

You're absolutely right. Sad to say, but air pollution can make for really pretty photography. :)

One of the nice things about having a 13 year old car, is that when you get your registration renewal, its pretty darn cheap. Only $149 this year.

California has a portion that is called the License fee, which it treats as a property tax, which means you can deduct it (if you're itemizing), and on new cars it can be a good portion of the $$. This year its only $11. If I was itemizing (which I haven't for the last 3 years), its hardly worth it. LOL.

Happy Friday, Jeff. Love the Foto! I am glad you are loving The Cold Millions but I am not at all surprised. Walter Rocks!!

>75 msf59: Thanks kind sir!

Yeah, that’s a spectacular shot!

>71 mahsdad: >72 richardderus: I was just thinking that. As brilliant sunsets as a result of upper atmospheric additions was mentioned multiple times in Termination Shock I could hardly not.

5. Rosewater by Tade Thompson 8/10 : This is the first book in the Wormwood Trilogy, that I read for the Life's Library Bookclub. Its set in the mid-21st Century in the town of Rosewater in Nigeria. The town surrounds a mysterious dome that is the source of a fungus that gives certain people psychic abilities and access to the xenosphere, a kind of metaverse/shared environment. This dome is the home of an alien who invaded Earth many years ago. Kaaro is one of those sensitives who works for a government agency. The story jumps back and forth in time to his past when he was recruited and was sort of a secret agent, to current days when he is trying to figure out why sensitives like himself are dying. This is a very interesting first contact/alien invasion story told from a very different perspective to my own. I will definitely be picking up the other 2 in the trilogy.

6. Fool Moon by Jim Butcher 8/10 : (AUDIO). Book 2 in the Dresden files. This time the Wizard Harry Dresden is fighting all manner of werewolves to help solve a vicious murder. Fun reads, very well suited for my audio book habits.

>79 mahsdad: I keep planning to read Rosewater but still haven't gotten around to it yet, Jeff. Your enthusiasm for it makes my reticence seem misplaced.

Have a great weekend.

>71 mahsdad: Startling colour!

>80 PaulCranswick: So many books, so little time. Glad to be even a little bit of an influence on anyone around here. :)

>81 PaulCranswick: Thanks!

Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher : The Epic Life and immortals Photographs of Edward Curtis by Timothy Egan, arrived today.

I got it from a great little (I assume) bookstore in Pittsburgh (citybookspgh), that I'll have to visit one day. I follow the owner on Tiktok and Instagram. On IG, its a dangerous thing as she generally just posts pictures of interesting used books she has for sale. :)

So, news just broke that Bryer is retiring from the Bench. I'm waiting for the inevitable complaints from the Right, oh Biden can't pick a new Justice its an election year. Okay, we'll wait until after the election... Oh no, its in the last half of his term, he can't pick a justice now. We'll have to wait until the next President.

Democratic Presidents can only pick a Justice on the 4th Thursday in June of their 1st year. If they miss the window, too bad, too sad. LOL.

I lost you somehow, but now you're found!! ; )

>84 mahsdad: LOL. But tragic hints of truth in that.

>71 mahsdad: Love the color in that photo and I am glad you got your MIL back home safely. Looking forward to your thoughts on The Cold Millions -- I have it somewhere around here...

>85 Berly: Hey Kim!. I'm glad I was found again. LOL.

Thanks for the photo love. MIL - yeah, unfortunately, its getting to that time were some tough decisions are going to have to be made. She's too far away

Cold Millions is great. Its definitely a learning experience. Historically, its stuff that I know I should know about, but I don't. That's why I love reading both historical fiction and narrative non-fiction.

Dealbh sgoinneil Dihaoine

How the heck did we already get to the end of January already! It seems like our adventures in Florida have left us Covid-free, or as boosted folks, if we did get it, it was incredibly mild. So I'm thankful for that. Not much else to report. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Today's image was from the venue where my niece got married. It was an old theater and they still had some of the old seats. Thought this was an interesting shot.



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - The Cold Millions by Jess Walter. All most done with this, should finish by Sunday
Listening - Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut. I finished Dune Messiah last night, and when going down a YT rabbit hole, I saw a profile on Vonnegut, and thought, hey I haven't read much of him lately, so I'll be starting this today.

Happy Friday, Jeff. Hooray for Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher! It is such a good book. How is the Vonnegut? Sadly, I have never read that one.

>88 msf59: Haven't started the Vonnegut yet. I literally finished Dune, last night about 11 and got the idea to read Vonnegut and this was the only one that was available at the Library. I'll let you know how it is.

>87 mahsdad: I sure as heck hope the wedding party wasn't expected to perch in those!

Happy Friday, Jeff. We're looking at Serious Snow here, so I hope the world keeps going on while I'm chillin'.

>90 richardderus: No, it was an event space now, I think they filled in/raised the floor so it was all one level (no stage). These were just leftovers, probably just to remind people of what was.

I'm commiserating with you, its a brisk 64 today (he says, as he ducks to avoid the large book being thrown at his head). Stay warm!

>91 mahsdad: 64° in January actually sounds like Hell to me...one reason I was eager to leave Texas was to get the hell away from seasonlessness! (Summer being their one season.)

7. Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert 8/10 : (AUDIO) The saga continues. Many years later and Paul is the Emperor. This was pretty good, lots of political intrigue and wrangling. I enjoyed it quite a lot. Its not as an adventurous romp that Dune was, but it was a very good read. Not sure why I was never able to get into it when I was a kid. I've got Children of Dune on hold at the library, and I'm going to keep plugging thru the whole series.

I wanted to post who the narrators were (this was a multi-cast), the main people were Scott Brick and Simon Vance. I know Scott Brick's voice, but I wanted to make sure about Vance so I went to YT and found this very interesting interview with both of them from last year.

https://youtu.be/YbnZnOf_bMY

>87 mahsdad: Like.

>94 weird_O: Thanks Bill!

8. The Big Trip Up Yonder by Kurt Vonnegut 8/10 : (AUDIO). When I was looking for a Vonnegut book, I saw this little short story and it looked interesting. It the story of a world where people are almost immortal and the 180 yr old patriarch of the family is dealing with the multi-generations of his family and who is going to get his estate when and if he dies. Oh and they all live in the same apartment in an overpopulated world. Short and fun

I'm going to try a new thing, when I start a new book, I'm going to post the synopsis and the opening lines, just because. I'll probably forget to do it next time, so here goes...

Speak by Lousia Hall



In a narrative that spans geography and time, told from the perspectives of five very different characters, Speak considers what it means to be human, and what it means to be less than fully alive.

We are piled on top of each other. An arm rests over my shoulder; something soft is pressed to my ankle. Through a gap in the slats on the side of the truck, my receptors follow one stripe of the outside world as it passes.

9. The Cold Millions by Jess Walter 9/10 : Walter's latest is another excellent read. This time he's going into the history of his hometown, Spokane WA, and the Free Speech fights that went on there in 1910, when the "Wobblies", of the IWW union clashed with police and hundreds were arrested and put into crowded jails. Its a fictionalized story told thru the eyes of the Dolan brothers, drifters who get caught up, Gig and Rye. Gig's in jail, and Rye is trying to do what he can to get him out. He works with all manner of characters, a young union organizing woman from back east, a famous show girl, anarchists, and a rich business man. Walter gives a vivid portrait of life in the early 10's and covers a topic I didn't really know about. He also used an interesting writing style where he inserted 1st person tableau chapters of the various characters, in between the normal 3rd person chapters driving the plot. Its fiction, but the situation really happened, and a lot of the characters are real people but fictionalized in this world. Hopefully, I won't have to wait another 8 years for his next book.

I followed him through a fancy landing, beneath dual staircases, to a two-story library. Books that hadn't been cracked since they were shelved. Give money to a monkey and he'll fill his cage with bananas. Give the ame money to a dim American and he'll build a show library every time.

>98 mahsdad: It sounds like a good story. I'm glad you liked it.

>97 mahsdad: That's a terrific idea! I look forward to seeing more of this.

>98 mahsdad: I must get to reading something by Jess Walter soon, Jeff.

>84 mahsdad: He has already committed himself to appointing a black lady to the post so the field is narrowed. I think two of the three or four likely candidates have recently cleared the Senate so that should help. I hope that the appointment is made with as little rancour as possible.

>99 richardderus: Yeah Walter is one of those on my "I'll read anything you write" authors list, so its pretty easy for me to like it. I'm a pretty easy critic, but so far I haven't read anything bad from him.

>100 PaulCranswick: "little rancour..." from your mouth to God's ear. But I think there's little chance of that. LOL.

2022 Books of the Month

January : The Cold Millions by Jess Walter

ფანტასტიკური ფოტო პარასკევი

Welcome to February. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly time flies as we get older. Nothing really new to report. Will hopefully get a lot of reading in, if I can suppress my inner ADHD tendancies to doom-scroll thru social media. I got a new camera, for the times when I don't want to carry my big camera bag (I missed it when I went to Florida last month. I didn't have room for it, without checking a bag). So I got a Panasonic Lumix DC-ZS80. A pocket camera with an excellent optical zoom range and DSLR-like features. So today's image is from my first foray into its capabilities. We went to the Botanic gardens last weekend and this was one I liked. Its of the tile work in a fountain. Enjoy...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - Speak by Lousia Hall : An interesting time spanning story telling the story of an AI entity thru different eyes. A 17th century girl on her way to the new land, Alan Turing, the man who invents the AI and his wife who translates the story of the immigrant girl, and another man in the future who is telling his story in prision after he uses the AI. A good read so far, not quite halfway thru.
Listening - Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut : Totally forgot that this is a collection of short stories, most famous of which (at least in our house) is Harrison Bergeron. An oft referenced story by Laura and I, where everyone is equal...Literally. If you're too smart, you have to listen to a buzzing sound to distract you, if you're too graceful, you have to wear weights to slow you down. As is usual with story collections, some good, some not so good, some great. About 2/3's thru this one.

I'm going to share another image, and I apologize to you RD, I tried to put it behind a spoiler tag so you wouldn't have to burn your eyes by looking at it, but apparently that doesn't work with IMG SRC lines.

It's a great, well timed picture of my youngest, that Laura texted me the other day. Too good not to share.

>104 mahsdad: - LOL! I have a few similar poses of my 2, as well. Priceless!

>104 mahsdad: I am in love with this photo!

>104 mahsdad: Heh. That's cool!

>103 mahsdad: I would like a window that looks like that! Good capture.

>103 mahsdad: Beautiful!

>104 mahsdad: *gaaak*

Happy weekend-ahead's reads!

>103 mahsdad: What RD said!

>104 mahsdad: Not sure what RD said but it is funny!

>109 richardderus: What RD said again.

>103 mahsdad: Awk! You dropped just enough of a hook about Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron story to ensnare me. Of course that's one title (Welcome to the Monkey House) I don't have. Off to the used-book store.

>103 mahsdad: Nice photo. The movement of the water gives it a painterly impressionist quality.

>104 mahsdad: That's a great capture. The timing was spot-on.

>111 weird_O: You're welcome. LOL. That's what we're all here for, right? To contribute to the delinquency of our friends TBR piles.

Tile photo - I agree, thats what I thought when I saw it. Sometimes it pays to look down at your feet. Initially, I didn't see this aspect of the fountain. Further out, the colors were muted. It wasn't til I looked down that I saw it.

10. Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut 8/10 : (AUDIO) This is a collection of 25 short stories that Vonnegut published in various magazines over the years, some straight Sci-Fi, some satirical, some interesting political statements. Expertly read by the very recognizable (at least 3 out of the 5) David Strathairn, Maria Tucci, Bill Irwin, Tony Roberts and Dylan Baker. The aforementioned Harrison Bergeron is a favorite. Tom Edison's Shaggy Dog is a good one about how we might not be the only sentient species. There's also a version of the last story I read; The Big Trip Up Yonder, called Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow.
Same basic story, just slight changes, interesting to read.

All the King's Horses was another good story that I don't think ages well, structurally. Its essentially the story of an Army unit capture by Russian and Chinese forces, and the leader makes them play a game of chess for real (think Wizard's Chess from Harry Potter), which was a great story, but it was written (or at least read) with pidgin accents that especially with the Chinese was vary jarring. Noticeable how times have changed. Its a collection that is well worth the time.

Next Book ...

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess



A vicious fifteen-year old droog is the central character of this 1963 classic. In Anthony Burgess's nightmare vision of the future, where the criminals take over after dark, the story is told by the central character, Alex, who talks in a brutal invented slang that brilliantly renders his and his friends' social pathology.

What's it going to be, eh? There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie and Dim, Dim being really dim, and we sat in the Korova Milkbar making up our rassodocks what do do with the evening, a flip dark chill winter bastard though dry.

There are several Tiny Libraries in my neighborhood, one of which was looking rather bare, so tonight I dropped off 6 and took one. Seems like a good ratio.

Got Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space by Janna Levin

Ata Matagofie Aso Faraile

Hey all, well summer decided to show up in Februrary, so we got that going on. Please sir, bring back the cooler temperatures and some rain if you please. I'll gladly wait until July for 80 degrees. Oh well, weird weather is just something we have to get used to. Nothing much on the agenda for the weekend. Its the Super Bowl on Sunday, and I guess I should be excited, cause its the Rams, and its here. But, meh. I'll watch it, and root for the Rams to beat the Bengals because I'm a Steelers fan, but that's about it. Hopefully get a lot of reading in. Today's image is just a pretty flower. Enjoy...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. This is definitely one that you have to actively read, since its almost a different language and you have to really think about the context of what he's saying. This one might take me a while, might have to start another book to go with it.
Listening - The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O by Neal Stephenson. Good fun hard scifi with a touch of the historical fiction he loves so much. A polyglot is tasked by a mysterious "government" organization to translate some documents to uncover why magic disappeared from the world. Really enjoying this.

I want to read Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O but just never seem to find the time to do so.

I am indulging in my quadrennial love fest with obscure winter sports and resent the fact that my quadrennial pleasure will be interrupted by some silly sport in which big men butt heads for 2 hours while millions watch them conduct themselves in a manner that if done in a Walmart parking lot would get them arrested. Oh well - I should have shelled out the money to get that extra NBC channel. At least there is still PBS and I can watch my Sunday night programs on it without that silly game.

Oh - but I can't wait to see what controversial advertisement Chrysler comes up with this year. First they had Emmien, then Clint Eastwood, then Bob Dylan, then The Boss. Who next?

>116 mahsdad: Pretty indeed!

So, well, it's chilly & I just ain't care. Here's hopin' all goes well these days.

>116 mahsdad: >117 benitastrnad: Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. was fun and worth the time.

The Harrison Bergeron story didn't have exactly the climax I was anticipating. But it certainly is Vonnegut. Now that I have the book, I will read the stories, in between books, and eventually get through the collection. Thanks for the hit.

>115 mahsdad: A month ago or so, I noticed a Little Library behind a general store in the village we used to live in. I was very impressed, because the thing was made at a small but very capable doormaking business. A magnificent bit of craftsmanship. I don't remember any of the books in it, but I did think I had some dupes I could add to it.

>4 mahsdad: Oliver La Farge won the award in 1930 for "Laughing Boy", a story about the Navajo. I recommend it, if you haven't read it already.

Happy Friday, Jeff! Hooray for The Cold Millions! It looks like I need to bookhorn in Welcome to the Monkey House. I have put that one off, far too long. Is this your first go around with A Clockwork Orange? I have yead it, but it has been a few decades. I am a big fan of the film too.

>114 mahsdad: >122 msf59: A Clockwork Orange in either format makes enough of an impression that a booster isn't required.

>117 benitastrnad: Me too, with DODO, I have a list of authors I always search for in Libby when I'm looking for a new audio book, and it came up. Its pretty darn good. As far as the Olympics are concerned, historically I've been put off by the heavily processed "packages" of the events that you'd only see in Prime Time and by the time you see them, you already know the results. So I'll look for the recaps on YT. That goes double for the commercials. :)

>118 richardderus: Thank you kind sir. Stay warm

>119 quondame: I whole heartedly agree, well worth the time

>120 weird_O: I'm sorry Bergeron didn't work quite so well for you, but as you say, its definitely a Vonnegut story. I think that since most of the stories are pretty short, using them as an "amuse bouche" between other books is a great idea.

Little Libraries, I really hadn't frequented them too much until we inherited my SIL's books when she passed and we were looking for ways to distribute them, and found that there' at least 4 or 5 within walking distance. Its a great idea.

>121 ocgreg34: Thanks for visiting Greg, I'm going to have to add Laughing Boy to the list. I forget where I got my original list, but they obviously didn't have the older winners.

>122 msf59: Hey Mark, Yeah Millions was really good. Not sure if you saw my post in your thread when you were gone, but we're getting a new story collection from him this summer, its called Angel of Rome. Monkeyhouse was really good on audio, so I'd look for it there if/when you're up for it.

>122 msf59: >123 quondame: This is my first go round for A Clockwork Orange for the book. Saw the movie many years ago. In fact, me and my buddies at college always thought that a good way to "torture" freshmen was to force them to watch Clockwork, Brazil and another movie that I can't remember, back to back. Seriously trippy stuff.

And Susan, I think you're right, no virus can live in that prose. :)

>1 mahsdad: This opening image is incredible. Did you take this photo?

And, pulling together all your lists took a tremendous amount of time. I enjoyed going through all of them.

>126 Whisper1: Hi Linda, yeah I did take that image. Its the view from my front porch, albeit zoomed in a bit.

As far as my lists go, I think I got them from Wikipedia, and a bit of text editing got the touchstone formatting setup. The hardest part with every new thread is waiting for the touchstones to load. The LT folks have improved the performance greatly, in the past it was a crap shoot on whether they would load. Thanks for your kind words....

11. Speak by Louisa Hall 8/10 : This is a story about the "end" of an AI and a examination of what it means human and also less than alive. Its told thru different perspectives, in different ways, all loosely connected. The Diary of a young Puritan girl coming to the New World, the letters of Alan Turing to the Mother of a school friend who died. A husband and wife, involved in early AI. The husband who creates an early program that could have conversations and his wife who translated the diary of the young girl, the trial transcripts of the conversations of a young girl and the improved version of the AI program, from the trial of a computer scientist who put the AI into companion dolls for kids that was all the rage but went quickly wrong, and the dying thoughts of one of the dolls as they are being taken out to a warehouse in the desert to be abandoned. In interesting story told in several different methods that kept me well engaged.

12. The Princess Game by Soman Chainani 7/10 : A Kindle Prime short from the Faraway series, where author's take fairy tales and reimagine them. This one is a police drama where a couple of detectives are trying to solve the ongoing murders of the pretty and popular princesses at a high school. All killed in different but recognizable ways, like princesses from classic fairy tales. I saw the resolution coming a mile away, but it was a decent read from this collection.

>128 mahsdad: Speak looks worth checking out. The Princess Game sort of tickles my fancy, but no local copies present themselves.

>129 quondame: Hey Susan, yeah Speak was one of those impulse used book store buys, that worked out pretty well. As far as Princess Game is concerned, are you Amazon Prime? If so, just search for it, they have a bunch of different series of short stories that you can "borrow" and download to the Kindle App. If not, then you probably are out of luck, cause Amazon being Amazon means they probably have exclusive rights.

Laura just discovered that there's a nation-wide book club reading going on. If you use Libby you can borrow The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade with no holds or limitations until 7/21

Its sponsored thru a site called Together We Read.

I was looking for something else to read when Clockwork gets too "much", I'm going to try this out.

Has anyone read this?

>130 mahsdad: Thank you, I'd have seen that if I'd just moved one tab to the right and searched! Considering how many other books showed up when I searched the title at the libraries I was surprised that the touchstone was a first hit!

>131 mahsdad:
Five Wounds had great reviews and is a book I seriously thought about buying. I don't have Libby and the list for getting the public library copy of the book is very long. It should be a good read.

>133 benitastrnad: So far its pretty good. If you do ever decide to dip your toe into ebook and audio book borrowing, Libby is the app to get. It plays the audio directly, and with the ebook (this was my first, I use it mainly for audio), it gave me the option to send it to the Kindle app or read it directly.

>132 quondame: Yeah Amazon's searches, sometimes, leaves something to be desired. :)

The calm before the approaching storm. A gale kicked up pretty much with out warning and yanked out our umbrellas from our front porch and threw them across the yard. This is a pano, to the left the storm is coming in. As I'm taking this, the hail, yes hail was coming down. Wild.

>136 mahsdad: Good gracious! That's a very unusual set of conditions. Nice photo, however.

Thanks RD!

Fantastisches Foto Freitag

Wow, a tag that I can actually kinda read for once. We made it thru another week!. Wonder of wonders winter came back to Southern California again. A week ago, it was in the 70's at this time of day (8:30a) and today its 54. I'll take that. On the downside, we had a freak windy hail storm that only lasted about 20 min, but pulled up our patio umbrellas (which were open at the time) and flung them up against our neighbor's house. Definitely broke one, of them, maybe both. Its very hard to wind down 8 ft umbrellas in the wind. :) Nothing much on the agenda for the weekend. Laura's going to go out to Palm Springs to see her Mother on Sunday, so I'll be on my own then, but that's okay. Today's image is from a stroll thru the local Armstrong Garden Center (plant store) from the other weekend. Laura was shopping and I was following her around. Enjoy...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading : A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. After getting past the language, its a good story, I'm enjoying it quite a bit (well enjoy is probably not the right word, given its subject matter :) ) 45% done
eBook : The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade. A group read that the library/Libby suggested. Pretty good, family drama in a culture not my own. 20% done
Listening : The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O by Neal Stephenson. 68% done

>139 mahsdad: It's just lovely!

Wow, that's a great shot!

>140 richardderus: >141 drneutron: Thanks guys!

Happy Friday, Jeff. I am really enjoying Moonglow in the early going. Have a great weekend and enjoy those books, fellow Droog!

>139 mahsdad: I saw The Five Wounds on Libby too but wasn’t sure if I wanted to give it a shot. Hm.

>143 msf59: Hey Mark, thanks for stopping by. Almost finished Clockwork, boy its much better than I expected, it reinforces for me the credo... "Read the Book, First". My memory of the story is from my vague recollection of watching the movie 30+ years ago.

>144 ursula: Its family drama in a poor Latino family, the "five wounds" and the Roman Catholic festivals and the portrayal of Jesus, seems to be the framing "technic". Its pretty good so far. About a 1/4 thru.

Listening to a podcast about "What are you currently reading", and the guest, is a woman who I follow on TikTok and IG. She owns a used bookstore in PGH, and used to be a creative writing and literature teacher.

She says that she no longer has to "read for retention", and I found that quite compelling. When she was teaching, everything she read she had to focus on how she would explain it and teach to it, and now she's just reading for the enjoyment. It reminded me to give myself a break about not remembering every detail 15 minutes after I finish a book. LOL.

I'm still trying to find my balance of retaining and releasing stories. I find that I really get the balance more on the release side...to the point that I forget I've read some things.

>147 richardderus: But since you write such detailed and thoughtful reviews, I bet you're much more of a retaining reader than I. Or are your ebooks just a sea of yellow highlighter and comments when you are done to remind you when you go to write your review?

>148 mahsdad: Thanks...? But yes, I'm always trying to stretch my retention techniques so that sea of yellow with lots of crabbed little notes everywhere...I am a marginalia man, so the visual fits.

Book Darts are the things I love the most in the tree book world. If I could make any change to Kindle, it would be to make my highlights controllable by color.

>149 richardderus:. highlight control.... that would be cool.

So, how many times have you gone out to check the mail before you remembered its President's Day. LOL.

for me it was just 1, but it got me up and out of my chair, so that's good.

>151 mahsdad: Well, I did go out, but only because UPS delivered a package that was only about 2 weeks past when I'd ordinarily expect it.

13. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess 8/10 : This book had such a reputation behind it. It always "scared" me, not necessarily for the content or the violence, I'm a big boy, I can take that. I think it was the language, the Russian influenced "Nadsat" pseudo-language of Alex and his droogs that kept me from reading it all these years. Bill got me this copy for Christmas back in 2017 and I'm sorry for the delay in getting to it. It only took me a few pages to get past this barrier and let the story come thru. This is a very good and powerful novel. Told in three 7 chapter segments, the first when Alex and company are causing all the problems with their ultra-violence. The second section is what happens to him in prison when the government becomes the antagonists and the last section is Alex's "redemption"? Maybe, maybe not. Interestingly, the US version and the basis for the movie, eliminated the final chapter. The one where Alex reflects back on his life. They opted for the more black and white ending that came at the end of the 6th chapter. Very interesting. Well worth the read.

One profound line that struck me was as Alex was going thru his "rehabilitation", he reflects and his jailor/doctor reacts

'Oh, it will be nice to be good, sir.' But I had a real horrorshow smeck at that inside, brothers. He said: 'It may not be nice to be good, little 6655321. It may be horrible to be good. And when I say that to you I realize how self-contradictory that sounds. I know that I shall have many sleepless nights about this. What does God want? Does God want goodness or the choice of goodness? Is a man who chooses the bad perhaps in some way better than a man who has the good imposed upon him?'

>153 mahsdad: Well, that is supposed to be the cause of Satan's fall, demanding that good be enforced. With the books including fallen angels that I've read recently, it makes me wonder about how those fallen ones whose preference for mandatory good process their roll in punishing those who are only suffering eternally because the almighty chose to let them have the opportunity.

>153 mahsdad: I put off reading this one for years because I thought it would be too violent for me, but I'm so glad I finally did read it. I was really surprised at how much I loved it!

>154 quondame: Interesting perspective Susan. I'll admit I'm usually blind to symbolism and many years away from organized religion, so I never thought of it that way.

>155 scaifea: I know, right?

Фантастическое фото в пятницу

How serendipitous today's greeting is, given the current geopolitical situation round here. Yikes. I know we are a world-wide group, so if anyone has friends or family in the Ukraine, my thoughts go out to you and them. Its just so surreal. Back in my measly little world, nothing much to report. No rain, but still nice and chilly. Its currently 49 and sunny out here on the coast. We could use some more rain, but otherwise, I'll take it. Tomorrow, Laura and I are going to make a quick turn around trip back out to Palm Springs. She went to see her mother last weekend, but left some important supplies for her jewelry business that she needs. Road trip it is. Today's image is another flower (lo and behold another Daisy) from the garden center. Enjoy.



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

eBook - The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade. Family drama in the Southwest. I'm enjoying it. Not quite half-way thru
Listening - Blindsight by Peter Watts. Hard science fiction about first contact in a world where people can be almost more machine than man (implants, consciousness uploads to computer, etc). Pretty good so far, only about a quarter thru.

>157 mahsdad: It looks like a sunset decided to be a flower. Gorgeous.

Have a lovely road trip!

That's a great way to interpret that image, thanks RD!

Happy Friday, Jeff. Good review of A Clockwork Orange. I especially like that quote. I will have to a revisit. Any plans to see the film again?

Ooh, The Five Wounds sounds interesting. How did you stumble on that one?

>157 mahsdad: I've been enjoying our crisp sunny days and cold nights. For a while I was really crazy about African daisies, but while I still think they are lovely I don't feel any enthusiasm anymore.
Blindsight looks like my kind of book. I'll look forward to finding out what you think of it.

>160 msf59: Hey Mark. I probably should watch the movie again, it was probably in college the last time I watched it.

Five Wounds - Laura saw it on Libby, there is/was a nation-wide group read with a site called Together We Read (https://togetherweread.com/us/). There were no wait lists or holds during this month (tho I'll probably have to renew, I don't think I'll finish by the end of the borrow period), and we thought, why not. Its a pretty good read.

>161 quondame: Daisies - We don't have any at the house, but they seem to be a popular choice, especially the white and purple ones. Mostly the picture of late have been taken at Armstrongs. I'll be sure to try to remember to keep you in mind when I "review" Blindsight. So far, so good.

>153 mahsdad: I didn't like it when I read it because of the language.

That's too bad Lori, but perfectly understandable. Its probably why it took me so long to get to it, I was never in the right mindset to "get past" the language

14. The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O by Neal Stephenson (and Nicole Galland) 8/10 : Listened to this one on audio with a whole bunch of narrators. Not quite a full-cast performance, but a bunch of different people reading different parts. This was a fun read. Hard science fiction with Stephenson's obsession with life in ancient times. In this one, a mysterious black ops government type hires a linguist to translate many different documents throughout time to uncover what happened to magic in the world and why it disappeared in the mid-1800s. Then thru the "magic" of scifi macguffins, they uncover time-travel with the use of quantum mechanics and the one remaining true witch left in the world. They set about going back in time to bring magic back. It sounds contrived and hokey, and sure it is, but I felt it worked really well and the authors came up with some interesting ideas about the how and why and where of time travel might work. It's a fun read, where they switch back in forth between narrators and different writing styles/methods, from found journals, to chat logs, to interviews. I suspect that Galland did most of the writing, as she has apparently written a sequel (Master of the Revels: A Return to Neal Stephenson's D.O.D.O) that I'll have to look out for.

2022 Books of the Month

January : The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
February : A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

New Book

Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana Jr.



In 1834, Richard Henry Dana, Jr. took time off from his stuides at Harvard to sign on as a common seaman aboard the brig Pilgrim. This is his story recounting the treacherous voyage he embarked on around Cape Horn to California.

The fourteenth of August was the day fixed upon for the sailing of the brig /Pilgrim, on her voyage from Boston, aroudnd Cape Horn, to the western coast of North America. As she was to get underway early in the afternoon, I made my appearnace on board at twelve o'clock, in full sea rig, with my chest, containing an outfit for two or three years voyage...

For anyone from Southern California his name should be pretty recognizable. He has about 4 or 5 schools named after him (one here in Pedro), and the city of Dana Point.

>167 mahsdad: That's a great book, Jeff. Dana lived a fairly long life but never wrote another book.

>167 mahsdad: I adore that book, and I was so surprised how much I loved it when I read it. I didn't know he had schools named after him over there, but I kind of love that.

Have to goto the DMV this morning, so the FF post will be delayed until the heat death of the universe. LOL. Be back later.

>170 mahsdad: *sad hanky-wave* I hope you won't need to go back for at least a few years.

>171 richardderus: Actually, I have to go back on Monday. Dammit. Whether its because I'm getting to be a certain vintage, or that I was renewing my license early, I had to take a written test, didn't know that, would have studied a bit if I had, and I F'n Failed. Who the heck remembers how soon before you turn, are you supposed to signal... 50 ft, 100 ft, 200 ft. Heck, I'm just glad when someone signals.

I was trying to be a good little do-bee and get my Real-ID license and I got punished for it. Oh well.

The only good part about it was that I was back home in under an hour. Fastest experience at the DMV ever. Always, if possible, get the first appointment of the day.

FF incoming in a few minutes...

Φανταστική φωτογραφία την Παρασκευή

Well Happy Friday Folks and from my previous posts, you can tell how my day's going. I'm so annoyed at myself. Here's another one. How long do Traffic violations and such stay on your record? 24 months, 36 months, or 48 months? How the heck should I know, the last time I got pulled over was a Right Turn on Red violation about 8 years ago. Okay, Rant over. Yeah its Friday! Today's image is one for your to guess on :)



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books

Reading - Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
Listening - City of Secrets by Stewart O'Nan

>167 mahsdad: I haven't ever read Two Years Before the Mast, but its title caught my attention and required an explanation sometime before my own reading years. My older brother myopia was proclaimed severe enough to require him to spend the summer not reading at all and talking books, the vinyl discs and super slow player, were acquired and that was the book.

>173 mahsdad: Bubbles! So cool, literally.

Forgot to reply to everyone, bad Jeff.

>168 weird_O: Hey Bill. Only a couple pages in and it is pretty good. Apparently, he did right another book called To Cuba and Back, about his time in Cuba, when the US was considering annexing it. But not really much else.

>169 scaifea: Hi Amber. I'm amazed at his visibility outside of CA. I thought he would be a niche read. Cool

>174 quondame: Hi Susan, Reading books on vinyl, now that's old school. Very hard to pause, :) I was so glad when we got to MP3s away from CDs, so you could remember your place. At least with Books on tape, you could stop and pick up your place later.

>175 richardderus: Bottom color - Mountain Dew, top - Dr. Pepper. I'm weird like that, sue me. :)

>173 mahsdad: Like drinking burnished gold!

Have a great weekend, Jeff.

>177 PaulCranswick: Thanks Paul, appreciate you stopping by!

15. The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade 8/10 : (eBook) This one came on my radar thru a library program called Together We Read. Its an international program that hosts a digital book club. During the reading period, there were no holds and unlimited borrows no the book. So why not. It's the story of a lower middle class family, all with their own problems to deal with. The main character, Amadeo is chosen to portray Jesus Christ in the town's Passion of the Christ play. He's a out of work, struggling alcoholic, who lives with his ill mother, and his 16 yr old pregnant daughter. The passion play bookends the story, but it is primarily, I believe about all the wounds in their lives that they are struggling with. Its not necessarily a happy read, but it was a pretty good one.

16. Blindsight by Peter Watts 7/10 : (AUDIO) This is hard scifi story that was nominated for the Hugo in 2006. The story follows a ship headed out to the Oort Cloud to investigate an alien prescience. The crew are transhumans, able to be loaded into grown bodies, giving them advantages in deep space. The commander is a genetically reincarnated vampire (because, why not), and the main character is one who, to correct his early childhood epilepsy had half his brain removed. The book deals a lot with what it means to be human and what it means to be sentient. I didn't love it, but it was a good read.

>179 mahsdad: Both of those are interesting. Hmm, how long is my checked out list? Oh, that long.

I have had Five Wounds on my TBR list for a long time and before it was actually published I had it on my Amazon wishlist. It had great reviews so maybe I should move it up on the list.

>180 quondame: Yeah, I think we all have that problem, too many books, too little time.
>181 benitastrnad: I always hate suggesting books to other people, because they all hit differently with different folks, but It was definitely a worthwhile read for me.

Second time's the charm on the DMV front. To recap, I went to get a new ID on Friday, and was surprised to learn that I had to take a written test, and of course, I failed. Its only been 30 years since I last thought about how soon do you put on your turn signal and such.

Got a drivers manual and reviewed it a bit over the weekend and passed this morning. Yippee. Still missed 2, but I'll take it. One if them, I'm sure was a trick question. Its always drilled into our minds in CA, that at a 4-way intersection, you always give right of way to the car on the right, if you come to the intersection at the same time. The question was reversed, Which care should GIVE the right of way when you come to the intersection, so I chose poorly. Oh well. :)

Happy Monday!

I'll never understand how the search algorithm for the touchstones works.

I put in City of Secrets, a short Novel by Stewart O'Nan, and the book it links to is City in the Clouds by Tony Abbott. When I change it with the Others link, the actual title of the book "City of Secrets" is the 4th book.

I'm a geek, so I understand databases and its probably a hash/search key that's generated to allow the system to quickly find the list of books, but I find its false-positives hilarious sometimes.

Full "review" later, but for the O'Nan fans, City of Secrets was a pretty interesting read/listen about a cell of jewish freedom fighters in Israel, shortly after the war. Sort of a week in the life.

O'Nan is another of the authors that are on my list of, "I'll always read everything they write" authors. :)

I follow a wide variety of channels on YT, among them is Ozzy Man Reviews. He is a comedian in Australia who posts hilarious videos where he overdubs commentary on various found videos and such. Its silly and inane, sue me, I'm a 12 yr old boy. :)

But today, he posted a couple videos that shows both sides of the Ukraine war from both sides. He did a video chat with some of his fans from both Russia and Ukraine to get their perspective on things. An interesting take.

Ukraine - https://youtu.be/KE7T7i7jjPg
Russia - https://youtu.be/SVBRrdr8_j0

Just wanted to share

Fotografie fantastică vineri

Happy Mess Up Your Sleep Schedule Weekend! Yes, if you didn't remember, we spring forward (ALREADY?) this weekend. At least in most of the US, except for Hawai'i and Arizona. Yippee, at least it will be darker in the morning for a couple months so it will be less likely for a stab of light to hit me in the face when one of my cats goes behind the curtains to the windowsill in the morning. :) Can we just be done with this already? Anyway, not much on tap for the weekend. Indoor mask mandates are being lifted here in the whacky west, and its very weird to see peoples faces again. I'm going to still be optionally wearing mine, just cause I haven't had any colds in over 2 years and I kinda like it. Especially after seeing this guy : https://youtube.com/shorts/EyCoVnJaoqY?feature=share LOL.

If you follow me other places you've probably seen today's image, but its an interesting abstract I took the other day when we met some friends at a brewery for dinner (that's a hint for what it is).



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books
>3 mahsdad: Audiobook Narrators

Reading - Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana, Jr. about 25% complete
Listening - Children of Dune by Frank Herbert. Continuing my quest to read the whole Dune series. Never got past Dune as a kid. This is book 3. Only about 15% thru, I'm going to have to pick up the pace if I'm going to finish it in the borrow time. 21 days is not enough time for an audiobook. Even at 1.4x. That's the advantage of physical media at the library, with CDs or paper books, even if they are overdue, you still have them. With digital, they just yank 'em at the exact second its due. Oh well.

Okay, I have been doing the Wordle but have been quiet about it. I use the same 5 words every day and for the most part it’s an easy win, but not every time. Here’s today’s. An interesting result

Wordle 265 6/6

⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨
⬛⬛⬛🟩⬛
⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛
⬛⬛⬛🟨⬛
🟩🟩⬛⬛⬛
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

I've played 38 times. Lost twice. Mostly get it in 6. I got it in 3 once, and 4 once.

>187 mahsdad: My first-ever loss was today, but my streak was forty! New one starts tomorrow.

>186 mahsdad: That's really beautiful, Jeff. Light...composition...color...really special indeed.

Thanks Buddy!

And if anyone's interested, my Wordle words are

GLENT
BRICK
JUMPY
VOZHD - A russian word meaning leader or cheiftan
WAQFS - a muslim religious or charitable foundation

These use every letter but X. Its the double letters and variations that still trip me up, if I use all 5 words, I only have 1 shot at the end.

There is a Hall & Oates Emergency Number. Its a hotline named "Callin' Oates". Its an automated message system that lets you play one of their songs, if you need it.

719-266-2837 (719-26-OATES)

Too funny!

>186 mahsdad: Is it a barrel?

Happy Friday, Jeff. It looks like the books are treating you well. The Five Wounds does sound interesting.

>191 msf59: Hi Mark. A big tall stainless steel one, yeah. Its one of the storage vats at the brewery. It just struck me the way the lights from the ceiling were being reflected.

Five Wounds was interesting. It was one of those that if there wasn't that spur of the moment decision... Hey a free book, read it now, I probably would never have picked it up. I like when my book horizons get broader

What's it say about my brain when for today's (Saturday) Wordle, I chose TOADY instead of the now painfully obvious TODAY

Well today was an interesting Wordle. I thought after the first word it would be easy, but I had to actually think about it for a minute

Wordle 268 6/6

⬛🟨🟩⬛🟩
⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛
⬛⬛🟨⬛⬛
⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛
⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

>194 mahsdad: You got it, so good news. I was pleased to get it in three.

>195 richardderus: That's true. I was so mad at myself for Saturday's. :/

Anybody a fan of The Time Traveler's Wife? I read and enjoyed it many years ago. They made a movie out of it with Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams that was pretty good. Now apparently HBO is rebooting it as a mini-series. Its HBO, so I'll never see it, but I thought I'd mention it

I thought maybe the picture was light reflecting off a beer mug or glass. Cool picture.

વિચિત્ર ફોટો શુક્રવાર

Yeah, its Friday day! Its been a hectic week at work and I'm glad its almost over. I am a part of the support team at work that addresses customer issues with our particular software package, and my counterpart was on PTO this week, and it is VERY noticeable when she's not here. Glad she's back next week. Spring crafts shows are starting up and Laura has her first one this weekend (Three Pine Hill on IG), so I'm sure I'll be her pack mule for setting up and down. Happy to do it. Today's image, is another of my; Jeff Loves Rust series. This is from a hatch cover/vent/something that is at the old Nike missile base at White Point. From '65 until '75 there were Hercules missiles housed here in the underground bunkers that we now hike around



For context, here's what we see today, there is an underground structure beneath that slab


Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books
>3 mahsdad: Audiobook narrators

Reading - Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Dana. Not quite halfway
Listening - Children of Dune by Frank Herbert. The saga continues, pretty good read. I'll probably finish it this weekend.
Graphic Novel - Hellblazer: Original Sins by Jamie Delano. Was surfing around Hoopla looking for any GN that grabbed my fancy, and this did.

>199 mahsdad: Oh, I love that one! It looks like a map of some place I don't think I'd want to go, but would like to read about.

What a sad waste of a very pretty view, that decade of missile housing.



Have a carrot, y'ole mule you.

Thank you kind sir.

I love carrots in almost all their forms, but I think cake is my favorite :)

After being a pack mule for Laura, which included a hurried return home for her earring collection that we forgot to pack, I treated myself by first going to Bevmo and stocking up on a nice bottle of our favorite cognac (Remy 1738) and a 6pack of Stone's Green Tea IPA (very good, check it out if you like the bitter brew). Then on to the bookstore.

I perused Book-Off for a bit (a Japanese bookstore that specializes in Manga, but buys and sells all manner of books and electronic), but didn't buy anything.
Avoided the nearby B&N, because I had my sights set on a new (to me) independant in the area; Sandpiper Books. I took some cast offs that I thought they would buy, but it turns out that they weren't buying anymore. But that didn't prevent me from buying several myself.

Stories - a collection of short stories by a whole manner of authors that you'd instantly recognize. Edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio
Maus - already read this, but felt I had to own a copy
Maus II - haven't read this, but if you have one, you have to have two
The Elephant Vanishes - a collection of short stories by Haruki Murakami

And because I was "disappointed" in not being able to sell anything (I really wasn't) the very nice clerk gave me 10% off, plus an extra $1 off the Gaiman because she thought it looked a little worse for wear.

I LOVE Independent books stores!

Ooohhh, new bookstore!! Happy happy joy joy!

Hi Jeff. Congratulations on finding a new bookstore. I have my sight set of the collection of short stories edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio and The Elephant Vanishes by Haurki Mauakami

I'm trying to cut back on my book buying, but that does not mean I cannot find books at the local libraries!

All good wishes for a good weekend.

>203 richardderus: I know, right?!

>204 Whisper1: I pale in comparison to Mr. Cranswick, and I try not to accumulate more books, but sometimes, I just can't resist. :)

It is difficult to curb book buying. Years ago I found a site called Bookoutlet.com, and then a few years ago fount Thriftbooks.com. Both have good books at great prices. Thriftbooks.com is a site of used books, but I've only been dissatisfied with the quality of one book, and I've purchased many through them.

Beer: the Drink that Built Civilization! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJsWaJVtZWA&ab_channel=ExtraCredits

New Book (audio)

Juneteenth by Ralph Ellison



From the author of the bestselling Invisible Man - the classic novel of African-American experience - this long-awaited second novel tells an evocative tale of a prodigal of the twentieth century. Brilliantly crafted, moving and wise, Juneteenth is the work of an American master. (Read by Joe Morgan)

Two days before the shooting a chartered planeload of Southern Negroes swooped down upon the District of Columbia and attempted to see the Senator

ਸ਼ਾਨਦਾਰ ਫੋਟੋ ਸ਼ੁੱਕਰਵਾਰ - Śānadāra phōṭō śukaravāra

Hey Folks, last weekend of March (wow), which means I should probably do my taxes soon. Ooo, I wonder how much extra I'll have to pay this year. :/ Weather's supposed to be nice so hopefully we'll get out and about for it. Not much else to report on the personal front. Hope everyone has a great weekend. Today's image is from one of the local invasive species. Its an Italian Wall Lizard, they were found in the area in 1994 and were confirmed to have come over from Sicily as pets and were released. Laura and I helped the LA Natural History museum do a survey of the area to see how their population has spread. Unfortunately, the are pushing out the native Western Fence and Alligator lizards. They are pretty tho...



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 books
>3 mahsdad: Audio narrators

Reading - Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Dana. About 60% done. Its a bit of a slog, but not in a bad way, its just long. Been sailing up and down California collecting cow hides for 2 years.
Listening - Juneteenth by Ralph Ellison. just shy of 50%. His 2nd novel after Invisible Man, that was completed and published after his death. Its kind of a stream of consciousness as a senator relives his life after being shot. Its good so far, but not as good as Invisible Man, IMO. Joe Morgan, who is the narrator, is a force of nature, however. I'm enjoying it just for his performance. I recognized him, but I'm not sure if I've listened to his work before. He's now on the list of my favorite narrators, with Will Patton and Scott Brick, to name a couple.
Graphic Novel - Hellblazer by Jamie Delano

Interesting bit of trivia. Today's language was Punjabi and last weeks was Gujarati. But languages spoken in India. Meaningless to most, but interesting how they lined up in my language selections

Punjabi! I'll be hornswoggled.

I'm using my phone as an internet hotspot again *sigh* so I'm not likely to be around often. Happy weekend.

>209 mahsdad: Nice picture, Jeff. Would be better in his own natural environment. Invasive species are a problem all over the world. I just read a book that had a part about bumblebees in Tasmania, even those small insects affect the natural species over there.

>211 richardderus: Hope you had a good weekend too, despite the Wi-fi woes.

>212 FAMeulstee: Thanks Anita, Life finds away. Its amazing how many species have been introduced thanks primarily (I think) to us big dumb humans.

So @humouress clued me into a new Wordle variant for movies. Just gives you an image from a film. Going to have to keep this on the list.

Framed #20
🎥 🟩 ⬛ ⬛ ⬛ ⬛ ⬛

https://framed.wtf

>208 mahsdad: I read this last year. Quite an interesting book.

>215 ocgreg34: I'm almost done with it (actually in the afterwords stuff), and TBH, it was a great performance by Joe Morgan and it was an interesting read, but I don't think I liked it quite as much as Invisible Man. Maybe it was the audio aspect. Morgan's reading was almost like a one-person play or a sermon. But for me the narrative string got lost a little bit.

Kokenn foto Vandredi

Just a quick post to end the thread. Its April! Start of a new quarter, means a new thread for me. It'll be up sometime today. I'll just leave you with an interesting image from my walk last night



Book Update
>2 mahsdad: Q1 Books
>3 mahsdad: Audiobook Narrators

Reading - Severance by Robert Olen Butler. Microstories (240 words) about what would go thru certain peoples minds after losing their head. Yeah I know its weird.
Listening - The Plague by Albert Camus. Thanks to Paul for his favorites list. This is really good so far. Should have read it 2 years ago. :)

>217 mahsdad: Looks like a tulip petal (sp?) someone stepped upon. Nice image.

I did read The Plague two years ago :-)

>218 FAMeulstee: I think you got the petal part right, Anita, but to me it looks like a golden poppy petal...and given where Jeff walks, it seems like the best possibility.

>217 mahsdad: So...is it?

See you in the new thread!

>218 FAMeulstee: >219 richardderus: Ding Ding. Richard wins. It was a poppy.