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Now Reading

Now Reading Prayers to Broken Stones by Dan Simmons.

Just finished Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt.

I’d like to start out by stating that this book is not quite what I was expecting. I was rather expecting something on how economies of scale create bizarre convergent behavior that results in the tragedy of the commons…. er, for example.

Instead, it’s more of a collection of short essays illustrating a few key theories. People are mostly honest, except when they have an incentive to cheat. Hoarding information can be a good strategy, but don’t rely on it. Organized crime is structured like a tournament. Given your first name and age, an educated guess can be made about your socioeconomic status. And, the drop in the nationwide crime rate in the 1990’s was due to Roe v. Wade in the 1970’s.

However, the theme of the book is mostly an admonishment not to confuse correlation with cause; conventional wisdom is often guilty of doing so and is not to be trusted.

While the book was well written and easy to read (I finished it in an afternoon, after procrastinating for a long while) and also interesting enough, it wasn’t quite as packed with exciting new ideas as I was hoping it would be.

Perilous Candidates

I have rummaged and rummaged through my shelves, searching for Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, and The Supernatural. But somehow, I’ve turned up fewer of these titles than I thought I’d have had. It seems my To-Be-Read pile consists mostly of nonfiction, these days, titles such as Oxygen: The Molecule That Made The World, Emergence: From Chaos to Order, and Building Scalable Websites.

And yet, I have unearthed a few candidates for RIP, though I may dismiss one or two over the course of this post. And here they are:

Imajica by Clive Barker. We all know Clive Barker from his horror work, such as Hellraiser and Nightbreed. However, this two-volume series has been described as more of an epic fantasy than horror, so for that reason (and for the fact that it’s two volumes long) I might have to dismiss it from consideration.
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach. This is a nonfiction book that investigates the fates of corpses that have been donated (knowingly and unknowingly) to science. It would definitely be morbid, and possibly horrifying, and only a ghost away from Frankenstein… but it is non-fiction, so including it in this challenge might be a stretch.
The Harvest by Perry Brass. This book appears to be a thriller about a clone running from an all-powerful corporation, rather like the movie The Island. LibraryThing calculates (with a low certainty) that I’ll enjoy it. If not, at least it’s the shortest thing on the list.
Prayers to Broken Stones by Dan Simmons. This is an anthology of thirteen stories that, according to the book jacket, include a woman returning from the dead, a ghostly Civil War battlefield, and a post-apocalyptic Christmas celebration. This sounds almost ideal.
Don’t Open This Book, edited by Marvin Kaye. Here is another anthology, this one of 39 short stories grouped into sections such as “Sinister Science and Frankensteinian Formulae,” “Satan’s Fine Print and Memoranda from Hell,” and “Read at Your Own Risk.”

I suspect I’ll start with one of the final two from the list, even though Stiff is tempting…

Now Reading: Aug 10

Now Reading: Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt.

Just finished: Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction by Drew Karpyshyn.

Star Wars books have come a long way since Han Solo And The Lost Legacy. They now include a 25,000 year timeline to illustrate where each book falls chronologically, a quick-reference logo for those who can’t be bothered with infographics, and, obviously, three levels of title hierarchy.

I was given this book as a free sample at Comic-Con and was hoping that it was being done to promote a new series. In fact, the series is a few years old, but at least this is the first book. Path of Destruction follows the rise of a new Sith Lord, Darth Bane, from his humble origins as a cortosis miner up to the point in which he deals the Jedi a humbling defeat… as a side-effect of an even more sinister plan.

I have said before that a good prequel should not just add to the narrative, but should also give us an additional perspective or layer of meaning. As a prequel to Episodes I-III, this book does put forth an explanation of why there must only be two Sith. It also hinted at a plausible reason for Palpatine to manufacture the Clone Wars: the Sith can never defeat the Jedi through direct conflict, but might do so through deception.

This book was a fast, light read, which made a nice change of pace from the book before this.

Before This: High Performance MySQL: Optimization, Backups, Recovery and More

Ever since Practical UNIX and Internet Security, I’ve found the books published by O’Reilly and Associates to be generally well written and informative. This tradition was carried on by High Performance MySQL. If you want to learn how to write a simple SQL query, this is not the book for you. If, however, you’ve reached the point where your simple SQL queries are now killing your application’s performance, then this book may be helpful. This book will take you by the hand and then leap down the rabbit hole of MySQL esoterica.

On Non-Fictional Books

Today’s prompt is to share “a non-fictional book.” That is, a book that exists in reality. Well, this should be an easy one. Looking around, I see… ahem… Special Edition Using CGI, Second Edition which was apparently purchased at the discount price of $14.99 in December of 1997. And yes, I can hear your questions now. “Eeeeriiik,” (this time with the heavy sigh of someone struggling to understand), “Eeeeriiik, why are you hanging on to such an outdated and not to mention big and heavy tome? Who writes CGI scripts anymore? Nobody, that’s who. ”

Well, that may or may not be true, but the tome in question is, as far as I can tell, deeply involved in the structural integrity of the bookshelf in which it resides, in that it seems to directly support one of the shelves. So, even thirteen years later, this book still has some practical value, as does its counterpart at the other end of the shelf, JavaScript for Netscape 2.0.

“Eeeeeeriiiik….” (this now in a rather patronizing sing-song inflection) “Eeeeriiik, why don’t you just go to Ikea?”

Now that’s not a bad idea…

On Fictional Books

Today’s prompt is to share “a fictional book.” Meaning, of course, a book that only exists in fiction. Yes, I hear you groaning now. “Eeeeeriiiiik,” (that being the sing-song inflection that people take when chiding me), “Eeeeeriiiik, the author of the meme clearly intended you to name a work of fiction. Why must you take these things so literally? Why can’t you just do what she meant?”

Why? Well, for one, it clearly says fictional, and for two, I think that my interpretation is more interesting than yours. So there. And as long as I’m not following instructions by following the instructions exactly, I’m also going to answer by way of making a top five list. I mean, the instructions don’t say not to, do they? No, they don’t. So there, again, a second time.

Top Five Books Within Books (…or Movies)

Handbook for the Recently Deceased: In the movie Beetle Juice, this book was provided to the ghosts of the recently deceased Adam and Barbara. Though it read like stereo instructions, it contained many secrets that mortals were not meant to know. A sister publication, The Living and The Dead: Harmonious Lifestyles and Peaceful Coexistence, can be furnished to mortals upon request.
The Book of Counted Shadows: In the fantasy series, The Sword of Truth, the Book of Counted Shadows was an instruction manual for using the boxes of Orden, a powerful magical artifact.
The Necronomicon: In the Evil Dead films, the Necronomicon is an encyclopedia of demon lore and a cause of great trouble. The scary demonic face on the cover is a finger nibbler, but the book can be handled safely if the words “Klaatu barada nikto” are spoken to it.
The Hyperion Cantos: In the science-fiction series Hyperion, the Hyperion Cantos is an epic poem, penned by bestselling author Martin Silenus. Or is it? Silenus seems to be most productive on the poem only when on the planet Hyperion, and only when a fearsome being called the Shrike is collecting its victims.
Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy: In the series of the same name, the Hitchhiker’s Guide is an invaluable resource for any Galactic traveler. It is something like a galactic Wikipedia, maintained by editors whose main concern is taking ever longer lunch breaks. Although it, as a result, has many omissions, and contains much that is apocryphal (or at least wildly inaccurate), it has already supplanted the great Encyclopedia Galactica as the standard repository of all knowledge.

On Books

Day Four’s prompt is, “What is your favorite book?” Finally, an easy one!

My favorite book is none other than The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. Yes, it’s not what you’d call Hard SF, but perhaps a social commentary on the late Seventies and early Eighties. But theme and topic are not why I am a fan of this book. No, what I find most enjoyable is the storytelling style combined with a particular sort of humor, both absurdist and satirical.

The book has been adapted to film (which wasn’t bad) and television (which I’ve never seen). It was originally adapted from a radio serial, to which I once had the pleasure of listening. If you’re a fan of the book, you’ll probably also enjoy the original radio serial. According to Wikipedia, there have also been new radio installments released in the past few years, so out of curiosity I’ll probably eventually check those out, myself.

Now Reading: May 7

Now Reading: High Performance MySQL

Just Finished: Star Trek: Vanguard: Summon the Thunder by Dayton Ward & Kevin Dilmore

So far, I have enjoyed the Vanguard series. Though it is set in the Star Trek universe (or should I say the Pre-Reboot Star Trek universe?) in the Original Series era, it features none of the classic characters. Instead, the action centers around the diplomats, shady characters, spies, and administrative staff aboard the Vanguard station. This book additionally features the crew of the starship Endeavour, which suffers a grave mishap while studying some ancient ruins in a frozen wasteland.

You would think that Starfleet would have issued a new general order by now. Something like, “Ancient ruins must never be disturbed.” Ah, well, how are you supposed to go exploring strange new worlds and seek out new civilizations, if you’re not allowed to poke around in ancient piles of rubble, and provoke powerful, super-evolved intelligences?

Another plotline follows a space privateer as he is accompanied by a reporter for a space newspaper on his way to transport a space accountant back to a space mob boss.

Don’t get me wrong. I quite enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to unraveling more of the mysteries of the Taurus Reach.

Now Reading – April 3

Now Reading: Star Trek: Vanguard: Precipice by David Mack.

Just Finished: Eyes of the Calculor by Sean McMullen.

I decided to read Eyes of the Calculor because I enjoyed the first book of the Greatwinter series, Souls in the Great Machine. A fresh new setting, two thousand years after an apocalyptic war, and the coming of Greatwinter. Unable to use electrical devices or to live near the ocean due to the mysterious Call, humanity adapts with wind- or pedal-driven trains, a sunlight-powered mirror signaling network, and the Calculor: a new type of computer composed of a network of people.

The next book in the series, The Miocene Arrow moves a few old characters to a new location, this one featuring a feudal society whose rulers duel one another in simple flying machines. The second book captivated my interest slightly less than the first.

When I saw the third book, Eyes of the Calculor, in the bookstore, I figured I’d give it a try, based on the previous two books. In this book, we return to the setting of the first book: the great library of Libris. Suddenly, an electrical Calculor bursts into flames, and the Call stops completely. We then set these interesting events aside in order to begin following a handful of new characters.

Sometimes it seems to me as though some writers will write lots of disconnected scenes and try to glue them together into a story. There’s nothing wrong with this as long as the narrative flows and the characters behave consistently throughout the story. On the other hand, if it seems like the only thing consistent among some of the scenes are the names of the characters, then it becomes a little tiresome. It felt to me as though the author had written a bunch of material for a different book, and then, for whatever reason, adapted it to fit into this book. This may or may not have actually been the case, but it bothered me nonetheless.

Don’t get me wrong— it’s not what I’d call a bad book. It was just not quite what I had expected.

Now Reading – Feb 4

Now Reading: Eyes of the Calculor by Sean McMullen.

Just Finished: Running with the Demon by Terry Brooks.

Terry Brooks is well known for his fantasy series, Shannara. Some years ago, I received a three-in-one Shannara compilation. I eventually sat down to read it to see what all the fuss was over. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t get into it and abandoned it, I would guess, about a third of the way through the first book. I remember some people trying to cross a bridge or something. It’s still on my shelf, just in case I ever find myself wondering whatever happened next.

However, I never thought to wonder whatever happened before that. It seems that there is a prequel to Shannara called Genesis of Shannara, and there is a prequel to that called The Word and The Void, and it was this last that came highly recommended to me. And by highly recommended, I mean something along the lines of, “Hey, I know an author you might like, and here’s his book, which I just happen to have brought with me.”

With a recommendation like that, how could I refuse? Without once again coming off as astonishingly rude, of course.

So I began Running with the Demon, fully expecting to quickly find myself wishing for a magic postcard to send off for the condensed edition. But in spite of (or perhaps because of) my low expectations, I was pleasanly surprised. The heroine, Nest, is a girl who can see creatures called feeders that exist to feed off negative emotions. As guardian of the park (it’s more of a forest, but ‘guardian of the forest’ sounds even cheesier) it is Nest’s duty to keep the feeders in check. She is assisted by Pick, a sylvan creature, Wraith, a mysterious wolf, and Gran, her ornery grandmother. The feeders’ attacks have suddenly become more brazen, and this is clearly due to the arrival of the titular demon in Nest’s home town. On the trail of the demon is John Ross, Knight of the Word, a man who is determined to prevent the dark future he visits in his dreams.

I do like that the meshing of the fantastic into the everyday world was kept low-key rather than taking the rather silly track of having institutionalized wizardry and the like. The plot was rather tangled in places, but resolved itself into a well knotted net by the end.

Twisty

Booking Through Thursday asks:

1. Do YOU like books with complicated plots and unexpected endings?

Yes, I do, with some provisions. I don’t mind a complicated plot. Go ahead and write the most convoluted time-travel
murder mystery ever written. I’ll read it. On the other hand, I do mind having to memorize a lot of characters. If I open a novel and find a “Who’s Who” of more than two facing pages, that’s a bad sign. An illustrated family tree is also a bad sign. Several trees in one book is a really bad sign. (Unless it’s being done as a Hitch Hiker’s Guide sort of aside that’s there as more of an interlude than a fact to be digested.)

Unexpected endings are fine, as long as they’re satisfactory in that they make sense and they resolve any dangling threads. In fact, I’d much rather find a (good) unexpected ending than a (good) predictable ending. On the other hand, I have seen some very bad unexpected endings. But I’m not sure which of these three is worst: 1) an unexpected ending that makes me sorry that I ever wasted the time reading the book, 2) an unexpected ending that creates more questions than answers (perhaps as an obvious sequel lead-in) or 3) an endlessly foreshadowed, belabored, and utterly predictable ending.

2. What book with a surprise ending is your favorite? Or your least favorite?

My least favorite was Iron Council. I suppose I can’t really explain why without giving the ending away, now, can I? My favorite was probably the short story “Impostor” by Philip K. Dick. It’s an old story, and so you might be able to guess the ending, even if you haven’t read it already or seen the movie (and for some reason, I thought Jeff Goldblum was in that movie.)

The Electronic Replicant

Now Reading

Perilous Candidates

Now Reading: Aug 10

On Non-Fictional Books

On Fictional Books

Top Five Books Within Books (…or Movies)

On Books

Now Reading: May 7

Now Reading – April 3

Now Reading – Feb 4

Twisty

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