Next: Wislawa Szymborska, Sie sollten dringend den Kugelschreiber wechseln - Anregungen für angehende Literaten [2000, erstmalige Übersetzung ins Deutsche aus 2023]. #bookstodon@bookstodon
Ugh. 1990 is almost 35 years ago [!!!], OK, but I'm still very happy to finally having finished Moving Pictures by #Pratchett. What a boring book, where each and every acting character is stereotypically cis male, EVEN BOTH OCCURRING DOGS!!1 🤯
[Pratchett of course writes really funny sometimes, in it, BUT. Will continue my journey through his creative realm, though!]
A supernatural family saga, a searing social critique, and a lyrical and potent account of displaced lives, We Are a Haunting unravels the threads connecting the past, present, and future, and depicts the palpable, breathing essence of the neglected corridors of a pulsing city with pathos and poise.
A drama of murder, love, and redemption set in Nova Scotia in the final year of World War I. Come to the Window explores a question both universal and timeless: How does one recover hope in a time of great bewilderment and grief?
Allow me to rave for a moment about "The Book of Koli" to y'all. Also, too, "The Trials of Koli" and "The Fall of Koli," which together comprise the Rampart Trilogy by M. R. Carey.
What's so great about these books? Convincing and fascinating world-building, firstly. Koli lives in a world which at first seems like a medieval English village. But the village has "Ramparts," people who hold and control tech from centuries ago. A flamethrower, a database, a gun that never misses its target, and a glove that emits a force field. Plus, the forests outside their village are full of killer trees. Villagers must wait for cloudy days to go out hunting, otherwise the bloodthirsty trees will entangle, crush, and kill them by various means.
The second great thing about the story is the characters. Koli is at first a foolish, sometimes selfish, lovestruck boy whose main redeeming feature is that he really hates hurting other people and animals. Some reviewers complain about his weepiness, and he does cry a lot, but those folks are missing the point of Koli. He's not a typical adventuring hero, he's a boy becoming a man who ultimately succeeds (when he does succeed) in his quests because of his soft-hearted nature. He's also pretty good at woodworking and running fast, but that's about it. He's no good with weapons and he's not particularly clever. Fortunately, he's able to connect with people who are good with weapons (Cup, a girl who he inadvertently rescues from the clutches of a religious cult leader) and who are extremely clever (an older, probably autistic doctor who travels the land with a mission to restore enough genetic diversity to the people so that humanity doesn't die out entirely).
There's one more important main character, but to describe her in any detail would spoil some important elements of the first book, so I'll just leave it there.
I am approaching 50 years old and am completely over coming-of-age, YA type books. And yet this series never gave me the bored feeling that I sometimes get from reading about the struggles of teenagers to find themselves. Plus, there is positive trans representation (especially in books 2 and 3) and Koli is clearly described as being brown-skinned. 10/10, recommend for anyone. #SFF#ScienceFiction#SciFi#SpecFic#SpeculativeFiction#CliFi#ClimateFiction#Books#Bookstodon@bookstodon
(Carey is also the author of The Girl With All the Gifts and its sequel The Boy on the Bridge, both are very good. The first of those got turned into a decent movie.)
The thing that impressed me is how readable this Novella is.
It's actually a very simple coming of age story. Girl's family is killed by a monster. Girl learns to kill monsters. Learning about life, love and politics along the way.
What sets it apart is the Middle Eastern setting and enormous hunting bird action, as well as an ending that doesn't involve marrying a prince.
An epic clash of deities explores the two facets of pain—rage versus sadness—in this rousing conclusion to the Betrayal Prophecies, a dark crown fantasy duology with a sweeping sapphic romance.
‘Heart of Empire’ is the sequel to Bryan Talbot’s masterpiece, ‘The Adventures of Luther Arkwright’. It’s a much slicker comic, less profound maybe, but a brilliant and subversive slice of high-octane entertainment.
Book Challenge: 20 books that have had an impact on who you are. One book a day for 20 days. No explanations, no reviews, just book covers. (And don't forget the alt text.)
“In this episode Autumn and Anil Ananthaswamy discuss the inspiration behind his book “Why Machines Learn” and the importance of understanding the math behind machine learning. He explains that the book aims to convey the beauty and essential concepts of machine learning through storytelling, history, sociology, and mathematics.”
#Image attribution: Michael D Beckwith, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons. Page URL: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rijks_Museum_Library_(243776563).jpeg
Scott reviews "Talio's Codex" by J. Alexander Cohen:
"A well-written, fast-paced legal fantasy thriller with unexpected twists and turns that passes one of my most important tests for a great story – it’s unlike anything I have ever read before. Highly recommended."
New: J. Alexander Cohen's MM fantasy book Talio’s Codex.
Is love worth destroying his reputation?
Ten years ago, the theft of his codex destroyed Talio Rossa’s career as a magistrate in the four cities. But when his ex-wife—finally willing to forgive finding him in bed with a man—presents...
Methods and Methodologies in Heritage Studies #OpenAccess#Book#UCLPress Edited by Rachel King and Trinidad Rico
"Methods and Methodologies in Heritage Studies offers succinct, easily accessible analyses of the disciplinary debates, intellectual legacies, and practical innovations that have led to understandings of heritage value today.
Oriented specifically towards learning and teaching heritage across archaeology, anthropology, history, and geography, this textbook is designed to support critical, ethical heritage students, researchers, and practitioners."
All my books (light(ish) romantic fantasy, escapism and happy ever afters) are halfprice at Smashwords for all of July as part of their summer/winter sale. Try one out for only US$1.99 and help me pay my dog’s vet bills 🐕 🩹