FF: Keep On Reading!

I’m managing a little more reading time… You might say it’s my carrot, my reward for a day’s work well done.

Carrot, Not Stick

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

The Snow Queen by Joan Vinge.  I read this years after it was winning awards.  Came away feeling the awards were well deserved.

Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip.  Audiobook.  Excellent and evocative.

In Progress:

Death Comes As the End by Agatha Christie.  Audiobook.  Set in ancient Egypt with lots of period material.  Very enjoyable, although the POV character might strike some as too vague and dreamy.

Also:

The magazines are piling up!

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FF: Do Subtitles Count?

Kwahe’e and The Snow Queen

Still far too busy and by the end of the day rather than curling up with a good book, all I’m good for is an episode or two of the anime Lupin the Third.  I do watch in Japanese with subtitles, so I hope subtitles count…

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King.  Audiobook.  This book would have been great even without the brilliant performances by the ensemble cast, but with them…  Wow!

In Progress:

The Snow Queen by Joan Vinge.  I read this years after it was winning awards.  Came away feeling the awards were well deserved.  Re-reading.  However, the complex world building does demand me to be alert.

Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip.  Audiobook.  Jim knows I love McKillip’s work, and found this for me on our library’s site.  Almost done.  I’ve read it before but still am enjoying.

Also:

Some beading magazines.  Not that I have time to bead, but I love the colors and seeing how creative some people can be with nothing more than seed beads and thread.

FF: Exhausted Slumber

Our Signed Copy of Snow Queen

Reading time is still being seriously crimped, but I manage a few lines before collapsing into exhausted slumber.

I’ve tried to read some short fiction but find that, oddly enough, interrupting my reading of something short does more to harm my impression of the story than picking up and putting down a novel.  Anyone else had this problem?

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Swords Against Wizardry by Fritz Lieber.   Good tales, vivid imagry.

In Progress:

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King.  Audiobook.  This book would have been great even without the brilliant performances by the ensemble cast, but with them…  Wow!

The Snow Queen by Joan Vinge.  I read this years after it was winning awards.  Came away feeling the awards were well deserved.  Re-reading.

Also:

A few catalogs.  See above for my reaction to the short fiction I’ve attempted.

FF: Rolling Along

Ziggy Wants to Be Harriet for Halloween

One thing I like about travel is having more time to read.  On road trips, audiobooks come into their own.

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Earthquake Weather by Tim Powers.  Good and creative, although – my personal opinion – the characterization is not as strong as in the prior two novels.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen.  Audiobook.  To my surprise, I really enjoyed.  Almost despite herself, Catherine is blessed with a solid dose of common sense.

Swords Against Death by Fritz Leiber.  A Friday Fragments reader mentioned the Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser tales, and I couldn’t resist re-reading at least some.

Turbo Twenty-Three by Janet Evanovich.   Audiobook.  We find these books good for road trips since the reader is brilliant, and the plots not overly demanding.

Little Red Rodent Hood by Ursula Vernon.  Harriet the Hamster Princess is appealed to by a child in distress… but is everything as it seems?

In Progress:

Swords in the Mist by Fritz Leiber.

The Moons of Barsk by Lawrence M. Schoen.  Audiobook.

Also:

I almost never get a chance to read the convention program when I’m at a con, but I often read it after.  I’m currently dipping into the gorgeous one from MileHiCon.

FF: Murder, Heresy, and Earthquakes

“Dandy” Dandelion Reads

I’ll be at MileHiCon this weekend.  I hope to see some of you there!

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Murder at the Bar by Ngaio Marsh.  Audiobook.

The Heretic’s Apprentice by Ellis Peters.  Audiobook.  More thoughtful than many Cadfael novels because of the frank discussion of heresy and free will.

In Progress:

Earthquake Weather by Tim Powers.  Almost done, but this is a long novel.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen.  Audiobook.  When I was assigned this book in high school, I didn’t have the background to catch all of Austen’s tart social critiques.

Also:

Getting ready for MileHiCon has taken some  of my reading time, but I’ll make up for it with audiobooks on the road.

FF: Company

Ogapoge Reads!

Jim’s been away most of this week – he gets home this evening .  In his absence, books have been my companions.  Well, books and cats and guinea pigs and even the fish.  But I’ve been reading a lot.

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie.  Audiobook.

Last Call by Tim Powers.  Lived up to good memories so I decided to read the entire “Fault Lines” trilogy.  It’s an unusual series in that the first and second books are completely independent of each other.

Expiration Date by Tim Powers.  Bonus for this one is that it’s set in the three days leading up to Halloween.  Very seasonal!

Summer of the Danes by Ellis Peters.  Audiobook.

In Progress:

Murder at the Bar by Margery Allingham.  Audiobook.  Among her many gifts, Allingham writes phenomenal dialogue and dialect.

Earthquake Weather by Tim Powers.  This is the first time I’ve read this in tight sequence with the previous two.  Interesting to see how elements from the prior novels are woven in from the very start.

Also:

Still looking at various magazines.  The first of the “shop for Christmas” catalogs came in this week as well.

FF: A Time and a Place

Kel Knows Not to Look Too Closerly at Medusa’s Web

Beginning some re-reading this week…  There’s a time and a place for that, too!

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough.  Audiobook.  Non-fiction.  Very good.  Author’s contentions strongly supported by primary source material.  McCullough himself reads this one, which is a plus or minus, depending on your tastes.

Medusa’s Web by Tim Powers.  Very much enjoyed.

And Another Thing…  by Eoin Colfer.  Set in the universe of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.”  Mostly harmless.

In Progress:

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie.  Audiobook.  While waiting for other books to arrive, delving into an old favorite.

Last Call by Tim Powers.  Decided I was long over-due for a read of this particular favorite of mine.

Also:

The beginning of the month has brought numerous magazines to our door.  I’m sampling a few, fiction and non-fiction.

FF: Powering Through

Insouciant Ogapoge

A couple new titles this week.  I’ve wanted to read the book on the Wright Brothers ever since I heard David McCullough talk about it in 2015 when we were both guests at the National Book Festival.  Now the time has come…

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Babylon’s Ashes by James S.A. Corey.  Audiobook.  Not my favorite in the series, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t some excellent moments!

Alternate Routes by Tim Powers.  Hits several of Power’s themes but in new and different ways.  Fully realized story but with room for a sequel.

In Progress:

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough.  Audiobook.  Non-fiction.  Just starting.

Medusa’s Web by Tim Powers.  I’ve just learned there’s a sub-genre called “Philadelphia Gothic.  So far, this is shaping into what seems to be California Gothic.  Very good so far.  Somehow I missed this when it was first released in 2015.  A great surprise since Tim Powers is on my very short list of “must read” novelists.

And Another Thing…  by Eoin Colfer.  Set in the universe of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.”  So far, mostly harmless.

Also:

Having deciphered how to do basic kumihimo with beads, I’m dipping into a couple issues of Beadwork magazine, just because.

FF: Shifting Priorities

Ogapoge Considers Alternate Routes

We’re definitely shifting to autumn, here.  Since no one is advertising “Autumn Reads,” I guess I need to figure out what works on my own.

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Do you have any reads that go well with pumpkin spice?

Recently Completed:

The Bone Reader by Mab Morris.  A murder mystery combined with court intrigue, featuring a fortune teller who doesn’t believe her own prophesies.  I enjoyed but, honest assessment, the writing is not as strong as in the other books by this author I’ve read.  Still, I’d give it a thumbs up for people who like this type of story.

In Progress:

Babylon’s Ashes by James S.A. Corey.  Audiobook.  I’ll be honest.  I miss the elements of alien intelligences and artifacts.  That’s part of what made this series special to me.  If I want to read about war and the moral and ethical elements that arise, I’ll read history.  Not bad.  Just not the stretch of the mind that I read SF for.  However, I’m  not done and don’t plan to quit.

Alternate Routes by Tim Powers.  Baen Books edition of a novel that apparently had a small press release first from Charnel House.  Three cheers to Baen for making this more widely available.  I’m just getting into it and it has the usual Powers weirdness.

Also:

I’ve been deciphering the instructions for a new craft project that was one of my recent birthday gifts.  Feels as if it’s exercising my brain in all the right ways to make me a better writer.  Weird how that works!

FF: In the Midst

Give A Cat A Bone (Reader)

This week I’m in a more normal pattern.  I’ve also been reading magazine stories here and there.

For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week.  Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.

The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list.  If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.

Once again, this is not a book review column.  It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.

Recently Completed:

Nemesis Games by James S.A. Corey.  Audiobook.  I ended up being really interested in this one.  I’m learning that the opening chapters – which tend to be very gloom and doom – could chase me away if I didn’t already like the series.  I realize that goes back to the very first novel in the series, Leviathan Wakes.

In Progress:

Babylon’s Ashes by James S.A. Corey.  Audiobook.  Once again, things are pretty gloomy and stressful and everyone is cranky…

The Bone Reader by Mab Morris.  A murder mystery combined with court intrigue, featuring a fortune teller who doesn’t believe her own prophesies.  So far, so good.

Also:

Still doing continuity reading from the latter Firekeeper novels as I move into a new plot arc.