Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy

Went into it because I saw the BBC show adaptation (2007), knew it would be a long satisfying and perhaps challenging read in terms of focus. First 2 pages made me think it was going to do the "overly verbose victorian novel" shtick that Sherlock Holmes and gothic horror books do, but it quickly became very flowing; genuinely losing the passage of time while I read it.

Capital and ideology, good so far (lots of historical learning for me), but like capital in the 21st century dry.

This last week I finished up The Summer Book by Tove Jansson. I liked it, but I wonder if I still would if I hadn't already read/been a fan of the Moomin books. I was expecting some kind of overarching story or significant character growth, but it's really just a series of little 3-10 page anecdotes that sometimes just stop without much resolution. If the authorial voice wasn't so strong, or the characters so familiar (fictionalized family members, whom she also pulled from for the Moomins), I might have dropped it.

I also sped through Joe Country by Mick Herron, so I'd be ready to watch the new season of Slow Horses at some point. I liked it better than the previous 2 or 3; can't really put my finger on why, though. Less outlandish plot, maybe?

Currently trying to settle on a new book: the last couple nights, I've been bouncing between Slewfoot by Brom and There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (the rewritten version; I read the original a couple of years ago).

Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor's End Times Fascism. Someone help, I need comfort. I feel somewhat compelled to understand the forces at play reshaping the way we live (or don't live). But it is harrowing.

Alchemist and Fight Club. Total opposites. Destiny vs nihilism.

I finally wrapped up reading "Imaginary Friend" by Stephen Chbosky.

This story desperately needed a better writer, and this book desperately needed a better editor. We have an American author publishing a book with the color "grey" in it. It goes on and freakin' on, so sure of itself but it really shouldn't be. In general it was a mess.

For example, an important character to this story lives in an old folks home and has finally gone blind from his cataracts. If you do the simple math, this dude is 67 years old. Huh?! Wake up, writer. Wake up, editor.

Another example, the children characters, including the main character, are supposed to be 7 years old, but are all written with 10-12 year old mannerisms.

It's just a bad book that really has sullied Chbosky's reputation for me. Having read the Perks of Being a Wallflower like 15 or 20 years ago, I thought he was an overrated but still OK writer (neither good nor great, but OK). This is the last book of his I'll ever read.

I'd give this book 2/5 Fudgy Points. (A 1 point rating is reserved for DNF books, which are few and far between for me.)

Work got in the way, so I am still working on Woken Furies by Richard Morgan as a whisper sync and leisurely reading Watership Down by Richard Adams.

Once I am done with those, I have decided to tackle something a bit heavier than is the norm for me. I'm going to give Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro a go.

Interrupted my Culture re-read to give John Green's Hollywood, Ending a go. It was my first time reading his fiction, and apart from the characters being a little too self-aware, it was memorable, and has kept me thinking about it a lot since finishing it.

Also got through Excession (from the culture re-read), and if it's possible, it was better than I remember. The amazing thing about going through this series again is that at the end of each of the books I inevitably think "that one was my favourite of the series"

More Everything Forever. Pretty good overview of the rationalist and effective altruism movements that have turned Silicon Valley and the AI industry into what it is today. I have heard the author say in interviews that a good alternative title is “These fucking people”.

Just finished witchcraft for wayward girls. That book was horrifying in so many different ways. I loved it.

I finished Neverwhere, Neil Gaiman, which was just okay, at the end of the day. Not something I'd write home about. On the other hand I'm accidentally listening and reading to two books with protagonists with eidetic memory, both of which I'm loving! The Fold, Peter Clines, and A Trade of Blood, Robert Jackson Bennett, are both great so far.

The Fold, is the second in a connected lovecraftian-inspired universe, and nails the government secret project energy. Blazing through this one.

Then A Trade of Blood continues the mysteries in Cline's awesome and weird biological science fantasy world. Trying to savor it.

I finished Between Two Fires. For me maybe a 6/10. Maybe just not for me but everything about it seemed like it would be. Some neat scenes and stuff but i dont know how to describe it.

I started Lost Worlds by Patrick Wyman. Its a history of how early socities slowly began to form using what we know from the archeology records and DNA evidence. So far its been pretty good, but that could be bias i enjoyed his podcast Tides of History.

Also started the first book of He who fights with monsters. Its a litrpg similar to DCC? I guess. Not super far yet but i am hoping it grabs me. O guess DCC had more hype from friends. This was suggested by my partner, she read the first chapter or two and thought I would like it.

Book of Doors by Gareth Brown. Probably my new favorite comfort read.

The Devil Amongst the Lawyers, by Sharyn McCrumb. It's based on the 1935 trial of Edith Maxwell, but fictionalized enough that the author saw fit to change her name to Erma Morton. Except that it not about her at all, because nobody really cares about her story. Especially not the New York reporters descending upon Wise County, looking for the next Lindbergh baby case to sensationalize. (They've agreed Erma is a hottie, hence that portraying her as innocent is better business, facts notwithstanding.) Lots of Appalachian culture, as expected from McCrumb, but a surprising amount of Japanese culture due to one of the New Yorkers recalling his years in Japan hiding from American law.

In the past week I finished Reamde by Neal Stephenson, finished The Gate of the Feral God by Matt Dinniman, and started The Witch King by Martha Wells.

Working my way through the Booker Prize longlist

My secret goal is to read at least one longlisted book before they’re announced. I successfully picked up The Things We Never Say this year and thoroughly enjoyed it. The Disappearers was on my TBR but I hadn’t gotten to it yet… oh well, be faster next time.

I’ve done this three years in a row and I rarely have a book I hate. It’s a nice look at literary fiction and “good” writing.

I read John Polidori's The Vampyre, an early modern vampire short story. It was pretty good, given its context. It was based on the story Lord Byron wrote for their little writing competition that also spawned Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Funnily enough, Polidori based the titular vampire on Lord Byron's personality. From what I gather, Byron was a bit of a shit. Anyway, it was a quick read.

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore.

I read this last year so not current, but if you're looking for spoopy book recommendations, check out Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

I’m about 100 pages from finishing Dune. After this Dune: Mesiah will be a cake walk—I hope!

When They Burned the Butterfly by Wen-yi Lee. It's been sitting on my Libby queue for a while and I figured I'd better read it before the hold expires in a couple of months. I'm glad I did, since it's been very interesting thus far.

I just started Billy Summers by Stephen King last night. Pretty good so far, but I'm also a big King fan to begin with.