I’ve read all the Earthsea books except the 6th, I think the 2nd is my all time favourite book. Ursula K. Le Guin is a legend too, I really need to read some of her Sci-Fi stuff.
Which book are you up to? :D
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My wife got me the Hainish omnibus (different SKU but that’s the thing), and I’ve been slowly working through them for the first time (aside from LHoD). Really great stuff, and her own commentary is super interesting, as always.
The GOAT <3
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I believe a Wizard of Earthsea may be one of the most well-written books of all time just in terms of elegance and efficiency.
Every chapter could be a whole novel in a much lesser series but she somehow manages to cram so much into such a small book and every single piece of it hits. And she makes it look so easy because of how unadorned the writing is.
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I’m currently reading Alan Moore’s short story collection, Illuminations. So far I’ve only read the first two stories, ‘The Hypothetical Lizard’ and ‘Not Even Legend’ (I did also listen to the novella ‘What We Can Know About Thunderman’ back when I had Spotify but I’m still looking forward to reading it properly - I think I’ll get more out of reading it on the page, where it’s easier to navigate and recheck sentences, than I did in an audio format).
‘The Hypothetical Lizard’ felt like it had a lot of ideas which didn’t quite cohere into one thing. I keep thinking about it and trying to decide if there’s something in it I missed which unlocks it. Also it feels a bit on the nose, given one of the major criticisms of Moore is how often he uses sexual violence as a plot point, that the first story in the book involves it.
‘Not Even Legend’ felt much better, a lot like one of Moore’s one-shot comics for 2000AD, but written in a way that depends on and makes use of the fact it’s being told in prose. Like ‘The Hypothetical Lizard’, you work out the basic twist quite early on, but the way it’s elaborated on and explained is much more fun to experience. It does some quite fun things with time - most obviously in the two narratives in it, running concurrently in different directions, but also in the way each of those narratives deals with the question of history.
More on the other stories as I go through them. Has anyone else read this? Does anyone have an idea about what I think I’m not getting about ‘The Hypothetical Lizard’?
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I just finished Part 1 of the 5th book, I am rapidly burning through these books and that’s just while reading before going to sleep.
I am still thankful to the old friend of mine that got me to read the Left Hand of Darkness (I think it’s called) as I read that in two sittings as well.
I don’t read nearly enough, but I’m going to be travelling a bunch for work this summer so picked up a couple of Shirley Jackson novels.
I flew through We Have Always Lived in the Castle in a day, and have been working my way through the Haunting Of Hill House more slowly through the rest of the week (the slower pace due to having already read it once, rather than lack of interest - it’s still wonderful!).
I’m finding I connect incredibly well with Shirley Jackon’s protagonists (arguably too well, considering) - she conveys anxiety, self-doubt and dissociation in a way that feels all too familiar, leading to an odd mix of feelings - it’s both unnerving but also oddly comforting to see familiar emotions expressed so clearly and accurately.
I’ve ordered a copy of The Lottery now as it felt a good place to continue, but if anyone has any recommendations for horror or other books dealing with similar themes I’d love to hear them!
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I read Hill House and WHALITC in the past six months or so and I was absolutely blown away by both.
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finished up I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
a whole lot less interesting than i thought it would be, unfortunately
it’s an extremely straightforward and light account of her childhood and early adulthood
yes, the actual content is heavy the writing itself feels likes it falls short
part of the problem is that it’s written in extremely short chapters (90 chapters across ~300 pages) which are really just vignettes of single moments (an audition, a drive, a meeting) told more or less from the perspective present in that moment. there’s no concept of Jennette as an adult looking back on these moments with any real context or hindsight so you just end up with these tiny moments as relayed by a child
like, obviously her mom is abusive and manipulative based on the events described but the actual character of Jennette doesnt connect that until therapy at the very end of the book, leaving no space for her to actually reflect or have thoughts about these things
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