Skip to main content

What I read: June 2012


“Sense and Sensibility” by Jane Austen. So I, um, won a kindle fire at my holiday party a couple of months ago. This was the first book I read on it. I found it a nice form factor and comfortable to read off of, but I found it easier to put down and not pick up than an actual book, maybe because you have to turn it on. The wrap-up of Eleanor’s storyline seemed too easy to me, not that I wasn’t happy for her or anything, but I felt like it should have been less of a surprise and more motivated.

“Graceling” by Kristin Cashore. Oh my god, a book I chose myself! The boy wandered off with this when he’d finished all that GRRM stuff. He told me it was “a good first novel” which is damning with faint praise but whatever. However, when I was reading along, I could see what he meant; it lacked a certain elegance in execution. The idea was really cool, though. I loved Po’s grace. And the plot moved right along.

“The Fox Woman“ by Kij Johnson. I’ve read three of her short stories, and all have stuck with me enough that I’ve even forced them on other people (!). Those stories were 26 monkeys also the abyss, Ponies (which some people have gotten angry with me for recommending, but I think that’s what makes it effective), and some really disturbing thing about being trapped in an escape pod with a really tactile alien. Anyway, so I was happy to see she had some novels, and I requested the first one from the library. 

It’s told as three diaries woven together, the POVs charming and profound. I mentioned to my Japanese friend what I was reading, and she said, “Oh, children’s story,” so I told her there was a fair bit of sex. She asked me if they got married, and I said yes, so we agreed maybe it was the same one. The fox magic version of a fairy world was brilliant, also.

Popular posts from this blog

Best TW feedback ever

Over at the dayjob, SMEs are feverishly trying to get documents back to me all marked up, in preparation for the release that's supposed to happen the week I'm back from VP. Today's best comment: Unfortunately not true. SMEs, they're so cute.

What I read: August 2023

"The Absolute Book" by Elizabeth Knox. I got it for Christmas. It was delightful, even if maybe some stuff wasn't explained completely. Or maybe that's part of why it was delightful.  "Crucial conversations" By Joseph Grenny and three other old white men. Another office book club selection. The word "candor" comes up a lot. I really resented this book.  LHC #220: "The Goldfinch" by Donna Tartt. There was a girl at my previous company who wanted to have an office book club, and she had this book on her desk for months and months. I can totally understand this. I found portions crazy stressful to read. Like, I would be skipping ahead to see how much more in the section, could I get through it, pacing around, etc. I wanted to know how it ended, sure, but I was having weird stress dreams and stuff. If it wasn't a library book I might not have finished it at all. It was such a relief when Boris showed up again and something happened. I di

What I read: March, 2010

"The Man from St. Petersburg" Ken Follett. Oh. My. God. I read it because we had two copies lying around. Ick. This book made me feel dirty. I made some negative comment about this book to my sister, who repled "I've read every book he's ever written." I think she's mad at me now. This book was all tell, no show. There was no tension. The sex was funny. It reminded me of my dad's novel. It seemed well-researched, from what I can tell. When my friend said that of my karate-zombie novel, I took it as damning with faint praise, so there you go. There was no female character with whom I could identify. Or male character, for that matter. I don't need a woman to be a role model. I really strongly disliked this book. "Wanderlust" Rebecca Solnit. I'd come across her name in a discussion of the aftermath of the Haitian earthquake, and came across this when I was looking for her other book on the TPL website. As walking is an integral part o