This Old Neon Forum

Finished volume 2 of the French Revolution. One more to go before I blog about it though. The situation is getting serious!

1. Polgara the Sorceress by David and Leigh Eddings
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte
3. The Weekend that Changed the World by Peter Walker
4. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto
6. Friday by Robert Heinlein
7. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
8. Christianizing the Roman Empire: A.D. 100 - 300 by Ramsay MacMullen
9. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
10. Mars by Ben Bova
11. Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
12. Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture by Larry Osborne
13. Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
14. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
15. Whirlwind by James Clavell
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
17. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
18. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
19. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
20. Answer to Job by C.G. Jung
21. Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys
22. King Lear by William Shakespeare
23. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
24. Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert Heinlein
25. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
26. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
27. The French Revolution: Volume 1 by Thomas Carlyle
28. Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger
29. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
30: Seymour: An Introduction by J.D. Salinger
31. Inferno by Dante Alighieri
32. The French Revolution: Volume 2 by Thomas Carlyle

Finished Purgatorio by Dante. Phew what an esoteric read. Won’t blog about it until I finish Paradiso.

1. Polgara the Sorceress by David and Leigh Eddings
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte
3. The Weekend that Changed the World by Peter Walker
4. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto
6. Friday by Robert Heinlein
7. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
8. Christianizing the Roman Empire: A.D. 100 - 300 by Ramsay MacMullen
9. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
10. Mars by Ben Bova
11. Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
12. Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture by Larry Osborne
13. Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
14. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
15. Whirlwind by James Clavell
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
17. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
18. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
19. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
20. Answer to Job by C.G. Jung
21. Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys
22. King Lear by William Shakespeare
23. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
24. Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert Heinlein
25. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
26. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
27. The French Revolution: Volume 1 by Thomas Carlyle
28. Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger
29. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
30: Seymour: An Introduction by J.D. Salinger
31. Inferno by Dante Alighieri
32. The French Revolution: Volume 2 by Thomas Carlyle
33. Purgatorio by Dante Alighieri

It looks like it took me the entire month of August to crank through The Stand, and that's thematically appropriate, given that the bulk of the action of the book takes place in July-August. This is quite the novel.

I definitely enjoyed how each book focused on a pretty different adventure—the unfolding of the pandemic, the gathering of the survivors, and the Stand. Each was interesting in its own way. And the ending was fantastic. Maybe it's because the novel was so long, but King successfully evoked a nostalgia for the idyllic nascent society we only just read about a few hundred pages ago.

I also like the fact that King didn't divide his camps up explicitly as "good" and "evil" (although that's how we readers inevitably colour them), but as "fear" and "love". Lots of nice thematic material to chew on for a while here. It does make me wonder how successful a short television miniseries could ever be at conveying all of this...


01. 2023-06-07 The Poetic Edda (800-1300), trans. Carolyne Larrington (English), 321pp
02. 2023-06-08 Lincoln in the Bardo (2017), George Saunders (American), 343pp
03. 2023-07-17 Utopia (1516), Thomas More (English), trans. Clarence H. Miller, 182pp
04. 2023-07-31 Ninefox Gambit (2016), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 317pp
05. 2023-09-04 The Stand (1978, 1990 ed.), Stephen King (American), 1154pp

Finished Paolini's Eldest, the second of the Inheritance Cycle. My first read-through. It's not really more interesting or provocative than Eragon, as the twists seem a little too foreshadowed or predictable. The quality of the prose is better, as I was no longer getting confused partway through battle scenes. Introducing side-protagonists was interesting, but some of the stories felt a little too desperate without any sense of real danger. Anyway, after a brief palate cleanser, I'll probably still move on to the next.

Said palate cleanser is Adrian Tchaikovsky's Spiderlight which so far has been some interesting "classic fantasy with a few twists". The "light vs dark" backdrop, along with many shades of gray among the crew so far, should make for a fun story.

(I considered continuing the Children series after Time, but I think I need a little bit more time as it was very dense).

Knocked out Emma. Fantastic book - thoughts here:

https://www.wheredreamsescape.com/post/_emma

1. Polgara the Sorceress by David and Leigh Eddings
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte
3. The Weekend that Changed the World by Peter Walker
4. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto
6. Friday by Robert Heinlein
7. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
8. Christianizing the Roman Empire: A.D. 100 - 300 by Ramsay MacMullen
9. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
10. Mars by Ben Bova
11. Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
12. Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture by Larry Osborne
13. Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
14. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
15. Whirlwind by James Clavell
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
17. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
18. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
19. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
20. Answer to Job by C.G. Jung
21. Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys
22. King Lear by William Shakespeare
23. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
24. Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert Heinlein
25. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
26. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
27. The French Revolution: Volume 1 by Thomas Carlyle
28. Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger
29. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
30: Seymour: An Introduction by J.D. Salinger
31. Inferno by Dante Alighieri
32. The French Revolution: Volume 2 by Thomas Carlyle
33. Purgatorio by Dante Alighieri
34. Emma by Jane Austen

After breaking for a month for the immense The Stand, I immediately went back for the sequel to Yoon Ha Lee's Ninefox Gambit, and I'll be moving on to the third (and final) book in the trilogy immediately after. This second book does something excellent with the first 280 pages and then works up to a conclusion that's satisfying for both books 2 and, retroactively, 1. I'm excited to see what happens in the finale now that the jig is up and the cards are on the table.


01. 2023-06-07 The Poetic Edda (800-1300), trans. Carolyne Larrington (English), 321pp
02. 2023-06-08 Lincoln in the Bardo (2017), George Saunders (American), 343pp
03. 2023-07-17 Utopia (1516), Thomas More (English), trans. Clarence H. Miller, 182pp
04. 2023-07-31 Ninefox Gambit (2016), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 317pp
05. 2023-09-04 The Stand (1978, 1990 ed.), Stephen King (American), 1154pp
06. 2023-10-01 Raven Stratagem (2017), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 355pp

I couldn't resist moving directly on to the finale of the Machineries of Empire trilogy, and sure enough, it concluded in a satisfying way. There was a thrilling moment in the conclusion where I was literally clenching my fists and wiping sweat off my brow. Whew! What an intriguing world and author.

01. 2023-06-07 The Poetic Edda (800-1300), trans. Carolyne Larrington (English), 321pp
02. 2023-06-08 Lincoln in the Bardo (2017), George Saunders (American), 343pp
03. 2023-07-17 Utopia (1516), Thomas More (English), trans. Clarence H. Miller, 182pp
04. 2023-07-31 Ninefox Gambit (2016), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 317pp
05. 2023-09-04 The Stand (1978, 1990 ed.), Stephen King (American), 1154pp
06. 2023-10-01 Raven Stratagem (2017), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 355pp
07. 2023-10-25 Revenant Gun (2018), Yoon Ha Lee (American), 427pp

Finished the third of the Inheritance Cycle, Brisingr. Although again, major events are relatively unsurprising, I've come around a bit as the narrative has gotten a little bit more complicated if still very tropey.

In the foreword of the final novel, Inheritance, Paolini mentions getting into writing novels after reading some particularly bad video game novelizations and realizing he could do better. I'm not aware of the full scope of what was out there in the late '90s, but I do have a soft spot for the old Worlds of Power series so I wonder if it's one of those. Simon's Quest is the unquestionable worst of the bunch, although I believe I missed out on one or two in the series. In Simon's Quest,

Spoiler

the main character, a kid sucked into the Castlevania world, sells Simon out to Dracula for some chocolate.

Had a rough day yesterday so I spent much of it reading the second half of the fantastic All Quirt on the Western Front.

https://www.wheredreamsescape.com/post/ ... tern-front

1. Polgara the Sorceress by David and Leigh Eddings
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte
3. The Weekend that Changed the World by Peter Walker
4. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto
6. Friday by Robert Heinlein
7. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
8. Christianizing the Roman Empire: A.D. 100 - 300 by Ramsay MacMullen
9. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
10. Mars by Ben Bova
11. Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
12. Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture by Larry Osborne
13. Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
14. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
15. Whirlwind by James Clavell
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
17. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
18. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
19. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
20. Answer to Job by C.G. Jung
21. Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys
22. King Lear by William Shakespeare
23. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
24. Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert Heinlein
25. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
26. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
27. The French Revolution: Volume 1 by Thomas Carlyle
28. Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger
29. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
30: Seymour: An Introduction by J.D. Salinger
31. Inferno by Dante Alighieri
32. The French Revolution: Volume 2 by Thomas Carlyle
33. Purgatorio by Dante Alighieri
34. Emma by Jane Austen
35. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Finally finished the French Revolution. Not sure who won though…

https://www.wheredreamsescape.com/post ... revolution

1. Polgara the Sorceress by David and Leigh Eddings
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte
3. The Weekend that Changed the World by Peter Walker
4. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto
6. Friday by Robert Heinlein
7. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
8. Christianizing the Roman Empire: A.D. 100 - 300 by Ramsay MacMullen
9. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
10. Mars by Ben Bova
11. Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
12. Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture by Larry Osborne
13. Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
14. Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
15. Whirlwind by James Clavell
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
17. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
18. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
19. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
20. Answer to Job by C.G. Jung
21. Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys
22. King Lear by William Shakespeare
23. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
24. Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert Heinlein
25. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
26. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
27. The French Revolution: Volume 1 by Thomas Carlyle
28. Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger
29. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
30: Seymour: An Introduction by J.D. Salinger
31. Inferno by Dante Alighieri
32. The French Revolution: Volume 2 by Thomas Carlyle
33. Purgatorio by Dante Alighieri
34. Emma by Jane Austen
35. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
36. The French Revolution: Volume 3 by Thomas Carlyle