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Nov. 18th, 2006 11:46 am#53
A Gladiator Dies Only Once: The Further Investigations of Gordianus the Finder, by Steven Saylor
Another collection of short stories featuring Saylor's Roman investigator, Gordianus. While a few of these stories touch on Roman politics, which figure prominently in Saylor's full-length Gordianus mysteries, some are quietly domestic, including my favorite, "If a Cyclops Could Vanish in the Wink of an Eye", in which some of Bethesda's trinkets go missing. As usual, one learns a great deal about ordinary daily life in ancient Rome from Saylor.
#54
The Lambs of London, by Peter Ackroyd
Ackroyd has written an interesting short novel about Charles and Mary Lamb, and their relationship with the young literary forger, William Ireland. They champion his "discoveries", and Mary falls in love with him. One problem: there is no evidence that the Lambs and Ireland ever met. I find this sort of thing annoying, even when well-written (which this book is). It's one thing to try to fit historical characters into settings or relationships which were possible or even probable. But when it's contrary to known fact, well, I have a problem with that.
#55
The White Robin, by Miss Read
One of Miss Read's usual heartwarming village tales, though, as one finds also with her books, a bit of tragedy as well. One spring morning, one of the school children announces that she has seen a "white bird". Despite her teacher's skepticism, it turns out that there is indeed a white robin in town. The local birding expert warns the townsfolk not to expect any more in the next nesting cycle, but naturally they don't listen to him. In the meantime, a boy whose mother is ill comes to stay, and the headmistress' friends are still trying to marry her off. A nice, quick read when you want a bit of uplift.
#56
The Beauty Queen, by Patricia Nell Warren
Ripped from the headlines, a born-again former beauty queen turned politico decides to use an anti-gay platform to promote her run for governor. She expects her very wealthy father to support her campaign financially, but he's dubious. He's also in the closet, sneaking of for nooners with his long-time lover.
The characterizations here are really loaded. Dad is a real estate developer, but not a nasty Trump-type. Oh, no. Rather than tear down beautiful buildings, he renovates and repurposes them. Daughter is not only virulently homophobic, she is also a pill-popping, mentally unstable mother who physically abuses her kids.
No contest.
#57
The Duel, by Giacomo Casanova, translated by Tim Parks
Two, two, two books in one! Casanova wrote two accounts of his duel with the Polish Count Branicki. One was a thinly-disguised autobiographical novella, written in Italian, the other was included in his Memoirs and written in French. The first is more fleshed out, with whole sections of dialogue and much greater description and ruminations. It's interesting to compare the two. All the formality and etiquette of honor and duelling is strange to us, but was quite acceptable in Casanova's time. It is quite curious how Branicki and Casanova duel, while at the same time they deny that their fight is a duel since certain technical requirements are not complied with (no seconds, for instance). Yet they still engage in ritual compliments and deferrals to one another, though there's a bit of treachery on Branicki's part. Casanova was a fascinating character, with much more to him that the Don Juan/Don Giovanni part that he's famous for.
#58
Shadows Over Baker Street, edited by Michael Reaves and John Pelan.
"Sherlock Holmes enters the nightmare world of H.P. Lovecraft", says the cover, and quite a few writers are gathered in this volume, trying their hand at blending the cold logic and rationality of Holmes with the miasmic, eldritch atmosphere of Lovecraft. But I'm afraid that despite the best efforts of such excellent writers as Neil Gaiman, Poppy Z. Brite and others, the conceit does not come off. Baker Street, despite its Victorian fog, is just too far from Dunwich's horrors. (Some of the stories are downright silly, as in "The Adventure of Exham Priory" in which Moriarty and the Old Ones lose because, at the last moment, Moriarty "remembered what it meant to be an Englishman". Oh, please.)
#59
Who Let the Dogs In?: Incredible Political Animals I have Known, by Molly Ivins
A collection of Ivins' columns dating back to the Reagan years. If you think you can predict Ivins' opinions, if you think she's a doctrinaire Democratic liberal, read this book and think again. I had forgotten how tough she was on Clinton, for instance. It's interesting, too, to see how her view of Dubya changes. She gives him well-deserved credit for his political skills, and for more intelligence than most people give him, but she doesn't let you forget for a minute what he did to Texas. Many "awful warnings" here. But my favorite part of this book is the section devoted to tributes to such folks as Barbara Jordan, John Henry Faulk, and some you never heard of. Ivins has a way with a phrase!
#60
The Garden of Eden and other Criminal Delights, by Faye Kellerman
A collection of short stories, some featuring Rina Lazarus and Peter Decker, others not, as well as a couple of autobiographical sketches. As with many novelists, particularly crime novelists, Kellerman has a hard time with short stories. Perhaps it's because the length does not allow for plot development, but this seem pretty contrived. And look, just because you're a writer doesn't mean you should do a collaboration with your 11- and 15-year-old kids and foist it on the general public.
#61
An Iliad, by Alessandro Baricco
Yes, "an", not "the". Working from an Italian translation of Homer, Baricco has pared this epic work to its bones, eliminating the gods, and, more significantly, shifting the point of view. No longer told by the omniscient narrator, this Iliad is told from the viewpoints of various participants in the conflict. It's an new and interesting take on an old tale, though I think it works best if one has read Homer first. As always, Baricco's language is clean and spare and beautiful. I can well understand his being drawn to Homer. One of the things that strikes one about his novel, Silk, is the repetition not just of words and sentences, but whole paragraphs. Very Homeric.
A Gladiator Dies Only Once: The Further Investigations of Gordianus the Finder, by Steven Saylor
Another collection of short stories featuring Saylor's Roman investigator, Gordianus. While a few of these stories touch on Roman politics, which figure prominently in Saylor's full-length Gordianus mysteries, some are quietly domestic, including my favorite, "If a Cyclops Could Vanish in the Wink of an Eye", in which some of Bethesda's trinkets go missing. As usual, one learns a great deal about ordinary daily life in ancient Rome from Saylor.
#54
The Lambs of London, by Peter Ackroyd
Ackroyd has written an interesting short novel about Charles and Mary Lamb, and their relationship with the young literary forger, William Ireland. They champion his "discoveries", and Mary falls in love with him. One problem: there is no evidence that the Lambs and Ireland ever met. I find this sort of thing annoying, even when well-written (which this book is). It's one thing to try to fit historical characters into settings or relationships which were possible or even probable. But when it's contrary to known fact, well, I have a problem with that.
#55
The White Robin, by Miss Read
One of Miss Read's usual heartwarming village tales, though, as one finds also with her books, a bit of tragedy as well. One spring morning, one of the school children announces that she has seen a "white bird". Despite her teacher's skepticism, it turns out that there is indeed a white robin in town. The local birding expert warns the townsfolk not to expect any more in the next nesting cycle, but naturally they don't listen to him. In the meantime, a boy whose mother is ill comes to stay, and the headmistress' friends are still trying to marry her off. A nice, quick read when you want a bit of uplift.
#56
The Beauty Queen, by Patricia Nell Warren
Ripped from the headlines, a born-again former beauty queen turned politico decides to use an anti-gay platform to promote her run for governor. She expects her very wealthy father to support her campaign financially, but he's dubious. He's also in the closet, sneaking of for nooners with his long-time lover.
The characterizations here are really loaded. Dad is a real estate developer, but not a nasty Trump-type. Oh, no. Rather than tear down beautiful buildings, he renovates and repurposes them. Daughter is not only virulently homophobic, she is also a pill-popping, mentally unstable mother who physically abuses her kids.
No contest.
#57
The Duel, by Giacomo Casanova, translated by Tim Parks
Two, two, two books in one! Casanova wrote two accounts of his duel with the Polish Count Branicki. One was a thinly-disguised autobiographical novella, written in Italian, the other was included in his Memoirs and written in French. The first is more fleshed out, with whole sections of dialogue and much greater description and ruminations. It's interesting to compare the two. All the formality and etiquette of honor and duelling is strange to us, but was quite acceptable in Casanova's time. It is quite curious how Branicki and Casanova duel, while at the same time they deny that their fight is a duel since certain technical requirements are not complied with (no seconds, for instance). Yet they still engage in ritual compliments and deferrals to one another, though there's a bit of treachery on Branicki's part. Casanova was a fascinating character, with much more to him that the Don Juan/Don Giovanni part that he's famous for.
#58
Shadows Over Baker Street, edited by Michael Reaves and John Pelan.
"Sherlock Holmes enters the nightmare world of H.P. Lovecraft", says the cover, and quite a few writers are gathered in this volume, trying their hand at blending the cold logic and rationality of Holmes with the miasmic, eldritch atmosphere of Lovecraft. But I'm afraid that despite the best efforts of such excellent writers as Neil Gaiman, Poppy Z. Brite and others, the conceit does not come off. Baker Street, despite its Victorian fog, is just too far from Dunwich's horrors. (Some of the stories are downright silly, as in "The Adventure of Exham Priory" in which Moriarty and the Old Ones lose because, at the last moment, Moriarty "remembered what it meant to be an Englishman". Oh, please.)
#59
Who Let the Dogs In?: Incredible Political Animals I have Known, by Molly Ivins
A collection of Ivins' columns dating back to the Reagan years. If you think you can predict Ivins' opinions, if you think she's a doctrinaire Democratic liberal, read this book and think again. I had forgotten how tough she was on Clinton, for instance. It's interesting, too, to see how her view of Dubya changes. She gives him well-deserved credit for his political skills, and for more intelligence than most people give him, but she doesn't let you forget for a minute what he did to Texas. Many "awful warnings" here. But my favorite part of this book is the section devoted to tributes to such folks as Barbara Jordan, John Henry Faulk, and some you never heard of. Ivins has a way with a phrase!
#60
The Garden of Eden and other Criminal Delights, by Faye Kellerman
A collection of short stories, some featuring Rina Lazarus and Peter Decker, others not, as well as a couple of autobiographical sketches. As with many novelists, particularly crime novelists, Kellerman has a hard time with short stories. Perhaps it's because the length does not allow for plot development, but this seem pretty contrived. And look, just because you're a writer doesn't mean you should do a collaboration with your 11- and 15-year-old kids and foist it on the general public.
#61
An Iliad, by Alessandro Baricco
Yes, "an", not "the". Working from an Italian translation of Homer, Baricco has pared this epic work to its bones, eliminating the gods, and, more significantly, shifting the point of view. No longer told by the omniscient narrator, this Iliad is told from the viewpoints of various participants in the conflict. It's an new and interesting take on an old tale, though I think it works best if one has read Homer first. As always, Baricco's language is clean and spare and beautiful. I can well understand his being drawn to Homer. One of the things that strikes one about his novel, Silk, is the repetition not just of words and sentences, but whole paragraphs. Very Homeric.
