Neverwhere - reading

Finished "Neverwhere" by Neil Gaiman. I hadn't read anything by him before, which is surprising. I checked the internet for which of his books to start with, and this was the answer. So I picked up a copy. It was on the good side of alright, though only just, in my opinion. The main character was a lot like Arthur Dent goes to London, which apparently doesn't resonate with me.

Let Love Have the Last Word - reading

Finished "Let Love Have the Last Word" by Common, nee Rashid.

I knew nothing about Common prior to reading the book, and now only know that he is a rapper, actor, and father. He seems like a normal guy going through life. I picked up the book at Target on a whim, but mostly because it hits home for some of the stuff I'm going through in my life now. All in all it's not earth-shattering, but not a bad read as memoirs go. There are quite a few quotes that resonated with me, so I did like it. If you're a fan of Common, you might like it more. On the up side, it's likely still for sale (I got 30% off), and it's a quick read.

A Whisper Under Ice - reading

Finished "A Whisper Under Ice" by me. This was my NaNoWriMo novel from last year. I had forgotten enough about the events of the story to make it interesting to myself. Thanks, past me, for writing this one!

I recently joined a writing critique group and read the first chapter of this at that group. The feedback was good. I have a lot of cleaning up to do, and can afford to now that I'm not trying to get 1,667 new words every day. I'm not sure this one will hold up all the way through the writing of a second draft, but I would like to see how far I can get. Almost 10 weeks until NaNoWriMo 2019!

(Redacted) - reading

Finished (insert oddly specific title here) by (insert author of oddly specific title here). This book was helpful to me for what's happening in life right now, but to give the title is to give away more than I'm comfortable with. Suffice it to say it was helpful to me, and I will likely read through it again soon.

Born a Crime - reading

Finished "Born a Crime" by Trevor Noah. Overall I really liked the style this was written in. I might argue about the organization of the book, that it didn't follow a chronology, and there was a little less than ideal flow from one section to the next since the age of Trevor from one chapter didn't relate to the next sometimes, and I couldn't track a progression as readily as I would have liked, but I still loved this book! It highlights life in Africa during and after apartheid, and the effects it has on a population, and on Trevor. Definitely recommended.

Maker of Universes and others - reading

On a recent trip I finished The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny, the second book in the Chronicles of Amber series which I read a while back. It was a good reminder of what I liked about that series. It sparked a few discussions among family about books, and about that universe.

On the way back from that trip, I re-read for the umpteenth time Through the Rainbow by me. I do enjoy that one. Every time I read it, though, I realize I left the ending open for a sequel that I have not even outlined.

Since I returned, I finished Maker of Universes by Philip Jose Farmer. The family discussion brought to my attention that this book inspired the Chronicles of Amber, and without giving away specifics, you can see the similarities throughout. Farmer, though, writes a misogynistic fantasy that feels like a personal fantasy world he may have visited himself. Throughout the book there were many instances of telling instead of showing, and hurrying the action along because he couldn't be bothered to write it out properly. Overall, I'd say read the Chronicles of Amber and leave this one aside.