Books Read: 2007
Apr. 30th, 2007 09:06 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yendi36. Cruciverbalism, by Stanley Newman and Mark Lasswell. This was actually read earlier, but I forgot it in the last mega-update. If you're a fan of crosswords, you need to read this book. Newman had always been a minor hero of mine, as my crossword addiction was fueled by the Newsday puzzles*, which I knew were better than those of the Times, without knowing the backstory of the Maleska/Newman war. It's fascinating for that bit of history alone, but Newman also provides some nice insight into what goes into a crossword editor's work, and the book is breezily written. Highly recommended to puzzle fans.
37. The Atrocity Archives, by Charles Stross. This book actually contains the titular short novel and a follow-up novella, "Concrete Jungle." The former is superb, if you're a fan of spy/espionage novels and Lovecraftian variations, which I am. Throw in lots of computer and hacker stuff, Nazis (what spy novel could exist without 'em?), good pseudo-scientific explanations for the creatures from beyond, and a wry narrative voice, and it's a blast (although not nearly as complex as the speculative spy novels of Tim Powers). "Concrete Jungle" isn't as good a story, but the basic concept behind it (featuring basilisks and Milton Keynes) is fun. Recommended.
38. Cirque du Freak #7: Hunters of the Dusk, by Darren Shan. The first book in each mini-trilogy within this series tends to be more about setting stuff up than anything else (in fact, books 1, 4, and 7 are, so far, the only ones not to see the deaths of any named characters, although some unnamed vamps do get killed here). Here, we meet the final vampire prince, learn two major prophecies, get lots more backstory on the history of the vampires, and finally get a return (however brief) to the titular Cirque. Recommended, but read the series in order.
39: Schrödinger's Ball: A Novel, by Adam Felber. I don't listen to NPR much, since I read on my commute, get distracted by noise at work, and don't listen to the radio during the morning shower/breakfast routine. So I had no idea who Adam Felber was when I read this, and thus no expectations. What I got, though, was something that felt incredibly like a Kurt Vonnegut novel. Not as good, mind you, but it's a lofty subgenre to practice, and Felber does it well. This book, which is both funny and touching, features the President of Montana, Dr. Schrödinger, a woman capable of regular half-hour orgasms, a man who has accidentally killed himself but is still walking around because no one has discovered his body, a bag lady intent on flashing scientists, lots of Cambridge scenes, recursive scenes that cause the book to crash, busking, and a rat. It's a blast, and is highly recommended.
*Yes, even though I subscribed to Games Magazine starting in the fourth grade, I never cared much for the crosswords for years.
37. The Atrocity Archives, by Charles Stross. This book actually contains the titular short novel and a follow-up novella, "Concrete Jungle." The former is superb, if you're a fan of spy/espionage novels and Lovecraftian variations, which I am. Throw in lots of computer and hacker stuff, Nazis (what spy novel could exist without 'em?), good pseudo-scientific explanations for the creatures from beyond, and a wry narrative voice, and it's a blast (although not nearly as complex as the speculative spy novels of Tim Powers). "Concrete Jungle" isn't as good a story, but the basic concept behind it (featuring basilisks and Milton Keynes) is fun. Recommended.
38. Cirque du Freak #7: Hunters of the Dusk, by Darren Shan. The first book in each mini-trilogy within this series tends to be more about setting stuff up than anything else (in fact, books 1, 4, and 7 are, so far, the only ones not to see the deaths of any named characters, although some unnamed vamps do get killed here). Here, we meet the final vampire prince, learn two major prophecies, get lots more backstory on the history of the vampires, and finally get a return (however brief) to the titular Cirque. Recommended, but read the series in order.
39: Schrödinger's Ball: A Novel, by Adam Felber. I don't listen to NPR much, since I read on my commute, get distracted by noise at work, and don't listen to the radio during the morning shower/breakfast routine. So I had no idea who Adam Felber was when I read this, and thus no expectations. What I got, though, was something that felt incredibly like a Kurt Vonnegut novel. Not as good, mind you, but it's a lofty subgenre to practice, and Felber does it well. This book, which is both funny and touching, features the President of Montana, Dr. Schrödinger, a woman capable of regular half-hour orgasms, a man who has accidentally killed himself but is still walking around because no one has discovered his body, a bag lady intent on flashing scientists, lots of Cambridge scenes, recursive scenes that cause the book to crash, busking, and a rat. It's a blast, and is highly recommended.
*Yes, even though I subscribed to Games Magazine starting in the fourth grade, I never cared much for the crosswords for years.