Monday lit bit

[yendi]

"Here," said Mr. Thomson, "is a novel ready to your hand: all you
have to do is to work up the scenery, develop the characters, and
improve the style."

"My dear fellow," said I, "they are just the three things that I
would rather die than set my hand to. It shall be published as it
stands."

"But it's so bald," objected Mr. Thomson.

"I believe there is nothing so noble as baldness," replied I, "and
I am sure there is nothing so interesting. I would have all
literature bald, and all authors (if you like) but one."

--Robert Louis Stevenson, The Master of Ballantrae: A Winter's Tale

Henry James, incidentally, called Ballantrae "the intensest throb of my literary life." I wouldn't go quite that far, but it's a damned fun novel (and a sorely underappreciated one).

I haven't gone on much about my reading lately, as I'm reading at least one, and often two, books a week for review, which limits both my time and the books I can talk about. But non-review reading has included Stevenson, Junot Diaz, Ishmael Reed, David Gilmour (the one who wrote The Film Club, not the guitarist for the band that's generally underwhelmed me), Octavia Butler, Jim Steinmeyer, and others. I've been lax in logging them, alas, so I know I'm forgetting some folks (and not even mentioning graphic novel authors).

The point is, still reading, even if not posting about it.

So, what've all of you been reading?