{"id":2276,"date":"2019-11-18T12:06:47","date_gmt":"2019-11-18T20:06:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/educatedguesswork.com\/?p=2276"},"modified":"2019-11-18T12:07:27","modified_gmt":"2019-11-18T20:07:27","slug":"book-list-4th-century-3rd-quarter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/educatedguesswork.com\/?p=2276","title":{"rendered":"Book List: 4th Century, 3rd Quarter"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I have just finished reading book #375 since I started keeping count in 2015, and, as I have done when occasion suits and time permits, I here present a listing of the last 25 books I’ve read. Make of it what you will. (As usual, I do not include comics and graphic novel books in my count, though they are listed below.)<\/p>\n

That 375th book read was many books in one, or rather, the parts of many books made one, or instead, let us say that Italo Calvino creates the fractional books his protagonist comes across in the course of this … novel? I am talking of If on a winter’s night a traveler<\/em>, in case you have not already guessed, and I have still not decided what I think of the work, or works. Creative tour de force<\/em> of literary genius? Or self-indulgent slumgullion stew of unfinished and unworkable ideas? Perhaps there is no reason to choose.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This last set of twenty-five books read commenced with #351, a quickie read from the Audubon Nature Program, Life On A Coral Reef, which I wrote about in an earlier post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Also read right at the beginning of this latest quarter-century of books was the 4th issue of The Month at Goodspeed’s Book Shop<\/em>, a discursive catalogue of the latest arrivals at a wonderful bookstore in Boston known to me only through these tiny staple-bound volumes, of which I have quite a few, actually. Calling these little books ‘catalogues’ is very much an understatement, for the delightfully chatty notes for the promoted items, which include history, biography, and much bibliographic detail (as well as a good bit of sheer gossip), are still well worth reading today. Unfortunately, I will have to find a time machine to visit the store, as it closed in 1995.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>\nRead<\/th>\nAuthor<\/th>\nTitle<\/th>\nGenre<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
351<\/td>\n9\/17\/19<\/td>\nRuss Kinne<\/td>\nLife On A Coral Reef<\/a><\/em><\/td>\nNature<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
352<\/td>\n9\/18\/19<\/td>\nNorman Dodge<\/td>\nThe Month at Goodspeed’s<\/em> January 1930<\/td>\nBooks<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
353<\/td>\n9\/19\/19<\/td>\nRoy Vickers<\/td>\nThe Sole Survivor and The Kynsard Affair<\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
354<\/td>\n9\/22\/19<\/td>\nChristopher St. John Sprigg<\/td>\nDeath Of An Airman<\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
355<\/td>\n9\/23\/19<\/td>\nNorman Spinrad<\/td>\nThe Mind Game<\/em><\/td>\nSF & Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/p>\n

I wrote about The Devil Of Nanking<\/a><\/em> earlier, so I won’t repeat myself here, save to say that it is, after all, a novel, not history. The book about the great Paris flood is a good read, and I also enjoyed a little comfort food science fiction. I have since sold off one of the other books in this set, though not because I didn’t try to sell two.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>\nRead<\/th>\nAuthor<\/th>\nTitle<\/th>\nGenre<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
356<\/td>\n9\/24\/19<\/td>\nDavid H. Freedman & Charles C. Mann<\/td>\nAt Large: the Strange Case of the World’s Biggest Internet Invasion<\/em><\/td>\nComputers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n9\/24\/19<\/td>\nMark Waid & Alex Ross<\/td>\nKingdom Come<\/em><\/td>\nComics & Graphic Novels<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
357<\/td>\n9\/25\/19<\/td>\nJeffrey H. Jackson<\/td>\nParis Under Water<\/em><\/td>\nHistory<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
358<\/td>\n9\/29\/19<\/td>\nIsaac Asimov<\/td>\nI, Robot<\/em><\/td>\nSF\/Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
359<\/td>\n9\/30\/19<\/td>\nMo Hayder<\/td>\nThe Devil Of Nanking<\/a><\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
360<\/td>\n10\/4\/19<\/td>\nArthur C. Clarke<\/td>\nIslands In The Sky<\/em><\/td>\nSF\/Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A lot of good stuff in the next little slice. I wrote about Mission of Gravity<\/em> earlier<\/a>, and here will only repeat that it is great science fiction of the hardest steel alloy. I also finished a Norton critical edition of Alice In Wonderland<\/em> and Through The Looking Glass<\/em> (with The Hunting Of The Shark<\/em> included); I believe I should read the Alice tales every hundred books or so, though I haven’t kept quite that pace. I had been going through this one for some time, and am glad to get it off the pile next to my bed. All of these books\u2014save one\u2014are highly recommended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>\nRead<\/th>\nAuthor<\/th>\nTitle<\/th>\nGenre<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
361<\/td>\n10\/6\/19<\/td>\nLewis Carroll<\/td>\nAlice In Wonderland<\/em> (Norton Critical Edition)<\/td>\nFiction<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
362<\/td>\n10\/8\/19<\/td>\nHal Clement<\/td>\nMission Of Gravity<\/a><\/em><\/td>\nSF & Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n10\/8\/19<\/td>\nJay Kinney, ed.<\/td>\nAnarchy Comics<\/em> No. 1<\/td>\nComics & Graphic Novels<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
363<\/td>\n10\/10\/19<\/td>\nEdgar Allan Poe<\/td>\nTales Of Mystery<\/em><\/td>\nFiction<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
364<\/td>\n10\/15\/19<\/td>\nHarold Lamb<\/td>\nGenghis Khan: Emperor of All Men<\/em><\/td>\nHistory<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
365<\/td>\n10\/17\/19<\/td>\nK. Paul Johnson<\/td>\nThe Masters Revealed: Madame Blavatsky and the Myth of the Great White Lodge<\/em><\/td>\nWacko<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Primacy of place in the next five books goes to an 88-page book from 1897, an annotated issue of Thomas De Quincey’s long essay, Flight Of A Tartar Tribe, part of the Maynard’s English Classics Series. The subject of the the book was a natural follow-up to both the Blavatsky and the Genghis Khan books, and De Quincey’s stylish prose is almost always a pleasant read; this was no exception.<\/p>\n

The Ariana Franklin mystery books annoyed me with their psychic anachronism, and the Orbit<\/em> anthology may have annoyed me because of mine. The Peter Rabbit book, however, was really wonderful, and I was surprised to find that it took me over a half-century to get around to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>\nRead<\/th>\nAuthor<\/th>\nTitle<\/th>\nGenre<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
366<\/td>\n10\/19\/19<\/td>\nThomas De Quincey<\/td>\nFlight Of A Tartar Tribe<\/em><\/td>\nEssays<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
367<\/td>\n10\/23\/19<\/td>\nAriana Franklin<\/td>\nMistress of the Art of Death<\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
368<\/td>\n10\/28\/19<\/td>\nAriana Franklin<\/td>\nA Murderous Procession<\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
369<\/td>\n10\/29\/19<\/td>\nBeatrix Potter<\/td>\nThe Tale of Peter Rabbit<\/em><\/td>\nChildren’s<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
370<\/td>\n10\/30\/19<\/td>\nDamon Knight, ed.<\/td>\nThe Best From Orbit Volumes 1-10<\/em><\/td>\nSF\/Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Finally got around to reading The Moving Toyshop<\/em>, which I found amazing, terrific, wildly funny, and very engaging\u2014right up to the point where the hero solves the crime. The ridiculous solution was not the sort of ridiculous which had merited the glowing adjectives of the previous sentence, but the sort of ridiculous that spurs men and women to write declamatory letters to the editor. I forbore such a course of action, given that the author is long dead. The other books here were all very good, and the soft reading provided by the Retief stories was a nice pre-palliative for the mental exertions required by Calvino.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/p>\n\n

Still reading a lot of Science Fiction, as well as some Children’s books located on shelves I have regained access to. My pace has slowed a tad lately, as I am attempting NaNoWriMo once more, though I am writing a memoir rather than a novel. I still have piles, but thankfully they are of books. Until next time….<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n

The lists of previously read books may be found by following the links:<\/p>\n

#<\/th>\nRead<\/th>\nAuthor<\/th>\nTitle<\/th>\nGenre<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
371<\/td>\n10\/31\/19<\/td>\nEdmund Crispin<\/td>\nThe Moving Toyshop<\/em><\/td>\nMystery<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
372<\/td>\n11\/4\/19<\/td>\nGroff Conklin, ed.<\/td>\nGiants Unleashed<\/em><\/td>\nSF\/Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
373<\/td>\n11\/5\/19<\/td>\nBeatrix Potter<\/td>\nThe Tale Of Squirrel Nutkin<\/em><\/td>\nChildren’s<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
374<\/td>\n11\/12\/19<\/td>\nKeith Laumer<\/td>\nRetief At Large<\/em><\/td>\nSF\/Fantasy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
375<\/td>\n11\/18\/19<\/td>\nItalo Calvino<\/td>\nIf on a winter’s night a traveler<\/em><\/td>\nFiction<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n