Dave J. > Recent Status Updates

Just as exciting as it was 200 pages ago. Dumas must've had a blast writing this, it really shows.

Still a fun story, but I just haven't been able to get invested in it much. Maybe due to all the exposition, which harms the flow and doesn't leave much to the imagination.

Here's Nietzsche letting the nationalists of his time really have it. Things like "racial self-admiration" he sees as "doubly false" and "obscene." He then follows with the encouraging prose poem, "And become bright again," which entails rising back up from depths when we've been darkened by grime and miseries.

In Book Five, Nietzsche throws back veils in order to candidly deconstruct his "God is dead" declaration, and to emphasize importance in reevaluating morals, faith, science, "truth." It's a wrap-up of main points--essentially, that life in totality is worth embracing--not denying--and it's vital to ask "What's beyond the familiar?" Some people say this book doesn't make sense, but did they ever reach the end?

Some decent jokes here and there. It's alright, not great. Seems like fans are right to suggest not starting with this one. Will continue anyway, then try Mort or Guards! Guards!

Having grown up in a controlling sectarian church, this book brings back unpleasant memories. And what with current revivalist trends in the USA, and the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade, the story seems more timely now than it might've years ago (here in the west, at least). It doesn't beat 1984, but I still find the writing good at evoking a trapped, dehumanized feeling.

Things have picked up, and mind games are afoot. This is indeed a quintessential pirate story. Nothing out of the ordinary (yet?), but nevertheless has been thrilling.

Finished with Book Four, which builds upon the ideas of the previous part, and notably ends w/ the "greatest weight" aphorism. I'm surprised how it gets misquoted or has parts omitted, as in some instances, it seems to merely be "awe at finally seeing a god" instead of a question of whether we would still embrace life if the "eternal hourglass of existence" flipped and we had to go through life in the same way.

The mystery reaches new heights as Dumas deepens the characterization (and reveals some awful things about a few characters). A storm is surely brewing...

It begins... Time to be baffled.

Seemed like a good follow-up choice to Douglas Adams. Lots of opinions out there on where to start in the series, but I'll try #1 for now.

273
"Whom do you call bad? - Those who always want to put to
shame."

274
"What do you consider most humane? - To spare someone
shame."

275
"What is the seal of liberation? - No longer being ashamed
in front of oneself."

Bit dry so far, and Sabatini tends to overexplain his characters' actions, but promising setup otherwise.

Onto "Book Three" now. Went back and read the poetry in the beginning (as I had initially glossed over it) and found that it was decent enough, even humorous at times. I find that this (whole) book in particular is best experienced in short bursts, as there's a lot to take in and think on. Book Two was more erratic than the first, but still had some unique insight and questions--and levity--to impart.

Funnier than the first book :) No misses here when it comes to dark humor and longer, interwoven jokes. Some beautifully written parts, too.

Damn, what a rip-roaring experience this has been. I have trouble putting it down, even. The hijinks and the intrigue is tops, and the pacing is some of the best I've come across in a long while. Really wish I'd read this years ago.

Further along, there's a fair amount of good scares and twists. Some stories tend to get bogged down by lengthy dialogue (or monologue...) but make up for it with descriptive energy and satisfying conclusions.

Pretty entertaining and funny so far. The narration and the characters are lively and varied. Pevear's translation is just right.

Nearing the end now... While I have mixed feelings about the "new" stories, this collection also contains some of Haynes' best (both stories I've read before and ones I've just discovered here). A pretty worthwhile read overall, I'd say.

The last handful of stories have been excellent. The uncanniness, the horror, the poetic style, and the deeply empathetic treatment of characters all come together in astounding ways. Looking forward to the rest.

Neat how Howard created his own mythos for some of these stories. He even references Lovecraft's Necronomicon in one.

"In the name of utility, democracy, and science, many educators had
come to embrace the supposedly uneducable or less educable child as
the center of the secondary-school universe, relegating the talented
child to the sidelines.... This group has indeed been neglected by many educators and looked upon...as a deviant, a side issue, a special problem, at times even a kind of pathology."

"We cannot know, of course, how much impact the content of school
readers had on the minds of children. But any child who accepted
the attitudes prevalent...would have come to think of
scholarship and the fine arts as embellishments identified with the
inferior society of Europe, would have thought of art primarily with
regard to its services to nationality...[and] its contributions to character."

Further along, the quality of the writing has improved but nothing has jumped out and wowed me yet. The atmospheric horror is decent but mostly familiar, or rather, I'm more desensitized to stories like these now. Will keep reading since they're at least enjoyable in their pulpy, fast-paced way.

Reading through some of these I'm reminded that Howard tends to get hung up on repetition, and he also tends to write many similar stories. But at the same time, they're full of energy and rhythm, and he is certainly a deliberate writer who knows his bounds well.