Locus Recommended Reading List!
Mood:  on fire
Topic: Locus Poll
YAY!! Happy day. The happiest day of the year is here. It's the day that Locus magainze publishes their Recommended Reading List! IT's on the website right now (www.locusmag.com) and I've already printed it out and checked off ones I've read.

The countdown begins! Only 3 months to furiously read books I've put off or weren't sure would make the final list, before I have to compile my own best of list for the poll.

SF Novels: I've read a whopping 10 of the books listed, plus one I only got halfway through before giving up. Of those, seven I feel are good enough to vote for. Now, I just have to whittle the list down to five. There are a couple more books on the list that I might check out if I have the time (Mammoth by John Varley).

Fantasy Novels: I've only read four of the fantasy novels on their list. I'm just not as into fantasy as I used to be. One I was severly disappointed in (A Princess of Roumania) after all the great reviews I expected more. Two of them are definites: Anansi Boys and Thud! And what's up with the latest Harry Potter book not making the best of list?!?!?!? I might vote for it anyway if there's nothing else I read in the next three months that I think is better. And Robert Jordan's latest made the list?! WTF! All the reviews I read make it sound more of the same, ho-hum. Alright, books I have my eye on to read: Shaman's Crossing, Lord Byron's Novel: The Evening Land, and Snake Agent.

First Novels: I tried four first novels so far, only three of which made Locus' list, and only one of them that I actually finished! Melusine by Sarah Monette was captivating. I tried Hammered by Elizabeth Bear and couldn't get into it. I tried Bear Daughter by Judith Berman; it was good but not my thing. When I find myself having to force myself to read, or putting off reading to do other things, that's when I know it's time to give up on a book. Not that these books are bad, just not for me. I don't know if I'm going to be brave enough to try some more of the first novels on the list before the deadline. My standards are so high, it's just hard to find a first novel good enough.

YA Books: For once, I have not read any YA books. I don't know if that says anything about the quality (or lack thereof) or just my finicky interest. There is one on the list that I definitely have to read, I'm just waiting for the library to get the audio version: Ptolemy's Gate, the third Bartemaeus book, by Jonathan Stroud. I might check out Mister Boots by Carol Emshwiller. Other than that, nothing looks interesting.

Collections: I have read more short fiction in the last year than in the past five years put together! There was some great stuff published in 2005. The Gist Hunter by Matthew Hughes is one of my faves. Followed by Looking for Jake by China Mieville, and The Cuckoo's Boys by Robert Reed. Those are the top three. After that I'm not sure what to do. I've already read four more collections but none of them really grabbed me like the previous three. I may check out some more collections before I make up my mind.

Anthologies: The only anthologies I read were the two "Best of" books by Haber & Strahan. I might look into a couple more if I can get them out of the library.

Non-Fiction: As usual, not interested in non-fiction.

Art Books: Interested, but don't have the budget. If the library can inter-library loan them, I'll check them out.

Short Fiction: Thanks to my new subcriptions to F&SF and Asimov's I've actually read many on the lists of Novellas, Novettes, and Short Stories. These may be tough categories for me to decide, but I feel a little better knowing I have more of a sampling to sift through for voting rather than just voting for the only five (or less) stories I had read. I'll break these categories down later once I've read more.

That's it for now. Can't wait to read in the magazine the specifics of why people chose what they did and what all their top fives were.

Recent Reading
Mood:  a-ok
I've been lazy and haven't updated my reading blog in a while. Here's what I've been reading recently.

Finished audio book version of Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman. Wow, was that fun or what! That is definitely top of my list of faves for 2005. The guy who read the book did an awesome job with all the different accents. My favorite scene is the one with four little old ladies with their penguin candles and the mixed herbs ("Mixed herbs!?"). LOL, that was so funny!

As for actual paper books, I read The Rosetta Codex by Richard Paul Russo. It was alright. Not as good as I expected, but not terrible. The beginning was especially interesting with the kid travelling around on his own. Once he hit the main city and the story fast-forwarded a few years, I lost my interest. And then the conclusion was a big letdown (IMO). NO explanation for why the advanced aliens did what they did. Plus, there were a few coicidences that stretched it a bit far for me to believe. I dunno. It was decent, but I won't vote for it on the locus poll.

But next, I finally was able to read an awesome book. One that kept my interest, one that intrigued my mind. Learning the World by Ken MacLeod. I like the way he had the chapters switch back and forth between the people on the world ship and the people on the planet. I thought it was interesting how the "aliens" on the planet used the term "human" to describe themselves. It threw me for awhile because the way have wings and fur. I wasn't sure at first if they were post-humans or augmented humans. But it's more like a translation of whatever word they use to call themselves into our word "human." It added a nice touch, though, that I think ties in with one of the things that I got out of the book. That people who look and act radically different than us are not automatically bad. These flying people are like sentient predator animals. They eat by swooping down on a cattle-like animal and eating it raw. There are some other habits that seem disgusting to us, but it's just the way they are. By then, I had bonded to the characters and didn't mind their differentness. And on the ship, we've got the blogger girl who really carried the story. I really loved those characters and wanted to read more of their story and what happened next. This is definitely one for the Locus Poll.

Condensed reading update
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Audio Book: Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
I'm been lazy and haven't updated since last year. Yeah, I know, bad joke, last year was only two weeks ago. But still....

Now, let me backtrack and try to remember what I've been reading.

I had mentioned that I was reading Looking for Jake by China Mieville. Finished that. Brilliant book, definitely a top ten contender for 2005. I've gotta find time to read some more of his stuff.

After that I read Starwater Strains, the latest story collection from Gene Wolfe. Two of the stories I had read previously: "Viewpoint" and "Golden Cities Far". The former I loved when I first read it, and even more so the second time around. Reminded me of PKD, although the ending is more Gene Wolfe than PKD. The rest of the stories were good, though none of them really grabbed me.

Next I puzzled my way through Kelly Link's collection Magic for Beginners. Two of the stories I had read previously and liked a lot: "The Faery Handbag" and "Magic for Beginners." I figured the rest of her stuff would be as brilliant as those two stories. But I was wrong. Weird, strange, disjointed. I wasn't quite sure where she was going with a couple of them. I don't think it's my kinda stuff, actually. It was really disappointing because the book had made many best of lists.


Well, I'm running out of time, so I'll continue this another day.

This is some good s***!
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: Audio book in car: Blood Lines by Ruth Rendell (not my usual cuppa)
Topic: China Mieville
On a whim I got Looking for Jake by China Mieville out of the library. And it looks like I have a new contender for favorite author!

I like to check out new books from the library even if I never intend to read them so that the library has a record of interest in new science fiction. And, I figured, I might want to read that oft talked about story, "Reports of Certain Events in London", if nothing else.

After hearing so much about Mr. Mieville (how the heck do you pronounce his last name, anyway?) I was frankly nervous about reading his works. I was not sure if it would be to my liking. The reviews I've read of his novels sounded grim and despairing. If the novels are anything like these stories, then they are that, but damn good as well!

He definitely has a thing with bringing non-animate objects to life, and in not too friendly ways. I get the feeling of being locked into a grim reality, where things are not what they used to be, or used to appear to be. Streets can come alive and suddenly appear and disappear; the ground itself can whisper to you; an unusual stained glass window can look out onto a different world than the other windows in your house; and don't dare stare into the sky or at the grain of wood and let your mind wander or you might just see something deadly.

When I was younger I don't think I could have handled this stuff. I had too much imagination. I would have not been able to look in a mirror for weeks! I was scared enough by the things coming out of mirrors in Donaldson's Mirror of Her Dreams and sequel.

What I especially like is the first person point of view, which has long been my favorite POV. I love the different ways a character reveals him/herself in the words they choose. And it also helps me distance myself from the subject matter; I can always imagine that the character was simply mentally ill and imagined the events described.

I really want to read his novels now. Unfortunately I don't think I'll be able to get around to it for awhile. It's getting down to crunch time for the Locus Poll, and I tend to only read books that I might end up voting for.

ARGH! End of Year Already?!
Mood:  incredulous
Now Playing: same old, same old
It's near the end of the year and I am nowhere near finished with my unwritten reading list!

Gene Wolfe's latest story collection and Kelly Link's latest just came in at the library, so those are next.

I have a feeling I'm going to have a hard time deciding on a top 5 for collections on the Locus Poll this year.

After that, I just bought The Rosetta Codex by Richard Paul Russo at the bookstore. Hope it's as good as his last. If not, I only paid $5 for it cuz I had a coupon.

I got Robin Hobb's latest at a local used bookstore. Gotta read that before May also.

Then, maybe Robert Jordan's latest Wheel of Time monstrosity. Though I doubt if it will make the 'Best of' list.

I had intended sometime in the year to start reading Bujold's fantasy trilogy. I have the first one (got it at the library sale last winter), but haven't got around to it yet.

Oh, and how could I forget about Connie Willis' latest!

Terry Bisson has a new book, too.

If I have time, I might check out Liz Williams' Snake Agent. I was so dissappointed in her last one that I've shuffled her books to the back burner.

Too much to read, too little time!

2006 Books I'm Looking Forward To
Topic: Unpublished Anticipation
My current #1 book I can't wait to read is The Jennifer Morgue by Charles Stross. Unfortunately it doesn't come out until late in the year, Novemeber maybe? Sigh.

In the meantime, I'll have to curb my impatience with the following:

Sir Thursday (Book 4 of Keys to the Kingdom series) - Garth Nix (March)
Freedom's Sisters (3rd book in series) by Naomi Kritzer (August)
The Virtu (sequel to Melisine) by Sarah Monette
Clan Corporate (3rd in series) by Charles Stross.


Others that I've seen listed but do not know anything about them, whether they are novel or story collection or part of a series:

Jenifer Roberson - Karavans (April)
Lynn Flwelling - The Oracle's Queen (July)
Robert Reed - Flavors of My Genius (July)
Charles Stross - Glasshouse (July)

Next: Wolfe & Link
Now Playing: Still Christmas Musak (I'm at work, I don't have a choice!)
Topic: Next On My Reading List
I have a request in at the library for two books that I'm hoping will get me out of my current reading slump:

Gene Wolfe's latest collection of stories (can't remember title but it has a dog on the cover).

Kelly Link's collection of stories (I've read some of hers in best of collections and they are brilliant! I have high hopes for this).

Wolfe is, of course, a master, so I am confident that his latest collection will be decent if not down-right awe-inspiring.

Now I just have to wait for them to arrive at my library branch!

After that, I still need to read Anansi Boys by Gaiman, Carol Emshwiller's newest story collection, perhaps Learning the World by Ken MacLeod.

Reading Slump
Mood:  sad
Now Playing: Christmas Muzak
Topic: Reading Slump
*** GRATUITOUS SPOILER WARNING!!! ***

There may be spoilers ahead.


****

I've been in a reading slump recently. Can't find a decent book to read. A few were by authors I've read before and expected a brilliant read, only to be disappointed.

9Tail Fox - Gave up on it a bit past halfway. I've read too many great police procedurals to suspend my disbelief on this book.

Old Twentieth - It was decent. I actually read the whole thing, but it wasn't as brilliant as I know Joe Haldeman can be. I had some problems with the logic, and there were questions left unanswered.

Pushing Ice - Good beginning, lagging middle and end. Interesting ideas, though, I'll give him that much. See separate blog entries.

Hammered - 3/4 of the way through Pushing Ice I got bogged down and decided to read something new for a change. I tried to get into Hammered by newbie Elizabeth Bear, but it just didn't do anything for me. I was disappointed because I had read several positive reviews all year long about this book and the sequels. I waited until the 3rd book was published before beginning the first, anticipating that I would like it and want to read the next books right away instead of waiting.

Elantris - Another newbie, so I wasn't expecting much. But it's gotten favorable reviews so I decided to give it a try. I thought part of the reason for my book slump might have been too much science fiction and not enough fantasy. I figured a good fantasy book might get me excited about reading again. Well, it didn't work. About 120 pages in and it just bores me. Nothing is happening! I'm starting to skim and that's NOT a good sign. Beautiful cover, though.

I did read a short story recently that was wonderful. "Report of Certain Events in London" by China Mieville. Brilliant! Facinating! I can see why it was on so many best-of and award lists. It's published in a collection of his stories titled Looking for Jake. Maybe I'll read more. I haven't read anything by Mieville before but I know he's gotten rave reviews for his novels and stories.

Pushing Ice - FINALLY DONE!!
Mood:  don't ask
Now Playing: "I'm dreaming of a white christmas" (bonus points if you know what movie it's from! ;-)
Topic: Pushing Ice
*** GRATUITOUS SPOILER WARNING ***


blah, blah
blah, blah
blah



***

457 pages later and I am still breathing! Yikes, I didn't think I was going to make it for awhile there. I actually put it down for a couple days and tried to read something else (Elizabeth Bear's first...can't remember title!), but it didn't grab me so I decided to come back and push on through to the end of Pushing Ice.

Well, we finally get answers to the what, where, how and why, but they dissappointed me. A lot of it seems to boil down to "Aliens do weird things for reasons of their own, but we'll probably never know for sure." What?! I invested my precious time for over 400 pages and that's all the answer I get?!

And I still don't see any reason for the mysterious deaths that happened when a person travelled a specific pathway that the alien machinery didn't like. He could have left that part out and it wouldn't have mattered. At the time, it made the atmostphere of the novel mysterious and dangerous. But if the reader is not even going to find out the reason behind it, then the reader (or at least this particular reader) feels cheated.

I'm trying not to be too hard on Mr. Reynolds, but I just can't figure out what he had in mind with this book. The structure is unwieldly with the immense span of time that's covered by the end of the book; the assumptions the characters make about where they are and why they're there (not that there is a whole lot of that--characters seem mostly to take things in stride and just get on with the business of building their life); the petty squabble between two main characters (actually it's more a one-sided squabble with one character being stubborn and grudge-bearing).

I can't help, though, comparing this novel to another (actually part of a series of shorter novels) that also had a set of characters start over to rebuild their society on an alien world, and I enjoyed that book immensely. I'm trying to work out what is different between the two, that I ended up enjoying one and wanting to toss the other in the "sell on eBay" pile. All I can come up with right now is identifying with the characters. I did not really care all that much what happened to the characters in Pushing Ice. I didn't get to hear enough of their thoughts and feelings to really get a handle on what makes them tick.

Well, I'm gonna post this for now and get back to it later.

Crash and Burn
Mood:  sad
Now Playing: "It's the most wonderful time of the year..."
Topic: Pushing Ice
*** GRATUITOUS SPOILER WARNING ***

Warning, there may/will be spoilers in the following entry. Do not continue to read if you don't want info on the book Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds.

Blah, blah, blah
Blah, blah, blah
Blah.


* end spoiler warning *

I haven't finished it yet. I'm around 3/4 of the way through, around page 300? maybe.

The first part of the book reads like a runaway train (after it gets started, that is). Very interesting mix of characters stuck on ship with differing opinions on what they should do. I found that section endlessly facinating. Unfortunately, the train crashes in the second part (literally).

The second part reads very jerkily. Months, even years, will pass between sections of the story. Which is all good and fine since it moves the narrative along, however there are often huge gaps of information that the reader has to frantically catch up on with each new section. At one point it looks like they won't survive a year, then next thing we know it's been over a year with no explanation of exactly how they accomplished that! I guess the reader is just to assume that the characters somehow figured out how to solve these problems that the author had just gone to great pains to point out how nearly impossible they were. It's like: "We're on the brink of doom here, what are we going to do?", then cut to next scene, "Oh, that problem? That's ancient history, but now we have this new problem..." The reader stops caring after awhile since it's obvious that whatever problems the characters are currently occupied with will be solved miraculously between the end of one chapter and the beginning of the next.

At times I wanted to know more about their struggle to survive in hostile conditions. It reminded me of Marrow by Robert Reed, although with a time constraint since the people in Pushing Ice are not immortals like Reed's. These people don't have hundreds of years to build a society up to the technological level they need! But after awhile I was glad the author skipped as much as he did. He could easily have trilogized this novel and what a boring middle book that would have been!

When there is too much time between the introduction of a mystery and finding out the secret, I get impatient and start to lose interest. It's always a bad sign when I start skimming.

Here's what I don't understand. A couple of the characters die because the alien machinery didn't like them repeating a specific pathway too many times. So the remaining characters learn to vary the paths they take so as not to trigger the deadly alien machinery. Um, that's all good and fine if they were only there a year or two, but after a decade+ wouldn't they have travelled every possible variation of paths between their dwellings and work areas? They would be triggering that alien death chute left and right! Unless the reader is just to assume that was a very rare occurance, or that it takes a lot more repetitions of travelling down a pathway than on the first occurance. The characters have not cracked the alien code, so it's not like know why it happened. Yes, they know which alien symbols mean "Warning, do not take another step!" And they back off at that point and take another pathway. But you'd think over the years they'd run out of paths! I dunno, maybe there's an explanation later in the book. I'll just have to wait and see (and hope it's a darned good explanation!).

I am really disappointed in this book. I had high hopes there for awhile and now I'm crushed. Especially since I had just finished another book that disappointed me. I needed to read a really good book to get over my blues. No such luck. Sigh.