some books i read lately (april edition, fiction)

splitting this into fiction vs nonfiction this month, since uh, historically my nonfiction reviews tend to run long. expect the nonfiction books sometime this weekend.

Crazy Weather by Charles L. McNichols

Why have I never heard of this book before?! THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING.

I picked it up on a recommendation from Ursula K. Le Guin—she wrote the foreward for this edition, for an imprint of books which tries to highlight rare, out-of-print-and lost books. (The idea that Crazy Weather was ever out-of-print stuns me.) And her foreward is a better pitch than I can give, but I’ll try to go for a tl;dr version anyway.

( Read more... )

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

So somehow I got this far in life without reading Slaughterhouse-Five, and honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect. My knowledge of Vonnegut was pretty limited—on the one hand, I knew he’d written some truly beautiful letters. On the other hand, "Harrison Bergeron" sure is pretty cringe to a modern reader.

Well, I’m pleased to say Slaughterhouse-Five holds up quite well—though it’s definitely more of an experience than a story.

( Read more... )

Duplicity by N. K. Traver

Quick YA thriller-ish book; picked it up because of a (very vague and distant and one-sided) connection to the author. The problem with being a Full-Time Professional Hacker is that you’re, uh, very picky when it comes to fictional depictions of hacking (even if said depiction is obviously meant to be a little supernatural), and I will tactfully hold further comments :P

West by Carys Davies

Honestly, the NYT review summarizes my feelings better than I could, so just take a gander at that.

( Read more... )