Sunday Morning Book Thread - 1-26-2025 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]

Welcome to the prestigious, internationally acclaimed, stately, and illustrious Sunday Morning Book Thread! The place where all readers are welcome, regardless of whatever guilty pleasure we feel like reading. Here is where we can discuss, argue, bicker, quibble, consider, debate, confabulate, converse, and jaw about our latest fancy in reading material. As always, pants are required, unless you are wearing these pants...

So relax, find yourself a warm kitty (or warm puppy--I won't judge) to curl up in your lap, never get tired of winning, and dive into a new book. What are YOU reading this fine morning?

PIC NOTE

I was inspired by TRex's Hobby Thread last week (NOTE: don't comment on old threads!) and found this picture of the locations of all the Presidential Libraries known to man. I was surprised to find out that the Presidential Library System has only been around since Herbert Hoover. However, private foundations have been set up for earlier Presidents. Currently, the official Presidential Library System is managed in whole or in part by the National Archives and Records Administration.

The Presidential libraries are a combination of museum and archive, documenting that President's life and achievements. Scholars and researchers can dive into vast treasure troves of official documents and private communications of the Presidents, gaining insights into who these men were and why they made the decisions they felt were necessary at the time.

You can even earn an achievement in the form of a stamped "passport" for visiting all the Presidential Libraries! I thought that was pretty cool. May have to put that on my bucket list.

THE ROTHFUSS/MARTIN EFFECT

Grumpy and Recalcitrant is a huge fan of Jon Van Stry and shared a link to an essay by Van Stry in the comments last week where Van Stry explains how he, an independent author, has been screwed over by Patrick Rothfuss by Rothfuss' apparent inability to finish his epic fantasy trilogy, The Kingkiller Chronicles

Larry Correia, of Monster Hunter International fame, has also commented on this effect at length. Correia suggest fans should "move on" from both Patrick Rothfuss and George R. R. Martin and get over it. Continue to read fantasy authors' works, even if they are in the middle of a series, if only to help motivate them. The failures of both George R. R. Martin and Patrick Rothfuss should not be held against the fantasy-writing community at large.

I tend to agree with that sentiment. Steven Erickson has written two books of a planned trilogy--set in his Malazan world--but he has not written the final book yet. The explanation I've seen is that the first two books did not sell as well as the publisher had hoped. Hmmm...Now that I think about it, I wonder if Erickson is a victim of "The Rothfuss/Martin Effect." Forge of Darkness, Book 1 of The Kharkanas Trilogy, was released in 2012 and the second book, Fall of Light was released in 2015. That's a normal amount of time between books in an epic fantasy trilogy. But maybe fans grew too impatient and have given up on Erikson finishing his series. I dunno. I'll continue to wait for Erikson to finish his series, but I have plenty to keep me occupied until then.

In the meantime, he's begun work on another book series. Now, Erickson, at least, has demonstrated that he knows how to finish an epic book series, so I think he'll do fine. His Malazan books are still very popular and highly rated among the BookTube community, which will help him sell more books.

Going back to Larry Correia, he, too, has finished at least one book series (Grimnoir Chronicles) though his Monster Hunter series is still open-ended at the moment. I expect him to return to those books in the not-to-distant future now that Correia has wrapped up The Saga of the Forgotten Warrior. Correia and Martin have had a very tempestuous relationship over the years, mostly because of the Hugo Awards and how they are selected. Correia is one of the organizers of the Sad Puppies campaign, which sought to bring lesser known, but worthy authors, to the attention of the award-selection committee, instead of promoting the woke garbage that's been winning the Hugo Awards in recent years.

Correia dedicated his most recent book, The Heart of the Mountain, the last book in The Saga of the Forgotten Warrior to the author of the still-unfinished saga A Song of Ice and Fire:

Guilty as charged...

THOUGHTS ON REREADING

I am very much a re-reader of books. I know several of you re-read J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings on an annual basis. I, too, have read that multiple times. I also know there are people who refuse to re-read books. There's room for both of us around here.

One of the reasons I like to re-read books is because I find many books comforting. I like to explore that world again and again, and every time I do, I find something new to enjoy. I like the characters, I like the setting, I like the plot, etc. For the fantasy and science fiction books I read, it's just nice to settle in and enjoy the story.

I don't re-read quite as much as I used to, but that's mostly because I have a fat stack of books in my TBR that I'm trying to get through. That's going to take some time. However, I have been deliberately re-reading books that I have not read for decades, in part to see how well they've held up over time. Some, like Raymond Feist's Faerie Tale, I've enjoyed much more the second time around because I've "grown into the book," i.e., I have much more knowledge and experience that enhances my reading experience.

I read a lot of books that are part of a series, so I do tend to reread books in any given series when the next book is released. It's often a few years between books, so I need to refresh my memory about what happens. Tad Williams is kind enough to include synopses in his books, so that helps.

One genre that I am less likely to re-read is mystery/crime fiction. The joy of reading a mystery is trying to figure out whodunnit. Once I know the twists and turns, it's difficult for me to reread those stories. Though I have re-read mysteries because they were well-written and enjoyable on other levels as well, such as interesting characters.

What do YOU like to re-read, if you are a re-reader? If you aren't, why not?

MORON RECOMMENDATIONS

Since we're going to a Mass different from our usual time, I actually get to contribute in real-time this morning. I read Escape from Evil's Darkness by Father Robert Spitzer, S.J. This is the 2nd volume of his "Trilogy."

This book has discussions of the Catholic Church, the primacy of the Pope, spiritual conversion, and moral conversion. Like all of his books, this one has a huge bibliography and lots of footnotes.

I had mixed feelings on this book. The individual sections were quite good, BUT this is a rather thick book and probably would have been better if published as two individual books. However, I think Fr. Spitzer got trapped by his outline for a planned set of 3 books.

Overall rating is 4.25/5.0. If you don't believe in Satan and his minions, you're not going to get the full effect of Fr. Spitzer's arguments.

Posted by: Retired Buckeye Cop is now an engineer at January 19, 2025 09:26 AM (pJWtt)

Comment: It's hard for me to dismiss the existence of Satan and his minions. I've had too many odd experiences in recent years that have forced me to recognize their reality.

On the non-fiction front, I continue with Blacklisted by History: The Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies. Would that all Americans would read it. Aside from the substance regarding the compromise of security within the government, there are remarkable parallels between the Democrat politicians' contrived attacks on McCarthy, and on Trump.

Fiction. Just started Out Stealing Horses, Petterson. So far, a very interesting read. Certainly the first Norwegian novel that I have read.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at January 19, 2025 10:19 AM (XeU6L)

Comment: I think the consensus around here is that McCarthy was *right* about Communists infiltrating government at all levels. We see it *everywhere* in government even now, as we see constant, continuous attacks by the Democrats against President Trump and his Cabinet nominees by people who are not fit to lick their boots. Evil scum infest D.C. like nowhere else in America and have been there for decade-upon-decade. Hercules had an easier time cleaning out the Augean stables.

More Moron-recommended reading material can be found HERE! (1000+ Moron-recommended books!)

WHAT I'VE ACQUIRED THIS PAST WEEK:

A professor at the university where I work had a table of "free books" outside her office. She'll be moving offices soon, so I guess she wanted to get rid of unnecessary clutter. (University professors are pack rats.)

Among the offerings:

• Sniglets - (snig' lit): any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary but should by Rich Hall and Friends - This is a humorous book of made-up words for everyday things that sound plausible. Notably, at least a couple of words ARE in the dictionary now, like "spork."
• The Burning Room by Michael Connelly - Harry Bosch is an LAPD detective who solves cold cases.

WHAT I'VE BEEN READING THIS PAST WEEK:

After reviewing some of OregonMuse's old Book Threads, I thought I'd try something a bit different. Instead of just listing WHAT I'm reading, I'll include commentary as well. Unless otherwise specified, you can interpret this as an implied recommendation, though as always your mileage may vary.

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Thanks to the Moron Horde, I've been persuaded to read this classic tale about rabbits. A group of rabbits flee their native warren before it's destroyed by human developers. They seek a new paradise where they can rebuild their warren. Along the way, they have grand adventures, then, when they arrive at their destination, they realize they have a fundamental problem: there are no female rabbits among their group. Thus begins an even more epic quest in search of does so that they can procreate and build a true community of happy, healthy rabbits into the foreseeable future. To do so, they will need to stage a daring raid on a warren that is run like a police state.

When you strip out the beautiful prose and creative worldbuilding/mythmaking, the story can be summed up as follows:

A bunch of dudes want to get laid.

Watership Down is a great book and I can see why it has earned its status as a timeless classic.

Tailchaser's Song by Tad Williams

This is a reread for me. I first read it decades ago when I was a teenager. I reread it now because I wanted to compare and contrast it to Watership Down, which was the inspiration for Tailchaser's Song. It was also interesting to see how elements from this book have found their way into Williams' many other epic series.

This is Tad Williams' first published novel and is quite obviously an homage to Watership Down. Except instead of rabbits seeking a new home, you have a cat seeking his dear friend who has gone missing. Fritti Tailchaser goes on an epic quest to track down Hushpad. Along the way, he gathers an eclectic group of other cats who join him on his adventures. The kitten Pouncequick, the crazed Eatbugs, and the alluring, mysterious Roofshadow. He also befriends squirrels, which is unheard of among the Folk (cats). The story takes a very, very dark turn in the latter half when his quest turns into a Lovecraftian nightmare involving the elder gods of his race.

Like Watership Down, Williams builds a carefully crafted mythology suitable for cats. It turns out cats see humans as their servants because one of the First cats grew prideful, was transformed into the first M'an and his descendants are now cursed to serve the rest of the Folk for all eternity.

Also like Watership Down, the story can be distilled down into: a dude wants to get laid.

The Burning Room by Michael Connelly

This is very much a police procedural story. Veteran LAPD detective Harry Bosch solves cold cases. His latest case involves the death of man who was shot ten years ago and it took him that long to finally succumb to his wounds. Now Harry and his junior partner Lucy must determine if Merced was the actual target of that previous crime and how this crime ties into an even older cold case that involves Lucy nearly dying in a fire twenty years ago.

Like Watership Down, this is a story I probably would NOT have read in the past, but thanks to the Moron Horde, I am trying to broaden my horizons a bit, so I thought I'd branch out into crime fiction. The library in which I work, but do not work for, has quite a few of the other Harry Bosch novels available for checkout. I may read a few more of those if I like this one enough.

Unlike Watership Down or Tailchaser's Song, this story does NOT involve a dude trying to get laid. Well, I take that back slightly. The main character is not trying to get laid, but one of the underlying crimes was a result of a dude getting his freak on with a married woman who had a rich, powerful husband. Whoops! Whoopsie!

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Tips, suggestions, recommendations, etc., can all be directed to perfessor -dot- squirrel -at- gmail -dot- com.

Disclaimer: No Morons were physically harmed in the making of this Sunday Morning Book Thread. Are you tired of winning yet?

posted by Open Blogger at 09:00 AM

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