FF: Reading and Researching
The balance seems to be shifting toward non-fiction again. I left out a bunch of books I’m skimming for research purposes.
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Kel After Looking Up Catnip
For those of you just discovering this feature, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
Recently Completed:
Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise and Other Imponderables? by David Feldman. The occasionally dated nature of some of the material does not detract from the charm and fascination of these short – sometimes only a few paragraphs long – essays.
Speed Racer: The Official 30th Anniversary Guide by Elizabeth Moran. Stumbled across this at the library and couldn’t resist. I didn’t read the episode summaries, but the material on how the character came to be and how the story was subtly re-interpreted for American audiences was fascinating.
In Progress:
Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh. Audiobook. Re-listen.
Bridge of Words: Esperanto and the Dream of a Universal Language by Esther Schor. Alan and my Tangent discussion on Esperanto a week or so ago led me to want to learn more about the context in which this language was developed and in which it continues to – if not thrive – at least exist.
Wicked Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln’s Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities by Amy Stewart. Very informative and interesting. However, I find the conceit that poisonous plants are “evil,” as if they act with intellectually calculated malice, a bit wearing.
Also:
Still re-reading Through Wolf’s Eyes by Jane Lindskold. It’s been long enough that I can read this as if it was written by someone else. Fascinating.
