FF: So Many Ways

Persephone Has Stolen My Office Chair

This week my reading is practically a syllabus in the many ways a story can be successfully told: from epic drama to mystery and intrigue to a spicing of humor, I found that all of these tales worked for me.

For those of you unfamiliar with this column, 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.  And it’s also a great place to tell me what you’re reading.  Two of the series I’m trying right now are due to FF reader mentions.

Completed:

The Hermit of Eeyton Forrest by Ellis Peters.  I enjoyed the story, but my writer self had the added bonus of watching three plotlines, none of them “subplots” weave together in an amazing fashion.

Year of the Griffon by Diana Wynne Jones.  Audiobook.  Very well done.  A semi-sequel (same setting, some overlapping characters) to her highly amusing Dark Lord of Derkholm. 

The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout. I always forget how much of a thug Archie could be in the earlier books. Glad Stout moved away from that.

Siegfried by Richard Wagner, translated and annotated by Frederick Paul Walter.  Excellent detail for both those new to the material and those familiar with it.

The Nursing Home Murder by Ngaio Marsh.  In this context, “nursing home” indicates a small private hospital.  A tale very tied to its time period, technology, and cultural passions.

In Progress:

Vintage Murder by Ngaio Marsh.  The first of her books set in New Zealand.  It’s hard to imagine now, but she had to fight to use and “exotic” setting, even though it was her homeland.

Nine From the Nine Worlds by Rick Riodan.  Audiobook.  Short stories set in his “Magnus Chase” series.  Definitely requires familiarity with the series, but light fun within that context.

Twilight of the Gods by Richard Wagner, translated and annotated by Frederick Paul Walter.  Just started.

Also:

I think that’s it, actually…