Five review copies here, including the second volume of a Glen Cook reprint trilogy that Night Shade Books is releasing this year. I certainly shall be reading the Cook in the near future, likely with 1-2 reviews to follow. Might read the Grant and Bacon-Smith books. Will at least skim through the DAW anthology of the month to see if any stories are suitable for BAF. Don't know about the McConchie, to be honest.
The Leiber story collection will certainly be one that I'll read in a month or two, after I have a bit more time free to read non-BAF short stories. The Beamer is an intriguing debut novel. Don't know if I can read the Cherryh, as I don't have the volume before it. The Neumeier is a possible read later one.
These are all purchases made within the past two weeks. The Wolfe I started reading, then had to postpone it because of a mixture of re-read projects and other, paying projects. The Roberts I've been meaning to buy for some time and finally got around to it. The Pelevin is for an online Russian Book Club. The Ali is because I've heard many positive things about his stories. And do I need to explain again how much I enjoy reading Zoran Živković?
These were purchased at a local used bookstore today. The two Martin books are replacements for older editions that I gave to a Salvadorean friend of mine a year or so ago. I've read a borrowed copy of Moorcock's book before and I knew I'd want a copy of my own at some point. The Banks is a stab to see if one of his Culture novels can appeal to me. Third time's the charm, right?
The two Spanish-language books were earlier online purchases, being read slowly as models for certain types of stories. Also found in the used bookstore today the first 2/3 of another Moorcock series, this one a continuation of the Hawkmoon novels. Finding three French-language works by three masters is a stroke of luck, especially since the three together barely cost $2. Bargain indeed.
Any books from these pictures you wish you could own or at least read?
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11 comments:
Quiroga has some good stories, much as Borges considered himself reacting against Quiroga. I wonder how familiar he is in English-language literary circles. I've shared his "Decálogo del perfecto cuentista" with various writer friends.
What's Escher's Loops about?
My book club is reading Chekhov's plays right now. I liked The Cherry Orchard but am having a hard time getting into The Three Sisters.
I wish more of Bioy Casares were available in English. NYRB has printed two of his books and one or two remain in print through New Directions, but I wish he'd caught on here the way his friend Borges did.
Free association: Have you read Cesar Aira at all? Argentine writer praised by Bolano. Was very taken with his short An Episode in the Life of a Landscape Painter.
Daniel,
I don't think he's all that familiar to English-language readers, except maybe for "The Decapitated Chicken." Talented writer, though.
E.L.,
Haven't started it yet, but it's a set of interconnected story "loops," from the description.
Matt,
Yes, I've read Aira's Los fantamas and Como me hice monja in Spanish. Very good writer.
Please be sure to follow up with some commentary about the Ali book. It sounds interesting. Though I'll probably end up getting it anyways. It would appear to fall into my favourite area of history.
-CN
I fully plan on reviewing it soon after I read it. Might not be until toward the end of the month, however.
If you keep acquiring books at this rate, the size of your library will have surpassed the size of mine within a year. Good luck! ;-)
Of the new books here I read Lord of the Changing Winds (good enough writing but world building that skimmed my edge of the suspension of disbelief and I do not think I will read more in the series), Conspirator (read all 10 though the series started becoming very slow after book 6, but still the novel makes a good afternoon reading and I plan to read 11 when it will be out soon), YBT - (excellent as pretty much all A. Roberts novels, New Model Army should be at my house very soon and another asap read), Sorcerer's House (Gene Wolfe and pure fun usually sounds incongruous, but here it works very well) and I have a pdf of Escher Loops from the publishers which I plan to read sometime though I have no idea when; got some of the rest too but none is of the smallest interest to me
Of the older books, Consider Phlebas is one of my top all time standalone sf novels, though Use of Weapons is even better
Terry,
I'm going to be "pruning" my collection after I have a firm number of what I own. Been lax in listing books from the remaining shelves and piles lately, but I think I've added 25 books in the past month, spending less than $100 in the process. Still have another bookcase of Spanish-language books to go, but I believe I'll end up with slightly more than 300 Spanish-language books and around 90 or so books in French (19), Serbian (15), Portuguese (14), and Italian (11) being the top ones among those. Not bad for a gringo who's somehow managing to avoid becoming a gabacho :P
Liviu,
Thanks for the comments on the books I haven't yet read. Seems like I'll be focusing on only a few of them. I also have the Serbian original of Escher's Loops, so that will be read as a parallel text of sorts.
I have Escher's Loops to read as well, as a ton of other Zivkovic stuff on its way from PS.
Would be interested to hear what you think of Caligula, it isn't Camus' best play (that honour goes to Les Justes), but I have always liked it.
Don't know when I'd get to Caligula, but I doubt I'll attempt a formal review since I bought it to work on my French and I'd be very uncertain if I had grasped everything or not until I've had a lot more practice with that language. Otherwise, I'd consider it, since I do love plays, even if I haven't reviewed any here yet.
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