Finished The Sleeper and the Spindle.  It’s very slight, and helped immensely by the beautiful illustrations, but I enjoyed it.  I’m already wondering if I might be able to sit my older nephew down long enough to read it to him.  Might be better off easing him in with some of the Grimm’s fairytales first.

I really should read more Gaiman.  So far I’ve only read this one and Norse Mythology.

Godspeed...

Ten Thousand Doors was on my hit list.  That you’re enjoying it, tiger, means it really could go either way as to whether it’s actually good or not.  

Doesn’t matter too much at the mo, to be fair.  Robin Hobb’s Assassiny thing is next on my list.

I was only joshing, bud.

Me too. x

Get a room

Ooh ménage a trois?

Between book club reads I have picked up Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.

Just read the first Voight Kampff test chapter and it fills in so much more context to the two films that can only be implied there. Lots of things like the reasoning behind Deckard disliking androids and the significance of animals.

Beautiful prose too. The apocalypse has never sounded so poetic.

Dust and retards never covered in the film.

But the second film has not much in common with the book, was carried by aesthetics.

I finished Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas last night. When I figure out what the American Dream is I'll review it. Genuinely hilarious book throughout and in particular loved how they manipulated other people into paranoia.

Now I've started The Name of the Rose. This may take some time...

I am a good two thirds through Robin Hobb’s Assassin’s Apprentice and it’s fucking brilliant.  This might be the only book I’ve ever picked up where I had no actual interest in the story, but over the years I’ve just heard so many good things about how good Hobb is at writing characters and the shit she puts them through that I had to give it a try.  And it’s all true.  It’s exciting to think that there are so many more of these books to read.

Cool. I really enjoyed The Builders but haven’t got around to looking at his other stuff.

The Daddy wrote:

Cool. I really enjoyed The Builders but haven’t got around to looking at his other stuff.

I really enjoyed The Builders too, although I wanted more of it. Low Town really scratched that itch for that style of hard boiled crime noir.

Finished Vol.1 of Churchill's The Second World War

Vol.1 is heavy going as there is a lot of politics in it though it is necessary. Winston hammers home the message that his warnings went unheeded for years and his opening stance is that WW2 was unnecessary - if France and UK had grown a pair and faced Hitler  down on any 1 of several opportunities things may have turned out very different. Who knows though really? Certainly less bloodshed was one outcome but the web of treaties that existed at the time kind of had countries tied up in commitments.

It doesn't really get going until page 300 when the Czech situation develops. What a bunch of pussies we were then - sold them off lock stock and barrel to appease with Russia getting involved too with land grabbing. Poland was next with Russia taking a piece of them too which brings us in.

Anyhow it soon moves to Norway, Finland and Sweden. The Finns kick the Russians' arses and we go toe to toe on sea with Germany and do them over - but then screw it up on land and have to beat a retreat - just before Germany makes the big move on mainland Europe, Chamberlain gets booted out and the book ends with Winston in the big job.

Churchill proves to be adept at making the engagements come to life on the page. So it becomes very easy reading during those passages.

Some interesting insights in managing people which could probably be applied to emergency management now - particularly in the public sector.

Anyhow Vol.1 weighs in at well > 600 pages including Appendices, most of which I read as they fill in some interesting detail - 5 more volumes of similar size (some fatter) to go.....I might take a break from it.    But this is a bucket list book for me - I will definitely return to it.