A good reading month as I again begin to reintroduce some non-fiction.
1. Beyond the Sea
— Paul Lynch
My second Lynch book, after the superb Prophet Song, and my book of the month. This has that Old Man and the Sea Vibe, but in my opinion, is better than Hemingway’s cult classic.
2. I Am Not Sidney Poitier
— Percival Everett
My first Percival Everett. Funny, smart, great storytelling. What should I read next? James?
3. Jerome
— JND Kelly
Although certainly not a Christian, I’ve always ben fascinated by the (early) history of Christianity. And Jerome, responsible for the most consequential Latin translation of the Bible (Vulgate), is a major figure in the formative fourth century. If this kind of topic rocks your boat, then I also recommend JND Kelly’s seminal Early Christian Doctrines and Philip Schaff’s History of the Church, especially vol. 2, Ante-Nicene Christianity: A.D. 100–325.
4. Devils in Daylight
— Junichirō Tanizaki
One of my favorite Japanese authors. Loved this. Wish it had been longer.
5. Arlington Park
— Rachel Cusk
What can i say? I love Rachel Cusk.
6. Concrete Island
— JG Ballard
I believe this is only my second Ballard novel, having read Drowned World ages ago, which I remember loving. This peculiar story contains seeds of his controversial novel, Crash.
7. The Ten Loves of Mr Nishino
— Hiromi Kawakami
Mr Nishino is a flawed character and a bit of a dick, but I loved the storytelling.
8. Cibola Burn
— James SA Corey
Another fun and entertaining installment (fourth) of the bestselling Expanse series.
9. Tycho Brahe and the Measure of the Heavens
— John Robert Christianson
I was familiar with Tycho Brahe’s astronomy and his contributions to observational astronomy, but knew little about his life. This biography filled in the gaps, at least for me.
10. Territory of Light
— Yuko Tsushima
Perhaps my new favorite Tsushima novel. A single mother, a former useless husband and father … and a reminder that this is precisely why we read fiction: to live — albeit vicariously — lives we could not otherwise hope to experience.
11. The Invention of Morel
— Adolfo Bioy Casares
Blindingly dull, mercifully short.
12. Roadside Picnic
— Arkady & Boris Strugatsky
The setup and plot were compelling enough for me to make it to the end, although the payoff in the conclusion is disappointing. The male characters are dated: alpha-male misogynists who smoke and drink a lot. The female characters are a very Project 2025.
13. A History of the Bible
— John Barton
An excellent and readable history. As an anglican priest the author does a good job of remaining objective — fundamentalists, read with a box of Kleenex at hand.
DNF The Mandarins
— Simone de Beauvoir
I love de Beauvoir’s writing (A Women Destroyed is perhaps my favorite), but only made it to page 200 of 600. Who now cares — in a novel — about France’s various political factions vying for ascendancy in the aftermath of WWII? Not me. Liked the characters, but all that was good was drowned out by bone-crushingly dull post-war politics.
