Oof. May was A Month, friends. But it’s behind us now, and let us not dwell on the many disasters it contained (except perhaps the basement, which is still having, shall we say, issues).
(Also, if you missed it, the first part of my new serial, Across Worlds with You, is now up! You’ll get a new part every month until we’re done.)
But anyway, let’s talk about books. Specifically the books I have read lately. I mostly read scifi and fantasy (and my guilty pleasure, cozy mysteries) but I do try to read outside of that periodically to expand my horizons and all that jazz.
We Have Always Been Here, by Lena Nguyen (2021, science fiction)
I really liked this one! Aside from colony missions and strange new planets and other things you’d expect in scifi, you also get an interesting delve into consciousness, what makes us human, androids, and interpersonal relationships. I basically read it all in one sitting, which is hard because it wasn’t short.
Built, by Roma Agrawal (2018, nonfiction)
We have a local restaurant that uses random books for decorations, and this one caught my eye, and then when I looked it up it sounded interesting, so I hunted it down. Ms. Agrawal is an architectural engineer, and she explains how things like skyscrapers and giant bridges and what have you get built, as well as looking at historical examples and how they worked (or didn’t). I learned quite a bit! Not least of which being that the song London Bridge is Falling Down is based on a real bridge. Obvious, in retrospect, I guess.
Once Upon a Tome, by Oliver Darkshire (2022, memoir)
First of all, Darkshire is an amazing last name. Our library has a magazine called, uh, BookPages or something like that, that discusses new books coming out. I get it every so months or so but it is dangerous because my TBR list always grows. This book was the featured book on one of these, and it sounded amazing–stories from an ancient rare and antique book shop in London. To be fair, I expected more ghosts, but it was still an entertaining read.
The House at the Edge of Magic, by Amy Sparkes (2021, MG fantasy)
Sparkes is also a great last name, honestly. I basically read this in two sittings–a quick story about a streetwise orphan who accidentally gets roped into breaking the curse on a magical house. Some cute elements, room to grow–which I assume it does, because there’s at least two more books in the series–and I’m definitely going to pass it on to the smaller, mobile one, who I think will appreciate it.
Have you read anything interesting lately?