Reading, Going On

Less than a month since my last check-in with the books of the moment, but I have done a bit of voracious reading, so I am opting to do this now. Seven titles seem enough in my estimation.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories Kindle Edition by Susanna Clarke, who you may remember from Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, or maybe not. I read it and loved it, so I was happy to see this collection, which did not disappoint. Do not expect these somewhat otherworldly tales to be usual fare. The book is 257 pages, and I found it distinctly satisfying, so I gave it a five-star rating.

The Vine Witch Kindle Edition & The Glamourist (The Vine Witch Book 2) Kindle Edition by Luanne G. Smith, Volume One and Two of Three, which I discussed my not usually doing series, but, this is worth it. These I borrowed on Kindle Unlimited. Both books are wonderfully detailed and beautifully written. The novels are engrossing. Having 263 and 282 pages, respectively, there is not too long an engagement. I only wish The Conjurer were available now. Both books are five-star reads.

Find Me (Inland Empire Book 1) Kindle Edition by Anne Frasier, this is another Kindle Unlimited read. It is a bone chiller. If you are the type to sit up all night with books, I see you doing it with this one. It is not to be taken lightly, or with the lights down low. Just look at the cover, hmmm. I give it five-stars for its 271 pages. It is another series book. I am taking a break before I revisit that author’s mindscape.

Touch Kindle Edition by Clare North, okay, I warned you about the last one. This one is a psychological thriller that never lets up. What if consciousness were transferred simply by touch? What if the person next to you were not who they used to be? It is very well done, and so well written. You might find it hard to lay aside for usual things. It is 439 pages but seems so much shorter than that, and it is undeniably a five-star read.

The Unreal and the Real: The Selected Short Stories of Ursula K. Le Guin Kindle Edition, this is a Kindle Unlimited selection of 724 pages. There is a wide range of stories included. All are very satisfactory, and some are extremely strange. On occasion, I decide I should read something classic because you know, it is traditional. This did not disappoint. In Sci-Fi, you cannot find a much more acclaimed female writer than Ursula K. Le Guin. My rating is five-stars, and I have decided to seek other books in her repertoire.

Dark Tales Kindle Edition by Shirley Jackson, who you may recognize because of her story, The Lottery, which was weekly reader fare when I was a teen. The story is well-known. Shirley Jackson was one of the most talented horror writers ever. I much admire her work. Some of the tales in this collection are not nail-biters, but all are at least quietly unsettling and disturbing. She shows that you do not have to write slashers to make a reader check that the doors and windows are tightly locked. This is a swift read at 204 pages, and as a five-star recommendation, it should not be missed.

One note, on the fact I am generous with five-star ratings: I am a highly selective reader and I rarely begin a book that I am not fascinated to read. I read a fair variety, but I also have writers I know by prior experience. Most often when I count off stars it is due to poor editing, not content.

You will find I slip into the fantastical, I need the escape. I hope you found the little trip into my literary tastes to your liking. Until next time, READ, READ, READ. If you want to write, you must read like your life depends on it.

Literary Games

I became a reader and writer simultaneously at age three. I quickly began to employ color and text and illustration together. I found in poetry a heart like unto my own and have written it continuously. I guess my hope to be a publisher was born on my mother’s knees or perhaps in the floorboard of the Buick with the dash lighting shining down on my pages.

The dreams persist.

Reading is my favorite form of entertainment, with my rarely watching television. I usually steer away from series, but I have been drawn into a few lately. The idea is commendable, but the execution leaves much to be desired. I am one who becomes immersed in a book or books. It is most disappointing to be prepared for the continuation of a tale and find that it will be a year before you can learn the rest of the story. Not an easy acceptance for a poet who must complete a whole composition in the space of a page or a bit more.

Sometimes I will circumvent the imposition by waiting until all the volumes are complete to read them, but with current works, that is hardly possible. I lately did this with Tolkien’s masterpieces again. Someday I will open the shrink-wrap and dive into Stephen King’s Dark Tower series, I suppose. I begin to wonder about it because I have had those books over a decade. There is also The Game of Thrones, which I have in series and read two volumes from the library, but have yet to break the shrink-wrap on the collector’s edition.

Bibliophiles can be characters. My family tries to encourage me to dispense with some of my literary collection, and I blatantly refuse. I find my books are comforting, and the possibilities they contain, make me feel life is still an adventure. The missives from other minds are great consolation when the world becomes difficult.

I should think with fifty-four years at the vocation, I would have some idea of how to relate to readers, but I often wonder that others must be so unlike myself. Even so, I continue. I write every day and read a wide variety. I have thought l should make some provision to get out into the world and find some worthy subjects for photographic composition. I tend to be dull and remain close to home, which may not be the worst thing with a worldwide pandemic. My dogs and I are company and family.

The Vine Witch and The Glamourist by Luanne G. Smith have me wishing The Conjurer was not to be released next year. The Library of the Unwritten by A. J. Hackwith is another I am considering following up.

I wonder, those of you who are readers, what do you like? Are you a series person? Writers, have you been at the craft for years, or are you new with beginner mind?

World symmetry
Captured in quaint syllables,
An eagle on wing.

***************

Sheltering in place
The world no more freedom’s space,
Dreams are not contained.

***************

I see you, a smile,
Broad as day, deeper than night,
Come join in delight.

Reading Update

Do you read a lot? Sometimes it surprises me how and how much I read. I am going to do a little differently than I usually do with this update.

I have been reading almost exclusively on Kindle and devices. I also tend to read several books at the same time. Since April 15th I have completed these:

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien 5stars Reread.
The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien 5stars Reread.
Anne Boleyn: 500 Years of Lies by Hayley Nolan 4stars Not entirely sure I agree with the summation here.
Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien 5stars Reread.
The Master’s Apprentice by Oliver Potzsch 5 stars, and that does not reflect how very accomplished this novel is.
Grammars of Creation by George Steiner 5stars Deep scholarly text that challenges as it enlightens.
Auxiliary: London 2039 by Jon Richter 5stars a reading request from the author. Excellent story, well presented.
Terra Luna by Vikki & John Woodward, this is a 5star story, but it is marred to an overall 3stars because of a bevy of errors in copy editing. This was an author’s recommendation.
Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey 5stars chilling story.
A Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O’Nan 5stars, this is a plague novel and was very appropriate for the time.
Life: A User’s Manual by Georges Perec 5stars this is a challenging novel and extremely satisfying, but might not be for every taste. Translation from French.
What Lies Between Us by John Marrs 5stars There are no winners here, but getting there is a great ride.
The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith 5stars I have a soft spot for books about books, throw in a battle between Heaven and Hell, yeah, I am there with you all along the way.

I also tend to read The New York Times, AJC, Science, Granta, and others a bit along the way. My major disappointment in life is the is too much material to read and a paucity of time in which to do it.

2020.06.30 Sea Bird resize

Prescription

A simple prescription for defeating a creative block is to face whatever media we work with and simply make a start. Writing is my fondest medium, so I began with A. I do not typically encounter the condition of block, nor the related issue of boredom. Still, I recognize both can be problems for some.

Reading can be a preventative measure against boredom and can dispel block when inspirational material is read. I do not rule out any content that one fancies. We find our inspirations in what we love.

Sometimes creative work with materials used in childhood or similar to those can be the catalyst for a product that is hugely satisfying. I think this is one of the reasons journals are so appealing to me. Writing by hand was how my early stories and poems were done.

Construction paper, pipe cleaners, and glue can be used to make more sophisticated work now that we are grown up, but those materials bring our child out to play. Often when I create art, I go back to early beginnings and use colored pencils. The smell of shavings is very evocative of efforts made before the critic became hyperactive.

If your early days included film, simply remember the feeling of beginner’s mind and get out and take the shot. The idea here is to leave the agonizing behind and simply fall in love with capturing the subject, any subject, now.

A cause of boredom and block is our tendency to overthink. If we become engrossed in the doing, the being, we can escape the critical tendency to be overtly adult.

Some people say think outside the box; my thought is to consider the box lost in another dimension and explore that territory. No answer you discover can possibly be wrong.

Okay, sorry, this was free-form, and as with much free-writing should you disagree, just take what you can use and disregard all else.

I have not written explicitly about creativity in a while, and this is Haphazard Creative. I hope you are graced by intense creativity in whatever you choose to do.

A Thing, Well A Few

Prompted Positive Poetry’s Prompt #61 was “Fishnet.” I went off in a strange direction and did some derivations on a photo.

2020.06.09 Clockworks edited changed

This is not the poem I lost; I liked it better. I am toying with thoughts of which I cannot be the host. Catch release is all the rage to my overactive mind. Not sure I like the electric blue either, but black looked all wrong.

This following is out of the very verbose journaling. Those are two conjoined Tanka.

Machined

This existence is
Riddled with holes, the who, what,
How, why, that I am –
Knowing it is not enough
Normal for others to want.
Me, just wishing to
Belong somewhere with someone,
Who fully loves me
Though I am strange within – out,
Who would reassure my doubts.

I have a free trial of Spotify Premium. I love the Deep Focus channel, the one simply titled, Sleep, and oh, Music for Reading. Of course, The Rolling Stones and Queen get playtime as well.

I wonder if I should catch you up on my reading. I have not done that in a while, and there are some titles you might like.