A little bit of both? it's been a while since I've read it and have been meaning to reread it. So it just kind of worked out that way
Just finished The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfighting in Heaven. I've always meant to read this book and after a conversation with TSQ about one of my all time favorite movies, Smoke Signals. She reminded me about the book, a collection of short stories that inspired the movie. I was actually in the middle of reading another book but the thought of this book kept weighing heavily upon me. So I stopped that one temporarily to quickly finish this book. To me, these short stories are more akin to poetry. The author draws pictures with words easily and freely that sweep you up and carry you like a wave. You feel every aspect of what he is writing, I did anyway. I so connected with a lot of the stories, I felt like I was listening to story by Thomas Builds-the-Fire story straight from him.
^^ That's a great book. I read it about twenty years ago (and it inspired my short story "Dogs Chew Our Legs Off") and met Sherman Alexie at the Coop at about the same time. He's a funny guy.
I finished Big Fish and i think it is one of the rare cases where the movie was better than the book. I would only rate the book 3.5/5. After that I listened to the very short The Missionary Position by Christopher Hitchens, narrated by Simon Prebble. I have read quite a bit on Mother Theresa in the past so only a faction of the info in the book was new to me. I have just started on A Feathered River Across the Sky: The Passenger Pigeon's Flight to Extinction by Joel Greenberg, narrated by Andy Caploe. As my shoulder has worsened (probably due to cold weather) it looks like I will listening to audio books for a while though I have got my Kindle back from the friend I loaned it to so I will see how well I manage that with my left hand.
Just finished 'The Moon Maze Game', as mentioned earlier. Can recommend, kind of 'Dream Park: Die Hard On The Moon', but a lot of fun. @Miss Chicken: if you haven't read the Dream Park novels, they're pretty good. It's a theme park where people/actors go in to play games that are recorded and put out as movies, sort of imagine any action movie played by actors making it up as they go along, cross Indiana Jones with Survivor. The actors compete for points and international standing, and the game can then be played at home by people who buy it, which has a whole bunch of different endings built into it, like any game. The places the games are played in domes that have all manner of projection equipment, and sets, and Non Playing Characters. And the games themselves are unusual in themselves (Cargo Cult mythology, the Inuit version of Fimbulwinter, Californian Voodoo, and HG Wells's Form The Earth to the Moon... on the Moon).
Just look and luckily the Dream Park books are on Audible so I added the first one to my wish list. I won't get around to reading it this month but maybe next month.
I finished The Indigo Spell today. Up next, The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead. I am due to get Four (Divergent) tomorrow, so I might take a break to read it.
I just got the ebook edition of Gigantic Worlds, an anthology of "flash" Science Fiction, which was a Kickstarter that I supported. There's a print edition and a bonus anthology on the way.
Finished This is How You Loser Her by Junot Diaz last night. That's two books in less then a week, I'm on a role. I was introduced to Junot Diaz a few years ago by a friend with The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. They handed me the book and told me to read it and I loved that book. So I was excited when I saw that he wrote another book and bought it right away. It has sat unread on my iPad since and I'm glad that I rectified that situation. I love the way Junot Diaz writes, very short on detailed descriptions but such a conversation style it feels like he's sitting next to you telling these stories. Spanish is used quite a bit in it, so I often had to stop and translate it. My Spanish is limited but it didn't distract or ruin the experience. There were parts where it felt he was describing parts of my life, so felt a little kinship with him. Being written by Diaz there are several science fiction references throughout out the book but the best one for me was the Dune reference he used.
I have finished A Feathered River Across the Sky: The Passenger Pigeon's Flight to Extinction. It was a very good book but I think the author includedtoo many grisly details after grisly details. Though I can understand how it is neccessary to descibe the cruelty I think the author took it too far. I am now listening to Sherlock Holmes and the Seven Deadly Sins Murders by Barry Day, narrated by David Ian Davies.
i have finished the Sherlock Holmes pastiche I mentioned above. it was quite good and well narrated, I plan to read/listen to more books in the series. i have started on The Happy Atheist by PZ Myers, narrated by Aron Ra.
Just finished The Toughest Indian In The World by Sherman Alexie. While speaking to TSQ about the author and the novel I read of his previously, Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. I realized I purchased this book a long time ago and it was in my collect of book boxes down in the basement. I have a ton of books still sitting in boxes because I don't have shelf space for them, a lot unread. I went down and I found it and it looks brand new. I loved this novel even more then the other one. This is one of those books that you wished never ended. Most of the stories are too short, I wish they were fleshed out into their own books.
I have finished Gideon's Sword and it is probably the least liked book by Preston and Child I have read so far. I am now listening to A Cruel Bird Came to the Nest and Looked In by Magnus Mills, narrated by Peter Kenny.