I must be living in some special circle of hell created just for me by a demon who realized that the ultimate in frustration would be trying to comment in LJ via a ComCast connection.

Never thought I'd be thinking good things about Time Warner.

 No commenting available at LJ, so folks on my flist, I have sympathy and thoughts to share, just no way to do so! 

54. China Miéville, Embassytown: Miéville returns to the double city, this time with a brilliant concept of aliens whose language binds them to truth, and the terrible events that rise from that. A fascinating exploration of how language works to bind us and free us, propelled by the horrifying events of the plot. Can he get any better? I don't know if I could stand to read it, if so.

55. Ellen Airgood, South of Superior: Set in Grand Marais, where I was headed, so had to read, no matter the quality. Very evocative of the small town coming under siege from modern life. I have to admit to skimming because I couldn’t take it along, but seemed to have appealing characters and plot. Didn’t do as much with the physical beauty of the place as I’d have wished.

56. George RR Martin, A Dance with Dragons: And all the plots move along. Better than Feast for Crows, but not nearly as good as the first two books (Game of Thrones, Clash of Kings). At least there was something about all the plots that seemed headed toward an eventually resolution, instead of infinite expansion of characters and events . And Daenerys, Tyrion, and Jon, as well as Arya, feature largely as POV characters. Did not like what happened to Cersei and Theon!

57. C.J. Sansom, Dark Fire: The second book in the Matthew Shardlake series, and a fine one. Back working for Cromwell against his will, Shardlake tries to deal with the possible rediscovery of Greek Fire (just what the Tudors needed!), while trying to clear a young girl imprisoned for murder and staying clear of the intricacies of Tudor court intrigue. Definitely well-paced, and well-written.

58. C. J. Cherryh, The Paladin: The first part of this book, set in something very similar to Tang Dynasty China, is so appealing: the young girl bent on revenge finds the master swordsman who’s withdrawn to the mountains , and persuades him to train her. The interaction between the two is so realistic, as is his own growth in spire of himself. But the second part degenerates into one battle after another, lots of blow-by-blow that I don’t find fun to read.

59. Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Good Omens (re-read): Liked this so much the first time that I can’t believe I’ve pretty much forgotten what happens, so it’s just as much fun this time. Love the angel and devil who want to forestall Armageddon, and the anti-Anti-Christ who seems most unlikely to bring it on. Hope I forget it again and have the fun of reading it several times.

I'm glad to see various LJ people slowly reappearing over here--some with different names and faces, but still recognizable. It may be that this will be our new home: is there food and fresh water here? Will the beings who already live here welcome us? If no return is possible, can we make a new life?

ETA: If you know anyone who needs a DW code, Copperbadge has lots available at http://copperbadge.dreamwidth.org/500183.html?view=2544855&posted=1#cmt2544855

I'm thinking there are some other people on my friend's list who teach freshman composition in an online setting (or use online as a part of their teaching). I have some interesting ideas from a colleague that I can share if anyone's interested (but won't mean much to anyone else). Will take a little cutting and pasting and fighting to get on LJ, so let me know if anyone wants to see them.

A very happy birthday to ponygirl2000!! Hope it brings much joy!

An early Happy Birthday to ladystarlightsj!!!

I always get into trouble with proofreading. A few weeks ago, I posted my usual "Books Read," but left out a crucial "not' in one sentence. Here's what I meant to post:

"Sherwood Smith (sartorias) , Treason's Shore: The conclusion of the Inda series, and wonderful as the rest. Not finished yet, but brings it all together--plus this seems to be the book of magic (Inda=school, The Fox=pirates, King's Shield=War), though I may see it differently when done. But what I want to know is why this series is not famous and celebrated. Complex, brilliant world building, characters to die for, beautiful writing. What are you waiting for?"

Hopefully no one read closely! But in case you did, or anyway, I mean to say that I'm surprised that everyone hasn't read this, at least everyone who likes long fantasy/alternate world epic series. I was gratified to see that our local library does have several copies of the first three, but not yet even one copy of the last book (above). For me, it was perfect for long winter nights, but a later re-read might be long summer afternoons.

Moon meme, thanks to masqthephlsphr

A friend reminded me of this poem by Wendell Berry, really good for times like these:

THE PEACE OF WILD THINGS

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

— Wendell Berry