PissWeakly Reviews: June 2019

Friday, June 28, 2019

The Vagrant / Peter Newman

The Vagrant

by Peter Newman

science fiction

read in June 2019

rated 8/10: really quite good

sometime in the last few years i read a book where a young girl carries a lamb through bare blasted lands and cities where demons live in bodies formed from dead and living humans. the vagrant carries a baby and leads a goat, through bare blasted lands and cities etc etc... similar ideas, different stories.(*)

there are other remembered similarities. i may try to track down that other book... some other time, for my own interest. but for now, the vagrant:

the hero carries a magic sword -- which he barely uses, he works for niceness. he appreciates the niceness of others. he is less fighter for right and more, a good influence (with a magic sword). i like him. the baby and the goat are great characters -- while still being no more than a baby and a goat. very clever.

the demons are not evil, just doing what demons do -- with occasional influencing by the humans who have been defeated. the still-powerful remnants of pre-demon civilisation need the nice vagrant to sort them out.

for such a miserable situation -- i initially thought it was like the road -- this is a surprisingly positive book. a good cast of characters, solid plot, varying shades of villainy, the book is really quite good.

a clear and satisfying ending. with -- and i see this as a good point -- a small but clear opening for further books.

(*) 15jan20: Okay... the similar book with girl and lamb... is The Malice. It's a follow-up to The Vagrant... no wonder there are similarities. Same world, continuing some characters, no real need to be read in order.

I read them out of order and didn't realise the two were related. That's why I keep these review/records -- so that I can check, Have I read this book before? Pity I don't always check :-)

Now I'm re-reading The Malice, though it took me a chapter or two to realise it.

==== Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
Agamedes Consulting / Problems? Solved.
===

"Be excellent to each other" … Bill & Ted
===

dying for you to read my blog: notdotdeaddotyet.blogspot.com.au :-)
====

Monday, June 24, 2019

everything is fxcked / mark manson

everything is fxcked

by mark manson

self help

read in june 2019

rated 6/10: read to pass the time

i've read just less than a third of this book. already, i'm prepared to pass judgment. if i read on and have more to say, i'll update this post.

trouble is, i tend to not finish non-fiction. if i fail to finish fiction it's because it's bad fiction. non-fiction, i just read a bit, get the drift, skim forward looking for key points. this is a good book for skimming.

chapters so far have started with examples of misery and suffering, samples of things which are "fxcked". at a world level -- chapter one -- then at a personal level. there's a lot of, this happens therefore you feel rotten. if you recognise the cause-and-effect then this may be a good book for your self help. i keep thinking, no, that's silly, are people really that negative?! though a lot does make me think, yes, i can see that.

having explained why we are so fxcked, the author... well, i was going to say, the author tells us how to feel more positive. after all, the subtitle is, a book about hope. but no, so far there is understanding but no hope. i'm happy to believe that hope comes in later chapters.

so if this is a self help book, why is it any better than any other? why is it a best seller? i would guess that it's the good use of analogies -- explanations are simple and clear. plus the author's language and writing style.

the explanations are solid analogy. the "consciousness car" being driven by the "feeling brain" and the "thinking brain", that's a central analogy. quite clever, really, and quite clear.

the writing style is chatty and full of swearing. that is the author's schtick, his way of standing out from the crowd.

there's an australian movie about a man who runs a portable toilet business. the movie is rather embarrassing. whenever the main character mentions toilet waste or toilet use -- we laugh. because ha ha he can't say that in a movie ha ha. at least i believe that that was the source of the movie being classed as a comedy, there were no other jokes.

this book is like that movie. we have to think that the book is clever -- or admit that we are too narrow-minded to accept swearing in a self-help book.

apart from that... the analysis is quite good and very interesting. not as universal as the author claims but still valid. worth reading.

if later chapters do lead to "hope" then i expect more of the same: chatty, rude, good analysis, not universally true. not that much is ever universally true. i expect good suggestions, easy to read, may be helpful. no better than other self-help books but very easy to read.

if i change my mind, i'll update this post... if there is really good self help, i may upgrade my rating.

meanwhile, have a look at this: https://markmanson.net/life-purpose

don't give up at question one, that's just the author's schtick, the post is very much a style-sample of the book. easy to read, clear, rude, with good advice. if you like it, you will like the book.

==== Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
Agamedes Consulting / Problems? Solved.
===

"Be excellent to each other" … Bill & Ted
===

dying for you to read my blog: notdotdeaddotyet.blogspot.com.au :-)
====

Saturday, June 22, 2019

Where / Kit Reed

Where

by Kit Reed

horror

read in june 2019

rated 6/10: read to pass the time

warning: the front cover claims that this book is "a novel". i take that as a warning, there may not be a story inside. this time it is not quite so bad... not quite.

a hundred people disappear, then there is a lot of psychological stress. both amongst those who disappear and those who remain.

spoiler alert: so what happened? we never find out.

one man seems to know more than anyone else, he doesn't tell. questions are asked, answers are avoided. it's a twitch of the mystical curtain, is the best we get. absolute rubbish.

and who is the person who seems to be immortal? no explanation.

i found the book in the science fiction shelves. there is no science. does the mystical curtain make it fantasy? possibly. i've decided to label it as horror. horror is often based on fantasy elements but depends on the reader being scared by the situation. also, horror denies the need for explanation... it just is.

perhaps this book is a psychological thriller? as that, it's quite good. put people under stress and they go crazy. explicably crazy, in many cases. unfortunately the crazy often involves a lot of refusal to tell anyone -- including the reader -- what they are doing.

and then the book ends... no precedent, no logic, no follow-up. it just ends.

the book is easy enough to read. harder to enjoy, difficult to take seriously. unless you see it as pure psychological exploration. in which case, read to pass the time.

Friday, June 21, 2019

The Walrus and the Warwolf / Hugh Cook

The Walrus and the Warwolf

(Chronicles of an Age of Darkness #4)

by Hugh Cook

fantasy

read in June 2019

rated 6/10: read to pass the time

It takes me a while to get into this book. Would it have been better if I had first read books one to three? Probably not... I have the impression that each book in this series is semi-independent: it's an interleaving of tales rather than a continuous saga.

But good grief! the author originally planned for a sixty-book series! He wrote ten, then stopped. Sales, apparently, did not justify more. I can understand that.

This book -- number four of ten written -- is exciting, non-stop action. No need to know what went before and the ending is good enough. It would be interesting to see where it goes but really, I won't bother.

It would also be interesting to see if there is any explanation for the history of this world. This story is fantasy, with monsters and magic. Plus plenty of scientific leftovers from an earlier high-science civilisation. Will this sf civilisation be expanded or explained? That could be interesting.

If I had the complete ten-volume set, it would be worth reading the lot -- if only to see where the saga goes. But book by book, no.

The story has structure but it's a series of -- linked -- incidents. Yes, it's set in the one world but there are very few links from one incident to the next. Or... is that because I have read only the one book? The stranger who appears, is immediately thrown off the sinking ship , for example -- will he reappear in a later book? In this one book he is an irrelevant bystander. Like many other characters, incidents and places.

On top of that, there are no likeable characters. Okay, again, this could be because this is just one book in a series. It would be nice, though, if the main character were less of a lying, cheating, self-centred ratbag. He does seem to improve by the end of the book... but... Another problem with reading just one of a series.

If you can get the whole series -- and can read ten lots of more than 700 pages -- go for it. For me, it's an enjoyable book but I won't be looking for the rest of the series.

Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper

... Agamedes Consulting / Problems ? Solved

===

"Why be difficult? Be impossible." … Ginger Meggs

===

Dying for you to read my blog, at https://notdotdeaddotyet.blogspot.com.au/ :-)

Sunday, June 16, 2019

cafe: academy / claremont

cafe: academy, claremont

this is a cafe. an ordinary -- pleasant -- cafe. nothing at all hipster about it. strangely enough it is recommended to us by the keeper of the list of hipster cafes. this cafe, he tells us, is one of his regulars.

we have been here before, many years ago. (i suspect that it may then have had a different name.) i remember the rain hammering on the clear plastic curtains that form the outside wall, some water finding its way inside. today the weather is cool but not so stormy. inside, is dry and warm.

the cafe is crowded, almost full. the noise... well, we don't notice it. certainly not too loud. perhaps the curtains soften the noise?

we are here for coffee and cake. we share and enjoy a generous-sized slice of cake. coffee & walnut which -- surprise! -- "may contain traces of nuts" :-)

i'll rate this cafe as two out of three... even though we may regularly return. it is a good choice -- when we are in this particular shopping precinct. nothing exceptional, very pleasant, nice cake and a unique connection -- the curtains -- to the outside world. worth a return visit if we are already close by.

cafe: typika / claremont

cafe (restaurant): typika, claremont

another restaurant from the hipster list. yes, it's hipster... medium hipster.

first impressions are that it is crowded and very, very noisy. interesting wall art by (i think) the artist who is known for his work on the outside of buildings. hard surfaces, noisy chatting crowd. we are not shouting but it is close.

the menu is somewhat traditional but with a hipster overlay... beef ribs with peanuts in the salad and chili dressing on the side. spicy pork ribs with jalapeno slaw. lots and lots of chili-flavoured dishes. if you don't like chili then the choice is breakfast-style eggs. on the other hand...

the chili refuser ignores the chili dressing and enjoys the beef. the jalapeno sits on top of the coleslaw, i remove it and enjoy the moderately spicy pork. the chili-lover adds my jalapeno to his "spicy" angry bird and it is just right. for him.

we all enjoy our meals.

on the down side -- though not the fault of the restaurant: there is parking directly outside but it has a one hour limit. completely unsuited if you are there for a meal. as long as you know this in advance, it's okay. there is plenty of multi- hour parking nearby. (i didn't know, so i parked, ordered, moved our car, returned to eat... a minor annoyance.)

rated two out of three: we enjoyed our meal but it will not become a regular. except for the days when we really feel in the mood for some acceptably warm chili.

cafe: Nic and Kolo / Applecross

cafe: Nic and Kolo, Applecross

hipster? definitely not! but good :-)

to give variety to our coffee and cake we are selecting cafes from another person's list of "hipster cafes". so what makes a cafe hipster? finding out is part of the fun.

n&k has a hipster menu. non-traditional. kale. several different dishes combined into one meal. poached egg added -- sucessfully -- to various dishes.

the premises... are too modern for hipster. no trace that it has been repurposed from a shop or an office. it's ... a cafe. (more correctly, a restaurant.) and the diners... are old. and young. a few could be up-and-coming hip young professionals but too many could be retired. not at all a hipster clientele.

===

we are there for lunch -- and it is good. comfortable, good service, good food. lots of hipster dishes but enough traditional food to allo choice.

the only problem, is noise. it's a shiny new building -- with no acoustic padding. sound -- other diners chatting happily -- the sound echoes. we need to speak loudly. even so, some conversation is lost.

overall, however, an enjoyable meal. two out of three: we enjoyed it, we would be happy to return, we will not go out of our way to return.

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

Seven Surrenders / Ada Palmer

Seven Surrenders

(Terra Ignota #2)

by Ada Palmer

dystopia, science fiction

started reading in June 2019

rated 4/10: bad but could be read

Okay, I barely started reading this book. It's book two of a series. I've not given it much of a chance...

You know how some books, it takes a while to get into them? This is one of those books. Trouble is -- I have no interest in getting into it. In fact, the first few chapters are such that I am actively *against* reading any further.

Dystopia? Yes. Likeable characters? No. A nasty situation is presented as being "good". No, it's just nasty.

Say no more. Read no more.

Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper

... Agamedes Consulting / Problems ? Solved

===

"Why be difficult? Be impossible." … Ginger Meggs

===

Dying for you to read my blog, at https://notdotdeaddotyet.blogspot.com.au/ :-)

Tuesday, June 4, 2019

The Scarlet Pimpernel / Baroness Orczy

The Scarlet Pimpernel

(#1 of many)

by Baroness Orczy

read in June 2019

rated 7/10: well worth reading

I love the descriptions of the era: the fashions, manners, social stratifications. All good fun, especially for those (like Sir Percy) who are exceedingly rich, fashion leaders and who own an excellent set of horses.

I wonder how real it is? The book is old but the story is even older, set more than a hundred years before the author was born. Is it based, however loosely, on society of the day -- or is it all a pure fantasy. I have no idea. I just enjoy it.

The first half of this book is a lot of good fun. The plot is driven by surprisingly believable blackmail. The second half is... well... melodramatic. Believable enough but overdrawn.

Part of the believable nature of this book depends on the era. For example:

Hero, heroine and villain are racing from London to Calais. Why do they wait in Dover? They need to hire a local fisherman to get across the Channel. Then they wait for better weather, then for the tide to be right.

The climactic final scenes are set by the coast. It's so quiet that hidden soldiers must whisper, or be discovered. It's so dark that the heroine is unseen as she tiptoes close to the villains.

It's a different world -- and fascinating.

Unfortunately -- for this modern reader -- the second half of the book has too much of the heroine being overwrought. Yes, she toughs it out, and tries to save the day. But, I am sure, she is very close to... spraining her ankle. The final drama is dragged out, to become melodrama.

Not to worry (not too much). Cunning plans are revealed, the plot twists, then is nicely wrapped up. The happy ending is no surprise. How it is reached is clever, if not entirely a surprise. The truly villainous villain is routed, the hero and heroine sail off to happiness.

It is all good fun. Not so much action and adventure, as cunning and derring-do.

An old style adventure. Still very readable.

Medusa's Children / Bob Shaw

Medusa's Children

by Bob Shaw

science fiction

read in May 2019

(and previously, years ago)

rated 7/10: well worth reading

Increase the rating to seven-and-a-bit if you enjoy older style science fiction; this is a good book, straightforward plot, several interesting ideas. With well-defined but quite shallow characters.

The underlying scientific concept seems ridiculous... but... Set the story on an alien planet, with humans discovering alien technology -- and it is as good as any modern blockbuster sf movie. Though with a lot less violent action.

If you enjoy comparing old novels to new -- up the rating again, to eight.

I think it was Stephen King, in a book about how to write a novel, who wrote that every word must add to the story... If a word, a sentence, a paragraph, does not advance the story -- then remove it. In 157 pages, every one of Shaw's words is essential to the plot.

In fact, several essential action scenes are unwritten, obvious, left to the reader to imagine. This is a book of what-if, an exploration of an idea (or three). It is not an adventure story. The interest is in the ideas rather than in the supporting actions.

I could say that this is "true" science fiction. I could believe that 1970s science fiction was short cheap printing for a small niche market. I could also believe that it is a sign of an author using a typewriter... rather than the faster and more flexible word processor. Want to add more action? Insert, here.

I'm currently struggling to read a more modern, more complex, far longer book, by Neal Asher. I may give up. A major problem -- for me -- is the lengthy description of each new technological marvel. An active imagination linked to a powerful word processor and unlimited storage.

Both Asher and Shaw may as well write that the character waved a magic wand and it was so. Asher's tech is the centrepiece of an action adventure. Shaw's tech is barely there, just enough to support exploration of the what-if ideas.

I normally enjoy a book by Asher. In this case it is a relief to read the simpler -- more understandable -- book by Shaw. Medusa may be simpler, the exploration of ideas is more thought-provoking. And easier to understand.

Pages

Friday, June 28, 2019

Monday, June 24, 2019

Saturday, June 22, 2019

Friday, June 21, 2019

Sunday, June 16, 2019

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

Tuesday, June 4, 2019