Book a Day

Let's see. At best guess, I have forty books waiting for me in my To Read Stacks (quite the messy affair), along with another dozen magazines. This in addition to the four books I have going and The Bible I acquired yesterday, but have already begun to peruse. It's well over a year's worth of reading material. And it's safe to say, many of these items no longer call to me. Thus, I will be discarding these at the rate of a Book a Day. It's a schedule I will never keep. But that is the plan.

A Short Intro to the Project

Essentially, I shall hold a book for anywhere from five minutes to an hour and as follows are the thoughts that come to mind as I hold, page through, and examine each book... often from front to back, but also, in random order, taking in the cover and the last few pages, prior to taking in the first line, before paging through the remainder, sometimes at an alarmingly fast rate, before going back to beginning or opening the book to a random page... but mostly paging through from beginning to end. So, like, the books are consumed as I desire and not necessarily as intended. And as such, what follows can hardly be called meaningful (or thorough) reviews. Instead, I am trying to relate a feel, my feel, for a physical object in hand... an object which is comprised, overwhelmingly, of words.

This is the type of statement that is true (more or less) for all of these Skipped & Skimmed projects of mine.

Thinking of it as a Poetic Book Review of Sorts might not be a bad way to go.

Also, the proof-reading (of most of the stuff in the Brett's Books spur) comes so late after the writing, it is hard to remember what I meant at the time of first note... a state which is compounded ever further by misspellings and auto-corrections that have the nasty habit of completely changing the original meaning. In other words, this is Art, not a Reference.

{Thus, all short-hand write-ups of this nature are very much akin to the Running Thoughts section as to be found in one of my more typical book projects. And the philosophy behind those is well documented on the Introduction Page, so don't ask me why I feel the need to keep on over-explaining everything.}

The Waste Lands
The Dark Tower Book III
Stephen King

I am not a King fan.

I very much enjoyed the first book in this series.

I stopped reading the second a few chapters in.

I grabbed this copy as much for the pictures as anything else.

I find jacket copy like 'the mightiest imagination of our time' more than a little off-putting.

Perhaps, one of the most enjoyable reads.

Or most widely read authors.

But 'mightiest imagination'?

MG signed his copy.
I hardly ever appreciate book dedications.
I don't want to deal with wheelchair bound characters.

I wonder if she is based on a fan.

Robotic animals, I presume.

It's sort of hard to be sure, having just skipped to where I am a few illustrations in.

Now, that's a sinister train.
It's not the style of art I want.

I want more.

For it to fill in the story.

Tell a story of its own.

I'm assuming it's a Linear Travelogue.

We are going from here to there.

With all sorts of exciting stops in between.

He looks like Archer (of the similarly named Cartoon Spy Series).

Gads, I love Archer.

As Archer knows his due...
- Everything!
- All of the time!

A study in riddles.

Is it a search for content?
- Almost by definition, if riddles are not central to the story, they are.

Will a Riddle form an obstacle?

Or are the riddles Original & Unique?

I mean, add anything Original & Unique you like.

To write without being read.

Should I care.

I often talk to myself and think nothing of it.

Blaine is clearly Insane.

Or not.

But I'd go with the former.

Oh, and we have a call back to riddles, here.

'Constant Reader's interest' now there's a humanizing phrase.
I have less desire to read this than ever.

Though, movie.

Maybe.

I think it hits the theaters soon.

Or has.

Still, I expect nothing.

After all, I seek perfection.

Five stars.

10/10.

There are too many to waste my time with anything less.

Maybe I should stop reading my Australian Lingo Book.

Also, if you want to know why this book was the first to go, it had more to do with its size than anything else.

And bad luck of the draw.

It was in the first pile (or two) I sorted through.

And then, I find myself in a bookstore.

So, I figured I would add these Hyper-Short Reads to this listing.

Magical Realism for Non-believers
A Memoir of Finding Family
Anika Fajardo

Maybe, I picked up the wrong book.

I'm looking for a definition.

Yep, it's the wrong book.

I really just want the title term defined.

Goodbye.

The Municipalists
Seth Fried

I liked it better when I thought he was talking to his cigarette.
Self-driving cars.

How futuristic.

Maybe, I should try starting at the beginning.
I no longer respect the Penguin imprint.

Nothing to do with this book.

Still, inching towards the beginning.

My mind is quite blown.
- I am not all here at the moment.

The Beach is what soured me.

Or focused my attention on Penguin, if you want to assume I was already gone.

I don't think I would feel the horror if I did not already know the horror.
There are curious turns of phrase.

But, nah.

I am not sinking in.

I like the irony of linking self-help books to crime, murder, and/or other sociopathic behaviour.

Think The Sopranos.

The letters at the end are very good.

Unfortunately, it's the only thing I've cared about, so far.

A rant might have been a better format.

I don't want to sit through a story in order to learn a thing or two.

Though, I can understand if that's what it takes to get it out.

A point of view is an error.

To be an individual obligates one to subjectivity.
- And the distorted (self-serving and/or self-referential) point of view that brings.

Still, don't care.

Can't make me care.

Heck, I don't care about most of my work.

So, why should I care about his?

Would have been nice if it hit me harder.

A half hour.

Exactly what it was worth to me.

Yeah. I know. I come off pretty harsh at times. But the previous was not so much a negative as not a plus. So, from the set {-, 0, +} it was the middle point, a push, a failure on my part (or theirs) to care either way.

Also, there are like 100,000 books in this place, so just being chosen is a rarefied honor in and of itself.

Seriously, books (much like this web-page full of words) are worthless. It's the readers that count. You can take that to the bank.

And now, back to my private stacks.

The Con Man
Ed McBain

A disposable Detective Novel.

I was going to make a Robot Sculpture out of these Private Eye Pulp Fiction Novels from the Fifties.

But I've, already, gotten rid of most of them.

Besides, the idea was never much more than a lark.

Women are slaves to their passions.
Why arsenic?

The non-murderer's choice in murder weapons.

Only the facts are real.

The rest is fiction.

Yep, I've said nothing.

161 pages.

The great thing about not caring about a book is the ability to start wherever.

Say, at the very end.

I don't like his name.
That was smooth.

Clever.

All matter of fact.

Back at the beginning, the opening is delightful.

The ending just turned out the light on another day.

I like the odd bit better than the mainstay.

I like the idea over the story.

Even if ideally, the idea is wrapped in a story that jumps from idea to idea.

I'm not in the book deeply enough to understand the con.

Also, I'd be more concerned about being down myself.

Than about someone else being further down.

Suburbia.

'The Commuter Romance Legend!'

The sparse illustrations come as a surprise.
Love!
It's good enough, I could have read it.

I'm just not in the mood.

Came back for a second sitting, though.
A butterfly.

I view it as orange-brown.

Would that make it a Monarch?

A fun ride.

Well, more fun for some than others.

I just don't get the poisoning.

If we were to blame others.

Pin it on somebody.

But a body in a river is a bit of a tip-off...
- That there has been a murder most foul.

Goodbye.

The remainder dictated by the preceding.

And my having, already, read the end.

catalyst
Participant Manual
leadershape

This company (it would appear) does not like capitalizing Proper Names.
I think this is some sort of workshop workbook.

I got -----'s copy.

And this is why proper disposal of documents is important.

Let's see if we can embarrass -----.

I like the elastic closure.
They must have given everyone a sticky sheet full emotional stickers.

For instance, as we start, ----- is anxious.

I have my reading list.

Presumably, some of the facilitator's favorites.

Step one.

Talk to others.

The first step in doing anything is talking about it.

Not doing it.

So, hunker down with a nice cup of coffee (or better yet, a six pack of brew) and really get into the discussion.

Remember, puking means you're making progress.

Great - Good - Some - Little - None.

Not a big fan of these tests.

They really need to be normalized.

I can almost hear the talker based on -----'s notes.
Everyone is an artist.
Names have been named.

+++++ sounds like a jerk.

Step One - Step Two - Step Three.
An insert.

And a sticky note.

Less writing.

Sometimes facilitators skip sections.

Also, entertainer might be a better description than facilitator.

You know, in my personal experience.

Looking for the counterpoint?

I can help.

Waking up earlier isn't the solution.

Hitting the ground running is.

I'll pause at the bookmark.

As it's time for me to proofread something.

That was a longer break than I expected.
Every day in every way.
Ha!

Classic!

I took a break right before thirty pages of blank paper intended for journaling.

Talk about filler.
- Pure fluff.
- Pure nothingness.

----- is looking for an internship.

Is in school.

Slavery.

It's a thing.

The slave is, that is.
- Fine, don't laugh.

Don't F! with leadershape.

Just don't.

What is the validity of copyrighting a quote from another?
In my estimation, ----- wasted some money, here.

Or that is to say, the one seminar I can remember paying for was a total waste of money.

Total?

Fine.

The day could have been replaced by a hundred point list.

Of which five I found useful.

In my life, the photo-project handout will likely prove to be the most useful.

And if I were willing to pay money for such things, how much would I pay for the inspiration for a single winning project?

This is a rather drawn out and complicated method to thin one's library. It's as if I were a child and prior to cleaning my room I insisted on playing with every toy.

A Moveable Feast
Ernest Hemingway

Let us presume this is about Ernie's Paris years.
My old University Library copy was the fourth they had.

Out of how many?

It saw a fair bit of sporadic use.
A few select quotes are re-written in the back by three separate students.

One quote each.

I like that as a tradition.

The Boom Years.

Of The Roaring Twenties.

He remembers the girl.
Your Vice or Your Virtue.

The choice is yours.

I shall not be collecting art.

So, perhaps, that is your answer.

It would help to speak the language.

French, in this particular case.

Not reading, it feels like a series of essays.

I wonder if there is movement?

Do writers not age well, Mr Hemingway?

Strange of you to say.

The writer's craft.

Setting up shop.

I don't know that I ever used pencil for serious writing.

I much prefer pens.

And paper is cheap.

Double spacing and what not to allow for the mess.

Hemingway did not like being interrupted.

I take it as fear of not being able to get back into the flow.

Get back to where he was.

Ah, when the words came easy.
Name dropping.
A pound of opium.
I'm guessing it was very Post Plague like.

And hard coin was worth its weight in gold.
- Did you catch the irony, there?

When you know a Scott, it helps if it is The Scott.
Day Drinking?

Bah!

I start in the morning!

The seesaw.
He started to think enough out.

You know, judging from the pictures.

And no, upon rereading this comment, I have no idea what I meant.

One can leave Paris, but Paris never leaves you.
But then, it's never the same.
I wonder if Hemingway's marriage ended due to an affair.

I shall not bother to check.

Will you?

In the end, I'm presuming, it was the time of his life.

I could go on. To work or play... which means to drink? But the book is already in the bin. I'm just playing with the echoes of it in my mind, now.

In Conquest Born
C. S. Friedman

I would have liked the size of the novel in my youth.

500 pages of reasonably small print.

Now, I just see the length as a liability.

I guess I no longer desire to escape from life.

But to augment it.

I'm also, oddly, not envious of this book.

I don't want to deal with the work these 250,000 words represent.

It's a female author.
Partners.
A friend of a friend.

As simple as that.

Celia.

I know I was wondering.

Oppression is wealth.

Opulence is the wealth of another.

I have always assumed a Love Story.
~ Interesting Effect!

~ Telepathic Nomenclature, I presume.

Privacy is meaningless without shame and fear of discovery.

Maybe, not even shame.

Just the fear.

Making Manifest.
Skipping loads.

Half the book in a single flip.

The middle half.

Aphorisms are the best.
To assume magic... might be all it takes.

I am to the point, I'm willing to try.

The glossary is good.

I might have started with it.

In my version of this book, that is.

Only Conditional Peace has any meaning.

Sooner or later, friend becomes foe.

And the reverse.

Same book.

Later in the day.

The Glossary is worthy of a closer review.

Thus, note to authors and publishers, to some readers this is an important selling point.

Heck, for all I know, it's the only reason I nabbed this book in the first place.

T v T.

I note similarities.

Functional What?

'Source World'!

I got that tingling feeling, again.

It is the concepts that garner my interest.

Whole stories and plot lines in a single paragraph.

Subtle (very subtle) erotica.

Benson & Hedges
presents
Recipes From America's Favorite Resorts

Mighty Fine!
Laughing at the name.

The conceit.

More of an English style, if you ask me.

I like a good piece of fish.

You know, meat in all of its manifestations.

Baked Papaya?
We do smoothies, now.

Book is from 1985.

Stew with chilies and beans.

Chili, in other words.

The pages get hard to turn, towards the end.
Maybe some version of a Spiced-Cheese Filled Papaya will get made.

Stand On Zanzibar
John Brunner

I count this book or (more likely) The Sheep Look Up (also, by John Brunner) as one of the most influential books I have ever read.

Short sections.

With pseudo-fact based asides.

Very compelling.

I am sure I've read this book.

I will not be finding the time to reread it, again, any time soon.
- Such lies.
- I am, currently, rereading the bulk of it.

They were wrong about the oil crisis.
At the end, the computer loves itself.
I can barely focus on the main ending.
© 1968.

The book predates my intellectual awakening.

Odd, the extent to which SF has remained the same.

No discovery has altered our course.

That's quite the table of contents.

Add short blurbs and you've got yourself a short story.

Interspersed mini-screenplays.

That's an interesting technique.

Ironically, I just started reading a screenplay, this morning.

Bored.

Growing sleepy.

Like a trance.

It's time for a nap.

*Nap Time*
Very good writing.

Words to live by.

And not an ounce of plot to water it down.

I wonder if my whole website would make a novel.

Random essays are held together by the coherent thought of a single narrator.

It can be easy (at times) to fall into.

And (at other times) with the wrong words, out of.

Such a love of the written word.

It is my life.

Judgement filled words.

Of the cultural socio-economic kind.

An anthropological dissection.

I've heard that line, before.

At the end.

High art!
I don't care about Donald.
If I were to write in a similar vein...

What are the best parts?

The ideas.

The rants.

But how to tie them together.

And to give it energy to see it through.

This a is great book.

But I need fewer books in my life.

I will recommend John Brunner's Stand On Zanzibar most highly.

But if I think for a moment, I may well be writing (between this, that, and that other thing) exactly what I wish to read.

Hyper on-point diatribes and near incomprehensible art.

Maybe.

I mean, just maybe.

Oh, John is Donald.

Without a doubt.

Even though, I have plenty.
Let us be done.

Let us revisit context (5) entitled The Grand Manor and appreciate it for the masterwork in philosophy that it is.
Turns out.

I will not be tossing this book in the bin.

Not just yet.

Star Maker
Olaf Stapledon

He died at 64.

That may well be enough time on this planet.

The back cover is not interesting.

This may be quick.

But as a general rule, I've been giving these books way more that fifteen minutes.

I am not so impressed with the time-lines, as can be found towards the end of the book.
I find little to latch onto.
I can accept it as fake fact.

As esoteric knowledge.

I can, also, see extracting pieces and adding them to another work.
But for now, slumber calls harder.

Another masterpiece, outgunned by a nap.

It's odd how I want to give it a second chance.

But I will never read it.

And my time will be better spent paging through something else.

Fun with games of Rummy
Including Canasta and Gin

Somebody mentioned Rummy.

The game was never pursued.

Shortly thereafter, this book fell into my lap.

But it was never perused.

It's time to chuck it.

But first, let's enjoy it for a moment.

Don't cheat.
Unsurprisingly, I'm not taking in that much.

Rules are not made for flipping.

Some of the variants are fun.

I would have enjoyed them as a child.

I like the name Canasta.

I will not be learning how to play, today.

If a person browsed long enough (and repeatedly), they could learn to play the game.
Finally, I like the dry brown brittleness of the paper.

It even has a nice clean (slightly musty) smell to it.

The Vicar of Wakefield
Oliver Goldsmith

It's a small old book.

It could be a classic.

The slimness of the volume was a contributing factor to its selection.

It was a success in its day.
Anachronistic Turns of Phrase are part of the enjoyment to be had in such a novel.
I don't understand Old English Money.

The rate conversions.

I am led to believe there were dozens upon dozens of different coins, all with different values.

I shall now read the Table of Contents.
Um, I didn't get far.
And since there is no living author to insult, I shall dismiss the rest of the work.
I tried to get into the Afterward.

But I cannot be bothered.

I wonder if I would have enjoyed the book...

If stranded on a Desert Island with only this book to keep me company?

If I were forced to give this book a chance rather than going through the motions prior to throwing it out?

I, suppose, at some point, I should make note that all of these titles made the first cut. And their failing (if any) is that they did not make the second.

Also, it should be noted, I am spending more and more time with each book, finding it difficult to put down and move on, lest I not give it a fair shake... or overlook a gem.

West of the Thirties
Discoveries Among the Navajo and Hopi
Edward T. Hall

If I lived long enough (a thousand years), I would keep this book and save it for later.

It looks like a First Class Anthropological Study.

And I like the size and feel of it.

The map is a nice inclusion.

But not reading in depth, it holds little intrinsic value to me.

Yep, that's the terrain we are talking about.

He's been writing for awhile.
Mid-century Indians.

Is that even politically correct?

Eh, I don't care.

Ah, he's calling them Indians.

But it's an old book.

The past is gone.

Always has been.

Always will be.

Hand Written Notes!

Always a plus.

I bet this book was used as a text in an undergraduate anthropology course.

Hey, Chili!

He's gone all native and gotten himself a name.

A Cultural War is better than a Real War.
Savers versus spenders.
Very much a personal history.

This is what I saw...
- With a little back story.

What Is!
I'm glad I didn't save this book.

It's over.

It's done.

Doctor Dolittle's Return
Hugh Lofting

This is a very nicely constructed book.

Perhaps, it needs a better home (and/or final resting place) than the bin.

Fourth Impression.

I was wondering if it were a First Edition.

Dedicated to his dog.
A boy doing man's work...

With talking animal companions.

As we begin, the Doctor is on the moon.

He's still there, fifty pages later.

I remember the movie...

Not the book.

My guess is some old man died.

And this was one of the books he had as a Child.

Ah, future people.

Do you dismay at my willingness to throw out such a book.

Understand, it is a time of disposable plenty.

The only (practical) alternative is shelving it.

And there is simply not room (on any shelf, anywhere) for all the books ever printed.

Perhaps, I will have a fireplace someday...
- And give such books a good and proper Viking Funeral.

The book reminds me of summer camp.

The camp's glory likely being in the pre-war days.

Or early post war days, during the resulting boom.

At the camp, a great big meeting room was lined with books.

I was scolded for reading.

Told to go outside and play.

I can see why folks donate their books.

They can be hard to throw out.

But into the bin, it must go.

Siddhartha
Hermann Hesse

I have a student's copy.

Highly marked up.

She likes to include a heart when writing her name.

Something she has done at least five times within the pages of this book.

Lots of tabular data.

Compare.

Contrast.

A full page drawing of a flower covers a page of text in Chapter 10.

I should read that page.

It was boring.
Sid.

You got to have a nickname.

It would appear (from the notes) Buddhism is central.

I know Buddhism.

Not that it can be known.

See, I know it.

A fact based sex scene.

The notes tell me they are in love.

I am preferentially drawn to marked up books.
He's injured.

I can only assume he killed a man in a duel.

But not without receiving a crippling blow, himself.

Obviously, individual readings of the material will differ.

And the setting of the songbird free is a metaphor for a broken heart.
Riparian Humour!
Eh, I walked away.

I am done, now.

What is a Siddhartha?

Not even a Siddhartha knows.

A Series of Unfortunate Events
Book the Third
The Wide Window
by
Lemony Snicket

I find the size discrepancy of the lead characters on the cover to be quite interesting.

Was this conceived as more of a Girl's Book?

A Ten Up $10 Book.

I do wonder about My Fellow American's almost scandalous willingness to waste their money.

This is a generalized (rather than specific) observation.

I don't like rough cut edges on books.
Olaf Rules!
I believe this book is the one they based the movie upon.

Or at least, it's the segment in the movie I remember the best.

'Zax!'

Do I sound snide if I call this the best line in the book?

Aphorism.

Backwards Explanation.

Relevance.

Moving on, now...

Lemony's Biopic is better.
It's a good size.

I like the hardback feel.

But the bin awaits.

And I have no remorse...

Or second thoughts on the matter.

One final note, since this is the second time I have held a Lemony Snicket novel.

In my previous read, I noted the patter, the pace.

And was quite impressed.

Dot... Dot... Joke.

Dot... Dot... Joke.

And so on.

And so forth.

End with a gag.

On The Beach
Nevil Shute

How do I know I will not be reading this?

I jumped to the last page while deciding to grab it.

There are no innocents.
He's quite the successful author.
If death is the end, perhaps you've lived your life wrong.

Gads, I hate those sanctimonious pricks, though.

It turns out, the very end is all I care about.

Living Abstinently
A Guide to FA Tools

Food Addicts.
Who am I to talk?

I'm a Book Addict.

Weigh and Measure.
Hot chocolate is a big no-no.
Does Unity (a word from a different project, see Stand On Zanzibar, elsewhere, on a different page) utilize support groups?

But, of course.

I have a Twelve Step Book that I plan to work as a project.

Less so, this one.

Meditation, Relaxation, or Quiet Time.

Call it what you will.

Service and Gratitude.
Perhaps, mentally replacing FA with FF was not the kindest thing I have ever done.

So, let me apologize.

Donuts for Everyone!

Farnham's Freehold
Robert A. Heinlein

Ironically, this book is billed as the continuation of On the Beach, the novel one (or is it two) up.
The end is superb.

It's the sort of high-information blurb I like.

Next chapter in (the second from the end) reeks of sloppy writing.

Uh-oh!

Well, about that snafu...

Let me explain.

The seeming discrepancy is explained in the preamble.

It's part of the story.

Never mind.

Printed two months after my birth.
Duress is Duress.

It's not time barred.

If Hell is other people, Heaven must be a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Not a concern of mine.
It could be nice to get a deconstructed view of the imagined society.

But I have no desire to waddle through conversations to get to it.

All wealth comes at the labour of others.

Honest wealth is just labour.

And who wants to work for a living?

I'm sure I would have loved this book in my teenage years.

As it is, I will not be finding the time.

Truth is, I bought my books back then.

They were harder to come by.

Now, I'm sick with them.

Yep, sick.

Daisy Miller
and
Other Stories
Henry James

A nice slim volume.
So brittle, the pages are on the edge of falling out.
So old, the highlighting is fading.

So let us assume, this was a student's copy.

I hesitate to label them a scholar.

A pretty little thing.
All's well that ends...

Um, she dies.

I wonder if his wages were ever set?

Oh, we are on to The Pupil.

In a time of delicate manners, does a simple theft constitute a thriller?
There is a pleasure to be had in speaking with an open and impressionable young mind.
In just a few minutes, the book went from crisp and almost new to falling apart.

Weather
A Golden Guide

Do authors (as identifiable figures) exist in truly collective societies?
I find it hard to believe I acquired this book with any other intention than spending a few, short minutes with it.

The book is so small, it would be easy to put in my back pocket.

An old high school library book.

In good condition...
- Considering it's age.

Those are strange measurements to choose.

7.27

17.31

I'm hardly reading.
Stages of a storm.
Oklahoma is Tornado Central.
I have the weather service's site bookmarked.

Maybe, I'll go check it out for a moment.

See what the clouds outside look like on radar.

The First Christmas
Lew Wallace

Ultra small and slim.

Almost the size of a smart-phone.

A bit thicker.

That has a lot to do with its selection.

Easy to walk away with.

It's got a sketch.

So, it's illustrated.

1899

It's an except (the entire thing) from Ben-Hur.
- Ben-Hur seems like a sissy name.
- I'm guessing, that's a common enough joke.

God, you, the bond of creation.

Whatever that means.

For whatever that's worth.

The Truth.

What more do you want?

Blood (ancestry) means nothing to me.

It's hardly a predictor of greatness.

Greater opportunities?

Greater environment?

Yes.

But not greatness.

Conan
The Barbarian
Stan Lee presents

Maybe, I should just throw this out without even looking at it.
It's odd how I examine these books for wear.

Never read?

Or pressed flat for years?

The ironic aside.
Robert E. Howard is the original creator of Conan.
10,000BC.
"All In Full COLOR."
It's good to be the queen.

Yeah, she's sexy.

And in desperate need of a barbarian brute.

It flips well.

Don't want to read?

Then don't.

If it were not one of many, I could pause with this book.

Dreaming of adventure.

The Moon God is blind in one eye.

I know nothing of Odin.

Not even if this is a call-out.

Oh, no!
Conan is a pretty boy.

A man of hair.

Another pretty boy.

And forsooth, adventure awaits.

I didn't see that coming.

This is made for RPG Adventuring.

Skeletor!
Argh!
Dude, I'm on vacation.

Fine, die!

Mastodons, Wizards, and Flying Hawk Men!

Oh, my!

He's a Rambling Man.
Highly entertaining at this speed.

Lord Jim
joseph conrad

Don't ask me why his name is not capitalized on the cover.
Conrad is Polish.

And is willing to debate the merits of his own narrative form.

1899

My copy is from 1971.

The older, the better.

I am a fan of Heart of Darkness.

I will read that book again, instead.

I have no will to get into Lord Jim.

I've got a dozen or so (which basically means a dozen, but I am a notoriously bad counter) books to go. I will call this (instantiation of) the project done, when I am done with that dozen.

Heart of Darkness
Joseph Conrad

A second copy.

This one has handwritten margin notes.

I will read the other.

Stanley and Livingston?

Who are they?

In cartoons, they always found their way into the pots of canibals.

Originally, a magazine article.

Or at least, it would appear.

Quite the bibliography.

I almost never consult bibliographies.

Fairly enlightened as to cause and effect.

I'm letting the underlining guide me.

It is only recently that I have taken to interpreting 'The Horror!' as some visage of Hell.
Perhaps, when I read in full, I should interpret it as some sort of demonic journey.

A sort of choose your salvation.

Not that I know what that means.

The notes have grown thin.
Man does not (as a rule) have much restraint.
Witch!
Odd, how I don't think of ivory as a thing of value.

It's like horn...
- Or bone.

Here we are.

'The Horror!'

Lots of end notes.

I can't be bothered.

Falling Up
poems and drawings by
Shel Silverstein

One wonders what research was undertaken.

I believe (going by memory, at this point) on the Copyright Page, someone is credited with research.

The one about the snowball was quite witty.
A play on words.
Flipping ever faster.

Until a dragon caught my eye.

And the book is requested by another.

Mid-read.

He has his fans.

Wrote Where the Wild Things Are, it would seem.

Nope, sorry.

My mistake.

Rather, Where the Sidewalk Ends.

If I could draw, I could see filling pages with something like this.

Matching drawings with verse.

Would I have loved this book as a child?

It's probably not funny enough.

Too long for the joke.

But that is me talking.

Not a seven year old version of me.

Who Moved My Cheese?
Spencer Johnson, M.D.

Should we allow doctors to ego-brag when not discussing medicine?

It doesn't really matter.

I have very low expectations going in.

The first thing (the very first thing) I do is peel off the dust jacket.
Comes with a marketing bookmark.

The Cheese is a brand unto itself.

Robert Burns died at 37.
An idea so simple, how could it possibly need a book.
Shoulds do not exist.

The Devil has nothing on my antipathy towards you.

Of course, I exaggerate.

The Devil cares.

I do not.

Stop!

Look!

Are you a chicken?

If not, why are you crossing the road?

Death is Your Friend.

Just accept it.

Much like other people laughing and staring.

Deal!

Is The Cheese you have good enough?

That's the real question.

Let us assume that it always is.

Same Cheese Different Day.

Better than No Cheese Every Day.

All one need do is read The Handwriting on the Wall.
And they lived happily ever after.
All I know is we are not changing where we keep the cheese around here.

Cheese goes on the cheese shelf.

And this book goes in the trash.

Sorry, much like the last, someone (very near and dear) called dibs.

Natural Law Theory
Contemporary Essays
Edited By
Robert P. George

The intellectual level of the last book versus this one is the difference between night and day.
Of course, it's quite thick...

And I don't feel like breathing it in.

I do not believe Morality exists in The Natural State.

Evolution precludes Ethics.

Your side, my side.

Ethics only comes into play if you are, indeed, on my side.

Popularity is not truth.

And more than likely, The Truth is not popular.

Perhaps, the maximization of positive side effects is a worthy goal.

But at what cost?

Yeah, I don't believe in 'Objective Moral Truths.'

Well, if we devalue truths to mean relative interpretations of the Moral Good, I am fine with that.

But good luck getting folks to agree on the Moral Good.

Meaning, the Moral Good has little meaning...

Whether it is absolute or not.

And done.
I am interested in the subject.

But I'd rather start with short aphorisms and expand from there.

Also, pursuing this subject is not on my current TODO list.

I will resist the urge. I desire to nab fewer books. So this next one, I shall dispose of on the fly. A major attraction of it being the notes of others (a student, most likely), so their notes (and underlined sections) are all I shall read.

The Picture of Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde

Nice book-flaps.

There's printing on the inside cover.

That's pretty rare in a softcover.

The book comes complete with its own quotes.

The quality goes down as the list goes on.

A dapper portrait, he cuts.
In the modern age, the aphorisms in the preface would have been used as chapter headings.
From here on, the note takers words only, do I make comment.

Well, mostly.

Do Gods rule the world?
I lie.

Underlined phrases shall carry the day.

If one cared about art (do I care about art) this may well be the book to read.
Empty aphorisms.

He has succeeded in his art.

For, it means nothing.

Oscar is good at the quip.

The empty turn of phrase.

Some have wisdom, most do not.

There, a quip of my own.

There are times when I feel this would be a wonderful novel to fall into.
I, too, hate the proles.
He proceeds (Oscar, he does) from a state of absolute knowing.

I wonder how much is tongue-in-cheek.

It is easy to be sure when cracking a joke.

The portrait appears later than I would have expected.
Do we not all wish for a Decadent Lifestyle?
On your knees, boy.
Embrace Death!

It is the only solution.

That said, it could be a trip to live so long that one went insane.

Thousands of years.

Ghostlike.

Millions.

After a murder, I often go to a party.

In fact, the moment an invitation arrives, I start making plans for the assassination.

Gads, my world is so safe.

That looked like a snappy conversation.

I like snappy conversations.

Murder, again.

What a bore.

Anything...

But what is required.

I am smiling.

But at the same time, I wonder if I am wasting my life.

Time to leave these books behind.

And enjoy the retreating rain clouds.

Not bad for a one off. I will have to be more discerning as to my acquisitions, in the future. On the theory of: If not now, when?

The Synthetic Man
Theodore Sturgeon

I question how much I feel like looking at this book, right now.

It could be quick.

Previously, The Dreaming Jewels.
1950.
A Jack-in-the-Box.
You are not like other people.

You are special.

Eh, I guess, you're just like other people.

I suppose, it was supposed to be a sexy scene.
Completely lost.

Never found.

Survive.

That is what survivors claim is the highest ethic.

It is the only way they can justify what they did to survive.

Of course, I think the story ends happier than that.

A Canticle For Liebowitz
Walter M. Miller, Jr.

The cover makes it look semi-religious.
"Please return this book if found."

But to where?

Death to the Intellectuals!

But it begs the question...

What did intellectuals ever do for me.

Girded loins.
Spry old goat.
I like the writing.
Desire.
If we were to go into an old barn and interpret the antique farming equipment as holy relics, what sort of region would we create?
When all have died, the only thing that remains is death.
I like the addition of 'the' as a signifier.

The Decrepit.

The Discontent.

The Unkempt.

The Storyteller.

The Keeper.

The Defender of the Faith.

The End.

The Gulag Archipelago
Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn

It comes with a bus pass bookmark.

For the UTA.

I do not know what city that means.

Complete with glossary, index, and translater notes.
All are guilty.

All are equally innocent...
- aka guilty.

Idiots in charge.

Situation Normal.

I don't think it can be read without having a visceral reaction.

And therefore, it is subversive writing of the highest caliber.

Arbitrary.

Not so much capricious, as indifference.

And on that day, Russia died.
The tale of a concentration camp.
And when it is over, the horror dissolves.

A fleeting illusion that no one believes.

It seems like a masterful work.

That I have no desire to read.

And which reduces my desire to write...
- As arrogant folly.

Finally, after a bit of thought, I am sure his interrogation was a lot like arguing with a woman.

A big ole game of You Can't Win.

Jane Austen
Persuasion

I've never read it.

Likely, never will.

So, this is the Sea Captain story.
To live in plain sight.

I, myself, am in the introduction.

Originally published in four volumes.
By my previous reading of another authority, I am disinclined to give merit to Henry Austen's biography of his sister.
Laugh, you will.

For, I command it.

I've seen the movie.

I see remembrances of that in the book.

Let's skip much.
Several letters written.
Sorry, I skipped all the way to the memoir.
In the end, a sailor's wife.

Going through the books does make it easier to throw them out. If I can't be bothered for a fifteen minute duration, the full text doesn't stand a chance.

The Princess Bride
A Hot Fairy Tale
William Goldman

A high quality paperback.

Complete with foldout map.

$1.95 in 1973.

My, how times have changed...

I always thought the movie preceded the book.
The book starts with buying the book.
Chocolate.
A tale of jealousy.
Moby Dick was not that bad.
Fun enough.

But I did not set out to love this book.

But rather, to feel better about throwing it away.

A fine round of combat.
Mess with the best.

Die like the rest.

Fun scene.

A very nice cover.
And there we are.

The End.

If I remember (which seems likely, considering I'm making this note), I'll end it all with another The End at the bottom of this page.

Doctor Zhivago
Boris Pasternak

Boris won the Nobel Prize.

Presumably, for this work.

I read a bunch of Nobel related documents for the Prize in Economics.

It lowered my esteem of the prize.

The book with the lead character's poetry.
While the story ends as others consider the writing...

Of another.

I would assume this is most author's Happily Ever After.

I'm finding it hard to care.

It's feeling like a History of Russia.

I have little interest in Russia.

All are equal in death.
The center fifty pages are noticeably less yellow than the rest.
It is far more important for me to go through the motions so I can feel OK about throwing out this book than anything else.
I would have liked a blank brown page so I could have photographed it.

I will have to seek out such parchment.

It's for the Typewriter Project.
- Old fake typewritten documents.
- Perhaps, on note-cards.

Time for the Grand Finale. Don't expect too much. I'm certainly not.

My mistake, there are two more to go. Not the one.

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Thomas S. Kuhn

The 50th Anniversary Edition.

1962

Thick paper.

Deceptive.

It's gotta be nice to have folks talking about your work fifty years later.
It's a group effort.
Let's muck it out.
The book is hand annotated.

I must thank the previous reader.

Let us call a paradigm Uncontested Truth.

What reasonable folks believe so completely, it is beyond debate.

It has become fact.

Today, we have too many facts.

When the old data is revisited in light of new techniques.
And then, the day was over.

But I was not quite done with the book.

Problems at the edge are not the same as problems at the core...

Of a Scientific Community.

Paradigm is not a good word.

I question whether it had the same meaning at the beginning of the sentence, as it had at the end.

Priority (of discovery) is not important to me.
My reader interprets the passage as humility.

I would interpret it quite as the opposite.

Say, as self-assurance.

Mix & Match!

My reviewer is using a red pen, now.

It's On!
- It's So On!

Scientific History could be compelling.

A good way to learn science.

Not just parts.

But multiple parts.

And the whole.

Make Way!
Refine or Replace?
The paradigm defines what is seen.
Personal flights of fancy.

I go back to High School Days, a lot.

If college had been as congruent, I wonder if that would be my mental target.

It was almost right.
It's not smooth.

And describing the break becomes quite erratic.

The interpretation of the data changes as the data changes to fit the needs of the interpretation.
Third sitting.

Maybe, I need a classification of books between full-read and hyper-quick.
- Actually, I already do.
- The problem (if there is one) is in deciding into which category a book falls in advance.

Is there light where it is most dark?

Is it somehow focused on this point?

Where does knowledge begin and end?

What is true?

What is false?

As a group, how is this decided?

The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman
Angela Carter

Watch out!

Yet another Best of Generation Writer.

There do seem to be quite a bit of those.

I am expecting true nonsense.
It's, certainly, hard to grab hold.
I'll label it Feminist Abstraction.

Not really knowing why.

A hunch.

I think it's a piece that if you dedicate yourself to its greatness, it's great.

But then, all becomes great if only one dedicates themselves to it.

Artsy.

Here and there.

One could read only that which is in FULL CAPS.
Very matter of fact writing.

My eyes fall upon statements...
- Revealing a history, to which I find myself increasingly indifferent.

Now this.

Now that.

If I were a Brain Stuck Artist (in a slump), I'm sure I could plumb this work for ideas.

I think we have a lot of physical concepts...
- Descriptions of things.

That are not.

And never were.

I have completely failed to drop-in.

It was inevitable.

Here at the end, I wish the page over.

And perhaps, there was a reason this was the last book...
- A lie.
- I acquired this book a week ago, knowing ten or fifteen minutes would be about how long I would spend with it.

The cover promised a sex scene or two.

Which I never did find.

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