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Watching the clouds go by
Aug. 29th, 2022 04:37 pmThis is the last long weekend of the year (before Christmas), and it really feels like the end of summer. The air is turning autumnal, the humidity has gone, and our apple and pear trees are heavy with fruit. I'm lying around in a bit of a food coma, having gone out to lunch with Matthias, and wandered home via the coffee stall in the market and the river loop.
I've got a few books to log, although not as many as I'd like.
I finally read The House of the Patriarchs, the penultimate (so far) book in Barbara Hambly's Benjamin January historical mystery series. This one sees Ben (along with Henri and Chloë) head to New York state to track down a missing young woman, and involves religious cults, spiritualism, and, as always a lot of injustice and exploitation. Hambly is so good at showing the many ways the strong prey on the powerless, and the ways those powerless people build community and find happiness in the margins in spite of it. I like the books in this series best when they heavily involve lots of Ben's friends, allies and family members, and I felt this book was light on that, but it was nevertheless enjoyable.
I picked up On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous (by Ocean Vuong) on a whim at the library, and I'm glad I did. It's a lyrical, meandering memoir about intergenerational trauma, (Vietnamese) immigrant experiences in the United States, and Vuong's difficult relationships with his various family members, in particular his mother and grandmother.
I'm currently reading The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi, the first in an epic fantasy series drawing on Ghanaian mythology and north and west African history, imagining a society divided strictly along caste lines, with all the inherent injustices that implies. I haven't got too far into the book yet, but I'm enjoying the worldbuilding and characters so far (it's told from the alternating points of view of three different women), although I'm not sure the set up really calls for a 'chosen one'-type heroine, which seems to be the direction in which it's heading. As I say, though, it's too early to really make a firm judgement about this, and I'm certainly happy to keep reading and see how things unfold.
Other than reading, roaming around town, and swimming, Matthias and I also found time to watch one film — the second Doctor Strange. I have to admit that at this point I'm pretty much Marvel-ed out. Some of the recent Disney TV series have had fun moments, but I can't say that I've wholeheartedly enjoyed a film since Ragnarok, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness certainly hasn't changed that. It had pretty animation, and that's about it.
I don't really know how to end this post, so I will leave you with a link to a photo of the cows in the field next to the cathedral. I hope Monday is treating you all well!
I've got a few books to log, although not as many as I'd like.
I finally read The House of the Patriarchs, the penultimate (so far) book in Barbara Hambly's Benjamin January historical mystery series. This one sees Ben (along with Henri and Chloë) head to New York state to track down a missing young woman, and involves religious cults, spiritualism, and, as always a lot of injustice and exploitation. Hambly is so good at showing the many ways the strong prey on the powerless, and the ways those powerless people build community and find happiness in the margins in spite of it. I like the books in this series best when they heavily involve lots of Ben's friends, allies and family members, and I felt this book was light on that, but it was nevertheless enjoyable.
I picked up On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous (by Ocean Vuong) on a whim at the library, and I'm glad I did. It's a lyrical, meandering memoir about intergenerational trauma, (Vietnamese) immigrant experiences in the United States, and Vuong's difficult relationships with his various family members, in particular his mother and grandmother.
I'm currently reading The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi, the first in an epic fantasy series drawing on Ghanaian mythology and north and west African history, imagining a society divided strictly along caste lines, with all the inherent injustices that implies. I haven't got too far into the book yet, but I'm enjoying the worldbuilding and characters so far (it's told from the alternating points of view of three different women), although I'm not sure the set up really calls for a 'chosen one'-type heroine, which seems to be the direction in which it's heading. As I say, though, it's too early to really make a firm judgement about this, and I'm certainly happy to keep reading and see how things unfold.
Other than reading, roaming around town, and swimming, Matthias and I also found time to watch one film — the second Doctor Strange. I have to admit that at this point I'm pretty much Marvel-ed out. Some of the recent Disney TV series have had fun moments, but I can't say that I've wholeheartedly enjoyed a film since Ragnarok, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness certainly hasn't changed that. It had pretty animation, and that's about it.
I don't really know how to end this post, so I will leave you with a link to a photo of the cows in the field next to the cathedral. I hope Monday is treating you all well!