BOOKS OF THE HALF YEAR, 2022
BOOKS READ, HALF-READ AND STOPPED, AND OTHERWISE PERUSED FOR THE FIRST HALF OF 2022. (TITLE AUTHOR, PUBLICATION DATE, READING DATE, REVIEW SUMMARY)
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The Limerick by Legman, Gershon. pub. 1952. read January. 1700 very naughty limericks. You wouldn’t want to know about a more complete collection.
On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature by Lewis, C. S. pub 1981. read January. Read Lewis on Lewis before you hate on Lewis. It’s only fair.
The Blacktongue Thief by Buehlman, Christopher. pub. 2021. read January. Strong world. Strong characters. Atypical typical fantasy novel.
Rabbits: A Novel by Miles, Terry. pub 2021. read January. Good read up to the last couple of chapters where much happens off screen.
Ed by qntm. pub 2013. read January. Boy’s own adventure quickly escalates into speculative science fiction.
The Book of Forgotten Authors by Fowler, Christopher. pub 2017. read January. Once popular authors, many at the turn of the last century, turn out to still be interesting.
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Roach, Mary. pub 2010. read January. Good source of party facts about space and space travel backed by current developments.
Arsene Lupin by Jepson, Edgar. pub 1909. read January. Not by Leblanc, but good at briskly written. Fun and lighthearted.
The Case of the Velvet Claws by Gardener, Erle Stanley. pub 1933. read January. This Perry mason is distinctly, and frequently unpleasantly, unlike the TV one. Read anyway.
Sgt. Piggy’s Lonely Hearts Club Comic: A pearls Before Swine Treasury by Pastis, Stephan. pub 2004. read January. Terrible puns and commentary.
The Old Man in the Corner by Orczy, Emmuska. pub 1908. read February. Unsatisfactory mysteries “solved” by an unnecessary gimmick with an untwisty twist.
The Further Adventures of Slugger McBatt by Kinsella, W. P. pub 1988. read February. Though not as deep and mystical a some of Kinsella’s other work, still worth the read.
To Show and to Tell: The Craft of Literary Nonfiction by Lopate, Phillip. pub 2013. read February. Essays on essays for would-be essayists.
A World Beneath the Sands: The Golden Age of Egyptology by Wilkinson, Toby. pub 2020. read February (unfinished). Academically interesting but not narratively so. Not what was wanted.
Strange Monsters of the Pacific Northwest by Newton, Michael. pub 2011. read February (unfinished). Generally a list book made more difficult to read and enjoy by poor design choices.
Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them by Prose, Francine. pub 2006. read February. An encouraging book for would-be writers who need it with spot advice and examples.
The Case of the Sulky Girl by Gardener, Erle Stanley. pub 1933. read February. Second novel in the Mason series. Characters more refined, dialog snappier and much more capable of carrying the entire novel.
Essays by Orwell, George. pub 1941. read February. Orwell on a wide variety of topics. Social, political, and personal. If nothing else, good form study.
The Case of the Buried Clock by Gardener, Erle Stanley. pub 1943. read February. Twenty-second novel in the Mason series. Mason shoots himself in the foot for 200 pages. Some of the shine wearing off.
God is Disappointed in You by Russell, Mark. pub 2011. read February. Bible: The Good Bits version.
The Case of the Green-eyed Sister by Gardner, Erle Stanley. pub 1953. read February. Forty-second Mason. Lawyer nitpicks poorly thought out case to death.
The Art of the Personal Essay: An Anthology from the Classical Era to the Present by Lopate, Phillip. pub 1994. read February. More of a reference work than the sort of book you read through.
The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography by Singh, Simon. pub 1999. read February. A book of two halves. One known to most every kid by high school and the other requiring your calculator, notepad, and special mathematics..
Fine Structure by qntm. pub 2010. read March. Hard speculative Sci-Fi written before time loops were in everything.
Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War by Roach, Mary. pub 2016. read March. Roach concerns herself with the science of human comfort on the battlefield. Not so much weapons and systems as little details.
Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Roach, Mary. pub 2013. read April. Your food and what happens to it. Interesting and informative.
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Miller Jr., Walter M. pub 1959. read April (unfinished) Everyone says this is a really good book. And it was. Right up until the narrative shifted away, permanently, from the monk. Couldn’t be bothered.
Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Roach, Mary. pub 2021. read April. Mixed feelings here. On one hand, still good ol’ Mary Roach. On the other, not at all about what the title might suggest and therefore disappointingly misleading once you get into it.
Tea: The Drink that Changed the World by Martin, Laura C. pub 2007. read April. Feels like a lengthy Wikipedia article.
The First Time Gardener by Tophill, Frances. pub 2022. read May. You won’t be any worse a gardener than you already are if you don’t read this book. Nor any better if you do.
Gardening Without Work: For the Aging, The Busy and the Indolent by Stout, Ruth. pub 1961. read May. Exactly what it says on the cover. Exactly the sort of gardening I want. As much fun for the curmudgeonly read as it is useful for easy gardening.
My Garden World: The Natural Year by Don, Monty. pub 2020. read May. Sometimes workmanlike, sometimes moving, always entertaining and informative journal of the goings on for a full year in Monty Don’s home gardens. Read to get a feel for the little joys and tribulations of a well functioning garden.
Down to Earth: Gardening Wisdom by Don, Monty. pub 2019. read May. The book Frances Tophill meant to write, but didn’t. Covers largely the same ground as The First Time Gardener but with more whys and wherefores and therefore you will be a better gardener for having read this book.
Gardening in the Pacific Northwest: The Complete Homeowner’s Guide by Bonine, Paul. pub 2015. read May. Part reference, part advice pertaining to the PNW. Worth having for the reference to natives plants alone.
The Complete Gardener: A Practical, Imaginative Guide to Every Aspect of Gardening by Don, Monty. pub 2003. read May. Between this and Down to Earth most folks should be able to conjure up a garden with little trouble. Or at least have some inkling of what to do about trouble when it does show up.
The Maid by Prose, Nita. pub 2022. read June. Offbeat mystery whose main point is not the easily solvable mystery but the importance of connections and support. Not the world breaker it has been hailed as, but not the misguided attempt at veneer many would have you believe either.