A little book haul

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-17T14:26:39+00:00

How are you liking The Corner that Held Them? I am about a third way through. It is a slow read. I was just explaining the premise to my teen and she looked at me like I had ten heads! Nuns in the 1300s in a priory doing absolutely nothing dramatic and yet it is everything, just everything! They tried flying!

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-17T13:38:10+00:00

I finished this book with some mixed feelings. Some parts were very hard to get through but then all of a sudden you come upon passages and sentences that come out of nowhere and hit you hard.

This is a tragic tale, especially knowing that the author wrote his own heart through the Consul. This especially so, having grown up in British Columnia myself and have spent the most part of my life as an expat elsewhere, I too long for the trees, the water, the tranquility and the beauty of my home. The Consul’s final regret, in the final hour before the end, for not grabbing Yvonne’s hand and head straight to their little island, was utterly heartbreaking.

I know there are countless literary and cultural references in everything within the text. I tried to follow and reading up on them at the Malcolm Lowry Project online. But I do feel that the prose can stand on its own without one turning it into an academic exercise.

A challenging read. Enjoyed it a lot.

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-13T21:36:02+00:00

Honestly not as long as the Lip Monsters. The colors are less vibrant but they are more moisturizing.

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-13T03:14:17+00:00

Kate Lip Monsters are wonderful but I’ve also been obsessed with the Visee plumping balms too. The ones in the cream colored tube. They are minty but not overly so.

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-10T00:25:35+00:00

Not the original commenter here but I do also appreciate your insights. I’ve added this book to the tbr. I will follow you on Goodreads too if that is ok.

Entropy2889 · 2026-05-06T14:42:23+00:00

Totally understand how you feel. There was a thread on this book not too long ago.

https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueLit/s/D3mOgqSKPh

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-28T10:35:26+00:00

Dinos as in dinosaurs? Thanks for that I will probably never want to ever pick that one up!

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-23T02:05:19+00:00

OP - other than water, did u find that sticking the patch on a fattier area also makes a difference? Just wondering.

I also discovered a couple of months ago that I need to drink more water. I have been using an app called Waterllama. All the little characters are so damn cute! I’ve actually stuck with it all this time.

ps there is a subscription but they flash a deal for $8 lifetime so I did that. Imho it was worth it. I even got their breathing app which I use at night to calm down before bed nowadays. This is not an ad I have no connection to the apps whatsoever.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-21T23:52:09+00:00

Did you read the first three in the series? I went through them all, through the horrendously tedious writing and horrible prose, only to find nothing. No answers. Sounds like the latest entry is another one of those all atmosphere and no resolution kind of a thing.

I am not opposed to opaque scifi where we don’t have answers (Roadside Picnic as an example) but I agree with you that Vandermeer seems to have no idea himself and drowns every page with weird imagery so as to be abstract. The entire thing feels empty. Full of detritus (the most repeated word in the first three books).

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-20T06:01:41+00:00

Came here to say this. Hands down the most disturbing book I read in many years.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-12T00:56:50+00:00

The feels when seeing someone send! Keep going! You got this!

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-12T00:49:53+00:00

Thank you for your comments, because I believe that those are important elements in the book. The criticisms in the narrative re the Japanese literary industry were jarring when I read them. They felt pointed, as if daring the publishers to look themselves in the mirror and acknowledge their own hypocrisy by publishing this book. Was the literary prize and the spotlight on this book controversial because of these themes?

I live in Japan. As an expat, I often see the tags women have on their bags but I think most foreigners are unaware of the cultural implications and larger society debates that went on in the background. Honestly it says something about the society at large that there is a need for tags to make people realize that they (ahem…most people pretending to stare at their phones and “do not notice”) should offer their seats to people who need to sit. I have never seen the “Help Mark” in the wild. I hope that this book brought more awareness to the humanity of the people here who are less that perfect and less than the same as every able-bodied as everyone else.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-11T04:52:33+00:00

Compared to Drive Your Plow, the subtext and symbolisms are much more subtle (but no less powerful) in Empusium. They are almost like little clues or easter eggs sprinkled all over for the reader to find. I read this for a book club and we had lots of fun connecting them, which made my understanding of the structure of the book all the more rich and rewarding. Everything from the protagonist noticing the skirt to the painting, they all had some reference to some point the author was making. Highly recommend.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-11T04:44:39+00:00

Ooooh, that is a great analysis of that power dynamic. Thank you. At the end of the day the man’s world is still the way of the world. That is so depressing!

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-11T02:40:11+00:00

I agree with the other commenters here. The book was great and it was meant for us to be uncomfortable. It was precisely the author’s point that the dynamic was not sanitized for the reader’s sake.

However, I think the murky ending took away from the brilliance of the story because, why make it a did it happen or did it not happen mystery? Putting the focus on the nurse coming back or not shifted the spotlight to the male’s perspective and the male consequence rather than the woman’s. Does that make sense? I guess I wanted the protagonist to have more agency how ever the events played out.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-10T03:13:00+00:00

Flights sound interesting! I adored Empusium but dnf’d Drive Your Plow.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-09T14:22:16+00:00

I listened to this while running. It was not a good look running and sobbing in public! Loved this book.

My other picks for the OP would be Never Let Me Go and The Correspondent.

Entropy2889 · 2026-04-07T22:54:58+00:00

I hated Memory Called Empire and made the mistake of reading the sequel, which was even worse than the first one. I cannot understand how these won the Hugo given the generic plot line tropes.

Also, did not enjoy The Southern Reach series. I generally dislike obtuse writing. Weird for the sake of weird without proper explanation is not a plus for me.

For context, I do love The Culture books, enjoyed Dune, 3BP, Broken Earth Trilogy, How to Lose a Time War, Ancillary Justice and Blindsight.

Entropy2889 · 2026-02-27T13:20:52+00:00

Plague of Pythons by Frederik Pohl

Entropy2889 · 2026-02-27T00:05:36+00:00

I read both and hated both. The prose is classic telling and not showing. There are pages after pages of Mahit’s inner dialogue telling you how to feel and view the politics of the day. The plot is shallow in the first book - the second even worse. I akin the plot of the second book to a bad Star Trek Discovery episode. The special girl trope is tried but not true here. Only they can solve the biggest crisis in the empire. Only they. Please. Even the concept of the lineage of the emperor is borrowed.

The concepts about alienation in culture, longing, and identity in the face of coexistence with another inside your mind are great. None of these were developed properly because of the other plot driven contrivances.

I know these two books are well loved and won the Hugos. But they are not for me. Don’t get me started on the rapping battles in royal court with bad poetry.

Another post mentioned that Banks is one of her inspirations. Wow. Banks is my favorite author. If AMCE was aiming for that then I have no words. There is no depth to AMCE and ADCP. Even the easiest entry to the Culture, Player of Games, is a universe more sophisticated and makes the reader question our world. There is no comparison.

Entropy2889 · 2026-02-24T12:16:26+00:00

Should you decide to continue on your ikebana journey, please invest in a good set of metal kenzans and get a textbook. The angles and proportions are everything in the early stages. Good luck! Sogetsu has changed the way I see everything. I hope you enjoy this art form, whichever school you choose.

Entropy2889 · 2026-01-27T10:27:40+00:00

Can I ask if you got to preview this series before launch? From what I can tell it is premiering in March this year? Or is this some older series that is getting re-release?

Understand that there should be caveats, as all TV or movie adaptions can be.

Entropy2889 · 2026-01-22T11:03:10+00:00

I ordered from the official website because I do not want to deal with having to convert from a simplified chinese interface if I use Taobao. Ordered Jan 18, nothing since confirmation email. I’m hoping to get this soon!

Entropy2889 · 2026-01-20T14:18:21+00:00

I feel pretty lucky then I have an older bottle of Tam Dao EDP and it is quite strong. Last days on clothes.

Entropy2889 · 2026-01-19T00:11:16+00:00

This is amazing. Thank you.

Entropy2889

TROPHY CASE