Feature
Reflections of Cormac McCarthy
With the recent passing of Cormac McCarthy, we’ve been reading and revisiting some of the great things out on the internet about him and his many contributions to reading and writing. So, here’s a short roundup of treasures new and old (by Internet standards) we have enjoyed
Bullet Points
Reflections of Cormac McCarthy
With the recent passing of Cormac McCarthy, we’ve been reading and revisiting some of the great things out on the internet about him and his many contributions to reading and writing. So, here’s a short roundup of treasures new and old (by Internet standards) we have enjoyed
Bullet Points: April 6, 2015
Here are a short list of items from around the Internet worth a few minutes of your consideration. CrimeFest 2015 in Bristol, UK — May 14-17. Lee Child, Maj Sjöwall, James Runcie and Sophie Hannah to speak. Reparations: World War II in Scandinavian Fiction by Barbara Fister The popular Inspector Morse prequel series Endeavor us now…
Recent Reviews
The Terra-Cotta Dog (2002) by Andrea Camilleri
The Terra-cotta Dog is second book in the Commisario Montalbano series and was originally published in Italy by Sellerio in 1996 with the title Il cane di Terracotta. The English translation by Stephen Sartarelli was published by Picador in 2002. The Terra-cotta Dog is a plot-sirocco — a story sandstorm — weaving a wild tale with threads as […]
The Shape of Water (2002) by Andrea Camilleri
Originally published in Italy by Sellerio in 1994 with the title La forma dell’acqua and translated into English by Stephen Sartarelli as The Shape of Water, this is the first book in Andrea Camilleri‘s Commisario Montalbano series. It was published by Picador in 2002. Synopsis: Silvio Lupanello, a big-shot in Vigàta, is found dead in his car […]
One Man’s Flag (2015) by David Downing
One Man’s Flag by David Downing is the second title in the Jack McColl series. It was preceeded by Jack of Spies (2014). World War I is a decidedly difficult era for a modern espionage thriller. Most modern readers are less familiar with the full scope of the conflict. This is particularly true when the subject […]
A Bridge to the Stars (2005) by Henning Mankell
This short novel by Swedish writer Henning Mankell is the first of four books about Joel Gustafson, a 12 year old growing up in a remote part of Northern Sweden with his father. It is followed by a second book, Shadows in the Twilight and, The Boy Who Slept in the Snow (also known as […]
Kennedy’s Brain (2007) by Henning Mankell
Kennedy’s Brain was first published in Sweden in 2005 by Leopard förlag. Translated into English by Laurie Thompson, it was published in 2007 by Harvill Secker/Random House. In starting a review of Kennedy’s Brain by Henning Mankell, it is important to take note of something that the reader discovers only after the book’s last page. The epilogue […]
Reflections of Cormac McCarthy
With the recent passing of Cormac McCarthy, we’ve been reading and revisiting some of the great things out on the internet about him and his many contributions to reading and writing. So, here’s a short roundup of treasures new and old (by Internet standards) we have enjoyed
Quote of the day: Robert Heinlein
“Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.” — Robert Heinlein
The Girl in the Testamentary Fracas
I have mixed feelings about the Lisbeth Salander character phenomenon. Stieg Larsson’s three books were indeed thrilling, compelling reads. Were Larsson alive and releasing the fourth installment written by his own hand, I would without question be reading the final pages of the book instead of writing this. But what can we say about a…
Remembering Laurie Thompson
I was sad to see an obituary recently for Laurie Thompson who passed away on June 8, 2015. Mr. Thompson was an excellent translator of Swedish writing into English. He translated over 40 titles from an impressive number of well-known Swedish writers, including Henning Mankell, Åke Edwardson, Håkan Nesser and Mikael Niemi. Some of the…
On Reading Lists and Summer Reading
This afternoon, I let my mind wander off course of a work project and I found myself in Feedly catching up on some blog reading. There I noticed a significant number of blogs talking about summer reading. While reading the post 20 Books of Summer 2015! on 746 Books, it crossed my mind how much I rely…