Happy Easter

I hope that each and every one of you has a wonderful Easter, whether you start your day with Sunrise Services or an Easter Egg hunt, whether you are celebrating the second day of Passover or having ham and scalloped potatoes, as we are, may this be a day for some introspection, appreciation of the world around us, the glories of Spring and family and friends.

Here’s an image by an always favorite artist of mine, Alfonse Mucha, that seemed appropriate for today, and for Spring.

Mucha, Documents Decoratifs, 1901

FFB: Trigger and Friends

Trigger and Friends by James H. Schmitz original stories published between 1958 and 1974 – Baen 2001 paperback - science fiction – short story (one novelette)

this is the 81st in my series of forgotten books

This is the 3^rd book of 4 in Baen’s core Hub story series. I read the first couple of those Hub stories in Astounding SF / Analog a long ago and probably read some or all of the contents here too, but have forgotten. No matter, I enjoy Schmitz’ writing.

The stories here (see table of contents, below) mostly contain stories which feature Trigger with Heslet Quillan and/or Holati Tate. As it happens, Quillan is one of my favorite Schmitz characters, so this was a real treat for me. The stories contain some element of Hub politics with other worlds and Federations, with plenty of intrigue and spy-type stuff and are great fun. There’s no need to have read the first couple of volumes of this 4 volume set, each will stand alone just fine. Highly recommended.

Table of Contents:
Harvest Time
Lion Loose
Aura of Immortality
Forget It
Legacy
Sour Note on Palayata

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

links to all of this weeks Forgotten Book posts can be found
on Patti Abbott’s blog, Pattinase

New Arrivals, March 26 – April 1, 2012

Not a thing, and that’s the way I like it. As mentioned in the last N.A. post, the Special, I’ve dumped the pre-orders, cleared the basket, stopped ordering stuff, quit going to the book store. If that sounds excruciatingly boring, perhaps, but instead of adding, I’ve been reading. I know you haven’t seen much in the way of reviews here, but they are coming.

That pile of eleven partially read books I had? Eight of them have been taken care of so far, and I’ve been making headway on number nine. After that, there will only be a Mike Shane novel, Shoot the Works, and the doorstopper sized Leviathan Wakes. I may interrupt reading those to read a John D. MacDonald book for Friday Forgotten Books on April 13, but I’ll get through them soon enough. Meanwhile I’m making good progress on both the not buying and the positive budget impact of same. Good thing, because our income tax hit is brutal this year.

Spring Keeps Trying…

… but it’s been an uphill battle so far. We had the wettest March since 1957, not including the foot or so of snow total over three falls. The wind has been brutal, 60-65 mph gusts on three days last week, and steady flow the rest of the time. We’ve lost branches to both snow and wind. I’m adding a few pictures of snow, daffodils and such. We had a break in the rain yesterday, but it’s back today and forecast for the next week. Sure this is Portland, but as last year, it’s over the top. Hopefully in another month we’ll be able to get out in the garden, take longer walks, maybe wear a T-shirt now and then. Meanwhile, it’s good weather for hot cocoa and reading.

many daffodils got laid over by wind and snow

birds having a tough time on the feeder

Maple is in bloom, but it’s a struggle

Grape Hyacinth just starting to bloom

New Arrivals SPECIAL!

Here’s the last great hurrah on my book buying.

Once a year, or thereabouts, Subterranean Press  has what they term a grab bag sale. Here’s what the initial mention in the e-newsletter (you have to be signed up to find out about it) had to say:

“Grab bags represent the easiest, quickest, and least expensive way to grow your SubPress collection, or just pick up some great reading at an unbelievable price. This time around, we’re offering fourteen books, most bags include one book with a retail value of at least $125 as well as other signed limited books, trade hardcovers, and possibly a trade paperback or two. The bags weigh over 20 pounds apiece.

The bags will have a value of around $700. We’re only charging $150 for them, which means you save nearly 80% off the cover price. Everything is assembled and ready to ship, so get your order in early. We have a finite number available, and if the past is any indication, they’re sure to go quickly. Sorry, but we’re not able to accept requests for specific titles in the bags.

Please Note: If you order more than one grab bag, you will receive the same, or similar, contents. This offer expires March 16, 2012, or when supplies are exhausted. Most books in the bag are in fine condition. Some are distributor returns, and bear the usual defects.”

 

So I decided to go for it. I’ve not done it before, but I already have several books by this publisher so though it worth whatever risk was involved. The offer sold out in two days! The box came on Tuesday, March 20th. Ready? Here’s what I got.

listing notes: (1) all are hardcover unless noted (2) s&n indicates signed
and numbered (3) all books are new.

 The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon [2008 book, this s&n Sub press edition 2011] – fiction with fanciful elements. Though it’s not specifically either a prequel or sequel to Zafon’s The Shadow of the Wind, it is set in the same place and setting as that book, and revisits some of the characters. I really liked Shadow and have been meaning to re-read it, maybe I’ll do that before I read this.

The Fly-By-Nights by Brian Lumley [2011] – post apocalyptic vampire horror – this genre or this combination of genres, isn’t my cup of tea. I probably won’t be keeping it.

The Neutronium Alchemist by Peter F. Hamilton [original publication 1997, this s&n Sub press edition 2010] – science fiction – The Night’s Dawn trilogy, book 2 – I have not read the first book, and quite frankly this mammoth 934 page hardcover is intimidating.

The Palace at Midnight (The Collected Stories of Robert Silverberg, Volume Five: 1980-1982) by Robert Silverberg [2010] – SF-F – I’ll bet this is a darned nice set, but having only one volume is a bit nagging, like having a missing tooth, or in this case six of them as there are at least that many other volumes. Only volumes 5 and 6 are still in print. Good contents, though:

• Introduction
• Our Lady of the Sauropods
• Waiting for the Earthquake
• The Regulars
• The Far Side of the Bell-Shaped Curve
• A Thousand Paces Along the Via Dolorosa
• How They Pass the Time in Pelpel
• The Palace at Midnight
• The Man Who Floated in Time
• Gianni
• The Pope of the Chimps
• Thesme and the Ghayrog
• At the Conglomeroid Cocktail Party
• The Trouble with Sempoanga
• Jennifer’s Lover
• Not Our Brother
• Gate of Horn, Gate of Ivory
• Dancers in the Time-Flux
• Needle in a Timestack
• Amanda and the Alien
• Snake and Ocean, Ocean and Snake
• The Changeling
• Basileus
• Homefaring

Speculative Horizons edited by Patrick St-Denis [2010] – SF-F short story collection, stories original to this collection – Five stories, two by authors I recognize, in a nice, slim volume.

Subterranean Issue #3 [2006 hardbound magazine, signed by all the authors who have stories in it] – I didn’t even know hardbound copies existed, apparently they are for collectors, thus the signatures. It’s nice, but after I read it I doubt I’ll keep it.

Summer Morning, Summer Night by Ray Bradbury [2008 trade paper edition] – short story collection, fiction with fantasy elements – I’ve read Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine easily half a dozen times. I have his complete short stories and have read that over the years, so I’m pretty sure I’ve read what’s here, but glancing at the beginning of a couple of the stories they don’t seem familiar, so I’ll be glad to get a dose of Bradbury in this nice trade edition.

The Five by Robert McCammon [2011] – mystery / crime – Against a rock ‘n roll background, a novel of music, damaged psyches, crime, human nature. I’m not sure what to make of this, but both of us are interested in reading it.

The Inheritance by Robin Hobb / Megan Lindholm [2011, s&n] – short story collection – Hobb and Lindholm are both pseudonyms of Margaret Lindholm. Here are seven stories by Lindholm, three by Robb.

The Janus Tree and other stories by Glen Hirshberg [2011, s&n] – short story collection, weird-creepy-horror – Again, this isn’t a genre I’m much interested in, so I’ll probably give away this nice limited edition signed, numbered edition.

The Sky That Wraps by Jay Lake [2010, s&n] – short story and novelette collection – Lake’s collected short fiction. I’ve read and liked a couple of his fantasy novels, so this should be interesting.

Zodiac by Neal Stephenson [2008, this Sub Press s&n limited, slipcased edition 2010] – “Eco-thriller” – This may be the nicest book in the box in that it’s slipcased, signed and numbered. Unfortunately, I read this in paperback back in 1988 when it came out, and my rating for it then was pretty so-so. Too bad.

So there it is. In the bunch there are five books I won’t keep, three or four more that I’ll read and then pass along. Still, at retail for the keepers in these editions, I got about double my money, and I got several things that I didn’t know existed but might have been interested in. Would I do it again, next year? Maybe, depending on what it costs and if I’m buying hardcover books then.

Ah, Spring!

Last night sometime it was supposed to become Spring, but you’d never know it here in the west. While the rest of the country is enjoying Spring-like, or even Summery weather, it’s still cold, rainy and windy here. For heaven’s sake it snowed here yesterday! Still, our daffodils are bravely trying to bring on the season. Here’s a photo I took between showers on Monday. Hope you all are having a great Spring, and continue to do so!

New Arrivals, March 12 – 18, 2012

After last week’s large incoming batch, things are settling down now. The two books this time are both the result of FFB posts.

I took an inventory last week and found 11 books partly read. So I’ve done it again, started way more than I finish. It’s time to work on eliminating that pile before starting anything new. Also, in an effort to trim the book budget, I’ve dumped all the pre-orders, wish list books and books in the A-zon cart. My plan, you’ve heard this before, is to read more, buy (and keep) less.

Death’s Bright Dart by V.C. Clinton-Bradley [Ostara Publishing, 2009 trade paperback, new] – mystery – first published in 1964, UK – There have been two reviews books by V.C. Clinton-Bradley in the last 4-6 weeks in the Patti Abbott-hosted Friday Forgotten Books. The chances are infinitesimally small of that happening, but it has, and now here’s a third mention. Obviously a hot author! <grin> Part of the Cambridge Crime series, this thin mystery looks like it will be a great change of pace.

The Linnet’s Tale by Dale C. Willard [Scribner 2002 trade paperback, illustrated by James Noel Smith, used] – children’s fiction – I can’t resist a book like this, every once in a while it’s just the ticket to entertain and relax with. Great reviews.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

We’re having the traditional corned beef, boiled potatoes and cabbage this afternoon, and I’ll be watching some NCAA men’s basketball tournament games and trying to get the sweet peas planted, though it’s nippy now and will snow again tomorrow. Here’s something green and sort of four leaf clover-ish for you.

Friday forgotten: the facts of the matter…

Nope, no FFB again this week. You may have noticed I’ve been missing a lot lately.

Why, you may wonder. Several reasons: 1) I haven’t been reading as much or as fast. 2) I’ve been reading more recent books that I don’t think qualify as “Forgotten”. 3) I’ve had some minor health problems and haven’t felt much like reading. But it’s mostly the first two, reading non-qualifiers and reading less, that have made me decide to make my contributions more occasional and less weekly or even bi-weekly.

I’ll still be checking the other blogs so look for my occasional comments there, so keep FFB chugging along!

March: wind, snow, rain, ice

Yep, March in Portland, we’ve had some nice sunny days, reaching into the low 60s, some rain, yesterday it poured and the wind blew hard, up to 60 m.p.h. a few times here, one of the gusts took our patio table, with it’s heavy tempered wavy glass top, picked it up and took it over the deck railing. It landed upside down, 20 yards across the flagstone, then the table blew off the glass top and slid another 10 yards before I could get out and catch it. Incredibly, the glass lay on the wet flags, unbroken!

This morning we nor the neighbors could get down our hill. One of the neighbors two houses up tried, slid to our place before ending up against the curb in front. He walked back home. Wife had to cancel an 8:30 a.m. appointment.

Now the wind has come up and is warming things slightly, it’s up to 36 now, and the snow is dropping off the cedars. Still, a good day for reading, or as Wife says, a good day for quilting. [30 minutes later... snowing again]

Hope it’s pleasant where you are!

New Arrivals, March 5 – 11, 2012

After last week’s landslide of books, things have settled down a good deal. There had been a good deal of talk about reading Ed McBain, especially 87th Precinct books, for Friday Forgotten Books, and I admit I had none. That’s been rectified. My ongoing quest for more James H. Schmitz also continues, and some other goodies as well. Plus, I really am trying to get some reading done! Really. I mean that. Yep. Sigh…

A Killing Frost by R.D. Wingfield [Corgi 2008 mass market paperback, new] – mystery, police procedural – this is the last of the Frost books I ordered for us to read several of the series. Barbara’s on #2, I haven’t started #1 yet.

Ed McBain Omnibus – six 87th Precinct novels by Ed McBain [William Heinemann, Octopus Press 1981 hardcover, used] – mystery, police procedural – 87th Precinct – this omnibus contains six novels: Cop Hater, Give the Boys a Great Big Hand, Doll, Eighty Million Eyes, The Heckler and Ten Plus One. I haven’t read any of McBain, and so obviously none of the 87th Precinct novels. This is where I start. This was the best – most for the money – omnibus I could find.

Eternal Frontier by James H. Schmitz [Baen Books 2004 mass market paperback, used] – science fiction novel and short stories – My quest for Schmitz story collections and novels continues. See last week for more on that. I’m now searching out every paperback Schmitz collection I can get my hands on. This and the following are the first ones to show up, but more are in the pipeline. Sadly, many of the books are OP and silly expensive. One paperback from about 10 years ago was listed by a dealer – the only copy so far – at over $200 smackers. Whoa. After I can get what I can, I may be soliciting other titles from, uh, you.

The Map of All Things by Kevin Anderson [Orbit 2010 mass market paperback, new] – fantasy – this is the second volume of Anderson’s Terra Incognita trilogy. I have liked most all of what I’ve read by Anderson: Star Trek novels and other science fiction so I decided to try this. I got the first book, The Edge of the World last year sometime, and now this one. The third. last in this trilogy, The Key to Creation, came out last Fall and I also have it on order. These are high on my want-to-read list , but there seems to be SO MUCH of that right now!

The Hub: Dangerous Territory by James H. Schmitz [Baen Books 2004 mass market paperback, used] – science fiction novel and short stories – More Schmitz story collections. These – this and the next one – are the last two, at least for now. After all, I need to get back to reading!

TNT – Telzy Amberdon & Trigger Argee Together by James H. Schmitz [Baen Books 2000 mass market paperback, used] – science fiction novel and short stories – My quest for Schmitz story collections and novels continues. See above listing.

World War II Remembered by the Residents of Kendal at Hanover [University Press of New England, 2012 trade paperback, new] – non-fiction, autobiography – We saw a brief piece on this on the NBC Nightly News a couple of months ago and were both very interested, so I tried to order it. It took a little time, but finally it showed up as a pre-order on Amazon and just came a couple of days ago. I’ve already dipped into it and am hooked. It is the reminiscences of elderly residents of the Kendal at Hanover elders living facility, many of whom were participants in the conflict, or were affected by it stateside. These 55 pieces relate the experience of each at one moment or period of the war. Interesting insight into the lives of these people who lived it, recalled nearly seven decades later. Most of the pieces are only a few pages long.

Recognize this?

Especially those of you who grew up during the late Fifties through the Seventies may have heard of Blue Chip Stamps.

Blue Chip Stamps started as a trading stamps company called “Blue Chip Stamp Co.” They were a competitor to S&H Green Stamps. Blue Chip stamps was a loyalty program for customers, similar to discount cards issued by pharmacies and grocery stores in the digital era. A customer making a purchase at a participating store (typically grocery stores, gasoline stations, and pharmacy chains) would be given stamps in proportion to the size of the purchase.

1973 Blue Chip Stamp catalog

Here is the cover and inside page of the 1973 catalog, which I came across while looking for something else in a box. I have no idea whatsoever why I saved it.

The stamps would be issued by machines next to the cash register. The customer would paste the stamps (which could be licked or moistened with a sponge, like postage stamps) into books. Pasting a large number of stamps into books could be time consuming. The books could then be taken to a special redemption store and redeemed for merchandise, such as lawn furniture, dining tables, table ware, and many other items. The redemption stores did not keep a full inventory of items, but would order from a catalog on behalf of the customer.

I remember both Green Stamps and Blue Chip Stamps in the house at various times, and using a small sponge to wet the stamps and glue them to the pages. The resulting books of stamps were bulky and my Mom would keep them in a zippered bag until we had enough to go get whatever item she had her eye on.

New Arrivals, February 27 – Match 4, 2012

Quite a lot arrived, this time. I’m filling in the gaps I had with a couple of series, and bought a new graphic novel for the first time in a while, plus mysteries, for both myself and Wife’s reading pleasure and picking up an old favorite author. Here we go.

A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin. [Bantam Spectra 2011 trade paperback, new] – fantasy – the second volume in Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire. I now have the first 3 books. I suppose I’ll read them, then if I’m still interested, buy another or two, whatever is out in paperback by then.

A Touch of Frost by R.D. Wingfield [Bantam 1995 mass market paperback, new] – mystery the second in the Frost series. Frost is an interesting character, working in a somewhat typical Brit cop milieu.

The Blade Itself  by Joe Abercrombie [Pyr 2007 trade paperback, new] – fantasy – Book One of The First Law trilogy – I was given the second and third books and so had to buy this one to get started. Strong reviews.

Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie [Pyr 2008 trade paperback, used, gift] – fantasy – Book Two of The First Law trilogy – Though I’m not familiar with this trilogy, it seems to have garnered good reviews.

Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie [Pyr 2008 trade paperback, used, gift] – fantasy – Book Three of The First Law trilogy – Though I’m not familiar with this trilogy, it seems to have garnered good reviews. As far as I can tell, this is the conclusion, so the thing won’t run on and on.

Nordguard Book One: Across Thin Ice by Tess Garman and Teagan Gavet [Sofewolf 2011 oversized trade paperback, new] – graphic novel – I saw a posting of this on Bookgasim, read the sample pages and bought it. It’s a little hard to describe, but basically it’s about a far north country law group, the Nordguard, in a world of talking animals. The Nordguard are all sled dogs, a tough bunch, and they have to go to a mine north of their usual territory in the dead of winter in answer to a distress call. The artwork os great and it’s well written too. You can go to the Nordguard website for samples and a (very) little more info. I can hardly wait for Book Two!

Hard Frost by R.D. Wingfield [Bantam 1995 mass market paperback, new] – mystery the fourth in the Frost series. Frost is an interesting character, working in a somewhat typical Brit cop milieu. These books are hard to find. The library here has not a single book by Wingfield, though they do have a;; the DVDs. Shocking.

Peril of the Starmen by Kris Neville and The Strange Invasion by Murray Leinster [Armchair Fiction Double # D-11, 2011 trade paperback, new] – silver age science fiction George Kelly reviewed a couple of these recently (HERE) and I was intrigued enough to buy a couple of them, this and the one listed below. As George said, “If you’d like to check out this publishing endeavor, just click here. – One thing I really wish these had was a little publication history. I had to dig a bit to find that Peril of the Starmen, actually a novellette not a novel, was published in the January 1954 issue of Imagination.  and that The Strange Invasion is a variant title for War of the Gizmos , published in 1958 by Fawcett Gold Medal (which is the version I once had, read, enjoyed). I’ve long been a fan of Leinster, especially his Med Series.

Planet of Dread by Murray Leinster and Twice Upon a Time by Charles L. Fontenay [Armchair Fiction Double # D-7, 2010 trade paperback, new] – silver age science fiction – see my comments in the listing above. I got tired of digging out the publication info, so all I know about Planet of Dread is that I don’t know when or where it was published before this. Twice Upon a Time was published in 1958 as half of an Ace Double with The Mechanical Monarch by E.C. Tubb. It will be fun to read these.

Telzey Amberdon by James H. Schmitz [Baen Books 2000 mass market paperback, new] – science fiction short story collection – Since I got Trigger and Friends from someone (you know who you are!) and started reading it, I’ve been eager to read more, and MORE Schmitz. Having read many of his stories in Astounding Science Fiction / Analog between 1950 and 1975 or so, which I invariably liked, I haven’t gone back to him, and this taste whetted my appetite to such a degree that I’m now searching out every paperback Schmitz collection I can get my hands on. This and the following are the first ones to show up, but more are in the pipeline. Sadly, many of the books are OP and silly expensive. One paperback from about 10 years ago was listed by a dealer – the only copy so far – at over $200 smackers. Whoa. After I can get what I can, I may be soliciting other titles from, uh, you.

The Witches of Karres James H. Schmitz [Baen Books 2008 mass market paperback, new] – science fiction – Since I got Trigger and Friends from someone (you know who you are!) and started reading it, I’ve been eager to read more, and MORE Schmitz. Having read many of his stories in Astounding Science Fiction / Analog between 1950 and 1975 or so, which I invariably liked, I haven’t gone back to him, and this taste whetted my appetite to such a degree that I’m now searching out every paperback Schmitz collection I can get my hands on.

FFB: Playgrounds of the Mind

this is the 80th of my series of forgotten books

Playgrounds of the Mind by Larry Niven, some contents co-authored, July 1992 mass market paperback, science fiction and fantasy

I bought this used copy for the car. If you’re like me, you like to have a book at hand pretty much all of the time, and I find it handy to have one that mostly stays in the car. When I finish it, and that can take a while, I get another “car book”.

My criteria for such a book: a slightly beat-up paperback short story collection. I find short stories are faster to read, I don’t have to keep track of characters and plot over a long period of time. These are books I can just pick up and read without a lot of figuring out where I was and what was happening. This books fits the criteria.

This has mostly short stories and in this case excerpts from longer works, all but one I’d read. For that matter, I’d read most of the short stories too, but it had been a long time ago.

I really like Niven, especially his short stories, so I knew I’d like these and I did. The only problem was some I enjoyed so much now I want to read the longer pieces in their entirety.

The contents of Larry Niven’s Playgrounds of the Mind collection as follows

Thraxisp: A Memoir
“A Teardrop Falls”
From Inferno (with Jerry Pournelle)
From A World Out of Time
“Rammer”
From The Ethics of Madness
“Becalmed in Hell”
“Wait It Out”
“A Relic of the Empire”
From Lucifer’s Hammer (with Jerry Pournelle)
“The Soft Weapon”
“The Borderland of Sol”
From The Ringworld Engineers
“What Good Is a Glass Dagger?”
From The Magic Goes Away
“The Defenseless Dead”
From The Patchwork Girl
“Leviathan!”
From Oath of Fealty (with Jerry Pournelle)
“Unfinished Story”
“Cautionary Tales”
“The Dreadful White Page”
From Dream Park (with Steven Barnes)
“Retrospective”
“The Green Marauder”
Assimilating Our Culture, That’s What They’re Doing!
“War Movie”
“Limits”
The Lost Ideas
Bigger Than Worlds
Ghetto? But I Thought…
Adrienne and Irish Coffee
“One Night at the Draco Tavern”
TrantorCon Report
Why Men Fight Wars, and What You Can Do About It!
Comics
From Green Lantern Bible
Criticism
From The Legacy of Heorot (with Jerry Pournelle and Steven Barnes)
“The Portrait of Daryanree the King”
“The Wishing Game”
“The Lion In His Attic”
From Footfall (with Jerry Pournelle)
Works in Progress
From The Moat Around Murcheson’s Eye
From Fallen Angels
Wanted Fan
[from] The California Voodoo Game
Letter

That’s about a s broad  a look at Niven’s writing as you’re likely to find inside one set of covers, and between the short stories, excerpts from novels and articles, there’s a lot to enjoy. Don’t misunderstand, I normally will have noting to do with excerpts, the Reader’s Digest version of books, but in this case, since it’s a book for the car, I’m okay with it.

I wonder, does anyone else keep a book in the car?

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

links to all of this weeks Forgotten Book posts can be found
on Patti Abbott’s blog, Pattinase

meme: Tag, You’re It.

The Little Red Reviewer tagged me, so I’m going to play the meme. Here are the questions, and my answers.

1. What is your dream vacation?
I’d like to drive around Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada. All the way around, up the rugged, wild west coast as far as the roads go, then across to the east coast and back down to Victoria. Take a 4-wheel drive, lots of camera gear, warm clothes, hiking and camping stuff.

2.  Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan ahead?
I’m pretty much a planner, though sometimes I get spontaneous, especially when it comes to buying books, and plants at the nursery!

3. Tell us one thing you want to do but don’t dare do it.
Buy an old Chevelle SS 396. Old cars are neat, but they are way too much work and upkeep, and I’m no mechanic.

4. What’s your biggest phobia?
It’s claustrophobia. I can’t abide dark, tight spaces.

5. If you were stranded on a desert island-what three things would you want with you? (Not including your laptop or family)
Assuming it was a Swiss Family Robinson type island, so food was available, then cooking/hunting utensils, matches, books.

6. Name three things in your life that you are thankful for.
My wife, books and my small pension.

7. What was your nickname in High School?.
I didn’t have one.

8. If you could meet the President of the United States, what would you say to him?
Sometimes, intellect is trumped by propaganda.

9. If you could be any literary character, who would you be?
Tough one. Perhaps Lazarus Long from the Heinlein books.

10. What is your favorite quote?
“Any morning you wake up and get out of bed is a good morning”

and now I get to play “tag! You’re It!” Hey George Kelly, Stainless Steel Droppings, Bookgasm, you’re IT.

New Arrivals, February 20-26, 2012

Thanks to the generosity of friends, more than one package showed up this last week. Such unexpected largess is appreciated, even if I am trying to cut down on the book count here. First the images, then the descriptions (as always).

A Confederation of Valor by Tanya Huff [DAW SF 2006 paperback, used, gift] – science fiction omnibus – the first two novels in the Confederation series, Valor’s Choice and The Better Part of Valor. I haven’t read this series, but have enjoyed the short pieces by Huff that I’ve read, so this should be good.

The Mystery of Dr. Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer [Titan Books 2012 trade paper, new gift] – adventure-mystery – this is the first of the series of Fu Manchu books Rohmer wrote. Titan is apparently going to re-publish all of them in a uniform edition, which will be darn nice. I have most of them in one edition of another, but not all and not uniform. Time to re-read!

The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer [Titan Books 2012 trade paper, new gift] – adventure-mystery – this is the second of the Fu Manchu books Rohmer wrote, and the second Titan has published. As I said above, I have most of the Fu Manchu books in one edition of another, but not all and not uniform.

A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin. [Bantam Spectra 2003 paperback, used, gift] – fantasy – the thrid volume in Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire which will no doubt go on for years and a handful or two of books, but I already have the first book, half read, and this one arrives, so I’ve ordered the second book to fill out the initial trilogy.

Trigger and Friends by James H. Schmitz [Ridan 2001 paperback, used, gift] – science fiction – this is the third book in the Telsey series. I read the first couple in short story and novelette form in Astounding SF / Analog a long ago and probably read the contents here too, but have forgotten. No matter, I enjoy Schmitz’ writing and will enjoy this book.

FFB: Islands in the Sky

this is the 79th in my series of Friday Forgotten Books

Islands in the Sky by Arthur C. Clarke, 1952, Signet Books edition (this book) March, 1960 Signet S1769 127 page paperback, science fiction

I bought this copy when it came out in 1960, I was a sophomore in high school. The grade I gave it at the time was a B+.

Roy Malcolm is a contestant in a television quiz show on aviation, sponsored by World Airways, Inc. He is one of the dozen national finalists, the first prize being a free trip to any part of Earth World Airways flies. Roy wins the contest and then, in front of the national audience, drops a bombshell. When asked where he wants to go, he answers “I want to go to the Inner Station.”

The Inner Station is a space station circling Earth in a fairly tight orbit, the stopping place for travelers and goods going to and from Earth and Venus and Mars, both of which have been colonized. Note: the book follows the timeline for colonization which puts it directly after The Sands of Mars (my review of that book is here). After a small battle of words and definitions, during which Roy clarifies that “In 2054, the United States, like all other members of the Atlantic Federation, signed the Tycho Convention, which decided how far into space any planet’s kegal rights extended. Under that convention, the Inner Station is part of Earth because it is inside the thousand kilometer limit.” Smart kid, eh?

So he gets to go, mostly because World is afraid of a lot of really bad publicity if they change the rules on him (the TV show was very popular). The rest of the book is about his departure, trip to and arrival at the station, described, as we saw in the previous book, in enough detail to make it believable. What’s amazing to me is how accurately Clarke predicts much of what came about a decade or two later, and since then.

Roy gets to stay for about three weeks, and even has a chance to take a trip to the Outer Station , which is the arrival terminus for passengers from Mars, who must wait to adjust to the heavier gravity of Earth. On the return trip, a malfunction causes the small shuttle to rocket off into space, beyond Earth’s gravity pull. They will need to be rescued or run out of air in a week.

Eventually all turns out okay (I’ll let you read how) and finally Roy returns to Earth after his extended stay in space, most of it in zero gee. Gravity is difficult to handle at first, but he manages. The book ends with his determination to one day become not just a space station worker, but an emigrant to Mars Colony.

I liked this one more than Sands of Mars, though both were good, if not great SF books. Both would be considered YA level today, a distinction that wasn’t of much importance when this was written. Both Clarke and Heinlein wrote books that would be enjoyed by younger readers and adults, and they remain very popular, though Clarke less so, which is too bad.

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links to all of this weeks Forgotten Book posts can be found
on Patti Abbott’s blog, Pattinase

Happy President’s Day & no new arrivals

Pretty thin goings here at the ol’ Bullhorn. No Friday Forgotten book, no new arrivals. Good grief, you’re thinking, what’s he been doing? The answer is doing some reading, keeping the bird feeders full, gathering some supplies for a small model railroading project, helping Wife re-organize her quilting studio and putting up a design wall, four 36×48 inch panels of Foamcore each covered with white flannel. She pins fabric pieces and finished quilt blocks to them when designing and making quilts.

The other thing I’ve been doing is watching the budget. So no new books. So unless you want me to list Wife’s new iron, a MacWorld magazine, an HO loco, some hardware stuff from Harbor Freight (love that place) … nope, that kind of stuff doesn’t really count. If you really want to know more about those, tell me in the comments and I’ll oblige there.

Meanwhile, have a great President’s Day!

 

No FFB this week

This Friday, Friday Forgotten Books is doing a tribute to Donald Westlake, who has a new book coming out any minute now. Since I’m not a Westlake reader, I’m taking the day off from FFB, but will be back next week with an oldie for you.

Meanwhile, here’s a picture taken from our deck of a recent sunset with moonrise. Enjoy.

How to Be A Bad Bird Watcher

How to Be A Bad Birdwatcher by Simon Barnes © 2004, Short Books, 2006 trade paperback - non-fiction, biographical treatise on bird watching

That’s the problem with reviews, isn’t it? You read a review that may say a book is “an emotionally charged page turner, filled with characters you’ll never forget. The greatest mystery ever published!” When you read it you wonder what the reviewer was smoking. That wasn’t exactly the case with this book, but what I read about it led me to believe this was as much a philosophical tract as a book about looking at birds. I guess in a way that’s true, but sometimes you have to glean the philosophy bits from between the lines, or at least the middle of sentences. Not that I didn’t enjoy this book, I did, but let’s face it: if you’re not interested in birds and looking at them, really looking and seeing them, and perhaps learning their names and habits, there may be entirely too much bird stuff here compared to the slight discussions of Life On The Planet and your part of it, in relation to the rest of the beasts, specifically the ones that fly.

First of all, what does Barnes mean by “a bad birdwatcher”? He means someone who is  pretty much an amateur, for whom carrying a pair of binoculars is a big step. Someone who can name a few of the local, oft-seen birds that flit and chatter about the garden or local woods, hills, desert dunes or whatever. Since Barnes is English, all the examples and most of the experience in this birding biography take place there, and there is much discussion of hedgerows and natural park settings, meadows and streams in areas I’ve barely heard of. Which is fine, I’m open to learning, or just reading on because it doesn’t matter anyway. When the conversation turns to birds I’m pretty sure don’t inhabit my part of the U.S., it becomes pretty theoretical. I mean, I’ve never seen or heard a lesser blue tit, have you? (no nasty comments, please).

All that said, I do enjoy looking at birds, have a bird feeder I keep filled with desirable, to birds, seeds year ‘round and like watching the regulars and seasonal visitors who come to partake of the offering. I try, often with little success to learn their names. The book talks about the difficulty of telling one small brownish-grey blob of bird from another, and I relate whole-heartedly.

I do have binoculars, an older pair and newer ones I bought before a trip to Alaska, where I used them to spot eagles, arctic terns, owls and many other birds. I have a field guide to the birds of Western Oregon. What I don’t do is go out looking for birds, or at least not very often (there is a nice wildlife sanctuary a few miles away), and that’s the first thing this book encourages the reader to do: get off yer duff and get Out There. Once there, in a good spot at the right time of year, Barnes tells us, we will see birds, many and varied. With experience and patience we’ll learn their names and something about them. That’s “bad bird watching”.

So what is a good bird watcher? He says those are the ones that live and breath it, talk about it to like minded souls, and look down on lesser beings who know less and try less. He uses “good” as a synonym for “obsessive”.

That’s as it may be, not much time is spent on those people except for anecdotal stories, of which there are many and varied in the book, a great part of it’s charm.

I liked this book. I can recommend it to anyone who, like me, is interested enough to read about birds and someone who loves to watch them, whether you do much of it yourself. But that’s another thing about the book: the author suggests, reminds and urges you and I to get out there and that’s not such a bad idea, whether we spend much time looking at and trying to name birds, or whether we just take a nice long walk in a natural place – as natural as is available to us – and get some fresh air. Enthusiasm is infectious, and that’s the case with this book. Oh, and don’t forget those binoculars.