Semi-fortnightly reading update: November 11, 2010

BLOT: (11 Nov 2010 - 10:24:44 PM)

Semi-fortnightly reading update: November 11, 2010

Meant to post this last night, but wasn't able to get around to it. This is my short discussion and listing of my past week's reading, and my intended readings for next week.

Alas, I have only been able to do two books in the past week (and one was started two weeks ago). The biggest culprit has been my schedule. Since I posted last week's entry, I have written over 8000 words for class, have went out of town for a weekend class, worked all day Sunday, and then had regular shifts Monday and Tuesday and class last night and tonight. Books, though I love them so, have often taken a backseat to mindless gibbering. Which I also love.

Arthur Machen's The Three Impostors and Other Tales (volume 1 of the Chaosium Collection), edited by S.T. Joshi: There are few other ways to describe this book of semi-horror, semi-awe tales than as an outright genre classic, but it is not necessarily an easy book to get through. Machen loves several things and he is one of those writers who pastes and smears all of those things into every little crack of his prose. What's more, only the first—"The Great God Pan"—and the last—The Three Impostors—tales are really keepers. The other two, middle tales, can be mostly skipped. [Review is forthcoming]

Jim Trombetta's The Horror! The Horror!: Comic Books the Government Didn't Want You to Read: Lots of covers and interior artwork only marred, as a collection, by the occasional need of a touch-up for clarity and by the lack of E.C. Comics. Though Trombetta explains that he is looking at the lesser known ones, and that there were many, MANY, other horror comics not-E.C., it would still have been good to get more in context. The other half of the book, if half, is commentary by Trombetta. Most of which is interesting, and some of the anecdotes are perfect, but there is a good bit of literary critique sliced into the text, some of which feels like stapled on pop-psych review that might be awesome at the undergraduate bar near a local liberal arts college. [Review probably not forthcoming, but I'm thinking about it]

BY WEEK: 2010, Week 45
BY MONTH: November 2010