The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet

Published
by
Matthew
on June 14, 2010
in Books
. 0 Comments

My copy of David Mitchell’s latest novel came in the mail today via the UK. It’s not out for another week or so in the US, but my impatience and preference for the European edition’s cover (no dust jacket, and a tasteful cream and blue woodcut illustration) drove me to go ahead and order it.

I’m finishing up Dan Simmons’ dark, intriguing, and well-written sci-fi novel Hyperion at the moment, but Thousand Autumns will be quickly devoured after that. Blog posts for both shall be forthcoming.

Dennis Hopper, RIP

Published
by
Chris
on May 29, 2010
in Deaths
. 0 Comments

dennis_hopper

Joe R. Lansdale

Published
by
Matthew
on May 2, 2010
in Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

lansdale

You should probably read the works of Joe R. Lansdale. His books are dark, funny, compelling, prolific, imaginative… but most importantly, intelligent and fucking fun.

I’m not sure if he’s more well known for his series of dark mysteries featuring a couple of East Texas pals named Hap and Leonard, or for his short story “Bubba Ho-Tep”, which was the basis of the now classic film. Either way, he’s got the storytelling skills to keep any fan of horror or mystery fiction entertained, along with the stylistic chops required to keep most lit snobs sticking around.

If you can find it, I recommend staring with his collection of short stories (which includes the aforementioned “Bubba Ho-Tep”), Writer of the Purple Rage. You won’t be disappointed.

As I told the friend who turned me onto him, his books make me want to buy a house in East Texas, sit on the front porch with a cooler full of cold beer and wait for the weird shit to happen.

The Human Centipede trailer

Published
by
Matthew
on April 14, 2010
in Film, Trailers and Weirdness
. 0 Comments

The premise of this film is so fucking outrageous and demented that I don’t know whether to respond with utter horror or hilarity. All I know is I have to see it. Wow.

Red Letter Media

Published
by
Matthew
on April 4, 2010
in Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

A certain genius from Wisconsin, of all places, posted a hilarious and spot on review of Star Wars Episode I : The Phantom Menace some months back to much acclaim. Now he’s back with an even more epic evisceration of Attack of the Clones.  Both of these videos are much more worthwhile than either of the films they meticulously and hilariously deconstruct.

Enjoy part one of the latest below.

Attack of the Clones Review: Part 1

RIP Mark Linkous

Published
by
Chris
on March 8, 2010
in Deaths
. 0 Comments



Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse, dead at the age of 47 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the heart.
This is terribly sad news. It’s A Wonderful Life is still one of my favorite albums and it will never be the same for me in light of this horrible tragedy.

Blogging to resume soon

Published
by
Chris
on March 7, 2010
in Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

Breaktime will soon be over.

Reading Resolutions 2010

Published
by
Chris
on January 3, 2010
in Books
. 0 Comments

Much of my spare time in 2009 was taken up by trying to complete the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge I set for myself. A couple of times, I almost quit the challenge. I had attempted it once before, a few years ago, and got to about 12 books before giving up. For me, it’s a tough challenge, since I drift towards the encyclopedic novels of writers like Pynchon or Vollmann. I knew it was a misstep, but I tried to tackle David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest midway through my quest. Halfway through that book, the need to see my quest to the end and get back on track took over. I found myself reading things I wouldn’t necessarily read, just to hit a number. This year, there will be no 52 book quest. I’ll let my natural urges take over again. I have a taste for the maximal, and this is where I will go. I intened on re-reading some old favorites for the first time in many years. A few weeks ago, I gifted a spare copy of William T. Vollmann’s Fathers and Crows to a co-worker. It’s my favorite book, and I intend to revisit it. And I’ve had a copy of Vollmann’s 1400 page Imperial sitting here for months. It will be lonely no more. I wanted to tackle Bolano’s 2666 this past year, but after 30 pages or so, I thought that I might want to read The Savage Detectives first. And thus, I have begun there. Happy readings…..

The Preacher Series Vols 1-9 by Garth Ennis And Steve Dillon (52 Books, 44-52 Down, 0 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on December 31, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

I’ve decided to lump the lat 9 books of my quest to read 52 books in a year together because they are all tied together. At times, I didn’t think I would be able to complete this quest, especially after spending a month with Infinite Jest this past summer and only getting halfway through (I do plan to get back to it). But here on New Year’s Eve at 9:15 pm I finished book 52, volume 9 of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s Preacher series. I’ll state up front that I am not a big graphic novel guy. I tried reading Watchmen earlier this year, got about halfway through, and lost interest. But, after many recommendations from Matt, I decided to give it a spin. It was worth the ride. Preacher tells the story of Jesse Custer, a small town minister who is possessed by Genesis, the offspring of an angel and a demon. Along for the ride is his girlfriend, ulip, and a sidekick, Cassidy, who happens to be a vampire. After the main storyline is set up, about two thirds of the rest of it is spent filling in the backgrounds of all the characters, and what led them to the present. That’s where the beauty of this series lies. And there’s a huge bonus for hitting all sorts of cultural touchstones for me….Yeats, McSorley’s, Blood Meridian. Most Highly recommended.

Branded Woman by Wade Miller (52 Books, 43 Down, 9 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on December 31, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks and Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

Yet another release from Hard Case Crime, Branded Woman is perhaps the most frustrating book I’ve read of theirs. Cay Morgan has, quite literally, been branded by a man she has crossed. Her quest to get revenge takes her to Mexico, where, of course, things aren’t always as they seem. The problem I had with Branded Woman is a tale of two extremes. When it is good, it is verry good. When it is not, well, it’s just pretty boring, and the boring parts far outweigh the good ones.It’s not quite as disappointing as the Stephen King Hard Case Crime book that I read, but pretty close.

361 by Donald E. Westlake (52 Books, 42 Down, 10 To go)

Published
by
Chris
on December 31, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

Donald Westlake died a year ago today. He was peripherally on my radar (I often see book collectors looking for his harder to find novels written under the pseudonym Richard Stark). When he died, I took even more notice as all the tributes from people i respect started rolling out. Hard Case Crime’s reissue of 361 is my first experience with Westlake, and it certainly won’t be my last. The man is a master. Ray Kelly comes home to New York after a stint in the Air Force and meets his father in New York City. On the trip home to upstate New York, their car is ambushed, with the father being murdered and the son severely injured. Thus starts Ray Kelly’s quest to find the killer of his father. Engrossing and superbly written, this is the best of the Hard Case Crime books I have read thus far, and have gotten my hands on some of those Richard Stark novels for the near future. Very highly recommended.

The Vengeful Virgin by Gil Brewer (52 Books, 41 Down, 11 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on December 31, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

Yet another selection from Hard Case Crime…The Vengeful Virgin tells the story of Jack Ruxton, a TV Repairman, and the mess that he get himself involved in. While on a job he falls form a girl who is taking care of her invalid rich step-father. A plan is hatched to murder the old man and get his money, bus as usual, complications arise. More people need the be killed and someone stumbles across their plan. It’s a little simplistic, but then so is most noir. Its a fun, quick read, although at time it didn’t quite hold my attention. Still, a worthwhile pick if you are looking to check out some pulp noir.

Love In Infant Monkeys by Lydia Millet (52 Books, 40 Down, 12 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 23, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

Lydia Millet is an author more people should be familiar with. Her latest book,Love in Infant Monkeys, is her first short story collection. When describing Millet to someone recently I said she was sort of a female George Saunders, which only partly does her justice. Her work is filled with dark humor and a startling range. Love In Infant Monkeys are stories about famous people and their relationships with the animal species. They veer back and forth between high and low culture. The book opens with a story about Madonna hunting pheasant and trying to be suitably British. There are also stories about David Hasselhoff’s dog walker and about Sharon Stone and the Komodo dragon that bit her then husband. Mixed with these are stories about Tesla and his pigeons, Edison and the elephant he had executed during his experiments with electric current, and Noam Chomsky at the town dump. Endlessly inventive, Millet is a joy to read.

Say It With Bullets by Richard Powell (52 Books, 39 Down, 13 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 23, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

I’ve had mixed success with the Hard Case Crime titles I’ve read. Fortunately, Richard Powell’s Say It With Bullets is just what I was expecting from the Hard Case Crime collection. Bill Wayne was shot by one of his army buddies while in China and left for dead. After a period of recuperation, he is back in the states and wants some answers. He books tourist bus trip to travel across the country, visiting each one of his old buddies on the way. He gets involved with the tour guide, who he knew as a kid and to make matters even more complicated, his old friends start turning up dead just as he meets up with them. The page turner is perfectly paced, very funny,  and highly recommended.

The Colorado Kid by Stephen King (52 Books, 38 Down, 14 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 23, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

The Colorado Kid is Stephen King’s contribution to Hard Case Crime’s collection. I probably haven’t read any Stephen King since I was a teenager, There was a time when I enjoyed his books, especially the short stories, but somewhere around the release of Gerald’s Game, I just wasn’t into it anymore. Perhaps King’s writing changed. More likely my tastes veered off to things more substantial. Over the years though, King seems to have gained a a certain amount of respect from the critical establishment, and I have always remained a bit curious. So when I started reading these Hard Case Crime novels, I figured that The Colorado Kid would be the perfect place to dip my toes back into the water. I was wrong.
The Colorado Kid opens with a writer from The Boston Globe meeting with two small town Maine newspaperman and thier intern. He is looking for unslved mystery stories for a piece in the Globe. While they don’t share anything with the writer from the Globe, the two men do share the story with their intern later in the day. Unfortunately, the tale they tell of a body found on the island that couldn’t be identified, is ultimately very boring and tedious. Worse yet is King’s insistence at trying to capture the local witticisms and vernacular of Maine. It’s not just distracting, it’s annoying. Avoid at all costs.

Bust By Ken Bruen And Jason Starr (52 Books, 37 Down, 15 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 23, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

Bust is the first book in Ken Bruen’s and Jason Starr’s trilogy for Hard Case Crime that also includes Slide and The Max. Like The Max, which was previously mentioned here, Bust is hugely funny, irreverent, and extremely entertaining. The novel follows the early days of Max Fisher and his success as a businessman. His involvement with his secretary, Angela Petrakos, leads to Fisher to have his wife killed. Blackmail, sleaze, and even more mayhem ensues. Bust is highly recommended for those who enjoy a good mystery sprinkled with heavy doses of sleaze and raunchiness. Good stuff all around.

The Max by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr (52 Books, 36 Down, 16 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 18, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

When I started reading The Max I didn’t realize that it was the concluding volume in a trilogy. It turns out it’s not a big deal. It can be read separately, without any knowledge of the prior volumes. In The Max we follow Max Fisher as he goes off to jail, and his former lover Angela Petrakos on her journey from Greece back to the United States to weasel some money out of Max. What follows is a wildly irreverent ride, the type I would expect from a book imprint called Hard Case Crime. Ken Bruen and Jason Starr have composed a very funny and surprisingly meta story. I don’t think I have ever read a mystery that is nearly so self-reflexive to the genre as The Max is. Highly recommended.

New David Mitchell Novel Due In June 2010

Published
by
Chris
on November 11, 2009
in Books
. 0 Comments

At long last, Amazon has a listing for the new David Mitchell novel The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet:. I seems like every other Mitchell book (Ghostwritten
, Cloud Atlas) blows me away, so I’m due.

Exit Music by Ian Rankin (52 Books, 35 Down, 17 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 1, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 0 Comments

Exit Music is Ian Rankin’s seventeenth, and likely final, Inspector Rebus book. After having dipped in and out of Rebus (mostly in) for the past year, the sense of loss that I feel knowing there will likely be no more Rebus books is negated by the way Rankin chose to end the series. Rankin is a true master who transcends the mystery genre and Exit Music may be his finest moment. Rankin sticks to his usual m.o. of tying the story into current events, as Russian oligarchs looking to invest in Scotland may be tied into the murder of a Russian poet. It’s a somewhat slimmer book than Rankin’s previous few, mainly due to the streamlined storyline (there aren’t several story threads being woven together this time around). Simply put, a novelist at the height of his powers.

Grave Descend by John Lange (52 Books, 34 Down, 18 To Go)

Published
by
Chris
on November 1, 2009
in 52 Books 52 Weeks
. 3 Comments

More from the Hard Case Crime series….Grave Descend is an older novel that Hard Case had unearthed and republished. It was nominated for an Edgar award back in 1971, which surprises me. While these Hard Case Crime books are fun, they really aren’t to the level of something that is nominated for an Edgar. It wasn’t until I had finished the book that I found out the John Lange is a pseudonym for Michael Crichton and that this was published two years before he published a novel under hos own name. Apparently Cricihton did a revision of ths text before his death. I’ve read a few Crichton books in the past and, well, let’s just say I am not looking to read anything of his these days. That said, these Hard Crime books are a fun way to pass an afternoon.