Things and Stuff of 2019, Hacker News

(Stalking the Wild Asparagus)by Euell Gibbons –Gibbons is little known these days, but his home-spun, worldly wisdom can be sampled on YouTube in the form of s-era Grape Nuts commercials. Gibbons’ shtick back then was on natural foods and return to nature pop movements and this book is a great window into the culinary fringe of his time.********************************************** Annihilationby Jeff VanderMeer –I was motivated to read the book after watching the fantastic film of the same name . Truth be told, the book is nothing like the film and that fact was a pleasant surprise even though I adored the film. There are just enough creepy moments in this book to keep you on your toes and the book has gotten me fascinated in the little-explored science fiction sub-genre I like to call “Biosystem Horror.”********************************************** (Rites of the Renouncerby Ben Kamphaus –it’s always fun to discover the first work from a new author and it was a joy to read Kamphaus’ “Rites of the Renouncer.” The sub-genre of science fiction that the book falls under is difficult to pin down and indeed seems to draw from a variety of disparate influences. It’s almost as if AE Van Vogt was thrust forward in time, developed a sleep phase disorder, passed the early morning hours listening to Ambient / Drone and wrote this novel on a Kaypro II found whilst dumpster-diving. The story itself is straight-forward, but the themes explored are nuanced and handled well. From notions of consciousness, to mind hacks, to isolation, to even friendship – there’s a lot to explore in the pages of this svelte novella. It left me wanting more.
• ************************************************ Night Filmby Marisha Pessl –Exactly the kind of book that fits right into my wheelhouse – that is, a well-written thriller that blurs the lines between fiction, world-building, and multimedia. I couldn’t put the book down and was completely drawn in to the mystery described in the story.
• ************************************************ (Understanding Media) by Marshall McLuhan -As a kid I used to re-read books very often but as I’ve gotten older I tend not to do so. However, the nature of this book has compelled me to take another swing at it. McLuhan was a James Joyce scholar and Finnegan’s Wake must’ve influenced his writing style. To say the least this book was a challenge to read and process and even after two reads I can’t say that I’ve fully grasped its content. McLuhan’s style is rich with references and coloring from innumerable sources. Indeed, to really get this book requires a near fluent understanding of literature, architecture, film, music, and 100 – s era pop-culture. The many forking paths of influence on this work, while daunting, are worth traversing.********** Number of books published
  

  Number of books written

  Number of books read