What are you reading at the moment?

1177: The Year Civilization Collapsed, Eric Cline

The Bronze Age Collapse has historically been one of the great mysteries of history. While we know that several societies in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean collapsed or fell on hard times during, roughly, the 12th century BCE, the causes are a source for speculation and debate even today. This book is a good, well-written and up-to-date account of both the collapse and the leadup. Interesting seeing how all the societies from Egypt up through the Levant and Asia Minor to Crete and Mycenean Greece were connected economically and diplomatically in an early form of globalization and then how that all fell apart in the collapse. I am reading the 2021 edition which was updated with new data supporting the core hypothesis, that a massive drought in the Mediterranean and Near East was a major factor. Good book if you're into ancient history or just how civilizations rise and fall.

(And even Cline concedes that the date in the title is mostly his publisher's doing. The collapse actually happened over a period of decades, not in a single year.)

Denis the Carthusian; Commentary on the Psalms; Vol. 2

I'm still in the Preface of this book but not sure if I'm going to read it yet. If I do, it will be read as a devotional in my spiritual life. The Carthusians are an order of French Monks and their names are unknown, except for Denis who lived long ago. They're known for living lives in silence and solitude. I watched a documentary on the Carthusians awhile ago and if memory serves correct they only converse with each other once a day, or week. I forgot. The Carthusians are a very unique order.

Commentary on the Psalms seems heavy and I think there may be some Latin in it. That doesn't put me off at all. I know some Latin and am going to learn ecclesiastical Latin (there's also classical Latin). The Mass I attend is said in Latin. Anyway, I'm still reading Introduction to a Devout Life, which is very informative. I may be taking on too much but I'll try it out.

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learn ecclesiastical Latin (there's also classical Latin)

Yeah, I learned classical Latin (my undergrad is Classical Studies) but I have had the odd opportunity to compare to ecclesiastical Latin and the Vulgate (the dialect used in the Latin Bible).

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The Mass I attend is said in Latin.

Interesting. I remember that Joseph Campbell, the American mythologist, was actually an advocate for the Latin mass. He felt it created a stronger sense of entering the spiritual world and being apart from the temporal or something like that.

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The Carthusians are an order of French Monks and their names are unknown, except for Denis who lived long ago.

Never heard of them. Something to look into. Good that you are tackling something on the heavy side in your spiritual practice. Challenging ourselves, or being challenged, is part of the spiritual journey.

I finished two books by T. Kingfisher: What Moves the Dead and A House with Good Bones. They are horror/suspense novels. My son and his girlfriend gave them to me for Christmas. I love that she is into horror. No one in my family is interested in horror except the occasional horror movie. The books are short, so you can read them in one or two sessions. I enjoyed them, and they easily held my attention.

Small Mercies, Dennis Lehane. School busing in Boston in the late 60s. Riviting.

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T. Kingfisher

Kingfisher is a fairly big name in horror and fantasy nowadays. She's actually a pseudonym for Ursula Vernon, who has had a raft of awards and nominations under both names.

Been reading Verbal's series about hitchhiking through Ontario in the early 80s. Nice memoir.

I finished Introduction to a Devout Life and recently started Jane Eyre.

Quote by Mendalla

Kingfisher is a fairly big name in horror and fantasy nowadays. She's actually a pseudonym for Ursula Vernon, who has had a raft of awards and nominations under both names.

Been reading Verbal's series about hitchhiking through Ontario in the early 80s. Nice memoir.

I did not know about her other name or books. I'm continuing to read more of her books written under the T. Kingfisher moniker. I finished "Nettle and Bones" and "The Twisted Ones."

I continue to read books by T Kingfisher, Thorn Edge, and The Hollow Places, which are the most recent. I have two new books to take on my vacation: Stephen King's latest, You Like It Darker (a collection of short stories), and Paul Tremblays's newest, Horror Movie.

Quote by Mendalla

1177: The Year Civilization Collapsed, Eric Cline

Finally got back to this one. See post above.

Also read Marc Morris' The Anglo-Saxons. Nice, readable history of how the Germanic tribes settled in and shaped the development of England, beginning with the Roman departure from Britain in 410 CE and ending with the Norman Conquest of 1066 CE. There were some interesting characters in that era. Would probably be a good read for Bernard Cornwell fans since Morris covers a lot of historical figures who ended up as characters in the novels and TV show of Cornwell's Anglo-Saxon series.

I am unfortunately having a lull in regards to reading at the moment. I put Jane Eyre down but think of it almost every day. I have been reading various works here at SS, however. I am always searching for a newly submitted story.

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Paul Tremblays's newest, Horror Movie.

I bought it, but haven't read it yet. He's so good!

Finally finishing the Once and Future graphic novel series by Kieron Gillen. Probably mentioned it upthread when I first started it but at the time, the story was not finished (I stopped at issue 18 and the comics went to 30 issues). Now the compilations for the remaining issues are long since out so I am finishing it.

Basic story is some batshit crazy UK Nazis summon King Arthur back to life. Except Arthur, being a Briton who tried to fight off the Saxons, is enraged to find the island ruled by descendents of the Saxons and starts a campaign to wipe the island clean. Against him are Bridgette, an eighty-year-old with long experience dealing with the supernatural, her grandson Duncan, who is the embodiment of the Arthurian knight Percival, and Rose, a young South Asian woman who is the embodiment of Gawain. Oh, and Bridgette's evil daughter/Duncan's mother, who embodies Nimue, Merlin's rival in some Arthurian stories.

It's a dark, bloody horror/dark fantasy story with a universe where stories can become embodied in reality. Besides Arthurian figures, we've had Beowulf and Grendel, a gorgon (from classical mythology and based in the Roman baths in Bath), and a giant going "Fee Fi Fo Fum" getting beaten by a guy named Jack.

And since Arthur is a figure with many different stories, we now have multiple Arthurs fighting over which is "real". So besides the British Dark Age Arthur, we have "romance Arthur" drawing on the continental Arthurian romances with Lancelot as one of his knights and Guinevere as his Queen and Lancelot's lover. And as I broke to go to bed last night, a third Arthur, whose identity I am not yet clear on, showed up.

The artwork by Dan Mora and colourist Tamra Bonvillain is incredible, too, capturing the grim mood of Gillen's story perfectly.

The Poems of St. John of the Cross. Very beautiful writing. I pick this book up every now and then.

It's great so far.

Also, "Humility," by Thomas a Kempis. I read the first half; second half are long, specific prayers. Now I am not reading the book like any other, but at certain times, prayerfully reading.

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It's great so far.

Is it about an actual cat?

I am reading Horror Movie, by Paul Tremblay. Slow burn so far, but good.

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Is it about an actual cat?

I am reading Horror Movie, by Paul Tremblay. Slow burn so far, but good.

It's complicated without spoiling, but the short of it is, yes, and I really liked it. It's fun. I ended up finishing it with the audiobook because the time to sit down and read became hard. It was narrated by the celebrity love of my life Wil Wheaton and he was perfect for the main character.

Atomic Robo. Weird long-running pulp action webcomic about a robot built by Nikolai Tesla who becomes kind of an electronic Tony Stark (runs Tesla's company, saves the world). Not sure how long I will stick with it, but it is pretty entertaining. Timeline gets a bit confusing as it jumps around in the mid-late 20th century and into the early 21st.

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Wil Wheaton

LOL. Perfect for many reasons. Scalzi also wrote the novel Redshirts, a well-regarded Trek satire.

Quote by Mendalla

Atomic Robo. Weird long-running pulp action webcomic about a robot built by Nikolai Tesla who becomes kind of an electronic Tony Stark (runs Tesla's company, saves the world). Not sure how long I will stick with it, but it is pretty entertaining. Timeline gets a bit confusing as it jumps around in the mid-late 20th century and into the early 21st.

Heavy focus on Robo's WWII adventures right now. We have Nazis equipped with tank-based mecha and weird mutant monsters. I guess this falls into what they call dieselpunk (too late for steampunk, but too early for cyberpunk).

I enjoyed Marc Morris' history of the Anglo-Saxons so when he appeared on the Gone Medieval podcast to talk about the development of castles in England, I headed to my library's Hoopla and found his book on the subject. Good read so far. Interesting how "castle" kind of changed meaning as they evolved from their first appearances in Britain in the mid-10th century. The Anglo-Saxon period and Norman conquest (which is when castles really took off in Britain) seem to be Morris' speciality. Title of this book is Castle: A History of the Buildings that Shaped Medieval Britain. Morris tends to write more popular history, rather than being academic, but at the same time he packs a PhD in history from Oxford so does his homework.

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LOL. Perfect for many reasons. Scalzi also wrote the novel Redshirts, a well-regarded Trek satire.

I'll have to Chek that out. Sorry for the bad pun, I'll see myself out.

Wil Wheaton also reads The Martian and he is perfect for that as well. Which is funny because I think Matt Damon was perfect in the movie, but in audio, WW managed to capture all of the tiny sarcastic moments without coming across as a jerk.

Maybe I'm biased because his voice is one of my go-to comfort voices. No, he was perfect. 😊

I've started the graphic novel series Preacher. Yes, the same one they made a TV show about, but no spoilers! I didn't watch the TV show.

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I've started the graphic novel series Preacher. Yes, the same one they made a TV show about, but no spoilers! I didn't watch the TV show.

I don't think I have ever read any Garth Ennis, even though I have heard good things about his writing. Ditto Jeff Lemire who is actually from Southwestern Ontario so not too far from me.

Memorials by Richard Chizmar. I loved his other books, so I hope this one is good, too.

No One Will Come Back for Us and Other Stories by Premee Mohamad. S-F and fantasy writer who is currently social media manager and associate editor for the Escape Pod podcast (which does audio s-f short stories). Very good, often kind of dark and haunting s-f/fantasy.