Edited 291d ago
bookstodon
I'm keeping reading Shklovsky. This paragraph is not that funny for a non-Russian ear, but it reminded me of two great anecdotes I want to share. (01/03)
Is Victor Pelevin's 'Babylon' (also known as Homo Zapiens and Generation P) the ideal novel for Mastodonians ?
It's an alcohol-and-drug-fuelled fantastical satire on both capitalism and tech, in which (we gradually discover) politicians are computer-generated, and representations more important than reality. In one key scene, we find ourselves in an art exhibition, but the walls are hung not with paintings, but with notarised certificates confirming that the original was bought by its current owner for so-many-million-dollars. Not even a copy of the original - because only the price is important now,
But it precedes and predicts our ai-and-billionaires world. It was written in Russia in the 1990s, and clearly reflects the shock of the cowboy-capitalism that was imposed there after the soviet collapse. It is horrific - yet it is the model for the world the likes of Trump would propagate. They saw the emergence of Russian oligarchy, and wanted it. I first read it when I was working in Russia 20 years ago, so can vouch for its accuracy. I came to this re-reading after also re-reading Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath, and was struck by the contrast between that story of 1930s capitalism-as-worker-exploitation, and Pelevin's portrayal of capitalism as insane consumerism.
Today is the author's birthday.
#AmReading "Sick and Dirty: Hollywood's Gay Golden Age and the Making of Modern Queerness" by Michael Koresky. Not very far in, but I think it's going to be fascinating. It's about finding value in older film depictions of queerness. Seems to be a bit in response to "The Celluloid Closet."
Did you miss my Kickstarter? You can still grab the audiobook here! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/villyard/immortal-gifts-hardcover-paperback-and-audiobook/backing/redeem?ref=creator_share\
Since I really have to practise tooting my own horn a bit more, behold the wisdom of the MMRomance Redditers!
(Book available at your favourite online retailer/library, or direct from me: https://wendypalmer.au/bookshop/)
#bookstodon #QueerRomance #mmromance #bookstodon @bookstodon
Bookstore run:
- The Pocket Pema Chödrön (when instructed to hear a kind voice in one's head, I hear Pema)
- The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (everyone tells me this is fantabulous)
- How Far the Light Reaches (picked it up in bookstore and couldn't put it down)
- Unwinding Anxiety (Jud Brewer has done great peer-reviewed research into both anxiety and addiction)
"My hidden agenda in the book club is to get people excited about reading stories about members of the #LGBTQ+ community who are different than them."
I'm pleased to share my first story for The Advocate, about the joy of #queer folks reading together: https://www.advocate.com/news/lgbtq-book-clubs
#books #bookstodon #Austin #Texas #LGBTQIA+ #culture #Richmond #Virginia @bookstodon
THE EXPERT OF SUBTLE REVISIONS on NPR's 2025 list of Books We Love! Lot's of great books on this list. Thanks, NPR and Ilana Masad!
#books #writing #writersofmastodon #WritingCommunity #bookstodon @bookstodon
Five stars:
Cinder House by Freya Marske (2025) recontextualizes Cinderella into a haunted/sentient house story. Ella was a living, breathing girl at one point, until her greedy stepmother poisoned her and her father to get the house. Now Ella is forever tied to the house she should have inherited, becoming one with her home.
https://pussreboots.com/blog/2025/comments_11/cinder_house.html
New review: Spinosaur Tales brings together two of the finest popular palaeontology writers for a nuanced and detailed overview of this challenging group of dinosaurs.
#Books #BookReview #Bookstodon #Dinosaurs #Theropods #Spinosaurs #Spinosaurus #Fossils #Evolution #Paleontology #Palaeontology #Scicomm @bookstodon
finished reading Prophet Song 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗
by Paul Lynch.
A horrifying realistic account of an everyday Western country being gradually consumed by an authoritarian regime. Every moment of encroaching terror is disturbingly relatable. Writing style felt like a monotone ramble, which masked its poignancy.
Years ago (late 1980s/early 1990s), I read a book by someone who worked as a hostage negotiator for the New York police.
I'd like to find a copy, but I have no idea what the author's name is or what it was called.
Do any of you have any ideas?
Finished reading Atomic Habits by James Clear.
A very practical book for anyone who wants to change something in their life or move closer to a goal.
The ideas are simple, clear, and easy to apply. Some of them I was already using intuitively, but a few insights felt genuinely fresh — and definitely worth much more than the time spent reading the book.
#JamesClear #AtomicHabits #nonfiction #book #books #reading #bookstodon @bookstodon #booksky #selfimprovement #amreading
Niccolo Machiavelli (May 3, 1469 – June 21, 1527) wrote The Prince after prison, torture, and exile, with the cold clarity of someone who had seen power from the inside.
This is not just a book about rulers but about fear, ambition, loyalty, betrayal, and the dangerous people who believe they are born to command others.
#books #literature #reading #book #writers #author #Machiavelli #ThePrince #bookstodon @bookstodon #politics #ambitions #booksky #bookstagram #BookTok #today
Five stars:
It Found Us by Lindsay Currie (2023) was referenced in X Marks the Haunt. Hazel Woods wants to be a detective; she's good at finding the truth but her parents are tired of her snooping. She also wants to start a podcast and hopes the local cemetery will provide just the story she needs.
https://pussreboots.com/blog/2026/comments_02/it_found_us.html
It's a hard knock life when you don't have a bookshelf with a rolling ladder 😜😂
@reading @joinin @bookstodon @books @humor @humor@lemmy.world @aiop
#Book #Books #BookMemes #Meme #Memes #Humor #Humour #Funny
#ReadingMemes #ReadAllTheBooks #Reading #Readers #ReadersOfMastodon #ReadingCommunity
#Litterature #Novel #Novels #Bookshelf #Mastobooks #BooksofMastodon #Bookstodon #Bookworm #Bookwyrm #Bookstodon #BookLove
I've been publishing under my other pen name, Jai Baidell.
Gullyraker is part of a detective series. My unfortunate protagonist is caught up in political problems around water shortages and the destruction of a water pipeline.
Set in my alternative Australia, although it's not very different.
A gullyraker is a strong and destructive storm of wind and/or water.
Available from Kobo, B&N, Booktopia, Apple, Kindle and other places as an ebook.
Edited 171d ago
Another newly released book under my pen name Jai Baidell.
This is a spinoff from my detective series. Not at all originally, my detective and his colleague quit the police and set up a private agency, Mallay Investigations. Their first case is looking for a boy who has been missing for 10 years.
Available from Apple, Kobo, Kindle and others.
Book #Review: Wrath by Shäron Moalem and Daniel Kraus
Imagine Pinky and the Brain, minus the comedy, plus lots and lots of gore
@carturo222.bsky.social has our review at the NOAF blog for your Monday
http://www.nerds-feather.com/2025/12/book-review-wrath-by-sharon-moalem-and.html
#books #bookstodon @bookstodon
"Elucidate!"
-Little Dalek the philosopher
😂
@libraries @Libraries@fedigroups.social @library @books @bookstodon @humor @humor@lemmy.world @aiop @philosophy
#ThinkingMemes #Library #LibraryMemes #Meme #Memes #Libraries #Librarians #Humor #Humour #Funny
#Bookstodon #Bookworm #Bookwyrm #BookLove
Hi, @bookstodon ! Looking to support independent authors on Buy Nothing Day? You can buy my science fiction adventure novella, Death In Transit, on Smashwords!
I've also got a free preview of the book on my blog today!
#IndieAuthor #IndieBooks #ShamelessSelfPromo #Bookstodon #Writing #SciFi #Smashwords
Four stars:
Fatality by Firelight by Lynn Cahoon and C.S.E. Cooney (Narrator) (2017) is the second book in the Cat Latimer mystery series. Cat is offering a winter retreat for writers with skiing and talks at the local university. Unfortunately one of her guests is a person of interest in the murder of a local playboy.
https://pussreboots.com/blog/2026/comments_01/fatality_by_firelight.html
