I’ve got a birthday coming up. They are fun events: the anticipation for the day, maybe having a party, eating some cake, getting some presents. You know – the big payoff.

This book is filled with payoffs, and we get lots of big moments – so many that the moments start to be less meaningful. If you had birthday cake every day, I think the fun would wear off quickly.

I liked the way this book asks you to trust and go along for the ride. For the most part, the ride is enjoyable, with great elements like secret societies (several of them!), hidden stuff, solving puzzles, and clever situations involving cats and owls.

But also this book is a book of stories that are confusing (on purpose), and maybe it depends too much on the quirky humor and identifying with the socially awkward literary misfits. I often felt like the author was doing some “fan service” by including moments and name-dropping books and video games, sort of like a light version of Ready Player One.

I’m glad I read the book and enjoyed the moments that were significant, but after a while it was hard to tell which were actually significant. There are only so many times I can get excited about finding a secret entrance.

The book does kind of go on and on towards the end, not exactly sticking the landing. I sometimes felt a little more editing would be good.

So I’m squarely in the middle of the road on this one, maybe closer to like than dislike. Based on that faint praise you can decide if you’d like to read it.

Next I am reading a cookbook called Maangchi’s Read Korean cooking.

Here’s an older book by King that I hadn’t read, and since a sequel recently came out I thought it might be interesting to check out the first in the series.

As usual there are some really well-written characters here, what you’d expect from the author. The good guys are really good – the bad guy is really bad. There is some sort of joy we derive from seeing the good people act as good people should. Are the readers getting some kind of satisfaction from the bad guy doing the same thing?

The story is fast-moving, which makes for good reading, but sometimes I was hoping for a slower more drawn-out plot. The ideas here are really good – but in the end the story was more simple than I would have liked.

But I enjoyed the book for what it was, and I’m sure down the road once the new book settles down I’ll be checking it out of the library.

Next I am reading The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern.

Even if I didn’t read the foreword written by John Scalzi I would have been surprised at the similarities between this book and Scalzi’s Old Man’s War. I enjoyed both of these books (Scalzi’s a little more), but it was interesting to think that this was written in the 70’s. The book felt ahead of its time.

The critical dynamic here is the effect of time on the people traveling by warping around using these sort of wormholes. This was explored in other sci-fi books that I’ve read but I liked that the two species at war had primitive or advanced technology depending on where they were on the main timeline.

There was a section in the middle of the book that had the main character going back to Earth to see the changes that occurred while he was away, and the whole sequence felt a little too neatly tied up. According to the author he had actually cut it out in a previous edition and I thought that it probably should have stayed out, myself.

It was a good, short sci-fi book – but I don’t think there is a need for me to read the two sequels.

Next I am reading Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King.

This book is probably should be retitled. This very broad title doesn’t tell you that the goal of this book is for you to be able to tell a story in “The Moth”. The way the book is written is that someone says they want to try to tell a story at a “Moth” event, and the staff of the event says to go read this book first.

But in the book they explain the idea behind “The Moth” organization and it sounded like a more modern Toastmaster’s Club aimed at younger (more liberal?) people. The book describes it as open mic poetry without the poetry, which seems to be apt. Not really my scene culturally but it is good to read about new things.

Luckily there is a lot of good advice and information about how to make a good story that could be used generally, and I was satisfied to go in and pick out the useful morsels and leave the rest behind.

It was very entertaining to watch some of the storytellers on the Moth YouTube channel – kind of like a more user-friendly TED talk. I picked out a few stories and they were pretty good. One that I really enjoyed seemed to ignore some of the advice from the book, which made me wonder how much stock I should put into what was written elsewhere.

I got some great advice out of the book, and so I would call it an overall positive reading experience. I’m looking forward to watching some more performances online, and thinking a little more deeply about the stories I may have to tell in the future.

Next I am reading The Forever War by Joe Haldeman.

Food, drama, guilt, cross-cultural and cross-generational gaps – there is a lot to digest here. This book is a good example of writing as therapy. The author went through some serious challenges in their life, and I think by writing this book they’ll be able to move on.

The author gets it all out there – not only the delicious foods and happy times, she doesn’t shy away from the ugly scenes. She is dealing with her mother’s premature death, in front of the reader, with herself laid bare.

But I didn’t come for the drama, I came for the food, and there is a lot of good writing, especially about Korean food. She does a great job describing the dishes that they eat, with the Korean name so that you can do your own research on finding it in a restaurant or making it yourself. There are other foods in here besides Korean – but I got the most out of the Korean ones.

We eat a lot of Korean food at home and out at restaurants, but I find that I know the Japanese name for the dishes rather than the Korean one, so this book helped to clarify certain things for me.

The writing is done in a clean writing style that is easy to read, and focuses on giving a clear view of what is happening, rather than being floral or poetic. I wasn’t a big fan of the structure, being non-linear and sometimes a little confusing. But it is a relatively short book and worth the effort to follow.

Next I am reading How to Tell a Story by Meg Bowles et al.

Oof – this was a tough one to read. An awkward balance of educational and depressing, the book chronicles the damage done by profit-focused private equity firms in a bid to deliver the most value to their shareholders and more importantly their executives.

The whole reason I picked up this book was because I didn’t really know much about the world of finance, especially private equity firms, junk bonds and hedge funds. There is a lot of depth in this book, explaining with extensive statistics how these firms took a very unethical approach to making profit, rather than improving the companies that they acquired.

In a book full of startling episodes, perhaps the most painful to read was the section on how private equity got into healthcare. The whole healthcare system in the USA already seems like a bloated mess and adding these piranas to the mix resulted on the blood bath you’d expect.

While educational and full of statistics to back up their assertions, it sometimes got a little too hung up in details of cases from years ago – almost like it was still litigating even though the companies and people affected had long since passed.

And I realize the name of the book sort of tells you what to expect but I still felt sometimes like there must be another side to some of the events described. The writer often gave the company representative a chance to respond, but they had canned PR-speak answers. The book was balanced in terms of content but I thought the tone of the author was a little shrill sometimes. Describing these atrocities in a level-headed tone may make it easier for more people to acknowledge.

In Japan companies are held to the fire in terms of considering the social good of the nation and the local community in their financial dealings. This book was a reminder that some people out there don’t think that way.

Next I am reading Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner.

I believe that this is the last multi-country travel book I have read by Paul Theroux. I had been saving it for later – like a nice bottle of wine pushed to the back of the cellar. Recently the time felt right, so I bought the book and just finished reading it.

It has all the typical stuff you’d expect in his adventures – beautiful writing, the captured moments of travel, being snarky to people that have been snarky to him. Despite the majority of the book taking place on his kayak there are also other modes of transport – a train, a cruise ship, and some short airplane rides when necessary.

This book was written at a time when he was separated from his wife (they would divorce soon) and so he had a wide open schedule and was at a loss for what to do. It seemed like he sort of fell into this trip and ended writing a book about it.

I like epic journeys – this was one of them. Starting in New Zealand and ending in Hawaii, he covers a lot of south Oceania, taking notes along the way. Rather than being restricted by train schedules the kayak and the tent lend him tremendous freedom, along with his open schedule. He can take the time he wants, wherever he feels like it, and it is hard not to itch with envy while reading about it.

The timeframe of his trip was just as the Iraq war started, and so the world was quite different then. I was surprised to see how much the Japanese are reviled in this book as they were still in their bubble economy and buying out things all over the world, much the same as the Chinese are doing these days.

The author spends a lot of time making fun of people that no doubt deserve it, celebrities and normal people alike. Often I’ve seen people criticize his books for being too hard on other people, and after reading this book I can see how it may be a warranted criticism. For the reader it can be good entertainment, but it reads a little like the writer has kind of set it up – and I wonder how accurate his take was on each of the situations.

I really enjoyed this book – and I’m sure I’ll come back to it again in the future. There is only one other travel book by Theroux that I haven’t read – his travels around England – but I fear it won’t be as good as his others. There is only one way to find out.

Next I am reading These Are The Plunderers by Gretchen Morgenson.

This is a great idea for a twist on the series killer stalker story – this time the series killer has access to a time machine.

Full of interesting characters and very natural dialogue, it is easy to identify with each person, even the psychotic (and mysteriously motivated) killer. Visiting different eras in time and seeing how Chicago has changed (or is in the process of changing) was really cool.

I’m still not sure I could understand “the rules” of the time travel device, and for me at least I think that is important. Other books involving time travel are quite clear as it helps set the expectations of the reader and we can understand why something happens or doesn’t happen. The rules in this book are mentioned briefly in passing but I’d have liked more.

Also I thought the book sort of abruptly ended – I had expected there to be a lot more to the culmination of so many crossing time lines. The way things ended seemed like a lost opportunity. Stalker becomes the prey, for example. Suddenly the victim has a chance to go back in time and make some changes – what would they be? It is a deep reservoir of possibilities, but it felt like the author chose the simplest one.

But I enjoyed the book, and will be on the lookout for future books that do time travel well.

Next I am reading The Happy Isles of Oceania by Paul Theroux.

This book was a story written in sort of the same way as the Game of Thrones series, with a cleaner and friendlier feel and written with more female-centric roles. Despite the length of this book it moves quickly through the story, with plenty of palace intrigue, underdogs coming out on top, and adventurous journeys.

I liked the story, and the characters were written well although a little simple. The bad guys are a pretty one-dimensional, given to twirling their mustaches and monologuing at the heroes to explain the backstory. Sometimes it felt a little campy but overall it moved along fast enough that it didn’t bother me too much.

There are a lot of cultures introduced in this book, but they are helpfully modeled after similar cultures back here in reality, so that makes it easier. I liked the scope of the book – but it did make me feel like things were rushed when I wanted to know more about the wide world the writer has created.

One thing that stuck out for me was the author’s habit of giving a paragraph to the wardrobe of the characters when they show up at some event, and a paragraph to the food when they are eating somewhere. The paragraph was always about the same length and it felt like they finished the book and then went back and added it in to fill out the content a little. It just didn’t feel natural to me.

There was a lot of potential here, but in the end I found it a good story that could have been handled better. Still, for a simple adventure it was worth the reading time.

Next I am reading The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes.

The second time around reading this book was just as good as the first time. Despite knowing in advance, it was a pleasure watching the author lay out the clues and patiently develop this world despite the confusion it may cause the reader.

There were a lot of hints that I completely missed the first time reading, and this time I could concentrate on the beauty of the world (and the House).

Next I am reading The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon.

This book is the last in the series of three, and just as enjoyable as the previous two. This book has the rather large burden of wrapping up all the loose ends and storylines from the whole series – kind of like the last season of a very popular drama on TV.

In this the author succeeds, and we get answers to every question we might have had – people get what was coming to them, and I found it very satisfying.

Again the writing is excellent, and since it is in the first person it moves along quickly with very things happening elsewhere – we are seeing events play out directly. The writer continues to write excellent action sequences, and this book has a few less than others but still some are pretty epic.

Which brings me to really my only criticism of the book (and the series) – it took a long time to get to where we are now in the story, and I’m not sure it was worth the long ride. I can’t go into why this is without spoiling the story, but to me it felt a little like these big battles that we spent so many pages and chapters on before amounted to very little by the end of the series.

Because I read the books as they came out, with a year or so in between them, I did find myself struggling to remember some of the characters – and despite the reference materials included in the books it really broke my rhythm to stop and look up who that person was who just got killed.

It isn’t the fault of the author, of course, but I’d recommend anyone reading this series to go straight through without too much time in between volumes. I think you’ll find that it is a series that is definitely worth your time.

Next I am re-reading Piranesi by Susanna Clarke.

This was a book that made the conscious choice to be unusual – and I like books that are weird, as long as the weirdness has a point.

It tells a strange story about someone who we might call “God”. How do they come about their powers? Are there any other gods out there? Who do they have to step over to take the job?

This book does a good job of answering all these questions, in a roundabout and convoluted way. It takes some trust on the part of the reader to start understanding where the book is going. I guess that trust was rewarded, but after the culmination of the main struggle the story continues in a way that I thought was not really necessary.

It was funny – the writer is gifted with the ability to make characters likable and interesting, and there is a mixture of popular culture and brand names that I guess are included to set a time and place. Once you kind of understand what is happening it is fun to read the interactions between these characters.

But the ending of the book and the overall idea of what the author was trying accomplish left me confused. Kind of like a pilot making a successful emergency landing, but ending up at the wrong airport.

Next I am reading The Traitor by Anthony Ryan.

How did I end up reading this book? Sometimes titles end up on my reading list, and by the time I get around to them I have no idea where they came from. This is one of those books – and after reading it I’m not sure if I got any benefit at all from it.

The basic idea is interesting, I guess. The book describes what happens when a bored psychiatrist resolves to leave all decisions to the roll of a die. He is hoping to break out of his routines and allow some other “minority voices” have a chance at directing his life.

It was thought-provoking, but it also seemed to be more than a little provoking in general. Written in 1971 there is a lot of content here that probably wouldn’t fly in a modern novel, and a lot of graphic sex – to the point of obsession.

Maybe because of the age of the book and the changes in society a lot of what I think were attempts at comedy didn’t really work for me. After a while it felt like most of the plot was just a way to end up in crazy sexual situations, and to titillate rather than provide any meaningful message.

Of course there is something going on in the undercurrents – commentary on religion, psychiatry, and moral responsibility. But buried as it was underneath the lurid stories and silly situations, I’m not sure it was worth exploring.

Next I am reading The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins.

I really enjoyed this book, a sort of wish-fulfillment fantasy that has its heart in the right place. The book seems inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, with a little bit of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire mixed in.

Truly this is a great example of a book written with structure and balance – there is no extra fat to cut and it accomplishes its purpose with minimal digressions. The characters are likable and safe – no big shocks when somebody is different than what you expected (I’m looking at you, Gene Wilder!)

You would think that a book like this would be cozy and warm, but there is plenty of background that comes up during the story that is plenty sad enough to counterbalance all the happiness and sunshine. Thanks to this sort of light/dark balance the book feels less saccharine and more wholesome. It was a pleasure to read.

Next I am reading The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart.

I always like reading a good mystery – and this one was quite satisfying. The pacing of the story, the mysteries that kept coming up, and even a murder-mystery party – all of these kept me reading.

The book had plenty of twists, which I won’t go into here but I will say that unlike some other mysteries that I’ve read lately I didn’t see them coming.

Some parts of the book I felt had been done before – getting a little tricky with timelines and hiding characters you’ve met before by changing their name… these are tricks that only work when you are reading the story rather than seeing it, and I’m still not sure if they are fair tools to use on a reader.

The summation of the story made everything clear in the end, although I did feel like this book helped me determine just where my limit for believability really was. Just a little bit farther and I might have been less inclined to recommend the book.

Next I am reading The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer.