Perelandra by C.S. Lewis (B) - Enjoyed the second volume of Lewis' "Space Trilogy" quite a bit more than
Out of the Silent Planet. Ransom, the protagonist of the first novel, receives a mission from
Oyarsa (the angelic like ruler of Mars) in which he is to travel Perelandra (Venus) in order to help counter a subversion of the pristine (Edenic) planet. I enjoyed Lewis' vision of Venus although we now know it isn't possible. The conflict between Ransom and Professor Weston (Un-man) is at times is horrific. If you've read and enjoyed
The Great Divorce I think you'll also enjoy this book, There is enough of a recap, reading the first novel of the trilogy is not necessary. While I enjoyed this book of the trilogy, not sure if I'm ready to jump into the 500+ page
That Hideous Strength just yet.
AudiobookThe Colour Out of Space and Others H.P. Lovecraft (B) - Asked a co-worker what was a good place to start with H. P. Lovecraft and she suggested this short(ish) story as his best and decided to listen to the rest of the stories of this collection of works gathered from those initially published in pulp magazines in the '20s and '30s. All these stories are easily found via YouTube.
- "The Colour Out of Space" (A) - A truly gripping tale told through information a surveyor of a dam project had gathered 50 or so years after a meteor (spacecraft) crashed into a New England valley known locally as the blasted heath.
- "The Picture in the House" (meh) - While Lovecraft's writing style creates an eerie atmosphere the story itself is nothing special. A local genealogist/historian on the backroads New England makes an unfortunate choice for cover to escape a summer storm.
- "The Call of Cthulhu" (A-) - Appears to be the first story of Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. More of a detective than horror story IMO or at least for the first ⅔ of the narrative. It begins with the narrator of the story coming across notes and a bas-relief concerning a creature with an octopus/dragon/human like figure among his late granduncle's effects.. Intrigued, he becomes obsessed and travels the globe learning of the various cults dedicated to this grotesque monstrosity.
- "Cool Air" (meh) - Again excellent word craft which elevates a rather mundane story.
- "The Whisperer in Darkness" (B-/C+) - A rather lengthy novella that is tangentially part of the Cthulhu Mythos in that events related in this narrative are mentioned here. The payoff is genuinely horrific it just takes awhile to get there although it does piques one's curiosity with the other events mentioned as part of the tale.
- "The Terrible Old Man" (very meh) - A tale of the same type as "The Picture in the House" but the unfortunate figures here are thieves instead of an innocent visitor.
- "The Shadow Out of Time" (C) - A novella which relates the story of mind/bodying switching mixed with time travel. The story is told through an English professor that falls into a comma only to wake with entirely different personality. After years the original personality returns but with memories far different than the his secondary personality has lived.. The story continues as the narrator tries to make sense of the discrepancy.
- "The Dunwich Horror" (B+) - Not part of the The Colour Out of Space and Others collection but began listening to it when one of the shorter stories above ended and the YouTube channel went on to this tale. It is part of the Cthulhu Mythos although not apparently so initially. It is one of the events mentioned in "The Whisperer in Darkness."
Overall I enjoyed my introduction to Lovecraft and will likely (eventually) read/listen to the other stories of the Cthulhu Mythos.
I'm about ⅔ through
Goblet of Fire. It is what I've been reading during the lulls in Astros games, College World Series. US Open and World Cup . . .
Not sure what I'll listen to next, leaning toward a Jules Verne novel but might opt for a shorter work by Tolstoy or Dostoevsky to test the waters before diving into one of their well known but rather long novels.
January1)
A Team For America: The Army-Navy Game That Rallied a Nation at War by Randy Roberts (B)
2)
Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert (B+)
3)
What Christians Believe: Understanding the Nicene Creed by Bishop Robert Barron (A)
February4)
A Gentleman in Moscow by by Amor Towles (A)
5)
The Wingmen: The Unlikely, Unusual, Unbreakable Friendship Between John Glenn and Ted Williams by Adam Lazarus (C)
Audiobooks1)
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien - A mixture of listening and reading the text in an attempt to actually finish the book after many failed attempts in the past. I think listening to the stories comes across as the telling of lore instead of a dry history.
2)
Frankenstein (
or, The Modern Prometheus) by Mary Shelley (B)
March (Not a good reading month of reading for me)
6)
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins (B-)
Audiobooks3a)
Don Quixote Part 1 by Miguel de Cervantes (A-)
April (All three of these book are rather short, so another not particularly good reading month for me)
7)
Daybreaks: Daily Reflections for Lent and Easter by Amy Welborn (B)
8)
The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel (C-)
9)
Night by Elie Wiese (A)
Audiobooks4)
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (A)
5)
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway (C+)
6)
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (A)
May10)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
11)
Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis (C+)
12)
Harry Potter and t
he Chamber of Secrets by by J.K. Rowling
Audiobooks3b)
Don Quixote Part 2 by Miguel de Cervantes (B)
7)
Hitler's Last Soldier in America by Georg Gaertner, Arnold Krammer (B+)
June13)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
14)
Perelandra by C.S. Lewis (B)
Audiobooks8)
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain (B)
9)
The Colour Out of Space and Others by H.P. Lovecraft (B)
