Books

• Finished Historical Lovecraft - an anthology of horror tales inspired by or connected to Lovecraft's mythos. Very uneven, both in quality of writing and in the nature and degree of connection to Lovecraft. Broadly there were only 2 or 3 interesting tales in the first half of the book, but a run of good ones did stand out in the second half. Most notably, given the racism that is entwined in Lovecraft's original tales was the wide range of cultures and viewpoints featured here - which I assume was a positive decision by the editors.

• Finished This is how you lose the Time War by Amal el-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. A lyrically and sensually written novella, which I appreciated as a piece of prose poetry, but although I appreciate the themes of shared experience of trauma by combatants etc I ultimately didn't find the characters or their relationship convincing. Or at least they convinced me only that they were rather naive (which seemed at odds with their stated experiences) and were in relationships only with a fantasy of the other. Maybe that was the point though.

• Finished The Rings of Saturn by W G Sebald, which as I mentioned last week is a melancholy reflection on death, remnants and legacy over the course of a walking tour of the Suffolk coast. A thoughtful and easy read, though over-romanticised.

• Currently reading The Romance of the Three Kingdoms - which is my year-long read for 2024. This Chinese classic is basically 'Game of Thrones' in ancient China but without any descriptive writing, as was the style at the time. There are a LOT of names to get to grips with, but the plot is moving on at a good pace.

• Currently reading The Nyarlathotep Cycle - more Lovecraftian tales focused on the eponymous figure and its development by various authors. It is proving interesting to see each author's contribution to the mythos. Currently enjoying The Curse of the Black Pharoah by Lin Carter, which ticks just about every trope that you would expect, but does so in unabashed style.

• Currently reading The Earth Transformed by Peter Frankopan. Interesting and detailed history focused on human reactions to and impact on climate and environment.

Also currently reading a couple of others, but that's enough for now.

Been slowly working on The Earth Transformed by Peter Frankopan. And by slowly I mean I just finished the first chapter after 4 days of reading. Really interesting look at climate change beyond the scope of the modern climate crisis. I was worried it was going to downplay the trouble we're in, but if anything it's the opposite so far. An awful lot of mass extinction events look like our climate projections.

... And since I've clearly been struggling to read much lately I started working through the Laid-back Camp manga to kick my brain into a different gear. Good ol' comfy goofiness.

Was just about to break into Cracking the Walnut, which is an evaluation and translation of the writings of Nagarjuna by Thich Nhat Hanh. I've read all that I can find translated by Nagarjuna, and excited to see things from a new perspective.

Before that was my third (failed) attempt to get through the Simarillion, and revisiting some Jiddu Krishnamurti.

I’m reading Journeys Out Of The Body by Robert A. Monroe.

A few years back I stumbled upon the Astral Projection subreddit. I thought it was absurd, especially the really crunchy view a lot of people took on the matter. But something about the subject struck me, I read up on methods and gave it a shot—now, I never understood how to do controlled dreaming or lucid dreaming, but I always wanted to. Love layered states of consciousness, I’d love to be able to explore some naturally.

Well, that night, I used some of the techniques I learned and actually started experiencing some of the preliminary signs! I hit the vibrational stage, I was “moving” without moving my physical body. It was all so surreal, but it felt so intuitive.

Well, after a few weeks of trying it, I hit a wall after finally escaping my body on a few occasions. Now, I’m still not sure about some of the claims, and I do believe there is a scientific explanation…but there are some things that almost do kind of escape explanation. It’s such an interesting thing, and I’d love to master it to test my own beliefs about consciousness and reality.

But it’s been years since I’ve even gotten close. Maybe it’s some form of the yips, I dunno. If the rest of my life serves as any basis, his is definitely the case. I find natural abilities and then when I am surprised by my own success and seemingly untapped potential, my mind breaks. I lose all ability.

But anyway, I was hoping reading this book would put me back in the right mind space to see some success again. I have a few more obstacles standing in my way now, as I have chronic pain that often wakes me up/leaves me unable to sleep still. But I am still determined.

Anyone have any AP experience or tips to share?

currently listening to Bioshifter Volume 2 by Natalie "thundamoo" maher.

gonna start book 10 of Beneath the dragoneye moons By Selkie Myth

and waiting for the next book in The Wandering Inn to come out

Soccer in Sun and Shadow by Uruguayan journalist Eduardo Galeano. The passion in which he recounts the sport's history from its modest inception up to its consumerist rebranding, and the vividness in which he describes its beautiful moments and dismal tragedies, is simply breathtaking. Galeano's words on paper capture the art of the sport better than any camera and TV screen.

I will be writing and posting a review of the book once I am done reading it.

Currently reading Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson. Trying to work my way through all four books. It's been pretty slow going but I'm really enjoying them

I wanted to dive deeper in specific topics this year, rather than jumping from one topic to the next. The coming months I want to read mostly contemporary Japanese literature, which is still a very broad topic of course. Right now I'm reading No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai, a short novel about a troubled man who fails to connect to others. Currently halfway and ian incredibly bleak view on human relationships and interaction.

I finished The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beale and am wrapping up some novella follow ups.

After that I’m going to work on the Locke and Key Graphic Novels by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez. Then The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner. I read The Thief last year and really enjoyed it, my goal is to work through a bunch of the series I read the firsts of last year when I was discovering what I’d missed.