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Posted
11 hours ago, Cliff Hanger said:

I've been bouncing between Perlstein's NIXONLAND (which i probably can't talk about without getting the mods' hackles up) and David Craddock's LONG LIVE MORTAL KOMBAT (which is fucking awesome. He got interviews not only with most of the MK1-4 staff but a lot of the martial artists too.) I've been stuck for a bit on the chapter about Dan Pesina's history with the franchise and his seemingly-ahistorical claims, though.

 

Once I finish one or both, my next nonfiction is Michael Molcher's I AM THE LAW, about the relationship between Judge Dredd and RL law enforcement issues. (Vast oversimplification, obviously.)

 

Fiction-wise, I'm getting ready to finally start A JUST DETERMINATION, the first in John Hemry's space-opera JAG legal thrillers, which I have been meaning to read for 9 years now.

Its been a long time since I read Nixonland, but I liked it.

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Read Children of the Vault, and it was OK for a Bishop/Cable short, but utterly pointless. Things happen, then everything unhappens. About the only important thing happens in the last issue when one of the Children name drops the current Big Bad.

Posted (edited)

Black Heart Turns Blue vol. 1 - Jerry A. Lang

Man. This is the singer of Poison Idea's autobiography and it's a rough one. It's the first of three so obviously he's starting with his childhood, and it is some of the most abusive shit imaginable. Him turning into any kind of decent person after is crazy. Still, his life stayed a spiral of violence and legendary drug abuse. He's a solid dude though, in comparison to reading Jack from TSOL, another '80s hardcore singer's book who was a brutal sociopath that finally changed. THAT was legit the scariest and most disturbing autobio I've ever read and is way more "that guy deserves to be dead" instead of "that guy should be dead". Vol 2 on the way. 

Also reading Shock Value by John Waters 😁 Happy birthday, Master!

And I bought Ultimate Punisher 2. It's the original volume of comics after the miniseries. The Punisher is misrepresented as this Batman/Rambo combination. He's not. He's Dexter Morgan with an arsenal. And he's always smiling.

Edited by Curt McGirt
Posted

Catching up a bit -

 

Finished both White Sand and the second batch of Mistborn books, and I think I'm done with Brandon Sanderson for now. Both ended very lazily - yes, I know, he was finishing Robert Jordan's monstrosity - and I'm returning the first book of the Stormlight Archives unread for now.

Library has The Three Body Problem waiting for me. This is one of those books I've been meaning to read for a while, and now that there's a series on Netflix there's a bunch of copies available. I'm also gearing up for a re-read of Tad Williams' The Last King of Osten Ard series. Hopefully by the time I get them / get through them the last one will be out. 😉

Posted

2nd part of the Jerry A. bio down. Drugs, drugs, drugs. Addiction and death. Nasty stuff.

I also sped through The Life We Chose, life story of Billy D'Elia, the successor to overarching mob boss Russell Bufalino, who was the actual "boss of all bosses" in America. Pesci played him in The Irishman. Neat stuff for a mafia historian like me. Now I'm on Roberto Saviano's Zero Zero Zero which is about how cocaine has become the boss of all bosses worldwide. Dark and pessimistic, just like his brilliant Gomorrah. There's a reason he's under police protection for the rest of his life.

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

The last two weeks at work, and what's looking like at least the next two weeks as well, have been spent in the middle of fucking nowhere, with practically zero cell reception and the days are getting progressively later and later, on top of the one hour drive each way to the location. So, I jumped into the audible library to see what would help me pass some time. I went with Different Seasons, a Stephen King novella collection.

 

I knocked out the first one: "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" in a single sitting, side from a couple of quick pauses for piss breaks or catching my mind wandering and rewinding to make sure I didn't miss anything big. The movie is actually a pretty faithful adaptation, although it expands on a lot of things in order to be a feature length movie, and the ending is a lot more open ended.

  • Like 2
Posted

Read and enjoyed The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu. Well translated by Ken Liu, phenomenal work considering the scientific and cultural stuff involved. I've already asked my library to get the second book in the series.

Posted

Also read "The Wedding of Tony Stark and Emma Frost", and it was REALLY good. Loved the twists and turns. Made me want to keep up with this iteration of the Iron Man comic.

Posted

Quick hits on new stuff that I've read because I've been doing mostly of re-reading of stuff I've read before since about six months ago:

King by Allan Levine - Yeah, I think I pretty much know everything I could want to know about this particular Canadian PM. He was uncomfortably emotionally entwined with his mother, he was an ardent spiritualist, he was very anti-Semitic. That's the WLMK story. That and having a Nixon-like ability to revive what was seemingly a dead political career after a huge loss or setback multiple times in his life.

The Exchange by John Grisham - As fun as his last book The Boys From Biloxi was, a vintage Grisham airport bookstore page-turner, this was not. I think I liked it better when Mitch and Abby were floating around the Caymans with a few million bucks in their secret bank account. I'm more interested in whatever Mark Sway is up to than finding out that Mitch and Abby are boring yuppies with two kids living in NYC or reading about them experiencing a far less entertaining legal thrill ride than they did in The Firm

A Little Yellow Dog by Walter Mosley - I've long loved the film adaptation of Devil in a Blue Dress, but I never had gotten around to reading an Easy Rawlins mystery. I finally did, and what do you know, it was a page turner. I committed myself to leaving this one at my bedside and just reading a couple chapters a night before I went to sleep as a cool-down device, but I did cheat a bit yesterday as I got closer to the end, and I finished it last night. I'm resolving to go back and start reading these Easy Rawlins mysteries from the beginning (I think A Little Yellow Dog is the fourth Rawlins mystery). I'm bummed that HBO canceled their Perry Mason adaptation, which was a gorgeous and well-acted show, and I would have loved a Perry Mason/Easy Rawlins L.A. Area Mystery Night on MAX if HBO were still prolific in putting out great shows. 

I also read a couple of complete stinkers (besides the new Grisham) that I've already sold back to used book stores, the most notable of those being Upon Further Review: The Greatest What-Ifs in Sports History, a book of counterfactuals centered around major American sports happenings that includes two decent counterfactuals, one to disprove an assumption that people generally have about the effects of adopting Title IX, and a bunch of crap. There's a book about English and Scottish football counterfactuals called What If? that is actually a series of thoughtfully researched counterfactuals interlaced with some solid narrative writing about how the counter scenario might have turned out, and I expected at least that level of writing in Upon Further Review. I didn't get it, and thus this is one of the worst books that I've read in awhile. 

Posted

I'm roughly 60-65 percent through "Apt Pupil" - the second novella in the collection. It's another good one, albeit with some very unsettling scenes in it. I was talking about it with my sister last night and she informed me that Dusander is played by Ian McKellen in the movie, which completely fits and probably explains the accent that the narrator uses for the audiobook, because it sounds like he's doing his best McKellen impersonation. I'll definitely finish it today and possibly also the next one in the collection "The Body" (better known as Stand By Me, one of my all time favorite movies).

  • Like 1
Posted

Love all the Easy Rawlins until the book where Mosley brought Easy back.

Mouse is such a fun little psychopath

James

  • Like 2
Posted

Been all in on audiobooks lately due to both time constraints and honestly my eyesight having some issues. Curse you age and genetics! 

Knocked out Thirteen Storeys and then Family Business, both by Jonathan Sims. I was already a fan of his work in The Magnus Archives, but writing a serialized horror podcast is very different structurally from a novel. Thankfully, he's been more than up to the challenge. Both were superb, easily among my favourite horror reads of the last decade. The biggest issue I'm having is that I want more novel stuff from him and he doesn't even have a third announced yet.

Posted

"Apt Pupil" was finished yesterday. It's a very good story, but like I said in my earlier post about it, there are some very unsettling scenes in it. The ending is also way out of left field. Which isn't exactly a shocker with Stephen King.

 

I started The Body, but had to take a break because there's a bit of an interlude where adult Gordie reads one of his first published stories, and it's so jarring that it completely took my interest out of it. I managed to finish the chapter and after a little bit, I went back to it and the story itself resumed.

  • Like 1
Posted
On 5/14/2024 at 10:00 AM, J.H. said:

Love all the Easy Rawlins until the book where Mosley brought Easy back.

Mouse is such a fun little psychopath

James

I've only read the short story collection and that was a while ago so I'm thankful for these posts reminding me I wanted to get into the series. 

Posted

I'm reading film critic/author Glenn Kelly's The World Is Yours: The Story of Scarface. He sure is an opinionated fella, which takes a bit to get used to. I've read his stuff on the Roger Ebert site for quite a while but it's mildly jarring to see it in what is ostensibly supposed to be an objective narrative story. After you get used to it he comes off like an entertaining and cheeky bastard. The story itself is a bit Rashomon-esque as there are multiple viewpoints on happenings. (I wonder why he doesn't bring up the mob influence on The Godfather's production, but then this isn't a Godfather book. It serves to say he wrote a Goodfellas book too.)

As I tend to do at the library, I grabbed too much, so I returned three different books: one about poor white people in America called Trash, A People's Indiginous History of the United States (which was on display and seemed like a must-read but I knew I'd never get around to), and a book making the argument for US immigration reform from two Latino authors. I kept the Scarface book and a relatively slim one called America Last from Jacob Heilbrunn. At first I worried that it was written by a conservative -- and it turns out he is some kind of jaded or lapsed one who writes for a conservative paper or journal, one -- but it's about how the fascist/strongman-worship, anti-democratic and pro-autocrat worship in the country has always been here; the narrative hasn't changed since BEFORE the German Bunds were having Nazi rallies pre-WWII even. I mean of course since slavery exists it has, but these are specific examples. I trust I will be very angry, IF I finish this.

Posted

Reading a book about Casablanca by one of my old film professors. Hope to have her on the podcast to discuss it once I’m done.

Posted
On 5/11/2024 at 4:11 PM, JLSigman said:

Read and enjoyed The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu. Well translated by Ken Liu, phenomenal work considering the scientific and cultural stuff involved. I've already asked my library to get the second book in the series.

The Dark Forest wasn't as good as the first book, and I'm not sure if it's the author or the different translator. I suspect a little of both. Still going to get the third one to see how it wraps up, and because the first translator is back.

Posted

Forgot to mention I finished all three volumes of the Jerry A. book. So, basically, here's the timeline. It's pretty long but I just felt like writing, I guess. 

Spoiler

- Kid is born. Broken family, alcoholic mom, two different stepdads he's bounced between. One physically abusive one sexually as well. He's just juggled through cities in the Northwest by these people growing up real fucking hard into a 6'2'' 250 lb kid. Loves music, finds punk. Punk as outlet is almost equally dangerous. He drinks every day of his life, can do a Belushi chug of a fifth as a party trick, and keep going. Does every drug he can but has an aversion to serious meth, especially after encountering its effects on people after a trip to San Francisco a little later on for six to a year where he lives homeless sleeping in the Vats and anywhere else safe or not. There's a LOT of sex in this too, starting from way too early. 

- During this, Poison Idea is formed. He is main songwriter. Lineup fluctuates, they end up having over 30 members. It's hard to leave Portland to tour because of, first their inertia in leaving their drug contacts, second their literal weight because Tom Pig and Jerry are both about a ton total. Tom is incredibly huge (even though the Pig title comes from his previous band the Imperialist Pigs). During these records, mini tours, local shows, heroin goes from being in play to being full-bore. Tom is a coke dealer who starts making his own crack for himself. Jerry is having disgusting things happen to his body and ends up in a full on coma after several ODs. PI TOURS EUROPE MULTIPLE TIMES and endures trying to make drug connects and hold enough just to stay stable, but end up binging it all of course. They go to JAPAN WITH DRUGS and the same thing happens, they can't even get drugs from the Yakuza who are sponsoring them.

- After Tom ends up homeless and upwards of 500 lbs, Jerry almost loses his leg due to an abscess. They both finally end up on the methodone program which is worse than heroin. PI still release records and play live; Tom retires from live playing. Lives on and off with Jerry. Jerry lives on and off with his girlfriend of decades. Finally, Tom dies due probably of an overdose, or due to kidney failure. Jerry continues on. It's his band. Tom was his best friend, but it had to continue. Jerry is convinced to write a book and he wants it to end with Tom's death. He's ready to die at this point. I can't remember what happens, but he decides to live on. It's not some spiritual thing. He starts helping with public service. The end of this is kind of rambling and a lot of it is very dark. He even says his relationship might end up imploding, but he's still here. 

I left out some really fucked up and gross things, and HE left out some shit that was even worse. 

I'm not sure if this really does take the cake over the Jack-from-TSOL book. Jerry is insistent in all of this that he was a good man. He never took advantage of anyone, stood up for anyone who deserved it, and I believe him. His moral code is pretty set in stone from all appearances. That may be the pull over from Jack's dark side to not being AS fucked up, but man... it's long, and it's fucked.

It's impossible to recommend this just because 😄

 

Posted

My most recent re-read of Lord of the Rings has led me to Fonstad's Atlas of Middle-Earth, which I had no idea existed and is completely my jam.

It also made me look up how much it would cost to replace the nice boxed hardcover set of LOTR I used to have and for $200 I think I'm good.

  • Like 1
Posted
On 5/20/2024 at 4:57 PM, Curt McGirt said:

I'm reading film critic/author Glenn Kelly's The World Is Yours: The Story of Scarface. He sure is an opinionated fella, which takes a bit to get used to. I've read his stuff on the Roger Ebert site for quite a while but it's mildly jarring to see it in what is ostensibly supposed to be an objective narrative story. After you get used to it he comes off like an entertaining and cheeky bastard. The story itself is a bit Rashomon-esque as there are multiple viewpoints on happenings. (I wonder why he doesn't bring up the mob influence on The Godfather's production, but then this isn't a Godfather book. It serves to say he wrote a Goodfellas book too.)

As I tend to do at the library, I grabbed too much, so I returned three different books: one about poor white people in America called Trash, A People's Indiginous History of the United States (which was on display and seemed like a must-read but I knew I'd never get around to), and a book making the argument for US immigration reform from two Latino authors. I kept the Scarface book and a relatively slim one called America Last from Jacob Heilbrunn. At first I worried that it was written by a conservative -- and it turns out he is some kind of jaded or lapsed one who writes for a conservative paper or journal, one -- but it's about how the fascist/strongman-worship, anti-democratic and pro-autocrat worship in the country has always been here; the narrative hasn't changed since BEFORE the German Bunds were having Nazi rallies pre-WWII even. I mean of course since slavery exists it has, but these are specific examples. I trust I will be very angry, IF I finish this.

https://www.dissentmagazine.org/blog/know-your-enemy-why-the-right-loves-foreign-dictators/ reeally good interview with Jacob Heilbrunn, picked up the book butt got to it yet

 

On 5/1/2024 at 5:16 PM, Curt McGirt said:

2nd part of the Jerry A. bio down. Drugs, drugs, drugs. Addiction and death. Nasty stuff.

I also sped through The Life We Chose, life story of Billy D'Elia, the successor to overarching mob boss Russell Bufalino, who was the actual "boss of all bosses" in America. Pesci played him in The Irishman. Neat stuff for a mafia historian like me. Now I'm on Roberto Saviano's Zero Zero Zero which is about how cocaine has become the boss of all bosses worldwide. Dark and pessimistic, just like his brilliant Gomorrah. There's a reason he's under police protection for the rest of his life.

I assume you've read The Five Familes by S. Raab?

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)

Oh yeah. All kinds of stuff. That one I found kind of boring actually, but some of the Lucchese and Columbo family stuff and end of the Bonnanos was new to me. The Outfit by Gus Russo is probably my favorite, it's a rather large tome but it's so interesting. Family Secrets by Jeff Coen is an excellent coda book to see how the Chicago mob ended up. I Heard You Paint Houses is good even if D'Elia hated it and there are some transparency issues... like leaving out the very existence of D'Elia in it, and how the ghostwriter originally was gonna go with some far-fetched story about an Asian mob being behind Hoffa's death (WTF?!) before Frank decided to just have him write the truth. He says that Frank wasn't the killer and that Tony Pro was more likely, with Frank killing Tony Pro in response, but who knows. And that the part about him killing Joey Gallo was bullshit, too. 

And then as said there's Gomorrah and Zero Zero Zero which are just another level. They'll crush your soul, but they're incredible. I also have to give a nod to the great great great Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein and The Last Yakuza by him too which I believe I mentioned above. 

I have yet to read a good (any, really) book about the Chinese Triads. Anybody? I'd also like to read a good breakdown of the Canadian mob, read a bit about the murderous bikers up there but nothing about their families linked to the ones down here. 

Edited by Curt McGirt
  • Like 1
  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Two punk autobiographies at once this time:

Please Bee Nice: My Life So Far - Gary Floyd

Gary just passed, leaving us a treasure trove of music, and this book. Pretty thin but detailed. Gary had a crazy life as a fat, gay Commie Buddhist punk rocker/blues singer (!). Definitely (and defiantly) before his time. He had a lot of pre- and during-AIDS bookstore sex too, just like he sang about... there is probably more info on those matters in the last John Waters book but he definitely made it clear that was going on.

Crate Digger - Bob Suren

Bob ran Sound Idea record shop/distro, Burrito Records, and was in several bands in Florida since the '90s til '08. This is biography in the form of anecdote, inspired by different records that bring up moments and people in his life, from A-Z. There's only one record so far that he doesn't say anything about and instead just goes into a story. Nice guy, no sex or drug stories at all -- it's all about the music.

  • Like 1
Posted

Finished with Crate Digger. It certainly took a dark turn toward the end. Bob might've not been a drinker or a druggie, but he certainly had/has a temper, and there are circumstances where he threatened ripoff artists and thieves including beating up and pulling a gun on shoplifters. He met a guy from Poland who said "everyone is afraid of you over there" haha. Due to his musical obsession he eventually pushed his wife of 20-some years to divorce him and immediately went into a mad grasp for female affection, where he says he was basically toyed with and shut down multiple times. So, he sold everything, went to Costa Rica, found nothing there, bounced to Austin, and that's where he leaves it. I hope he's still around because he talks about suicide plans he's made before and all.

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