First Visit to 3d Maker Zone
A friend who works on a few projects with the team at the 3D Maker Zone in
Haarlem suggested I visit them, and I finally went there
today.
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Pico Explorer Base and Pico 2 Units
After yesterday’s write up, I wanted to try the older Pico Explorer Base with newer RP2350 units, and it was a real success. [Read More] -
Pimoroni Explorer vs. Pico Explorer Base
I’ve used the Pico Explorer Base for a while, and finally have spent enough time with the Pimoroni Explorer to make a fair comparison. [Read More] -
Really Useful Replacement Handle
One of the key things I like about 3D printing is that you can make replacement parts at home. My latest 3D modelling project is a replacement handle for a Really Useful Storage box. [Read More] -
New Year, New Site
It’s been a while since I had a shared area where I posted stuff. I used to have a Blogger account and used that for about five years, but haven’t keep up with it since my son was born. I haven’t stopped making things or writing, though. I often create... [Read More] -
Pimoroni Plasma Lightshow
As an early Christmas present, I got the Pimoroni Plasma Starter Kit to spruce up our guest room. The kit includes a Pimoroni Plasma 2350, which is a RP2350 board purpose-built to drive NeoPixel lights. In past work with NeoPixels, I’ve noticed that they struggle when powered off of 3.7... [Read More] -
Glow Glasses version 1.0
In today’s post I’ll talk about how I made “glow glasses” to test my growing 3D modelling skills. [Read More] -
Entering "Bootsel" model on a Pi Pico Using the Reset Button
When you want to deploy something new (or a new version of something) to a Pi Pico or 2040 Stamp, you need a way to put the device in bootsel mode, which will allow you to copy a new firmware image onto the device. The Round Stamp Carrier I’ve been... [Read More] -
RP2040 Stamp and Round Carrier
I was talking with a friend and learned about Solder Party’s RP2040 Stamp. I was especially intrigued by their “round carrier”, which was the first “breakout” board I could actually see using unaltered in a bunch of projects, as it has USB-C and a LiPo battery connector onboard, plus a... [Read More] -
Setting Up VS Code for Pi Pico and the Explorer Base
I got far enough with an early project for the Pi Pico that I really wanted to step through things using VS Code and my picoprobe. Thankfully, this guide from DigiKey is almost exactly what I needed. I followed that with only a couple of extra steps. Building / Installing... [Read More] -
Running and Debugging Python on the Pi Pico
I’m currently refreshing my decades-old understanding of c++ before working on a new project on the Pi Pico. As that’s gonna take a while, I thought I’d see how the Pi Pico is with Python. CircuitPython The sample code provided by PImoroni includes python files that are meant to be... [Read More] -
Raspberry Pi Pico Debugger
I recently started working with the Raspberry Pi Pico, and got to the point where I wanted a debugger. If you have a spare Pi Pico and few wires, you can actually build your own debugger using this open source firmware. As my desk has enough exposed wires and circuit... [Read More] -
"Tool of the Trade" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyTool of the Trade by Joe Haldeman My rating: 3 of 5 stars “Tool of the Trade” belongs to a sub-genre of SF that could be called “Simon Says”. What if someone had the power to make other people do what they wanted, if free will came with an asterisk?... [Read More] -
"Dying Inside" by Robert Silverberg
By TonyYet again I’m surprised and pleased by the SF Masterworks series, most recently for introducing me to Robert Silverberg’s “Dying Inside”. “Dying Inside” sits somewhere between Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” (in which a man awakes to find himself transformed into a bug) and”The Fermata” by Nicholson Baker (in which a man has... [Read More] -
"Pavane" by Keith Roberts
By TonyYet again, the “SF Masterworks” series has delivered another amazing and unexpected book to my reading list. This week’s entry is “Pavane” by Keith Roberts, analternatehistory of England (in the same sense that “Bring the Jubilee” by Ward Moore was an alternate history of the US). Although England has quite... [Read More] -
"Pygmy" by Chuck Pahlaniuk
By TonyIf you were to try to recreate American culture based on the works of Chuck Pahlaniuk, you would get quite an odd picture. His characters are individuals, defined by their history, but straining against their limits. The subservient missionary in “Survivor” has been trained all his life to serve, to... [Read More] -
"Timescape" by Gregory Benford
By TonyI’m nearing the home stretch with the SF Masterworks series, and it’s still full of surprising and great books. The latest example is “Timescape” by Gregory Benford. Time travel is a well-explored concept to say the least in Science Fiction. From “The Time Machine” to “The Terminator” to “Futurama”, SF... [Read More] -
"VOR" by James Blish
By TonyI read my first James Blish novels working my way through the Sci-Fi Masterworks, and it’s been a pleasure to wander off the path and track down his other works. I found a few piles of Blish novels on my recent trip to San Francisco, and the last of these... [Read More] -
"House of Suns" by Alastair Reynolds
By TonyDuring my recent journey around the world, I caught up on a lot of reading. I don’t usually think of myself as a fan of space opera. I think of it as something I’m not often in the mood to enjoy. Looking back, it seems like I’ve been in the... [Read More] -
"Roadside Picnic" by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
By TonyI had never read any Science Fiction coming out of the former Soviet Union until I finally sat down and read “Roadside Picnic”, one of the few remaining books in the Sci-Fi Masterworks series. The Strugatsky brothers describe a world scarred by alien visitation. The central metaphor is of a... [Read More] -
Three Tales of Immortality: "Welcome, Chaos" by Kate Wilhelm, "Time Enough for Love" by Robert Heinlein, and "The Passage" by Justin Cronin
By TonyWhen I started grazing through the Sci-Fi Masterworks series a few years ago, I had never heard of Kate Wilhelm. Her “Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang” was a wonderful discovery, a meditation on the changes cloning might have on the nature of individuality. Wilhelm’s “Let the Fire Fall” reminded... [Read More] -
"Camouflage" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyI just finished “Camouflage”, another quick and fun read from Joe Haldeman, author of “Forever War”, “Accidental Time Machine” and “Marsbound”. Joe Haldeman fills his book with thinking characters, outsiders who succeed because they take leaps of faith, outwit or just outluck the problems they encounter. His characters are self-aware,... [Read More] -
"Midsummer Century" by James Blish
By Tony“Midsummer Century” is the last of the small treasure trove of James Blish novels found in several used book stores in San Francisco during my recent “journey to the west”. When I first started reading Blish (with “Cities in Flight”), I thought of him as a long-format author. Now I... [Read More] -
"Mockingbird" by Walter Tevis
By TonyI dropped by Galaxy Books in Sydney on my recent trip around the world, and I was pleased to find a few of the last remaining gems from the Gollancz SF Masterworks series. Chief among them is “Mockingbird” by Walter Tevis. “Mockingbird” is a remarkable novel about the loss and... [Read More] -
"Anywhen" by James Blish
By TonyI was very fortunate on my recent trip through San Fransisco to stumble on a treasure trove of books by James Blish, whose “Cities in Flight” and “After Such Knowledge” series I heartily enjoyed. Over the next few months, I’ll be reviewing the books I found in between a few... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 6: Amsterdam
By TonyMy journey to the west ended where it started, back home in Amsterdam. We’ve lived here for a year and a half, and this is the longest I’ve been away in that time. There’s a phrase written on the underside of a bridge near Central Station: “Terugkomen is niet hetzelfde... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 5: Kuala Lumpur
By TonyThe last stop in my world tour was Kuala Lumpur, where I spent a week with my colleagues at Customware. They work European working hours, so it was a college student’s dream job: roll into work at 3, leave at midnight. The team is a diverse bunch of smart, enthusiastic,... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 4: Singapore
By TonyIn transit from Sydney to Kuala Lumpur, I stopped off to see some old friends in Singapore. It was a short trip, but great. I hadn’t seen them in about four years, and it was great to catch up. We did a bit of touring, a lot of shopping, and... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 3: Sydney
By TonyMy journey around the world continued in Sydney, where the home office for Atlassian is located. This was my first trip to the mothership, and it was a blast. I got to meet a lot of amazing people, put faces to names, and have a lot of face to face... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 2: San Francisco, California
By TonyThe next stop on my world tour was San Fransisco, where I spent a week with my colleagues at Atlassian. Most of them were feverishly getting ready for our annual Summit, but there were still plenty of opportunities to put faces to names and get to know the extended family... [Read More] -
Journey to the West, Part 1: Boulder, Colorado
By TonyThe first stop in my world tour was a side trip to see my friend Antranig in his new home in Boulder. The city is lovely and so warm after Amsterdam. We did a fair amount of walking around, which is always welcome after a long flight or three. The... [Read More] -
My Journey to the West...
By TonyFor the month of June, I’m traveling around the world on business, hitting the following ports of call: Boulder San Francisco Sydney Singapore Kuala Lumpur I’ll be posting from each of these places and writing about the absolute flotilla of books I’m reading in transit. Stay tuned! [Read More] -
"Tau Zero" by Poul Anderson
By TonyI was pleased and surprised to encounter a copy of Poul Anderson’s “Tau Zero” at the American Book Center when stocking up on books for a recent trip. This is one of a shrinking handful of books I still haven’t read in the Gollancz Sci-fi Masterworks series, and I was... [Read More] -
"Lisey's Story" by Stephen King
By TonyWhen I was 12, I read almost everything Stephen King had ever written. His work was (and is) imaginative, but accessible. He spins a web of simple words, drawn from music, movies, books, but always combined in novel ways. His books were filled with memorable (but flawed) protagonists and sinister,... [Read More] -
"Last and First Men" by Olaf Stapledon
By TonyOlaf Stapledon isn’t afraid to work on a big canvas. His “Star Maker” spans the life of our universe and beyond. Rather than searching for power, or money, or fame, or even love, the main character in “Star Maker” roams the universe trying to become aware enough to perceive and... [Read More] -
"Search the Sky" by Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth
By TonyHot on the heels of reading “The Space Merchants”, I devoured “Search the Sky”, another collaborative work between Frederick Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth. There’s a long tradition of stories in which a man whose world (and world view) are close to our own travels through a series of (from our... [Read More] -
"The Space Merchants" by Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth
By TonyI’m continuing to work through the Gollancz SF Masterworks series, I was pleased the other day to finally find a copy of “The Space Merchants” by Frederick Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth, one of the few remaining books in the series to have eluded me thus far. Although there’s a bit... [Read More] -
"A Leg to Stand On" by Oliver Sacks
By TonyI finally read “A Leg to Stand On” the other day, and have been thinking about it off and on. I enjoy Dr. Sacks’ writing, from short case studies like “An Anthropologist on Mars” and “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat”, to autobiography like “Uncle Tungsten: Memories... [Read More] -
A Weekend in Brussels
By TonyIt was Elaine’s birthday on Friday, so we went to Brussels for the weekend. We’ve been to Belgium before, but never as far south. Almost immediately, I was struck by the shift to French as compared to the Vlaamse-heavy north. It was a perfect chance for Elaine to work on... [Read More] -
"Spock Must Die" by James Blish
By TonyJames Blish is a great writer. Each of his books is a carefully considered meal prepared for the reader, complex, but balanced and enjoyable. His “Okie” novels are like a fusion chef’s take on cowboy cuisine, full of pioneer spirit, but nuanced. His “Black Easter” is a solid meal which... [Read More] -
"Star Maker" by Olaf Stapledon
By Tony“Star Maker” is a different kind of novel, that presents a central philosophy, a central question, and strives to answer it. The question could be phrased as “What motivates God?” or “What is the nature of the universe that we experience and the creative force that caused it to come... [Read More] -
"Marsbound" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyIt’s easy to think of legendary Science Fiction authors in the past tense. If you’re like me, you may have encountered classics like “Forever War” decades after they were written. If you’re a fan of used book stores and are reading an older edition of “Forever War”, the “other works... [Read More] -
"The Accidental Time Machine" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyJoe Haldeman has an intelligent and natural style that’s hard to resist. Although his grasp of future science is good (sometimes even eerie), he never forgets about the characters who are our means of experiencing his ideas. Their lives alternate between drudgery and terror, between absurdity and triumph. They are... [Read More] -
"Mission of Gravity" by Hal Clement
By TonyI finished “Mission of Gravity” a while ago, and have had some time to think about it since. This book has a great central conceit. On Earth, gravity varies a small amount, but is roughly constant. On Mesklin, the planet featured in “Mission of Gravity”, gravity varies from around 3... [Read More] -
"Man Plus" by Frederik Pohl
By TonyI’ve been travelling for the holidays, which means I’ve finally been cooped up for long enough to read a few new books. Since I have a bit of time off, I also have a bit of time to write up some of the books I’ve finished but haven’t written up... [Read More] -
"Eon" by Greg Bear
By TonyBy all rights, I should love Greg Bear’s “Eon”. I loved his “Tangents”, and enjoyed “Blood Music” as well. The subject matter seems almost perfect for me as well. If you told me a book by Greg Bear was about humanity unlocking the secrets of space travel in the aftermath... [Read More] -
"Matter" by Iain M. Banks
By Tony“Matter” is another epic space opera in the “Culture” series. I’ve enjoyed (and reviewed) “Consider Phlebas”, “Look to Windward”, “Use of Weapons”, “Player of Games”, “Against a Dark Background”, “Inversions” and “Excession”, and “Matter” is a fine way to end the run. Banks is a master of bringing a fresh... [Read More] -
"The Algebraist" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyThe phrase “gas giant” was coined by the author James Blish in one of his stories, and is now widely applied to planets such as Jupiter. “The Algebraist” is a novel of gas giants (and the cultures they sustain). This isn’t a Culture novel, but it’s the same style of... [Read More] -
"After Such Knowledge" by James Blish
By TonyI recently finished the thematic trilogy “After Such Knowledge” by James Blish. The book consists of four novels: “Dr. Mirabilis”, “Black Easter”, “The Day After Judgement”, “A Case of Conscience”. The last of these was recently reprinted as number 30 in the Gollancz SF Masterworks series, which is kind of... [Read More] -
"Greybeard" by Brian Aldiss
By TonyAfter reading “Non-stop” and a confusing misprinted edition of “Cryptozoic” last year, I thought I would give Brian Aldiss another go. I picked up a tattered copy of “Greybeard” and finished it on a lazy summer afternoon. This is yet another end-of-the-world scenario, in which atomic testing has rendered all... [Read More] -
"Gods of Riverworld" by Philip José Farmer
By TonyI finished “Gods of Riverworld” by Philip José Farmer a while ago. I’ve waited a while to write this up, as I was kind of lukewarm on the last book in the Riverworld series. In the Riverworld, people have souls (“wathans”). It doesn’t matter that they were created using technology,... [Read More] -
"The Synthetic Man" by Theodore Sturgeon
By TonyIn preparation for an upcoming move (across town), I’ve been working through a pile of books so that I can sell them back to the Book Exchange and lighten the load a bit. One of the recent quickies I whipped through is “The Synthetic Man” by Theodore Sturgeon. I had... [Read More] -
"The Dark Side of the Earth" by Alfred Bester
By TonyNow that I have a steady source for paperback editions of classic science fiction in town (the Book Exchange here in Amsterdam), I have been picking up a sampling of books from authors I’ve enjoyed previously. In the latest batch, I picked up “The Dark Side of the Earth” by... [Read More] -
"Inside Outside" by Philip José Farmer
By TonyHot on the heels of finishing the “Riverworld” series by Philip José Farmer, I decided to go through one of his shorter works, “Inside Outside”. I got a strange sense of déja vu reading this. Farmer paints a world in which people are resurrected after death, and in which they... [Read More] -
"The Magic Labyrinth" by Philip José Farmer
By TonyI was hooked by “To Your Scattered Bodies Go” a few weeks ago, and have been blazing through the rest of the series. I just finished “The Magic Labyrinth”, the fourth book, which completes the major arc that brings the “lazari” of the Riverworld face to face with the people... [Read More] -
"The Dark Design" by Philip José Farmer
By Tony“The Dark Design” is the third of four books in the main current of the “Riverworld” series. We pick up from where “The Fabulous Riverboat” left off. A friend of mine liked this installment fairly well, but I think of it more as an arrow in flight than as a... [Read More] -
"The Reader" by Bernhard Schlink
By TonyOn a recent trip, I ran through my own stack of books and borrowed a copy of “The Reader” by Bernhard Schlink. To describe the story in too much detail would be to spoil it. In short, this is a story about a romance (of a sort) set against the... [Read More] -
"The Fabulous Riverboat" by Philip José Farmer
By TonyHaving read and enjoyed “To Your Scattered Bodies Go” and the “Riverworld” novella that predated it, I decided to work my way through Philip José Farmer’s “Riverworld” series on a recent trip. The first novel in the series brings us the first seven years of life on the Riverworld. This... [Read More] -
"Feersum Endjinn" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyI picked up the last three of Iain M. Banks science fiction novels (“Feersum Endjin”, “Inversions”, and “Matter”) the other day at the American Book Center in Amsterdam. Of the three, “Feersum Endjin” was my least favorite. It follows three main characters as they attempt to avert a crisis threatening... [Read More] -
"Inversions" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyI’m still working my way through the last remaining Iain M. Banks novels, and have recently finished “Inversions”. This book alternately presents two stories of unrequited love set in a medieval world. One story follows a court physician through the eyes of her apprentice. The other follows the king’s bodyguard... [Read More] -
"Riverworld and Other Stories" by Phillip José Farmer
By TonyIn between reading “To Your Scattered Bodies Go” and “The Fabulous Riverboat” by Philip José Farmer, I took a brief detour and read “Riverworld and Other Stories”, which contains the original novella on which the Riverworld series is based. I would recommend reading the Riverworld novella after “To Your Scattered... [Read More] -
"To Your Scattered Bodies Go" by Philip José Farmer
By TonyI finally got a chance to swing by the excellent Book Exchange here in Amsterdam. Although the owner claims not to know much about Science Fiction, they have a pretty impressive collection way down in their basement. Having heard about “To Your Scattered Bodies Go” from my good friend Antranig,... [Read More] -
"The Steel Remains" by Richard K. Morgan
By TonyI just picked up Richard K. Morgan’s latest (“The Steel Remains”) at the American Book Center here in Amsterdam. His previous novels (the Takeshi Kovacs trilogy, “Market Forces”, “Black Man”) have all been science fiction, this is his first fantasy novel. “The Steel Remains” has swords and sorcery, but the... [Read More] -
Revisiting "The Early Stories" by John Updike
By TonyWith his recent passing, I was reminded that I have the excellent but partly unfinished “The Early Stories”, a collection of John Updike’s short stories from 1953 to 1975. I have a mixed reaction to some of his longer works (although admittedly I’ve only read two or three). With the... [Read More] -
A picture is worth 300 words...
By TonyHere’s a quick visualisation of this blog as produced by Wordle. -
"The Mind of a Mnemonist" by A. R. Luria
By TonyI finally got a chance to read “The Mind of a Mnemonist” in the midst of a business trip. As with “The Man with a Shattered World”, also a later work of Luria, “The Mind of a Mnemonist” is a case study following one of Luria’s subjects over a large... [Read More] -
"An Anthropologist on Mars" by Oliver Sacks
By TonyOliver Sacks is a master of translating brain dysfunction into narrative, helping those of us who are fortunate enough to have more less normal brain function understand ourselves by examining those less fortunate. “An Anthropologist on Mars” presents seven case studies dealing with visual defects, autism, and memory disfunction. My... [Read More] -
"Look to Windward" by Iain M. Banks
By Tony“Look to Windward” opens with the same T. S. Elliot quote as “Consider Phlebas”, the first of Iain Banks’ Culture novels, and the books are in a sense are companion pieces. Where “Consider Phlebas” deals with the Idiran war, “Look to Windward” deals with the aftermath of both the Idiran... [Read More] -
"Consider Phlebas" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyHaving read “Excession”, “State of the Art”, “Use of Weapons”, “Against a Dark Background” and “Player of Games”, I was excited to pick up another of Iain Banks’ Culture novels, “Consider Phlebas”. “Consider Phlebas” is the first of the Culture novels, but it works very well if you’ve already read... [Read More] -
"Night Sessions" by Ken Macleod
By TonyHaving thoroughly enjoyed “The Execution Channel” and most of Ken Macleod’s novels, I was excited to pick up a copy of “Night Sessions” on a recent trip through Inverness. “Execution Channel” is a novel of the near-future, post 9-11. Terror, torture, surveillance, paranoia are intertwined in a near enough future... [Read More] -
"Footfall" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
By TonyA couple of years ago, a colleague of mine recommended “The Mote in God’s Eye” to me, also by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. Since then, I’ve read and enjoyed “Oath of Fealty”, “Lucifer’s Hammer” and “The Burning City” by the same pair. At around the time this book came... [Read More] -
"Excession" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyHaving previously read “State of the Art”, “Use of Weapons”, and “Against a Dark Background”, I’ve started filling in gaps and reading the rest of Iain M. Banks Science Fiction novels. “Excession” is one of the best I’ve read so far (second only to the original “State of the Art”... [Read More] -
"The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula LeGuin
By Tony“Light is the left hand of darkness, and darkness the right hand of light” On a recent trip through Inverness, I was pleased to find a copy of “The Left Hand of Darkness” at Leakey’s bookshop. I have enjoyed “The Lathe of Heaven”, “The Dispossed”, “Four Ways to Forgiveness” and... [Read More] -
"Let the Fire Fall" by Kate Wilhelm
By TonyHaving read and enjoyed “Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang” by Kate Wilhelm, I was pleased to pick up “Let the Fire Fall” on a recent trip to Leakey’s bookshop in Inverness. I’ve always enjoyed used bookstores as a source of books that are no longer in print, and Leakey’s... [Read More] -
"More Than Human" by Theodore Sturgeon
By TonyI sat down to write this review after reading “More than Human” by Theodore Sturgeon and “Cryptozoic” by Brian Aldiss within a day of each other. I had thought at first that “Cryptozoic” was the older work, and had hoped that might explain the somewhat dated feel of “Cryptozoic” and... [Read More] -
"Cryptozoic" by Brian Aldiss
By TonyAfter reading the flawed but compelling “Against a Dark Background”, it was refreshing to read an older work, with a straightforward central premise. In “Cryptozoic”, humans have discovered that they can (through the aid of drugs and mental discipline) project their consciousness back to visit the distant past. They can... [Read More] -
"Against a Dark Background" by Iain M. Banks
By Tony“Against a Dark Background” is the first of Iain M. Banks’ novels I’ve read that is not set in the “Culture” universe. If nothing else, he easily demonstrates that he doesn’t need to fall back on the established conventions from those novels to spin a good yarn. This is a... [Read More] -
"Emphyrio" by Jack Vance
By TonyYet again I am delighted to have encountered (through the Gollancz SF Masterworks series) a book I would never otherwise have read. Ghyl Tarvoke is a curious young man, who drifts aimlessly through his young world, allowed by his father the freedom to live somewhat outside the strictures of society.... [Read More] -
"Where Wizards Stay Up Late" by Katie Hafner and Matthew Lyon
By TonyOn a recent trip, I finally finished “Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of the Internet”. Most times, I’ll wade through historical nonfiction, and it seems unfamiliar, difficult to engage with. I’ve abandoned even well written books like “The Power Broker” and “Team of Rivals” because it just wasn’t... [Read More] -
"Desolation Island" by Patrick O'Brian...
By TonyI went through all the fiction books in the house while resting during my recent cold. At the bottom of the stack was “Desolation Island”, the fifth in the Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian. I’m glad I finally got to it. As with the other books in the series, “Desolation... [Read More] -
"A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
By TonyHaving read and enjoyed “The Kite Runner” last summer, I picked up “A Thousand Splendid Suns” when it first hit the charts. I didn’t get the chance to read it until a recent cold gave me a bit of extra time next to my night stand. It was worth the... [Read More] -
"The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios" by Yann Martel
By TonyLike many people, I first encountered Yann Martel’s work with the stunning “Life of Pi”, which was a playful and engaging book with dark notes to it, and which holds up to repeated readings. (There are other, less kind views of the book on librarything.) “The Facts Behind the Helsinki... [Read More] -
Paris Photos
By TonyOur photos from the 9th Sakai conference and our subsequent holiday in Paris are now up on Flickr. Enjoy! -
"The Mustache" (La Moustache) by Emmanuel Carrère
By Tony“As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.” –Franz Kafka, “The Metamorphosis” Hot on the heels of “Class Trip”, I just finished “The Mustache” by Emmanuel Carrère. Written some ten years earlier than “Class Trip”, this is an... [Read More] -
"Class Trip" (Classe de neige) by Emmanuel Carrère
By TonyAfter reading the excellent “I Am Alive and You Are Dead” a while ago, I promised myself to track down other books by Emmanuel Carrère. On a recent trip to Paris, I did just that, picking up translations of “Class Trip” and “The Moustache” (likely the next book I’ll read).... [Read More] -
"Film Club" by David Gilmour
By TonyWhen I was young, my father (whose first two degrees were in Radio, Television, and Motion Pictures) would on occasion share films with me, some of which might have been just at the edge of my understanding as a teenager, but which opened my eyes to the world of film... [Read More] -
"Bring the Jubilee" by Ward Moore
By TonyOne of the first books that rekindled my interest in Science Fiction as an adult was “The Man in the High Tower” by Philip K. Dick. This classic story involves a parallel world in which the allies lost World War II. “Bring the Jubilee” was written at the end of... [Read More] -
"Super Crunchers" by Ian Ayres
By TonyI read the bulk of the now-infamous “Freakonomics” while waiting for a friend to join me for dinner. It was a very quick read, and good food for conversation. “Super Crunchers” comes from another mind that runs in the same circles, breaking down real-life problems into equations, struggling to explain... [Read More] -
"The Dispossessed" by Ursula Leguin
By TonyI generally carry three to four books with me whenever I travel. On my recent trip to Paris, I had the pleasure of working my way through “The Dispossessed” by Ursula Leguin. In many works of science fiction, time itself is the principal actor. The future provides evidence of the... [Read More] -
The 9th Sakai Conference, Paris, France
By TonyI’ve just returned from the 9th Sakai conference in Paris France. As always, the conferences are a kind of a family reunion for long-time Sakai community members. It was great to catch up with the professional (and personal) life of so many institutions and individuals. There were so many great... [Read More] -
"Earth Abides" by George R. Stewart
By TonyAs you may have guessed in reading previous posts, I have a particular affection for apocalyptic literature. “Earth Abides” is a great apocalyptic tale, in which hints of “The Stand” and countless later works are apparent. The book follows a survivor of a great plague through his life as a... [Read More] -
"One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
By TonyMy boss (and friend) John Smith loaned my a paperback copy of “One Hundred Years of Solititude”. It took me longer than most books, but I gradually made my way through. This is a great book in every sense. It is a book full of characters and imagery, full of... [Read More] -
"Flight" by Sherman Alexie
By TonyHaving just finished “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” (also by Sherman Alexie), I dove right in to “Flight” with some relish. It was a bit uncanny, in that “Flight”, like “Diary”, is another coming of age story. “Zits”, the main character in flight, has fallen through the... [Read More] -
"Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" by Jorge Luis Borges
By TonyMy good friend Antranig and I had a conversation on the train back from London the other day in which we discussed Borges. I mentioned his story “Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius”, which was one of the few I didn’t care for as a younger reader (I first read the story... [Read More] -
" The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian" by Sherman Alexie
By TonyI’ve read quite a bit of Sherman Alexie’s work previously. I’ve particularly enjoyed his short story collections, “Ten Little Indians” and “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” are great, full of humor, pain, and wisdom. “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian” is a novel (with excellent... [Read More] -
"All Over but the Shoutin'" by Rick Bragg
By TonyOn a recent trip over from the states, my mother brought a copy of “All Over but the Shoutin’” by Rick Bragg, which I read during my recent holiday. Rick Bragg is a journalist, a Southerner, and a storyteller. In this book, he tells his story, his family’s story, and... [Read More] -
"Use of Weapons" by Iain M. Banks
By Tony“Use of Weapons” is another in Iain M. Banks’ series of “Culture” novels. For those not familiar with the series, the Culture is an interplanetary civilization in which disease, injury, age, material want, and even war are all things of the past. Citizens live their lives almost entirely as they... [Read More] -
"The Man with a Shattered World" by A. R. Luria
By TonyAlthough I read little non fiction in general, one exception has been the work of Oliver Sacks, whose writing I enjoy, and whose topics are almost always entertaining and engaging. I picked up “The Man with a Shattered World” largely because Sacks wrote the introduction, and because it sounded as... [Read More] -
"A Separate War & Other Stories" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyAfter reading through the omnibus edition of “Forever War”, “Forever Free” and “Forever Peace”, I picked up a copy of “A Separate War & Other Stories” based on a friend’s recommendation. The collection is short, but good. “A Separate War” is a parallel narrative to the last section of “Forever... [Read More] -
"Raw Spirit" by Iain Banks...
By TonyI don’t usually read non-fiction for pleasure, but “Raw Spirit” is not only one of my favorite non-fiction books, but one of the best books I’ve read in a long time, period. The book is as much an autobiography as anything else, as in the process of exploring all things... [Read More] -
First Long Run of the Year...
By TonyI went for my first long run of the year, you can see the route below. It was clear and sunny and warm for this time of year. The wind was a bit strong, it kept blowing my earphones out of my ears. I saw five ships anchored off the... [Read More] -
"Forever Peace" by Joe Haldeman
By TonyI picked up an omnibus edition of “Forever War”, “Forever Free” and “Forever Peace” a few days ago. I had read the first two a while back, and they remain among my favorites, so much so that I can’t leave them lying around or I’ll reread whole sections every time... [Read More] -
"Cities in Flight" by James Blish
By Tony“Cities in Flight” is a remarkable and epic four-volume cycle of novels that follow space-faring humans from their first tentative rocket-powered journeys to the planets of our own solar system to the end of the universe itself. The first volume introduces us to a near future which is about to... [Read More] -
"The Rediscovery of Man" by Cortwainer Smith
By Tony“The Rediscovery of Man” is a collection of short stories (all set in the same universe at different time periods) by Cortwainer Smith. This universe is largely ordered by the Instrumentality, a governing body spanning centuries and controlling in fine detail the lives of almost every living human. Like Huxley... [Read More] -
"Jem" by Frederick Pohl
By TonyI just finished another in the excellent SF Masterworks series, “Jem” by Frederick Pohl. I had previously read all four books (are there more now?) in Pohl’s Heechee saga (although I enjoyed the later ones in the kind of way you enjoy the fifth series of a television show, more... [Read More] -
Recipe: Marmite Tofu
By TonyCurrently I can only buy small quantities of silken tofu on the island where I live, so I’ve been learning to make my own extra firm tofu. For my third batch, I tried an idea I’d been mulling over, and made Marmite tofu. Obviously this is only for the rare... [Read More] -
"Behold the Man" by Michael Moorcock
By TonyAlthough Michael Moorcock is so prolific that I can’t claim to have read even a tenth of his work, the works I’ve read have been those dealing with time travel (“The Dancers at the End of Time” series) and alternate realities (The “Oswald Bastable” series). “Behold the Man” is a... [Read More] -
"The Fifth Head of Cerberus" by Gene Wolf
By TonyI bought a half dozen or so books in the SF Masterworks series the other day, and am about half way through the set now that I have a little time off. I just finished “The Fifth Head of Cerberus” by Gene Wolf. The book is composed of three long... [Read More] -
"Non-stop" by Brian Aldiss
By Tony“Non-stop” is a classic of science fiction, and stands the test of time amazingly well. Like “Learning the World” by Ken MacLeod, “Non-stop” deals with a massive ship (and self-sustaining ecosystem) traveling between stars over the course of generations. Unlike “Learning the World”, the society of the ship that is... [Read More] -
"Babel-17" by Samuel R. Delany
By TonyAlthough “Babel-17” is set in a future with starships, reanimated consciousnesses, extreme body modifications, advanced weapons, and interstellar conflict with alien cultures, it is not so much a story about any of these things as it is a story about language and understanding. Rydra Wong, the main character, is a... [Read More] -
"The Burning City" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
By TonyI just finished the epic “Burning City” by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. I don’t tend to read much fantasy, but it was a pleasant enough diversion. What strikes me after reading “Oath of Fealty”, “Lucifer’s Hammer” and “Burning City” is just how much of Niven and Pournelle’s work is... [Read More] -
"Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang" by Kate WIlhelm
By TonyI’m continuing to work my way through the Gollancz SF Masterworks series, which is just chock full of great stuff. I found a reasonably complete list of the scheduled and published works, it looks like I’ve read almost exactly half of the works on the list thus far. Many of... [Read More] -
"Lucifer's Hammer" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
By TonyAfter enjoying “Oath of Fealty” recently, I went ahead and worked my way through “Lucifer’s Hammer”. The book is an epic and apocalyptic work that manages to establish a whole raft of key characters going about their normal lives, and then follow them as they make their way through the... [Read More] -
"The Centauri Device" by M. John Harrison
By TonyI’ve been picking my way through the SF Masterworks series published by Gollancz in various bookstores as I travel about. My latest acquisition in the series is “The Centauri Device” by M. John Harrison. John Truck, the principal character, is a self-proclaimed loser, unlucky or otherwise unaccomplished in his career,... [Read More] -
"Oath of Fealty" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
By TonyI picked up a handful of used paperback editions of books jointly authored by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, which I’ll be working my way through and writing up shortly. I read some of the “Ringworld” books in high school and enjoyed “Mote in God’s Eye” a lot more recently,... [Read More] -
"Dark Benediction" by Walter M. Miller and "State of the Art" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyAs you may have noticed, I tend to process books by comparing them with books I’ve already read. Having just finished two collections of short stories, I figured I would write a review of both and compare them to each other. “Dark Benediction” is a collection of stories by Walter... [Read More] -
"The Player of Games" by Iain M. Banks
By TonyIn “The Player of Games”, Iain Banks presents a society centered around a game called “Azad”, which is so nuanced that life itself is a reflection of the game and vice versa. The standing of players varies according to their performance in the tournaments held every few years, and the... [Read More] -
"The Star Fraction" by Ken Macleod
By TonyI recently finished “The Star Fraction” by Ken Macleod, whose work I have enjoyed frequently since moving to his place of birth in Stornoway. I had previously read the portions of Ken Macleod’s “Fall Revolution” series that are available at the Stornoway public library (the second and fourth books in... [Read More] -
"His Dark Materials" Omnibus by Phillip Pullman
By TonyEarly in December, my wife and I went to see the movie “The Golden Compass” with my mother-in-law in Los Angeles. My mother-in-law has been listening to the audio version of “The Golden Compass”, and a nibble through a few sections of the omnibus edition held my attention, so I... [Read More] -
The "Engines of Light" Trilogy by Ken Macleod
By TonyIdeally a book would have no order to it, and the reader would have to discover his own. – Mark Twain</span> As several of my friends and associates have heard, I have been known to read portions of books in an order other than that suggested by their page numbering.... [Read More] -
Travel: Los Angeles
By TonyFollowing a conference in Newport Beach, Elaine and I are taking the opportunity to visit her mother in Los Angeles prior to heading back east for the holidays. Thus far, we’ve visited a number of old haunts, including the refurbished Griffith Observatory, Chinatown, and a number of other spots. We... [Read More] -
"Farnham's Freehold" by Robert Heinlein
By TonyI ran into a friend at a conference in California, he recommended “Farnham’s Freehold” by Robert Heinlein, but pointed out that he had repeatedly failed to make it through the work (I now understand why, in addition to race issues, there is a conversation between father and daughter that most... [Read More] -
"The Stornoway Way" by Kevin MacDonald
By TonyOn the trip across the Atlantic, I picked up a copy of the “The Stornoway Way”, written by a Stornowegian author about Stornoway and Lewis. Through the character of R. Stornoway, we are treated to a choice selection of hard-drinking, devilish characters, all tinged with recognizable bits of the town... [Read More] -
"The Mauritius Campaign" by Patrick O'Brien
By TonyI read a lot when I travel, so there will be a quick flurry of mini-reviews of recent conquests… I just finished the next novel in the Aubrey/Maturin series. Satisfyingly, each novel manages to build on the last without taking much for granted. “Mauritius Campaign” is no exception. In it... [Read More] -
"Celebrating Bosman"
By TonyIn my recent trip to Inverness, I finished “Celebrating Bosman: A Centenary Selection of Herman Charles Bosman’s Stories”. I love short stories, as they are well suited to travel, and this collection was particularly satisfying. The collection begins with a handful of pieces centered around Bosman’s life and times, including... [Read More] -
Travel: Copenhagen
By TonyElaine and I are finally putting up our photos from our recent trip to Copenhagen, so I thought I’d take a minute to write a little bit about it. You can see our photos from Copenhagen and a bunch of new panoramas in our space on Flickr. We stayed in... [Read More] -
Travel: London
By TonyWhile preparing for our current trip to Copenhagen, I realized I hadn’t put up the photos from our first trip to London, which can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/elaineandtony/sets/72157602755780855/ Our first trip, we mostly hit the sights and a couple of museums. Elaine and I had wanted to visit the Tate... [Read More] -
"Significant Others" by Armistead Maupin
By TonyHot on the heels of “Babycakes” and just finishing up the outgoing part of our trip to Copenhagen, I finished “Significant Others” last night. It had a nice structure, two groups of supposedly like-minded people getting together in their private enclaves and a third group outside both camps. There are... [Read More] -
"Babycakes" by Armistead Maupin
By TonyI picked up “Tales of the City” in the airport on my way to South Africa earlier this year, devoured it, and picked up the next two books in the series (“More Tales of the City” and “Further Tales of the City”) for the trip back home to Stornoway. I... [Read More] -
"Cold Stone Jug" by Charles Herman Bosman
By Tony“Cold Stone Jug” by Herman Bosman was recommended to me during a trip to South Africa earlier this year. I ended up acquiring the anniversary edition, which finally came a few weeks ago. The book is in the same family as Dostoevsky’s “House of the Dead”, which similarly fictionalizes a... [Read More] -
"Humpty Dumpty in Oakland" by Philip K. Dick
By TonyHe picked up his science fiction book and dropped it flat to the desk again. “You know, these guys who write these things… these rocket ships and time-travel machines and faster-than-list drives, all that stuff. If you want the hero to be on Mars you say something like – ‘he... [Read More] -
"I Am Alive and You Are Dead" by Emmanuelle Carrère
By TonyI recently finished “I am Alive and You Are Dead” by Emanuelle Carrère, which is an astounding biography of Philip K. Dick. It’s the kind of view of the author that changes your understanding of their work in retrospect, and certainly set me up for an interesting read as I... [Read More] -
"The Execution Channel" by Ken MacLeod
By TonyBy a happy coincidence, a friend of mine recommended a book by Ken MacLeod (“Newton’s Wake”) a while before I interviewed for and ultimately accepted a position in Scotland. It turns out I now live in the birthplace of the author (Stornoway), which is convenient, as the public library has... [Read More] -
"HMS Surprise" by Patrick O'Brien
By TonyI actually read this months ago, but had apparently left the draft lying around unpublished… My friend Sean Boles and another online friend with whom I play chess got me interested in Patrick O’Brien’s series of novels involving the characters Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin. Although I have to admit... [Read More] -
"Voices from the Street" by Philip K. Dick
By TonyI’ve been a fan of Philip K. Dick’s writing for quite a while, having purchased and hungrily read every novel on which he was the single author, most of his short stories, and a fair bit of his nonfiction writing. If you aren’t familiar, it’s very hard to pick even... [Read More] -
Scottish Country Dancing...
By TonyElaine found a group that holds a couple of dances each week in Stornoway and Barva. We went for our first time Friday night. We need to work on our dancing fundamentals (our waltz and box step, for example), but on the whole the group is forgiving enough to be... [Read More] -
Cooking: Lamb Ghosht
By TonyJust finished making my first batch of Lamb Ghosht. It came out quite well, even with my additions (red peppers, spinach) and subtractions (no cayenne). Here’s the recipe: http://www.recipezaar.com/27864 -
Iolaire Memorial
By TonyElaine and I took a nice bike ride out to the Iolaire Memorial, which commemorates the sinking of the HMS Iolaire while carrying soldiers returning from World War I home to the Isle of Lewis. It was a lovely day (if a bit windy). You can see our photos (including... [Read More] -
Mapped Out a New Route...
By TonyI combined parts of previous runs into a new loop that was just short of 6 miles: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-kingdom/stornoway/946875011 It stopped short of raining outright, mostly it was spitting the whole way and incredibly windy. I know that in a rough loop I should get an equal balance of head and... [Read More] -
The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester
By TonyReading “The Demolished Man” got me in the mood, so I reread “The Stars My Destination” on my way back home. The central conceit of the work is human teleportation, not through technology, but through force of will, and as is a recurring theme in these reviews, a fair amount... [Read More] -
"The Demolished Man" by Alfred Bester
By TonyToday I started (and finished) “The Demolished Man” by Alfred Bester, who also wrote “The Stars My Destination”. The opening passages of the book didn’t initial strike much of a chord with me, but as I worked my way into the narrative, I found it quite enjoyable, and can see... [Read More] -
"Black Man" by Richard K. Morgan
By TonyJust finished Black Man by Richard Morgan, which is apparently also marketed under the title “Thirteen”. The book has a fair amount in common with the Takeshi Kovacs trilogy (“Altered Carbon”, “Broken Angels” and “Woken Furies”), in that it’s a mix of Science Fiction and noir detective drama. The book... [Read More] -
Our ship has finally come in...
By TonyElaine and I shipped our belongings from the states in a cargo container (our pallette would only have been in a small corner of a single container). After being unloaded and clearing customs, our belongings made their way up from London to Glasgow, and then over on the ferry. Our... [Read More] -
Saki: Complete Short Stories...
By TonyI finally finished my copy of The Complete Short Stories of Saki (H. H. Munro). Witty, dark, just plain fun to read. Most of the stories collected in the above volume are in the public domain and available to read for free online: http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/s#a152 [http://haytom.us/index.php[(http://haytom.us/index.php) Some of my favorite stories... [Read More] -
Another great day for a run...
By TonyThe weather really turned around for the weekend, clearer, warmer, but with enough of a breeze to keep the midgies away yet again. Went for a much longer run than intended, ended up finally finding the trail to the Arnish lighthouse. You can see the run here: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-kingdom/stornoway/709308477 I hope... [Read More] -
Black Man
By TonyJust picked up Richard Morgan’s latest, “Black Man”. I’ve read each of his previous books, which offer a nice mix of adrenaline and compelling hard SF concepts. I plan to start reviewing the books I read somewhat, will let you know how the latest prize goes. -
Deathly Hallows
By TonyJust finished “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. The prose was not all that challenging or finely crafted, but the weaving of plot threads from the previous books into a coherent whole and a consistent and satisfying ending was worth the wait. I’ll hold off on saying anything further for... [Read More] -
Continuing to explore the island...
By TonyElaine and I took a ride north through Tong and Back to hit one of the beaches, you can see our route here: http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/stornoway/656377547 It was windy the whole way, and then started raining pretty heavily when we were well on our way. We took shelter in a bus stop... [Read More] -
Another lovely ride...
By TonyElaine and I went out to Arnish after dinner: http://www.mapmyride.com/view_route?r=ad1ee1591e65f002933c71de7ccc531d We went out on the street, with some tough climbs, but some really fun downhill segments as well. We ended up in Arnish right on schedule, although we didn’t find the route to the lighthouse our first time out. We... [Read More] -
Biking to the beach...
By TonyElaine and I went for a bike ride from Stornoway over toward Pointe, and stopped at a nice beach (this beach, unlike the beach near us, has sand rather than salt grass and rocks). Here’s the route we used. Photos to follow shortly. -
Taking Advantage of the Good Weather...
By TonyI usually go for a longer run on Sunday. Yesterday was pretty crummy, colder and a spitting rain. Today on the other hand, was nice and warm with just enough of a breeze. I mapped out a longish route (8+ miles), but ended up only doing about 80% of it.... [Read More] -
Travelogue: South Africa
By TonyFinally uploaded the last of the photos from South Africa: http://www.flickr.com/photos/elaineandtony/sets/72157600132132869/ -
Travelogue: Skye Tetra Meeting
By TonyFinally posted the photos from the Skye Tetra meeting: http://www.flickr.com/photos/elaineandtony/sets/72157600454941703/ -
Travelogue: Amsterdam
By TonyI’ve uploaded a bunch of photos from my recent trip to Amsterdam, you can find them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/elaineandtony/sets/72157600454365814/ -
First post. w00t!
By TonyGreetings. Finally getting around to setting up a personal web log to share some of my adventures. Why now, you might ask? Well, I’ve just moved to Scotland to take a new job, and finally have halfway interesting photographs and stories to share. I’ll probably fill in a few historical... [Read More]