Anna Begins

My mom just bought me The Collected Stories of Tennessee Williams!! I've owned it in paperback, but that's packed away. Very excited!!

I've been wanting to see that forever! Clive Barker mentions it in his awesome book, A to Z of Horror.

Well, I don't think I'll be doing 975 pages in 4 days again, but I just got The Collected Stories of Tennessee Williams and I still have the Phillip K Dick short stories, so it's up to you... although I'd like to finish My Sister's Keeper first, but that could take ages, so.

I hope you do! The Little House books are all good

I started Anne Applebaum's Gulag this morning. I've read it before, but it's over 700 pages.

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury (275 pages) The story of The Illustrated Man is well known. One day, a man walking on the road stops for some beens and coffee. He meets another man looking for work. Upon inspection, the man discovers the other man's secret- he is covered neck to foot in beautiful, 3 dimensional, multi colored tattoos. They tell the future and come alive as The Illustrated Man sleep... "18 illustrations, 18 tales. I counted them one by one." More than just 18 short stories, The Illustrated Man is a set of morality plays, whether they take place in space or Venus, Mars or Earth, whether in war or peace. Read so many times by myself, starting around age 10, this book is always amazing and I always find much more in it than it's 275 pages. Here are some of my favorites: The Velt- The first story in the collection is my favorite tattoo story, I even tried to come up with a representative tattoo. This story, so swift, breathless and complete would be ruined by describing it's plot. Evil children are involved though, and that's always creepy (and a reoccurring theme in the book). Kaleidoscope- Astronaut Hollis and his crew contemplated death and life as they fall to a fiery death after a meteor strike to their rocket. The Other Foot- It was some decades ago when black people were shipped off Earth to a dusty and desolate Mars. Then one day-get the rope!- a spaceship carrying a white man lands. The Long Rain- This is one of my favorite short stories ever. A platoon from Earth crash on an alien inhabited Venus. Caught in the planet's never ending rain, their only hope is a Sun dome. "He had a face that had once been brown and now the rain had washed it pale, and the rain had washed the color of his eyes, and as was his hair." It's as if Bradbury had actually been on Venus, the colors, descriptions and madness faced by the men due to the constant rain. The Exiles- What happens to banned authors after their books are burned? The go to a Mars hell. Astronauts from Earth come to discover the planet to face Shakespeare's witches and Poe's army. Oh- and the head astronaut has a library on board. Highly recommended, all 18 stories 5/5.

Doing some 're- reads lately. As I am finishing up The Illustrated Man, I've picked up The Handmaids Tale. I'm trying to hit 3,000 pages for April.

I thought the same about Revival. I liked Mr. Mercedes, but have been hesitant with Finders Keepers. Currently on page 88 of 275 in The Illustrated Man, just read my favourite tattoo story Such an enjoyable read!

Wow.

The Police- Wrapped Around Your Finger

Pearl Jam- Yellow Ledbetter

It was a warm afternoon in early September when I first met the Illustrated Man. Ray Bradbury, The Illustrated Man

I have never been into historical fiction for this very same reason. I prefer reading history. However, I was immensely entertained by Philippa Gregory's Cousins War Series, which was very loosely based on the actual events. Since, I've been a little more drawn to fiction that is historical, like The Girl From Krakow was awesome. An interesting topic for an interesting genre.

I started The Illustrated Man for the millionth time, one of my favorites. I first read it when I was 10

What about Burial Rites by Hannah Kent?

I liked your review of Wuthering Heights! Makes me want to 're- read.... I'm glad you liked it so much.

Mine are: The Crimson Petal and the White (size and subject matter) The Shining (too scary) A Strangeness in my Mind- Organ Pamuk (600+ pages) The Ocean at the End of the Lane (never read any Gaiman) The Bone Clocks (too much magic realism?) The Stand more than makes up for the length!

Oh that movie was awful! I'm glad I turned it off at 15 minutes in! Try A Scanner Darkly

The Selected Stories of Phillip K Dick (498 pages) I thought I'd review these as a group, as I read them, so there will be multiple posts on this book. Beyond Lies the Wub (5 pages) "You spoke of dinning on me. The taste, I am told, is good." . In 5 pages, PKD is stunning. This very short story is about a crew on its way to outer space and discover one of the men has purchased an alien. A story of morality and humanity. Rating: 5/5 Rood (5 pages) A pack of talking dogs terrorize a dog outside the pack, in order to take over the neighborhood. Rating: 2/5 Paycheck (40 pages) Earl Rethrick wakes up with no memory of the two years he worked as an electrician, he is told. Finding the company is wanted by the secret police, Earl decides to find out what's up with this company. Stopped reading this one at (30 pages). Rating: 1/5 Second Variety (85 pages) Oh ya. PKD is at his best in Second Variety. Hendricks is an American Major in the futuristic war between the U.S. and Russia. Not as normal as it sounds. Hendricks sets off to see the damage the robots designed to fight the Russians. Then he meets a young boy carrying a teddy bear. 5/5

I've started The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens.

I wish I could see them in person!

Sorry you didn't like the CRH so much... I hope you don't give up (Don't Let Me Go, hint, hint ).

I don't know if I can get into A Farewell to Arms. I am switching to Patrick deWitt's Undermajordomo Minor (The Sisters Brothers).