Books I Read September 11th, 2025

Did you really have a vacation if you didn't sit on a beach and read 21 books? Or bake apple pie and various breads for your family? Or swim in the Atlantic? Or walk along a dusty road, remembering your past selves and what is to come?

The Name of a Bullfighter by Luis Sepulveda – An Chilean ex-revolutionary expat becomes embroiled in post-Cold War shenanigans. Skillful literary noir.

Fragments by Ayi Kwei Armah – A sensitive writer returns to his native Ghana after years in a Western university and struggles to deal with the brutal capitalism of post-Colonial Africa. Armah is at once a remarkably talented writer as well as a perceptive social critic, and this is excellent if perhaps not quite as strong as The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born, which was a bit more esoteric.

Time of Silence by Martin Santos – A provincial doctor is drawn into the Madrid demimonde. Very funny page to page.

Mass Psychology and Other Writings by Sigmund Freud – Is there a more frustrating writer than Sigmund Freud? A shrewd writer capable of the most extraordinary insights into the human condition who nonetheless wrote a great deal of errant nonsense. This is a mix of both, with the chapters on mass psychology fascinating and much of the digressions into religious thought absolutely incoherent (Moses was not an Egyptian, nor did Judaism spring from the long forgotten worship of the sun God Aten, as both historical scholarship and common sense would show.)

The Storm Lord by Tanith Lee – I'm always fascinated by how we train ourselves to read whatever we read. Once upon a time it would have been no trouble at all to work my way through this epic tale of a prophecied god-child saving his people from destruction, but these days I struggle to with high fantasy irrespective of its merits.

Where Late the Sweet Bds Sang by Kate Wilhelm – The environmental collapse of human society and the cloning project of a small group of survivors is the starting point for this fabulous, insightful sci-fi novel. Lyrical and strange, one of the best post-apocalyptic stories I've ever read. I liked it so much I went ahead and read two more Kate Wilhelm's in rapid succession.

Good Morning Comrades by Ondjaki – The childhood reminiscences of a boy growing up in post-Colonial Angola, finding beauty and excitement in a society which threatens to collapse at any moment. Funny and poignant.

Sleepwalking Land by Mia Couto – A surrealist vision of the Mozambican civil war, as experienced by a youth and his elder guardian. I can't say it did a tremendous amount for me, though I can appreciate the skill.

Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress – A group of genetically modified individuals, created to live without the need for sleep and functionally free of disease or aging, struggle to survive in a society which comes to loathe them. There's nothing fabulously original about the premise but Kress has a gift for characterization and plotting which make this an excellent example of intellectual sci-fi.

Changes: A Love Story by Ama Ata Aidoo – A career driven African woman leaves her traditional marriage to become the second wife of a man with whom she is passionately in love. A thoughtful dissection of (then) contemporary African norms, as well as an engaging romance.

Panama by Thomas McGuane – A faded rock star undergoes a drug-fueled misadventure through the Florida Keys. Hyper-masculine gonzo literary fiction is another genre that I struggle with these days, although at least it's shorter than most high fantasy.

Hardcase by Dan Simmons – A two-fisted ex-con shoots a shit ton of people. Pulpy action is another genre for which I don't have much tste.

The Goddess Chronicle by Natsuo Kirino – A mythical retelling of Japanese mythology high-lighting the eternal struggle between men and woman and the savage and bloody nature of love. Strange and haunting, I quite enjoyed it.

Dark Echoes of the Past by Ramon Diaz Eterovic – A leftist PI investigates a murder with roots in the mass murder of the Pinochet government. Competent but familiar.

A Judgment in Stone by Ruth Rendell – The slaughter of an upper class English fantasy by their illiterate maid as minutely detailed by a first class writer of noir. Excellent and disturbing, one of those books that maintains its narrative force despite the plot being laid out on the first page. Very strong, I'll definitely look for more by the author.

Huysman's Pets by Kate Wilhelm – A journalist discovers strange secrets when investigating the experiments of a dead scientific genius. Not as good as 'Birds,' but not so terrible neither.

Ombria in Shadow by Patricia A. McKillip – A crew of misfits attempts to save a princeling from his monstrous great-aunt. Fun and evocative if a bit fay.

Song of Kali by Dan Simmons – A journalist travels to Calcutta to investigate the re-emergence of a poet thought dead, has a worse time than VS Naipaul. Ominous, well-written, debatably racist.

Idoru by William Gibson – An investigative savant and a teenage girl travel to a rebuilt Tokyo to discover the fate of a reclusive rock star. A cyberpunk Lost in Translation. As usual with Gibson the plot feels arbitrary but the experience is enjoyable.

Death of an Artist by Kate Wilhelm – The death of a turbulent painter is investigated by her daughter, mother, and an ex-detective. Engaging if pat.

The Glass Key by Dashiell Hammet – A consigliere of dubious morality tries to navigate a gang war in an unnamed city. If you've seen Miller's Crossing you've got most of the plot down. The plots mechanics are a little fidgety, but Hammet's prose remains a joy.