Mr. Burke's Reading List

ANALOG PLUS 50: Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact, May 1972 Update the photo The may issue of Analog has stories by Clifford D. Simak and Isaac Asimov, as well as the continuation of the serial by Harry Harrison. For anyone finding these reviews, my purpose is two-fold: enjoying some "classic" sci-fi, and looking for stories that I think could be adapted for TV broadcast since so much of what shows up on anthology shows is rough to awful. Additional Note: I do NOT work in television. I just watch it. In this issue: The Editorial: "Life Cycles". There are complex carbon molecules in interstellar space. Not life, not even pre-life, but the building blocks for life. Short Novel: "Solo Kill", by S. Kye Boult. with an illustration by Leo Summers showing a winged creature with a beak, carapace, and taloned feet is on the ground in the foreground. There's a small plane flying over some high mountains on the left p

The Deep , Rivers Solomon with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson, and Jonathan Snipes (2019) (Not a review, just some notes to help me remember the things I've read. But written this way because it's the Internet, and some people will stumble across this page.) I browsed Good Reads looking for something short to read, something that I might not have picked up (or even heard of). I saw The Deep . The premise was interesting enough: it was about a society of sea beings who were descended from pregnant slaves who were tossed overboard from the slave ships traveling from Africa to America. It turns out, and there are notes after the novella, that the book was inspired by a song. If you are familiar with the song, you might have a greater appreciation for the story since you have an idea what's coming. For me, I just got to enjoy the ride for the first time. How the unborn human infants were transformed into these creatures is glossed over, but that's fine -- thi

The Geometry of Pasta , Caz Hildebrand, Jacob Kenedy, Lisa Vandy (Illustrator) (2010) (Not a review, just some notes to help me remember the things I've read. But written this way because it's the Internet, and some people will stumble across this page.) I saw a picture of the book cover on Twitter. Without knowing anything about it, I searched both the Brooklyn and New York Public Libraries for a copy. I found a hardcover, which I'm not used to reading any more. First off, it's a cookbook. Yes, I read it. I skipped the recipes and read all the introductions. The book is organized by pasta type, listing over 100 of them, many that I never heard of, and some that are likely only available in Italy (or in heavily-Italian neighborhoods in NYC, of course). Some of them are only good if they can be made fresh (which I'll never do, nor am I likely to go buy them freshly made). The introductions mention the shape and what sauces would be good with them.

Jerry the Squirrel, Volume 1 , Shawn P.B. Robinson (2018) (Not a review, just some notes to help me remember the things I've read. But written this way because it's the Internet, and some people will stumble across this page.) This was a freebie in a Book Bub list. Once again, I thought it might be something to share with my nephew. Unlike The Monkey God , this one could be -- except I realized after the fact that I do know how -- if there is a way -- to send something from my kindle to his. Jerry's an inventor, as it states at the beginning of every story, but his inventions dont' seem to go as planned. Not objectionable about the book, except I'm not sure who it's targeted at. It's a chapter book which might be, say, grade 4, but the story is for a younger audience. Maybe this would be a good read-around book for earlier grades, one story at a time.

he Easy Life in Kamusari , Shion Miura (2009) Translated by Juliet Winters Carpenter (2021) (Not a review, just some notes to help me remember the things I've read. But written this way because it's the Internet, and some people will stumble across this page.) This was one of the free books I downloaded on Amazon's World Book Day. The book is written as a memoir, but it's fiction. For one thing the main character is a man named Yuki (not to be confused with his coworker Yoki, who I did confuse him with at first). Less obvious, the author is female. (Obvious when you get to the picture and bio, of course.) Also, when two woman appear who seem to be goddesses of the mountain, you can be sure that you've left memoir territory.

The Caiman , Maria Eugneia Manrique (2019) Illustrated by Ramon Paris Translated by Amy Brill (Not a review, just some notes to help me remember the things I've read. But written this way because it's the Internet, and some people will stumble across this page.) This was one of the free books I downloaded on Amazon's World Book Day. It was a delightfully illustrated children's book about a caiman, which is a black alligator, named Negro, who was kept as a house pet. It's a children's book, so nothing horrific happens. In fact, it's quite sweet. According to the notes, this is a true story that happened many years ago in San Fernando de Apure. A little girl named Julia found a baby alligator and was about to put it back in the river when the town watchmaker, Faoro, came along and adopted it. The caiman was very friendly and gave children rides (including, according to the notes, the author), and slept in the bed with Faoro at night, even as he g