Mr. Burke's Reading List

The Literary Handyman: More Tips from the Handyman by Danielle Ackley-McPhail (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.) Why would a published author need more tips on writing? Honestly, I don't remember if I got this one free in a Kickstarter campaign, or if I bought it extra. But the advice is worth the price. Disclaimer: Danielle Ackley-McPhail is the editor of my book In A Flash 2020 and is the publisher of eSpec Books , which published my book. Amsuing anecdote: This past weekend, I was at Philcon in Cherry Hill, NJ (across the river from Philadelphia). I did show her that I was reading her book. It had been in my kindle app for a while. While I was there, I mentioned a story of mine that a mutual acquaitance had read as the assistant editor of a magazine. She sent me an email saying she liked it and was passing it ...

Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories edited by Kelly Link and Gavin Grant (2011) (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 wish I'd written this one up sooner, but I hadn't written earlier books yet. Also, I hadn't thought at the time that I might want to write something about the individual stories. There was a call for story proposals for an upcoming steampunk anthology which will be published for an upcoming Steampunk convention. It will be handled by eSpec Book , which has published stories that I've written. I would've liked to have proposed a story. However, to be honest, I don't know much about Steampunk. I know the gears and the clockwork stuff and the flying ships and the steam and goggles and stuff, but not what actually makes a Steampunk story. So I went looking for an...

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix (2016) (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 Book Club selection. it was also a it of an odyssey in finding a copy of the book. The novel has been made into a movie, so copies are hard to come by. I was told by two libraries that the estimated wait time would to 10-12 weeks for a copy . As a result, I started to use the Internet Archive, which had a copy, but I was only able to borrow it for one hour at a time, until a 14-day copy became available. Adding to the insanity, the Internet Archive is, naturally on the Internet. I couldn't download anything to read on the subway. As a result, before getting on the train, I needed to buffer the next dozen pages or so to read until I got somewhere I could buffer more. And I couldn't launch any other apps that might've c...

The Dream Peddler by Jason Pargin (aka David Wong) (2007) (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 Book Club selection. I had never heard of it before, despite the 20-year later commentary added to this version. Honestly, I couldn't tell you which author name was on the cover. It was Jason Pargin on the Good Reads page. Apparently, it was a movie, too. The fact that this started as a web serial in 2001 was interesting, and also explained the choppy nature of it (even if he did go back and edit it). Back in 2001, something like this was possible. It would be like the folks who pioneered self-publishing for a living on Amazon or who do serials now on their new service. It's something that I would've loved to have done had I had the time and the discipline to keep writing. Granted, I probably would've been lost ...

The Dream Peddler by Martine Fournier Watson (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.) This was a Book Club selection, and it put me in a bit of a quandry. There was no ebook available at either library. I eventually was able to get a print edition. I kept putting off reading it for odd reasons. Starting new books is always a little on the difficult side for me, but lately print is worse. I can't adjust the font size any more. (Actually, i've made my ereader font smaller because I thought it was too large!) Adding to this, I read on the subway in the morning, but I usually have a coffee in one hand, so holding a book can be difficult. Coming home the trains are crowded, so standing and trying to read a paperback is even more ridiculous. And reading a paperback by lamplight in bed only gets me so far (maybe a page or two) un...

Abaddon's Gate by James S. A. Corey (2013) (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.) As previously noted: I watched the first season of The Expanse when it first aired on Syfy . I have to admit, I was somewhat lost and couldn't follow a lot of lost was going on. I couldn't even understand some of what was being said. Had I thought about it, I might've deleted the timer I had set for the series. However, I forgot to, so it taped the second season, which I watched and enjoyed more. I can now confirm that the third season aired on Syfy before it moved to Amazon, as I remember these episodes. Comparing the book to the show: the first season of the show did not cover the entire first book. However, it did include characters from the second book, in particular, every character on Earth. The first half of the second season, whic...

Puzzled by P.J. Nichols (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 mailing list that I read with an eye on if it might interest my nephew. I think not, but he was his own tastes. It's a middle-grade book, filled with puzzles and Nichols will at times stop and ask the reader if they've worked out the solution before he reveals it. The conceit of the book is that Peter has a talent for solving puzzles. He's approached by an older man (I read this two months ago, I don't remember the particulars, which kind of defeats the purpose of this blog) who has him solve a few riddles. The man has an ulterior motive. It turns out that there's an alien living among us and that alien can control the weather and create tornados that wreak distruction. But the alien would rather solve puzzles. ...

My Hero Academia Volume 31, by Kōhei Horikoshi (2017-2019) (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.) This is the most recent issue available, and it merits a separate entry even if it was only 40 minutes of reading. I'll have a separate entry for the spinoff My Hero Academia: Vigilantes , which I'm also up to date on. This book came as a little bit of a surprise. I put a hold on it at the library a while back and suddenly there it was. The series has gotten a bit dark, with its emphasis on the League of Villains and the Paranormal Liberation Front. but now we discover Dabi's true secret, and the revenge that he's been waiting for. No spoiler, but it's dark, and it concerns the new Number 1 Hero. Despite being on the cover, Izuku Midoriya (Deku) has little to do since he's in the hospital from his bat...