We all have our passions, our quirky things that make us happy.
For me, among many other things, it’s used books, travel books, explorers and adventurers memoirs, books about the Orient, and the Arabian Nights.
So you can imagine how happy I am: this morning the postman delivered a package containing a very cheap, terribly battered but perfectly readable hardback copy of Tim Severin’s The Sinbad Voyage.
A single book that checks all the categories mentioned above, in a single package. Continue reading
Category Archives: Books
Wuxiaworld
Just a quick heads up for a wonderful resource I just discovered: the place is called WuxiaWorld, and these guys are translating in English a number of wuxia (Chinese fantasy sword & sorcery novels) and light novels from the Far East.
This comes as a classic case of fuzzy serendipity, as I am currently planning an Oriental Fantasy of sorts, and this certainly qualifies as research.
And fun!
Check them out!
Getting away from it all – sort of
So today it transpired I needed a LONG vacation.
I will not bother you with the details – let’s just say that periodically my unbound love for humanity sort of becomes less-unbound-than-usual.
And because I can’t afford a vacation right now – nor will I be able to afford it in the foreseeable future – the only way to do it is to drop everything and pick up a good book.
Two, actually.
One paper-bound and another in digital format.
Something different and good and diverting.
I always keep a good stock of “in case of need break the glass” books – and when depression and sadness reach the limit, that’s exactly what I do, and that’s where I go. Continue reading
Marina Warner’s Stranger Magic
Well, this is the week dedicated to the Arabian Nights, or so it seems.
So why not go on and talk about another good book I will be quite happy to find the time and re-read, not just because it will be fun research for the Mana Bros Alam al Mithral project, but most of all because it is one of the ten best literary essays I ever read. And I kid you not.
The book is Marina Warner’s Stranger Magic and I have bored to death all my friends, trying to push it on them, and now I guess it’s your turn. Continue reading
Tits&Sand: Marrakesh, for free
… And talking about Arabian Nights and Tits&Sand, I just found out that Graham Diamond’s Marrakesh is available for free on Amazon.
I don’t know how long the offer will last, so hurry!
What’s it about?
It’s about a guy that falls in love with the last descendent of the Forty Thieves, those from Ali Baba and all that. And they set out on a treasure hunt. And there’s a bad guy…
Damn! What else do you need?
Here’s the link.
Hurry!
Jumping off airplanes for science
Two days ago I mentioned Humble Bundle as a source of reading matter and games on the cheap – and just today I squandered 1 buck for one of their latest offers.
The current bundle (that will remain available for another 12 days) is a treasure trove of roleplaying games based on popular narrative franchises: George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, Charles Stross’ Laundry universe (Cthulhu and espionage – what could be better), Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn Universe, Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files and yes, the true reason why I spent that buck… Clevinger & Wegener’s Atomic Robo.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love both the Stross and the Sanderson novels, and while I never got into the Dresden Files a lot, I appreciate that universe too.
But Atomic Robo… ah!
For the uninitiated (let’s quote Wikipedia)
Atomic Robo is an American comic book series depicting the adventures of the eponymous character, a self-aware robot built by a fictional version of Nikola Tesla.
And it’s just a lot of fun. Continue reading
How to keep reading while broke
Reading is a vice, a habit that is hard… nay, it’s impossible to lose.
I’ve been a reader all my life, I started at six and never came back. Comics, novels, non-fiction, magazines, blogs, the sides of corn flakes packets…
When I was in high school I skipped lunch to save money for books. But it was easy, because I knew I’d find dinner prepared when I got back home.
When I finally got a paying job, I set myself a monthly allowance for books. Something around 100 euro – which means five hardbacks, or eight/ten paperbacks, or a whole lot of ebooks per month.
When the going got rough, around 2014, I cut that back to fifty quids, then to twenty. And that allowance had to make room for Kickstarters, too.
Then, back in May this year, things turned real bad, and I was at 0 money for entertainment – because putting bread on the table and paying bills was more important that buying books.
Basically it meant going cold turkey.
But not really. I found a way around that, too, and kept reading.
Now things are better, I have a 10 quid monthly allowance for my books, and what follows is a list of strategies I used and I am using to keep reading while broke. How to get my fix, if you will.
Maybe someone is interested.
And you are invited to add your tricks and tactics to save on books in the comments.
Let’s go. Continue reading
Karavansara 