The Discworld series comes to an end (and 24 other books) - books 76-100 of 2015

I rounded out 100 books with the last Discworld novel. I was glad that such a wonderful book from an author who's had major impact on my life got that spot.

Those preceding it are a mixed bag. The post starts out with a lowlight, but ends on a high note. Can't ask for much more.

As an aside before I get on with this, as I'm now being shared by Aus GLAM Blog Bot and has had a substantial increase in traffic as a result, I intend on having all posts on here at least somewhat related to professional matters. Books well and truly pass muster, but when I'm ready to start photo, craft or personal blogging again, I'll have to think up a name for a second blog. I'll be sure to let those who want to find it know where it is!

76. 22 dead little bodies - Stuart MacBride

Starting on a sour note, I'm afraid. I chose this novella as a potential candidate for a book presentation that I give regularly as part of a program at work. My regular fiction reading doesn't really suit there, so I've been picking a few books for this. Doesn't hurt to broaden my reading, after all.
22 dead little bodies is a short book from Stuart MacBride that stands as an independent story but links into his Logan McRae series. We have ourselves a detective who feels like he's being left all the undesirable jobs while his colleague grabs all of the interesting or high profile ones for her own glory. It felt like it was trying too hard to be gritty, rough-edged and crude. In this book, dysfunctional personal relationships and icky behaviour and attitudes are abundant. I don't expect characters to be perfect - that's boring - but this lot just got on my nerves. The first half or so of the book was the worst, it did improve a bit beyond that after some of the character pettiness abated. I have no intention of reading any more though, if this book was any longer it wouldn't be on the list, because I wouldn't have deemed it worth the time.

2015 photo post up-to-dating

54 (23rd February) - Fix - I took time to fix this mouse... he's Mum's and was a victim of kitten curiosity a little while ago. PVA glue was all I needed - that and to tackle the job in stages. At this point there are already some sections that have been glued back together. I was pleased with the results, and the mouse is back on the shelf.

55 - 12 O'Clock - I was out on the road, almost at Keith, on the longest distance driving day I've yet had. I enjoyed it more than I expected though wouldn't want to do this kind of thing daily.

56 - Reflection - after an interview I take time to reflect - on this occasion that meant time at Picaninnie Ponds, a place where I really enjoyed the isolation, if only for a little while, and during the drive. While much of my mind focuses on the road and the route there's plenty left to contemplate life, the universe and everything. The skies were pretty spectacular too. They might not be a literal reflection but they help with the reflecting.

57 - Grow - Something this lobster at Kingston SE did?

58 - Still Life - I took a few more traditional subject photos but wasn't really happy with them. Instead I focused on background and light. Which I need to work on more... but made some progress. This is my favourite of the shots taken, possibly not the best lit but in combination with framing it seems stronger.

59 - Thank you - not so much thank you, as thankful. For the festival season in Adelaide, the atmosphere, buzzing and excited, and for good nights out. This night I caught one of the $5 shows and enjoyed some food, drink and people watching.

60 - Starts with R - R & R and Reading. I've enjoyed a few books with a sociology/psychology angle lately and they've been good food for thought too.



-- From here I decided to take some time off, I don't want to burn myself out, so if I need a break in my creative projects... I'll take them ;) Days 60-74 I'm considering that break though the few photos following I've included anyway. They were taken incidentally rather than as part of an ongoing effort --

66 - Spotted some street art on the way to Yum Cha in the city with friends, these were Chinese donuts, crisp pastry inside, soft pastry outside, tasty sauce. I tried tripe for the first time, the flavour (especially with sauce) I found to be decent but I just couldn't get past the texture and found it difficult to eat as a result.

70 - I made my second batch of jam, this time with peaches. The method was a little trickier but the results were good. It didn't set as firmly as the nectarine jam did but I'm still happy with the outcome. This was also a much bigger batch so I'll have jam for quite a while now.

71 - A night out at the fringe. I saw 'Randy Writes a Novel' with a friend and had a lot of fun doing so. Couldn't take a photo then, so instead, this was my dessert. It was gooood.

72 - Colour - I jumped into responding to a prompt today as it inspired me. Overnight I heard that Sir Terry Pratchett died. His books brought much colour to my life and will continue to do so, I love re-reading these from time to time.

74 - After a huge and wonderful birthday weekend (this mug was a gift) spending time with friends and family and seeing La Soiree, which was absolutely incredible, it was time for a cup of tea. I will keep creating, keeping calm... is a work in progress. Although I'm going forward without prompts for now I'm hoping to resume more regular photography after this break.

Humour and Humanity - 2015 in books, 6-10

6 - The Five of Us - Quentin Blake

A simple story of five children, told for children, in which each child has some kind of impairment or disability, but the focus is on their ability and how they work together to tackle a difficult situation with the help of these strengths.
Their disabilities are not hidden, nor are they explicitly pointed out. The children are not there as objects of curiosity, to check an inclusion box or act in a sympathetic role. They do not take a side role to 'normal' (whatever that is). Their disabilities do not define them, instead their abilities do. I had heard of this book and wanted to see it for myself - it's by no means perfect, I didn't find the story especially compelling, but there are some great things happening here all the same.

7 - Elizabeth is Missing - Emma Healey

Maud's memory isn't what it used to be. She remembers the name of her daughter and her carer, but she forgets the tea she made, the reasons she went to the shops and many other things. She also writes many notes to herself, trying to hold on to memories that matter or things she must do. Frequently, these notes tell her that her friend Elizabeth is missing, but nobody takes her concerns seriously so whenever she remembers, she sets out to learn more. Meanwhile, the story of a disappearance in her teen years is retold, bit by bit.

This book is written well and the first-hand account of dementia is fascinating. Maud's gradual decline is handled very well. I didn't find the plot especially strong or the revelations (with a particular exception) all that surprising but the strength of writing and perspective more than made up for this.

8 - Brother Sebastian - Chon Day

As mentioned in my last photo post, Brother Sebastian has a strong sentimental value, I was very young when I first read it at Nanna's house. The single panel comics, featuring a light-hearted and mischievous monk are clever and always make me smile. The book isn't that easy to come by, and while looking for this picture I've learned that there were two more volumes published. If I can find them without parting with too many dollars I'd love to read them.

9 - The Hidden Kingdom (Fairest vol. 2) - Bill Willingham

This tells Rapunzel's tale, though not the one you know best. The character from the Fables series has rather more to her than you might recall from the fairy tale. She is drawn back to a past life, travelling to Japan to chase down the origin of a cryptic note about her missing children, backed up by a number of other characters from the Fables series.
Whilst this was not a perfect story by any means, for example, I don't understand why Jack is continually inflicted on more and more volumes in this series, he's consistently awful. Despite that it was a big improvement over the first volume. To sum up, the stories told in it were allegedly the stories of the women of Fables, but each was male viewpoint and centred around a male experience of that character. This story avoids a repetition of that (if you ignore the short story in the back, and I really recommend you do) and explores some interesting ideas. I hope that the series continues the trend, but I'll have to report back on that when I've read more.

10 - Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook - Terry Pratchett

Detailing tips for humans, trolls, dwarves and other species travelling on the newly established railway service on the Discworld, descriptions of stations and towns along the way with suggested itineraries, this travel guide ties in nicely to 'Raising Steam', the most recent Discworld novel.

Having read at least some of the Discworld books, including 'Raising Steam' is a prerequisite for the understanding and enjoyment of this book. I enjoyed it very much, especially the early sections. The itineraries varied in interest level, though I'm certain I missed plenty of humourous references I enjoyed those I did find very much.

The World of Poo

Terry Pratchett's a busy author this year - courtesy of my library I'm looking forward to reading all of the new releases. A couple I'll likely buy as well. I certainly got some interesting looks when this arrived at the library! A few recognised it as tying in to Snuff but certainly not the majority.

Fiction from within fiction, though only fantasy by virtue of the outer level of fiction The World of Poo is most certainly a book that's aimed squarely at the (fictional) six to eight year old boy. I'd love to find out what a real seven year old boy would think of this! So long as the setting didn't confuse I like to think it'd be a hit, though possibly not inspiration to imitate the protagonist? This twenty-eight year old woman found it a bit of fun too. I particularly liked the mention of Unseen University in the visit with Harry King. My inner child got the giggles...

This was a quick read, well written and a bit of fun between chunkier books. If you've read the Discworld books, particularly the more recent ones, I'd give this a go. And if you happen to have the chance to introduce it to a suitably aged boy, do let me know if they liked it!