Losing the Long Game, by Philip Gordon (2020, nonfiction). A review of U.S. attempts at regime change in the Middle East (Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, etc.), from the angle that whenever we intervene, it ends up making things much worse. Color me convinced.
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Memories of Ice, by Steven Erikson (2001, fantasy). Very long (around 1,400 pages) but oh so good. The writing really, really works for me (tight and well-crafted and witty) and feels more real than most fantasy I’ve read — more anchored in physicality, with characters who feel like real people. I’m convinced, too, that Erikson’s archaeology background is one of the main things that makes these books such a good fit for my brain. Looking forward to continuing with the series — and hopefully it doesn’t take me nine years to get to the next one like it did this time.
Just released a Traditional Chinese–Hanyu Pinyin–Simplified Chinese parallel language edition of the Book of Mormon.
The Girl Beneath the Sea, by Andrew Mayne (2020, thriller). Enjoyed it. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series and other books by Mayne.
New artwork: Why Weepest Thou? V. I originally wanted to paint all these rectangle pieces in Procreate, but yesterday’s painting made my back flare up, so we’re back to vector style.
New artwork: First Vision XVII. This is a bit more abstract than most of what I’ve done before, but I like it and I’m planning to do more in this style. (And yes, inspired by Rothko.)
New artwork: Through the Veil.
New artwork: I Am a Child of God V. A reference to the Primary song. The rectangles represent (bottom to top), a child, its mortal parents, and our Heavenly Parents. (Figured it was time to do a more abstract version of this idea. It ended up also alluding to Hearts of the Children IV and Hearts of the Children V.)
My process for this style, for what it’s worth: mock up the design in Figma, export an SVG, open it in Inkscape, use the roughen and simplify filters, export a PNG, open it in Procreate, select the rectangles, paint the streaks within the rectangles, export a PNG, texture in Affinity Photo as usual.
The Secret History, by Donna Tartt (1992). I’d say this is dark academia, though there’s not actually much schoolwork in it. The story was compelling and uncomfortable, like watching a train wreck. Here and there I felt like I myself was the one who had committed murder (which is how I felt when I read Crime & Punishment). The mountain part kept reminding me of my dad’s suicide in the mountains and the subsequent manhunt. On a happier note, the side of me that almost became a classicist enjoyed the occasional Greek and Latin. I wish there had been a lot more of that.
What Moves the Dead, by T. Kingfisher (2022). A creepy novella based on Poe’s story “The Fall of the House of Usher” (which I haven’t yet read). Enjoyed it, especially the mycological angle, which reminded me a bit of VanderMeer’s Annihilation and Borne.