Max Riffner

The Parlor

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Summer Reads

I just finished The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. Fantastic book if you’ve ever wanted to see where the Private Eye archetype/stereotype came from. The language took a little while to break through, but it didn’t hinder my enjoyment. It has been one of those must-reads for me, so I’m glad I got the opportunity finally.

So far this summer, I’ve read American Gods by Neil Gaiman, and Eastern Standard Tribe by Cory Doctorow (which you can read for free by downloading it from his site), both of which have been great, great reads. This was my first read of Gaiman’s prose work, being a Sandman fan, and I was not disappointed; in fact, prose has elevated his storytelling a bit. Doctorow’s second novel, Eastern Standard Tribes is good also, but I enjoyed Down & Out in the Magic Kingdom better. There was something more fresh and exciting about his first outing, but hey, its his second novel, which is two more than me. It is still a good read and you can’t beat the price.

So next up on my summer reading list is Pattern Recognition and Casino Royale, which I’m looking forward to. I hate James Bond movies, or at least what they’ve turned into. I’ve just never cared for them. This is much like reading Chandler; I want to go back to the source before its modern bastardized companions went on to offend my intelligence. Then it will be on to my annual reads of two of my favorite books The Sun Also Rises and Post Office.

I go on vacation in a week. I may read The Sun… while fishing and drinking from a wineskin in the afternoon sun. It would seem appropriate.

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