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Recent reading
The Stone Book Quartet by Alan Garner (1978)
My last bookshelf book before all my books were packed away in boxes! I admit I chose this one because I was tired, and it had very large print and was a children's book (of sorts). I liked it--it's a contemplative historical book, with vignettes of four children of different generations of the same family, separated in time. The focus, as far as I can tell, is craftsmanship, in stone and metal: discovering what one has a talent for, what one learns after long experience, what elders can teach (or not teach) to children.
Hornblower and the Atropos by C S Forester (1953)
And now begins the Summer of Ebooks! I want to read self-indulgent things for a while, as a reward for the work of moving. First out, my next Hornblower: it can be such a comfort to read the next book in a series where one already knows the characters and what one is likely to get. In this instance, exciting naval adventure--this one is pure Hornblower, in a way, with no slashiness, just the page-turney anticipation of finding out how he's going to solve the latest difficulty. I do wish the author had assured us that those Ceylonese divers were well paid, though. I fear they were not.
During packing I also reread my shelf copy of my own fic If Fate Should Reverse Our Positions. I can't say it's my best fic ever, since there are so many different aspects of writing, but it's certainly the best plotting I've ever done. Very proud of that. And it's good to be able to enjoy my own fic so much on reread, too! I was however annoyed by small editing issues, such as "hmm, I see I was still using that word which I later learned was inappropriate for the period", or "arrgh, I wish I'd used contractions a little more in dialogue". But I think constantly going back to edit would have ruined the reading experience, so I didn't.
Let me also recommend the Yuletide fic A Winter Wood Warming (9272 words) by Terrantalen, which is fic for Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, with Emma Pole/Arabella Strange. Very well written epistolary/documentary style fic.
My last bookshelf book before all my books were packed away in boxes! I admit I chose this one because I was tired, and it had very large print and was a children's book (of sorts). I liked it--it's a contemplative historical book, with vignettes of four children of different generations of the same family, separated in time. The focus, as far as I can tell, is craftsmanship, in stone and metal: discovering what one has a talent for, what one learns after long experience, what elders can teach (or not teach) to children.
Hornblower and the Atropos by C S Forester (1953)
And now begins the Summer of Ebooks! I want to read self-indulgent things for a while, as a reward for the work of moving. First out, my next Hornblower: it can be such a comfort to read the next book in a series where one already knows the characters and what one is likely to get. In this instance, exciting naval adventure--this one is pure Hornblower, in a way, with no slashiness, just the page-turney anticipation of finding out how he's going to solve the latest difficulty. I do wish the author had assured us that those Ceylonese divers were well paid, though. I fear they were not.
During packing I also reread my shelf copy of my own fic If Fate Should Reverse Our Positions. I can't say it's my best fic ever, since there are so many different aspects of writing, but it's certainly the best plotting I've ever done. Very proud of that. And it's good to be able to enjoy my own fic so much on reread, too! I was however annoyed by small editing issues, such as "hmm, I see I was still using that word which I later learned was inappropriate for the period", or "arrgh, I wish I'd used contractions a little more in dialogue". But I think constantly going back to edit would have ruined the reading experience, so I didn't.
Let me also recommend the Yuletide fic A Winter Wood Warming (9272 words) by Terrantalen, which is fic for Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, with Emma Pole/Arabella Strange. Very well written epistolary/documentary style fic.
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*checks the story text again* *checks the publication dates again* Heh, it appears that I have COMPLETELY MADE UP Jones playing second fiddle to Bush in Hornblower's estimation of what makes a good first lieutenant! Seeing that, at the time that Forester wrote this, Bush had yet to be Hornblower's first lieutenant on the Hostpur! Hee, brains.
I agree, though, that it's a solid Hornblower novel. It just doesn't get mentioned much because, as you say, no slashiness. But I do like the canal-boat guy who is all disparaging of Hornblower's skill with boats, and I like, too, Hornblower's ABSOLUTELY TYPICAL tantrum when it looks like he's going to have to give up the treasure.
I absolutely agree with you, though, that the Ceylon divers probably did not get paid enough for all of this!
And yay, I'm glad you were able to enjoy Should Fate Reverse Our Positions -- I'm still jealously saving that one up to read. :-D
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By the way, I had a pdf essay about Bush's character and how it evolves through the books open in a tab when my computer crashed. You don't happen to have a link to that? Pretty sure I got it through you.
The canal trip was cool, as an illustration of evolving technology!
I'm still jealously saving that one up to read. :-D
You know how much I understand that sort of thing. : )
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I had the link from Garonne first! William Bush - A Literary Biography
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If I go by internal chronological order, I suppose Commodore is next up--but as usual I'll read some other stuff in between.
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Thanks very much for the JSMN rec; I love fic about Emma and Arabella.
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Glad you appreciated the rec.
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That sounds like an excellently fun Hornblower book (or at least as good as a Hornblower book can be without Bush or slashiness). I see it's my third-next book, reading in publication order—I shall look forward to it :D
I sympathise about the small editing issues when re-reading one's own fic, but that story is certainly a good one :) Aww, and I remember the JSMN fic from Yuletide—glad you liked it.
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Do you also want to make small editing changes when rereading your own fic, then? I don't feel that way as much in non-historical fandoms--I think it's mostly learning more about period setting and language over time that causes it for me.
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Do you also want to make small editing changes when rereading your own fic, then?
Yes, and I think with the same kind of little historical details that I didn't quite get right or could have done better.