Worldcon thoughts...
Aug. 1st, 2005 10:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lady_schrapnellAt least the dog problem is all taken care of! Someone who's stayed here before, and whose reaction to my (very anxious) query was 'Oh, I was just thinking about how I never got to see Bell again. I'd love to!' Talk about relief...
The funny thing has been seeing people's reactions when I tell them where we're going - interesting the way faces can crumple in dismay with such variety. The more I encounter reactions like this - or the woman in tutorial last time who said she never read anything but literary fiction, and obviously viewed the idea of relaxing the critical standards just a bit, just occasionally, with total dismay - the more I look forward to being there! And one of the academics who wrote a chapter of the course material will be there, so pfft to everyone who scoffs. [She says maturely]
I finished the reread of Lives of Christopher Chant, which I still loved, and doubtless always will, despite the oddities spotted this time round. Literally a life-changing book, if by very circular routes. Now reading The Child that Books Built, by Francis Spufford, which was a present - fantastic so far. He's on the panel that Charlie (of the dwj list, for those on it) is moderating, and it will be well interesting to see and hear him. He's six years younger than I am, but the memories of books read - especially Puffins - are often resoundingly familiar. Might even add this to the growing stack of books to bring to get signed.
Also reading The Best of Fredric Brown, a bit desperately, as it was sent me by a friend in the US who's arriving to stay with my mother tomorrow afternoon! I read one story in it when I got it, and liked it okay, but it wasn't the book for the mood then or now. And rereading Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman for course-work. Not the easiest of reads (the footnotes are important, but annoying to read when they carry over for many pages, as well as its being so sad), but I like it even more than I did the first time.
And finally, in the 'coincidence' department - I picked up a book called Epic at our fete, but didn't get a chance to read it at the time. It languished in one of the piles on the floor until a few days ago, when I found out that the author, Conor Kostick, is also on the panel Charlie's moderating. I dug the book out then, but was quite startled to see it mentioned today, very favourably, on![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sartorias' LJ. With agreement about the favourable opinion by fjm, who just happens to be a critic also involved in course material, and whom I'll likely be meeting in Glasgow. I think all these coincidences maybe mean I should try to read it too before Friday, though the number of things to get done before we leave on Thursday morning is growing alarmingly, and I'm rambling away here...
The funny thing has been seeing people's reactions when I tell them where we're going - interesting the way faces can crumple in dismay with such variety. The more I encounter reactions like this - or the woman in tutorial last time who said she never read anything but literary fiction, and obviously viewed the idea of relaxing the critical standards just a bit, just occasionally, with total dismay - the more I look forward to being there! And one of the academics who wrote a chapter of the course material will be there, so pfft to everyone who scoffs. [She says maturely]
I finished the reread of Lives of Christopher Chant, which I still loved, and doubtless always will, despite the oddities spotted this time round. Literally a life-changing book, if by very circular routes. Now reading The Child that Books Built, by Francis Spufford, which was a present - fantastic so far. He's on the panel that Charlie (of the dwj list, for those on it) is moderating, and it will be well interesting to see and hear him. He's six years younger than I am, but the memories of books read - especially Puffins - are often resoundingly familiar. Might even add this to the growing stack of books to bring to get signed.
Also reading The Best of Fredric Brown, a bit desperately, as it was sent me by a friend in the US who's arriving to stay with my mother tomorrow afternoon! I read one story in it when I got it, and liked it okay, but it wasn't the book for the mood then or now. And rereading Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman for course-work. Not the easiest of reads (the footnotes are important, but annoying to read when they carry over for many pages, as well as its being so sad), but I like it even more than I did the first time.
And finally, in the 'coincidence' department - I picked up a book called Epic at our fete, but didn't get a chance to read it at the time. It languished in one of the piles on the floor until a few days ago, when I found out that the author, Conor Kostick, is also on the panel Charlie's moderating. I dug the book out then, but was quite startled to see it mentioned today, very favourably, on
sartorias' LJ. With agreement about the favourable opinion by fjm, who just happens to be a critic also involved in course material, and whom I'll likely be meeting in Glasgow. I think all these coincidences maybe mean I should try to read it too before Friday, though the number of things to get done before we leave on Thursday morning is growing alarmingly, and I'm rambling away here...
