[Dear Friends, before I post this somewhere, probably Medium, in the hopes of getting as many eyeballs as possible to look at this, would you be so kind as to look this over and offer some constructive criticism before I post it? And is there some way that the folks on BookWyrm have the option to see this?]...
I haven’t had any luck in finding sci-fi books recently. I’m looking for a longer story that takes its time to establish the world/universe and the characters living in it. I like the idea of exploring space or futuristic cities/landscapes and being on a journey together with the protagonist. The story doesn’t have to have...
I’ve only read Ringworld from that list (earlier this year). The story did a cool job of introducing the concept of an orbital ring and giving it a sense of scale, plus introducing some other cool concepts/ideas. It also introduced more species and planets and technology that made sense for a big Star Wars-like space opera book series. It was definitely dated as far as how female characters were written, though.
I thought Consider Phlebas did a better job of using a Ring World without it being the whole plot on its own, but I suppose Ringworld had to walk so others could run with it.
The Annihilation / Southern Reach sequels were short enough books that I figured I might as well read them despite some people not liking them. They’re definitely different from the space related stuff I normally pick up, but I’m glad I read them.
I thought they were good! They both made me not want to put them down and kept weaving the horror and mystery together, closed out some of the loose ends and answered questions, but also opened a lot of new cans of worms.
I finished Ignition! and am about to start The Player of Games from the Culture series. I really enjoyed Consider Phlebas, but I’ve been trying to switch off between fiction and nonfiction.
Operating it with Amtrak on freight rail lines could be a good start (can we just Eminent Domain the ones for Boulder and Longmont already…). I hope that it eventually connects down to Trinidad or La Junta to connect to the Amtrak Southwest Chief. And up to Cheyenne. AND gets new right of way and high speed rail. That commuter corridor could be a lot more efficient than continually crying about I-25.
Engineering school for me was mostly about learning how to learn, getting some baseline knowledge to know what questions to ask or where to start looking for answers, and broadening my horizons. Those have a ton of value for me.
A lot of public universities still aren’t that expensive. It isn’t something that someone can easily pay their way through anymore, but it’s a far cry from what some private universities cost. I seriously don’t get why people get saddled with insane debt for some of these mediocre private schools.
GUILTY ( edition.cnn.com )
Guilty on 34 counts....
After the fall of Small Press Distribution, is it time for “Bandcamp for Small Presses?”
[Dear Friends, before I post this somewhere, probably Medium, in the hopes of getting as many eyeballs as possible to look at this, would you be so kind as to look this over and offer some constructive criticism before I post it? And is there some way that the folks on BookWyrm have the option to see this?]...
Voters reject stadium tax for Royals and Chiefs ( www.espn.com )
How dare voters not want to pay 75 basis points on every purchase for decades to fund private enterprise!
Congressional leaders reach deal that would avert government shutdown ( www.washingtonpost.com )
Archive link
Your Sci-Fi suggestions
I haven’t had any luck in finding sci-fi books recently. I’m looking for a longer story that takes its time to establish the world/universe and the characters living in it. I like the idea of exploring space or futuristic cities/landscapes and being on a journey together with the protagonist. The story doesn’t have to have...
Southwest Airlines fined $140 million over last winter's meltdown ( www.axios.com )
What are you reading?
Hey Beehaw (and friends)! What’re you reading?...
Biden goes into 2024 with the economy getting stronger, but voters feel horrible about it ( apnews.com )
Minnesotans aren’t happy about the six finalists for the new state flag ( minnesotareformer.com )
Polis wants to land billions for Front Range rail. He’s looking to local leaders for help ( www.cpr.org )
Americans Are Losing Faith in the Value of College. Whose Fault Is That? ( www.nytimes.com )
NYT gift article expires in 30 days....
Transfer Orbit: 17 new sci-fi and fantasy books to read in September 2023 ( transfer-orbit.ghost.io )
this is one of the main newsletters i use to keep up with new sci-fi and speculative fiction releases. it’s pretty good!