Richard Reyes

Just finished "Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughed (A Journey through the Deep State)" by Kerry Howley. Tomorrow I begin "A Fire So Wild" by Sarah Ruiz-Grossman.

IMHO, as highly regards John Steinbeck is I still hold that he is underrated. East of Eden and Grapes of Wrath are two of the greatest novels every written in any language at any time in history. Truly, that great.

Astonishing the Gods by Ben Okri.

I read 78 books in 2023. Favorites were (in no particular order): Hail Mary - Andy Weir Now is Not the Time to Panic - Kevin Wilson Horse - Geraldine Brooks All of the Expanse novels - James S. A. Corey The Daredevils - Gary Amdahl The Great Alone - Kristin Hannah Somebody's Fool - Richard Russo I Have a Few Questions for You - Rebecca Makai The Bee Sting - Paul Murray

Just finished Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead. Great prose with a fun sense of humor but missing any ambitious literary vision (and that's okay). Just started I Have some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai. 100 pages in and I already like it way more than her last book which was a Pulitzer Prize finalist but I though was a dud.

Somebody's Fool by Richard Russo.

Recently finished Home Front by Kristin Hannah. My second novel by her. Good book. Currently reading I Am Death, two novellas by Gary Amdahl. This is my third Amdahl book this summer. On deck I've got a Milan Kundera loaded on the Kindle because I realized I have only read one Kundera and should probably read more.

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah.

It was good. His research and insights are thorough. His paths to improvement are reasonable. "Evicted" was very person centered as he followed people trying to survive on poverty wages and told their stories. This one was more idea centered so lacked the same magnitude of engagement. I'd recommend reading Evicted first and then this one afterwards.

Poverty, By America - Mathew Desmond. Time for some non-fiction. His previous book, Evicted, is one of the most eye-opening books I've ever read. Work hard, work smart and still live in poverty.

The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey. Also known as book one of The Expanse. Not sure if I want to read the entire series. So far book one is too much like the show. I'm hoping for deviation from the tv show but I fear I'll have to keep going and going until I reach that point.

The Secret Chord by Geraldine Brooks. Horse was great so I'm exploring more of her work. So far better than I was expecting.

Machine Man by Max Barry

The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes

Below is a link to a pdf of my Rush novel. I am providing it free to read and share. I've realized it's not going to make me rich and famous or win a National Book Award (LOL!) so now I'm just giving it away. Link deleted. Sorry. (Buyer beware: You get what you pay for (!)(?)

John Dies at the End - Jason Pargin.

Styx - Crash of the Crown Rush - Grace Under Pressure Yo Miles Cecil Taylor - Live Camel Driver

Under rated: Ceiling Unlimited, Didacts and Narpets (I know, not really a song but I like it alot), Far Cry (I know most people like the song but I think it deserves to stand alongside their best work). Over rated: Most of Snakes and Arrow (except above and the instrumentals).

Not sure it's fair to call them a bad band but I saw Rush with 38 Special and it sure seemed like a bad match.

Hi, I wrote a novel about going to a Rush concert in 1980. Most of the book is set in the parking lot of the concert hall because, you know, you have to get there early for a general admission show if you want to get close to the stage. The book is loaded with bright stuff for the uber Rush fans such as references to deep cuts, a discussion about the misprinted lyrics on Permanent Waves, a “street theater” production based on 2112, philosophical musings about the Fear sequence, and so on. And then things get weird. The boundaries between the real and the unreal collide when a necromancer weaves a snake kaiju out of threads of fear. Limelight is used to create sci-fi weaponry. Exotic energy shatters the boundaries between realms of the multiverse. The characters spiral through a timeless space to a strange immortal place. What strange place, you ask? How about a remote world of barren landscape save for the giant floating brain beneath a royal blue sky. Meanwhile, our heroes wrestle with their own inner demons related to race, religion, friendship, and love. You can purchase a copy exclusively through Amazon. GENERAL ADMISSION by Richard Reyes