What are you reading right now?

jadis · 09-10-2025, 06:54 AM

Perfect for a lazy day in bed with a light covid brain fog. Reread the justly famous "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," now reading "The Boscombe Valley Mystery," which I only vaguely remember. Also want to reread "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot," which like the Speckled Band is one of the clearly gothic-tinged ones and might be my all time favorite Holmes story.

jadis · 09-18-2025, 03:02 PM

Hitchens in hilarious form. Maugham is my mom's favorite writer, god knows why

Quote:

Born and brought up in France, Maugham lost his parents when quite young and from then on was farmed to mean relatives and cruel, monastic boarding schools. The traditional ration of bullying, beating, and buggery seems to have been unusually effective in his case, leaving him with a frightful lifelong speech impediment and a staunch commitment to homosexuality... An ideal way to "lock in" homosexual disposition is probably to spend time as a gynecologist in a slum district of London—which, astonishingly enough, is what the fastidious young man did.

jadis · 09-22-2025, 08:24 AM

Superb writing that cuts through a vast body of generalities we're used to passively accept about NK (that it's a "Stalinist" regime or that it relies exclusively on repression or that it can be negotiated with). The truth is apparently far, far creepier.

jadis · 10-05-2025, 04:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jadis

Perfect for a lazy day in bed with a light covid brain fog. Reread the justly famous "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," now reading "The Boscombe Valley Mystery," which I only vaguely remember. Also want to reread "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot," which like the Speckled Band is one of the clearly gothic-tinged ones and might be my all time favorite Holmes story.

Can't stop rereading Holmes stories. "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" is up there with the Speckled Band and the Devil's Foot. ****ing delightful!

jadis · 10-06-2025, 08:49 AM

A little gem of a book by a very great historian

jadis · 10-11-2025, 05:08 AM

"The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb" - another vaguely Gothic Holmes story. Spooky and memorable.

Mucha na Dziko · 10-13-2025, 01:44 PM

sounds interesting

jadis · 10-16-2025, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mucha na Dziko

sounds interesting

Holmes stories are lots of fun.

Do you know Poe's three Dupin stories? That's where detective fiction began. And they were translated into French by Baudelaire!

09-10-2025, 06:54 AM	#7511 (permalink)
jadis Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: dont ask Posts: 1,828	Perfect for a lazy day in bed with a light covid brain fog. Reread the justly famous "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," now reading "The Boscombe Valley Mystery," which I only vaguely remember. Also want to reread "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot," which like the Speckled Band is one of the clearly gothic-tinged ones and might be my all time favorite Holmes story. __________________ Wireless enthusiast intercepts government secret radio band and uncovers secrets and scandals of deceitful type proportions

09-22-2025, 08:24 AM	#7513 (permalink)
jadis Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: dont ask Posts: 1,828	Superb writing that cuts through a vast body of generalities we're used to passively accept about NK (that it's a "Stalinist" regime or that it relies exclusively on repression or that it can be negotiated with). The truth is apparently far, far creepier. __________________ Wireless enthusiast intercepts government secret radio band and uncovers secrets and scandals of deceitful type proportions

10-06-2025, 08:49 AM	#7515 (permalink)
jadis Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: dont ask Posts: 1,828	A little gem of a book by a very great historian __________________ Wireless enthusiast intercepts government secret radio band and uncovers secrets and scandals of deceitful type proportions

10-11-2025, 05:08 AM	#7516 (permalink)
jadis Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: dont ask Posts: 1,828	"The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb" - another vaguely Gothic Holmes story. Spooky and memorable. __________________ Wireless enthusiast intercepts government secret radio band and uncovers secrets and scandals of deceitful type proportions