Though I’m going to start teaching three sections of freshman composition tomorrow at a new college, I’d rather write about what I’ve been reading.
Aside from the writing textbook I’ll be teaching, I’ve finished reading Moving Pictures by Terry Pratchett, which, as I expected, turned out not to be my favorite. I’ve also read the first four stories in Best American Short Stories 2010, which I noticed while unpacking and thought I’d better read before the 2011 version comes out in October. I really enjoyed “Into Silence” by Marlin Barton–though the main character is deaf, the story’s dialogue is one of the best written parts of the work. I’m going to carry the short story collection around with me to read during my breaks between classes.
And I’m 150 pages deep into The Belly of the Bow by K. J. Parker, which is quite a different book from Colours in the Steel, still distinguished by excellent writing and many of the same characters, but in an entirely different setting and with a less clear antagonist. So far, the Fencer Trilogy is a bit less pessimistic than the Engineer Trilogy (which should be a sign to those who know me that I like it a bit less), but it’s also a more fun and rapid read. Not that there aren’t plenty of people who die, but there’s less a sense of hopeless fatedness to it all.
And now I’m going to look over my syllabus for the dozenth time and lint-roll my teaching dress. Exciting evening.
Mostly About Books 