Singing Bird

Reading

Eating Bird
 
  • Rice, Christoper. A Density of Souls. New York: Hyperion, 2000. (12/2000)  Unexpected, richly disorienting prose. Didn't really need the hurricane, though. Beautiful debut, Christopher!
  • Rowling, J.K.
    • Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone, 1997. Audiotape. Read by Jim Dale.
    • Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets, 1998. Audiotape.
    • Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban, 1999. Audiotape. (Summer/Fall 2000)
    Jeff and I have been listening in the car and at night. Much fun. Obliviate!
  • Wolfe, Tom. A Man in Full. New York: Bantam, 1998. (8/2000) Riveting & cruel
  • Follett, Ken. The Pillars of the Earth. New York: Signet, 1990. (11/2000) Medieval architect, cameo by Thomas a Becket.
  • Dunne, Dominick. A Season in Purgatory. New York: Ballantine, 1993. (8/2000)  Crypto Kennedy clan murder cover up. Good local color.
  • Toobin, Jeffrey. A Vast Conspiracy. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. (9/2000) Ugh. Tripp has an ugly soul; culture war; inept but persistent Starr. Changed my mind; Clinton shouldn't have resigned.
  • Bear, Greg. Darwin's Radio. New York: Ballantine, 1999. (10/2000) Genetic apocalypse. Now I'm afraid of my DNA.
  • Heim, Scott. In awe. New York: Harper, 1998. (7/2000) Beautiful, painful. Love Scott. Sorry he had to grow up in Kansas.
  • Leavitt, David. Martin Bauman. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 2000. (10/2000) Annoying; graceless prose; shallowly described cultural currents.
  • Zimler, Richard. The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon.  Woodstock: Overlook Press, 2000, c1998.  (3/2000)   Loved it! despite too much mystery and not enough kabal.  Nice, unexpected gay subtheme.
  • Benford, Gregory. Foundation's Fear. NY: HarperPrism, 1998, c1997. (3/2000)   Better than Bear; loved the "sims".  Trantor "Matrix" precedes movie?
  • Corlett, William. Two Gentlemen Sharing. Los Angeles: Alison, 1999, c1997. (1/2000) Fun, British farce, too many stereotypes & plot twists, but still entertaining. Loved 'Sisters of Lysistrata' Italian lesbian commune.
  • Albom, Mitch.  Tuesdays with Morrie.  NY: Doubleday, 1997.   (7/99)  A mild comfort, but just in time for family disasters
  • McLaughlin, Christian.  Sex Toys of the Gods. Penguin, 1998, c1997.   (8/99)   Funny, funny
  • Fry, Stephen.  The Liar.  NY: Soho Press, 1991.  8/99  Excellent if convoluted.
  • Bram, Christopher.  Father of Frankenstein.  NY: Penguin, 1996.  (7/99)  Richer than the movie, but with no Sir Ian.
  • Vilmure, Danie.  Toby's Lie.  NY: Simon & Shuster, 1995.
  • Norton, Andre. Time Traders. New York: Ace Books, 1958. (5/99) Still pretty cool
  • Bear, Greg. Foundation and Chaos. New York: Harper Paperbacks, 1999. (5/99) Worthy follow-on to Asimov. 
  • Leonard, Elmore. Cuba Libre. New York: Dell, 1999. (4/99) Old genre now. 
  • Bear, Greg. Eternity. New York: Popular Library, 1988. (4/99)
  • Saramago, Jose. The History of the Siege of Lisbon. New York: Harvest, 1998, c1996. (3/99) demanding and extraordinary 
  • Bear, Greg. Slant. New York: TOR, 1998, c1997. (3/99) 
  • Harr, Jonathan. A Civil Action. New York: Vintage, 1996. (2/99) 
  • Hunt, David. The Magician's Tale. New York: Berkeley Books, 1998, c1997. (2/99) 
  • McDonald, Ian. Evolution's Shore. New York: Bantam Books, 1997, c199. (11/98) Excellent!
  • Hadleigh, Boze. Hollywood Gays: : conversations with, Cary Grant, Liberace, Tony Perkins, Paul Lynde, Cesar Romero, Brad Davis, Randolph Scott, James Coco, William Haines, David Lewis. New York: Barricade, 1996.
  • Carr, Caleb. The Angel of Darkness. Ballantine Books, 1998. 
  • Watson, Lyle. Dark Nature: A Natural History of Evil. HarperCollings, 1997.
  • Gibson, William. Idoru. Berkeley, 1997.
  • Dennett, Daniel Clement. Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life. Simon & Schuster, 1996.
  • Carr, Caleb. The Alienest. Bantam Books, 1995. 

  •  
  • Chauncey, George. Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the making of the Gay Male World, 1890-1940. New York: Basic Books, 1994.

  • Grade: A......Excellent and fascinating gender history
  • Sommers, Christina Hoff. Who Stole Feminism?: How Women have Betrayed Women. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994. 

  • Grade: C--.....Aarg. Ungenerous, spiteful, wrong-headed, only very occasionally on target imho. 
  • Kraus, Krandall. The President's Son. Boston: Alyson Publications, 1995, c1986. 

  • Grade: B+.... Great first-half potboiler-a-clef about Ron Reagan, Jr. A little grim towards the end. 
  • Kelly, James Patrick. Wildlife. New York: TOR, 1994.

  • Grade: A....Amazingly imaginative cyberpunk. Blew me away finally. 
  • Gibson, William. Neuromancer. New York: Ace, 1984. 

  • Grade: Classic...finally got around to it only 11 years late. Incredibly vibrant language. 
  • Heim, Scott. Mysterious Skin. New York: HarperCollins, 1995. 

  • Grade: B+....His first novel. Midwestern gay gothic. Don't miss the cereal scene and the calf event. 
  • Gibson, William. Count Zero. New York: Ace, 1987,c1986.

  • Grade: B....Pretty great stuff, but the hero's such a loser.. 
  • Salzman, Mark. The Soloist. New York: Random House, 1994.

  • Grade: B....Strange, interesting, weirdly episodic & meandering. 
  • Hollinghurst, Alan. The Folding Star. New York: Pantheon Books, 1994. 

  • Grade: C-.....Old fashioned, troubled & pederastic; Death in Venice in Flanders. 


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