Sycamore started reading God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert (Dune, #4)
@CharlesDesiderio I'll be curious to hear what you think of it! Been recommended to me many times over the years.
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Writer, musician, horticulturist, web developer. Lover of travel, food, nature. Friend to all dogs.
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Sycamore finished reading Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer (The Southern Reach Trilogy, #3)
Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer (The Southern Reach Trilogy, #3)
From the publisher---
It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for thirty years, rebuffing …
Sycamore started reading Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer (The Southern Reach Trilogy, #3)
Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer (The Southern Reach Trilogy, #3)
From the publisher---
It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for thirty years, rebuffing …
Sycamore finished reading Authority by Jeff VanderMeer (Southern Reach, #2)
Authority by Jeff VanderMeer (Southern Reach, #2)
"In the second volume of the Southern Reach Trilogy, questions are answered, stakes are raised, and mysteries are deepened. In …
Sycamore reviewed Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
An intimate portrait of two men who cherish the slim bond between them and the …
Flawless
5 stars
Honestly a perfect book. There's nothing I could say about it that hasn't already been said. Just a masterpiece of twentieth century fiction from one of the greatest to do it. I'm so glad I was never assigned this book in school because I'm sure I would not have been able to relate to it. As an adult with real life experiences, I can say this is one of the most heartbreaking books I've ever read.
Sycamore finished reading Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
An intimate portrait of two men who cherish the slim bond between them and the dream they share in a …
Sycamore reviewed The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
Established in 2025, the purpose of the new organization was simple: To advocate for the …
Optimistic despite all evidence against
4 stars
Ministry for the Future was a Good book. It’s unfortunate that KSR got bogged down in crypto as anything approaching a potential solution to a climate-induced economic collapse. And I found it especially hard to believe that world governments would ever agree to issue global citizenship to refugees.
Still, I found the accounts of various near-future climate disasters—and the peoples’ responses to them—to be very realistic and compelling.
KSR is clearly an optimist while I’m for sure a doomer. I Want To Believe but MftF didn’t win me over. Where’s the fascism? It’s the elephant in the room.
More than anything, the book got me thinking a lot, and presented a perspective I haven’t really seen before, which is rooted in a deep understanding of the problems and their severity, but still retains a sense of optimism that I largely don’t share. It felt good to see the world adapt …
Ministry for the Future was a Good book. It’s unfortunate that KSR got bogged down in crypto as anything approaching a potential solution to a climate-induced economic collapse. And I found it especially hard to believe that world governments would ever agree to issue global citizenship to refugees.
Still, I found the accounts of various near-future climate disasters—and the peoples’ responses to them—to be very realistic and compelling.
KSR is clearly an optimist while I’m for sure a doomer. I Want To Believe but MftF didn’t win me over. Where’s the fascism? It’s the elephant in the room.
More than anything, the book got me thinking a lot, and presented a perspective I haven’t really seen before, which is rooted in a deep understanding of the problems and their severity, but still retains a sense of optimism that I largely don’t share. It felt good to see the world adapt to crisis.
I want to call it a solid 3.5 out of 5 but since this platform only gives me whole stars I'll err on the side of a 4.
Sycamore finished reading The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
Established in 2025, the purpose of the new organization was simple: To advocate for the world's future generations and to …
Sycamore reviewed The emissary by Yōko Tawada
Japan, after suffering from a massive irreparable disaster, cuts itself off from the world. Children …
Never hooked me
2 stars
I wanted to fall in love with this book after reading Tawada's 'Scattered All Over the Earth,' but it just never hooked me. There isn't much of a plot to speak of, just a series of recollections about people and places outside of time. There are some unique ideas and fun wordplay as in Tawada's other work, just not enough of a story to keep me interested. I shelved it before finishing it. Life's too short for books that don't excite you.
Sycamore stopped reading
The emissary by Yōko Tawada
Japan, after suffering from a massive irreparable disaster, cuts itself off from the world. Children are so weak they can …
Sycamore started reading The emissary by Yōko Tawada
The emissary by Yōko Tawada
Japan, after suffering from a massive irreparable disaster, cuts itself off from the world. Children are so weak they can …
Sycamore reviewed Children of Dune by Frank Herbert (A Berkley book -- 757,375)
The science fiction masterpiece continues in the "major event,"( Los Angeles Times) Children of Dune. …
Bizarre but fun adventure
4 stars
Children of Dune is a very weird and cool book. I greatly enjoyed the story and felt that it was a fitting conclusion to the trilogy. By the end, I felt as though Herbert was trying to communicate some deep and heavy themes, but it wasn't entirely clear to me what they are. Maybe I'm just not reading deep enough! I don't know. Dune is cool and weird and I'm excited to read the next one.
Sycamore finished reading Children of Dune by Frank Herbert (A Berkley book -- 757,375)
Children of Dune by Frank Herbert (A Berkley book -- 757,375)
The science fiction masterpiece continues in the "major event,"( Los Angeles Times) Children of Dune. With millions of copies sold …
Sycamore reviewed Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (Penguin twentieth-century classics)
Cannery Row is a novel by American author John Steinbeck, published in 1945. It is …
Delightful, idyllic, melancholy
5 stars
Far from the doomed cross-country voyage of 'Grapes of Wrath' lies 'Cannery Row,' one of the sweetest books I've ever read. The characters are so human in their needs, desires, thoughts, and actions, and Steinbeck clearly loves them for all of their flaws. You'll fall in love with every character just like they all love each other in this romantic little seaside community. The magic of the storytelling lies in the perfect balance of playful humor and profound melancholy. It's the work of a master at the height of his craft.