Sound and Fury

I don't think I've ever read anything as harsh and affecting as Perdido Street Station by China Miéville.

It is set in New Crobuzon, a massive, corrupt, and cosmopolitan city in a world that makes me think of Steam Punk Shadowrun. It manages to be completely fictional and utterly real.

More below the fold. Themes are discussed, but not specific events.

Read more »

BEAUTIFUL flowers—like beautiful women—can separate the most sensible of men from their money. Those men invest in the reproductive organs of plants such as roses to signal, albeit coyly, analogous intentions of their own.

The Economist is hilarious. This is how they open an article about genetically modified flowers.

There's an excellent article at Vinography about what makes for a good tasting note. One of the issues mentioned is that there is no language for describing the flavor of wine directly. Instead, we compare the wine to flavors and smells that we are already familiar with, and hope our readers have the same familiarity with the palette we draw from.

There's also discussion of stylistic elements of a review. Alder of Vinography likes to tell a wine's story. Beau of BasicJuice tends toward tight, information-dense tasting notes - when he's not experimenting with deeply alternative styles, like haiku, rap, or pictographic.

I'm sort of curious what my small crop of reader thinks about the issue.

Samuel Pepys, a successful English clerk, wrote a very complete, rather famous journal in the late 17th century. It presents a relatively uncensored view of his life and habits, and is thus of great historical value. Someone has decided to post it, one day per day, to the above-linked blog. I think this is awesome.

Thanks to Steve for mentioning that this existed.

Drill sounds. Pop. Darkness.
Acrid smell of burnt plastic.
Network down, lights out.