kinuta

Small part of this morning's walk.

I don't buy or receive Christmas presents. Most years I don't even notice that it's Christmas day.

Here it's Y/M/D. However you have to contend with two ways of expressing the year. This year is 2013 or Heisei　25. Every time an emperor pops his clogs the calendar is reset to zero and a new name is attached. The Imperial Household Agency apparently dreams them up. To show how ridiculous and confusing this is, even my missus, who is Japanese, wasn't sure of the Heisei date. Another mad concept is that Sunday is the first day of the week so caution is always needed when looking at back to front calendars.

I managed to get through Dune somehow, in High School, but didn't much care for it. Haven't been tempted to read any others ever since. I've just finished re-reading The Hydrogen Sonata. The better Culture novels are very fun indeed. The rest are a mixed bag. But I'd have to count Banks as one of my favorite sf writers of the last 30 years or so. I'd be interested in reading some of the Culture novels. Which ones would you suggest and what order should they be read in ? I would suggest "The Player of Games" and "Look To Windward" in that order. But I very much suggest first reading an essay by Banks titled "A Few Notes on the Culture" before any of the novels. It will give you the lay of the land. It's in the story collection "The State of the Art." Then you might read the title story in that collection, "The State of the Art," a novella about a Culture Contact ship visiting Earth in 1977. I read the story first and THEN the essay and wished I'd done it the other way 'round. I remember finding some terms a little obscure (such as 'Orbital' as a name for a type of habitat) but then the essay made them clear. If you read the essay and don't like it, then you need go no further. Then if you don't like the novella, you need go no further. I went on to read everything, but I really wish I'd read "A Few Note on the Culture" FIRST, although reading it second certainly didn't kill things for me. Thanks very much for taking the time to post a useful introduction. I'll proceed as you suggest. Cheers I managed to get through Dune somehow, in High School, but didn't much care for it. Haven't been tempted to read any others ever since. I've just finished re-reading The Hydrogen Sonata. The better Culture novels are very fun indeed. The rest are a mixed bag. But I'd have to count Banks as one of my favorite sf writers of the last 30 years or so. I'd be interested in reading some of the Culture novels. Which ones would you suggest and what order should they be read in ? I would suggest "The Player of Games" and "Look To Windward" in that order. But I very much suggest first reading an essay by Banks titled "A Few Notes on the Culture" before any of the novels. It will give you the lay of the land. It's in the story collection "The State of the Art." Then you might read the title story in that collection, "The State of the Art," a novella about a Culture Contact ship visiting Earth in 1977. I read the story first and THEN the essay and wished I'd done it the other way 'round. I remember finding some terms a little obscure (such as 'Orbital' as a name for a type of habitat) but then the essay made them clear. If you read the essay and don't like it, then you need go no further. Then if you don't like the novella, you need go no further. I went on to read everything, but I really wish I'd read "A Few Note on the Culture" FIRST, although reading it second certainly didn't kill things for me. The essay in question can also be found online here. Next, I would suggest getting one of the full novels, not the short story collection State of the Art. Player of Games and Look to Windward are good suggestions. The high point in the series is Excession. That novel should not be read unprepared as it focuses most intensely on the advanced artificial intelligences called Minds. The early Culture novels (Consider Phlebas, Player of Games, Use of Weapons) lack this inward focus on the Culture itself. The final two, Surface Detail and The Hydrogen Sonata, are not to be missed. I would (initially) avoid the following three: Consider Phlebas (not representative of the mature Culture universe & novels, overrated), Use of Weapons (highly overrated imo), Matter (the weakest of all). Thank you, that's helpful information.

Many happy returns.

I managed to get through Dune somehow, in High School, but didn't much care for it. Haven't been tempted to read any others ever since. I've just finished re-reading The Hydrogen Sonata. The better Culture novels are very fun indeed. The rest are a mixed bag. But I'd have to count Banks as one of my favorite sf writers of the last 30 years or so. I'd be interested in reading some of the Culture novels. Which ones would you suggest and what order should they be read in ?

Bron:Broen 2 - season two of The Bridge. I'm up to episode 8 and must admit I'm struggling to follow the plot(s). I can't quite tell if I haven't been at my cognitive best or that it's badly written but something is making it pretty hard to unravel. Detective Saga's Asperger seems even more pronounced than in the first season.

Thanks for bringing that up. Checked online blurb and it looks right up my street - put an order in. Just finished the last but one David Downing novel which is set in late '45 in Berlin and across southern and eastern Europe against the backdrop of the mass migrations and the Jewish routes to Palestine. I teach the Cold War to 17-18 year olds so books like this provide constant new information and anecdotes. Can recommend this one I read last year that overlaps though covers a longer time period: Thanks for the Anne Applebaum recommendation, I've just started it.

Good job they didn't ask Japanese high school kids. They would have scored zero. I asked two to name three countries in Africa, their response was ' Africa is a country, isn't it?

Boardwalk Empire season four final episode. Excellent, cinematic tv. The final sequence of montage scenes was the cherry on the cake. Can't wait for season five.

There's been no change here, all domestic orders are delivered free of shipping charge, regardless of the cost of the item.

My sympathy and condolences.

Ace Cannon Freddy Cannon Peter Gunn

Lovely crisp and cool weather with clear blue skies. Perfect for walking. Yesterday I walked a full, 42 K marathon. Excuse the inappropriate posting but I feel the need for a mini boast!

Hope she gets better soon.

Blue skies, 'bracing' as visitors to Skegness may recall. The locals are all bundled up for a trip to the arctic. Tokyoites are a nesh lot.

Boardwalk Empire Very interesting, maybe the best season so far.

Happy birthday to the birthday man.

Has anyone heard this yet?

Boardwalk Empire I'm enjoying this season a lot.

Beautiful, blue skies, warm but cool at night, leaves turning brown.

This week's excellent episode of The Good Wife...by gum, trouble at t'mill.

I'm also very sorry to hear of your situation. I don't know what to suggest other than walking long distances, which has often helped me through trying times.

The Blacklist Three episodes in, this could well turn into a really good series.