This book was brought to my attention while listening to the 'Books on the Nightstand ' podcast, which has sadly come to an end, and Michael Kindness's description of the various stories made me stop to write down the name so that I could look into this book further. The stories cover a variety of subjects from paper animals that come to life to a person whose life depends on keeping an ice cube safe. All the stories look interesting and from reading other reviews they seem to deeply explore various aspects of life.  One of the stories listed that piqued my interest apart from the titular story was The Bookmaking Habits of Select Species. Have you read this book yet?  Let me know what you think about it.

Hi and welcome . What do you think? Is reading antisocial? And if it is should readers be ashamed?  I don't think so, but what do you think? I'd be interested to know. On another note, I've completed some housekeeping on my blog and have added a Start Here page and refreshed the About Me page. Check them both out and let me know what you think, I'm open to ways of improving the accessibility of this blog. Anyway enjoy your weekend, and enjoy reading with your favourite beverage in hand.

I was immediately interested in this book based on the cover alone. it's pretty awesome.   The blurb says it's a novel in the same vein as Philip K Dick's The Man in the High Castle, an alternative history novel. I have a love-hate relationship with alternative history novels, I love the idea but hate most of them, the path they take in the explorations of the ideas always frustrates me, but if this one includes Robotech / Pacific Rim like Mechs it may be worth it.  

In these post titled ' Up and Coming Reads ', I want to provide you with some suggested reading material that I think looks interesting and would like you to consider. Shifting Reality caught my attention not only because it has a great cover but also for the fact it has a non-western protagonist, Melati who is of Indonesian descent.  I've purchased my copy from Amazon and I am hoping to start reading it soon.  The author Patty Jensen, has written a few other Sci-Fi books and I would encourage you to check out her web site:  pattyjansen.com/   If you look hard enough you can find a a recipe for Indonesian gado gado. You can pick up an e-copy of  Shifting Reality at the moment for less than $4 AUD.  Let me know what you think . Enjoy reading more and thinking more... with your favourite beverage, of course.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a favourite story in my home, we have the book, the plush caterpillar and I recently got the T-Shirt. My daughter was very impressed and makes sure I don't forget to wear it regularly.  Which is why the first article was an instant read for me when I came across it.  The other interesting read is the Tor.com article about the movie Jupiter Ascending, a movie which has very good world building, but may show the darker side of our future.  A good read.  Well, now it's time to sit back with your beverage of choice and enjoy a weekend of reading.

The Calvin and Hobbes comic strip has always been a favourite of mine, it is at the top of the list with The Far Side and Dilbert coming close behind.  It was only after I read the article below about Calvin and Hobbes that I realised 'Yes, this is why I like it so much'.  Enjoy reading this weekend along with your favourite beverage :)