Eyup my funky little weeknoters. How the devil are you? It’s friday, and another overly long rambling weeknote from yours truly.
WHO IS THIS PERSON?
I’m Dave Graham, slightly lapsed book tempter on pretty much all the socials as @dakegra. I’m a stationery geek, lover of movies, music, and good whisky. UX guy. Easily distractible with a hot beverage and cake. Owned by two cats.
This is my email newsletter/blog at which I’ll talk about the shiny things which distracted me this week. The regular blog is more book reviews and shiz. Note to self: write up some reviews or they’ll cancel your #bookblogger privileges.
Hi, pull up a chair and grab yourself a beverage. You look fabulous. Have you done something new with your hair?
Reading
After months with no #bookpost, suddenly two books turn up within days of each other. Is this the resurgence of physical book mail?
First up is Joe Hill’s King Sorrow, out in October this year from Headline (to whom many thanks!). It’s a serious chonky boi of a book clocking in at nearly 900 pages. Good job it’s not out for a few months cos it’ll take me that long to read.
Arthur Oakes is a reader, a dreamer, and a student at Rackham College, Maine, renowned for its frosty winters, exceptional library, and beautiful buildings. But his idyll—and burgeoning romance with Gwen Underfoot—is shattered when a local drug dealer and her partner corner him into one of the worst crimes he can imagine: stealing rare books from the college library.
Trapped and desperate, Arthur turns to his closest friends for comfort and help. Together they dream up a wild, fantastical scheme to free Arthur from the cruel trap in which he finds himself. Wealthy, irrepressible Colin Wren suggests using the unnerving Crane journal (bound in the skin of its author) to summon a dragon to do their bidding. The others—brave, beautiful Alison Shiner; the battling twins Donna and Donovan McBride; and brainy, bold Gwen—don’t hesitate to join Colin in an effort to smash reality and bring a creature of the impossible into our world.
But there’s nothing simple about dealing with dragons, and their pact to save Arthur becomes a terrifying bargain in which the six must choose a new sacrifice for King Sorrow every year—or become his next meal.
ooooh. Sounds utterly fabulous. Dragons! Books! Shenanigans!
The other book which turned up is Gunner, by Alan Parks, out in July from Baskerville (again, many thanks!).
I must confess that I’ve not read any of his books, but I’m reliably informed that he’s doing great things with Tartan Noir. Added to my holiday reading list.
March 1941. Joseph Gunner is back on the streets of Glasgow after being wounded on the front lines in France.
Keeping the pain in his leg at bay with the help of morphine, Gunner, a former detective, is hoping to lie low as the Luftwaffe begins bombing Glasgow.
But when he runs into his old boss Drummond, he is persuaded to help examine a body found in the wreckage. When it turns out to be that of a German, mutilated to disguise his identity, Gunner reluctantly agrees to investigate.
As he begins to hunt for the truth Gunner runs into old flames and bitter enemies, before finding himself embroiled in a high-level conspiracy that reaches far beyond his hometown of Glasgow.
As far as reading goes, I’m halfway through Joe Abercrombie’s The Devils. A monk, a vampire, a werewolf and an elf accompany a princess across a version of Europe to install her as rightful heir to the throne. Hijinks ensue. It’s bloody, it’s witty, the banter is fabulous and I’m enjoying it to an almost unhealthy degree.
Watching
I stumbled across Death Valley on iPlayer earlier this week.
It’s like a British (well, mostly Welsh) version of Castle, except funnier and better written. Timothy Spall is having an absolute whale of a time and enjoying every moment and Gwyneth Keyworth is fabulous as the young detective. Zipped through it and now sad there’s no more. For now, anyway.
Listening
Mainly podcasts this week. I greatly enjoyed Zoo’s Clues, an episode of Sidedoor, from the Smithsonian, in which they chat to Kali Holder from the necropsy lab a the National Zoo. Dealing with animal death is hard, but one quote really struck me:
Kali: Good time is more important than long time. And that is something that veterinary
medicine has really started and ended with, that good time is really what we’re here for.
I think that’s very true – better to live a good life than a long one.
The Consumed
Friday night is whisky night, as per usual. We paired a lovely bottle of Lagavulin 16 with Throwing Muses Live in Providence.
Much fun was had by all involved.
Photos
I get occasional emails from Google Maps about my photo contributions, and was amused to see that this one had hit 600k views. It’s of a meal I had at Headrow House in Leeds six years ago.
They used to do steak & chips for a fiver, which was an absolute bargain. More accurately it was more like half a steak and a portion of chips, but the steak was beautifully cooked and the chips were, I must say, banging. Drooling now at the thought of it.
That’s not my most viewed photo either. This one of Nostell Priory is, clocking in at 800k views. It’d be nice if we actually got something for it, I guess.
Other things
Managed to get tickets to the Minnesota Vikings vs Cleveland Browns at Tottenham in October. Much excitement. For various long-winded reasons I’m a Vikings fan, and greatly enjoyed my first NFL match at Wembley last October even though it was Jags/Patriots. Off to see the Jags vs the LA Rams in October with my brother and his friend too. Great fun.
No yawning ducks this week, though I did see two squirrels dash across the road on the same day. Different squirrels (one assumes), different roads. Not seen a squirrel running across a road for longer than I care to remember, then like bookpost, two turn up at once.
Right, that’s quite enough of my nonsense. Have a splendid weekend, and as ever, be excellent to each other.
Smooches
D x