Some books I’ve read recently

I’ve been trying to read more this year, and I figured I’d make a list of a few books I’ve read and enjoyed recently.

Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsk

I thought this one was really good, one of the best I’ve read recently. Russian authors really know how to create a bleak and desolate world for their characters to exist in, and at least in the case of this book, I think a lot of that reflects the kind of world they were living in when they wrote it. It asks a lot of questions, like what if aliens showed up, but payed us no mind at all before leaving? How do we pinpoint the moment of change as it happens? What does it mean to be human if these beings see us the way we see insects during a picnic? Heavy stuff, but a great read.

Something Like an Autobiography by Akira Kurosawa

While only going up to Rashomon, this book offers a lot of insight into the creative mind of Kurosawa. You get to hear first hand accounts of the experiences that turned him into the director he was. The best parts, to me, were when he was speaking of his family life as a child and some of the tragedies that he experienced at a young age. His anecdotes about film making and hearing behind the scenes stories from some of the most important films in history was also pretty neat.

Season of Storms by Andrzej Sapkowski

This was my second Witcher book, my first being The Last Wish, and I didn’t like this one as much. It was still good, and Geralt’s quest to get his sword back was engaging, but the stories within didn’t resonate with me as much as the stories in the Last Wish. While being a novel, Season of Storms is structured similarly to the short story collections, consisting of episodic segments taking Geralt on separate mini adventures that tie in to the overarching story. It was decent and I plan on reading Blood of Elves next.

The Lesser Dead by Christopher Buehlman

This one is a vampire novel, but unlike any vampire story I’ve read. This is a proper vampire novel, full of blood, horror, and satirical socio-political subtext. This is what a vampire story should strive to be. If you’re into vampires/horror, I highly recommend this one.

Books of Blood: Volume I

I’ve been wanting to dive into this series for a long time, and I’m glad I did. These were some really top notch horror stories, my favorite being either Pigs Blood Blues, or In the Hills, the Cities. Clive Barker is a modern master of horror, and one of the best writers of horror fiction to ever do it.

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