Book 2 of His Dark Materials passed in a flash last week. The Subtle Knife continues Philip Pullman’s trilogy, and introduces the not-so-subtly named Mary Malone, the former nun turned physicist. These tales twist, and are complete independently, but the sweep across all three books taken together is marvelous.

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I was heading somewhere I knew I’d have to wait, so I grabbed John Steinbeck’s thin novella Of Mice and Men off the shelf. A few pages in, I realized I’d read it before, but didn’t remember details. Anyway, 118 pages later, I knew why Lennie had to die, just like their dreams. It’s not…

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I’m a sucker for a heist movie. The Bank Job isn’t brilliant, but fun all the same. Jason Statham, mildly known from the Transporter movies, and recognizable from The Italian Job (“Handsome Rob,” the driver), carries the movie through some rough spots, even without all the opportunities for action which mark his previous roles. I…

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Via Slashdot, I learn that Neal Stephenson’s new novel is coming in September. Not pre-ordering right now, but on the list.

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It’s Not You, It’s Your Books, a recent essay in the New York Times, includes this snippet. Let’s face it — this may be a gender issue. Brainy women are probably more sensitive to literary deal breakers than are brainy men. (Rare is the guy who’d throw a pretty girl out of bed for revealing…

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Clock (this blog) is now 5, and I’m (cough) older than that. Still, I matched last year’s mile time of 5:23 (1:19/1:20/1:22/1:21 splits), which brightened the already-beautiful day a bit more. Only hiccup was Kezar was closed for pesticide application, which I found out after running over this morning. So I had to drive over…

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In an effort to start the week with a clean(er) inbox… Nothing like bowling to bring a smile. Thanks for the pic, Cory. I’m reading this book right now, so I’ll review this podcast after I finish it. Wikis make a lot of sense to me, so I want to find time to listen to…

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Daylight Savings Time provided an excuse for the New York Times to run the Op-Ed column Time Out Of Mind a couple of weeks ago. The author, Stefan Klein, blends scientific studies and literary references to remind us that measuring time leads to changed perceptions of same. Stress and mistakes are also common for those…

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I bought Deep Storm by Lincoln Child in the airport for the airplane, but never got to it until riding the bus to work last week. Took me maybe three bus rides to finish. Pure cotton candy: tastes OK while you’re eating it, but nothing there. It was my recovery book after Fisk.

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Boring, but happy it’s done.

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