Paul
My Shelf
Interests: Science Fiction, Classics, Picture Books, History, Technology, Gardening, Graphic Novels, Short Story
About Me
Cataloger, Bookmobilier, Children's Librarian
What do you like to read? I tend to favor a very eclectic mix of Science fiction, Classics (Roman, Greek, etc.), DIY home project and repair manuals, Gardening, and the occasional random title that catches my eye. Although I typically prefer printed material to read I do indulge in a bit of online reading especially for short stories or classic/older works that haunt Project Gutenberg.
What memory do you have of your hometown or school library? I lived in so many different places growing up that all the different libraries I went to are kind of a blur, some where school libraries, some public and some on military bases, the last type were not usually all that kid oriented. However, I was lucky enough to go to two elementary schools that got visited regularly by bookmobiles. One was richly appointed with dark wood shelves, and a hunter green exterior accented with the same dark wood trim, and the other was silvery and shaped like a rocket ship with wheels!
Do you have pets? Currently we have a double-rescue American-English Coonhound (85 lbs. of solid muscle!). He can be very playful and cute with some of his antics, is quite fast, strong and agile, and can leap pretty high, but also sheds a lot of small hairs that end up everywhere. He also has the ability to talk/growl like a Wookie, which is quite entertaining.
What was the first book that was your very own? That would be Anatole over Paris, by Eve Titus, which I still have in all it's worn out, crayon scribbled in, and torn page glory!
Surprising fact: I was born with a club foot and was very lucky to be an early Ponseti Method child. The braces I had to wear (metal and leather, and rather heavy) never really slowed me down, however, as I figured out ways to wiggle out of my crib and hop to where I wanted to go, including outside. The treatment was effective enough that when I was older I was able to run track in high school, doing quite well in the 120 and 440 hurdles, high jump, and making varsity my freshman year.
An engaging, well crafted tale set in a future where the geopolitical landscape is completely different in wholly unexpected ways, AI driven machines are ubiquitous and sometimes beautifully crafted and at others coldly indifferent, human life is cheap and expendable when no longer useful, and talented hackers are in high demand for very specific clandestine activities. Throw into this mix an unusual set of conditions and circumstances on a protected chain of islands off the Vietnamese coast, and the nature of perception, observation, intelligence and communication and you get a book I personally found hard to put down. -Paul