A Confederacy of Dunces (1980) by John Kennedy Toole became a modern classic of Southern US literature for its depiction of New Orleans, odd characters, not least the unforgettable slothful Ignatius J. Reilly, who looks for employment while waging an antisocial war in a series of wacky blunders.
My first book of 2026 is finished, Casino Royale (1953) by Ian Fleming. This is the first #JamesBond book to introduce the world to #007, arguably the greatest British fictional character
since Sherlock Holmes, conceived by Arthur Conan Doyle. See me at www.youtube.com/@TheIrishLoaf and subscribe.
I end 2025 with the cyberpunk cult classic Neuromancer (1984) by William Gibson. A challenging read that fuses dense philosophical themes of identity, cybernetics, and perception within the framework of a high-speed '80s action SF movie. The clash of genres is ambitious, demanding, and mystical.
The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1991) by Alison Weir is an essential read about one King's quest for a male heir that was to split Britain from the Vatican and hurl King and Country into divorces and executions contrived and sometimes not because of infidelity and treason to make way for wanted sons.
A Night in the Lonesome October (1993) by Roger Zelazny is a daily read 31-chaptered Halloween book for October. Loads of references to all things classical horror. Cast includes Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, the Wolf Man, Frankenstein's Monster, Rasputin, and talking animals. Snuff the dog narrates.
Farewell Summer (2006) by Ray Bradbury, the sequel to Dandelion Wine (1957), follows Douglas Spaulding and his friends in Green Town who "war" on local elderly men who want them to grow up. The theme is that time is unstoppable and generations must learn to accept it. Finished 2nd October 2025.
Heat 2 (2022) by Michael Mann & Meg Gardiner is both a prequel and a sequel to the acclaimed crime film Heat (1995). Heat makes the upper part of top 100 film lists. Heat 2 does that with action/crime novels. If you enjoyed Heat then definitely read this. Finished reading on September 30th 2025.
The Robots of Dawn (1983) by Isaac #Asimov. This #sciencefiction #booksky is the 3rd book in the Elijah Bailey/R. Daneel Olivaw series, but the 4th book of the positronic brains series - I, Robot (1950). The three Laws of Robotics as Detective stories. Read all Jan. 2024 to Sept 2025.
Finished Lord of the Flies (1954) by William Golding. A group of British school kids survive a plane crash as castaways on an island. At first they manage plans to stay alive and use smoke to get saved but neglect and leadership issues bring divisions so they descend into tribal savagery instead.
A decade later (Aug 10th 2025) and I have finished reading Frank Herbert's #Dune series of 6 books with this last entry Chapterhouse: Dune (1985) a year before he died. There are more Dune books continued on by his son Brian but I felt this didn't end on such a cliffhanger as some say.
High-Rise by JG Ballard (1975) uses an apartment tower complex as a metaphor for class struggles in society as the lower, mid and upper floor residence deteriorate into a mix of ugly decadence, marauding clans, raiding parties and violent primitives when the tower utilities breakdown over time.
Hell's Angels (1967) by Hunter S. Thompson was this journalist's first nonfiction book that introduced him to the masses due to its documentary style as he joined the shock group for 9 months studying them as post-WWII American youth rejected by the American Dream that lived their own dream instead.
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction (2008) by Gabor Mate. A profoundly moving and also extremely informative self help type book about the urgent need to completely overhaul our understanding of drug addiction with a human need for compassion from the womb to the grave.
The Master & Margherita by Mikhail Bulgakov. Quasi-fantasy-theological-subversive multi-genre tale written in the Soviet Union between 1928-1940 and eventually published between 1966-67. Something in it for everybody.
Finished reading February 23rd 2025. #Booksky #Fantasy
Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 (1973) by Hunter S. Thompson is about the insanity behind political campaigns and the reporters covering them, which the author compares to drug addiction. A mix of astute political observations and raving pivots about anything. Finished Jan 30th 2025
Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House (1959) which brings American Gothic into the mid-20th century. It is about a group parapsychology experiment in fear. Finished January 10th 2025.
#Horror #Books
The first book I finished in 2025, Albert Camus - The Stranger (1942) takes a nihilistic view of a meaningless world where everyone will die and amount to nothing in the end. Bleak outcomes in an unguided universe that packs the same fate for all. Finished 2nd January 2025.
#Booksky #Philosophy
I also managed one last book before the new year 2025 on its eve. Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). 🛶
#Booksky #Classics
I managed one last book before Christmas day 2024. Brave New World (1932) by Aldous Huxley influenced many utopian and dystopian books to follow. It is a story of planning society involving eugenics at the expense of freedom and choice including to be unhappy. #sciencefiction
I had time before Christmas to read The Great Gatsby (1925) by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Roaring 20s with highs and lows amid romances that come with a price both financial and emotional. Finished on 18 December 2024. #Booksky
Book 3 of the Hyperion series by Dan Simmons' ENDYMION (1996). It is every bit as good as the previous two. #scifibooks #booksky
Finished 13th December 2024.
Greg Bear's sequel to EON and part of The Way series brings about a Tielhard conclusion. This is the hyper-imaginary ETERNITY (1988). #scifibooks #Booksky
Finished on 18 November 2024.
Ray Bradbury - The Halloween Tree (1972) chronicles the history of Halloween using an adventure story with kids out on Hallows Eve and meeting Mr.Moundshroud. Finished 30th October 2024. #Halloween #Booksky
It is well worth the time and effort. I need to read more of his work.
Second time reading this fantastic BDO (big dumb object) Science fiction book, Eon by Greg Bear (1985). Reminds me of Clarke's Rendezvous with Rama. The sequel is called Eternity. Finished on 22 October 2024. #Scifi #Booksky
Cordwainer Smith - The Rediscovery of Man (1993). A fantastic read about the world of the #instrumentality. Inspired others with its peepers and thopters. Short story collections from the 50s and 60s mainly. Finished on 25 September 2024. #Booksky
Vampire horror becomes science-fiction in this last-person-on-Earth classic from Richard Matheson - I AM LEGEND (1954). Finished on 10 Aug 2024.
Heretics of Dune by Frank Herbert. Fifth book of #Dune. One more to go for the cannon. Finished 30 July 2024. #Booksky #Books
Three short science fiction stories that make for #Xenoanthropology.
Gene Wolfe - The Fifth Head of Cerberus (1972). Finished on 15 July 2024. #Booksky #Books
One of the most brutal books I have ever read. Very disturbing. The Gap Cycle, Book 1 - The Gap into Conflict - The Real Story (1991) by Stephen R. Donaldson. Finished 4th July 2024. #Booksky #Sci-fi
