Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week – our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! No cool industry person this week. Instead, you are stuck with me. In an elevator. And I have eaten nothing but cabbage-wrapped beans for a week. You’ll doubtless want something to keep your mind off that, so let’s talk about books instead.
I have put down Invisible Cities for the day because I remembered that Tony Tulathimutte had a new book out this year at some point. Turns out that point had already happened, so that’s my Sunday sorted. “I didn’t like the book because I didn’t like any of the characters as people” is a sentiment that I’ve never related to, for various reasons I won’t get into here, and his work likely won’t resonate if this is you. But, if you’re into playful language and painful insight, Private Citizens is very good. I’ll report back on Rejection. These are high-minded descriptions of what I actually enjoy most about his writing, though, which is how un-put-downably voyeuristic it feels.
My other recommendation for the week is Hollow Press. I’ve been of the opinion for a while now that the indie tabletop RPG space is where the excitement and experimentation and style that used to be the domain of underground publishers and music labels lives now – although I’ll admit I’m just paying more attention to that space – and Hollow Press’s output is a fantastic example of that at its most morbid, haunted, and creative.
But enough about what I’ve been doing – let’s talk about what I am doing. Currently, I’m asking you what you’ve been reading this week. Do tell, and book for now!