The Court of the Air, The Kingdom Beyond the Waves and The Rise of the Iron Moon - Stephen Hunt

Three books set in the same alternate (or is it?) world. The stories are based in Jackel (a kind of England) the main characters, who bind the various stories together, face enemies as diverse as the Quartershiftians (a kind of France), hive minds and "space aliens."

Hunt does a wonderful job in creating tales worthy of a Jules Verne, with aerostat navies, intelligent steam men and a wealth of references to things that are alike but not quite ours. The setting s steampunk with a large shot of pulp. Plots tend to go epic and twist like snakes in a barrel. Definitely a fun read.

Enjoyable

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking - Malcolm Gladwell

I first heard about this book at a New Year's party, one, maybe two years ago. It sounded intriguing and when I ran into it in an Oxford bookshop I bought it.

Blink is about the decisions made by the unconscious mind. The decisions you can't quite tell why you made them, but are accurate nonetheless. Gladwell has a wonderfully engaging style of writing, and his subject matter is fascinating. The book ranges from art experts spotting fakes at a glance, prejudices and how they can be created to how to make the intake at the cardiac emergency centre more efficient. Fascinating stuff!

Highly recommended

Nation - Terry Pratchett

Nation makes for a good read. While it may be a bit slow to start with it gathers up speed nicely. The characters are typical Pratchett, slightly larger than life and as you come to expect there's more to them than initially meets the eye. His alternate earth is nicely crafted, close enough to be recognisable, but different enough to make the story work.

Recommended

Anathem - Neal Stephenson

Another of my favourite authors, and I must say I was highly pleased with his latest work. Running close to a thousand pages (or at least my paperback copy did) it takes you on a tour of a different world, a world named Arbre. Here the scientists and philosophers seem locked away in monasteries of various sizes, both to protect them and the world outside. One young avout, Erasmas ends up involved in an adventure that will change his world.

Stephenson paints a wonderfully solid world, which is both alike and unlike our own. The book is steeped in scientific-philosophical questions and discussions and I found myself thinking about these as much as I did about the story itself. Curiously enough, it seems to mesh with another book I'm reading at the momentL David Deutsch' Fabric of Reality.

Highly recommended

Spirit in the Wires - Charles de Lint

Another one by one of my favourite authors, set among his Newford books. Christy Ridding's girlfriend disappears before his eyes. Apparently pixilated and moved inside the internet. They soon find out she's not the only. The book has the first major appearance of Christy's shadow and tells of how Geordie end up at a revel.

As I said before, I like De Lint's books. What I liked about this one specifically was the links with the internet, a place where I spend quite a lot of my time. Likeable characters, and he's still adding more to the mix. Well written as ever.

Recommended

The Medicine Road - Charles de Lint

This is a sweet little tale with wonderful illustrations by Charles Vess. Set in the Southwest two bluegrass playing sisters bump into two spirits. The spirits have been changed to human form by coyote women and are supposed to have found their true love a couple days after the story starts or be turned back into animals.

The book adds to De Lint's rich cast of characters while linking in some of the existing Newford ones. Mixing various kinds of folklore and myth it makes for a pleasant read.

Good (Recommended for De Lint fans)

More new gear

So I'd sent the lens (18-200mm VR) back to Nikon for a quote on the costs to repair it. All was quiet for a while and then I got an answer. They were willing to do so for the lowly sum of €650. As the 18-200mm VR II costs €800 I decided I might as well get that instead.

Now all I have to do is find the receipt of the old one and claim my insurance...

I've been happily using the new kit to shoot elephants in Amsterdam. I'll upload a little album soon(ish).