Some Annotated Reading December 19

Wow. I did a lot of reading the last couple of weeks.

Books

It's not unusual to find booky women of a certain age who have read Georgette Heyer in their youth. Heyer was a writer of historical romance, as well as some more contemporary mysteries and other things. We're talking Regency romance. Like Bridgerton but without sex. I read her books as a teenager and during exam weeks while in college. Heyer was writing, I believe from the 1920s, and she died in 1974. 

Last week we had our usual December holiday hell experience with a child in the family in an emergency room for hours one evening and feverish for days. (Of course, he's okay. He's seven years old, not seven months.) To divert myself, I turned to my college exam reading...Georgette Heyer...and read The Nonesuch, which I may or may not have read before. You can find a great deal about this book on-line, because Heyer still has quite the following.

This is a governess/wealthy aristocrat story with a lot of meticulous writing and enormous amounts of period specific dialogue. While this did the trick for me as far as diversion is concerned, I could do a lengthy analysis of things going on in this story, especially if I knew more about romance than I do. All I will say is that the book ends abruptly, as if Heyer didn't have an ending and just stopped writing. And a couple of lines before the abrupt end, the male main character, the nonesuch (a real word meaning someone who is perceived as perfect) threatens to hit a woman. Another male character shakes his hand and praises him for his behavior.

This was jaw-dropping, not only because he threatened to hit a much younger, physically weaker person beneath him in status with absolutely no one batting an eyelash, but because it was totally out of character. This guy really was a perfect man before that point. Then he does this. Not a good ending, not a good ending at all. 

Does a lot of this kind of thing appear in twentieth century historical romance? 

Short-form Writing

The 19 tell-tale signs an article was written by AI | by Jim the AI Whisperer in The Generator. Recently I've been being followed on Medium by promoters of AI or, in one case, an AI cook chef. (Note it calls itself  "cook chef Somebody" and not just a "Chef Somebody." That's a red flag. Also a red flag? Calling itself an AI chef at its website.) I mute those accounts. I followed Jim the AI Whisperer back, though, because he writes about AI without trying to sell me on using it. Here is my own, admittedly limited, experience reading AI--It's short on details and has no voice. It sounds like  Internet writers who have done 30 minutes of on-line research about something and are writing something for a quick sale. Which is definitely not the case with The 19 tell-tale signs a article was written by AI. 

Richard Brautigan by Addison Zeller in Had. I just got through going on about my past reading Georgette Heyer, so I won't bore you about my past reading Richard Brautigan, though both pasts were going on at about the same time. While I don't own any Georgette Heyer books, I still have three by Richard Brautigan. And, no, I don't actually understand them.

The Most Exciting Debut Short Story Collections of 2024 by in Electric Lit. I'm interested in a couple of these.

5 Vegan Recipes From the Past for Your Next New Year's Eve Party by Danielle Herring in Plant Based Past Food and history! I am now following this publication.

Write Every Day? Why Should I? by Daniel Williams in Wholistique. My legion of followers are aware that I'm not a fan of the write-every-day demand, because it slaps down and belittles those who just can't manage it. But this guy makes the absolutely best case for doing it.

I, Your Iconic Adirondack Chair, Am Distraught Over My Decline in Social Stature by Thomas Pease in Jane Austen's Wastebasket. This was published at a humor site, but I'm placing it under short form because it reads like a witty essay and witty essays should have their own place.

'Heart of Darkness' Is All Kinds of Relevant by Jessica Minier in Books Are Our Superpower. When I was in college, I read one of Joseph Conrad's books for class. But I think it was Lord Jim.

What Nobody Tells You About Those Year's-Best-Books Lists by Janice Harayda in Thought Thinkers. In my experience, it's rare for anyone to write at Medium about writing outside of Medium. 

Humor

The Worst Advent Calendars of All Time by Richie Zaborowske in Frazzled. I haven't bought an Advent calendar in years. And now I won't be buying one for years.

The Time Has Come to Tell My Son He's Adopted and Also a Grizzly Bear by Aaron Chown in Jane Austen's Wastebasket. Aren't all kids grizzly bears?

I'm a Dad--Isn't It Hilarious How I Don't Know Anything About My Kids?! by Jeff Bender in Slackjaw. Is it?

Sorry Kid. You Can't Stay Home Until You Can Handle Emergencies The Way I, an Adult, Definitely Can by Lily Hirsch in Frazzled. Please take care of me.

Positive Affirmations For Terrified Public School Teachers by Katie Burgess in McSweeney's Internet Tendency. I love affirmations.

I'm a Thoughtful Drunk by Alex Baia in Slackjaw. "Why do I want to ask so bad whether you ever read--*Hiccup*-- Infinite Jest? HAHAHA. I hate myself."

Ultra Dad Book For Hardcore Dads: Holiday Gift List by Alex Baia in Slackjaw. It took a little commitment to get into this one, but it was so worth it.