dhampyresa

A couple people expressed interest in Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson following my best books of 2022 post, a book I summarised as "Joan of Arc meets Venom". In particular, sovay said: "Tell me more about Vespertine! It sounds hand-tailored to you.".

First off, no, YOU're predictable. Second, yes this is late. In my defense, I do not understand linear time and have read the book half and a whole time again since.

Hopefully not spoilery summary:

In the country of Loraille, the Dead come back if not properly laid to rest. People with the Sight can see those Dead and are vulnerable to possession by them, which allows to wield relics bound to specific Dead to gain various powers, which itself carries the risk of possession if overpowered by the bound spirit. During an attack by the Dead on her convent, Artemisia is forced to bond with a relic of the highest order to save everyone. This makes her, essentially, a living saint, which is unfortunate for Artemisia because she just wants to lead a quiet life as a Grey Sister, away from people who might talk to her (urgh). Even more unfortunaly, rather than being a mindless force of nature, the revenant is sapient and it has Opinions. Artemisia and the revenant then have to buddy cop their way through figuring out why the Dead attacked her convent, an investigation that takes them, through battle, imprisonment and refugee camps, into Bonsaint, seat of the Divine.


Non-spoilery things I love about this book:

( Things )


Spoilery stuff I like:

( Stuff )


I would love to read more in this world. I LOVE EVERYONE IN THIS BAR. I can't think of any other book that made me want to draw this much.


TL;DR: Vespertine (by Margaret Rogerson) is a great book and you should read it and talk to me about it.

Oh hey, I made in through 2022.


The cat remains terminally cute.



See? Terminally cute. No cure.


Storygraph tells me I finished 31 books this year, which includes comics and fiction in French and English and non-fiction in English only. I think I'd like to read at least one non-fiction book in French in 2023. Read more in French in general. I'm curious to see if my thoughts about written in French SFF vs written in English SFF hold true with a larger sample size. I'd like to read more than than one book not written originally in French or English, too.

There was only one book this year I disliked to the point that I'd happily call it the worst book I read this year: the French translation of Agustina Bazterrica's Cadáver exquisito (French title: Cadavre Exquis; English title: Tender is the Flesh). I had been told I'd be getting insightful societal commentary with body horror; I got teenage vegan edgelordy mysogynistic boringness. I wish I knew what other people saw in it.

There was only one other book I'd willingly put on a "worst books" list, but I since I don't want to do such a list and all the other books would only be there by default and undeservedly, I'm not going to.

Have a bunch of "Best Books" instead.

Best Fiction (English): Vespertine, by Margaret Rogerson. Hands down, no context. It's been a while since I read a book in one sitting and I'm currently ~60% of the way into a reread. This book is "Joan of Arc meets Venom". My favourite bbok I read this year, no questions.

( BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS: fiction, comics, non-fiction )

Anyway, if anyone wants more details on any of them please ask. There are a few I want to talk more about, but not now, and I might forget (memory whomst).


I gave blood twice (anemia ;_;) and co-ran sunflower_auction with yuuago (which, sadly, will need to run again this year and I hope I'm in health enough to do so). I mentionned these two things to my therapist as objectively good things I had done and she said she was happy for/proud of me for recognising that because I couldn't/wouldn't have done so when I started seeing her. Turns out is in fact both possible to achieve and reasonable to want a good grade in therapy!


Also schneefink stayed at my place for a bit and dealt me a grievous emotional blow by subjecting be to the last 10 episodes of The Magnus Archives s4 it was very nice.

It's been about three months since my last reading update post. Which reminds me I still need to do write-ups for the comics I've been reading. But not today! Today we talk about prose.

What did you finish reading
Truth of the Divine, by Lindsay Ellis: This got A LOT darker than both the first one and what I expected. The main PoV character is actively depressed and suicidal for most of the book. I'm still really enjoying the aliens and how aliens they are, though.

The Year of Less, by Cait Flanders: It's a memoir/autobio about one year in the author's life, starting when she decided to stop buying things. As that's something I'm currently doing, I thought it'd be interesting. It was, for the most part, but it did suffer a bit from what I'm going to call "Were you not already doing that?!" Syndrome.

"Were you not already doing that?!" Syndrome is when an author presents as a! groundbreaking! idea! something that I've been doing all along and never even considered doing otherwise. For example, in an article about capsule wardrobes,
the author: considerhow each new clothing can be used to create multiple outfits before buying it.
Me: Were you not already doing that?!
I realise this is probably just a flaw in my brain, that I don't think the way other people do. (Apparently it's weird that I carry a collapsible cup in my coat pocket? Good thing I didn't bring up the knife on my keychain, then.)

The Descent of Inanna (Wolfstein-Kramer translation): I'm not sure if "fun" is the right word to describe a katabasis, but it was an enjoyable. Unfortunately, my pdf copy cut out arund the confrontation with Dumuzi. I've now found a French translation, hopefully that one gets me the end of the story. NO SPOILERS.


What are you currently reading

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Mari Kondo: Ebook. Interesting but has a lot of instances of restating things that were already said. I'm about 1/5 through, but if the ratio keeps up, that book could have been at least 50% shorter than it is. This repetition does not spark joy! Also, Kondo's insistence that everything has to be done 100% her way and in one go is a bit... Not everyone has that kind of energy or time, Mari! Also has a touch of "Were you not already doing that?!" Syndrome in places. Kondo also has said a few things that makes me think she used to toss her siblings' stuff without asking as a kid and let's just say I have Issues about people getting rid of my things and leave it at that.

Men who hate women by Laura Bates: It's about the ways in which misogyny shapes society. Super interesting! Also super depressing and doing a real number on my trust issues, so I read a chapter each time I finish a book.

The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers: An anthology of horror short stories. Very good! Reading this one short at a time as a palate cleanser for the Bates' book. "The King in Yellow had opened his tattered mantle and there was only God to cry to now" is a RAW AS FUCK line.

Joan of Arc : A Military Leader, by Kelly Devries: I've had this book for a while, but finally got the impetus to read it after reading Napoleon was the Best General Ever, and the Math Proves it[1] and looking at the data. The data for Joan of Arc includes neither the Siege of Orléans or the Battle of Patay, which is bananapants ridiculous. Patay turned the course of the Hundred Years War! Anyway, only a little ways into this book, is good so far.

The Divine Comedy: Hell, by Dante Alighieri (Longfellow's Translation): I'm using this as a reference text for some fanfic I'm writing (Post-Endgame Natasha awakens in Hell, goes on a roadtrip out with Gamora -- who is not in Hell but in Kur and will get her own companion fic). Yes, this fic will have an audience of me and two other people (sovay  and kore , correct me if I'm wrong). No, I do not care. I write fic for fun, not for fame.


What are you reading next
¯\_(ツ)_/¯


[1] I have three main comments about this article (my concerns about methodology, sourcing, etc are mostly addressed at the end):

1. The only battle schematic included in the article is the Battle of Cannae, ie a victory by Hannibal, not Napoleon (ergo: I was right and Hannibal MVP)


2. Comparing people on either side(s) of the three divides of firearms, machine guns and nuclear weapons is not possible, imo.


3. Why did the author go to the trouble of quoting Livy's The History of Rome, Book 35 Ch 14

   Africanus asked who, in Hannibal's opinion, was the greatest general, Hannibal named Alexander, [...] whom he would rank second, Hannibal selected Pyrrhus [...] asking whom Hannibal considered third, he named himself without hesitation. Then Scipio broke into a laugh and said, “What would you say if you had defeated me?”

   WITHOUTH THE PUNCH LINE?! The punch line is the best part!
   

   “Then, beyond doubt,” he replied, “I should place myself both before Alexander and before Pyrrhus and before all other generals.”

SO. Let's do this again, yes.

Sometime ago I made a decision to read one (1) chapter of something "serious" before I would go read mush because for a while now I have been frustrated with my inability to read just about anything. During lockdown I bribed myself to go on doctor-ordered walks by saying I would get to read something brain candy esque.

Finished reading

Show Your Work, by Austin Kleon: The first success of the 'dhampyresa bribes self to read things' initiative. Picked this up from a rec by yhlee some mumblemumble months ago. It's a book about how to use social media to promote your art/work. It's quite interesting! Though I did notice the quotes/examples are almost all male and I wish it had not been that way. Would reccomend.

Currently reading

Coping Skills, by Faith G Harper: Have only read the introduction so far.

How to think when you draw book 1, by Lorenzo Etherington: It's not really a "reading" book, it's more of a "viewing one tutorial a day and chewing on it for a while" book. At least for me! I am a bit saddened that it falls into the "male characters can be as monstrous/ugly/exaggerated as possible while female characters have to be pretty" trap. The other tutorials I have read so far are really good though! I especially like the advice on pattern breaks and the composition breakdown is a+.

A survival guide for the stranded timetravelers, by Ryan North: A comedic non-fiction book that takes the lens of "helping timetraveler to recreated civilisation" to look at how human civilisation developped across the globe. It's really quite interesting! I had never considered how rare the idea of writing was or how calorie surplus is a necessary condition to civilisation, for example.

Tranny, by Laura Jane Grace: The autobiography of the (trans woman) lead singer of Against Me! Am not very far into it but it is very interesting so far. Grace does refer do her younger, male-presenting self using male terms, fyi.

Axiom's End, by Lindsay Ellis: I am enjoying this but not as much as I thought I would? Maybe once the alien shows up properly I'll like it more.


AND A BAJILLION COMICS ON WEBTOON. Not sure if anyone wants to hear about that?

I feel like crap currently :(
Here's an incomplete list of stuff I read since uuuuuh the beginning of the year, I guess?

La Mort du Temps by Aurélie Wellenstein

( French novel )
All in all very reccomended.


Gothic Charm School: An Essential Guide for Goths and Those Who Love Them by The Lady Of The Manners (Jillian Venters)

It's very nice!

( English nonfiction )

La guerre de Troie n'aura pas lieu by Jean Giraudoux

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Trojan_War_Will_Not_Take_Place

( French play )
Twas good.


My Chemical Romance: This Band Will Save Your Life by Haydn Reinhardt

Because apparently I had this?????

Anyway it was interesting, I shall plunder the images for references for drawing the martian punks, but also it was originally published in 2008 so it's missing the last 5 years of the band, including their last album.


Poésies by Arthur Rimbaud

V good poetry. Me likey.


Chevaux de foudre by Aurélie Wellenstein

Bit too romance focused and not a fan of the love interest remaining Marcus in the narration after the Dramatic Reveal that he was a slave too and his name was Diego.

Gave good Fuck You Rome and good lightning horse too. Alix is fun character. Nice YA overall but probs won't reread it.


"J'accuse" by Emile Zola

Never read the whole thing before! Zola has no fucks to give with the Army's antisemitisism and incompetence. It is -- and ends with -- him basically shouting COME AT ME BRO to the then-president Félix Faure's face.


a 19th century translation of Sappho into French
Twas [fragment missing] good.

Crown of Ptolemy by Rick Riordan

I know all the demigod series(es?) of Riordan's are set in the same universe, so the crossovers are a thing that makes sense, but THE WORLDBUILDING MAKES NO SENSE ARGH

Was fun other than that.


70 solutions to common writing mistakes by Bob Mayler

Eh. It was a writing how-to book. Not bad, but not mindblowing either.


Breizh v1 by Thierry Jigourel and Nicolas Jarry (writing) and Daniel Brecht and Erwan Seure-Le Bihan (art)

( French comic )


Alix Senator v7 by Valérie Mangin (writing) and Thierry Démarez (art)

( French comic )


Ar-Men, l'enfer des enfers by Emmanuel Lepage (art and writing)

The history/story of "the most inaccessible lighthouse in Brittany, which to say, of the world". In the parlance of French lighthouse keepers, paradis ("heavens") are lighthouses on the mainland, purgatoires ("purgatories") lighthouses on islands and enfers ("hells") lighthouse out at sea.

Really REALLY good use of the comic medium. I am blown away.

Really interesting story (stories) too!

The lighthouse was built in the 19th century on a rock that was only uncovered at low tide during the spring tide so lol it took them 15 years to built the lighthouse.

Also holy shit the art is AMAZING

Also the last panel showing words written inside the lighthouse: "Le feu est clair; tout va bien" (The fire is bright; all is right) made me fucking cry.

1. Me, at the ao3 nomination approval interface: "YOUR CODE IS A HAMSTER AND SMELLS OF ELDERBERRIES"
It has several times lost part or all of my approval slates. >:[


2. I am reading Alain Damasio's La Horde du Contrevent, which I ironically enough got recced while in the middle of an online discussion/argument with someone who seemed to think that there was no such thing as French fantasy tradition. (This was apparently a misunderstanding/mismatch in definition.)

Anyway, La Horde du Contrevent is actually pretty good so far! I'm only on Chapter 3, but I'm really enjoying the worldbuilding so far. It's about a group of people in a planet continually beset the wind regularly so powerful and destructive it levels entire cities. The wind only flows in one direction and the Horde is going upwind to Etrême-Aval, the mythical source of the wind. That's the goal of every Horde and none have managed it. This is the 34th Horde. It will be the last.

Also weird creatures who can do stuff like turn organic matter into bone come out of the wind. Or possibly they are the wind? It's unclear.

I predict: at least half the cast will die, there is no Extreme-Upwind.

Also it has a soundtrack (although it apparently has 17 tracks in CD form instead of the 5 here).


3. I am also reading Magali Ségura's Le Prix d'Alaya. I grabbed it at semi-random off the shelf -- a random fantasy book written in French by a woman -- and it had people riding a sabertooth tiger on the cover so I was like FUCK YEAH! I am also enjoying it so far.


4. Sometimes I want to write posts about stuff relating to Brittany (fun tidbits about Breton, characteristic of Breton names, Anne de Bretagne etc) but then I'm like "no one caaaaaaaaaaaaaaares".


5. I recently saw both Annihilation (2018) and Le Chat du Rabbin (2011) and they are both good movies in vastly different ways, even though they both feature talking animals in some capacity.

Annihilation is a live-action horror sci-fi movie about an all-female group of scientists exploring a one where the laws a reality are... distorted. It's got a lot of body horror and some really pretty cinematography and raises interesting questions about what it means to be human/a specific person. To say more would be spoilery, but if that sounds like your sort of thing, it probably will be.

Le Chat du Rabbin (The Rabbi's Cat) is an animated historical slice of life movie. In 1920s Algiers, a rabbi's cat gains, then loses, then regains the power of speech as the following happens: the cat attempts to convince the rabbi that he (the cat) should have his bar mitvah, the rabbi takes a test in French ("to preach in Hebrew to Jews who speak Arabic. They're crazy!" sayeth the cat), the rabbi's cousin and his lion come to visit, the rabbi finds a Russian Jew escaping in a crate of books, the rabbi and his friend the cheikh attempt to visit the tomb of their common ancestor, and then they're a roadtrip through Africa with the rabbi, the cheikh, the Russian Jew, a non-Jewish Russian, the cheikh's donkey and the rabbi's cat. It's really really sweet and I heartily reccomend it.

There are better ways to start the year than to be sick for several days, let me tell you. Bleh.

Anyway, having realised that while staring down the barrel of a "stuff read in 2017" meme that I didn't really keep track, I've decided to try and be better at the Reading Wednesday meme in 2018, if only for tracking purposes.


What did you finish reading

A bunch of things! Which I will probably not be talking about because I am starting fresh. Happy to answer questions if anyone has any, though.

Most recently it was either Andrea K. Höst's The Sleeping Life (which I plan on rereading as soon as I find my copy of the first one in the series) or Rick Riordan's Magnus Chase and the Ship of the Dead -- no, wait, I finished Alix Senator v6.


What are you currently reading

La fabrique des corps: Des premières prothèses à l'humain augmenté by Héloïse Chochois: A book about prosthetics, past, present and future as well as the science behind them. The title-nod to Vesalius' De humani corporis fabrica is entirely on purpose.

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson: I am making my way through this very slowly. It's interesting but super dense. I seem to have somehow missed a two year timeskip? Ooops.


What are you reading next

This month's theme is "time travel", so I think I'll dig out my copy of Le Déchronologue and do a re-read. (It's great, I've talked about it before.)


Also there is a post-yuletide friending meme if that is of interest to anyone.

I have a ginormous backlog of stuff I read and didn't talk about, to the point where I've kind of stopped tracking what I'm reading. THIS ENDS NOW. I'm going to try to get through as many of these as I can.


Plogoff, by Delphine Le Lay (scenario) and Alexis Horellou (art): This a BD about the events of the Affaire de Plogoff aka that time the French government wanted to put a nuclear powerplant in Brittany SO BADLY that they sent fucking tanks and paratroopers against the local population. The comic is quite welldoen and approved by the people who made this primary source documentary.


Star Wars Princess Leia, by Mark Waid (scenario) and Terry Dodson (art): In which leia goes on a roadtrip immediately post A New Hope to gather Alderaanian expats, who are the only survivors of Alderaan. She's aided in her quest by Evaan Verlaine, an Alderaanian pilot. I enjoyed seeing the two of them grow closer. (I ship it.) Also, it's pretty cool that pertty much everyone's a woman, even though, well, Terry Dodson gonna Terry Dodson. Leia's figure does not look like that.


DC Comics Bomshells 1-36 (Year One), by Marguerite Bennett (scenario) and Marguerite Sauvage (+ various) (art): DO YOU WANT TO SEE BATWOMAN FIGHT NAZIS? This is a self-contained continuity set during WW2 where all the superheroes are women (not genderbent versions of male heroes, AU versions of DC canonically female heroes). It updates (backdates?) and modifies their backstory as needed, but always interesting way. I really like that they made Stargirl and Supergil (adopted) sisters, for example. French Resistance fighter Poison Ivy is AMAZING (and her and Harley fall in love <3). I enjoy it greatly.


Here's a list of stuff I have also read. I'll go down the list, unless someone wants me to talk about anything specific.

( Other stuff wot I read )

2016

A YEAR OF MARVELS: JULY INFINITE COMIC (2016) #1, by Chuck Wendig (scenario) and Juanan Ramirez (art): This is SUPER CUTE. Mind you, I read it when it came out, so I might be forgetting stuff, but I am so there for Bucky + kids.


Star Wars: Shattered Empire, by Greg Rucka (scenario) and Marco Checchetto (art): This was enjoyable, if a bit disjointed. I enjoyed seeing Leia kicking ass on Naboo and the art is great. Shara Bey is amazing.



2017

One of the books I'm currently reading just said:

On a chanté sans fin les cloches d'Is. Il n'est poète breton qui ne les ait entendues

"The bells of [Ys] have been endlessly sung. There is no Breton poet who has not heard them."

WHY YOU GOTTA CALL ME OUT LIKE THAT, MAN

My wrist really hurts lately and idk why. I'm hoping it's only temporary and not linked to the back pain. Anyway, going to go easy on posting, I suppose.

And so, I'm cancelling the giant post of all the books I read in 2016 and didn't talk about. Have part of it instead.


What did you finish reading

Cixi de Troy, by Christophe Arleston (scenario) et Olivier Vatine (art): This is a spin-off from Lanfeust de Troy, telling the story of Cixi between volumes 5 and 6 of that series. Same writer as the main series, different artist. A lot happens in quite a short time! I like Cixi a lot and tbh I'd been wanting to know more about that period of time where she was exclusive mistress to omnipotent tyrant by day and DRAGON RIDING VIGILANTE fighting said tyrant by night, which this comics trilogy is at least partly about, so yay! Also, pirates. Also also it makes it canon that Cixi is bi. Way back when I reviewed Mike Carey's Lucifer, I mentionned "it feature[d] the longest roadtrip I have read for someone to get an abortion that they cannot get through other means" -- this book is the basis of comparaison for that. In both cases the fact that outside magical forces prevent these women from seeking an abortion is treated as a violation, fyi. Anyway. I quite enjoyed the friendship between Cixi and her maid, and Cixi and her dragon.


What are you currently reading

A satirical newspaper that comes out on Wednesdays. I'm reading Le Canard Enchainé, Journal satirique paraissant le mercredi, because it's Wednesday and if I'm going to buy a fucking newspaper, I'll be damned if it's a newspaper that isn't independant.


Stuff finished in 2016

( Mostly comics )


Stuff finished in 2017
( Also mostly comics )


What are you reading next

In French: a book on Parisian folklore, a book of first-hand accounts of the Paris Commune (with an eye both to the general history and to writing a Rogue One AU) and a book on Brittany. Also, comics.

In English: fuck if I know, mate.