Finished reading: The Devils by Joe Abercrombie 📚
A fabulous and hugely enjoyable fantasy romp through an alternative medieval Europe with a female pope, an Empress of Troy, and ravaging hordes of human eating elves. Plus a vampire, werewolf, necromancer and a crusader who can’t die - amongst other treasures.
Double Mesopotamian Read
Currently reading two related books about Mesopotamia - one about the deciphering of cuneiform by divers colonial chaps; in the other historian Dr Moudhy Al-Rashid reveals what these ancient people chose to record about their lives using cuneiform.
First book: The Mesopotamian Riddle by Joshua Hammer 📚
Second book: Between Two Rivers by Moudhy Al-Rashid 📚
Finished reading: The Far Edges of the Known World by Owen Rees 📚
An innovative look at the boundaries and intersections of the ancient world and lesser known but equally vital and fascinating regions ‘beyond’.
Morning walk / Homemade breakfast (ingredients from Shelly Bay Bakery on Leeds St)
Supra Restaurant dinner with Bill
Glorious meal of snapper carpaccio (with persimmon); chickpea fritter (with enoki mushrooms & olive); zucchini (with crushed pea & pumpkin seed sauce); and pumpkin gnocchi (with sage butter, black vinegar, and hazelnuts).
#billhastings #dinner #delicious
Finished reading: Proto by Laura Spinney 📚
Extremely well written overview of the development and evolution of Indo-European languages - connecting linguistics, archaeology, history and geography.
Supra Restaurant dinner with Bill
Glorious meal of snapper carpaccio (with persimmon); chickpea fritter (with enoki mushrooms & olive); zucchini (with crushed pea & pumpkin seed sauce); and pumpkin gnocchi (with sage butter, black vinegar, and hazelnuts).
#billhastings #dinner #delicious
Generative AI is garbage 🗑️
The Chicago Sun-Times used AI to write a Summer Reading list - and it was full of garbage including recommending books that don’t exist …
www.thepopverse.com/literary-…
www.theatlantic.com/technolog…
Finished reading: Star Wars The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire by Chris Kempshall 📚
An excellent “in-universe” history of the Star Wars Galactic Empire - filled with insights and analysis relevant to any consideration of the emergence and defeat of totalitarianism….
Pairing this year’s Okham Prize winner for Best Illustrated Non-Fiction, the extraordinary “Toi te Mana - an indigenous history of Māori art” with “65000 years - A Short History of Australian Art”.
#art #indigenous #arthistory #aotearoa #australia #bookclub
Finished reading: Patria by Laurence Blair 📚
This book is a genuine wonder. It explodes myths and reveals hidden stories of the history of South America and demonstrates the importance of a broader and deeper understanding of this continent, particularly the vital role of its indigenous peoples and the struggles they shared with settlers and slaves seeking liberation and identity.
Wonderful weekend in Ōtautahi Christchurch. Great to party hard and spend time with friends enjoying brunch, visiting art galleries and bookshops, and having a late afternoon cocktail overlooking the city. Christchurch is looking great!
New book stand (featuring “Atlas of the New Zealand Wars, Volume 1”)
Finished reading: The Venetian Heretic by Christian Cameron 📚
This book was wonderful. You are transported to seventeenth century Venice, and swept up in a tale of political intrigue, cultural and religious conflict, and some good old-fashioned sword work! The characters are vivid, interesting and well written and developed, the plot(s) are fascinating and move things along at a spritely pace, and the writing is just great.
Highly recommended and can’t wait for the next installment!
