The Sword and Laser discussion

Sounds like Diary of a Madman and Other Stories by Nikolai Gogol

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diary_o...

He goes slowly mad. Declares himself "King of Spain" and has a diary entry "No date. The day had no date."

It is weird that Google couldn't find Gogol for you 😉

The Wunda from Down Unda for the win! That's it. Much obliged. Time for some rereading...

I know Google Gogol Fu 😉

John (Taloni) wrote: "Who remembers high school English? I'm trying to recall author and title for a story I read then.

Probably Existentialist, but the pieces I can recall clearly are too general for Google to help.
..."

I have no idea but that sounds like a great story! :-)

So I finished reading Gogol's Dead Souls as part of the Jenny month read. It was on her list, and it was something I had lem'd a few times before. His writing style is fairly different from the modern form, at least in the translation I read. But considering how he handled the main character in this, I could totally see him writing the story you mentioned. If you do a reread, I'd be curious how it matches up with what you were remembering.

Managed to read Babel by R. F. Kuang, Blitz by Daniel O'Malley, Exit Strategy and Network Effect by Martha Wells, The Martyr by Anthony Ryan, and Priest of Crowns by Peter McLean this month.
Really disliked Babel. Felt exceptionally meandering and suffered from tell don't show.
Murderbot is really wonderful. No complaints. Wells knows parenthetical inside parenthetical feels genuinely MBish.
I've been eagerky awaiting Blitz since Stiletto's release about 7 years ago. Unfortunately it felt like a novella and a prequel were sewn together to the detriment of the work.
The Martyr was lovely. The series feels like a Name Of The Wind style novel but about a real flawed person rather than a self insert Marty Stu.
Priest Of Crowns was great! But then I found out it seems to be a Peaky Blinders copycat and now I can't unsee it. It's pretty egregious.

About half way through The Jasmine Throne, the goal being to finish it before the wrap-up episode.

Neglected to check back when I finished Nona the Ninth. I thought it was a good addition to the series. Nona’s POV made for a a very approachable read. All three books, while clearly being part of the same series have had their own distinct style. I wonder what she can do for the fourth volume?

Since then, and before the month’s pick was announced, I’ve started on Mur Lafferty’s Station Eternity. Sounded like a fun concept. We’ll see where it goes.

I finished reading The Stone Sky by N.K. Jemisin. It’s Book three of the Broken Earth trilogy. All three books in the trilogy have won awards and it’s easy to see why they won while I was reading them. I also finished reading Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi. Book 4 of the Old Man’s War series. It is a retelling of the previous novel with a different viewpoint. Interesting idea, but was it necessary? I am reading Ethan of Athos by Lois McMaster Bujold. Book 3 or 7 depending on how you count them, of the Vorkosigan saga. An interesting non-Miles book. I plan to read Winter's Heart by Robert Jordan next. It’s Book 9 of the Wheel of Time series.

Finished The Spare Man and thought it was pretty great. When I got to the dog peril I had to finish before I could sleep, so I finished faster than I figured I would.

Woof.

Saved the last day/chapter of Night in the Lonesome October for today. Read it between stints of handing out candy to Trick or Treaters. Now, THAT is the way to finish that book.

Had a 12 year old girl come by dressed as a mad scientist. Regrettably she had not heard of the Wayward Children books or I would have thought we had a Jacqueline Wolcott straight off the Moors.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Saved the last day/chapter of Night in the Lonesome October for today. Read it between stints of handing out candy to Trick or Treaters. Now, THAT is the way to finish that book.

Had a 12 year old..."

I did my now-traditional Halloween double bill read of finishing A Night in the Lonesome October and then reading the cute Halloween themed graphic novel Pumpkin Heads A Graphic Novel