As bad as that was, I didn't mention anyone dying, B-Two.

After death is mentioned in Slaughterhouse Five no matter how remote, "so it goes", always follows. I absolutely adored this book and it was a fast easy read but very deep too. I will go back to Count of Monte Cristo and force myself to not pick up any stray books.

Grasstains, the other day a big buy came in of old paperbacks which I handled. Many were in bad shape and had to go to the can, or The Grisham institute, as we lovingly call the dumpster. The ones I kept that were to be tossed were, Dracula, Martian Chronicles, and........Papillon! I saved them from certain annihilation! Yay!

Vonnegut is the author of my all-time favorite short story, "Harrison Bergeron". It's often confused with being written by RB as we've had several people ask "What's the name of this RB story?" and then proceed to describe "Harrison Bergeron". Vonnegut had this character named Kilgore Trout which was based on Theodore Sturgeon. I've never read a novel by Vonnegut.

I hope someone can answer this one for me... Many years ago after somebody inquired if the Bergeron story was written by Bradbury, one of the board's regulars (dandy, Nard, or Mr. Dark) replied that RB would not be too pleased with his work being confused with Vonnegut's work. What's the dealio, did Ray not like Vonnegut? I asked about this back then, but forgot the reason given for the remark. A little digging in the archives would probably turn something up, but I'm short on time. Maybe later.

Hey Kilgore Trout is in Slaughterhouse Five. When he described him in the book, I immediately thought of Sturgeon because Trout lived broke in a basement apartment, it reminded me of what happened to Sturgeon. Trout's books never sold but Billy Pilgrim was his most ardent fan! That's heavy duty! You must read Slaughterhouse Five, Grass. You'll love it.

Aaaargg! This stupid board, I hate when it messes up, oh well. Hey Kilgore Trout is in Slaughterhouse Five. When the character was described, I immediately thought Sturgeon based on the similiarities. How heavy!!! Grass, you gotta read it, you'll love it!

Kilgore Trout, if you ever read anything by him�and he does have published stories�is actually Philip Jose Farmer. But you knew that, right?

I didn't know that. What genre is it?

You ever read Farmer's A FEAST UNKNOWN? I found it the other day in a used bookstore. Picked it up and gave it a good long looksy, just to convince myself that this book does indeed exist, then put it back on the shelf and walked away in a daze. Boy, Robo, talk about banned books, this one should be on everyone's banned book list. Look it up on amazon.com. For me to even describe such a book would warrant banishement from this website, and justifiably so. When taken at face value and read as satire perhaps the thing wouldn't be offensive. I don't know. I don't have the time to waste on such things in order to find out.

I gave up on "High Castle". I'm just not into it. Started a book by my favorite contemporary SF author, Allen Steele, called THE JERICHO ITERATION. Post apocolytic mayhem Katrina style complete with FEMA mishaps and government coverups. Also some supercool super-secret superweapon being tested on the suffering masses. I love this guy's writing. He's just so straight-foward, crystal clear, and accessible compared to everything else I read. He's always compared to early Heinlein. But, I'd also throw in a little Stephen King and Tom Clancy to give you a better idea of the way this guy writes and the sound of his "voice". His prose is not very poetic but hip in a dirty leather jacket rock 'n' roll kinda way, rather than being hip in the usual sugarshack beatnik kinda way.

Okay, I can't resist. Here's a direct link to amazon and it's reviews of A FEAST UNKNOWN.
http://www.amazon.com/Feast-Philip-Jose-Farmer/dp/08721...8162?ie=UTF8&s=books

I finished "Mockingbird" the other day (see post on the New Board).
Now I'm into "Last Bus to Woodstock " by Colin Dexter. I believe it's the first of the Inspector Morse series, later a popular TV series in the UK. His writing is very good, and it's a ripping yarn!
Next I'll either read "Peter Pan" (yes, the whole story) or the new Diane Mott Davidson whodunit "Dark Tort".
However, in October I always read some Poe and some Bradbury...

Hey Grass, are we still doing the book mailings?

Poe, good call for Halloween B-Two. I may try my hand at Shelley's Frankenstein. I still want to squeeze Farewell Summer in before October's demise too. May have to take yet another break from reading Count again. I am liking it a whole lot, it is so big and daunting and is taking me forever.

Yes, Robo. Absolutely. I'll send mine off some time within the next week, hopefully. Just wait til it arrives then send yours to the return address on the package. In place of collectable stamps perhaps we could include a brochure of some local point of interest, like:
Springfield--Home of
THE WORLD'S LARGEST TOILET

I visited my sister in Kansas several years ago, small town called Oswego, and she took me to see their claim to fame... "THE WORLD'S LARGEST TRACTOR". I brought back a commemerative coffee cup (also upon her insistence) to remind myself of the fantastic spectacle.

Grassy, inspired by your post, here's a site I found: http://www.wlra.us/

That's way cool! I will throw some trinkets your way for sure. It may have to be called the Bookjunket Club or some such.

Now we're talking! Be interesting to see what becomes of this, I can be quite competitive. I don't think the Central Valley can claim the biggest anything anymore, but you know I'm gonna look. I'll start with B-two's link of giant roadside attractions.

Thought I'd come over here and visit Grassy.
I finished "Peter Pan". Pretty well-written and fun. I can see why it became a classic.
I'm reading "Dark Tort" by Diane Mott Davidson now. Also bipping in and out of "I Sing The Body Electric" I always read Bradbury and Poe during October!