What are you reading in 2025?

[Autumnal]

I’d read that thing, jian.

 

[prabe]

It was actually completely unintentional, I didn't realize they were by the same author until the cashier at Barnes & Noble pointed it out. But yeah, I had planned on skipping that one lmao. I might give My Heart Is A Chainsaw a read at some point just because I love the title. I'm interested in some of his non horror books, he mentions Joe Lansdale as an inspiration and I'm a big fan of Hap and Leonard, and I'm still hoping The Bottoms gets an adaptation at some point, but his horror stuff doesn't move me at all.

The thing about My Heart Is a Chainsaw is that there are two books that come after it. Most of what I've seen from Jones is Horror, except for some of his very early stuff, which is barely readable. Lansdale is awesome, whatever genre he's writing in.

I will point out that I enjoyed the heck out of I Was a Teenage Slasher, in spite of not liking slasher movies, and in spite of not liking most of the music the book's characters live for. On the other hand, I seem to enjoy reading Horror much more than you do, in general, so that probably explains most of the difference.

 

[jian]

I’d read that thing, jian.

Thank you, Bruce, I’ll try and keep it short.

Let’s start with Joe Dredd, whose creator always said that he “was the warning, not the hero.” Dredd is a man of character and integrity, but he’s also an unquestioning enforcer for a brutal fascist state, and the longer he lives (and the longer people write him) the less he can avoid the fundamental immorality and cruelty of his position and the society whose values he defends. Dredd is no physical coward, but he is a moral coward, and so he tries to take the easy way out by choosing the Long Walk. Sadly that doesn’t take, and he is returned to police his city to hope that death comes for him cleanly.

Similarly, Miyamoto Usagi is a man of courage and morality in a society which is deeply unequal, sexist, and oppressive, and which relies on the fanatical obedience of its warrior (“servant”) class to a corrupt and vicious ruling aristocracy who owes them no loyalty in return. As a wandering hero he can follow his conscience as he could not have when he was a household samurai, but he (and Sakai) also clearly sees how terrible the society whose values he once defended is, and how little difference one swordsman can make. Usagi is therefore compelled to embrace mono no aware, how life is fleeting and how one can only live in the moment, and hope for a clean death on his warrior’s pilgrimage.

 

[Autumnal]

I like it. Thanks.