(and books, and cats, and books, and more…)
Here’s this week’s set of issues and addresses for those of you who are postcard writers. Please use/share/distribute however you/d like.
As always, this list is long, so I suggest skimming first and finding what speaks to you.
If you want to sub in your Senators or Representative for the California ones listed, go here for Senators, here for Representatives.
2018.03.30 Issues and Addresses
Let me know if you use these—it keeps my spirits up.
In one of its iterations, this was a book blog, and while I’ve primarily dedicated it to current U.S. politics and resisting, I’m still reading books, and find them worth sharing. Here are two titles that came out earlier this month, both of which offer a something-more-than-the-usual mystery.
The Last Equation of Isaac Severy, Nova Jacobs, released 6 March, 2018, 352 pages, Simon & Schuster
What do you do when you’re a not-mathematically-inclined bookseller who has discovered after the death of your famous mathematician grandfather that he’s counting on you to rescue his last equation, one which could have dire consequences for the entire world? That’s the question The Last Equation of Isaac Severy answers. At least the protagonist’s adopted grandfather has the courtesy to hide his clues in one of her favorite novels.
Last Equation is a fast-paced read with a plot and characters that grow more complex by the page. It’s the kind of book you want to start in the morning, so you’re sure to have time to finish it before you go to bed. The intersection of the literary and the mathematical results in an interesting kind of culture clash, though Jacobs writes in a way that makes both cultures accessible to her readers, regardless of their backgrounds.
Star Rating (out of five): ****
Holmes Entangled, Gordon McAlpine, released 6 March, 2018, 191 pages, Seventh Street Press
I first encountered Gordon McAlpine through his novel, Woman with a Blue Pencil, an epistolary novel that has a plot which expands like a fractal and is set amidst the internment of California’s Japanese-Americans during World War II and features a first-time Japanese-American novelist and the editor he’s been assigned by his publisher. As that one-sentence description makes clear, Woman with a Blue Pencil had a plot that progressed in a switchback-like manner, with sudden, sharp turns as the reader moves from chapter to chapter.
While I found that Holmes Entangled was not quite the additive read that the earlier book was, I nonetheless enjoyed it and recommend it for readers who like mysteries with an unusual twist—especially those who enjoy a new twist on the Holmes literary canon. Holmes, retired and now living in the guise of a physics professor at Cambridge, is unnerved to meet Arthur Conan Doyle—who for some reason knows Holmes’ real identity and who wants help unraveling the mystery behind recent attempts on his life. From here, physics and spiritualism—along with Holmes, Doyle, and Dr. Watson’s widow—keep the plot moving in unexpected ways. There’s also the plot line involving the work of Edgar Allan Poe.
Star Rating (out of five): ****
Key to the star ratings:
Five Stars—it doesn’t matter what you’re doing, stop it and get to your nearest independent bookstore stat, so you can get a copy of this title.
Four Stars—this book will carry you through satisfying hours of reading and may keep you up past your bedtime.
Three Stars— you could do worse than reading this book, and you’ll probably enjoy yourself a fair bit of the time.
Two Stars—if it’s a choice between this book and the latest bit of inexplicably popular tripe, you’ll find yourself feeling somewhat less ill-used if you go with this one.
One Star—if you’re stranded on a desert island and it’s the only book you have, it will be worth reading once; after that, focus on alerting potential rescuers.
My computer died, so I’ve been playing catch-up and haven’t posted in a while, but I’m back!
Below is the latest issues/addresses list, which covers 3/11 through today. Use/share in any way you’d like. I also love hearing in comments when you’ve used it. It keeps my motivated!
There is a LOT going on right now.
I sat down to do my usual Friday write-up of issues/addresses and had to keep working through Saturday because I couldn’t finish everything in one day.
So, here we go—lots to choose from. As always, use/share/distribute as you see fit. Skim to find what speaks to you. I’ve added page number, which should make things easier if you want to print things out selectively.
Blog Issues:Addresses 3.12.2018
Let me know if you use this! It always helps to know the work is paying off.
If you have different Congresspeople than I do, you can find them easily here.
Senators: https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Representatives: https://www.house.gov/representatives
Each month I compile a “big list” of issues and addresses that I bring to my postcarding group (which meets, not by coincidence, once a month). I post sections of this as I write it up over the month. Now—
The Big March List is ready!
As always, please use/share/distribute as you see fit.
It is a big list, so I suggest skimming it and just focusing on the bits that speak to you. I know that no one is going to do all of these.
Please let me know via comments if you do use the list. It keeps my spirits up.
Persistence. Resistance. Go the distance!