BOOKS: [Distraction by Bruce Sterling](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553576399/mattorama)  I'm not sure I have much to say about this book. I liked it, mostly for Sterling's always imaginative view of the future. In this book, America is basically broken and the characters are trying to feel their way through. It's all very political and feels real. That's the only problem I had with it, I'm not too into imaginary politics. If I want to read about crazy politics, I'll read the news. I really started getting into the book at the end, when the politics part ends and the science-fiction takes over. All in all I liked it but it's a pretty thick book so it'll probably take awhile to sink in completely. I've got a few more Sterling books on the To Be Read Shelf so I'll have more of a comparison once I finish those. I'm really looking forward to Schismatrix Plus which seems like what Sterling was writing when he was in the more cyberpunk mode that I find interesting.

I’m most of the way through The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time which is turning out to be another Life Of Pi, which is to say it’s a book I knew nothing about but is completely blowing me away. The audiobook I listened to before this was Anne Rice’s Blackwood Farm (no link because I don’t want you to buy it) and within 5 minutes of listening to The Curious Incident I knew it was going to be on a whole higher plane of quality than that thing. I’m not even done with it but I will already wholeheartedly recommend it.

I just started The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester which is one of those classic science fiction books I just never got around to reading before. My memory pretty much guarantees that as soon as I go into a bookstore I’ll forget the list of books I wanted to buy so I was glad to find this and Man Plus by Frederick Pohl last time I went to my favorite used store, Page One Too.

I keep looking at my To Be Read Shelf and questioning my sanity at buying that many books and not reading them. There’s 40+ books on that shelf as of right now and I’m making a rare New Year Resolution to read all of them by the close of 2004. I’m not one of those people who just likes having books around, I have to read them eventually. Of course being an incurable book hoarder doesn’t help with my desire to read everything I buy that doesn’t turn out to be total crap. Having them all on shelf will help me seperate ones I bought pre-Resolution and ones I’ll no doubt buy from here on in so that’ll help. Good luck to me.