THE PURPLE BOOK by Philip Jose Farmer

Finished We 3/25/26

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I had never read and purchased at the library book sale on Sa 6/9/18.

It's a short collection of novellas by Farmer.

The best (by far) is part of his novel, 'THE RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE'. This is a pun on the Zane Grey novel and deals with an American future in which the government financially supports all citizens. 'Purple' was picked because the color invokes the richness of ancient Rome. 

The poor are housed in ovid shaped apartments located about 20 feet above the surface. Everything is paid, but the lifestyle is boring and people are moved randomly to protect against popular uprisings. I would have loved to read this interesting book because with the real threat of AI and complete automation it is not at all surprising that the government would initiate a 'standard minimum salary for all'. 

One novella dealt with C.B. Demille coming back and making a movie with The Devil and God. One dealt with Rip Van Winkle and the others were completely forgettable. 

I'd still read anything by Philip Jose Farmer because he was one of the best 'pulp fiction' writers who ever lived.    

MANHATTAN IS MY BEAT by Jeffrey Deaver

 This is a paperback that I bought at the Rochester Book Sale in 2023. I bought a bag of books for five bucks. Finished Su 4/23/23 and refinished on Su 3/8/26.

The story involves a young woman who works at a video store in NY city. She went to a man's apartment to pick up a video and the man had been murdered. It's a cute story with lots of twists. 

From AI Overview:

"Manhattan Is My Beat (1988) by Jeffery Deaver is the first book in the Rune trilogy, featuring a 20-year-old punk-styled amateur sleuth who works in a NYC video store. When her favorite customer is murdered, she investigates, believing a classic film noir holds the clue to a stolen fortune.

Rune is described as smart, witty, street-wise, and obsessed with old films, making her an unconventional heroine.

Plot: Following the murder of elderly customer Mr. Kelly, Rune uncovers a connection between his death and a real-life, unsolved bank robbery, drawing her into a dangerous investigation."

SUICIDE BLONDE by Darcey Steinke

 Refinished Th 3/4/26

This is one of my old trade paperbacks that I first read Th 7/23/98.

Not much of this novel stuck with me, but it was an enjoyable read.

From KIRKUS:

"After her relatively demure debut (Up Through the Water, 1989), Steinke turns up the heat for this episodic tale of kinky sex and all-out depravity. It's a bad girl's memoir of her descent into the netherworld of San Francisco's Mission District. In two weeks, pretty young Jesse (a woman always ``attracted'' to people who make her feel ``inadequate'') explores the seamy underside of modern life. Doing penance for her ``bland suburban past,'' Jesse ``dabbles in perversity.'' Her lover, a handsome actor named Bell, is busy mooning for his former boyfriend, soon to be married in L.A. Insanely jealous, Jesse confides in Madam Pig, an obese alcoholic for whom she keeps house. The reclusive old dame encourages Jesse to seek out a woman named Madison, who Pig claims is her daughter. In fact, Madison, Pig's ex-lover, is now a junkie prostitute who works from a bar in the Mission. From the moment they meet, Jesse is drawn to her sense of ease and power, and moves into Madison's apartment. Jesse's adventures begin: a trip to a live peep show; anonymous sex in a darkroom; sex with Bell in the presence of a trollish homosexual; masturbation with a statute of Christ in an empty church; a hand-job to a homosexual in a gay bar; turning a few tricks at Madison's whorehouse; smoking opium in a den run by a hermaphrodite; and witnessing Madison penetrate a john so violently with her fist that he dies. This last finally convinces Jesse that all ``relationships'' are ``sinister, violent, even murderous.'' As if all this weren't laying it on a bit thick, Steinke has Bell commit suicide at the very moment of Kevin's wedding. That's totally in keeping with the reductive psychology everywhere evident in this silly, violent book. So self-consciously seeking ``that exquisite kick of perversity,'' this callow fiction comes off as something along the lines of a much more sincere American Psycho. All the more pathetic. Expect the usual brouhaha: condemnation, then increased sales."

MY LIFE WITH EDGAR CAYCE by David E. Kahn

 Finished Su 3/1/26

Another book written by a contemporary of Cayce's. 

From AI Overview:

"My Life with Edgar Cayce by David E. Kahn (as told to Will Oursler) provides an intimate, firsthand account of life with the famous "Sleeping Prophet," offering personal anecdotes and insights into his character. It is noted for revealing the human side of Cayce beyond his psychic readings.

Focuses on the daily life and personality of Edgar Cayce, complementing more clinical, clinical studies of his work."

THE STORY OF EDGAR CAYCE: THE IS A RIVER by Thomas Sugrue

 Finished Th 2/26/26

I was a big fan of Cayce back when I was in my twenties and some of it still resonates. 

His history of hypnotism includes people who were able tap into other dimensions. The ability to 'learn by sleeping over a book' was something that was noted when hypnotism was discovered. It seems to say that Cayce was one of a number of people who had this gift. 

Written by Thomas Sugrue, a journalist who knew Cayce personally, it is the only biography published during Cayce's lifetime. 

The book covers Cayce's life, from his Kentucky roots to his development as a spiritual messenger and medical clairvoyant who, in a trance state, could diagnose illnesses, suggest remedies, and discuss topics like reincarnation and Atlantis.

If I am ever at Virginia Beach, Virginia I will definitely pay the headquarters a visit. 

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson

 Finished Th 2/19/26

This was a paperback that I noticed on the living room shelf. I own the first and second novel in the series. I remember that I liked to movie. I know that I saw the Noomi Rapace version where she played Lizbeth Salander and I wasn't even aware of the Daniel Craig film. I was shocked to learn that neither film was listed at Reelgood. I was able to stream the Daniel Craig Film on Tubi and I learned this from IMDB. 

A disgraced Swedish publisher is asked by a wealthy industrialist to find out the mystery of his missing niece (Harriet, his brother's daughter). In the summer of 1966 she disappeared at a street festival and was never seen again. Decades later it's revealed that she escaped the island in the trunk of a car. In the movie she relocated to Australia to establish a 'station' (what Australians call a 'ranch').

Reveal: Harriet was being sexually abused by her father and her brother. She also learns that her brother and father were a couple of serial killers of women and had been operating for many, many years. Lizbeth Salander is the tattooed hacker that is able to uncover any secret on the Internet. 

A great read and I'm looking forward to the second book. It's too bad that the original movie from Sweden is no longer available and I was really surprised that the Daniel Craig version was not more popular. 

I finished the book on Thursday and watched the film version on Friday morning. I love living in the modern world! 

NOT BY THE SWORD by Kathryn Watterson

 Finished Su 2/9/26

This is an ancient hardback that I had never read. It seems like something that I wouldn't read, but it actually was quite interesting. A completely different take on the 'I was lost, and then I was found' point of view. 

"How the Love of a Cantor and His Family Transformed a Klansman"

Larry Trapp was a young man deeply involved in anti-government activities. A Jewish couple decide to 'save' him, however they aren't trying to get him to accept 'their god', but they actually help the guy in his daily life. Instead of pulling up to his house with an armload of 'good news  for modern man' information, they help with his shopping, cleaning, and personal hygiene. 

Larry Trapp was a 'Type 1' Diabetes which means that his pancreas didn't work and he had to have daily injections. However, Trapp did nothing about his diet and he soon lost both legs and he was almost completely blind.

From Kirkus:

"A moving, though overlong, account of the triumph of patience and tolerance over bigotry. Based on a remarkable series of events that transpired in Lincoln, Neb., in the early 1990s, this book by journalist Watterson chronicles the transformation of Larry Trapp, Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan of Nebraska. Trapp, the product of a terribly abusive childhood and a number of years in institutions, assumed a leadership role in reviving Klan activities in Nebraska. Handicapped and confined to a wheelchair, he spent his considerable energies on disseminating hate literature, leaving obscene messages on the phone machines of civil rights activists, and planning attacks on members of minorities who moved into Lincoln. When Cantor Michael Weisser and his wife, Julie, decided to respond to Trapp's harassment by offering him help of the most basic kind— help with shopping and getting around—he was initially spiteful and wary. But he was also touched by the offer. Though well narrated, the story of how this developing and uneasy friendship led Trapp to renounce his ties to the Klan and eventually convert to Judaism is muddled by a plethora of uplifting quotes from inspirational literature, giving the account a New Age flavor. Towards the end of the book we learn that the cantor and his wife have also undergone remarkable personal recoveries from abuse and emotional deprivation, which clarifies their ability to bring about a transformation in Trapp. His conversion to Judaism is not easily accepted by some members of the Weissers' congregation (``forgiving your enemy is one thing, but letting him become a member of your family is another,'' says one temple member). Trapp dies soon after his conversion ceremony, and his very moving funeral—attended by many of the individuals whom he attacked—is the book's closing scene. This story received considerable media attention in 1992; for those who missed it, Watterson tells it in historical and social context—a bit too much so." ken

 

MAKING A KILLING by Warren Dunford

 Finished Sa 1/31/26

This is one of my ancient trade paperbacks that I had never read. The novel is written with a kind of a gay Agatha Christie plotline. The setup is that a young man is thrown out of a third story window and is impaled on a fence. His father was stabbed to death and left in the room where the boy had fallen. It was believed that the son killed his dad and then jumped out of the window. This is not what happened. 

The novel is set in the Bloor Street area of Toronto, Canada. This is a 'hip' area of the city with trendy shopping and old money homes.

This was a light read and somewhat enjoyable, but I still do not like the Agatha Christie setup. The author introduces many possible suspects and the reader is supposed to guess the killer. 

From Publishers Weekly:

"Dunford's immensely satisfying sequel to last year's Soon to Be a Major Motion Picture picks up several years later with the same appealing characters. Soon found fledgling Toronto screenwriter Mitchell Draper and his friends Ingrid and Ramir in a sendup of crime dramas and Mafia Princess potboilers. This latest venture is a smart and self-aware parody of gothic murder mysteries, complete with a bevy of suspects, hidden staircases in a spooky mansion ("the kind of house that had inspired the game of Clue"), ancient secrets and even a giant party at the end that brings all the suspects back to the scene of the crime. Alert readers will catch references to Rosemary's Baby, The Haunting of Hill House and Scooby Doo. The biggest surprise is the book's gradual slide from hilarious homage to an honest-to-goodness locked-door mystery. Few will guess the outcome of the clever twists that tantalize until the final pages. Mitchell's idea that a 20-year-old father-son murder-suicide would make a blockbuster movie script finds him investigating the long-closed case and discovering new facts that may endanger him and his cohorts. Meanwhile, Ingrid is attempting reconciliation with her ex-husband, and Ramir has joined a charismatic cult whose leader was intimately involved in the tragedy. New characters are especially well drawn, notably dying designer Cortland McPhee, aging sexpot Gabriella Hartman ("one of Entertainment Weekly's 101 Stars Who Just Won't Give Up") and her Thelma Ritter–like psychic adviser Jane Choy. While some readers will be eager to see what genre Dunford turns his comedic talents to next, others will hope he settles into mystery for good."

THE 6:20 MAN by David Baldacci

 Finished Su 1/25/26

This was a trade paperback that Janny loaned me. Usually I think Baldacci is today's James Patterson and these books are not well written and just for the 'ride'. However, this one was interesting as it concerns Travis Devine, an Army Ranger who goes to work on Wall Street. He's doing it to appease his father. When his father learned that he was an 'Ranger' he asked what national park he would work at...."My son is Smokey The Bear". Travis leaves the military and starts to earn big bucks in investment banking. 

From Debbish.com:

"Every day without fail, Travis Devine puts on a cheap suit, grabs his faux-leather briefcase, and boards the 6:20 commuter train to Manhattan, where he works as an entry-level analyst at the city’s most prestigious investment firm. In the mornings, he gazes out the train window at the lavish homes of the uberwealthy, dreaming about joining their ranks. In the evenings, he listens to the fiscal news on his phone, already preparing for the next grueling day in the cutthroat realm of finance.

Then one morning Devine’s tedious routine is shattered by an anonymous email: She is dead.

Sara Ewes, Devine’s coworker and former girlfriend, has been found hanging in a storage room of his office building—presumably a suicide, prompting the NYPD to come calling on him. If that wasn’t enough, Devine receives another ominous visit, a confrontation that threatens to dredge up grim secrets from his past in the Army unless he participates in a clandestine investigation into his firm.

This treacherous role will take Travis from the impossibly glittering lives he once saw only through a train window, to the darkest corners of the country’s economic halls of power…where something rotten lurks. And apart from this high-stakes conspiracy, there’s a killer out there with their own agenda, and Devine is the bullseye."

Odd Premise: The bad guy who runs the brokerage house uses a woman in a bikini to signal trades secretly. She's in a green suit if they are to continue to trade and she's in a red bikini if they are to shut down. 

STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. by Robert Heilein

 Ebook borrowed from Lincoln Library and finished We 1/21/26

I've read this half a dozen times over the years. I was surprised to learn that it was first published in 1961. 

He dedicates the book to 3 people and one of them is Philip Jose Farmer

THE BRASS VERDICT by Michael Connelly

 Finished Su 1/1126

This was a paperback that I at the Rochester library book sale on Su 4/23/23. This was the last time that I will be attending a library book sale. There just isn't anything of any depth because it's all 'light reading' and I want something more. 

However, I liked this novel because it's the first time that Micky Haller works with Bosch. I was going to give it to Janny, but I noticed that she had just lent me this book in hardback. 

 The review of 'THE BRASS VERDICT' at The Guardian:

"Mickey Haller, who runs his legal practice from a car, is ready to get back to work after a year off recovering from a gunshot wound and an addiction to painkillers. But he gets more work than he wants when he inherits the caseload of a colleague, Jerry Vincent, who has been found dead. The cases include the forthcoming murder trial of film producer Walter Elliot, who seems strangely serene about his impending legal date. Mickey has to discover what Elliot is so smug about, and all the while the police are trying to find out who killed Vincent. Could there be a connection? The author is one of the top American crime writers, and whether you pick up one of his celebrated cop novels or a legal thriller such as this, you can be assured of an intriguing plot, decent characterisation, excellent writing and an exciting ending."

BLUE CALHOUN by Reynolds Price

Finished Mo 1/5/26

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I had never read. However, this was one of the finest novels that I've read in a long time. 

In broad strokes the story is about a 35 year old musical instrument salesman who falls madly in love with a sixteen year old girl. The disruption caused by this action has ramifications that affect his family forever.

The book is Blue (the guys name) explaining his life to his granddaughter. 

He has a 13 year old daughter who he worships and his wife his 'long suffering, yet forgiving'. Mom and daughter are both Catholics and the family lives in Raleigh, North Carolina. This is also Reynolds Price's home. Luna is the sixteen year old girl who is far older than her years. Her mother is a childhood friend of Blue's. 

The reveal is that his daughter's husband (the storyline moves ahead thiry) might be having some kind of sexual interaction with Blue's granddaughter, Lyn. Dane, her father commits suicide when Blue witnesses what he thinks is a sexual encounter with the young girl. 

The story is told in a very southern, almost 'decorous' style. 

From the book's page at KIRKUS:

"Written in the almost buttery style that Price has favored since Kate Vaiden (1986), this melodrama concerns an ex-alcoholic music salesman, Blue Calhoun, living in Raleigh, North Carolina, in the 1950's. Having sorely tried his wife and daughter and old mother by his drinking (he's sober now), Blue at last seems level. But then into the downtown music store where he works comes an old acquaintance from high school and her 16-year-old daughter, Luna. Blue is tempted and again falls; Luna (an incest victim) is a taste of freedom and possible redemption. He tries giving her up once, and is taken back by his family, but the leukemia death of an old bachelor friend re-involves Blue with Luna (in a not terribly credible plot-thickening). This second lapse is more serious, and, in sorrow, his long-suffering wife, daughter, and mother send him away. Blue will get still another chance (the story is boned with second and third chances), but his flaw has affected three—and ultimately four—generations of Calhoun women permanently. Only their patience and grace-in-pain reconstitute him. Price, in his recent books, has been assembling a kind of humane moral iconography: variously posed portraits of the utterly human sinner, no better and no worse than people can be; and strong versions of the Blessed Woman. Here, though, in the soapy re- curlings of the style (``I understood I'd failed completely, now today if never before in my long mess. I knew I was locked in the trough of it too, out here lost on a girl's hot tether, awaiting her will''), the icon seems merely air-filled. The characters speak to each other in conspicuously sad/wise parables; themes are paired too smoothly; and a certain gooey smugness—in the classical self- condemnatory/self-congratulatory mode—lurks everywhere."