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larryhammerFor Poetry Monday:
Kyoto, Yone Noguchi
Mist-born Kyoto, the city of scent and prayer,
Like a dream half-fading, she lingers on:
The oldest song of a forgotten pagoda bell
Is the Kamo river’s twilight song.
The girls, half whisper and half love,
As old as a straying moon beam,
Flutter on the streets gods built,
Lightly carrying Spring and passion.
“Stop a while with me,” I said.
They turned their powdered necks. How delicious!
“No, thank you, some other time,” they replied.
Oh, such a smile like the breath of a rose!
Noguchi Yonejirō, who wrote in English as Yone Noguchi, was a Japanese writer in both English and Japanese, and his poetry and essays from, especially, the first two decades of the 20th century were influential on both Ezra Pound and W.B. Yeats. This poem was published in 1908, shortly after he returned to Japan after living in the United States for over a decade.
---L.
Subject quote from Creep, Radiohead. (bonus PMJ cover)
Kyoto, Yone Noguchi
Mist-born Kyoto, the city of scent and prayer,
Like a dream half-fading, she lingers on:
The oldest song of a forgotten pagoda bell
Is the Kamo river’s twilight song.
The girls, half whisper and half love,
As old as a straying moon beam,
Flutter on the streets gods built,
Lightly carrying Spring and passion.
“Stop a while with me,” I said.
They turned their powdered necks. How delicious!
“No, thank you, some other time,” they replied.
Oh, such a smile like the breath of a rose!
Noguchi Yonejirō, who wrote in English as Yone Noguchi, was a Japanese writer in both English and Japanese, and his poetry and essays from, especially, the first two decades of the 20th century were influential on both Ezra Pound and W.B. Yeats. This poem was published in 1908, shortly after he returned to Japan after living in the United States for over a decade.
---L.
Subject quote from Creep, Radiohead. (bonus PMJ cover)
Shroud, by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Jun. 20th, 2025 10:18 amrachelmanija
While on a commercial expedition, an unexpected accident causes Mai, an engineer, and Juna, an HR person, to crash-land on a pitch-black planet called Shroud. They can't get out of their escape pod because the air is corrosive and unbreathable, and they can't call for help. Their only hope is to use the pod's walker system to trek all the way across the planet... which turns out to be absolutely teeming with extremely weird life, none of which can see, all of which communicates via electromagnetic signals, most of which constructs exoskeletons for itself with organic materials, and some of which is extremely large.
As readers, we learn very early on that at least some of the life on Shroud is intelligent. But Juna and Mai don't know that, the intelligent Shroud beings don't know that humans are intelligent, and human and Shroud life is so different that it makes perfect sense that they can't tell. As Juna and Mai make their probably-doomed expedition across Shroud, they're accompanied by curious Shroud beings, frequently attacked by other Shroud creatures, face some of the most daunting terrain imaginable, and slowly begin to learn the truth about Shroud. But even if they succeed in rescuing themselves, the predatory capitalist company that sent them on their expedition on the first place is determined to strip Shroud for materials, and doesn't care if its indigenous life is intelligent or not.
This is possibly the best first contact novel I've ever read. It's the flip side of Alien Clay, which was 70% depressing capitalist dystopia and 30% cool aliens. Shroud is 10% depressing capitalist dystopia and 90% cool aliens - or rather, 90% cool aliens and humans interacting with cool aliens. It's a marvelous alien travelogue, it has so many jaw-dropping moments, and it's very thematically unified and neatly plotted. The climax is absolutely killer.
The characterization is sketchy but sufficient. The ending is a little abrupt, but you can easily extrapolate what happens from there, and it's VERY satisfying. As far as I know this is a standalone, but I would certainly enjoy a sequel if Tchaikovsky decided to write one.
My absolute favorite moment, which was something you can only do in science fiction, is a great big spoiler. ( Read more... )
“yeah we’ve got a light / to see our way by / we’ve got what we need / when we’ve got you”
Jun. 17th, 2025 12:53 pmlarryhammerLinks of varying relevance, both to currency and each other:
The ‘3.5% rule’: How a small minority can change the world. BBC summary of an academic study with historical data. Pull quote: “Nonviolent protests are twice as likely to succeed as armed conflicts – and those engaging a threshold of 3.5% of the population have never failed to bring about change.” For perspective, for the US that’s about 11 million people, to give a totally random example. (viajanni)
Nicely thinky New Yorker profile of Martha Wells (archive version). CW: inconsistent misgendering of Murderbot (mostly in one paragraph). (via /r/murderbot)
Interview with the production designer of Murderbot, who is nicely thinky. (viamarthawells)
---L.
Subject quote from We've Got You - i: Spark, Vienna Teng.
The ‘3.5% rule’: How a small minority can change the world. BBC summary of an academic study with historical data. Pull quote: “Nonviolent protests are twice as likely to succeed as armed conflicts – and those engaging a threshold of 3.5% of the population have never failed to bring about change.” For perspective, for the US that’s about 11 million people, to give a totally random example. (via
janni)Nicely thinky New Yorker profile of Martha Wells (archive version). CW: inconsistent misgendering of Murderbot (mostly in one paragraph). (via /r/murderbot)
Interview with the production designer of Murderbot, who is nicely thinky. (via
marthawells)---L.
Subject quote from We've Got You - i: Spark, Vienna Teng.
“one day i’ll watch as you’re leaving / and life will lose all its meaning / for the last time”
Jun. 16th, 2025 07:42 amlarryhammerFor Poetry Monday, one more late Shelly:
“The flower that smiles to-day,” Percy Shelley
The flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow dies;
All that we wish to stay
Tempts and then flies.
What is this world’s delight?
Lightning that mocks the night,
Brief even as bright.
Virtue, how frail it is!
Friendship how rare!
Love, how it sells poor bliss
For proud despair!
But we, though soon they fall,
Survive their joy, and all
Which ours we call.
Whilst skies are blue and bright,
Whilst flowers are gay,
Whilst eyes that change ere night
Make glad the day;
Whilst yet the calm hours creep,
Dream thou—and from thy sleep
Then wake to weep.
Another poem written in the last year of his life and published posthumously with an editorial title, though this time the title Mary supplied was “Mutability.” It’s common to point out, for context, that Percy and Mary lost three children in early childhood. Like many of his shorter lyrics, it’s been set to music several times.
He nails that dismount.
---L.
Subject quote from Anti-Hero, Taylor Swift.
“The flower that smiles to-day,” Percy Shelley
The flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow dies;
All that we wish to stay
Tempts and then flies.
What is this world’s delight?
Lightning that mocks the night,
Brief even as bright.
Virtue, how frail it is!
Friendship how rare!
Love, how it sells poor bliss
For proud despair!
But we, though soon they fall,
Survive their joy, and all
Which ours we call.
Whilst skies are blue and bright,
Whilst flowers are gay,
Whilst eyes that change ere night
Make glad the day;
Whilst yet the calm hours creep,
Dream thou—and from thy sleep
Then wake to weep.
Another poem written in the last year of his life and published posthumously with an editorial title, though this time the title Mary supplied was “Mutability.” It’s common to point out, for context, that Percy and Mary lost three children in early childhood. Like many of his shorter lyrics, it’s been set to music several times.
He nails that dismount.
---L.
Subject quote from Anti-Hero, Taylor Swift.