The Reading Corner.

[Buster's Uncle]

Cities in Space edited by Jerry Pournelle with John F. Carr.

Good enough.

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The Fantastic Adventures of Robin Hood  Edited by Martin H. Greenberg.

[Buster's Uncle]

The Fantastic Adventures of Robin Hood  Edited by Martin H. Greenberg.

Meh.

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Mariposa by Greg Bear.

[Buster's Uncle]

Mariposa by Greg Bear.

Not bad.

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SCIENCE FICTION: The Best of the Year 2007 edited by Rich Horton.

[Buster's Uncle]

SCIENCE FICTION: The Best of the Year 2007 edited by Rich Horton.

Excellent.

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Three Times Infinity Edited by Leo Margulies.

[Geo]

Journey to Centauri by Mike Ely.

Mediocre.

[Buster's Uncle]

Three Times Infinity Edited by Leo Margulies.

Good.

The first story was a delightful surprise, as being co-written by Ray Bradbury, I feared that it would be about sneakers, nostalgia for 1910, or something lame like that; but the other author was Leigh Brackett, and true to form, the story was a flat-out planetary romance.

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Hegira by Greg Bear.

[Rusty Edge]

Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles Henderson

It's the story of Carlos Norman Hathcock II , a national champion rifleman, who became the first and foremost sniper during the Viet Nam War.

In the same way that I've read a number of books by WWI fighter pilots, I've read a number of books about Navy SEALS and snipers, because hunting and shooting was my hobby until my hearing loss.  A lot of people consider snipers something like serial killers. As I see it, they kill more humanely, and are much less likely to harm non-combatant civilians and their property than is the norm for a war.

As I was reading I had another insight. It was about the WWI pilots. In an age when fighter pilots mostly fought either as  light cavalry used to, or as fencing duelists used to, Canadian Ace Billy Bishop thought and fought as a sniper.

[Geo]

As I was reading I had another insight. It was about the WWI pilots. In an age when fighter pilots mostly fought either as  light cavalry used to, or as fencing duelists used to, Canadian Ace Billy Bishop thought and fought as a sniper.

He seems to have started with a "chargeeeeee" attitude from what I read in his Wiki article.

[Rusty Edge]

I made the sniper comparison because-

* he had superior eyesight and marksmanship on the range.

* He had a notable economy of ammunition.

* The enemy gave him a nickname and placed a bounty on his head.

* He preferred to work alone  and behind enemy lines in surprise attacks.

*Consequently many of his kills are unconfirmed. ( Whatever Bishop's  actual total, even if it was only the lowest estimate of 27, that's still more than Rickenbacker or any other American. )

* He had a passion for going on missions, and command had to reign him in for his own protection, because he reached a point where he was a propaganda icon /psychological weapon.


For those reasons, and  other intangible personality qualities, Bishop reminds me of snipers like Hathcock  and  Chris Kyle more than other contemporary aces.

[Buster's Uncle]

Hegira by Greg Bear.

Not bad.  Missing something, but not bad.

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Dinosaur Summer by Greg Bear.

[Buster's Uncle]

Dinosaur Summer by Greg Bear.

Okay.

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Ruled Britannia by Harry Turtledove.

[Lord Avalon]

Re-read A Feast for Crows by George RR Martin, as I recently got A Dance with Dragons, mass market edition.

[Buster's Uncle]

Ruled Britannia by Harry Turtledove.

I didn't believe any of it for a second, but a charming yarn.

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Strength of Stones by Greg Bear.

[Buster's Uncle]

Strength of Stones by Greg Bear.

It's okay, but it turned out I had read it before...

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The Wind from a Burning Woman by Greg Bear.

[Buster's Uncle]

The Wind from a Burning Woman by Greg Bear.

Thumbs up.

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The Best From Fantasy and Science Fiction  Fourth Series Edited by Anthony Boucher.