It’s all Greek to me

I finished Barry Malzberg’s Breakfast in the Ruins on the train ride home this evening and it was absolutely terrific! While I don’t necessarily agree with his positions on science fiction, he is an amazing writer with incisive insights into all aspects of the genre. He writes with emotion and gravitas and I completely enjoyed this “extended” version of The Engines of the Night

Next on tap: a couple of history books, first on Greek history and then Roman history. I have an almost complete set of history books that Isaac Asimov wrote for Houghton Mifflin over the years (beginning in the 1960s and well into the 1970s). I’ve only ever read one of them (The Land of Canaan) and seeing how I will be in Italy and Greece soon, I thought boning up on my Greek and Roman history was just the thing. I’ve read Will Durant’s The Life of Greece and portions of his book Caesar and Christ, but I was looking for something a little bit lighter and I think these two books will fit the bill perfectly.

(And if they really work out well, I’ll add The Shaping of England and The Shaping of France to the list, since I will also be in London and Paris during my trip.)

I’m starting with Asimov’s The Greeks and therefore, for the next couple of days, it’s all Greek to me!