DEBRIS.COMgood for a laugh, or possibly an aneurysm

I’m typing this with black hands. Today was the annual neighborhood apple pressing — 30 people and about 1500 lbs of apples get together to make many gallons of juice and a mound of desiccated fruit flesh that takes six months to decompose.

So, why are my hands black? I have no idea. Something about the acid in the fruit, I guess. It takes a few days for the discoloration to wear off. My guess is, given my profession, my fingertips will become clean sooner than the rest of my hands.

To cap off the day of fruit-centric fun, we stopped by the Ace In The Hole Cider Pub for a few pints of Pear.

Anyone taking bets that the dancing monkey boy is on the verge of a massive coronary?

Seriously, check out the sweat rings, the pained grimace, and the way he tries to mask the fact that he can barely breathe. Bill Gates ought to be shopping for a new CEO right about now. And Ballmer is in desperate need of a healthier lifestyle.

(Thanks to camworld for the “developers! developers! developers!” link.)

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Sheldon Siegel worked at the law firm that was the target of the 101 California shooting, in which a disgruntled client used automatic weapons to kill 8 people. This event pushed Siegel to try to do some of the things he’d been postponing, such as writing a novel. Special Circumstances is the result.

This is a classic page-turner, combining a courtroom drama with aspects of the thriller genre. The text is eminently readable, demonstrating the work Siegel did to hone the “narrative voice” (as he documents on his website). Truly, it’s a pleasure to read — clear, fiesty, and quick, with memorable characters (who resurface in Siegel’s next book, Incriminating Evidence) and accurate (to my ear) court dialog. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it heartily.

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• Amazon (paperback)
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I loathe politics, but I enjoyed this book as much as Tarloff’s more recent The Man Who Wrote the Book (which I heartily recommend, as well).

Face-Time recounts the story of a Presidential love affair, told from the perspective of the woman’s boyfriend — himself the lead speechwriter for the President. While work-related love triangles are probably somewhat common, having the “boss” figure be the President is (we hope, anyway) uncommon. The book presents a deep investigation into love, trust, power, guilt, and I suppose politics although you needn’t understand or even like politics to enjoy the story.

There are only a handful of characters, and the plot is simple. The narrator is an intelligent man with a wry sense of humor, and Tarloff’s outstanding writing shines throughout. The dialog is impeccable, and even better, the narrator’s internal analysis (which probably represents a significant percentage of the text) is fascinating and heartfelt.

This would probably be an uncomfortable read, if your spouse has been unfaithful. The narrator’s pain is so pure, so evident, that at times I felt like I do when someone talks about grisly oral surgery or, even worse, prostate procedures: empathy can kill! Tarloff sets up wholly wretched situations but populates them with likeable, even admirable characters, whose justifications and rationalizations are completely reasonable. It’s impossible for the reader not to project himself into the story, to ask “what would I do?”

This book should probably be required reading for couples prior to marriage!

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• Amazon (paperback)

This is an absorbing thriller. I dislike the title, which is clearly a marketing ploy and which has no meaning within the context of the story, but it’s quite likely Sandford didn’t write the title.

Silent Prey features ex-cop Lucas Davenport, an engaging, three-dimensional character familiar to readers of the other Prey stories (which I haven’t read, but will now). He’s clever; he doesn’t take B.S.; and he doesn’t take himself too seriously either. He’s tracking a Hannibal-like psychopath introduced in Eyes of Prey, Michael Bekker, through a series of grisly murders in New York City.

All the requisite plot-twists are in place to keep the reader guessing, up until the very end. I enjoyed this book and recommend it to fans of the genre — including cop dramas, investigative procedurals, mysteries, thrillers, etc.

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• Amazon (paperback)