So when I purchased this, I had expected to read a book following a woman who is now thrown into the wolves and is forced to make hard choices in order to survive and while in a sense we do get that. It falls short for me in the lack of time we really spend with the characters.

The issue I’ve had is that the book essentially speed runs Sunja (the main character) life, that we don’t really get to know her as a person. The only thing we’re given is how Sunja put into terrible scenarios and how she handles it. But do we know if she’s funny? If she’s quick-tempered, I sure don’t know anything other than she’s resilient which is great but where’s the meat of her character. How does her relationships with the other characters develop? Just by time lapse?

We don’t even get to see how characters handle the aftermath of said scenarios, we’re just thrusted a year or two or maybe three later in the timeline, to deal with the next scenario. Then we’re mainly following other characters now and it’s like well damn, what happened to Sunja?

There was a moment where I teared up in the book and I do relate to some of the struggles that Sunja’s family goes through, so with anyone who’s an immigrant or is a first generation immigrant, you may like this. But for me, i wasn’t able to connect to the characters.

Something that has been bothering me was the lack of discussion on the topic of Wells' (and frankly, other authors) views of eugenics. While there was an evolution of his racist ideas through his meeting with civil rights activists, the same can't be said for his views on eugenics which remained somewhat consistent throughout his life. The idea that we could sterilize the failures (this time, consenting!) is a deeply ableist mindset.

Ironically, CotB goes against this. Now, I last read it several years ago when I was 15 so it might not be completely accurate, but my reading of CotB was about the arrogance of able-bodied people in assuming that they're abilities some how make them more superior to disabled people. And, also, that what is considered a "disability" is relative to the culture. The people of the valley had adapted methods to navigate, had made the valley more accessible. Contrast that with the main character who couldn't keep up yet thought he could rule over these people due to his sight.

Eugenics boils down "disability" as purely a genetic failure when accessibility drastically imrpoves the quality of life for disability. But who wants to actually spend money on HELPING people amirite?

I find it strange that a guy who had such vile views could write something that was honestly progressive for its time.

However, I can't say this 100% would persuade eugenicists because they'd think this only applies to physical disabilities, not mental. Hell, even Hellen motherfriggin Keller was into eugenics on the belief of euthanizing mentally disabled babies. There isn't a lot of solidarity within the disabled community, but thats a topic for another time.

EDIT: Wow the amount of people in the comments who took this post as a go ahead of justifying eugenics is crazy. I wanted to talk about how a eugenicist accidentally wrote a book proving eugenics wrong. This is a damn literature sub not an ethics sub.

Yeah different time blah blah but we know the ramificationns of eugenics and Wells certainly didnt stop believing in the negative side of it

This is a nice book about a normal guy who shaves his beard to surprise his wife and his side chick.

But when he does, both him and you will start losing your minds

and questioning reality about what is actually going on.

Who is acting and who is not?

Who is on your side, and who is against you?

Is everything against you? Are you crazy? Or are you going to get them? How will you get them?

I recommend reading this short book with the background music of "Saw 1 Hour."

The end is....

So recently enjoyed another of the juvenile SF novels from Lester Del Rey, and this one's from the 1960s. This, is 1963's "Outpost of Jupiter".

After Bob Wilson's father suddenly becomes ill they become stranded on the small human colony on Jupiter's moon of Ganymeade, he gives up any plans to go to college and instead joins with the colonists in the brutal struggle of the moon's environment.

He becomes exhilirated with the challenges, the comradeship, and the spectacle of Jupiter filling the sky. All going way beyond his expectations. An it also included his investigations into a major mystery a strange globe that is hidden in the hills, and appears to be trying to communicate with the colony itself.

But before he could even find the answer he's looking for the colony has been struck and crippled by a plague. And the angry and frightened colonists are accusing him of being the carrier.

Another pretty good SF adventure that also doubles as a first contact story also. Lester here also tackles the favorite subject of planetary colonies with quite a bit of realism, for the time at leas. I love how fast and snappy this kind of books and even though I'm older, I find these incredibly enjoyable!

Haven't yet gotten to some of Del Rey's short story collections as of now, but I'll probably intend to find me some copies sometime. But this will be the last Del Rey novel for a while as I'm moving on into some horror right now, since it's October and all! Oh, and a quick addendum; still have to check out those Heinlein juveniles!

Personally, I've only read 12, but a lot of the others are on my TBR. Lots of lesser-known titles on this list, though.

A lot of the biggest horror books (like Stephen King's) are from the 80s and 90s.

Foreign companies have approached Kyobo, Yes24 and others seeking one copy of each title, raising concerns among Korean publishers and booksellers that the firms intend to use them to train AI.

Published October 15, 2026 - 7:01 a.m. Modified October 15, 2026 - 8:45 a.m.

Kyobo Book Centre has received unusual bulk orders for as many as 100,000 Korean-language books — any title, as long as each one is different — in what it suspects may be an effort to acquire material for AI training, according to the bookstore chain on Wednesday.

Exclusive reporting by the JoongAng Ilbo found that it has received such inquiries since early this year from companies based overseas that wanted to purchase Korean-language books in bulk.

“Most of the inquiries came from U.S. companies,” a Kyobo source told the JoongAng Ilbo. “About 10 companies have contacted us so far.”

The companies that reached out did not ask for particular books or even particular genres. Instead, they wanted about 100,000 different titles, with just one copy of each.

“The transactions differed from ordinary purchases because the buyers appeared to be trying to secure as many different titles as possible,” the representative said. “Overseas bookstores in the United States, Europe and Vietnam that purchase Korean books generally provide a book list and explain the purpose of the purchase.”

A similar pattern emerged in August when an Arizona-based company in the United States approached book retailer Yes24’s used-book business and book store Seoul Book Bogo about buying large quantities of secondhand books.

The potential buyer told JoongAng Ilbo that it was seeking books in a number of categories, excluding children's titles.

The Arizona-based company said it was buying one copy of each title and that the number of different titles mattered more than the total number of books purchased. The company also contacted Kyobo about a possible purchase.

AI training does not require multiple copies of the same title.

Kyobo said it asked the prospective buyers to identify the final recipients of the books.

The companies reportedly replied by saying the information of the final recipient is confidential and cannot be disclosed.

The companies also declined to explain the purpose of the purchases. Some denied that the books were intended for AI training but some said the final recipient was a data-related company.

Kyobo ultimately ended the talks.

“We determined that we could not rule out the possibility that the books would be used for AI training,” Kyobo official said. “Considering the potential risks such transactions could pose to Korean publishers, bookstores and the broader book distribution industry, we informed the companies that we could not proceed unless the final recipient and intended use of the books were confirmed.”

The book retailer called for systematic support.

“Publishers and distributors need to share information and establish guidelines for responding to purchases [suspected of being intended for AI training],” Kyobo Book Centre said.

The practice is not limited to used books.

AI companies overseas have also purchased newly published books. Nippon Shuppan Hanbai, a major Japanese book distributor commonly known as Nippan, sold new Japanese-language books to U.S. AI company Anthropic for a year beginning in December 2024, according to the Japan Book Publishers Association.

A U.S. court ruling finalized in July last year also established that Anthropic had used new books, as well as used ones, for AI training.

The publishing industry has begun moving more quickly as cases emerge of suspicious purchases involving both new and used books.

The Korean Publishers Association discussed possible responses at a board meeting on Tuesday.

The association decided to send official letters to regular bookstores, used book shops and distributors to survey the extent of such transactions. Participants also proposed forming a working-level consultative body with other publishing organizations.

The association also plans to join other publishing groups in issuing a joint statement in support of the “Frankfurt Appeal.” The appeal is an open letter signed by publishers and booksellers and was unveiled at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany on Oct. 6.

The letter criticizes the use of published works to train AI without authors’ consent and calls on AI companies to disclose which works were used.

Is anyone else reading this series, by chance? I currently reading Days of Shattered Faith, which is book 3-of-6. I am a bit of an escapist, especially lately, so I have been reading a lot more of the fantasy genre and I am really enjoying the world this author has created! If you are a fan of unique universes, political intrigue, and complex characters, this may be a series you would also enjoy!

I am not giving any spoilers so I am being intentionally vague, but I love it when an author makes a unique setting and creatures that I have never read anywhere else. The threads Adrian has run through all of the books that seemed separate from one book to the next are now beginning to come together and I can't wait to see the while picture! He has taken his place at the top of my favorite authors list with Tad Williams!

Dead Weight by Hildur Knútsdóttir

Picked this up because Mary Robinette Kowal posted about it on Bluesky. And she was the translator, so let's give it a shot. 

This is an odd little crime/horror novella (?) with 150 pages, relatively little dialogue and a lot of inner monologue by Unnur. To borrow from my family, Unnur ain't quite right. She's very clamped down, solitary with a heavy focus on her work in marketing and her boyfriend, Joi. He's married by the way and no, the wife doesn't know. 

Into this life comes a cat. At this point, the backmatter will fill you in. 

The Weight is an interesting character study of Unnur who is very self sufficient, solitary and isolated.  These aren't bad things, but something happened to her father when she was a kid and isn't talking to her mother and brother. We never do learn what it was exactly, other than he disappeared. 

The cat has an owner, Ásta, and she and Unnur develop a relationship. No, not that kind of relationship. Get your mind out of the gutter, but between two lonely women who really need friends. 

The story moves along at a quick clip and we see Unnur dealing with the day-to-day micro-aggressions and sexism women have to put up with. By the time things reach crisis point, well, I was rooting for her.

Yes, this is appropriately marketed as horror. There is a pragmatic way of dealing with a problem that my farmer grandparents would have appreciated. And my mother, the murder mystery fan, would be amused by it.

It's also a book about female rage. Right there with Glass Houses by Madeline Ashby.

I liked it. I think I'll seek out Knútsdóttir's other book in English.

I don't know how to word this, so bear with me. Recently my pinterest feed has figured out that I've read The Catcher in the Rye before and is now giving me stuff related it to it. But I realize how beloved that red-orange carousel horse is from the cover -- d'y'know what I'm referring to? -- and can serve as symbol for the book. As in, you can paste a sticker of that horse on your laptop or get a tattoo of it and someone who knows the book can identify its association with The Catcher in the Rye.

I guess I'm just wondering what other books have an image associated to it from its cover because, in my opinion, it's a nice thing. I wish every book cover was so intentional and unique and thoughtful about the story that it blankets that you could get a tattoo of some element from it and fellow readers would understand the book you're referring to. Now that I've thought about this, I wonder why I don't see it often, if at all.

The only other example I can think of from the top of my head is that little figurine from Catch-22.

This might be an incredibly stupid post and also just a me-thing that no one else relates to. But I'm just curious. I wonder what you guys have to say about this.