What Did You Read in November 2024?

I hope everyone had a good month of reading in November. I further hope that (1) you’ll find something interesting from my reading list and (2) you’ll share what you read.

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Not pictured FICTION:

Geiger, Vol. 1 (2021) Geoff Johns, Gary Frank

Junkyard Joe, Vol. 1 (2023) Geoff Johns, Gary Frank

I don’t read many comics/graphic novels anymore, but my friend Josh recommended these two titles from a shared Image Comics universe by the same creative team, writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank. Geiger takes place after the world has been ravaged by nuclear war. Think of a Mad Max environment, only worse, set in a lawless wasteland ruled by a tyrant. Enter the mysterious man some call Joe Glow or the Meltdown Man - is he friend or foe?

Cartoonist Muddy Davis has retired from his newspaper comic strip Junkyard Joe, a comic dealing with Davis’s memories of serving in the Vietnam War. The strip has ended, but its hero, a fictitious robot soldier, continues to Davis’s dreams.

While the art in Geiger was interesting, the story seemed routine. Yet Junkyard Joe was compelling and heartfelt. I wouldn’t read further in Geiger; Junkyard Joe, perhaps, not not likely.

Backflash (Parker #18, 1998) Richard Stark

Parker is hesitant to attempt the heist of a gambling ship floating down the Hudson. The money looks good, but you’re trapped on the water if things go bust unless you have a good getaway plan. Backflash takes its time and seems to lag, but be patient. When things move into high gear, they move quickly.

Not pictured NONFICTION:

Hollywood and the Movies of the Fifties: The Collapse of the Studio System, the Thrill of Cinerama, and the Invasion of the Ultimate Body Snatcher — Television (2023) Foster Hirsch

Years ago, I spoke with Foster Hirsch and asked what he was working on. He said, “It’s a book about an entire decade of movies. I hope I finish it!” He did, and this is it. Hirsch has seen an amazing number of movies and taught them at Brooklyn College for over 60 years. His depth of knowledge is tremendous. Some critics have mentioned that the book is not objective, and while that may be true, I highly respect Hirsch and believe he’s earned the right to share his opinions, even if they differ from mine.

The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism (2023) Tim Alberta

What a depressing book… Many of you reading this know I’m a Christian, but I do not put my ultimate hope in this world or its leaders. Yet many do, forgetting (or ignoring) what Christianity should focus on. Alberta’s book shows how the Christian nationalist movement got started, and it didn’t start only in the last few years. An uncomfortable but necessary read.

From the photo FICTION:

Tiny Love: The Complete Stories (2019) Larry Brown

Although I’m from the South, I’ve (unintentionally) neglected several Southern writers along my reading journey, an oversight I’m now working to correct. I wish I’d known earlier how good Larry Brown is, but this collection of his short fiction serves as a wonderful introduction to his work. Filled with the kinds of people you typically meet in Brown’s home state (and mine) of Mississippi, Tiny Love delivers defeat, tragedy, outrageous comedy, and reflection, sometimes all in the same story. “Facing the Music” may be the saddest relationship story I’ve ever read, yet “The End of Romance” left me howling with laughter. I recently picked up one of Brown’s novels, Father and Son, to read in 2025, so I’ll keep you posted.

Magic Terror: 7 Tales (2000) Peter Straub

I had forgotten how incredibly dark Peter Straub’s work is, yet his talent is immeasurable. The last time I read Straub was in 2010 when he published his final novel, A Dark Matter, which I greatly enjoyed. (Straub died in 2022.) Each of the seven stories in this collection is unique, although two of them (“The Ghost Village” and “Bunny is Good Bread”) are directly related to Straub’s novel The Throat (1993), the third book in his Blue Rose Murders trilogy (along with Koko [1988] and Mystery [1990]). “Bunny is Good Bread” may be the most disturbing story I’ve ever read, focusing on child abuse. (You’ve been warned. It’s not for everyone.) Someone should write a dissertation on the collection’s final story, “Mr. Clubb and Mr. Cuff,” a Stoker Award-winning novella loosely based on Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener,” about an upscale lawyer who hires two men to investigate his wife’s infidelity. This dark, dark comedy brilliantly comes full circle from its unusual beginning. “Porkpie Hat” is probably the collection’s easiest entry point, the story of a young jazz fan interviewing an elusive tenor sax legend, finding out more than he’d bargained for.

The Annotated Big Sleep (1939/2018) Raymond Chandler/Owen Hill, Pamela Jackson, Anthony Rizzuto, eds.

I had intended to do a novel/movie comparison for Noirvember, but realized such an endeavor would be a handful. Raymond Chandler’s 1939 novel The Big Sleep is a classic, and this annotated edition brings out aspects of the detective genre, Los Angeles, Chandler’s own life, comparisons to both the 1946 and 1978 films, and more, opening up the novel in several illuminating ways.

Murder in the Cathedral (1936) T. S. Eliot

(Although this is a play, I’m placing it in the fiction category. Sorry…) A few weeks ago, I was asked to substitute teach for a class reading this play for the first time, as I was. Based on the murder of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1170, Murder in the Cathedral’s richness, relevance, and power are astounding. I can’t stop thinking about it and plan to reread this in a few months.

From the photo NONFICTION:

Delighting in the Old Testament: Through Christ and for Christ (2024) Jason DeRouchie

Although the Old Testament accounts for 75% of the Bible, most people either ignore it in favor of the New Testament or misread it. DeRouchie shows that the entire OT points to Christ and should not be overlooked. I had a few questions and misgivings about small portions of the book (maybe because the author is a Baptist and I’m a Presbyterian), but I recommend it.

Old Made New: A Guide to the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (2022) Greg Lanier

I’m using this book and Delighting in the Old Testament as resources for a class I’m currently teaching, Navigating the Bible.

In Search of The Third Man (1999) Charles Drazin

I read most of this excellent treatment of Carol Reed’s classic in preparation for my guest appearance on The Great Movies discussion of The Third Man (1949) for Noirvember.

Okay, the comments are open, so let me know what you read in November 2024.