what Dave thinks about movies, books and everything
{4.5/5} “Even the least technically minded people in our society now have at least a hazy idea of what operating systems do; what is more, they have strong opinions about their relative merits. It is commonly understood, even by technically unsophisticated computer users, that if you have a piece of software that works on your […]
{4.5/5} “I’m not been paid to be your friend, I’m being paid to protect you. So no more questions, that’s it. Period… And no crying.” Creasey has been having a tough time lately — for one thing, he has a drinking problem — so he goes to visit his old friend Rayburn in Mexico. Rayburn gets […]
{4.5/5} “It’s like seeing someone for the first time, like you could be passing on the street, and you look at each other for a few seconds, and there’s this kind of a recognition like you both know something. The next moment the person’s gone, and it’s too late to do anything about it. And […]
{4.5/5} “I need your help. I can’t tell you what it is, you can never ask me about it later, and we’re gonna hurt some people.” A bank is robbed in Boston. The robbers know what they’re doing, so things go smoothly. They take one hostage, in case they run into the police on the […]
2013 was a great year of reading for me, and in particular a great year of discovering new authors. The winner of my author discovery of the year is Iain M. Banks. I read three of his books, including the brilliant The Player of Games. Runner ups are Sarah Zettel for A Sorceror’s Treason, Michael Swanwick […]
{4/5} “How many times have I told you that the jungle is no place to act like a wild animal?” Horton is an elephant — he lives in the jungle, is kind to everyone, likes to take baths, and has an excellent memory. One day he finds a speck and is surprised to discover that […]
{4.5/5} “Fool!… You fell victim to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is ‘Never get involved in a land war in Asia,’ but only slightly less well known is this: ‘Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line.’” Buttercup is the most beautiful woman in the world. Westley is […]
{4.5/5} “Maybe it’s time to try something new.” Don Jon works out, hangs out with his friends, keeps his house clean, has road rage, visits his family, and goes to church. He has had one night stands with lots of women but never a relationship. Then he meets Barbara. He can’t stop thinking about her, and […]
{4/5} “During the daytime people would want to hear songs that they know, just songs that they recognize. I play these songs at night or I wouldn’t make any money. People wouldn’t listen.” A man and a woman bond over music — he plays the guitar and she plays the piano, and they both sing. […]
{4.5/5} “It seems to me, then, that the best one can do is to present one’s story as a struggle between sides which are both mixtures of good and evil (thus placing it somewhere between the extremes of utopia and dystopia), and don’t make the odds overwhelming in either direction. One can then proceed to […]