I genrally am consuming 20-30 books in parallel. In this snapshot I present current top of pile reads, with a menu pairing of recent meals.
Where and When Am I? In the 2300s, mostly a city on Mercury, on Saturn and Jupiter’s moons and transit between in: 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit, 2012)
Menu: Chinese leek potstickers with green onions, white sweet potatoes, and grilled paneer
Where and When Am I? 33 AD among Celtic tribes in what is now Ireland: Boudica: Dreaming the Eagle by Manda Scott (Bantam, 2003).
Menu: hard-boiled eggs and bread.
Where and When Am I? Dalston, London, contemporary, at an artists cooperative, anarchist bookstore, and with a street artist: Painted in the Margins by D_Cocca (AO3, 2025)
Menu: Veggie wonton soup with carrots, broccoli, and turnip
Where and When Am I? In the Igbo desert lands of sorcerer and sorceresses: One Way Witch by Nnedi Okorafor (Daw, 2025)
Menu: Hawaiian plantain with pomegranate molasses
Where and When Am I? At the start of the AIDS crisis in the gay community in NYC, 1981: A Friend of Dorothy’s by Richard Willett (First Magic Show Press, 2025)
Menu: Veggie burger with fries
Where and When Am I? Late life, contemporary Canada as people die & suburban calm sits juxtaposed to world crisis: The Time of Falling Apart: poems by Wendy Donawa (Harbour, 2025)
Menu: Roasted delicata squash, mashed lentils and couscous
Where and When Am I? 2015, Beaufort, New Hampshire, in a university marching band: In His Hand a Burning Coal by klikandtuna (AO3, 2025)
Menu: Cream of cauliflower and mushroom soup with rice cracker and cream cheese
Where and When Am I? Chicago, Illinois, 20 years ago: Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities by Rebecca Solnit (Haymarket Books, 2004, 2016)
Menu: Whole wheat french toast with sweetened greek yogurt and raspberries
Where and When Am I? Skimming centuries and continents: The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper by Roland Allen (Biblioasis, 2024)
Menu: Polenta with mac and no cheese, nutritional yeast white sauce, mushrooms and roasted chestnuts and avocado, green salad
More books are around of course and more en route. Each at a time according to time available and mood. As I fill up for one type of appetite I switch.