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Blog Launch
Hello! My name is Joe Kessler, and I’ve been blogging in one form or another since 2004. This is the launch of my new home for that, where I’ll be posting book reviews and other short pieces of writing. I’m also debuting a Patreon site for anyone who would like to support my efforts through… Read more
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Book Review: Superboy: A Celebration of 75 Years by various
Book #201 of 2025: Superboy: A Celebration of 75 Years by various This 2020 anthology commemorates three-quarters of a century of the titular junior superhero via a selection of comic book issues from across that span. In fact, it turns out that four different Kryptonians have each worn the mantle of Superboy at one point… Read more
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Book Review: A Mouthful of Dust by Nghi Vo
Book #200 of 2025: A Mouthful of Dust by Nghi Vo (The Singing Hills Cycle #6) Another short but immersive tale of Cleric Chih on their wanderings around this East Asian-inspired fantasy land, recording local stories and trying to sift fact from legend. As usual it’s a fairly standalone adventure that doesn’t rely on readers… Read more
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Book Review: We Could Be Magic by Marissa Meyer and Joelle Murray
Book #199 of 2025: We Could Be Magic by Marissa Meyer and Joelle Murray I don’t read a ton of graphic novels, but this one came so highly recommended that I wanted to make a point to check it out. And it is super cute — less so for the romance, which is fine but… Read more
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Book Review: The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Book #198 of 2025: The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia An excellent horror novel that unfolds across three quasi-related timelines. Primarily we’re following a graduate student in 1998 as she pursues research on her thesis topic, which concerns a lesser-known (fictional) female contemporary of H. P. Lovecraft. She’s investigating a rumor that one of the author’s… Read more
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Top Authors of 2025
I’m still hoping to hit 200 books by the end of the year, which is why I haven’t posted my top reads yet. (Three more to go!) But for now, here are the authors I read the most in 2025: (Honorable mention to Stephen King, who would be x5 if I included the Dark Tower… Read more
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Book Review: The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann
Book #197 of 2025: The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann An interesting nonfiction account of a 1740s maritime disaster, in which the British vessel HMS Wager was shipwrecked in the South Pacific, near modern Chile. The incident occurred during the so-called “War of Jenkins’ Ear” conflict with Spain —… Read more
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Book Review: Doctor Who: Transit by Ben Aaronovitch
Book #196 of 2025: Doctor Who: Transit by Ben Aaronovitch (Virgin New Adventures #10) This cyberpunk / cosmic horror mashup is big on worldbuilding texture but light on plot and character work. The worst thing about it, though, stems from its place in the Doctor Who Virgin New Adventures series, as the first installment with… Read more
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2025 TV
This year I finished 57* seasons of television, which is about on par with recent years. (I watched 53 in 2024.) Overall my favorites were: 1. Andor, season 22. Ripley, season 13. The Sopranos, season 54. The Sopranos, season 15. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, season 16. The Sopranos, season 27. Reservation Dogs, season 18. The… Read more
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2025 Movies
This year I watched 26 movies, which is a lot more than I usually do! (I watched 17 in 2024.) That increase was due in part to my new Film Franchise Fridays routine, where I’ve so far watched all of the Jason Bourne, Indiana Jones, and Bill & Ted movies. Overall my favorites were: 1.… Read more
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Book Review: Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson
Book #195 of 2025: Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson [Disclaimer: I am Facebook friends with this author.] This is Brandon Sanderson’s second collection of short fiction, following Arcanum Unbounded in 2016. That earlier volume collected all the writer’s smaller works in his expansive Cosmere setting, while this one contains the opposite: ten tales expressly not… Read more
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The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more 