From the Hugo Award package (leftover), I read the fifth and sixth volumes in John Scalzi’s Old Man War, namely The Human Division, and The End of All Things, the former a rather loose collection of short stories, and the later not even pretending. Efficient writing but nothing exciting. (Still part of his Hugo Award 2026 for series!) In the plane to Tokyo, I finished a new Kingfisher novel, Swordheart, set in the same universe as the Paladin series, which is similarly efficient but overly delayed by witty exchanges (in the least appropriate situations) and endless inner thoughts about romantic feelings! I also read a French BD, Tourner la page by Zep, whose drawings of Greek islands are nice but whose thriller scenario is rather conventional and predictable.
Watched at high speeds the Korean TV series Teach you a lesson (참교육), which addresses the woes of the Korean education system (bullying, teacher burnout, campus violence, gambling, gang links, teachers’ corruption, parents’ harassment, drug trafficking, suyeongsaeng) but is deeply flawed in supporting violent interaction with and generally extra-legal actions against delinquent high school students.
Under the relentless heat, I prepare salad after salad, an uninterrupted series of rhubarb preserve, and my own version of Banh mi, with Lao Gan Ma spicy chili crisp oil (what else?!), peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, coriander and HM Breton tuna tataki, in a fresh whole wheat mini-baguette… I also made another batch of red onion pissaladière, cooked long enough to turn the onions into a tapenade. And had the pleasant surprise to see spaghetti alla bottarga on a restaurant menu (and have a great meal).
