Property Lies

Welcome Back To Round Two!

I did caution you yesteryon that I'd got more literary ammunition in reserve about the ongoing troubles of the Mordorvians, and we'll get to that eventually as I also have more stuff about property lines and people who take too much after - Art!

     He's an excellent corrective to the usual bootlicking worship of Judge Dredd, being a rebel with a streak of mayhem running th

     ANYWAY back to unpleasant neighbours NOTE CORRECT SPELLING whom one would pay folding money to not live next to.  'froggyc19' wrote a long Comment on the original story, explaining how a similar event happened to her mother long before.  A new neighbour bought the house next door and proceeded to whinge that froggy's parent's fence was on their land.  Art!

     The frogster's parents explained that the property lines were all over the place, had been for 30 years and they were not encroaching.  Nasty New Neighbour, hereafter NNN, wasn't having any of this and continued the accusations.

     What do you do if a person metaphorically requests that you punch them in the facee?  Why you do so.  Frogstar's mom ordered a new survey be done of the property lines between her house and NNN.

     What is reality, papa?  Well, that NNN's fence was well over the property line and into the frogster's parent's yard.  He had been so heinous and obstreperous that frogstar's parents informed all the other neighbours who bordered his back yard, and they all had new surveys done.

     By the time the new surveys were done, he had lost half of his property to the neighbours.  Ouch.  Art!

A Frogstar Fighter from HHGTTG

     Then comes the tale of LOFI, the acronym for Lovely Old Farmhouse Indianapolis, built in 1902 which the narrator and hubbo bought in 2018.  The plot had 1/3 of an acre of land and had old trees around what they thought was the property line.  The plant life provided shade and kept their two dogs in the garden.  4 weeks after moving in they heard their neighbour trimming trees with a chainsaw but thought no more about it.  Art!

Before

     When they returned from a weekend away, Chopper had cut down and removed all the plants, shrubs and trees, as well as the fence.  Art!

After

     

     They came to Reddit to ask for advice, cautioning that they didn't have a lot of money.

      The most apposite reply was a person canny in Tree Law, who informed that the fence was not necessarily that important.  The property line was.  They were advised to check the survey they had done when buying LOFI and see where it ran.  If the chopped vegetation was on their side of the property line, Chopper's bottom was in the grinder.  Provide picture or video evidence of the prior state of the garden.  Hire a lawyer who specialises in tree law and take him to court, and check if your state has a Treble Damages rule in such cases (Indiana does, I checked).  Get a quote from a Certified Arborist about the value of what was cut down and what it would cost to replace.    Chopper could end up paying to replace all the clear-cut plants and trees and shrubs, because the advice given is golden.

     Annoyingly, there was no resolution given and a check on Google reveals this entire story may be fictional.  I'm not removing it because it gives a clear picture of what to do in such an event.  Art!

The Prof summarises

     Property lines being moved in Ukraine as the Kozaky take back lands the orcs had been holding.  The Ruffians are now back to where they were 18 months ago.  Art!

     Radov's text mention orc forces being surrounded at Ivanivka, which has been highlighted on the map above.  It's at the base of the salient, again implying that the Ukrainians have completely eliminated it, and Radov highlights how few troops the orcs have to hold their positions behind the Zherebets River.  Art!

     The river in question.  The orcses might be able to hold it as a defensive position BUT if the Ukrainians get across and establish a bridgehead, they'd have to retreat again, or risk being outflanked and rolled up.
     'ChrisO-wiki' also published a few quotes from Putinpot, who really has NO idea what is going on in Ukraine, since his generals are all lying to him.  

     "19.12.2025 50% of Lyman is under control and will soon be captured."  Art!

     There's Lyman, and don't forget that the salient to the north of it no longer exists.

"28.06.2026  There are only 149 houses left to liberate in Lyman out of a total of 11,000."

"07.09.2026  Ruffian forces have now completed occupying the city."

     Once again, Charlie Chipmunk Cheeks is parroting lies that have been sent up the Ruffian chain of command, being embellished with even more lies, then encrusted with additional gloss by his lackeys in the Kremlin, until you get the above. Hence today's title.

     I would not care to be the bootlicker who has to tell Putinpot that Lyman is not, in fact, under Ruffian control, never has been and looks to never be.

Finishing The '20 Classic Books That Continue To Inspire'

Hooray! this is the last one.  Art!

     Your Humble Scribe has in fact heard of this one, and I believe it's mentioned in a work on modern Sicily that I no longer have.  It's one I wouldn't actually mind reading, especially as it's not a doorstopper like WAP.  The final in this list of (perhaps) classics, this one came out in 1958.  You can't expect me to believe that no great novels have been written in the last sixty years?  If you feel like cheating, there's a 1963 film adaptation.

However -

There is another tab on my Favourites list that concerns 20 books on the classical world, which I've refrained from opening or examining and now have the time to nosy at.  Which will inevitably involve telling you alllllll about them.  Art!

     I believe I've got one of Tom Holland's - brother of the more famous Jim - works lurking in a bookcase in my Sekrit Layr.  Allow me to tease you with a title - 

20. Intimations of Christianity among the Ancient Greeks (1957)

by Simone Weil

     This has an intriguing blurb, where the philosopher Weil analyses ancient Greek authors and philosophers and seeks to put their musings into a framework where they express Christian ethics not to become a religion for centuries.  I had a look at the list and have even read one of them, but because I'm a meanie I shan't tell you which one.  Tee hee!

     I also realise there's a danger I might feel the need, not the want, to purchase one of these works.  Hopefully I can remain strong.  We'll see.

Pleased To Report This One

Conrad was happy to notice that the superior supernatural suspense series 'Widow's Bay' won a couple of Emmy's last night.  Or, rather, Matthew Rhys, the lead actor did.  Art!

     This will be a surprising revelation to a lot of South Canadians, who will not realise that he's British and Welsh, since his accent is so convincing.  I shall add in a quote of his to hurry up the Word Count, as I want my tea.

"We are a small but mighty nation. This is incredible," he said, adding, "diolch yn fawr iawn" which means "thank you very much" in Welsh.

Property Lines

Which Is Possibly A Subset Of TREE LAW

But only perhaps as I don't want to trick you into clicking on this link by mistake, and gosh those people who were setting off fireworks, as well as those owls, seem to have gone quiet of late.  It is mid-September after all.

     Okay, let us now approach the subject of defining proper and legal boundaries.  Art!

     Art!  How d - O very well we'll let it stand.  As the title says, the orcs spend 18 months and an absolute ocean of blood establishing a salient that the Kozaky eliminated in 3.  Ooops.  Unlike legal debates about borders and boundaries, it took mere months before the truth was revealed, and how bad things are for Mordorvia is judged by how utterly silent they are being about this.  You have to understand that Putinpot will not have been informed about the state of affairs on the ground, which illumination will not happen for a couple of weeks, just in case a miracle occurs.  Once the cold hard horrid facts are admitted, some hapless minion will be sent into the Kremlin to whisper that things have gone The Opposite Of Good, and will then be commanded to join The Noble And Ancient Muscovite Order Of Window Diving.  Art!

     The AI Art Generator could not cope with 'Zakharova' so deal with the above.

     Art!

     AGAIN WITH THE BOUNDARIES!

     This is 11 seconds into a Ruffian video posted by one of the surviving orc vehicles in occupied Ukraine, thus beyond the boundaries of sovreignity.  No identification of where it is, just that it's a clip lasting 4 minutes, where Your Humble Scribe counted 109 Ruffian wrecks in the space of the clip, and definitely missed some.  During the vlog you, the viewer, note that the wrecks have all been moved off the roadway, meaning that the orc commanders are determined to use this route despite however many orcs die in the process.  Ol' Tolky would be proud of you, chaps, proud, w
     ANYWAY we ought to be concentrating on the interdivisional boundaries between South Canadian neighbours, rather than internecine affairs elsewhere.  Art!

     If you want to follow Property Line Law, which is closely aligned with Tree Law, then read no further.  Art!

     Only joking.  

     ANYWAY the Youtube-derived title for this tale refers to a tale told by Closely Aligned Neighbour*, hereafter CAN, who posted their tale on Reddit.  They had but recently moved into a house that had a very narrow median strip between theirs and the neighbouring house.  SO! They wanted privacy and to prevent said neighbour, whom we shall call Entitled Neighbour Termagant, ENT hereafter, from being able to look into their kitchen, for who doesn't want privacy when shelling peas at 2 a.m.?

     Thus was a 'plant screen' established, costing thousands of dollars, which served to block ENT's view of the 2 a.m. pea-shelling.  Art!

No trees.  Sorry.

     A week later they had all been chopped down, so CAN's father, bristling with rage, bearded ENT in their lair and asked, possibly with a little invective mixed in, what was going on.

     ENT claimed that all the plants were on his side of the property line, so he could do whatever he liked with them.  Moreover, any more intrusions would be reported to The Authorities.  'Your Honour, they maliciously planted!' hmmmm not sure how that would fly in court.

     Nothing daunted, CAN's parents re-planted the privacy screen, since their greenery was still under warranty and could be replaced for free later that week.  This time they were nowhere near ENT's property line.

     HOWEVER - oh my that word again! - CAN caught ENT trying to chop this privacy screen down.  At 02:00 in the morning.  Which sneakiness, without invoking The Authorities, suggests that their neighbour with choppy tendencies knew they were acting illegally.  Art!

     The cops were called.  ENT, looking at charges for destruction of property, suggested that they all mark property lines to prevent any such - ah - 'misunderstanding' from happening again.

     A couple of days later CAN arrived home to discover surveyor's orange tape all over their back yard and fence lines, and the denouemENT was bad for their neighbour.  His fence was ELEVEN PROUD IMPERIAL FEET over the property line.  He had to dismantle his fence, with CAN and parents indulging in watching him do so.  The privacy plants were relocated and ENT lost one-quarter of his back yard, in addition to paying $10,000 for destruction of property.  

     Wow.  What hideous attraction can pea-shelling have, I wonder?

Before The Descent

A bit of a palate-cleanser.  Art!

Thanks to 'War Witch Will Hold This Territory' for the image

     How charming.  Conrad, of course, can only sip his low-calorie ginger ale and contemplate wistfully all that sugar on display.  Taunt me, taunt me with what I cannot have!

DAY OF THE PAGBEAST!

Or, more ungentle shoeing.  Night or day, Donnie Dorko has no problem falling asleep if it's not all about him, as he has the attention span of a lobotomised gnat.  A lobotomised gnat with ADHD? if such a thing can exist.  Art!

     "If it's not me me me I don't care"

     King Piggy looks worse every week and I'm quite confident he's not going to make it into 2027.  So much for bloviating about being on the ballot in 2028.  Art!

     He looks about 30 seconds away from the gates of Hades.  Have pity on poor Melania for having to put up with the Pagbeast, at least until he divorces her and marries his Nappy Nurse.  Speaking of which - Art!

     Hmmmm I wonder what bulky items are taking up space in that enormous bag - a 3D printer and substrate? for printing out busts of himself?

     Other things are not going well for The Nodfather.  Art!

     Wow, I could carry the weekly shopping home in the bags under his eyes.  O, and that's bad news for him since the Wizard Lizard Gizzard party's calculation is that Democratic voters will be the majority of mail-in ballots.  And they begin as early as October.  Watch BOOH claim this is how 'They' cheated him out of an election win.

Also -

President Donald Trump’s 105-minute speech on the opening night of his Republican midterm convention in Dallas was seen by fewer people than a typical audience for Fox News shows Hannity and Gutfeld!, according to preliminary

viewing figures

     Conrad still has that emergency bottle of Prosecco in waiting.

You What?

Another item from my news feed that begs the question.  Art!

     The irresponsible Pablo Escobar, back in the Eighties, decided that a terrific way to spend some of his cocaine billions was to -

     - illegally import dozens of hippopotami into Columbia.  What a brilliant idea!  Well not really, but Ol' Pabs would kill you if he heard the 'N' word.  There are now at least 180 of these monsters at large in the Magdalena River drainage area, and they severely impact the local environment, threatening native species.  That sounds quite bad enough to me.  I think it would only be worse if they spat fire.

Back To Books

Yes, we are back to that list of '20 Classics That Continue To Inspire' although quite what they inspire is open to question in some cases.  You don't read Kafka or Orwell for descriptions of eternal happiness and lambs gambolling in a field.  Unless you plan on explaining where chops come from and how -

Art!

     The introductory blurb quotes from it "Mother died today."  NEXT!

     No, Conrad has not read it and does not feel culturally the poorer for it.  I can boast of having read Alain Robbe-Grillet's novel 'The Erasers' which I can only remember the title of.  And - was there a fly crawling along a lampshade.

*  Note the CORRECT spelling.  Thank you.

Lie, Man!

You'll See

Conrad has long had an interest in Slavic culture, which is my cowardly way of saying Ruffian culture, which of course - obviously! - got turned on it's head circa 22nd February 2022.  I now delight in using the Ukrainian equivalent of spellings for geographical locations that, for many decades post-Second Unpleasantness, used the Ruffian variant.  Thus, 'Belgorod' becomes 'Bilhorod', 'Odessa' becomes 'Odesa' and, most tellingly of all, 'Kiev' becomes 'Kyiv'.  Art!

     No, that's not Kyiv.  It's Lyman, pronounced 'Lih-Mon', a city that the orcs conquered in early 2022 and then lost in September 2022, and whom have been trying to re-conquer ever since.  Unsuccessfully.  One can only speculate at the orc losses, as they don't bother to inform anyone about them.

     SO!  I warn you that this may be another single-item blog as there's a lot to get through concerning Lyman, lying and lemons.  I want to acknowledge Professor Gerdes, various Tweeters, the 'Daily Express', the Institute for the Study of War, Dagens and that bird outside that keeps going 'EEE-haw'.

     So!  The Prof did a vlog that claimed the Ruffian summer offensive had failed.   He puts up detailed information to support his assertions, beginning with details of a collapse of the orc positions on the Lyman front.  Art!

Thank you 'Tendar'

     This is the Ruffian 'Lyman salient', and The Prof takes time to explain what a salient is: a bulge, basically.  The Ukrainians have now destroyed it in a counterattack that has, to quote 'Chris0-wiki' caused the routing of Ruffian regiments, inflicted heavy losses and caused a partial collapse of the front.  Ruffian forces west of the Zherebets River have been destroyed in a rout that took back in weeks what the orcs had taken a year to conquer.  Ooops.  Art!

     On a larger scale, this is the 'Deep State' map of the affected area.  They word closely with the Ukrainian MOD, so don't update maps for at least 48 hours to prevent the orcs from gaining useful intelligence.  The salient is still there, but The Prof added in a red line to show where things are on the ground.  The orcs' chances of now capturing Lyman are thus reduced to 0%.  Art!

     That, lest ye be of defective vision, is 'Sviatohirsk'.  Note how far behind the front lines it is.  In late August Putinpot declared that it had been captured, in what would have been a major military victory for Mordorvia.  Art!

It's hardly a city.  More a large town.

     Art!

Courtesy 'The Telegraph'

     Capturing this town would enable the orcs to outflank and attack Lyman, putting it in the crosshairs of a pincer movement that would then threaten the Ukrainian 'fortress belt' cities in Donetsk.  

     What's that saying?  "Huge If True".

     Well, what is reality, papa? because it wasn't true.  The Officer Commanding the Ukrainian 3rd Army Corps, one Andrei Biletsky, took a selfie video of himself walking around Sviatohirsk in broad daylight, also insulting Putinpot along the way.  I love a chap whom can multi-task.  Art!

     He looks like three dockers welded together!  Yes, he would make a juicy drone target but is miles behind the lines and thus relatively safe.  Art!

     The Prof put up a map of the 'fortress belt' cities that you can see here.  With any threat from Lyman to the north eliminated, the orcses have been set back many months in their biggest defeat of 2026 (so far!).  One feels as if looking at the maps of the Western Front in France and Flanders one hundred and ten years ago, wh

     ANYWAY what was the cause of this ongoing collapse?  O I thought you'd never ask - Art!

               

     Lie, man!  The Prof skits himself at the end of his vlog about his varying pronunciation of 'Lyman', which covers all possible variants.  HOWEVER, this particular variant is why the Ruffians suffered so badly.  Their junior commanders were lying to their more senior commanders about how much ground they held, and those senior commanders were lying to their senior commanders, who were in turn lying to their seniors, and then the lies get institutionalised in the Kremlin.  Hence Putinpot's nonsense claims.  It is far, far better to lie about the situation in the Ruffian army than tell the truth, for the truth leads to falling out of windows.
     This is not mere hyperbole - a splendid name for a band, methinks - and is backed up by Ruffian milbloggers having an epic meltdown on their Telegram channels.  Art!

     'Two Majors' is a RUFFIAN milblogger, and he has to 'hint strongly' otherwise the FSB will be paying him a call.  He should perhaps adopt the 'Fighterbomber' workaround and call the Ruffian army 'Laotian'.  The sad fact of the orcs is that it is better for their commanders to lie upwards than report negative information or failure to meet targets.  Or 'norms' as the Red Army used to call them.  Art!

     'Artjockey', once again for the hard of thinking is a RUFFIAN milblogger.  These are the people that want to win in Ukraine and destroy it as an independent nation with it's own language, culture and civilisation, but whom are getting increasingly vocal about how corruption and inefficiency in Mordorvia is making that a vanishingly unlikely prospect.  They can only go so far before risking arrest and imprisonment, since criticising Bunker Grandad Dwarf is blasphemy, and 'Hey I'm a Z-patriot!' might not bear up in court.

     'Laotian', Artjockey, 'Laotian'.  Art!

     Here The Prof puts up illustrations made by 'Clement Molin', a French Youtuber who does excellent open-source intelligence work on Ukraine, and whom addressed the geography of the Ruffian salient at Lyman.  Art!

     The orcs are now back to where they were in May 2025 - 16 months of progress erased in just 3, with 200 square kilometres liberated by the Kozaky.  200 km² is verrrry small beer compared with the total geography of Ukraine, but it's negative mathematics that the orcs ought to be totally owning given their egos and ambitions.  Instead the Ukrainians are looking to advance on Terny.  Art!

     I cannot see Terny on this picture, but bear in mind this is from two and a half years ago and the front lines have barely moved, and you're there.

     More misery for the Mordorvians.  Conrad rather doubts this will ever, ever, EVER get reported inside Ruffia, but one of the spearpoint units involved in the Kozaky Lyman counterattack is the 'RDK' unit, made out of anti-Putin Ruffians willing to take up arms on behalf of Ukraine. They must have testicles the size of Kherson melons to act this way, as the best they can expect if captured is a merciful bullet in the brainpan.  Along with the Strugatsky Brothers, Kir Bulychev and Boris Akunin, proof that orcs are not beyond redemption.  Art!

     Not sure if we can count this, it's source is a Polish novel.

     ANYWAY according to an orc soldier fending off his vengeful expatriates, "They're fresh, well-supplied and have armoured vehicles, whilst our own men are lugging shells on foot for thirty kilometres".  Yes, this is what I would call the 'Full Monty' doctrine, after Field Marshal Montgomery, whom was a colossal bottomhole in real life but who knew how to win battles.  Firstly, make the enemy dance to your tune.  Secondly, attack with overwhelming force at the weakest point of your enemy's line.  Thirdly, ensure your logistics are covered.  Art!

     A Ruffian regiment contains from as few as 1,000 men to as many as 2,000.  So, between 3 to 6 thousand orc losses.  On one stretch of the front.  Over a few days.  No wonder they're sending cripples into combat.  Either that or the front collapses for dozens of kilometres to a depth of dozens of kilometres, and indeed this is what Ruffian milbloggers have been wailing about.

Art!

     Only here because I want it to be.  

     We're still not finished on the orc subject matter but you don't want another 1,200 words on the same subject, do you?

Wishbone Ash Hash

No!  This Is Not About The Band

Are they still around?  I doubt it, their heyday was back in the Seventies, which is a good 50 years ago.  I remember Sir John Peel playing a track - "Throw Down The Sword"? - that I recorded yet wasn't particularly struck on.  From their album 'Argus' which is apparently one of their best.  Art!

     So, no, this Intro is not about the band - whom I see are still around and touring.  Rather, it is about TREE LAW!  Yes, I thought that would get your attention.  

     The source was a Youtube short video put out by 'The Law Says What?', less than two minutes long, so I was bothered that it might not be long enough, until I covered a side of A4 with my trademark scrawl.  Art!

     There they are.  No, she's not freakishly short, he's 6' 9".  Married Harvard law graduates.

     ANYWAY they put up the video short in April 2026.  You see, Ash Tree Owning Lambasting Litigant, hereafter ATOLL, had two mature ash trees growing on their property.  Said property backed onto a lot being built upon by DOofus Development Org, hereafter DODO.  No, the dodo lived on a volcanic island not a coral one, but I like the symbolism.  Art!

     The lot in question and one of the ash trees.  DODO claimed that they needed to trim branches off the trees that protruded onto their lot, notifying ATOLL via a letter left in their mailbox.  Art!

     Heavily redacted but it retains the date 13th February 2026, and that this was in Campbell County, possibly in the South Bay area of the city of San Jose, California.  This location is verrry important later on and we'll come to that later.  DODO informed what they were going to do - no consultation with ATOLL at all - and included the line "will also not be responsible for the health, stability, or ongoing condition of the tree following the trimming work."

     TLSW? chap interposes at this point in the clip and says this is not how the law works.  Simply stating that you're not responsible for the consequences of an action does not protect you in any legal way, unlike the example of bankruptcy.  He also makes an horrendous pun about 'going out on a limb here' which his wife theatrically rolls her eyes at.  She then clarifies that it's not illegal to cut off tree limbs that cross the property line BUT there is a legal 'Duty To Be Reasonable', which translates into plain English and logic as not trimming the trees so much they suffer or die.  Art!

     ATOLL was aghast at what DODO had done to her trees, reducing them to dead stumps, evidenced above.  Note that DODO's trimming contractor seems to have cut down as much as possible from their side of the fence, possibly hoping to avoid trespassing charges.

     Freakishly-tall chap further details Californian tree law, which can charge - altogether now - TREBLE DAMAGES, if a court finds DODO responsible.  Conrad did a bit of shovel work and found that large, mature ash trees like this can cost between $3,000 and $15,000 to replace.  This is worked out by certified arborists using the Trunk Formula Technique - not a sequence of words you ever expected to hear today - collating the cost of replacement, size, aesthetic value, placement and shade provided.  Thus, even at the bottom end, DODO would be looking at $18,000 and for the upper bound <gasp!> $90,000.  Plus the value of the timber, which was taken away, although that only comes to about $200.  Plus the cost of removing the stumps and potential landscaping mitigation.  Say between $20,000 and $100,000.  Ouch.  Does DODO feel like pulling that wishbone and making this all go away?  Art!

     What they should have done, to prevent legal action against them, was hire one of the above and assess the ash trees  BEFORE approaching ATOLL and the City authorities.  If DODO allege that the trees were a nuisance or potentially dangerous, they have only their own hearsay to fall back on, not a legally recognised entity.

     TLSW? then mention specific City Ordinances that protect various species of tree over a certain diameter.  Conrad checked further and ash trees are a protected species in Campbell county; a permit is needed to carry out any work on an ash tree that is over 12" diameter at a height of 4' 6" above the ground.  ATOLL's ashes were 18" so that's a City Ordinance broken right there.  Any judge dealing with this case would also see the letter DODO sent and proving intent and premeditation.

     ATOLL should also get a certified arborist to check out the tree stumps before removal, because California is experiencing a threat to the ash from Emerald Borer Beetles, and again that judge would be even less happy if both dead trees were free from this infestation.  Art!

      There are a couple of Comments I want to add.

@flambokuma2299

5 months ago

Native Californian here, yes tree laws are very serious here. God forbid you even look at an Oak Tree the wrong way and city officials go ape

rugaslightingme

•6mo ago

Exactly, as an attorney, if this was my area of law, I’d be giddy to take the case.

     Every Commenter expressed that DODO were utterly effed, especially with that incriminating letter.  One person suggested informing the City, which might impose a Stop Work order on DODO, which would make them cave immediately.

     HOWEVER! I have checked and as of mid-September the case has either been resolved with the imposition of an Non-Disclosure Agreement, or it's yet to come to trial.

     Wowsers, 947 words from a 1 minute 50 second short vid.  Truly I am creative!

Back To Brucie

Pennington, that is.  Another slide from the 'Sci-Fi Art' Youtube channel.  Art!

     Unusually for Ol' Brucie, this is a pen and ink study, rather than a painting.  It looks a bit detailed to be the inspiration for a painting, and I cannot find out any more information about it.  The pen and ink drawing I used on yesteryon's blog was dated by Brucie himself as '30-12-1976', so that may date this one in similar fashion.  

     Oooooh!  I'm going to include the next slide.  Art!

     So it was used as an inspiration.  Still no luck in finding out if it was cover art.  Soz.

     Still over 2 minutes of slides to get through.  I like to keep you informed.

Whilst On The Subject Of Books

I am looking over the search results that came from Googling 'Books similar to Greybeard" and came across this one.  Art!

     Yes, I have read it, although not for decades.  There was something about hot-air balloons and bombs to be used against the alien Masters, and the protagonist's brother sacrificing himself.  Art!

     I couldn't leave you without a Tripod, could I?  For your information, the aliens are so alien that they cannot breath good terrestrial air, and have to mooch about in big sealed tripods that keep their own horrid atmosphere within.

More Of Books

Art!

      I've never heard of either author or book, and don't consider myself any intellectually poorer for that lack.  It's an autobiography about Zweig's life, which I'm sure he found fascinating but rather less so for philistines like Conrad, whose mind is perpetually occupied by the phrase 'Can you eat it?'

Art!

     Or Eric Arthur Blair, as we in the know call him.  One of his most famous works, and yes, I've read it a couple of times, but again not for decades, as it's incredibly bleak and depressing.  SPOILER ALERT Big Brother wins in the end.  

     Worth reading at least once to see how it has shaped opinions and philosophy since it was published and I believe Peter Cushing delivered a career-best in an early television version.

      Probably banned in Mordorvia.  Hang on -

    Not!  But The Authorities don't like it.  What a surprise.  Putinpot doubtless has a very dog-eared version he makes notes from. 

     And that's all!