Jon Green Books
@jonmgreenbooks.bsky.social
A Texan born writer in Glasgow. This account is mostly for keeping track of the books I read, and occasionally for some writing stuff.
Addendum: I owe an apology to Mel Gibson. This (rather than actual history) is the source for Braveheart, and he didn’t make up nearly as much as I assumed. He actually toned it down a lot.
November 28, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Addendum: I owe an apology to Mel Gibson. This (rather than actual history) is the source for Braveheart, and he didn’t make up nearly as much as I assumed. He actually toned it down a lot.
Writing lessons learned: Modern storytelling is great about so many things. But sometimes your hero needs to chop a lion in half and your villain should be so awful that the archbishop of Canterbury has to tell him to chill.
November 28, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Writing lessons learned: Modern storytelling is great about so many things. But sometimes your hero needs to chop a lion in half and your villain should be so awful that the archbishop of Canterbury has to tell him to chill.
What I disliked: There isn’t a lot of nuance to the characters. Greek & Roman epics gave more depth and complications with their heroes; but Wallace can never lose, never act wrongly, etc. The exception in this is Robert the Bruce, who needs guided and encouraged to do what is right.
November 28, 2025 at 6:53 PM
What I disliked: There isn’t a lot of nuance to the characters. Greek & Roman epics gave more depth and complications with their heroes; but Wallace can never lose, never act wrongly, etc. The exception in this is Robert the Bruce, who needs guided and encouraged to do what is right.
What I liked: Its so larger than life. Of course Wallace led 700 men against 7000 and won. Of course he made best friends with a pirate outlaw. Of course the English queen was completely enamored with him.
November 28, 2025 at 6:52 PM
What I liked: Its so larger than life. Of course Wallace led 700 men against 7000 and won. Of course he made best friends with a pirate outlaw. Of course the English queen was completely enamored with him.
Note: I only read 9/12 sections in original Scots; the others I used the 18th century translation. I’d probably recommend that one instead, I ordered the original by mistake. For all sections I had to read a synopsis afterwards to make sure I was understanding it correctly
November 28, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Note: I only read 9/12 sections in original Scots; the others I used the 18th century translation. I’d probably recommend that one instead, I ordered the original by mistake. For all sections I had to read a synopsis afterwards to make sure I was understanding it correctly
Writing lessons learned: it’s sometimes worthwhile to go back and read the books you hated in High School. Apparently those teachers were onto something, and you might learn a thing or two about symbolism.
November 20, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Writing lessons learned: it’s sometimes worthwhile to go back and read the books you hated in High School. Apparently those teachers were onto something, and you might learn a thing or two about symbolism.
What I disliked: As with any story set at a boarding school, you have to accept that the characters are going to be obnoxious teenagers.
November 20, 2025 at 8:35 PM
What I disliked: As with any story set at a boarding school, you have to accept that the characters are going to be obnoxious teenagers.
What I liked: The book does a good job of all those literary techniques we learned when we were 15 (metaphors foreshadowing, parallelism, archetypes, etc), and making them just obvious enough that you feel clever without beating you over the head.
November 20, 2025 at 8:35 PM
What I liked: The book does a good job of all those literary techniques we learned when we were 15 (metaphors foreshadowing, parallelism, archetypes, etc), and making them just obvious enough that you feel clever without beating you over the head.
Writing Lessons: Messing with time and structure in a book can be incredibly disorienting, and it takes real mastery of the craft to make it a boon to your story over a novelty.
November 15, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Writing Lessons: Messing with time and structure in a book can be incredibly disorienting, and it takes real mastery of the craft to make it a boon to your story over a novelty.
What I disliked: I’m not smart enough for this book. I can see just enough to know there are themes I’m missing, and subtext I’m not seeing, but I can’t quite get it. This is one I need to read in a class.
November 15, 2025 at 1:25 PM
What I disliked: I’m not smart enough for this book. I can see just enough to know there are themes I’m missing, and subtext I’m not seeing, but I can’t quite get it. This is one I need to read in a class.
What I liked: The parallel stories of Shevek’s life on both planet & moon are unsettling reflections of each other in a way that enriches and blurs both narratives. I never regretted when it jumped from one narrative to the other
November 15, 2025 at 1:25 PM
What I liked: The parallel stories of Shevek’s life on both planet & moon are unsettling reflections of each other in a way that enriches and blurs both narratives. I never regretted when it jumped from one narrative to the other
Writing lessons learned: When writing a series, you have to find a careful balance in the early books of planting seeds for later books; but also keeping enough conflict to make the current book worthwhile
November 7, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Writing lessons learned: When writing a series, you have to find a careful balance in the early books of planting seeds for later books; but also keeping enough conflict to make the current book worthwhile
What I disliked: The ending felt like it had one too many twists in it. It felt like there was originally an extra 50 pages to the book they had to cut, so the final few chapters were rushed in a way the rest of the book wasn’t.
November 7, 2025 at 2:52 PM
What I disliked: The ending felt like it had one too many twists in it. It felt like there was originally an extra 50 pages to the book they had to cut, so the final few chapters were rushed in a way the rest of the book wasn’t.
(2/2) He also fails regularly and…somewhat learns from his mistakes; which keeps it feeling authentic.
November 7, 2025 at 2:51 PM
(2/2) He also fails regularly and…somewhat learns from his mistakes; which keeps it feeling authentic.
What I liked (1/2): As the story follows Fitz through his childhood, I loved how the perspective on the king/princes/world shift as Fitz learns more; and serves as a great way to expand the scope while not overwhelming the audience.
November 7, 2025 at 2:51 PM
What I liked (1/2): As the story follows Fitz through his childhood, I loved how the perspective on the king/princes/world shift as Fitz learns more; and serves as a great way to expand the scope while not overwhelming the audience.
Writing lessons learned: Anthologies are a chance to swing for the fences. The great ones and terrible ones are the stories that stick, the mediocre faded into a blur, so may as well try for something bizarre.
October 31, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Writing lessons learned: Anthologies are a chance to swing for the fences. The great ones and terrible ones are the stories that stick, the mediocre faded into a blur, so may as well try for something bizarre.
What I didn’t like: The quality varies widely, with some of the stories feeling more like a series of random events rather than a cohesive narrative. Also, where are the Glasgow stories?
October 31, 2025 at 2:07 PM
What I didn’t like: The quality varies widely, with some of the stories feeling more like a series of random events rather than a cohesive narrative. Also, where are the Glasgow stories?
What I liked: There’s a nice mix of stories and authors, which keeps the anthology constantly shifting. Some stories are about faeries or witches; others just about normal people. It’s a truly eclectic mix.
October 31, 2025 at 2:06 PM
What I liked: There’s a nice mix of stories and authors, which keeps the anthology constantly shifting. Some stories are about faeries or witches; others just about normal people. It’s a truly eclectic mix.
Writing lessons learned: Protagonists don’t have to be a hero, but they probably shouldn’t be worse than the antagonists & villains.
October 23, 2025 at 1:26 PM
Writing lessons learned: Protagonists don’t have to be a hero, but they probably shouldn’t be worse than the antagonists & villains.
What I disliked: I hated every character and the world would have been better if they’d all died. The lessons seems to be that nothing is fair, doing awful things is a viable solution, and any growth in book two mostly seemed to solidify into cynicism and regression.
October 23, 2025 at 1:26 PM
What I disliked: I hated every character and the world would have been better if they’d all died. The lessons seems to be that nothing is fair, doing awful things is a viable solution, and any growth in book two mostly seemed to solidify into cynicism and regression.