A More Perfect Constitution, by Larry J. Sabato, is an interesting look at the constitution. He suggests that our reverence for the founding fathers has delayed much needed upkeep to the constitution. He has several proposals (23 or so) to address various issues, like the permanent campaign, Iowa and New Hampshire’s outsized role in the primaries, etc. The issues are good ones; almost everything he mentions does seem to be a problem, though I don’t agree with all of his solutions. His website related to the idea of calling a second constitutional convention, is amoreperfectconstitution.com.
Swords of Riverside by Ellen Kushner is an omnibus with two previous books and a few related short stories collected. The first book, Swordspoint, reveals an interesting culture. The relationship between Alec and St Viter is the heart of the first book; they each reveal themselves with interesting edges as the book progresses. Alec’s “secret family” is adequately telegraphed and works fine for the story. The intrigue among the nobles is properly off camera most of the time. The minor view points are less grabby but still work.
The second book (The Privilege of the Sword) jumps forward about 15 years and centers on Alec’s niece, Katherine. I like Katherine more, and the viewpoint sticks closer to her, both of which work well. Somehow, despite liking the character and viewpoint more, I wasn’t as excited by the book. The idea (Katherine moves to the city and endures being converted into a sword-woman, against the cultural expectations of Swordspoint) sounded good, and the tribulations of growing up under Uncle Alec’s wing should have worked out well. It may be that our familiarity with Alec from the first book undermines Katherine’s perceptions of him as strange and dangerous… I can’t think of why else her story wouldn’t grab me. (Well, her asides about clothing, etc., might be too foreign to me. Perhaps they separated me from Katherine, while they’d bond a fashionista closer to the character. Maybe.)
In the end it was a solid novel (or pair of novels plus, if you count them in their pre-omnibus state). It kept my attention and my interest, though it won’t make it off my library list and into my stack of books at home.