Wuing You with Words ...

Since people have more time at home these days, they are also looking for more ways to amuse themselves indoors. Sex is one option, although in some places, restrictions apply if the parties are from different homes. In the UK , for example, people from different households are not allowed to have sex unless they are in an exclusive relationship, aka "support bubble." Switching or having multiple bubbles are frowned upon. Watching TV and reading books are superior choices, I reckon. Sure, TV and books may cost a little money, but they can be free or nearly free. Most libraries lend e-books. Many streaming services, such as Netflix, Hulu, and HBO, are packed with so much excellent content that the price is an amazing value. You’d be hard pressed to find, um, more bang for the buck. Finally, no matter how promiscuous you are with shows or books, you will never catch Covid. The spy thriller is one of my top genres. Three recommendations: Credit: Showtime Homeland . ...

It's not everyday that I stay up all night to finish a book. In fact, I can't remember the last time I did it prior to reading Bad Blood by John Carreyrou. He is the Wall Street Journal reporter who broke the story on the fraudulent rise of Theranos, a once-hot Silicon Valley startup. Before I got the book, I was actually not that interested. The Theranos story had garnered intense media attention, so I assumed that I already knew the sexy contours of the scandal. When I noticed that, among the 100 books on my Goodreads to-read list,  Bad Blood  had the highest rating (4.4), I figured the book deserved a shot.  Bad Blood  is one of the best stories I've ever read. Summary: Elizabeth Holmes, the young founder of the company Theranos and a Stanford dropout, captivated everyone by promising a revolution in healthcare technology. Theranos claimed that its small device could run hundreds of tests using just one drop of blood. Rich and famous people bought t...

When World War I was raging in Europe, German U-Boats (submarines) infested the waters off the British Isles. The Lusitania, a luxury cruise ship, was sailing from New York to England in 1915. Some passengers worried; most did not. Cunard, the venerable British cruise line that owned the ship, was confident that all would remain safe. After all, the Lusitania was big, strong, and fast. One of the speediest passenger vessels of its era, the Lusitania could slice through the ocean at 25 knots. That would allow the ship to outrun an enemy submarine, should one be encountered. Alternatively, the hefty Lusitania could simply ram tin-cans like U-Boats and cut them in half. A U-Boat ended up sinking the Lusitania via torpedo. It took less than twenty minutes. The job of the German submarines was to enforce a naval blockade, to isolate Britain and prevent inbound supplies. At first, adhering to international norms, Germany only attacked military ships. To step up pressure, Germany beg...

It's not everyday that someone wants to talk to me and hear my silly thoughts. Not even close to everyday. Therefore, I am excited and grateful that LFBooks, a book review blog, has published an interview with me about my recent book, Rapture . (Note: The interview contains a spoiler.) Be sure to check out the blog  for other book stuff. Laura Freestone, the blogger, is prolific. Her site has tons of straightforward, succinct reviews on a diverse range of book genres, with sci-fi, mystery, and thriller popping up the most. And she writes fiction too. Many thanks to Laura.

I like love survival stories. Being neither mentally tough nor physically strong, I’ve always admired those who overcame overwhelming adversity despite excruciating pain and nearly impossible odds. One of the best books I’ve read is Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air. It is about the 1996 Mount Everest  disaster, during which many experienced mountaineers died from a blizzard. I didn’t think another adventure story would fascinate me more. I was wrong. Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 ocean expedition to Antarctica may be the most gripping survival story ever. In his 1959 book, Endurance , Alfred Lansing recounts the experience in a real page-turner. There is something about true stories that makes them extra riveting to read. None of the fiction thrillers fiction I’ve read rival this nonfiction by Lansing—remarkable, considering that I knew the ending before I cracked open the book. It wasn’t about how the story concluded; it was about the epic struggles along the way. One of m...

Love is hard to do. It's hard to do it right in life. And it's hard to do it right in fiction. Most love stories on the big screen fall into one of three piles. The cheerful type, exemplified by rom-coms. The classic of this genre is When Harry Met Sally . Then there is the sad kind, e.g.  Titanic . Lastly, there is the contemplative variety, like  Take This Waltz . It is possibly my favorite movie love story of all time. Take This Waltz, Sarah Polley's 2011 indie movie starring Michelle Williams, explores romance in all its complexities, including the contradictory bits. The film is poignant but not overwrought. Thoughtful but not neurotic. Poetic but not pretentious. Perfectly crafted. Freelance writer Margot (Michelle Williams) is married to Lou (Seth Rogen). He is a cookbook author and a really swell guy, but seems to be more into his recipes than his wife. She meets Daniel (Luke Kirby), a rickshaw-driving neighbor in their quaint Toronto neighborhood. Th...

My newest novel, Rapture , is out. Giant thanks to my beta readers—you are worth all the bitcoins in the galaxy. Blurb, retail links, and excerpt are here .  You can win a free paperback at Goodreads. Goodreads Book Giveaway Rapture by Alex P. Wu Giveaway ends February 06, 2018. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway I wanted to write something completely different from my first novel, Morocco, Maybe , a travel love story. My favorite TV show of all time is Battlestar Galactica. S eriously. Nothing compares. The closest contenders are maybe The Newsroom (exciting, smart, and moving) and The Walking Dead (before most of the beloved original group got offed). Thus I tried to write a story with elements similar to those that made BSG appealing to me: science, action, philosophy, politics, religion, friendship, romance ... and in particular, moral ambig...

We usually go to the animal shelter that's within walking distance of our home, but this past Friday we drove to a couple of other shelters: West LA Animal Shelter and NKLA . On Sunday we went back to the same two shelters to look at the same dogs. Again. Most of the dogs at the two shelters were pit bull mixes, at least 90%. That gave us mixed feelings. We love pit bulls, but it was sad to see so many languishing in the cages. The yellow dog above is Max. He is 1.5 years old and supposed to be energetic but was quite mellow when we saw him. He would lean against the cage, let Michelle stroke him, and close his eyes. He was either super sleepy or trying to better enjoy the massage. Max has been adopted. Some lucky human got a swell dog. There were many lovely dogs, but I'd like to plug a few especially nice ones. The cutest thing about Frances is her wrinkled face. It makes her look so worried. She's 38 pounds and two years old. And there's  Sprout ...

Poignant stories make me cry, especially if they are true. If you're a fan of public radio, like me, then you might've heard of the show Snap Judgment . It's true stories narrated by the real people behind them. The stories tend to be short, many merely a few minutes long. Recently I heard one that made me sad. The next story made me all teary-eyed. The first one had softened me up, so I had no defenses left. In preparation for this post, I listened to both stories again. I ended up with the same reaction. Damn those storytellers. Story #1   Thom had a wonderful boss who held an annual karaoke night for the company they both worked for. The boss had a favorite song that left an emotional, lasting impact on Thom in a way he never anticipated. The song, by the way, is Radiohead's Creep . A great, melancholic song. No surprise why I love it. Story #2 Derrick had a bad heart (four heart attacks by age 27), but Emma fell in love with him anyway. The result w...

Every Halloween brings another annual fundraiser for the Amanda Foundation , our local dog & cat rescue. This was our third year working the main gig but our first time doing the group dog-walk, the pre-event to garner attention for the fundraiser. I even got my official Amanda shirt, which was akin to a superhero uniform. The moment I put it on, I felt empowered, like I had more authority to tell dogs what's what. Every volunteer was assigned a pup to walk. I got Turner, a friendly and excitable dog. His costume was technically "king." It even came with a crown, which had zero chance of staying on, given how active he was. At first, this was what happened when a kid saw Turner ... "Superman!" the kid squeals. "No no no," I say. "He's king." Repeat. Fifteen minutes later ... "Superman!"the kid squeals. "Yup," I sigh. "Superman." Michelle's dog, Chikis, was the opposite of Turner....

I lack athleticism. In particular, I used to fear balls. When I was tiny, I would cry when my Dad tried to throw a ball to me. Not a hard one, but one of those big red rubber balls that even toddlers could abuse. Unsurprisingly, I turned out to be the worst batter on my little league team. In my sole season, I only hit the baseball once. Inadvertently. Yet somehow, I grew up to love basketball. Because I worshiped Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the 80s Lakers, I developed a hook shot. It is neither graceful nor accurate, but serviceable for the average pickup game. What I lack in athleticism I make up for in appearance. Looking like you know what you're doing is more reassuring to others than actually knowing what you're doing—also true for much of life. Just ask any politician. This is me running in a Utah national park. See that motion blur of my arms? Pump your arms really fast; it provides the illusion that you're speedy. Zoom in on my stupid face. Yeah, blow th...

Michelle staffing our auction table For Halloween this year, we volunteered at the annual Amanda Foundation fundraiser. It's the animal rescue that we walk dogs for. We first did it back in 2014, when the theme was zombies. 2015 we missed because of our road trip. The 2016 theme was James Bond ... um, Bone. I tried to go for the James Bond look in the movie Spectre,  where Daniel Craig sports a black turtleneck. Minus his muscles, charm, and good looks, of course. Michelle greeting Ginger, a volunteer's dog who won the costume contest. Pit bulls are the best. This one likes to shakes hands.  As before, our job was to staff one of the silent auction tables, which offered items including VIP tickets to the TV show The Voice (plus a signed Miley Cyrus shirt!) and local favorites like the Magic Castle. The business was brisk, and all the items on our table got bids. Posing with the dapper James Bone To make the evening extra memorable, the sky even...

Route of Our 2015 Road Trip Hard to believe, but it's been a year since our cross-country road trip. It feels half that. That's the thing about getting older: the velocity of time accelerates with age. When I was a kid, I would get bored and try to pass time like it was in overabundance. What a fool I was. Now I don't have enough time to do all the things I want. For example, I used to stubbornly finish a novel even when I didn't enjoy it. Not anymore. Even if people stop writing new books and I devote the rest of my life to reading, I still won't cover all the books I want to read. That I used to waste time, the most nonrenewable asset of all, seems horrendous. It's like burning a $100 bill to light a cigarette, something I saw on the TV show The Wire . After a year to reflect on all the locales we saw on our road trips, I'd say the Pacific Northwest remains my favorite. Portland, in particular. To be sure, there are many other fine places I stil...

Looking for a dog or cat or rabbit to adopt? If you're in the Los Angeles area, check out the NKLA Super Adoption . Although NKLA is the main organizer, there are also many animals from other shelters and rescues. We were there today and had heaps of fun. By 4 pm, 303 animals had been adopted! The orange & white tabby on the left is one of the prettiest cats I've ever seen. The gray & white kitten on the right is named Hodor, paw dangling as if lounging on the Iron Throne. Arya is his (hidden) cagemate with her own electric fan - it was far too hot today for a maiden of the North. I'm totally humiliated . That's probably what this tolerant pup was thinking the entire time it patiently posed for a dozen cell phone pictures. Humans are always putting dogs in humiliating costumes. If you show up at the right times, you can watch a newborn kitten being bottle-fed. See that round thing on the right side of the table? That's a scale. They wei...

"Go for Broke." It was the motto of the 100th/442nd—an American Army unit that, by the end of World War II, became the most decorated military unit in U.S. history. It remains so to this day, given the unit's size and duration of service. ( Link ) "In less than two years of combat, the unit earned more than 18,000 awards, including 9,486 Purple Hearts, 4,000 Bronze Stars and 21 Medals of Honor." ( Link ) What many people don't know is that the 100th/442nd was a segregated Army unit composed entirely of Japanese Americans, mostly volunteers. One of their heroic achievements is the rescue of the “Lost Battalion,” the 36th Infantry Division from the Texas National Guard. The 36th, trapped by the Germans in the Vosges Mountains of France, was running out of time and supplies. The 442nd fought through the German lines, taking 800-plus casualties, and ended up saving 211 Texans. ( Link ) While the soldiers of the 100th/442nd bled and died fo...

Goodreads Book Giveaway Morocco, Maybe by Alex P. Wu Giveaway ends April 30, 2016. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway I've been meaning to mention this, but I kept forgetting. Bad memory. An  author interview  about  Morocco, Maybe  is posted at  Elflandia . Thanks, Avery, for the privilege. Oh, and I just started a paperback giveaway at Goodreads. The deadline to enter is April 30, 2016.

An American classic, which sadly no longer exists Today is Thanksgiving. I am immensely thankful to be home. We left on July 14, 2015. After 3.5 months on the road, we returned to L.A. on November 2nd. Was the trip good? I dunno. My feelings are mixed. If pressed for an answer, I would say no (reluctantly), but that’s too simplistic. It fails to represent the nuances of the experience. The Great American Road Trip is heavily romanticized in pop culture. The idea is inherently enticing: the freedom of the open road, the prospect of adventure, and the hope of rejuvenation.  Those cool parts are there indeed, but romances typically sell the happy while ignoring the sucky. People want to report their travels as fun because that is the socially and self expected answer. All the road trippy things I raved and whined about in my previous post, which dated one month into the tour, still held at the end. Basically, countless beautiful sights and interesting folks, bu...

Arches National Park, Utah As Donald Trump would put it, I'm a “low-energy” guy. My partner and I have been on a cross-country road trip for over five weeks, and I am homesick. Terribly. Not that the trip hasn't been interesting. It has. We have seen some beautiful sights, met many really nice people, and learned a lot. But easy it ain't. Fun? Sometimes, but not always. What were our motivations? The main one was to explore the big USA, which has many parts we know nothing about. So we revved up our little car in LA, climbed up the Rocky Mountains, cruised through the Plains, and are now dipping our toes into Lake Superior. Next we'll swing through more of Canada, see the autumn colors of New England, roll down the East Coast, dance into bluegrass country, and return through the South. (Since we already traveled through the Pacific Northwest on a previous trip, this time we're skipping that region.) The secondary reason was to scout out a new place t...

Mandy is a four-year-old pit bull mix. Life has not been easy for Mandy, a deaf dog who has survived cancer. Regardless ... She is happy. The second time I took her for a walk, she licked my face all over like a lollipop and wouldn't stop. A little gross, but I was happy too. She is calm. One time we passed a little dog that lunged and barked furiously at her. Mandy just stood there, calm as a buddha. She is curious. Mandy likes to look at all kinds of things for long periods of time. Usually I can't even tell what she is staring at. During one walk, we passed an abandoned construction site. She insisted on stopping to scrutinize some John Deere heavy equipment. For minutes. What she is not: an exerciser. Forget running. Mandy doesn't even like to walk. She is more of a lounger. It doesn't matter where we go. Whenever she gets a chance, she lies down. We were crossing a street once, and Mandy flopped right there in the middle of the intersection.