Pesto Comics - Audio Edition

Spring into Summer Reading Season

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Spring into Summer Reading Season

The Books I'm Reading and Looking Forward To

Adriano Ariganello

Jun 04, 2025

Transcript

Welcome Back

As much as I love comics, there’s something romantic about novels.

For me, it extends beyond being a writer. I'm an avid reader as well. I think to be a successful writer you have to be. Not just to know what trends are out there and how to put words together, but to understand how to get emotion and conviction through on the page with just words.

When I fantasize about my life as a full time writer, I have two very clear images of what that would look like. One is me sitting on a dock in Muskoka, right on the water, as I type away on my latest masterpiece.

(You know about this one if you read my post from a couple months ago.)

Go Soft

Adriano Ariganello

Apr 26

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The other one is something that I think is a little more likely to become to become a reality, even if it feels far away today.

rectangular brown wooden table — Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

I’d love to open a café that welcomes writers and readers alike, offering a quiet, cozy third space to enjoy a coffee and some baked goods while you tap away on your keyboard or flip through the pages of your favourite novel. That picture is crystal clear in my head.

I’ve also read the many (many, many) horror stories about actually following through with that. Thin margins, fickle customers and frustrating landlords keep it as a nothing more than a fantasy - for now, at least.

One thin margined endeavor is plenty in the meantime.

Instead, I'll continue to fantasize and be inspired by the novels I read while I toil away in my basement on my own works. I'm in the thick of writing a book right now, which I'll be very excited to share with you once it's closer to ready.

Since we're not quite there yet, and we’re halfway through the year, I'd like to share what I’ve read and what I plan to read this year.

Before we get into that, we have some business to tend to…

Worklog Updates

This week, I got this done:

Sent out surveys for and digital copies of From Parts Unknown #3.
Finalized From Parts Unknown #3 with the printer. (Hopefully arriving before I leave for East Coast Comic Expo, but we’ll see.)
Sent the first script and series outline for Project Junk to the artist.
Ditto for Project Cut.
Booked lodging for East Coast Comic Expo.

This is the plan for next week:

Continue fixing pestocomics.com
Ditto for pulpwriterly.com
Another ditto for bigsmokepulp.com
Prep for TCAF on the weekend.
Hit word count goals for Project Hollywood.

For the projects I can talk about…

Project Updates

Based on the poll last week, I’ll be keeping this section short and sweet going forward. Only time I’ll make an exception is when I’m announcing something brand-new - which will happen soon, but not yet.

Here’s what I got for you now:

From Parts Unknown #4 launches on June 25th. Follow the prelaunch page!
Follow From Parts Unknown #4
Big Smoke Pulp Vol. 1 is available on KU from now through August.
40 incredible stories from 40 excellent authors - including yours truly.
Read 'Big Smoke Pulp Vol. 1' on KU

Media Updates

You already know that I pushed the launch for From Parts Unknown #4 to make sure it would have the biggest launch possible. Launches are everything on Kickstarter, so I've been making the rounds on a few podcasts to get the awareness out there.

Below you can find links to the Cryptid Creator Corner, ComixLaunch and Two Geeks Talking. I had fun on all three of these and I'm excited to do more in the future, but I'm ready to start meeting people face to face at conventions starting this weekend.

Convention Updates

TCAF

This Saturday and Sunday, you can find me at the Mattamy Athletic Centre (that’s the top level of the old Maple Leaf Gardens) in my hometown of Toronto, Ontario for TCAF.

I’ll be at Table 252, by the benches on the ice rink.

I’ll be joined by my good buddy, Danon Hennessey, of Dice & Development. Plus, I’ll be next to my frequent convention buddies at Comix Asylum - and next to them will be my Instant Ink co-host,

Roberto Viacava

This is a wishlist con for me. I’m excited to be there, finally, but to be able to do it with good friends is a bonus.

East Coast Comic Expo

The following weekend, I’ll be in Moncton, New Brunswick on Friday and Saturday for the East Coast Comic Expo. Though there’s fewer familiar faces at this event, I’ll have one person I know right next to me! My table neighbour is the talented Emilia Strilchuk.

You can find me at Table C-6 at the end of the row.

—

The next two entries will be Con Journals for these conventions. I’ll be experimenting with the post format, trying to get a lot more video, so it should be a fun time if you can’t make it - but if you can, come say hi!

And with that, let’s get into it.

Main Story

My Reading Philosophy

Before we get into the books themselves, I want to give you some context into how I read. I know there's a big debate about audiobooks and whether they're actually reading. I think they are, although they're not exactly the same thing. You're still getting the context of the book. If it's a book I really enjoy, I'll do both anyway to make sure I’m getting the full experience. Until we come up with another name for it, I'm going to count it as a form of reading.

That said, I'm not just listening audiobooks. I usually have multiple books on the go at the same time. One on my Kobo, one on my Kindle (and, yes, I have both), another as a hard copy, if not two, and an audiobook. I’m not even including comics in this list.

e might say this is an inefficient way of reading. I should focus on one book and read it from beginning to end, but I find that I enjoy it a lot more if I can read a book until I start to drag on it and jump to something else. Having access to both Kobo Plus and Kindle Unlimited keeps me fed along with the Toronto Public Library. I also have quite an extensive collection as I frequent the thrift stores in the area buying a whole host of used books.

Just a very small sampling of my used book collection.

And of course, for those authors that I really enjoy, I always make sure to pick up a fresh copy for myself. I do try to be disciplined as I’m running out of space for my books along with my vast comic collection.

I keep track of my reading progress on Goodreads - and the collection itself on CLZ. Goodreads is not my favorite site, but it's still the most popular one out there. Although there have been alternatives that have popped up, I find they're not as well populated, nor are they as easily updated as Goodreads has been. Even though that site is archaic and has all kinds of issues. I'm still waiting for a proper alternative and will be happy to jump ship when that's available.

With all that said, let's look into the books that I've read so far this year.

The Books That Won Me Over (So Far)

I’ve read more than what is listed below in 2025. As of this writing, I’ve read about 30 books so far this year across the different modes I mentioned. For these, I’ll let you know how I read each one.

(Note: I just got the Kindle, so none of those have shown up on this list yet. Between us, the Kobo is leaps and bounds better than Amazon’s device. My goodness, what a difference.)

There’s a real sci-fi bent to books I’ve read this year. I’m usually reading more thrillers and noir type stuff (think Mickey Spillane and Lawrence Block), but the trend this year has been sci-fi all the way.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi

Format Read: Hardcover, from Toronto Public Library

John Scalzi is one of my must-read authors. I really enjoy everything I’ve read of his so far (but I still have quite a bit to go). His ability to bring logic to absolute nonsense is something I’d love to replicate with my work.

In this case, the moon turns into cheese. The world reacts - and it somehow all makes sense. I loved this book. One of my favourites so far.

Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Format Read: Audiobook, via Overdrive

I really enjoy Tchaikovsky’s shorter works. There’s always a bit of an edge to them. A bit of anger with the world and the status of things. That’s what the best sci-fi is supposed to do.

With Service Model, you get class warfare and the meaning of life all in one.

One Day All This Will Be Yours by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Format Read: Kobo, Ebook

I double-dipped Tchaikovsky this year, catching up with One Day All This Will Be Yours. I haven’t read at the other novellas in this series yet, but I enjoyed this one so much that I probably will. Even though this novella is mostly about the grumpiest person at the end of time itself, I had a good time with it.

In Our Likeness by Bryan VanDyke

Format Read: Hardcover, from Toronto Public Library

Any time you get to knock tech-bros, and that culture down a peg, I’m going to enjoy it. Giving the same tech-bros the ability to alter reality and perception itself delivers in some unexpected, yet somehow inevitable ways.

Dissolution by Nicholas Binge

Format Read: Hardcover, from Toronto Public Library

Dissolution is a hard one to recommend, honestly. There are two simultaneous plotlines that should pay off nicely in the end. Instead, I found myself frustrated by the parts with Maggie. I just didn’t care, but enjoyed the bits with Stanley so much that it salvaged it.

You by Caroline Kepnes

Format Read: Audiobook, via Overdrive

One of the few non-sci-fi books I read was prompted by the upcoming (at the time) series finale of You. Joe Goldberg, played by Penn Badgley, always wrestled with the fact that Badgley is just too charming that you end up rooting for the monster. The book does not wrestle with this at all. Joe Goldberg is an incel - which makes the book interesting in a whole different way than the show.

Not better or worse, just different.

Cinema Speculation by Quentin Tarantino

Format Read: Audiobook, via Overdrive

Feel however you might about Quentin Tarantino and his work, but one thing that’s undeniable is that he’s a human encyclopedia for film history. Particularly classic films. With Cinema Speculation, you get the best insight of what inspired him and his body of work.

Revisionaries: What We Can Learn from the Lost, Unfinished, and Just Plain Bad Work of Great Writers by Kristopher Jansma

Format Read: Kobo, Ebook

I read a lot of writing books. They tend to cover a lot of the same ground after a while, which made Revisionaries so refreshing. It looks at classic works, much of which I’ve read but not all, and tells you how these legendary authors struggled to follow up on their classics - or write the classics themselves. It was a great reminder of something I should get a tattoo of: writing is rewriting.

Put Your Ass Where Your Heart Wants to Be by Steven Pressfield

Format Read: Kobo, Ebook

This is the only re-read of my collection so far in 2025. Steven Pressfield is not for everyone. He’s kind of a hustle-bro, but for writers. A lot of “just do it” advice. He has a tendency to over-simplify art and the work that goes into it a bit too much for some.

For me, I sometimes need that to light a fire under me to get going. I like to return to this, and similar books, when I need a kick in the ass to get back to writing.

Books I’m Excited to Read

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I have a short list of authors that are automatic reads for me. John Scalzi is one. Taylor Jenkins Reid is another. I just got this book as I was writing this entry (and Indigo sent me a deckle edged copy, which I loathe).

I’m usually not into “character” novels, where the plot is mushy or questionable, but Reid knows how to keep the tension in her stories, even if the plot isn’t the main focus.

The Phoenix Pencil Company by Allison King

I usually shy away from the fantasy genre entirely. I’ll make an exception if it’s grounded in some sense of reality, which seems to be the case with The Phoenix Pencil Company. There’s a bit of time travel, shady governments and sci-fi-esque intrigue to get me in the door.

Fever Beach by Carl Hiaasen

When I think about Florida, and all the wild things that go on there, I picture the one Hiaasen paints so clearly. It might be exaggerated and over the top at times, but it’s so vivid that I always enjoy it. With Fever Beach, he picks on a *certain* group from the headlines of today. I imagine it’ll be more fun than ever.

Notes on Infinity by Austin Taylor

Sensing a theme yet? Time travel, or aging and death, always get me in the door. With Notes on Infinity, we’re talking about an anti-aging drug and the ramifications of success. This checked a lot of boxes for me.

With a Vengeance by Riley Sager

One of the few thrillers to make the cut (there’s usually a lot more on my list), and this one has a premise so clear that I wish thought of it first. A revenge tale with a captive group of ne'er-do-wells who get caught up in a murder mystery and no way to escape. It almost writes itself - which makes it interesting to see if it lives up to the hype in my head.

Making History by K.J. Parker

I love the concept of idiots in power asking to make the impossible happen - and what happens when they’re able to do it. It’s cathartic to see that it could technically be worse, even if real life doesn’t feel that far off from this at times.

Not Just Entertainment

I hesitate to complain about younger generations in general. Being an elder millennial myself, I lived through the 2000s and 2010s where boomers and gen-x would continually tell us that we were ruining every industry, were too lazy to buy a home, and we just wanted to live the easy life. Being painted with a broad brush is never fun. I've been working ever since I was a teenager, always hustling to get the next thing going - both in my “regular” career and the art side.

With that caveat out of the way, I do find it concerning to hear that the younger generation is reading less and less. I don't know if that's entirely true. We certainly have lost the mono culture where everyone is reading the same book at the same time and I think that's good thing.

There are more books written than we'll ever have time to read, even if we only read our entire lives. Having them be the same handful of books is a tragedy. The fact that more voices are getting out there, (and selfishly speaking, my own as well), I can't help but see an expanding market even if it's not as all-encompassing as it once was. That's true of every industry out there. I don’t think kids don’t read, they just don’t read the same way.

If I were to entertain the panic and concern, I would be worried that we're going to lose our empathy if people truly stopped reading. Indeed, films, television shows and even TikTok shorts will give you some glimpse into other peoples lives, but they can also be dangerous propaganda on rapid fire. Reading develops a whole extra layer of media literacy that helps navigate all other media. Kind of like how learning the piano is a foundation for playing nearly every other instrument.

If we focus on the potential good of reading, nothing will build empathy like a good fiction book. Capitalism will tell you to read business books and self-help books more than fiction, but fiction has an important place in the world. Nothing actually gets you in the head of another character in the same way that a novel will.

I say this is a huge fan of nearly every other medium out there. They all have their place, and I think novels do too.

I'm very excited to be joining this world, while keeping another foot firmly within the comics realm. I've only gone as far as short stories in the past, never feeling as confident as I do now. I have multiple stories pent up just waiting to be written and I'm done waiting to share them with you.

In the meantime, I have a few books to read.

Until next time…

What have you been reading?
Do you have anything you enjoy?
Anything you’re looking forward to reading this summer?
Where do you like to read?

Let me know in the comments.