Lately Read: Nov. 29, 2024

"Demon Copperhead," by Barbara Kingsolver [Novel]

I find the last name "Kingsolver" intimidating. Can you imagine slapping that name on something you wrote? That shit makes a promise.

She lives up to it though. Others have known this for a while, having heaped all sorts of prizes on her work. But this is the first one I've read. I burned through it in two days. I don't usually do that with books over 500 pages.

It's a bummer, but you need that to celebrate resiliency. But that celebration isn't the point of the book either, because the cost is so high. No pun intended. This is a book of a boy and his opioid epidemic.

I loved it, but felt the first half was a lot stronger than the second half. And I found the ending as confusing as the narrator did. But that's all okay with me. 4/5 stars.

"Imagine a Drug That Feels Like Tylenol and Works Like OxyContin," by Richard A Friedman [Gift Article]

Can we soon have pain drugs that separate their addictive and painkilling properties? I hope so (see, Demon Copperhead).

AI Tools Make it Easy to Clone Someone's Voice Without Consent, by Janus Rose [Free Article]

I was trying to explain to youngest kiddo that I don't want her uploading her voice to YouTube, despite being off camera.

New York expands automatic health care coverage for kids up to 6, by Raga Justin [Paywalled Article]

"According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the program, which was also adopted by Colorado, Hawaii, Minnesota and Pennsylvania, will give 17 million children new protections from any disruption.

Nearly half of New York’s children are covered under Medicaid or another state health insurance program called Child Health Plus."