Reading anything?

[Flangepart]

I read the book Things That Matter by Dr Charles Krauthammer and enjoyed it up until page 237 where he started to talk BS about South Africa.

I closed the book and have never opened it again: I would like to throw it away but it cost too much.  

So, send him a correction letter. I like his work, but who's perfect? Not me.

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!

Muller and Pronzini's
(the husband and wife writing duo)
The spook lights affair
. . . in the Carpenter and Quincannon series

While one of the heroes investigates the supposed suicide of a debutante, whose body has mysteriously disappeared, our other hero investigates a robbery in downtown San Francisco and a reported ghost seen among the sand dunes outside of the city. Of course, all the cases are connected together at the end.


Gwen Florio's
Montana
1st novel


Ellen Hart's
Taken by the wind
. . . in the Jane Lawless series

When two tween boys disappear from a camp out in the backyard of one of them, a search is immediately put into effect. For are the boys being held by a kidnapper for ransom, by a pornographer for a porn film, or are they just runaways from troubles at home.

Who would have thought that an avowed lesbian, with apparently no children of her own, would have a better idea of how tween boys act, react, and behave than the writer of "Broad church," who apparently does have children.

Also does this writer throw problems at the characters in the book.

business problems -- financial problems -- marital problems -- mental problems -- physical problems -- problems at church -- problems at school -- problems with friends -- problems with relatives -- and sexual problems.


Richard Castle's
Deadly heat
. . . in the Castle series


Sandra Dallas'
Fallen women


Elizabeth George's
Just one evil act
. . . .in the Inspector Lynley series

When the wife and daughter of her next door neighbor disappear from their home in London, one of our heroes helps him look for them. Only to find them in a small town in Italy. Only now to have the daughter disappear. Only to reappear. Only to have the wife die under mysterious circumstances. What is going on?

Most writers describe a character by what they wear, this writer--here--describes a character by some physical affect.

the androgyne -- the beautiful one -- the ugly one -- the really, really ugly one -- the tall one -- the short one -- the simpleminded one -- the one with big ears -- the one with 6 digits on one hand -- the one with scars on his face -- the one with scars on her arms -- and the one with terminal dandruff.

And months after finishing the book, the characters are still distinctive enough, that I still remember them.

+ one non-fiction

Adam Minter's
Junkyard planet :
travels in the billion dollar trash trade.
1st non-fiction

By a 3rd generation junk yard dog, if there is anybody who knows more about the business, they can be counted on one hand with fingers left over. What surprised me is how well the system works on an international scope. It is not perfect, but it does work surprisingly well.


Next time: a reversal. 6 of 1 and a half dozen non-fiction + 1 fiction book.

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!

"The Best American Comics" 2012
Abel and Madden, editors
Francoise Mouly, guest editor

Comics publicly published or privately printed between September 1, 2010 and August 31, 2011.

and

"The Best of American Comics" 2013
Abel and Madden, editors
Jeff Smith, guest editor

Comics publicly published or privately printed between September 1, 2011 and August 31, 2012.

It surprised me how much a comic reminds me of a film. Where each comic panel is a frame of film. And in some ways superior to a film, because unlike films, comics are still done without dialogue and in black-and-white. Though, unlike film trailers, the excerpts here never really tell you anything about the comic.


Brian Lavery's
The conquest of the ocean :
the illustrated history of seafaring

Or, a good introduction to seafaring from the time man first went to sea to see what they could see to the last half of the 20th century. Enlivened by personal accounts of life at sea. By a man who has spent most of his life at sea. Either in the Royal Navy or as a civilian sailor.

Several things I thought were interesting came out of this book.

1st. It was only till the 2nd half of the 20th century did a seafarer had a better than 50/50 chance of surviving a disaster at sea. So, why did people go to sea, if they did not have to? Two reasons.
One the pay was better at sea than it was at land. There was one account of an experienced sea captain who earned $60,000 a year, which is good pay, even now days, but when he gave up the sea to become a church minister on land, his salary dropped to $3,000 a year. Typical for that time period, but certainly not as much as before.

Two. And while the book doesn't directly say so, life was seldom boring at sea. Unlike life on land, which could be mind numbing boring.

2nd. The Brits could never get along with anyone. No, but the book does point out that the Brits did fight the following foes at sea.

Americans -- Argentinians -- Chinese -- Danes -- the Dutch -- the French -- Germans -- Japanese -- the Spanish -- Pirates -- and Vkings.

3rd. And I don't know how true this is, but the book does make the case for the Brits having a lot of respect for their sea foes. Which is not always the case for a lot of other nationalities.


Greg Wolf's
Rome :
an empire's story

There are two types of histories. One that is scholarly and is written for one's peers, and one that is popular that is written for the populace at large. This is a somewhat strange combination of both. Though, it does comes across as Roman history that should be read by today's American leaders. For, there might have been more powerful empires, and there certainly have been larger empires, but none lasted as long as the Roman empire. But, the writer does pick a somewhat strange date to end it. Most historians end the Roman empire with the fall of Rome to the barbarians. Some end it with the fall of Constantinople to the Muslims, but the writer ends the Roman empire with the fall of Visgothic Spain to the Muslims.

Still, the Roman empire does provide a good lesson as to what to do, and what not to do for American leaders, and the similarities and differences between the two. For example, most of the taxes collected by the Romans went to the military. Just as the plurality of American taxes still goes to the military.


Dave Thompson's
Dr. Who FAQ

You learn between November 23, 1963, and December 25, 2012, 237 programs (lasting from 1 episode to 12 episodes) specials, and TV movies have been produced for TV.
That between 1999 and 2013, 323 audio plays, with the Doctor, have been produced for the radio.
That between 1964 and 2012, 449 original works of fiction, with the Doctor, have been published for the reading public.
That between 1965 and 2011, the Doctor has made 435 comic book appearances.
And that, during that time, 33 songs, inspired by the Doctor, have been produced and recorded.


Sandra Hempel's
The inheritor's powder :
a tale of arsenic, murder, and the new forensic science.

Or, the 1st time that someone went on trial for using arsenic to murder someone for an inheritance. It is not the 1st time this had been done, but it was the 1st time that the new art of forensic sciences was advanced enough to detect the use of arsenic to murder someone.

+1 fiction

Wood and D'Anda's
In the shadow of Yavin
v.1.

Or another in the series of Star Wars omnibuses.

Next time: just the reverse. 6 of 1 and a half dozen mysteries + 1 non-fiction book.

[jimpickens]

Wolf Creek Desolation Game very creepy.

[Rev. Powell]

[indianasmith]

I just finished Adrian Goldsworthy's CAESAR: LIFE OF A COLOSSUS.  It is an epic biography of Gaius Julius Caesar, one of the most fascinating and complex characters of Roman history, as well as (IMO) the greatest general of all time.  Well-written and easy to follow, this book sets the stage of the late Roman Republic and lays out the life of its protagonist in chronological order.  Goldsworthy sticks to the known facts and rarely speculates - and informs the reader when he does.  An excellent tale about a fascinating man.

[Rev. Powell]

Also picked up



This is director Trent Harris' story of traveling the world after being depressed that his big movie RUBIN & ED was a flop and no one in Hollywood would return his calls. He literally goes to Timbuktu.

[Newt]

Picked up at a yard sale yesterday: Himalaya (1992) by Nicholas Luard.   Cost me a whole 20 cents.  The cover blurb got me:

"To escape her parents' bitterly contested divorce, thirteen-year-old Iona is taken on an expedition to the Himalayas by her godfather...Once there, the haunting nightmares of her childhood become a terrifying reality - she falls into the hands of real monsters - the abominable snowmen of Himalayan legend, the yeti.

But on the ridges above, the crazed mountaineer Geraint Hughes watches and waits.  Obsessed by his ambition to climb Everest, he knows that Iona is in the hands of the yeti, and that she is the key to his ambition..."

    I knew I was sold at "crazed mountaineer" 

Please oh please let this read like a bad movie! 

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!

Catherine Dilts'
Stone Cold Dead
1st in the Rock Shop aka Morgan Iverson mystery series

When our hero takes over her brother's and sister-in-law's rock shop, while they are working as missionaries in Central America, she also takes possession of a dead body that she finds behind the shop. A body that appears, disappears, and then reappears. Afraid of being accused of the murder, our hero sets out to find out who killed the young woman she has found.


Sam Thomas'
The Harlot's Tale
2nd in the Midwife mystery series

When a new preacher and his followers come to town and starts to preach that adulterers should be in Hell, someone takes the man up on his word and starts to kill all the adulterers in town, and there are a lot of adulterers in 17th century York, but is the murderer the preacher, one of his followers, one of the town's residents, even someone related to our hero. It is up to our hero to find out and stop the killings.


Mark Billingham's
From the Dead
12th in the DI Tom Thomerson mystery series


Helene Thurston
The Fire Dance
6th in the Irene Huss series

When a young woman, missing for several weeks, is found dead in a burnt out building, it is a case of murder and arson. Which relates to a case from more than a few years ago, when the victim's stepfather was found dead in their burnt out home. At that time, it was put down as a tragic accident of the man smoking in bed, but now with this case that too is beginning to look more like a case of arson and murder as well.

Probably better than the previous one in the series, which I have also read. At least this one is a more memorable story.


David and Aimee Thurlo's
(husband wife writing duo)
The Pawnbroker


Michael Robertson's
Moriarty Returns a Letter
4th in the Baker St. mystery series


+ 1 non-fiction

Chris Skidmore's
The Rise of the Tudors :
The Family That Changed English History
3rd non-fiction book by the author

If anything, the book is proof that the more things change, the more they stay the same. To whit . . .

1. That hindsight being 20/20. Both sides in the conflict really made some boneheaded decisions.
2. That foreign countries have been interfering in the foreign affairs of other countries for over 500 years.
3. That the most successful people are also often the most unlikable.
4. That the victors write the histories.
5. That people of 500 years ago could give lessons today on how to slant the news.
6. That it is not over till it is over.
7. That the words of your foe can be used to smear your foe.
8. And that it may have been the men: husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, etc., who went off to war, but it is also the women who suffered, as they mourned fallen husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, etc.

Next time: 2 individual reports, including 1 for the best book I have seen this year so far.

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!

Sherill Tippins'
Inside the Dream Palace :
the Life and Times of New York's Legendary Chelsea Hotel
2nd non-fiction

Slices of life as seen through the windows of a building.

Not a new concept, but previously, most such books have been about a commercial building. This is one of the 1st that I have seen about a residential building. And of the others I have seen, this is probably one of the best written.

It can also be said, that if someone dropped a bomb on the building, anytime during its life, or from 1884 to 2014, it'd have wiped out a good part of the Avant-garde movement in America. Thus, here are some of the artists, both Avant-garde and non, who lived in the building.

Abbie Hoffman -- Abel Ferrara -- Agnes Boulton -- Alice Cooper -- Allen Ginsberg -- Andy Warhol -- Arthur B. Davies -- and Arthur C. Clarke
Barry Miles -- Ben Stolberg -- Bob Dylan -- Brendan Behan -- and Brian Jones
Charles Jackson -- Charles Kleinsinger -- Childe Hassam -- Christo -- Claes Oldenburg -- Clifford Irving -- and Country Joe McDonald - the Fish.
Dee Dee Ramone -- Dennis Hopper -- and Dylan Thomas.
Edgar Lee Masters -- Edie Sedgwick -- Edwin Denby -- Elizabeth Gurly Flynn -- and Ethan Hawke.
Francesco Clemente
Gaby Hoffman -- Gerald Busby -- Gerald Malanga -- Germaine Greer -- Gore Vidal -- Grace Slick -- and Gus Hall
Henri Cartier-Bresson -- and Herb Gentry
Isabella Gardner -- and Isabella Rossellini
Jack Kerouac -- Jackson Pollock -- James Farrell -- James Schuyler -- Jane Fonda -- Janis Joplin -- Jim Carroll -- John Cale -- John Sloan -- Joni Mitchell -- Julian Schnabel -- and Juliette Hemel Court
Katherine Dunham
Lance Loud -- Larry Rivers -- Lee Grant -- and Leonard Cohen
Madonna -- Malcolm McLaren -- Marianne Faithful -- Mary Balin -- Mary McCarthy -- Maurice Girodias -- Michel Auder -- and Milos Forman
Nelson Algren -- and Nicolas Nabokav
O. Henry
Patti Smith -- Peter Brook -- and Phil Ochs
Richard Leacock -- Robbie Robertson -- Robert Blackburn -- Robert Flaherty -- Robert Mapplethorpe -- Roger Waters -- and Rufus Wainwright
Sam Shepard -- Shaun Costello -- and Sid Vicious
Terry Southern -- Thomas Wolfe -- Tom Hayden -- and Tom Waits
Virgil Thomson
William Burroughs -- William de Kooning -- William Dean Howells -- and William Eggleston

Next time: another individual report on the best book I have read, so far, this year.

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!

Brandon Stanton's
Humans of New York
1st book
from the author's blog of the same title

1 empty wheelchair
1 Big Bird
2 dogs
and about 600 people
or less than 0.01% of the population later . . .

. . . of the young and the old,
men and women,
the abnormal and the normal,
and all races.

We have the best book I have seen so far this year, and if you only look at one book, this is it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Even if it is hard book to understand what  the author is trying to say in his photos, but you'll get it, if you stay with it. It's not that the photos somehow get better, as they are fine through out, it is just that the diversity of its people is what makes America, the greatest nation on God's green earth, and that what is more, we, with some exception, are learning to tolerate this diversity.

I don't think there has been a book I understood less and got more out of, then this book. "Why is it necessary to include photo captions by the subjects of the photos?" I thought. Then I started to read them, and if you are like me, you'll be laughing hysterically at one, then crying hysterically at the next. And that is all for that.

Next time: 2 x 2. 2 non-fiction + 2 mysteries + 2 graphic novels. And we'll see how long that lasts. Till then . . . ?!

[BoyScoutKevin]

Ye-es!
2 by 2 by 2

(1st) 2 mysteries

Cara Black's
Murder in Pigalle
14th in the Aimee Leduc series

When someone starts sexually assaulting girls who are left alone, our hero begins to worry about the daughter of her BFF, who lives next door to her in the Pigalle section of Paris. She especially starts to worry, when she learns all the girls, including the one next door, play the violin. Thus, she decides to solve the case before the police can.


Leighton Gages'
The Ways of Evil Men
7th and last in the Mario Silva series
Last because the author died last year.

Welcome to the backside of HELL! When someone helps along a native tribe that is dying out in the Amazon Basin rain forest, by poisoning its members, and local and state officials will do nothing to help find the murderers, it is up to the federal government to send in our hero to investigate.

One note: the two gay villains in the book are the only villains that are not into illegal logging, illegal mining, getting themselves killed, or killing others. That is a long way from when you could recognize the villain, because he was gay.


(2nd) 2 non-fiction books

David A. Price's
The Pixar touch :
the Making of a Company
1 more non-fiction book

The subtitle says it all. I found, because I knew the least of that part of the company, the part that talked about the company, which was once owned by Steve Jobs of Apple, before it was bought out by the Walt Disney Company, the most interesting part of the book. Also interesting was that sometimes failure is the best part of success. Seeking to sell the company for $50 million, or the amount of money he paid for it + the amount of money he lost in it, Jobs could find no buyers. It was only later that it was bought by the Walt Disney Company for $7.4 billion. And even that looks like a bargain price, as the company has earned to date or December, 2013, $8.7 billion for its new owners.


Laughter Still Is the Best Medicine
1001 jokes. 215 p. 52 LOL!
A selection of jokes from the "Readers' Digest" Magazine


(3rd) 2 graphic novels

Ransom Rigg's
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children :
the Graphic Novel [version]
Art by Cassandra Jean

Soon to be a motion picture


William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
adapted and illustrated by Gareth Hinds

"Othello" is Shakespeare's great play on racism, but "Romeo and Juliet" also works as a screed against racism, as the Montagues are black and the Capulets are Indians. I especially like the look of Tybalt who was all tats, bare chest, and attitude.


Next time: Continuing 2 by 2 by 2

[indianasmith]

I just finished reading David Limbaugh's JESUS ON TRIAL.  A fascinating apologetic work that analyzes the case for faith on
many different levels.  A bit over-broad in places, but still very though-provoking and well written.

[Rev. Powell]

A public domain collection of "English Fairy Tales" I downloaded to test my Kindle app.

[JaseSF]

"Across the Blood-Red Skies" by Robert Radcliffe.