Books Read 2013

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silverjon
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by silverjon »

Scuzz wrote:I was thinking Helter Skelter would be a good place to start.
Just don't try to read The Family by Ed Sanders. Ugh.

I liked books by Robert Ressler, but those are more bio/overview than case study.

Comic artist and writer Rick Geary has been releasing a series called A Treasury of Victorian Murder for some years, and they're really good. I'd say my favorite was The Fatal Bullet: The Assassination of James A. Garfield. Hell of a story.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Canuck »

I just finished The Last Battle by Cornelius Ryan about the battle for Berlin. It was the audio book and it did an excellent job of describinf the last month or so of the war. Highly recommended.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by silverjon »

I read the Calvin and Hobbes 10th anniversary collection (from 1995!). Strips and storylines selected by Bill Watterson, with his commentary. Interesting, though in the intervening years things like his views on licensing have become fairly publicized so it wasn't all revelatory.

What really struck me though was how much he put into arguing comic strips as an art form, if their creators treat them as such, but he also tosses off a comment about comic books being "incredibly stupid".

Maybe comic books were all incredibly stupid in 1995.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Isgrimnur »

They were still clawing their way out of the crash of 1993.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

1356: A Novel by Bernard Cornwell :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky:

Sir Thomas of Hookton, a fictional archer from a fictional English village, stars in the 4th episode of the "Grail Quest" series. Leading a mercenary band of archers and men-at-arms through chaotic France during the 100 Years War, this novel follows our hero through events up to and including the stunning English victory at Poiters, where Edward the Black Prince (as he would someday be known) defeated a French army nearly twice the size and took captive the presumed King of France (presumed because the English insisted that Edward III was the rightful king).

Sir Thomas has developed a sort of hobby finding revered religious relics and disposing of them for the presumed good of mankind. A descendent of a Cathar heretic, Thomas really doesn't believe these objects are what they are made out to be: the spear of St. George, the Holy Grail, and, in this book, the sword of St. Peter (for purposes of the book named "la Malice." Raised to be a cleric, Thomas isn't necessarily an impious person, although he was excommunicated from the Church and declared an outlaw. Also in search of la Malice is the Pope's right-hand thug, a Cardinal Bessiers, and a priest with bird called a "callade" that is an alleged truth-sayer, in that it pecks out the eyeballs of a victim that is presumably lying. Starving the bird so that it is always hungry for eyeballs is a bit disingenuous, and when Thomas' wife is maimed and partially blinded by the bird, you know the Church is going to take a beating.

The climax of the book, the Battle of Poiters, is lavishly described, just as the Battle of Crecy was in an earlier book in the series. At the end of the last book, Heretic, the initial trilogy seemed complete, yet the door left open for was is this novel. The next major battle, the Battle of Agincourt, is far off...not only was it the subject of a stand-alone novel by Cornwell, but also is beyond the useful career of the Sir Thomas of Hookton character. Perhaps he will again pursue a powerful relic in another medieval adventure, but it would be a new story from whole cloth as virtually all of Thomas' antagonists have been put to rest.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

Cleopatra and Antony by Diana Preston :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky:

Cleopatra and Antony is a new look at one of history's most famous couples. Diana Preston follows the career of the Egyptian queen, while at the same time telling the story of Rome from the ascension and assassination of her first lover, Julius Caesar (the story starts earlier with the civil war vs. Pompey) through the second Triumvirate of Octavian, Antony and Lepidus through its climax with a second civil war and the decisive Battle of Actium.

The story is a familiar one, but this book is a refreshing view point. Even many popular histories pick up on the Shakespearean dramatic ending of Cleopatra committing suicide via asp-on-breast following Antony's own suicide to avoid capture by Octavian. But Cleopatra actually buried her lover, and spent weeks negotiating with the soon-to-be Augustus Caesar, mostly in an attempt to secure a future for her children. When she could do no more, she orchestrated a suicide, but the snake was likely a cobra, not an asp.

It's detail like the above that make this a refreshing new look on a tale from the ages. I didn't think I would learn anything new, but Preston tells us of how Ptolemiac traditions created competition among the children in line for the throne and how it led to the rare occurrence of a woman ruler. Marc Antony was a rising star dating back to his time as one of Julius Caesar's most trusted generals, but Cleopatra played him for the benefit of her nation. More often than not, she appeared to "wear the pants" in their relationship, bringing military and other aid as it suited her, and not always when Antony needed it most. Cleopatra has the most to benefit from the relationship, her foreign influence reflected badly upon Antony and gave Octavian the upper hand in their struggle for complete control. That Antony had forsaken his other wives for the Queen of the Nile would indicate he was smitten and powerless to check her designs and leverage the relationship to his complete advantage.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

The Signal and the Noise - Why So Many Predictions Fail -- But Some Don't by Nate Silver :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky:

Statistics are fun, it's why a lot of us are enamored with sports. While a player's OBP might be useful for your fantasy league, statistics and probability are far more useful in the science of prediction. This includes such subjects as political polling, poker, weather and earthquake forecasting. Sports statistician Nate Silver covers all of these and more in The Signal and the Noise. While entertaining us with stories about sports book, disease probability, and devastating hurricanes, Silver also teaches us about the science of prediction and how it differs from basic probability and other statistics-based sciences. We learn how sample size can skew results...just recently a sports statistician claimed the Blackhawks record-setting season start in hockey was a 1-in-750 year event. How can he say such a thing when hockey has been with us less than a century? Well, it seems predictions can be made based on available statistics...but we should also not be surprised when models based on limited data don't pan out as predicted.

Silver teaches us how to evaluate such predictions -- whether to be skeptical because they are based on specious data or sample size, or when we should trust it because of sound modeling, such as present weather forecasting. This is an interesting look at the current state of prediction in many fields...and the gains in accuracy made in just the past 20-30 years. Still, no matter how good you are at crunching numbers, you are unlikely to consistently beat Wall Street or the local bookie. Those who make a living gambling do so with slim margins and a large bank roll.

Silver has made a living both gambling and working for sports statistics companies. Hearing his take is interesting...and a wake up call for anyone who thinks they have a system to beat Vegas. I always enjoyed seeing Silver on TV (he's been on The Daily Show) and hearing him on radio. I hope he writes additional books on the topic. as a sports fan, I have a natural affinity for statistics and the meaning of.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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This is the same Nate Silver who called the Obama election of 2012, right?
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

Yes, he was on The Daily Show last year and the book had been in my backlog for awhile.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Alan_Bernardo »

Kasey Chang wrote:This is the same Nate Silver who called the Obama election of 2012, right?
I have always found it very difficult to read about anything that has happened in the last 50 years. The only exception to this are books about Vietnam, and that usually involves reading about the French occupation and early American involvement, which happened over 50 years ago. I do read about histories of countries, occasionally, but even then when it comes to reading about the current events of that country, I invariably skip those sections.

A history of anything needs time to evolve and to be researched. Reading anything about Obama or any current person or event just isn't to my taste. If I want to read about current political issues, I go to the newspapers.

But to the topic, right now I'm reading the latest biography on Karl Marx and, for some light and enjoyable reading, Anthony Trollope. I like Trollope immensely, sometimes even better than I enjoy Dickens. Dickens gets his point across through exaggerations and caricatures and his humor is over-bearing (in a good way). Trollope, on the other hand, is more realistic in his story telling and for humor is a bit more ironic and beneath the surface.

I just finished reading Bartlett's biography of Tolstoy, which is quite good, and a few of Tolstoy's novellas.


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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Isgrimnur »

I'm the same way. Hell, I'm just starting to engage topics like the Iran hostage situation and the Falklands Islands War, which happened during my childhood.

... Now I feel old.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

Alan_Bernardo wrote:
Kasey Chang wrote:This is the same Nate Silver who called the Obama election of 2012, right?
I have always found it very difficult to read about anything that has happened in the last 50 years. The only exception to this are books about Vietnam, and that usually involves reading about the French occupation and early American involvement, which happened over 50 years ago. I do read about histories of countries, occasionally, but even then when it comes to reading about the current events of that country, I invariably skip those sections.

A history of anything needs time to evolve and to be researched. Reading anything about Obama or any current person or event just isn't to my taste. If I want to read about current political issues, I go to the newspapers.

But to the topic, right now I'm reading the latest biography on Karl Marx and, for some light and enjoyable reading, Anthony Trollope. I like Trollope immensely, sometimes even better than I enjoy Dickens. Dickens gets his point across through exaggerations and caricatures and his humor is over-bearing (in a good way). Trollope, on the other hand, is more realistic in his story telling and for humor is a bit more ironic and beneath the surface.

I just finished reading Bartlett's biography of Tolstoy, which is quite good, and a few of Tolstoy's novellas.


Alan
FYI, this was a book about statistical modeling. It was about spotting "signals" (meaningful data) among the "noise" (irrelevant or coincidental data). It really has nothing to do with history except in talking about data sets (such as weather statistics going back 150 years). It is most similar to Freakonomics (which is referenced several times). What Kasey referred to was his appearance on talk shows last fall while pimping this book. On a prior election, he predicted all but two (IIRC) congressional outcomes and made a prediction for the presidency. The author's cred however was built mostly on sports statistics.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Rating on 10* scale

Alice Will-Ashley Chappell 6*
This was written by a girl I work with. She has potential, very imaginative book just not my type of book. Geared more toward young teens.

Down the Road: The Fall of Austin-Bowie Ibarra 5*

The Greatest Battle-Andrew Nagorski 7*

Reading:

Star Trek: Rihannsu-Diane Duane
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Finished Star Trek: New Frontier: Treason

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NL ... adtmobs-20" target="_blank

Star Trek New Frontier is Peter David's private playground, featuring his own crew, filled with all the side characters from TNG, DS9, plus a few more, featuring the most outrageous captain yet: MacKenzie Calhoun, who used to be a Xenexian warlord before he quit and joined Starfleet and worked his way up to Captain, and his ship, the Excalibur, is filled with what could be termed as misfits. And they went on plenty of adventures.

For example... Remember Elizabeth Shelby? She's married to Calhoun. Really. Remember Dr. Selar? She's the CMO on the USS Excalibur. There's also Robin Lefler, and a few more. In fact, here's a whole list:

http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/New_Frontier_characters" target="_blank

In this book, a few characters went a little crazy (due to a conspiracy). Dr. Selar commits the unspeakable Vulcan sin. Robin Lefler, who married Ambassador Si Cwan but was widowed, was left to raise the newborn alone, until conspiracy on the planet (and elsewhere?) forced her to seek refuge back on the USS Excalibur, but evil lurks around every corner, and soon the the galaxy will explode when a far reaching conspiracy will be revealed...

The book is typical Peter David fare... He is a great plotter, managed to setup the plot so that it flows properly from scene to scene, as well as setting up the awkward situation / encounter almost perfectly, and you'll have several LOL moments, if you dig his style. Others call it "overly dramatic / melodramatic".

This book is old and thus there's probably several sequels after this, but I bought this book for a while and this was the first time I get to finish it. :)
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Just finished Escape from Camp 14, which is a very eye opening account of a young man who escaped from a political prison camp in North Korea. He's the only known escapee from this high security prison camp. It talks about his story and the state of North Korea itself. Pretty amazing stuff.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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How Music Works by David Byrne :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky:

This is the second book I've read this year by a musician. The first, by Pete Townshend, was mostly a memoir. Townshend was already a musical superstar by the time I was becoming acquainted with pop music. David Byrne however, saw his star rise when my interest in pop music was at its climax -- late teens, early 20's. As someone more from "my generation," I've maintained a strong affinity for Byrne and others of this era.

That's not to say I wallow in nostalgia for days of Talking Heads gone by. Byrne, like Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh, has remained very active in music, even though the days of large stadium shows has long passed him by. If your tastes venture beyond Top-40 or American Idol, then when David Bryne talks, it's worth taking the time to listen.

How Music Works is a chimera of a book. In parts, Bryne does explain the evolution of music from primitive man, and how it functions on a subconscious level. This ground has already been recently covered by Alex Ross in his excellent book "The Rest is Noise," which is duly credited by Bryne. But of greatest interest to me was how the industry works -- and how it evolved from a label-centric distribution model to today's internet free-for-all. Bryne tells us about the finance of the business -- how in the day of the label, bands might be courted with private planes and mountains of cocaine, but all of that expense was applied against advances given to artists, and in many cases, blockbuster albums could net little or no profit. The real money is in song credits that could provide perpetual income. In this, Byrne has done quite well for himself, well enough to eke out a career in music with the resources to conduct his own financial experiments in music distribution. He has discovered the label no longer plays a pivotal role for artists seeking a profit. A label can create greater exposure, but at greater cost. When the artist can keep a majority of profits from the get-go, as long as he has some following, a decent wage can be earned. Byrne explains that today, the means to create a top-notch recording are within the means of anyone so inclined with a PC and skills. This also cuts down or eliminates recording studio expense (many famous studios have been shuttering their doors of late).

And of course, we get anecdotes from Byrne's colorful career. We learn about the inner-workings of that magical New York nightclub, CBGB, and how the likes of The Ramones, Blondie, Patty Smith, and The Talking Heads all rose from neighborhood rats to international prominence, ostensibly on the wave of punk rock, although in the case of The Talking Heads, they never really fit the canonical punk motif.

While I'd often pick up a new David Byrne CD when I noticed one was out, I never closely followed his career. One thing I found interesting was that three years ago (2010) he released a double-CD set (recorded with Fat Boy Slim) where the lyrics were based on the testimony of former Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos wife Imelda during their corruption trials It was intended to be the soundtrack to a musical, which apparently will be put on in New York sometime this year. Might be a good excuse for a road trip.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk

I was led to this book by how much I enjoyed Winds of War and War and Remembrance, two other books by Herman Wouk involving World War 2. This book has been made into a very good movie that I must confess to having only seen the last 45 minutes or so, several times for some reason. As such I didn't know the whole story and, well, now I do.

This is a very good book on several levels. Strictly as a story of life aboard a WW2 minesweeper it is entertaining. I was reminded of a book I had read many years ago (and also seen the movie) Mister Roberts. The daily life on the ship and the clash of personalities makes for good reading.

The book also tells the story of what pressure does to a man, and how others react to it. That is where the mutiny comes in.

This book was a Pulitzer winner for Wouk, and I have to give it a 4.5 of 5 stars.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Mister Roberts is an awesome film.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Working on two books

Sherlock Holmes in Orbit, a collection of authorized short stories that pits Sherlock Holmes against variety of fantastic opponents, from Dracula to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself, from Fu Man Chu to St. Peter (yes, the guy at the Pearly gates) These are pastiches and tribute stories. Many are humorous (such as the Dracula one) while others explore present / future, and in a few cases, after Sherlock Holmes have... passed on. (This is a re-read, as I kinda found this book in my archive and decided to revisit it)

Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child, a Jack Reacher novel. I was pretty sure I read this before, so I probably bought this book twice, but I don't mind as the beginning was so intriguing. Jack Reacher was riding in a NYC subway 2AM, and spotted a woman that exhibited all the signs of being a suicide bomber. When he approached her trying to engage her in conversation, she pulled out a gun and blew her head off. Right after that, he was harassed by multiple teams of people, including local police, some private investigators, and even a grieving brother. Reacher was sure something drove her to take her own life, some sort of giant conspiracy that reaches the very top of the US government. And he will not stop until he finds the truth...
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Scuzz wrote:The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk

I was led to this book by how much I enjoyed Winds of War and War and Remembrance, two other books by Herman Wouk involving World War 2. This book has been made into a very good movie that I must confess to having only seen the last 45 minutes or so, several times for some reason. As such I didn't know the whole story and, well, now I do.

This is a very good book on several levels. Strictly as a story of life aboard a WW2 minesweeper it is entertaining. I was reminded of a book I had read many years ago (and also seen the movie) Mister Roberts. The daily life on the ship and the clash of personalities makes for good reading.

The book also tells the story of what pressure does to a man, and how others react to it. That is where the mutiny comes in.

This book was a Pulitzer winner for Wouk, and I have to give it a 4.5 of 5 stars.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Finished Dragon Precinct by Keith R. A. Decandido - Furthering my hypothesis that you must have two middle names to write, I picked up this light read on the nook. It's an enjoyable read if not very much on suspense.
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Finished Quintessence by David Wallace - A good premise for a story ruined by crappy writing. Not sure how people are giving this 5 stars on Amazon but it was not credit worthy.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Just finished 11/22/63. I really enjoyed that book, and it is the best King novel I've read in awhile. Now, sadly, I'm trying to find my next book to read. About a year and a half ago I started reading the Dresden Files series, and I went straight from that into Game of Thrones. And I knew I was going to read 11/22/63 after I was done with those two series, so this is the first time in a really long time that I haven't had something to read.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Yeah 11/22/63 was classic King. Probably his best since the early days.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Just finished “Let the Great World Spin” by Colum McCann. I borrowed this from the library on the recommendation of Gregg Easterbrook of Tuesday Morning Quarterback.

The story is a series of vignettes set in New York August 1974 (one month before I was born). The stories revolve around the true life event of a tight rope walker on the twin towers. Each vignette in told in the first person and reads like a stream of thought that sometimes took my breath away. Slowly, as the book progresses, connections between the individuals emerge and tie everything together showing us, the readers, the interconnectedness of human relations and the ramifications of our decisions big and small.

It was an effecting book and it moved me by the end. I found it wonderful.
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Grand_Director wrote:Just finished “Let the Great World Spin” by Colum McCann. I borrowed this from the library on the recommendation of Gregg Easterbrook of Tuesday Morning Quarterback.

The story is a series of vignettes set in New York August 1974 (one month before I was born). The stories revolve around the true life event of a tight rope walker on the twin towers. Each vignette in told in the first person and reads like a stream of thought that sometimes took my breath away. Slowly, as the book progresses, connections between the individuals emerge and tie everything together showing us, the readers, the interconnectedness of human relations and the ramifications of our decisions big and small.

It was an effecting book and it moved me by the end. I found it wonderful.
Sounds interesting!

The episode of Philippe Petit's walk between the Towers is beautifully presented in the documentary Man on Wire. It came out in 2008, but I just got around to watching it with my family. (My wife was a six-year-old New Yorker in 1974 and remembers the coverage and aftermath.)
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Holman wrote:(My wife was a six-year-old New Yorker in 1974 and remembers the coverage and aftermath.)
So was I!
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Re: Books Read 2013

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After looking around amazon and poking through the forums I bought the First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. One of the last paperbacks I read before switching over to the Kindle was Best Served Cold, and I really liked it. So I'm hoping I'll enjoy this trilogy as well, especially with all of the great things people have said about it.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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I've finished the first couple of books and I really enjoyed them. The first book is a little slow but it didn't bother me at all as I enjoyed the characters and dialogue so much.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Smoove_B »

Finished Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill -- quite enjoyable. It's the first book of his that I've read and I enjoyed it enough to immediately start Horns (both of which are still $1.99 for Kindle). It wasn't complex or particularly deep, but it had great pacing and the concept was tight. I'd definitely recommend it. It takes a bit to build, but everything really comes together at the end - he doesn't meander around a bunch like his Dad. There's definitely a build to a big finish.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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I just finished The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett.

It was the first piece of classic noir/hardboiled fiction I've read, and I had a lot of fun with it. It wasn't what I expected, but it was great seeing where all the tropes came from. I loved the atmosphere, and it was a fun read, although I thought the plotting was a little odd. There was never an 'aha!' moment for the reader, as there is in most detective fiction. Instead, the characters went through a bunch of stuff, then explained what had happened to us afterwards. Time to check out the film.

I've been poking around with some Raymond Chandler, but the slang is so thick that I needed to print out a period slang dictionary just to figure out what is being said.

I have read very little this year. Running an PnP RPG campaign for the first time in about two decades has sucked up an immense amount of my time, and while it has involved a great deal of reading, I'm not going to start adding rule books to my list.
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Re: Books Read 2013

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Both books finished, working on Intellectual Morons: How Ideology Makes Smart People Dumb

Here's the Amazon blurb:
Why do well-educated antiwar activists call the president of the United States “the new Hitler” and argue that the U.S. government orchestrated the September 11 attacks?

Why does Al Gore believe that cars pose “a mortal threat to the security of every nation”?

Why does the Princeton professor known as the father of the animal rights movement object to humans eating animals but not to humans having sex with them—and why does PETA defend that position?

In other words, why do smart people fall for stupid ideas?

The answer, Daniel J. Flynn reveals in Intellectual Morons, is ideology. Flynn, the author of Why the Left Hates America, shows how people can be so blinded to reality by the causes they serve that they espouse bizarre, sometimes ridiculous, and often dangerous positions. The most influential social movements have spawned ideologues who do not care whether an idea is good or bad, true or false, but only whether it can serve their cause.

It is startling how many Americans—and particularly how many media, academic, and political elites—fall for bad ideas. The trouble is, their lies become institutionalized as truth, and we all suffer as a result.
This is a re-read, and from what I recall, Flynn's writing style is not that easy to take, as he tends to cite only the most egregious cases to support his view, but those are pretty funny. They also apply to some of my hobby: behavioral economics, i.e. how we make stupid money decisions. :D
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WYBaugh
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by WYBaugh »

Finished The Scar by Sergey and Marina Dyachenko

This was a good read if not a predictable and being beat over the head with the main subject matter. A synopsis of the story would be a rich a-hole kills a beautiful woman's student fiance in a duel, pisses a 'god' off and he scars the a-hole and makes him a coward. The next 1/3 of the book is establishing just how far his cowardice runs in great detail. The remainder of the book covers his redemption.

It is a very flowing, pretty calm read. It's more of a love story with a little fantasy thrown in...but that's not a bad thing if you're in the mood.
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Isgrimnur »

The Lying Stones of Marrakech: Penultimate Reflections in Natural History by Stephen Jay Gould

Saw it at the library on a walkthrough and picked it out. Not being the strongest in the finer points of natural history, some of it was punching a bit above my weight in the subject, but I enjoyed stretching a little bit. As you would expect, it's chock full of Darwin references, but also covers a wide variety of historical figures to boot,

One thing I find interesting that I probably need to explore more is the history of science. How did we get to where we are now before all of the scientific discoveries required university or corporate labs to find?

For now, I've got a bunch more history books on deck. On to learning about the rise of Germany as a world power.
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silverjon
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by silverjon »

Isgrimnur wrote:One thing I find interesting that I probably need to explore more is the history of science. How did we get to where we are now before all of the scientific discoveries required university or corporate labs to find?
Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
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Isgrimnur
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Isgrimnur »

Dropped in my To-read list. Thanks.
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silverjon
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by silverjon »

Pleased to. It's a great read and fits the bill precisely.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

Why Men Fake It: The Truth About Men and Sex by Abraham Morgentaler, MD :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky: :binky:

Mostly, it seems, sex talk always revolves around the woman. Whether it's theories on how best to please them, or their issues with the inadequacies of men, there is always a woman's viewpoint somewhere in the discussion. After all, men, when was the last time you were hanging out with the guys and topic of penile rigidity came up? We might often joke about the use of Vigara and other medical miracles, but how many will admit to their peers that they take this most popular of medications?

Fortunately, we have Dr. Morgantaler to discuss these things and relate to us anecdotal case studies from his career as a specialist in the fascinating field of male sexuality. Surgeon, therapist, and quite possibly the most interesting guy at a bachelorette party, Dr. Morgantaler has put together quite a career as the go-to guy when one's junk doesn't perform like it used to. Or even like it never did.

The title story is about a guy who faked his orgasms just so his hot girlfriend would think she did her job. From here, Morgantaler explains how in many cases, men are obsessed with bringing the female to orgasm, often to the point where their own pleasure suffers. Some of the stories in this book are heart-wrenching; a guy suffering from a second case of twisted testicles just as he was on a vacation with his dream date. He somehow played through the pain, which typically is bad enough to compel most men to go to the hospital immediately. But his heroic effort left him with two dead testicles, and his dream date wanted to have children above all else. It was not a happy ending, although the heroic effort to find living sperm to attempt a (failed) artificial insemination is a testament to Dr. Morgentaler's skill.

Fascination aside, I found this book to be of interest as well. Many of his case studies involved men in the 50+ demographic (which I am a member). While my body hasn't failed me yet, I found myself identifying with some of these men who miss the virility of their youth. It's nice to know that if I find it necessary, there is medical recourse should age and other medical conditions such as diabetes wreak havoc on my libido and performance. It's nice to know it probably won't be necessary to hire a stunt-double.
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Jeff V
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Jeff V »

The Gunslinger by Stephen King :binky: :binky: :binky:

Recently I was in a need to spend a few audiobook credits at emusic and I saw they now have the whole Dark Tower series. I figured to give it a go; I like serial books and this would keep my brain busy as biking and running ramp up with the spring season.

I know it must get better. I like King as a writer, and even his duller stories catch on after a while. The Gunslinger, alas, never did. I don't know if it was the setting, the mood, or trying to establish just a few characters while seeming to kill off a bunch more. Or maybe because it is short for a typical King book. I already have the next book in the series and will start it up shortly -- this wouldn't be the first time the initial book of a series failed to resonate with me but perseverance made me a fan in later books. Hopefully, that will be the case again.
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Scuzz
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Re: Books Read 2013

Post by Scuzz »

silverjon wrote:I read the Calvin and Hobbes 10th anniversary collection (from 1995!). Strips and storylines selected by Bill Watterson, with his commentary. Interesting, though in the intervening years things like his views on licensing have become fairly publicized so it wasn't all revelatory.

What really struck me though was how much he put into arguing comic strips as an art form, if their creators treat them as such, but he also tosses off a comment about comic books being "incredibly stupid".

Maybe comic books were all incredibly stupid in 1995.
I probably have that although I don't remember if I read it or not.
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