What have you read recently?

[aja8888]

Gods of Money: Wall Street and the Death of the American Century

Author

F. William Engdahl

This book will open your eyes.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I am not having a good week of reading. First the awful "Artemis" and now the ridiculously absurd and boring, "I Am Watching You" by Teresa Driscoll. "I Am Watching You" has over 28,000 ratings on Amazon and has an average score of 4.4 out of 5 stars. I am dumbfounded at these high ratings.

On a train going to London a woman in her 40’s, Ella, overhears a couple of high school girls flirting with a couple of young men, guys maybe 19 or 20 years old who say they just got out of prison. Ella thinks she should intervene, track down and call the girl’s parents and warn them. But she doesn’t call and learns early the next morning via a TV news report that one of the girls, Anna, is missing.
Ella begins to feel guilty for not calling the parents. (This all happens in the first few pages and is on the book jacket, so hardly spoilers.)

Can you spot the absurd goings-on in that short, one paragraph description?

1. Who calls the parents of teenagers you've never met because they are flirting with guys?
2. How are you going to find the parent's phone number?
3. How can Ella see a TV news report about the missing girl Anna, early the very next morning? Anna has not even been missing 10 hours by that time. The police won't be involved yet, so no news story is possible.
4. Why can't the police find these two young men? The police have names, physical descriptions, they bought a train ticket at a known location, and were supposedly just released FROM PRISON!
5. There are cameras everywhere in England, esp. London. Surely there are cameras at the train stations, on the train, etc.

Still, I slogged on, and slogging it was. The author introduces a half dozen new characters and goes into in-depth characterizations of each of them. Each new chapter is about a different character, rotating between them. Most of these characters have nothing to do with Anna's disappearance. For example, we learn excruciating minutiae about Ella's florist shop. (Flowers are to this book what welding was to "Artemis".) We learn about how Anna's 18 year old brother has gotten a 16 year old girl pregnant. We learn about a private investigator's wife's pregnancy and her giving birth to a little girl. None of these people are remotely connected to the missing girl.

Then the author starts to do something very disingenuous. Starts to drop cliffhanger teasers at the end of almost every chapter, goading the reader to keep going. Things like, “Anna’s father knew he had to confess to the truth, but not yet…” or “Sarah’s going to have to tell the police what really happened to Anna that night in London”, “She’s going to have to tell the police about the text she received from her dad that night” or “he’s going to have to tell his wife why Anna found him disgusting”. My interest somewhat rekindled I keep reading and reading waiting for an explanation of these hints but no explanation comes, just more teasers or repeats of previous teasers. In disgust I quit the book at the 55% mark.

 

[ER Eddie]

The Daily Stoic, by Ryan Holliday. This is good. Better than I expected. My expectations for "thought-of-the-day" books is pretty low, since most of them have quotes followed by the author adding things that only subtract. This is different. The quotes are good, and so is Holliday's commentary.

Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium, by Bart Ehrman. Ehrman is pretty good at communicating scholarly findings to laypeople without a lot of academic jargon. Still, he provides too much detail for my taste, so I skipped over several chapters. The book is valuable, though, for anyone interested in learning about Jesus as an apocalypticist.

The City and the Stars, by Arthur C. Clarke. I really enjoyed reading Clarke when I was a kid, so I thought I'd revisit him. This novel just put me to sleep, though, quite literally. Every time I would read it, I'd doze off within a few minutes. Eventually, it picked up, and I made it to the end. But I found the whole thing rather ponderous. It didn't impact me in any way.

The Complete Stories of Isaac Asimov. Asimov was another SF writer I enjoyed as a kid, so he is the second author I'm revisiting in my old age. I find his writing much more agreeable than Clarke's. He's a much better storyteller, and he has a light touch that Clarke doesn't. I wouldn't say the stories are great, but they're entertaining, at least to me.

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, by David Wroblewski. This was a good one -- beautifully written, with a few well-drawn characters (including dogs) in an isolated natural setting. It was a bit slow at first, but in the end, I loved it. It's more "literature" than "fiction," if you know what I mean -- more for serious readers, not someone looking for a light, entertaining read. But it's the best piece of fiction (er, literature) that I've read this year.

 

[ProspectiveBum]

I just finished Project Hail Mary. Like others, I enjoyed it, but it’s not nearly as good as The Martian. Based on the feedback here, I’ll give Artemis a pass.

 

[Timeisprecious]

I'm somewhat surprised that most of my reading the first 18 months of my retirement has been online, but I recently decided to work on that. I'm currently working through a gem I recently found in a second-hand bookstore titled, "Secret Lives of the Civil War: What Your Teachers Never Told You About the War Between the States." Did you know that the Confederate General James Longstreet fought the battle of Antietam wearing CARPET SLIPPERS?

 

[blueskyk]

I just finished “Economics in One Virus: An Introduction to Economic Reasoning through COVID-19” which I found to be a fascinating and informative read.

It’s sort of an intro to economics via the case study of Covid (just in case you hadn’t had quite enough of all things Covid). Recommended by Tyler Cowen if you follow his Marginal Revolution blog.

I’m also enjoying “The Gospels”, a new translation by Sarah Ruden - nothing like getting a fresh take on parables you think you know.

 

[donheff]

"Fleischman is in Trouble" is an interesting first novel by a woman who writes for the NYT magazine. This is a Portnoy's Complaint-esque novel about midlife crises among upper crust New Yorkers. You will likely either toss it after 50 pages because none of the characters are appealing or you will find it morbidly compelling as did I. It is ostensibly about a neurotic 40 something divorcing doctor who appears to have been treated like crap by his highly successful wife. But the narrator slowly emerges as an old friend who he met on a year abroad in Israel right after college. She has her own problems which also emerge as do the obnoxious wife's. By the end we see that this story is more about the tribulations of the women than the men but we also see that there is no single point of view over this mess of life. I couldn't empathize with these characters but still liked the book.

 

[Markola]

What have you read recently? 2021

Am enjoying “Innocent,” the follow up to “Presumed Innocent” by Scott Doctorow.

And am enjoying NOT reading the news. I took all the news apps off my devices. Bliss!

 

[CoolRich59]

I'm somewhat surprised that most of my reading the first 18 months of my retirement has been online, but I recently decided to work on that. I'm currently working through a gem I recently found in a second-hand bookstore titled, "Secret Lives of the Civil War: What Your Teachers Never Told You About the War Between the States." Did you know that the Confederate General James Longstreet fought the battle of Antietam wearing CARPET SLIPPERS?

Yes. I read a lot of history and am always fascinated by these anecdotes and the odd events that impact history.

A year or do ago, I read Ron Chernow’s “Grant”. Not only was it an outstanding work, but I learned that Lincoln’s assassination was made possible by his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln.

It seems that Mrs. Lincoln was very imperious and condescending, especially to those she considered her social inferiors. As the wife of the Union’s top general, Grant’s wife Julia, had spent several evenings enduring slights from the President’s wife.

On April 14, 1865, Abe invited the Grants to accompany the Lincolns to the theater; Grant accepted. According to Chernow, when told of the accepted invitation by her husband, Julia Grant pleaded with him to find an excuse not to go as she could not bear another evening with Mrs. Lincoln.

Grant acceded and sent Lincoln his regrets. If Grant had been at Ford’s Theater, there would have been a military security detail there to protect him and it’s unlikely John Wilkes Booth could have gotten past them and into the President’s box.

 

[CoolRich59]

Am enjoying “Innocent,” the follow up to “Presumed Innocent” by Scott Doctorow.

I assume you mean Scott Turow?

 

[51notout]

What have you read recently? 2021

2030: How Today’s Biggest Trends will Collide and Reshape the Future of Everything.

By Mauro F Guillen

Just finished this book. I enjoyed it a lot. It is basically the authors’ thoughts on various trends such as population shifts, climate change, economies, banking etc. and how they might converge by 2030.

Well worth a read IMO

ETA: this book has a positive slant in that the author thinks each trend can be beneficial with some lateral thinking.

 

[John Galt III]

"Why Orwell Matters" by Christopher Hitchens. A critique of George Orwell's writings. Interesting insider look into political intelligencia of Britain back in the day.

 

[John Galt III]

"Fleischman is in Trouble" is an interesting first novel by a woman who writes for the NYT magazine. This is a Portnoy's Complaint-esque novel about midlife crises among upper crust New Yorkers. You will likely either toss it after 50 pages because none of the characters are appealing or you will find it morbidly compelling as did I. It is ostensibly about a neurotic 40 something divorcing doctor who appears to have been treated like crap by his highly successful wife. But the narrator slowly emerges as an old friend who he met on a year abroad in Israel right after college. She has her own problems which also emerge as do the obnoxious wife's. By the end we see that this story is more about the tribulations of the women than the men but we also see that there is no single point of view over this mess of life. I couldn't empathize with these characters but still liked the book.

Thank you for this. Finally someone besides Roth and Bellow. I've read all their stuff. My library has Fleishman in stock. Will pick it up. I think I will like it.

 

[sengsational]

Spoon-Fed: Why Almost Everything We've Been Told About Food is Wrong

I picked this up because I'd heard of Spector through the gut microbiome reading I've done. We get a lot of specifics as to why the government guidelines are way out of whack (regulatory capture, bad science, etc). We are reminded again about how bad the reporting is on scientific studies, and how the headlines are mostly wrong.

The most annoying thing to me is that Spector seems to be overly concerned with the impact food has on the environment, multiplying the food choice by the world's population. Of course that's not going to happen. So given the concern about saving the planet, the healthly eating recommendations are suspect. But he's got something negative to say about everything, including vegetarian/vegan eating.

He references a lot of scientific studies to debunk supplements, including fish oil and vitamin D. The problem with that there might be cherry picking in this kind of interpretation of data exercise, so I don't know what to believe. If it weren't for his ecology bent, I might be quicker to accept the food advice.

 

[anethum]

I recently read 3 novels. I highly recommend Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny. Set in a small town in northern Michigan, Heiny weaves an entertaining story with a memorable cast of characters. I really enjoyed her writing, which was occasionally quite humorous.

I also liked Infinite Country by Patricia Engel. It's a short tale about a family from Colombia who come to the US legally but overstay their visas. Two kids are later born in the US, and the family is later split up with a US-born daughter and her father returning to Colombia. (the book begins with the daughter & father in Colombia)

I was disappointed by Real Life by Brandon Taylor, a novel short-listed for the Booker Prize (American authors are now eligible). I found the writing tedious and the book poorly edited. I'm surprised the book was seriously considered for the Booker Prize.

 

[Kook]

Just finished The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I can't decide if it was the best ending ever or the worst ending ever. Still pondering.....


Also finished Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King a couple of weeks ago. Not his normal horror type book but I enjoyed it.

 

[harley]

Finally, after numerous attempts over a few decades, made it through The Gunslinger by Stephen King. It's the first book of his Dark Tower series. It really isn't very good, but I've read that many of the other books are excellent. So I made it through, and now I'll find out if it was worth it.

Hopefully it will be like Dune. I tried reading that a bunch of times, but couldn't finish until someone told me that if you make it past the first couple hundred pages it gets great. And it did. So I'm crossing my fingers on the rest of the Dark Tower series.

 

[Kook]

Finally, after numerous attempts over a few decades, made it through The Gunslinger by Stephen King. It's the first book of his Dark Tower series. It really isn't very good, but I've read that many of the other books are excellent. So I made it through, and now I'll find out if it was worth it.

Hopefully it will be like Dune. I tried reading that a bunch of times, but couldn't finish until someone told me that if you make it past the first couple hundred pages it gets great. And it did. So I'm crossing my fingers on the rest of the Dark Tower series.

I too struggled with the Gunslinger. If I remember correctly, he wrote that book several years before he resumed the series and I thought each book got progressively better. Much better. After I finally finished the Gunslinger, I thought, "meh". I waited a year or two.... and then started the second book. After that, I read the rest of the series back to back. He starts incorporating characters from some of his other books into the series as well. Keep on....I don't think you will be disappointed.

 

[mboley]

Rock Me On The Water by Ron Brownstein is excellent, especially if you are 60+ and grew up in SoCal.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

"American Dialogue: The Founders and Us" by Joseph J. Ellis. The Pulitzer prize-winning historian takes a critical look at the lives of the architects of our nation. Don't read it if you don't want your preconceptions rocked.

 

[ProspectiveBum]

Finally, after numerous attempts over a few decades, made it through The Gunslinger by Stephen King. It's the first book of his Dark Tower series. It really isn't very good, but I've read that many of the other books are excellent. So I made it through, and now I'll find out if it was worth it.

Hopefully it will be like Dune. I tried reading that a bunch of times, but couldn't finish until someone told me that if you make it past the first couple hundred pages it gets great. And it did. So I'm crossing my fingers on the rest of the Dark Tower series.

The Gunslinger is the only work of King’s I haven’t read. I gave up on it after 50 pages or so. I’ll have to force myself to plow through it. Dune’s on that list, too.

 

[donheff]

Truly Like Lightning, by David Duchovny (X-Files), is surprisingly good. A hard living stunt man inherits a huge hunk of desert provided he first converts to Mormonism. In the process he becomes obsessed with Joseph Smith and embraces his own radical interpretation of Smith’s vision. Duchovny can get a bit wordy exploring that vision but he spins some interesting characters and a compelling plot.

 

[dixonge]

Humankind by Rutger Bregman


https://www.amazon.com/Humankind-Hopeful-History-Rutger-Bregman/dp/0316418536


This book challenges some of the most fundamental assumptions of human nature. I found it extremely thought-provoking and challenging.

 

[John Galt III]

"Fleischman is in Trouble" is an interesting first novel by a woman who writes for the NYT magazine. This is a Portnoy's Complaint-esque novel about midlife crises among upper crust New Yorkers. You will likely either toss it after 50 pages because none of the characters are appealing or you will find it morbidly compelling as did I. It is ostensibly about a neurotic 40 something divorcing doctor who appears to have been treated like crap by his highly successful wife. But the narrator slowly emerges as an old friend who he met on a year abroad in Israel right after college. She has her own problems which also emerge as do the obnoxious wife's. By the end we see that this story is more about the tribulations of the women than the men but we also see that there is no single point of view over this mess of life. I couldn't empathize with these characters but still liked the book.

I'm two thirds of the way thru this. I like it. In the first 20 pages I was thinking of not reading any more, since the style was such a clone of Philip Roth. But I stuck with it, and the author turned out to have her own style, her own version of 'Jewish New Yorker neurotic intellectual trying to live life to the fullest, and in the right way, pleasing both him/her self and others'. IE, frustration and drama. I found the characters of the divorcing doctor and his wife likable, who knows why, lol. It's a page-turner for me.

 

[51notout]

What have you read recently? 2021

The Future of Humanity: by Michio Kaku

Finished this a few days ago. It’s about terraforming Mars, interstellar travel, immortality and our destiny beyond earth. Surprisingly readable and interesting topics. I liked it a lot.