Whatcha readin now? (book, books, reading, read) (3 Viewers)

[kupcho1]

I really enjoyed 1934's Pulitzer Prize winning Lamb in His Bosom by Caroline Miller. It's a story about rural Georgia from about 1820 through 1865. However, the Civil War is an extremely minor topic in the book ("But when the war broke with the Yankees..." is on page 342 of a 358 page book). It is more the story of Cean Carver, starting on the day of her marriage and capturing a - if the aftwerword is to be believed - very accurate portrayal of life in rural Georgia at that time.

Margaret Mitchell blurbed: "Your book is undoubtedly the greatest that ever came out of the South about Southern people, and it is my favorite book." I'm inclined to agree. Mitchell's book is on the list (1937) and I think I liked Miller's better. GWTW's good, but probably enhanced by the movie.

Anyway, 40 down, 58 to go.
Next up: Now in November by Josephine Winslow Johnson.

 

[lsutigers]

The Man Who Broke Capitalism by David Gelles (2022) - https://www.amazon.com/Man-Who-Broke-Capitalism-America_and/dp/198217644X

I know the hindsight view when we look at Jack Welch's legacy/impact is pretty damning but I'm still finding this to be a fascinating read. Not anything groundbreaking but really ties the post WWII view on employees, corporations, etc. into the 80's/90's (mostly the 80's) shifting towards positive fiscal reporting; for those in the US, away from manufacturing and making things to financial wizardry, offshoring and acquisitions and how it took off for other giant companies.

Was a gut check for me because I've found the 20/70/10 employee model to be fairly consistent across employers and still held him in some regard (in business; not as a person because he was clearly a gigantic POS while he walked the earth.)

 

[shuke]

The Invention of Sound by Chuck Palahniuk. It's been a while since I've read anything of his, not sure why I've put it off. This is dark, and typically absurd. I enjoyed it, but I'm still collecting my thoughts on the end. I think some of the narrative was purposely unreliable. If anyone wants to discuss I'd like to.

Next up is Dune. Have never read it.

 

[Eephus]

1933's The Store by T.S. Stribling

So I'm reading this book on-line as my library doesn't have it. I'm rolling along and come to a stop. "This preview does not include pages 26 - 29" What? Apparently the book isn't (fully) available on google books either. Let's look elsewhere; perhaps I'll buy it.
Nope.
Cheapest option is $40. Most of the available inventory are hundreds if not thousands of dollars for 1st editions, signed copies, etc.

I guess I will skip this one for now. In the event I live long enough to finish all of the others, I plan on purchasing the book and closing out the series with it.

You can borrow it from the Internet Archive if you don't mind renewing it every hour

The store : T.S. Stribling : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

archive.org

 

[PIK95]

Have an hour or two left on my second Wheel of Time reread in 18 months. Read all the Foundation books and some other stuff during that time. May start Narnia or some other classic Scifi this weekend if anyone has any ideas.

 

[PIK95]

Next up is Dune. Have never read it.

Read a bunch of those and enjoyed them. It's been a lil while now. I may still have the files if u need.

 

[SWC]

finishing rereading on the road by keroak still one of my faves take that to the bank bromigos

 

[shuke]

Next up is Dune. Have never read it.

Read a bunch of those and enjoyed them. It's been a lil while now. I may still have the files if u need.

Thanks but just going to try one at a time. I started the other night as I was really tired and was confused after the first paragraph so went to sleep.

 

[kupcho1]

Bleak.

That's my 1 word summary of 1935's winner Now in November by Josephine Winslow Johnson. Unrelentingly bleak, if you need 2 words.

Queue Stefon: It's got everything: suicide, the Dust Bowl, depression (both mental and economic), unrequited love, fire, burn victims, poverty.
Hell, even the passage about a birthday celebration ends with the death of the family dog. By knife.

Although well written, this might have been the most depressing book I've ever read. It makes McCarthy's The Road seem like a Bob Hope/Bing Crosby road picture.

41 down, 57 to go.
Next up: Honey in the Horn by H.L. Davis

 

[Don Quixote]

Currently reading Percival Everett’s James. Huck Finn told from the perspective of Jim. So good. Early favorite for book of the year.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Although well written, this might have been the most depressing book I've ever read. It makes McCarthy's The Road seem like a Bob Hope/Bing Crosby road picture.

I'm pretty sure I've never read this and now I know I'm not going to.

 

[Sand]

Next up is Dune. Have never read it.

Read a bunch of those and enjoyed them. It's been a lil while now. I may still have the files if u need.

Thanks but just going to try one at a time. I started the other night as I was really tired and was confused after the first paragraph so went to sleep.

Perfect time for chess moves...

 

[kupcho1]

I just finished Honey in the Horn by H.L. Davis, the 1936 Pulitzer Prize winner. What a great book. It's the story of Oregon in the homesteading period: 1906-1908. Told mainly through the eyes of Clay Calvert, its a little bit analogous to Arrowsmith (Sinclair Lewis) the winner from 10 years previous in that instead of outlining pretty much everything a doctor might experience (Arrowsmith), Honey in the Horn covers everything a homesteader in turn of the 20th century Oregon might experience.

From the jacket cover, The Christian Science Monitor thought it smacked of Bret Harte, Mark Twain -- and Paul Bunyan. I don't get the Paul Bunyan refernce as it isn't a tall tale, nor do I get the Bret Harte allusion as I've not ready him. However, I think the Twain comparison is apt. Let me share a brief passage:

"The proprietor was generally a man who was not able to make a living without that extra revenue, and in most cases he was afflicted by some handicap like a missing limb or twelve children or political ambitions or weakmindedness. The handicap of Clay's employer was piety."

Anyway, strong recommendation on this one.

Next up would be Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, but I've read that already. Instead, I've signed up for the Internet Archive (thanks @Eephus !) and I'll read The Store the 1933 winner by T. S. Stribling.

42 down/56 to go

 

[PIK95]

Starting Eye of the World AGAIN, lol. I think this will be my third read through, but possibly it's the fourth. I love the Wheel of Time books so much, why does the TV series have to suxor so bad?

 

[HoTnickZ]

Last few fiction books I've read...

The Woman in the Window
Dark Matter
No Exit
The Kind Worth Killing

Suspense my go to genre for an escape, easy reads which you can breeze through

 

[kupcho1]

I finally managed to finish The Store, the 1933 winner by T. S. Stribling. I don't know how you guys that use Kindles or other electronic methods can do it. Having to read this book on-line went at a snail's pace (and I'm probably doing a disservice to snails).

Anyway, it was not like Confederacy of Dunces as I foolishly though based on the hilarious first passage. But it wasn't bad. Turns out it is the 2nd book in the Aiden trilogy (I did a little research after finishing the book). I don't think you need to read the other books to get this one. It is a pretty straightforward story about the Reconstruction/post-Reconstruction south (Alabama). But given how hard it is to find, I would not recommend it.

Now, back to chronological order: 1938's The Late George Apley: A Novel in the Form of a Memoir by J.P. Marquand

 

[TheFatKid]

Area 51, An uncensored history of America’s Top Secret Military Base by Annie Jacobsen

I listened to an interview with Annie on Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History about her new book on nuclear weapons, it sounded fascinating. Local library doesn’t have the nuke book yet so I took a shot at this one. I could probably learned all this watching the History channel but I knew basically nothing about the U2 spy plane, Ox Cart program, and drone development. Really enjoyed this book and plan on reading her book about the CIA. This is not my normal reading topic, but I’m hooked now.

 

[beer 30]

Area 51, An uncensored history of America’s Top Secret Military Base by Annie Jacobsen

I listened to an interview with Annie on Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History about her new book on nuclear weapons, it sounded fascinating. Local library doesn’t have the nuke book yet so I took a shot at this one. I could probably learned all this watching the History channel but I knew basically nothing about the U2 spy plane, Ox Cart program, and drone development. Really enjoyed this book and plan on reading her book about the CIA. This is not my normal reading topic, but I’m hooked now.

Me too, I ordered all her books. Starting with the most recent one in a few weeks, Nuclear War.

 

[TheFatKid]

Area 51, An uncensored history of America’s Top Secret Military Base by Annie Jacobsen

I listened to an interview with Annie on Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History about her new book on nuclear weapons, it sounded fascinating. Local library doesn’t have the nuke book yet so I took a shot at this one. I could probably learned all this watching the History channel but I knew basically nothing about the U2 spy plane, Ox Cart program, and drone development. Really enjoyed this book and plan on reading her book about the CIA. This is not my normal reading topic, but I’m hooked now.

Me too, I ordered all her books. Starting with the most recent one in a few weeks, Nuclear War.

Awesome can’t wait to hear back as to what you think. I’m getting the cia book tonight.

 

[massraider]

Reading

Currently reading Origin by Dan Brown

Reading this now. His thrillers always come from interesting concept, this one definitely qualifies

 

[kupcho1]

I just finished The Late George Apley: A Novel in the Form of a Memoir by John Phillips Marquand, the 1938 Pulitzer Prize winner. I went into the book without doing any research into either the novel or the author. Initially, I really hated it. It wasn't over the top in terms of highlighting the virtues of the upper class Bostonian, but it was a near thing. After a chapter or two, I thought: this has to be satire. But if it was, it had such a light touch as to make me wonder.
Turns out, it was satire and to that end, pretty well done. I'm not sure the author intended this reader to hate Boston, the upper class, Harvard, closed-minded individuals as much as I did, but that was the end result.
If you are a Bostonian, you'll probably love this book, particularly if you're from the "bluestocking" class.
That's 44 down, 54 to go.

Next up: one I've at least heard of, The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

 

[kupcho1]

Currently reading Origin by Dan Brown

Whenever I think of Dan Brown, I think of The Dan Brown Code from way back in 2004.

 

[Don Quixote]

“Cloud Cuckoo Land” by Anthony Doerr is a mess of a book. Enjoyed “All the Light We Cannot See.” For this one, he tried weaving together about five different stories over different timelines and just a jumbled monstrosity of a novel.

 

[The Dreaded Marco]

I just finished Honey in the Horn by H.L. Davis, the 1936 Pulitzer Prize winner. What a great book. It's the story of Oregon in the homesteading period: 1906-1908. Told mainly through the eyes of Clay Calvert, its a little bit analogous to Arrowsmith (Sinclair Lewis) the winner from 10 years previous in that instead of outlining pretty much everything a doctor might experience (Arrowsmith), Honey in the Horn covers everything a homesteader in turn of the 20th century Oregon might experience.

From the jacket cover, The Christian Science Monitor thought it smacked of Bret Harte, Mark Twain -- and Paul Bunyan. I don't get the Paul Bunyan refernce as it isn't a tall tale, nor do I get the Bret Harte allusion as I've not ready him. However, I think the Twain comparison is apt. Let me share a brief passage:

"The proprietor was generally a man who was not able to make a living without that extra revenue, and in most cases he was afflicted by some handicap like a missing limb or twelve children or political ambitions or weakmindedness. The handicap of Clay's employer was piety."

Anyway, strong recommendation on this one.

My grandfather was born in Canyon City, OR and met my grandmother in John Day, OR. They essentially were my surrogate parents-----they relayed so many stories to me about their time in eastern Oregon before moving to Portland and then Seattle. My wife and I finally spent a couple days in that region a few years ago and have been wanting to go back for more time.

My wife is an author who reads voraciously and is a big fan of this novel. She has been recommending it for me for a long time. I'm going to read it next. I'm sad that I haven't read it already.

Thanks for mentioning it.


I just started reading The Ratline: The Exalted Life and Mysterious Death of a Nazi Fugitive by Phillipe Sands.
Super interesting so far.

 

[TheFatKid]

Surprise, Kill, Vanish The Secret History of the CIA paramilitary armies, operators, and assassins by Annie Jacobsen

Probably a hard book to write since so much is classified and as a former Director of the Counter Terrorism Center so much was off verbal orders and never written down.

I like her Area 51 book a little better as I felt this one meandered a little bit getting into the secret service, which was interesting, but felt like a long tangent.

 

[Eephus]

I always alternate between fiction and non-fiction so I've moved onto Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism and the World by Malcolm Harris. It's a Marxist history of Silicon Valley that stirred up some controversy when it was published last year.

It took me forever to make it through the 700+ pages of this one. It started off promisingly with the native Ohlone and the gold rush and robber barons. The story of Leland Stanford and the founding of his university was fascinating. The author started going off in multiple directions around the time of Herbert Hoover tying conservative politics, the military and the birth of silicon valley. The book went into way too much detail about 1960s campus political groups before a critical look at big tech. It was a provocative take but not a totally convincing one.

My last two books have been very long so I'm taking a palate cleanser with a quick work of fiction. I enjoyed E.L. Doctorow's Ragtime.as a teenager so we'll see what's changed in nearly 50 years.