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Book Thread number ?

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erin said:
Downloaded the free Kindle edition (free yesterday & today, Saturday) of Miles from Home: A True Story of the Choices that Define Us. Hope I don't cry.
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I read this in one night last month. I did get a little emotional toward the end, but that's okay. Decent read, and of course a near and dear thing for me.

Still reading Black Mass, which I love whenever I pick it up, but I've just been plain busy lately. Need to make time for it.
 
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ShirtlessBob said:
French Kids Eat Everything by Karen LeBillon. It's about this family who moved to France for a year and ended up overhauling their eating habits considerably.
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I'll have to put this on my list of books to check out, sounds interesting, thanks! :)
 
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I swear someone mentioned this earlier, but a longtime friend has recommended "The Greatest Generation" (or a similar title). He loves it, and he maybe reads a book every 5-7 years (no, not kidding).
 
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erin said:
I'll have to put this on my list of books to check out, sounds interesting, thanks! :)
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It was very good; I learned a few things that I'm going to apply to my own life.

Checked out Julie and Julia by Julie Powell from the library. In the movie, Powell is a sympathetic figure, but in my reading so far, she comes off like a total b-tch.
 
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ShirtlessBob said:
It was very good; I learned a few things that I'm going to apply to my own life.

Checked out Julie and Julia by Julie Powell from the library. In the movie, Powell is a sympathetic figure, but in my reading so far, she comes off like a total b-tch.
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Very cool!

& Julie & Julia... yeah, I've not read the book, my sister has, & she was telling me how totally unlikable she was as a person. The movie shows her in a much better light.
 
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erin said:
Very cool!

& Julie & Julia... yeah, I've not read the book, my sister has, & she was telling me how totally unlikable she was as a person. The movie shows her in a much better light.
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And further reading only confirms this. I'll finish the book, then look for some further reading on Julia Child.
 
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The wife and I read Left to Tell, an amazing story of a Tutsi woman who survived the Rwandan genocide. And just finishing Heaven is for Real about a little boy's near death experiences in small town Nebraska. Both good reads.

Oh, and we've been reading a number of baby and fostering books from the library.
 
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My Recent reads

Dexter by Design by Jeff Lindsay The fourth of the Dexter books starts with a killer who is posing his kills in various parts of Miami. When Dexter’s sister Debra starts to investigate she is brutally attacked and almost killed. Dexter goes out after her attacker and doesn’t follow his usual caution putting himself and his new family at risk. Can he stop the killer before his secret is revealed? This book continues the evolution of Astor and Cody as budding serial killers and develops the Dexter character a little more. Okay read.

Prior Bad Acts by Tami Hoag This latest Liska and Kovac book by Hoag starts with a judge making a ruling on a particularly gruesome murder case excluding any “prior bad acts” made by the accused. That day after leaving the courthouse the judge making the ruling is brutally attacked and almost killed. Also that same day the accused murderer escapes from jail. Amidst the chaos that ensues the judge is kidnapped and various other players in the case are being threatened and attacked. Who is responsible; the escaped prisoner, the family of the victims, the cop whose case was exposed or the judge’s husband with a shady past. Nice investigative story with some good twists and turns.

The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury This book opens with 4 Templar knights far removed from the 14th century robbing a Papal exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Archaeologist Tess Chaykin is drawn into the investigation why the theft, why dressed as Templars. As the men involved in the heist start to turn up dead Tess and FBI agent Sean Reilly search to find what the thieves were after a dark deep Templar secret that the Vatican wants hidden forever? A nice blend of history and intrique. A good first effort from Khoury.

The Templar Salvation by Raymond Khoury This second effort from Khoury once again finds Tess Chaykin and Sean Reilly in search of a Templar treasure. This time they are seeking to keep it from being found by an Iranian agent who is seeking to through the Christian world into chaos. Lots of non stop action as they seek to find the treasure and keep the world safe.

I Michael Bennett by James Patterson This latest Michael Bennett novel from Patterson finds him arresting one of Mexico’s deadliest drug lords. The drug lord threatens to wage war on the US until he is free. Judges and cops are murdered bombs are set off and Michael Bennett is targeted as he seeks to bring justice while keeping himself and his family alive. A cliffhanger in this book but pretty good non-stop action.

Down the Darkest Road by Tami Hoag This latest installment in Hoag’s Oak Knoll series find a newcomer to Oak Knoll being stalked. It turns out the stalker is the man who police believe abducted and murdered her daughter years before. With her other daughter now around the same age she wonders what will happen. Tony Mendez starts to investigate to see if the man was truly guilty and stalking her. Some nice twists and turns in Hoag’s throwback series to the days before computers and cell phones.

The Litigators by John Grisham This is Grisham’s best effort in a while in my opinion. It follow the law career of David Zinc who walks burns out and walks away from a big downtown firm to the 2 man firm of Finley and Figg two lawyers who give ambulance chasers a bad name. Joining up with them and getting involved in a large class action suit he is forced to take on the heavy hitters at his old firm to try to save his new firm. All along the way learning what Street Lawyering is and getting a taste of what it is like in a courtroom for the first time.

Confessional by Jack Higgins This book is the second Higgins book with Liam Devlin. The KGB has an assassin stirring up trouble in Ireland keeping the British and the IRA at each other’s throats. Devlin is the liaison between Charles Ferguson’s army and the IRA to root out the KGB mole. It ends with a chase across the UK as they seek to stop him from assassinating the Pope. Typical fast paced Higgins action.

The Mad Ones by Tom Folsum This book is an okay portrait of Crazy Joey Gallo it deals with his life but is quite short and doesn't go into great detail about the mob wars that he and his brothers led against the Columbo family. It dealt a lot more with his celebrity friends and avant garde lifestyle

The Ghost War by Alex Berenson The second John Wells book from Berenson follows two competing storyline someone is paying Russian troops to pay the Taliban in Afghanistan exacting a heavy toll on American troops. At the other end of Asia China is ramping up the pressure on the US by making a secret deal with Iran and flexing its muscle. Nonstop global action ensues as Wells attempts to stop WW III.

Henry Clay The Essential American by David and Jeanne Heidler A fabulous portrait of Henry Clay a 3 time loser for the Presidency avowed political enemy of Andrew Jackson. Architect of both the Missouri Compromise and the compromise of 1850 Clay made a major mark on the American political system. Elected to the Senate at age 29 he later went to the House of Representatives and became Speaker and one of the War Hawks of the War of 1812 and later served as a member of the negotiating team which ended the War. In 1824 he placed 4th in the race for the Presidency, he threw his support to John Quincy Adams who ended up defeating Andrew Jackson in the House. When Clay was appointed Secretary of State Jackson's supporters decried what they called "a corrupt bargain" between Clay and Adams. Clay’s second attempt at the presidency resulted in a large defeat by Jackson in 1832. Clay was one of the founding members of the Whig party, which sprung up in opposition to Jackson’s policies. He ran once more for the presidency in 1844 but was narrowly defeated by James Polk in an election marred with considerable voting fraud. Retired from politics he was persuaded to once again go to the Senate late in life and helped put forth many of the bills that Stephen Douglas would later craft into the Compromise of 1850. A longtime protector of the Union Clay would not live to see this last Compromise fall apart and end in Civil War. One of the lions of the Legislature Clay served alongside Daniel Webster and John Calhoun at a time when powerful member of the Senate and House had almost as much power as the President. An excellent well rounded biography telling Clay’s life from all sides and breaking apart many of the rumors and half-truths associated with him.
 
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Finished Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wihelm. Very good read about a post holocaust community that tries to use cloning to prolong the human race and how the society changes. An excellent read.

Next up is Glass Houses by Rachel Caine.

I changed jobs and went from a 15 minute commute to a hour commute so now I am listening to audio books to pass the time. So currently I am working my way through anything that remotely sounds interesting that I can download from my local library.
 
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House of Sand and Fog - Andre Dubus - liked it very much. Good general fiction read (have not seen the movie, but according to wiki, it has a slightly different ending that makes the girl more sympathetic than she is in the book)

Birds of America - Lorrie Moore - Depressing with a few witty moments. Collection of short stories, mostly good but some just strange - wouldn't read it again.

Now reading The Hotel New Hampshire by John Irving - enjoying it so far.
 
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The wife and I just finished "Same Kind of Different as Me." A touching story of how the lives of two people from very different backgrounds are brought together. We're starting into the first volume of the Zion Chronicles books and see how it goes.
 
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Checked out the "Cookbook Library" by Anne Willan. It's a history of cookbooks from the mid 1400s to the 1800s, showing how the cookbook evolved over the years. Fascinating read.
 
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Recent reads

The Silent Man by Alex Berenson Once again John Wells is called upon to save the United States from an attack. Somehow terrorists have stolen 2 nuclear warhead from Russia and are attempting to set them off during the State of the Union. Non-stop action across the globe, another good effort from Berenson.

Munson the life and death of a Yankee Captain by Marty Appel A candid biography of Yankee Captain Thurman Munson who was killed in a plane crash at only 32. A good look at Thurman’s troubled childhood, his career with the Yankees his death and his aftermath.

Lonely Planet Central Europe An okay travel guide. I bought this for a trip to Austria and Germany and the big drawback was they had a limited amount of sights listed in each town.

Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling The first of the Harry Potter series tells how the young wizard found out he had magically powers and how he first arrives as Hogwart’s Academy. It starts the story of how he meets his friends and enemies and his battle with Lord Voldemort.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling The second book in the Harry Potter series follows his adventures in the second year of school and his battle to uncover what is in the Chamber of Secrets.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling This book about Harry Potter’s third year at school follows Harry as he attempts to find out about Sirus Black a escaped convict who was involved in the killing of Harry’s parents. The school is surrounded by Dementors who while protecting the school also may be a danger to it.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling This book about Harry Potter’s fourth year finds Harry involved in the Tri wizard cup competing against other young wizards for the title. Unfortunately Lord Voldemort and his followers are using the tournament as a excuse to try and kill Harry. This book is where the series starts to turn dark.


Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix This is the 5th book of the Harry Potter series and probably the darkest. The Ministry of Magic doubts that Lord Voldemort has come back and is busy trying to discredit Dumbledore and Harry. The Order of the Phoenix has been organized to fight back against you know who. The ministry in spreading their influence to Hogwarts makes Harry’s 5th year difficult. At the end with a big battle at the Ministry of Magic they are forced to acknowledge that he is back.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Harry Potter is back for his 6thh year taking personal lessons from Dumbledore and learning background information on Lord Voldemort so he can fight him. Voldemort and his Death eaters are attempting to seize power. The end of the book has a climatic fight at the astronomy tower.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows The 7th and final Harry Potter book follows his final quest to destroy the Horcrux's of Lord Voldemort and find the Deadly Hallows so he can kill him. Quite a bit of dead reading in this book but great final chapters leading up to the climax. A little more in depth epilogue at the end would have been nice.

Beyond Bin Laden by Jon Meacham A series of essay’s about how the Arab world might be affected after the death of Osama Bin Laden. Detailing how Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Al Qaeda might be changed.

The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly An excellent legal thriller following the legal career of Mickey Haller who thinks that he has found a franchise client only to find out that the client may be guilty and more and even worse targeting him. A good novel with lots of nice twists and turns.

Inside the Nazi War Machine How Three Generals Unleashed Hitler’s Blitzkrieg upon the world This book details the invasion of France during World War II and how three Generals Rommel, Guderian and Von Manstein devised and executed the plan which destroyed the Belgian French and British armies despite stubborn resistance from their own command. The book also details how Hitler and several other German Generals reluctance to believe in their ideas of tank warfare allowed for Dunkirk and many soldiers to escape to Britain to fight again. Good novel though a little tough to follow all the various German, French and British units.
 
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Recent Read:

The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay all by Suzanne Collins. I won't do a recap as I assume anyone who is interested has already read them or know what they are about. But I will say the while I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, thought the second was mediocre, and the third was tolerable at best. Sometimes an author just needs to know when a character (or an idea if you will) has told their story and when it’s time to move on. I felt that way with these books. The first book was good and it should have ended there. After that I felt like Collins didn't really know how to move the story along or develop the characters. The third book was just a convoluted mess and the ending felt like her publishers told her she was out of time and to wrap it up quickly so she did.


City of Masks by Daniel Hecht. A intriguing read about a ghost hunter with some physic abilities and her helping of a woman being haunted. By way of her ghost hunting the main character uncovers an old crime and helps "solve" it. It is an interesting combination of science, parapsychology, and the supernatural.
 
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I don't recall when or where, but I had read an interview that George RR Martin did where he talked somewhat at length about how various parts of European history have informed and influenced A Song of Ice and Fire. It made me think of historical fiction, specifically "alternate history" novels, which probably have a fair amount of crossover with fantasy in terms of readership.

That got me thinking: it would be interesting to try to reason out an alternative history of some fantasy series, especially something as complex as ASOIAF. (Spoilers ahead)

The key is not to change any specific decisions or motivations (such as Catelyn never arresting Tyrion, Ned Stark aligning with Renly before Robert's death), just simple outcomes. Like: What if Bran was able to evade Jaime and never becomes a cripple? What if Tyrion loses his trial in the Eyrie? What if Khal Drogo never takes that wound that gets infected? How would that change what happens?

Also would be interesting to try to reason out similar questions in other series: What if Boromir is successful in taking The Ring from Frodo at the end of Fellowship of the Ring? What if Frodo had succumbed to his wound at Amund Sul and never made it to Rivendell?
 
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ExileOnDaytonStreet said:
Also would be interesting to try to reason out similar questions in other series: What if Boromir is successful in taking The Ring from Frodo at the end of Fellowship of the Ring?
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Seems certain that Sauron would have triumphed, no?

What if Frodo had succumbed to his wound at Amon Sûl and never made it to Rivendell?
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That one is more debatable. Would another of the party have taken the Ring from him? Would they have found a different Bearer to take the Ring to Mount Doom?
 
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