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Books I read in 2010:
- Ghosts & Lightning by Trevor Byrne * * *
July 19, 2010
I found myself speaking with an Irish brogue after reading this funny but troubling novel about Denny and his band of drug-addled party loving friends living on the dole in Dublin.
- The Stranger by Albert Camus * * *
July 2, 2010
Very readable and interesting look into the mind of a killer but it was like a mini and not nearly as good rendering of Crime and Punishment.
- The Eye of the Elephant by Delia & Mark Owens * * *
June 24, 2010
Wildlife biologists obtain backing to conduct research and move to a very remote and beautiful area of
Zambia, North Luangwa National Park,
to study lions but end up spending all their time fighting elephant poachers and intractible corruption and the usual enormous problems of Africa in general. I was captivated and behind them the whole way until the end of the book where Iwas disappointed to find Mark's solution to be the importation of beef! Good grief, what a moron. Doesn't he know half the world's problems are caused by cows?
- All Things Reconsidered by Roger Tory Peterson * * * *
June 14, 2010
A series of essays about Peterson's life. He more than any other person was responsible for popularizing bird watching. In addition to writing and drawing the pictures for the most accessible bird guide ever, he was an accomplished photographer and artist, and made videos of many of his travels. This would be a great read for anyone interested in nature in general.
- Life List by Olivia Gentile * * * *
May 27, 2010
This is the biography of Phoebe Snetsinger, one of the greatest birders of all time and certainly the most famous female birder. Before she died in a bus accident while looking for birds in Madagascar at age 67 she had seen an incredible 85% of all the birds known to exist in the world.
- The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame * * * * *
April 14, 2010
Scottish writer, Kenneth Grahame's life was torn asunder when his mother died when he was only five and his alcoholic father sent him to be raised by his cold distant grandmother on the banks of the Thames River, the setting for this novel. The novel is written in lyrical prose and tells the adventures of the loyal friends, Badger, Mole, and Rat, and the incorrigible Mr. Toad.
Although a children's book, written for his son, Alistar, it delights children and adults alike with its irresistable substance and depth.
- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas * * * *
March 13, 2010
I read this book in French when I was in High School and then just re-read it in English. I didn't remember a thing so it retained all of its enthralling fast paced plot which involves the adventures of the bold Gascony D'Artagnan in his quest to realize his dream of becoming a Mustketeer of the Guard of the French King.
- The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne
January 25, 2010
I just could not finish this book. I made it to page 250 but the book is just too bizarre. It's mostly about Tristram's father and his weird uncle Toby.
Books I read in 2009:
- A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams * * *
December 30, 2009
Arthur's house is about to be plowed over to make way for a by-pass when the whole world is obliterated by some aliens to make way for a galactic super-highway. Arthur is rescued by a travelling alien who was stranded on earth for 15 years while researching an update to the book "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy".
- Raney by Clyde Edgerton * * * 1/2
December 30, 2009
Raney, a small town Baptist living in NC marries Charles, a liberal from Atlanta.
- An Irreverent Curiosity: In Search of the Church's Strangest Relic in Italy's Oldest Town by David Farley * * 1/2
December 27, 2009
A funny book about a journalist's search for Jesus's foreskin, a relic which was stolen from a small quirky town in Italy outside of Rome.
- Fingersmith by Sarah Waters * * *
December 4, 2009
Set in mid-19th century England this is a page turning tale of deception and intrigue.
The spell-binding plot allows you to overlook the language spoken by the characters which is far too modern for Victorian England.
- Tom Jones by Henry Fielding * * *
November 12, 2009
One of the first and most influential English novels. Tom, the hero, is a bastard taken in by a liberal squire. Tom means well and is very kind hearted but is a ner-do-well with a weakness for women. Many misfortunes befall him in his quest to betroth his beloved Sophia.
- Coaching Kids Flag Football by Danford Chamness * *
September 26, 2009
I needed a book to help me with my women's flag football team. This was the only thing I could find. The grammar was bad and it was full of typographical errors. Also it was a little too basic for my skill set. However, it was helpful in pointing out some useful things to do on defense. Will see if it helps us to the championship this fall.
- It Will Come to Me by Emily Fox Gordon * *
August 9, 2009
Novel about a college professor and his wife, an author of two highly acclaimed novels who suffers from writer's block and has not written anything for 20 years. The book would have been a good read but I simply couldn't enjoy it due to Ms. Gordon's refusal to use a comma between serials. I realize that using endless "ands" instead of the good ole comma is all the rage in contemporary writing especially in the New Yorker but that doesn't mean it is pleasurable to read. Ms. Gordon used numerous serials all separated by and. Once in a while for effect would have been perfectly acceptable but to go on and on with one after another serial separated by "and" is so boring and idiotic that I just cannot recommend this book.
- The Epic of Gilgamesh by Unknown * * *
August 1, 2009
Gilgamesh, the King of Uruk, and his companion, Enkidu, are the greatest heroes of ancient Babylon immortalized in this epic poem from the third millennium BC.
- Field Notes from a Catastrophe Man, Nature, & Climate Change by Elizabeth Kolbert * * *
August 1, 2009
Journalist and science writer, Elizabeth Kolbert, asks what is it and what can be done to save the planet from global warming.
- Castle by J. Robert Lennon * * *
July 30, 2009
Eric Loesch returns to his home town after a disgraceful exit from a stint in Iraq and buys 612 acres on the edge of town. Ther woods surrounding the home contain may mysteries that serve as a metaphor for Loesch's confused life and our failures in the invasion of Iraq.
- Life by Richard Fortey * * *
July 26, 2009
Senior Paleontologist at the London Museum of Natural History tells the history of the planet. The best part of the book was chapter one describing his experiences on a fossil finding expedition to the Arctic. The book got bogged down with too much academic wrangling over plant speciation but the book was very enjoyable nevertheless especially the early chapters on the evolution of the earth and the development of photosynthesis and the end regarding evolution of man.
- All the Living by C. E. Morgan * *
July 19, 2009
This orphan woman is raised by her aunt and uncle and when it gets too crowded shippped off to school where she meets a farmer. After his family dies in a crash she moves in with him and they have a lot of sex but little love but eventually they come around to each other.
- Wild America by Roger Tory Peterson and James Fisher * * * *
July 11, 2009
Travelogue of a 100 day adventure around the perimeter of America by famed ornithologist, author, and naturalist, Roger Tory Peterson, and his friend, James Fisher, British authority on seabirds. The drawings by Peterson are outstanding and the whole book is a fabulous natural history tour through America which would have been great if only told by the the famed Peterson but is all the better because we also get to see America through the eyes of Fisher, a first time visitor from Britian.
- The Ponder Heart by Eudora Welty * * * *
June 14, 2009
Edna Earle Ponder tells the story of her eccentric uncle and small town southern living in speech peppered with southern sayings. The story culminates in a hilarious murder trial.
- The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain * * * *
June 13, 2009
I'm sure I read this when I was younger b ut since I couldn't remember a thing it was like reading it for the first time and what a pleasure. Huckleberry Finn is kidnapped by his degenerate father but Huck escapes on a raft with a slave Jim, whom Huck eventually helps to his freedom. The book is all about their adventures but also about the transformation of Huck's views about slavery and humanity.
- The New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler * *
June 9, 2009
My brother recommended this book to me as a training guide. I like his ideas about working groups of muscles the way the body is intended to move in real life but his suggestions for dietary changes were to heavily weighted to cow products. The book also had a lot of fluff that could have been cut out. I just started the training program and I think it's pretty good.
- The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty * * *
May 21, 2009
I loved all the southernisms in this book about a woman who after tragically losing her mother watches as her father dies while her step mother acts like a horse's ass.
- Coming Up for Air by George Orwell * * * *
May 7, 2009
This book tells the story of George "Fatty" Bowling who grows up in a country village in England before going off to the First World War. After the war he settles down in boring marriage with an insipid wife and two brats but after winning some money in a race decides to take a journey back to his boyhood home only to find it vastly altered as if scraped by a blunt razor.
- Where Mountains Are Nameless by Jonathan Waterman * * *
April 30, 2009
Part travelogue and part political analysis of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Although I am a political
science major and intrigued by politics, the nature lover in me was much more impressed with the sections
of the book that described the author's adventures in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge after paddling
there all alone for 400 miles in a kayak braving polar and grizzly bears as well as the harsh elements.
- The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith by Peter Carey * *
April 9, 2009
Very strange book about the life of the disfigured son of two actors in Voorstander.
- Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard * * *
March 30, 2009
Very much in the style of Emerson's Walden, this is the story of a dramatic year in Virginia's Blue Ridge valley. Dillard tells of life's mysteries and the astonishing natural world around us in this remarkable book of wonder.
- Collapse by Jared Diamond * * *
February 25, 2009
In this awarding winning book Diamond explores the reasons for the collapse of past civilizations
such as the Maya, Anasazi, Easter Island, and the Norse in Greenland. The reasons are varied but
always relate back in some way to the intentional or unintentional destruction of the very environment those civilizations depended upon. It is impossible to read the book and not worry about our own destruction of the environment which sustains and nurtures us and what the future may hold for our tenuous civilization.
- The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kid * * *
January 24, 2009
It was difficult to read following so closely on the death of my good friend, Bonnie Hansen, whom I knew for 20 years but had not contacted since a little fight in September 2006. I have struggled since with the remorse and guilt of not contacting Bonnie before she died suddenly on December 19, 2008. In this book a young girl struggles with the fact that she accidentally killed her own mother. She finds solace through an unlikely source ultimately connecting with the feminine devine.
- Octavian Nothing Traitor to the Nation, Volume II by M.T. Anderson * * * 1/2
January 1, 2009
Excellent writing but not as good as part I with many dragging sections of the story line when the Ethiopian Army is trapped on a boat with Lord Dumore. Still a very good book.
Books I read in 2008:
- Octavian Nothing Traitor to the Nation by M.T. Anderson * * * *
November 30, 2008
Very fine writing combined with a page turning story of a slave boy raised by philosophers makes for a very compelling book.
- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain * * * 1/2
November 18, 2008
The narrator meets a stranger while touring Warwick Castle who gives him a manuscript relating how a factory worker from Connecticut goes back in time to Camelot where he abolishes sixth century ideas and institutions.
- Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis * * 1/2
October 15, 2008
Babbitt is a prosperous real estate broker and social climber whose life is turned upside down by the turbulence of the roaring 20s. In the telling the deep hypocracy of the middle class is revealed.
- Children of the Alley by Naguib Mahfouz * * * 1/2
August 31, 2008
Winner of the Nobel Prize for literature tells the story of an Egyptian family living in an alley in the shadow of a great mansion inhabited by the great ancestor and feudal landlord. Through tales of his progeny Mahfouz tells an allegory of all human suffering and striving.
- Case Histories by Kate Atkinson * * *
August 1, 2008
This is a sort of offbeat detective novel that is more compelling drama and dark psychological study of crimes. Detective Jackson Brodie doesn't so much solve the crimes as become involved in the lives of the victims.
- Beijing Coma by Ma Jian * * *
July 29, 2008
Dai Wei, son of a counter-revolutionary, pro-democracy protester, and Beijing University student is put into a 10 year coma by a bullet to his head from a soldier while protesting at Tianamen Square in 1989. While in the coma he relives his past while China undergoes a transformation. He releases he must emerge from the coma into death in life that is life in China.
- Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens * * * *
July 24, 2008
This book tells the story of William Dorrit who is sent to the Marshalsea Debtors Prison where his daughter, Amy or LIttle Dorrit, is born and lives taking care of her father. She also sews for Mrs. Clennam. Her son, Arhtur comes home from India, meets Little Dorrit, and they fall in love. Whenwhile the Dorrit's fall into some unknown wealth uncovered by Arthur and get out of prison only to lose it all in the end to bad investments. Arthur too falls prey to a miscalculation on his investments and is sent to the Marshalsea. In the end he finds a way out of debt and marries Little Dorrit.
- White Fang by Jack London * * *
June 7, 2008
- To Build a Fire by Jack London * * *
Jun 7, 2008
This idiot ignores the advice of a local not to go out alone when it drops below 50 below degrees, fallls in icey water and then dies when he can't light a fire.
- The Call of the Wild by Jack London * * *
June 7, 2008
A dog is stolen from sunny Santa Clara Valley, CA and sold to drag a dog sled on the frozen tundra during the Klondike Gold Rush. The dog becomes a survivor dominating all other sled dogs but then returns to his primeval roots and becomes a wolf.
- Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson * * *
June 7, 2008
This adventure book about a boy who goes on a ship to search for hidden treasures on a deserted island, is considered a boy's book but I liked it too.
- His Illegal Self by Peter Carey * * *
April 19, 2008
Precocious seven year old son of 60s radicals is kidnapped by the woman who raised him while his activist mother was blowing herself and others up. The rest of the book is a remarkable road book and adventure lovingly at times caustically others exploring the love between the boy and the woman.
- Diary of a Bad Year by J.M. Coetzee * * *
April 10, 2008
Another very good book by one of our best contemporary fiction writers. This book is part novel, part political diatribe, and part philosophical discourse on the roll of the writer in contemporary life. It is the story of an aging novelist who enlists the help of a young Philipina to type his thoughts on the state of the world for a book requested by his publisher and the interesting interactions that ensue.
- Diary of a Wilderness Dweller by Chris Czajkowski * * * *
March 16, 2008
This is a fabulous book by an amazing woman who moves to an extremely remote area of British Columbia's Coast Range to build two cabins by herself and ultimately a business catering to others seeking a wilderness experience. She is a very good writer and gifted artist capturing the essence of the wilderness experience in her lyrical writing interspersed with some of her drawings.
- HIm Her Him Again The End of Him by Patricia Marx * *
March 8, 2008
It started out being a pretty humorous story about a woman suffering from extreme low self esteem who
becomes enamoured with an intellectual she meets while attending Cambridge but her obseesion becomes
so extreme by the end of the book that it becomes tedious, ridiculous and not very funny.
- Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens * * * *
March 2, 2008
This was a great book. It is one of only two historical novels written by our greatest English novelist of all time and has his usual cast of unforgettable characters, covers important social themes such as the death penalty, social revolt, and mob violence, all within the context of the Gordon Riots in London in 1790.
- Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris * * *
January 20, 2008
In this book the author of The End of Faith responds to the hateful letters he received from so called Christians in response to his first book, by roundly repudiating their complaints point by point. I doubt he changed any minds but at least he didn't cower before the assault on his atheism which was forceful by its sheer numbers rather than any logic or reason.
- Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh * * *
January 19, 2008
Witty and funny satire on British social life in the period between World War I and World War II. The story involves the odious John Beaver and his fatal involvement with Tony and Brenda Last.
- The Red and the Black by Stendahl * * *
January 5, 2008
Though tedious at times this was a fascinating story about a peasant, Julien Sorel, who uses villiany and manipulation to obtain power and wealth but at the same time struggles with his uncontrollable passions and the forces of religion, Napoleonic fervor, and the class differences which work against him.
Books I read in 2007.
- Away by Amy Bloom * * *
December 31, 2007
Lillian's family is destroyed in the Russian pogrom against the Jews but escapes to America only to embark on a long odyssey to leave when she learns that her daughter, Sophie, survived the massacre.
- Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi * * * *
December 24, 2007
Memoir of a young gril growing up in Iran during the repressive Islamic Revolution. Though written in black and white comic strips, the book is quite serious and powerful.
- Thus Spake Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche * * *
December 19, 2007
Combination novel and philosophy, this book uses the wanderings and teachings of the prophet, Zarathustra, who is based on Christ, to expound the philosophy that humans should revere nobility, pride, and victory and not humility and weakness. In the end his teachings are for everyone and no one.
- My Traitor's Heart by Rian Malan * * *
November 25, 2007
Rian Malan is a South African journallist from a long line of famous Boers who fought the Zulus in the struggle to keep South Africa white. The book is a bindingly poignant and truthful account of his struggle to face his legacy and to understand this enigmatic country at once brutal, violent and race torn and yet a success story of sorts on the dark continent.
- Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner * * * * *
November 2, 2007
Staggering expose of the corruption, graft,
lies, deception, lust for money and unbridled development, and burning
desire to tame nature that led to the watering of the west and its concomitant
explosive growth on borrowed time in a dry arid, mostly desert area
that makes up the American West. This book should absolutely be read
by all Californians but also by anyone interested in learning just what
destruction we have unleashed on the environment in our quest to put
water where it never was and never was meant to be.
- The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner * * * *
October 17, 2007
In his fourth novel, the brilliant chronicler
of post-civil war southern life, tells the tragic story of Caddy, the
unloved daughter of a cold, self-absorbed, hypochondriac mother and
a cynical father,
through the voice of her dim-witted brother, Benjy, her suicidal depressed
brother, Quentin, her psychotic and mean-spirited brother, Jason, and
finally an anonymous narrator.
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy * *
September 29, 2007
Some horrible catastrophe has stricken the
US or possibly the world. Instead of being rid of the most dangerous
mammal ever--humans, there are maruading gangs of them who have survived
and become cannibals threatening the tenuous survival of the "good
guys," a man and his son, and a very precious few others who represent
goodness. It was idiotic that though starving they would not eat a stray dog preferring to become cannibals instead.
- The Misanthrope by Molière * * * 1/2
September 18, 2007
In this masterpiece play by Moliere(1622-73)
he portrays a man doomed to social wilderness due to his inability to
concede to convention or compromise his principles.
- Seasons on the Pacific Coast: A Naturalist's Notebook
by Susan Tweit * * *
September 13, 2007
This book is a collection of elegantly
written essays and beautifully drawn watercolor sketches of thirty-nine
plants and animals that live along the rugged and intricately interwoven
ecosystem that is the Pacific Coast.
- Ulysses by James Joyce * * *
August 18, 2007
OK, I cheated and listened to the audiobook
as read by Jim Norton and Marcella Riordan but I tried to read it twice
and just couldn't understand what was going on. With the audiotape I
was able to understand that most of what was happening were Bloom's
internal thoughts. This is a lively reading and I highly recommend it
to anyone struggling with the book as I did. Maybe now I can pick up
the book and read what has been called one of the greatest literary
works in the English language.
- On Human Nature by Edward O. Wilson * * * 1/2
August 10, 2007
Our greatest living scientist, Edward
O. Wilson, explains how the principle of natural selection acting on
the genetically evolving material structure of the human brain helps
us understand and explains much of human nature.
- Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud *
* * 1/2
August 3, 2007
Published in 1930 when he was over
70 years old Freud explores the origins of civilization, aggression,
the place of beauty in culture, and the reasons why we do the things
we do in this his last book. He revises his theories slightly to include
what he calls a death drive competing with the ego.
- Montana 1948 by Larry Watson * *
August 1, 2007
The writing style was extremely
basic-- no words over five letters and while the story was interesting
it had no point.
- Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy * * *
July 31, 2007
Of the four Hardy novels I
have read, this one is the weakest. It is expected in a Hardy novel
that the characters will experience shattering griefs for no reason.
However, the ill-fate of Bathsheba was not believable. I enjoyed reading
about the strong character who takes the unprecedented step of running
her own farm but her demise at the hands of the rogue cad Troy was out
of character and unconvincing.
- Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America
by Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman * * *
June 30, 2007
The descriptions are not very
informative, often having nothing to do with the little pointers on
the butterfly pictures. Further confusing identification is the fact
that he makes up many of the species in his book. There has to be something
better than this.
- Slow Man by J.M. Coetzee * * *
June 6, 2007
Old guy loses his leg in a
bicycle accident changing his reclusive life forever. He refuses a prosthesis
and then falls inexplicably in love with his home health aide and has
other struggles as he comes to terms with his new life.
- Pere Goriot by Honore de Balzac * * * *
May 31, 2007
This book made a list of the
100 greatest books ever written. I don't know about that but it was
a page turning plot and intriguing look into the glittering greedy Paris
of the 1820s.
- Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe * * * 1/2
May 20, 2007
This book written in 1959
has been translated into 50 languages. It is a simple story set in an
African village of a man whose life is dominated by fear and anger.
- Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy * * * *
May
7, 2007
Another excellent book by
the great English author, Thomas Hardy. As wiith all his books terrible
things happen to the most undeserving people and Hardy does not disappoint
here either. Beautfiul good Tess stumbles through one horrowing experience
after another in her tormented life until her final tragic end but her
story still captives readers after all these years due to Hardy's great
writing, compelling story, and interesting description of English country
life.
- Future of Life by E.O. Wilson * * * *
April 13, 2007
Our greatest living scientist,
E.O. Wilson, makes a compelling and cogent argument in this book as
to why we must take all means necessary to preserve biodiversity by
protecting and preserving our ecosystems. His writing style is engaging
and lucid and his argument is ironclad. I highly recommend this book
to everyone.
- The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin * * * * *
March
5, 2007
Charles Darwin, the
greatist naturalist to ever live, in this monumental work, the most
influential book in the natural sciences ever written, describes and
documents in unassailable terms his theory of natural selection. The
importance of this book on scientific thought cannot be overstated.
Darwin's writing style is elegant and engaging making the book highly
enjoyable to read for scientists and lay people alike (he is buried
next to Charles Dickens; need I say more?) It should be required reading
for all school children.
- Birding North Carolina, Edited by Marshall Brooks and
Mark Johns *
February 25, 2007
This is the worst state
birding guide in the US. It has no maps at all and no bar graph of bird
distribution. It is also paper thin even though it covers a fairly large
state with a long coast and mountains. Come on, y'all can do better
than that.
- Pigeons by Andrew Blechman *
February 12, 2007
Terrible book by a journalist
who tries to glorify the unglorifiable.
- Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy * * * * *
February
7, 2007
In this, the great English
novelist Thomas Hardy's last novel (he gave up novels in disgust over
the public's negative reaction to it), he roundly condemns the idiotic
institution of marriage and explores human passion through the tragic
lives of the brick mason, Jude who aspires to university but whose ambitions
are thwarted by his station in life, and the object of his passion,
his brilliant and beloved cousin, Sue, a precursor to the modern day
feminist.
- Incomplete & Utter History of Classical Music by Stephen
Fry * * *
January 29, 2007
My favorite contemporary
writer, Stephen Fry, in his usual brilliantly funny and engaging style
gives us his version of a brief history of classical music starting
with gregorian chants and going all the way to the sound track to a
Harry Potter movie. It's highly subjective in its tastes and noticeably
absent is any reference at all to John Adams; however, it is imminently
readable and fun.
- The Uses of Enchantment by Heidi Julavits * * *
January
12, 2007
A teenage girl tries
to come to terms with a cold distant mother by encouraging her own abduction
by a stranger. Her mother sends her for psychotherapy with what is at
first a very conscientious and careful therapist. The dialogue and psychological
intrigue are an engaging read but the biggest flaw with the book was
the completely unconvincing dissolution of character of the therapist
into a self serving opportunist.
Books I read in 2006.
- A Birder's Guide to the Texas Coast by Harold Holt
* * * (January 20, 2006)
Though a bit outdated
with the last printing in 1993 it is still a great book for anyone wanting
to take a birding trip on the Texas coast with detailed maps and a really
nice bird list and distribution bar graph.
- Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray * * * * (January
29, 2006)
This Incisive social
satire exposes the greed, hypocrisy, and corruption raging in England
during the Napoleonic wars. The book has no hero but instead focuses
on the changing fortunes of two unforgettable women; the scheming opportunist
Becky Sharp and her faithful, forgiving, naive life long friend, Amelia
Sedley.
- The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai * * * (February
22, 2006)
Novel set in NE India
at the confluence of several Himalayan states. A retired Cambridge educated
judge lives there with his cook, granddaughter, and nasty dog whose
company he prefers to that of humans. The novel explores nationhood,
modernity, and class.
- The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck * * * * * (February
26, 2006)
In this powerful novel
Steinbeck explores the conflict between the powerful and the powerless,
son Toms's fierce reaction to injustice and Ma's stoical strength, the
horrors of the Depression, and the nature of equality and justice in
America.
- Why Birds Sing by David Rothenberg * * * (March 4, 2006)
An exploration of bird
song through poetry, music, and scientific research that concludes birds
not only sing to attract mates and defend their territory but also sing
because they can.
- The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown * * 1/2 (March 14, 2006)
Two bit, second rate
detective novel whose only redeeming quality was the wealth of information
and research the book provided on the Catholic Church's quest to stomp
out any revelations regarding the truth about Mary Magdalene's marriage
to Jesus and the sacred feminine.
- Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens * * * * (April 24,
2006)
769 pages! Took me
all month but an excellent read about a proud arrogant son of a bitch
who is obsessed with having a son to carry on his family business to
the detriment of his darling daughter. I loved the wilful second wife
who refused to give in to his ridiculous demands. The writing was sublime
as usual.
- Absalom, Absalom by William Faulkner * * * * * (May
23, 2006)
In this stream-of-consciousness
novel, Faulkner gives us an unflinching look at the post-civil war south
with all its rascism in full throttle. The main character, Thomas Sutpen,
is a despicable reprobate who gets his due in the end. Having grown
up in and then abandoned the south I loved the ending of the book, "why
do you hate the south?" "I don't hate it... I don't. I don't! I don't
hate it. I don't hate it!"
- The Way Out by Craig Childs * * * (May 25, 2006)
Two guys get permission
from the Dine Indian tribe to hike around lost and nearly die in a remote
routeless desert canyon in order to work out their issues.
- The Book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper * * 1/2 (June 1,
2006)
Joe wrote a scathing
book about his hometown and then later had to return home after his
father had a stroke, where he was beaten, harassed, and nearly murdered
but reconnected with his old girlfriend.
- Lost Discoveries: The Ancient Roots of Modern Science-- from
the Babylonians to the Maya by Dick Teresi * * * (June 6, 2006)
In this fascinating
book, science writer, Dick Teresi, did extensive research to trace the
origins of contemporary science in the non-western world-- China, Mesopotamia,
Maya, Persia, Sumeria, India, etc.
- Yellowstone and Grand Teton, Must Do Hikes For Everyone
* * *
(June 17, 2006)
Some of the recommended
trails have no business in the book. However, it has excellent descriptions
with detailed maps of each hike and details of what you might see and
the difficulty of the trails.
- Walden by Henry David Thoreau * * * * * (June 25, 2006)
Vivid account of the
time the author spent alone in a cabin he built himself in the woods
at Walden Pond. Thoreau's account is not just of his life as a hermit
but expounds on themes of appreciating nature, eschewing consumerism,
and exploring our world and ourselves.
- The Russian Debutante's Handbook by Gary Shteyngart
* * * 1/2 (July 22, 2006)
Very funny debut novel
about a Russian immigrant trying to make it in the US.
- Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe * * * (July 26, 2006)
In this adventure novel,
Daniel Defoe, considered the author of the English Novel, proselytizes
about religion while following the life of a shipwrecked mariner on
a deserted island.
- Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky * * * (July 27,
2006)
This incomplete novel
published posthumously is a poignant portrayal of human drama on the
eve of the German bombing of Paris and the German occupation. Nemirovsky
planned three more chapters but she was unfortunately captured by the
Nazis and sent to Auschwitz where she died within 2 months.
- Absurdistan by Gary Shteyngart * * * * (August 14, 2006)
Fat rapper Jewish son
of the 1238th richest man in Russia gets exiled to his homeland, Absurdistan,
where Halliburton has corrupted the politicians into starting a civil
war so they can get cost plus contracts with the American department
of defense.
- Billy Bathgate by E.L. Doctorow * * * * (September 15,
2006)
Brilliantly written
book about a 15 year old street urchin who gets sucked into the mob
by legendary mobster, Dutch Schultz, and enters a world of depravity
and violence.
- A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man by James Joyce
* * * * (October 21, 2006)
A tour de force by the
brilliant James Joyce. This book follows the life of Stephen from the
jesuit school, Clonglowes to college where he philosophizes on life
with his friends and later finds himself as a writer.
- Theft by Peter Carey * * * * (November 12, 2006)
I must say that I was
cursing as I muddled through all the haughty art talk in this latest
novel from one of the greatest living novelists, the brilliant Peter
Carey. Still this novel shocked me at the end after weaving a tale of
suspense and constantly returning to the main themes of obsession and
deception.
- The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin * * * * (December
16, 2006)
Charles Darwin, the
most intelligent, observant, and thoughtful traveller of all time, spent
five years aboard the HMS Beagle as the naturalist. This is his beautifully
written travel book of his journey.
- Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe * * * (December
28, 2006)
Though a bit overly
sentimental (the character of Tom was completely unbelievable) this
book did a great job exposing the evils of slavery and helped bring
about its demise in this country and for that alone it is worth reading.
Books I read in 2005.
- Holy War, The Crusades and Their Impact on Today's World
by Karen Armstrong * * * + (January 1, 2005)
An excellent look at all 5 crusades from the perspective of Jews, Christians, and Muslims and how those wars have impacted current conflicts between the three religions today.
- The Librarian by Larry Beinhart * * * (January 11, 2005)
Innocent librarian is hired by an aging billionaire who is plotting to steal the election for the president who is running for a second term (he bears a striking resemblance to the current scum residing in the White House). The fictional president also uses scare tactics in his bid to win against his opponent, a democrat woman senator from Idaho. The librarian then attempts to foil the vicious plot.
- Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss * * * (February 18, 2005)
Instead of flying into a murderous rage upon encountering grammatical errors, as I do; Lynne Truss, a woman after my own heart, rails against misuses of English punctuation. You go girl!
- So You Want to Start a Nursery by Tony Avent * * * (February 25, 2005)
A well written, well researched, and interesting book on everything you need to know to start a nursery.
- Wildly Successful Plants Northern California by Pam Peirce * * 1/2 (March 25, 2005)
The history, care, control, propagation, and name etymology of 50 plants that grow well in local gardens, beautifully photographed by the author's husband. Unfortunately almost all of the featured plants are vicious invasives that would be better eliminated from gardens.
- Beowulf by Author Unknown * * * (March 27, 2005)
Heroic-elegaic poem of humankind's struggle with the monstrous.
- Ocean Birds of the Nearshore Pacific by Rich Stallcup * * * (March 31, 2005)
Though by no means a comprehensive guide to pelagic birding, star birder, Rich Stallcup, gives excellent insight into subtle field marks and behaviours of seabirds to help us identify and appreciate them.
- A Tale of Love and Darkness by Amos Oz * * * (May 10, 2005)
Memoir, family saga, self-portrait, and tale of the birth of Israel as lived through by the author, Israel's current most popular.
- Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona by Tucson Audubon Society * * * * * (May 22, 2005)
Excellent guide to finding all the birds in Southeast Arizona with an excellent bar graph of the birds and index of all locations.
- California Master Gardener Handbook edited by Dennis Pittenger * * * * * (May 25, 2005)
Everything you need to know to become an expert gardener in California.
- Stone Desert A Naturalist's Exploration of Canyonlands National Park
by Craig Leland Childs * * * (June 8, 2005)
Beautifully written short history of the geology, indigenous plants, animal life, and native peoples who once thrived in the area. Maddening though in its intentional omission of reference to the specific locations of his travels in the park.
- The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy * * * (July 7, 2005)
The book elegantly brought out the beauty and lure of Egdon Heath. However, unlike a truly great novel, I will not miss any of the sorry characters in this book.
- Lundy, Gem of the Eastern Sierra by Jim Hanna * * 1/2 (July 10, 2005)
This little booklet was written by the great-grandson of John Muir. It is poorly printed with many errors but is a nice little guide to the area history and hikes.
- Maximum City by Suketu Mehta * (July 17, 2005)
Very depressing book about the overwhelming problems of Bombay.
- Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis * * * 1/2 (July 24, 2005)
In this portrait of a 1920s gospel shark Lewis thoroughly exposes the hypocrisy of evangelists.
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding * * * (July 25, 2005)
Adventure story of boys on a desert island whose theme is that the defects of society trace back to defects in human nature and not the political system.
- What's the Matter with Kansas by Thomas Frank * * * (July 27, 2005)
Using his home state of Kansas as an example Frank explains why many Americans vote for the Republican party against their own interests.
- The King of California by Mark Araz & Rick Wartzman * * * 1/2 (July 30, 2005)
Fascinating account of the modern day robber baron Boswell family, farmers from Georgia who came to California, drained a giant lake in the San Joaquin Valley and became the largest most powerful farmers in the state.
- The Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux * * (August 24, 2005)
At first I was seduced by the main character's iconoclasm and disappointment with this imperfect world. But later the book became a burden as Father's iconoclasm gave way to paranoid delusions, idiotic ideas and even murder. I was very troubled by the way the book and the characters glossed over Father's murdering some Indians.
- Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens * * * * (October 21, 2005)
Dickens's sixth novel deals with the greed of Old Martin's family, particularly the arch-hypocrite, Pecksniff, who is hoping to inherit his wealth. There is a very unflattering description of America in the chapter where young Martin visits the new colony. As with all Dickens novels there are unforgettable characters including the sodden old nurse, Mrs. Gamp.
- On Beauty by Zadie Smith * (November 10, 2005)
Don't bother. Many plot lines are stolen whole cloth from Howards End but there is no theme to speak of. It claims to be about the meaning of beauty but I am still scratching my head.
- The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh * * * (November 29, 2005)
An interesting tale of love, romance, ecology set in the Sundarbans of east India. His writing is a ilttle stiff but the story of the fate of a skilled cetologist studying a rare river dolphin, the dolphins, and the people living in this volatile tide country was very compelling.
- To See Every Bird on Earth by Dan Koeppel * * (December 2, 2005)
This book disturbed me and left more questions than answers about why people are obsessed with counting how many birds they have seen but care nothing about bird conservation and really don't even care about birds.
- The March by E.L Doctorow * * * (December 19, 2005)
Riveting fictionalized account of Sherman's march to the sea at the end of the US Civil war.
- The Life & Death of Mary Wollstonecraft by Claire Tomalin * * *
(December 24, 2005)
The astonishing life of Mary Wollstonecraft, radical feminist, who published a vindication of the Rights of Women in 1798 is vividly portrayed in this biography.
Books I read in 2004.
- My Life as a Fake by Peter Carey * * * * * (January 2, 2004)
Best book of the year! Intriguing story of an author who submits fake poetry for publication which leads to the editor’s trial where the fictional poet appears and spends the rest of the novel torturing the fake poet.
- A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson * * * + (January 6, 2004)
What more can you say.
- Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift * * * * (January 8, 2004)
Political satire on 17th Century England and spell binding adventure story.
- 1984 by George Orwell * * * * * (January 11, 2004)
Could be renamed 2004 and has very interesting parallels to the Bush administration but was actually written in 1939 about the evils of totalitarianism.
- The Fortress of Solitude by Jonathan Lethem * * (January 16, 2004)
White boy grows up in black Brooklyn neighborhood in the 70s. Both do drugs, white boy succeeds, black boy goes to jail.
- Samuel Pepys by Claire Tomalin * * * + (January 20, 2004)
An excellent biography of Pepys, a naval clerk during 17th century England, president of The Royal Society, contemporary of Milton, Sir Isaac Newton, book collector and memoirist.
- Pompeii by Robert Harris * * * (January 24, 2004)
Fictional account of the explosion of Mount Vesuvius at Pompeii in 79 AD.
- Reefer Madness by Eric Schlosser * * * (January 30, 2004)
Three interesting essays on the black market in the US: marijuana, undocumented workers, and pornography.
- Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides * * * (February 6, 2004)
Traces three generations of an inbreeding Greek family that emigrates to Detroit. The narrator is a hermaphrodite. A coming of age story that explores the meaning of sexuality.
- True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey * * * * (February 15, 2004)
A story of the legendary outlaw, Ned Kelly, murderer and horse thief to some, but hero to the lowly classes of Australia, written in his own semi-literate hand, but brought to life by the dazzling prose of the author.
- Absolute Friends by John Le Carré * * * + (February 25, 2004)
Epic tale of two 1960s West Berlin lefties who become Cold War double agents for Europe, only to end up as victims of the fake U.S. war against terrorism.
- SIBLEY'S Birding Basics by David Allen Sibley * * * (March 1, 2004)
Using many illustrations David Sibley reviews all the basic concepts of bird identification.
- The Great Unraveling by Paul Krugman * * * + (March 10, 2004)
NY Times Columnist and Award winning economist, Paul Krugman, chronicles the failed and irresponsible and deceptive policies of the Bush Administration.
- Empress Orchid by Anchee Min * * * * (March 19, 2004)
The first volume in a trilogy about the life of Empress Orchid. A vivid portrait of a compelling woman who survived in the male dominated world of China's Ch'ing dynasty.
- American Dynasty - Aristocracy, Fortune and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush by Kevin Phillips * * * * (March 28, 2004)
Mordant political and economic commentator, Kevin Phillips, reveals how four generations of Bushes fomented war and deceived the public through arms scandals and impeachable offenses in furtherence of their dynasty and megalopolies in the fields of intelligence, energy and national security.
- The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler * * * (April 12, 2004)
A thinly veiled fictionalized account of the life of Butler himself. It wages war on all extremes, shams, and pretenses, is full of bitter irony, and gives a satiric picture of home life in mid-Victorian England.
- The Big Year by Mark Obmascik * (April 16, 2004)
Don't bother. Utterly ridiculous, but true story of three fanatics, two of whom abandon their wives and one of whom depletes six credit card accounts, who set out in 1998 to see more species of birds than anyone else in one year. Each one works for a polluting industry and while obsessed with seeing the birds, shows not one iota of concern for conserving bird habitat.
- Bushwomen by Laura Flanders * * * (April 21, 2004)
Brilliant Liberal Radio Host, Laura Flanders, exposes how Bush conceals his ultra right wing policies under the skirts of some well placed women in his white house. While the Bush White House pretends that these women, Condaleeza Rice, Karen Hughes, Ann Veneman, Elaine Chao, Christy Todd Whitman, and Gale Norton, represent the "compassionate" side of his conservatism, Flanders outlines how truly ultra right wing these "women" are too.
- Mutant Message Down Under by Marlo Morgan * * * (April 26, 2004)
American woman accompanies Australian Aboriginal group called the Real People on a barefoot 1400 mile trek through the bush with no provisions. She learns a spiritual lesson to become one with nature.
- Waiting by Ha Jin * * * (May 6, 2004)
A Chinese Army doctor returns to his backward village every year to end an arranged, loveless marriage to his peasant wife. She refuses for 18 years, the required separation before the government will allow a divorce, causing his modern, educated nurse girlfriend in the city to wait.
- Illywhacker by Peter Carey * * * (June 7, 2004)
Novel about a 139 year old Australian charlatan and his wacky extended family.
- The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow * * * + (July 8, 2004)
The life story of Augie a poor boy who grew up depression era Chicago and spent his life wandering from one outlandish occupation to another. Bellow unfolds his hero's tale with commanding prose and astonishing insight.
- Consilience by Edward O. Wilson * * * * + (July 22, 2004)
Brilliant book by arguably our greatest living scientist that lays out a plan for joining the sciences and the humanities with one unifying theory.
- City of God by E.L. Doctorow * * * (July 25, 2004)
Multiple narrators shift between modern New York City, the holocaust and World War I to weave a story of spiritual reflection centered around the idea of modern God.
- My First Summer in the Sierra by John Muir * * * * (July 27, 2004)
Enchanting chronicle of John Muir's experience herding a flock of sheep from the San Joaquin Valley to Yosemite's majestic High Sierra.
- Drop City by T. C. Boyle * * * (July 29, 2004)
1970's hippie commune in California moves to Alaska where some of the members befriend some locals who are communing with the harsh environment and living off the land of wild Alaska.
- Reason: Why Liberals Will Win the Battle for America by Robert Reich * * * * (July 31, 2004)
Former Secretarty of Labor in the Clinton Administration offers a bold blan for taking back America from the Radcons (Radical Conservatives) and their corporate greed, preemtive war, and weakened civil liberty policies through the politics of reason.
- Dark Star Safari by Paul Theroux * * * * (August 16, 2004)
Fascinating journey by taxi, overcrowded rickety bus, canoe, train, and ferry from Cairo to Cape Town. Part history, part culture, part politics and insightful look into the people of Africa.
- Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad * * * + (August 29, 2004)
Horrible tale of a madman in the Congo during Colonial expansion.
- Youth by Joseph Conrad * * * * (August 29, 2004)
Beautiful prose! Story of a youth at sea.
- Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros * * * (September 13, 2004)
Part Mexican history and part sprawling family history of the Reyes family as they criss cross the US-Mexican border and culture.
- Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer * * * + (September 20, 2004)
A shocking look at the history of Mormonism, its fraudulent foundations, and some of its most extreme and even criminal adherents. Afer reading this book I fear for my well being to ever visit Utah again!
- Introduction to California Plant Life by Robert Ornduff, Phyllis M. Faber, and Todd Keeler * * * *
(October 7, 2004)
A California Natural History Guide that indroduces basic concepts of plant taxonomy, ecology, California soil, climate, and geography as well as evolution of the California landscape and changes in its flora.
- Living on the Wind Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensau * * * *
(October 24, 2004)
Beautifully written book about bird migration that weaves the latest science with the author's personal experiences and his own contributions to understanding bird migration and saving it from human depredations.
- The Known World by Edward P. Jones * * (November 2, 2004)
Novel about blacks in antebellum Virginia who owned slaves.
- The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne * * * * (November 13, 2004)
A woman in colonial puritan Boston was convicted of adultery and condemned to wear a bold "A" on her clothes as her punishment. She refused to disclose her co-adulterer. He went on to become an eminently distinguished minister until he could no longer bear the burden and died. She and her daugher went on to become prodigously wealthy. The moral of the story is ambiguous and the "A" may symbolize this ambiguity. The only clue is the summary near the end of the book, "Be true. Be true. Show freely to the world, if not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred."
- Snow by Orhan Pamuk * * * (December 3, 2004)
Poet, Ka, returns to his native Turkey to investigate suicides by girls banned from wearing scarves. While there, poetry bursts forth from our hero as he falls in love and develops a deep understanding of religious fervosity. The book explores faith, lack of it, love, and human contradictions.
- The Plot Against America by Philip Roth * * * * (December 15, 2004)
In this excellent anti-roman a clef, avaiation hero and nazi sympathizer, Charles Lindbergh, defeats Franklin Roosevelt in the 1940 presidential election and leads American Jews and America into a living hell.
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