What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

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nisiprius
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by nisiprius »

Your mention of the Alamo myth and of San Jacinto brought to mind a story about Lyndon Johnson:
When she was working with Johnson on his memoirs, [Biographer Doris Kearns] Goodwin said, she summoned the courage one day to ask [LBJ} why he had so often told people that his grandfather had died at the Alamo, when he knew it was not true.

Johnson, she said, confessed to the fraud, but had a ready explanation. "My grandfather wasn't killed at the Alamo," she recalled him saying. "He was killed at the Battle of San Jacinto, which Texans know was more important in achieving independence {from Mexico}, but other Americans usually haven't heard of. So I moved him to the Alamo."

"That seemed reasonable," Goodwin said, "until I did some further checking and found he hadn't been killed in the Battle of San Jacinto either. He died in bed."
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by heartwood »

I started Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson. OK but not keeping me completely interested in finishing it. I have not given it up yet, but have put it aside to read Billy Summers by Stephen King.

I almost always enjoy King's writing. This book is no exception for me. Billy's a hired killer, but he only kills bad people. Billy's also started a novel as his cover story while he waits for his victim. So at least two stories going on.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by ThriftyisFun »

My most recent is "The Ultimate Retirement Guide for 50+: Winning Strategies to Make Your Money Last a Lifetime" by Suze Orman.

It is excellent!

It came out early 2020 (pre-covid). I listened to the audiobook (read by the author). Suze adds extra tips and examples not included in the book. Easy and engaging to listen to.

Was easy to listen to while traveling or commuting. I got the audiobook free from library but bought my own copy plus the book. Now listening to it for a second time. I hope to get a bookclub going on it.

It really got me to thinking of where to live (is my house suitable for an "older" me?), best timing for my retirement, urgency to update my estate documents and a series of other things.

Chapters include such titles as
- How to help the ones you love without hurting your retirement
- making the most of your working years
- where to live
- power moves in you 60's
- how to pay yourself in retirement (and not run out of money)
- how and where to invest
- finding the right financial advisor
- protecting yourself and those you love

Each chapter ends with a useful summary checklist.

Definitely worth checking it out!
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by mancich »

Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service. Just started it but very good read so far
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Mr. Rumples »

Landon Carter's Uneasy Kingdom: Revolution and Rebellion on a Virginia Plantation by Rhys Isaac. For those who study American history and the Revolution and who also enjoy biographies, this may be of interest.

When Landon Carter (son on Robert "King" Carter) died in 1778, he left his heirs over 50,000 acres of land and about 500 slaves. This is an account which uses his diaries - which he kept from 1752-1778 - of what it was like to live at the pinnacle of colonial VA society as your world goes through upheaval and from his point of view, though a supporter of the Revolution, decline. (His home, Sabine Hall, is still owned by his descendants.)

https://global.oup.com/academic/product ... us&lang=en

Bringing Nature Home How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Douglas Tallamy. This takes gardeners to the next step in developing a garden, from planting plants which feed pollinators to planting native species on which they thrive. A gift for anyone on your list who loves to garden.

https://awkwardbotany.com/2016/01/13/bo ... ture-home/
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by TomatoTomahto »

Mr. Rumples wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 6:37 am Bringing Nature Home How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Douglas Tallamy. This takes gardeners to the next step in developing a garden, from planting plants which feed pollinators to planting native species on which they thrive. A gift for anyone on your list who loves to garden.
Any and all of Tallamy’s books are worth reading. Because we lost 8 majestic oaks in the past two years, I especially enjoyed The Nature of Oaks, which inspired us to plant some replacement oaks and also to plan for planting acorns in the future.

Tallamy changed my whole mindset about the monoculture lawn that we inherited from our house’s previous owner. Oaks and meadows, baby!
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by jebmke »

TomatoTomahto wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 7:26 am Tallamy changed my whole mindset about the monoculture lawn that we inherited from our house’s previous owner. Oaks and meadows, baby!
Monoculture stands of trees can also be an issue; one vulnerability can take down an entire stand. There is an active program here (supported by tax incentives) to restore riparian and edge forest (some of the marginal crop land is being restored to grasslands and forest) and the emphasis is on native species and mixed species. In some cases it is simply done by allowing adjacent woodlands spread into the open areas instead of bush-hogging it. A big challenge is the spread of invasives which can choke down the early growth in either the natural spread or planted tree stands. I have one section along the edge of a marsh I'm allowing to regenerate with Eastern red cedar, a couple of oak species, sweet gum and a few loblolly pines. The previous owner had stripped the edge of trees for some reason.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by TomatoTomahto »

I’m a bit promiscuous in how I read, keeping a bunch of books going at the same time, but usually with a theme. Right now:

An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook’s Battle for Domination by Sheera Frenkel and Cecilia Kang. After reading Mindf___, about the Cambridge Analytica scandal at FB, I intensely disliked FB. Now, I also think Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandburg are despicable liars surrounded by enablers. It’s also mind boggling that Congress is so tech and science unaware, perhaps intentionally.

Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine by Geoff Manaugh and Nicola Twilley. I found the history a bit dry (disclosure: I don’t enjoy history much), but the present and future of quarantine are fascinating. I previously somewhat understood the risks affecting the food supply, but Lordy!

Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX by Eric Berger. Just started this; it reads well so far.

Power Play: Tesla, Elon Musk, and the Bet of the Century by Tim Higgins. Well written.

The One Device: The Secret History of the iPhone by Brian Merchant. Alternates between fascinating and boring. What a douche Steve Jobs was and how lucky he (and the world) were that talented and brilliant people put up with working for him.

The Engagement: America’s Quarter-Century Struggle Over Same-Sex Marriage by Sasha Issenberg. Well written but it’s still a bit of a slog because . . . history.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by jebmke »

Just starting "V2" by Robert Harris

also working on "Fundamentals" by Frank Wilczek
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by nisiprius »

Someone suggested Kate DiCamillo's Because of Winn-Dixie as a good book for ESL tutoring. After we finished it, I started to look at some of her others and I can't believe I didn't know about them. If you enjoy reading young adult literature...

Her style, sensibility, and "voice" seem to me to have identifiable echoes of Hans Christian Andersen, Kurt Vonnegut, C. S. Lewis, Edward Eager, Don Marquis, and (sounds crazy but I think) Lee Child. (Added) And Carlo Collodi (author of Pinocchio).

So far, within a period of about three weeks, I've read:

Flora and Ulysses
The Tiger Rising
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Raymie Nightingale
Louisiana's Way Home
Beverly, Right Here
The Magician's Elephant


I don't want to try to rank them. It's probably a mistake to read so many books by the same author in such a short time. She is both formulaic (in terms of themes) and extraordinarily varied (in terms of actual settings, plot elements, etc.) Some of them are Hans Christian Andersen-like fairy tales told in the third person, with asides to the reader ("I hope that the hair on the back of your neck stood up as you thought of Mig's fate...") Some are told in the first person and set in... the 1970s? United States. I think 100% of them include the themes of dealing with loss, and coping with the discovery, as a child, that adults are lying to you. And animals. They all are about or include animals.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Dave55 »

"Bruno, Chief of Police: A Novel of the French Countryside" by Martin Walker.

Dave
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Bh1984 »

Why I'm No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Fallible »

KFBR392 wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:26 pm Halfway through "Mike Nichols: A Life" by Mark Harris. An exhaustive and very entertaining biography of film director Mike Nichols. I absolutely love it!...
Also reading it and just got to his Broadway directing debut of “Barefoot in the Park” and finally finding his calling - he’s a natural to direct and Harris has provided extensive detail that leads to this self-discovery. Lots of good reading ahead.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by quantAndHold »

gatorking wrote: Thu May 20, 2021 9:45 am The Premonition by Michael Lewis
The back of the book has a quote: "I would read an 800-page history of the stapler if he wrote it." I concur.
I just finished this. Some great storytelling. Also, eye opening.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Geno »

Killing The Mob
by Bill O'reilly and Martin Dugard
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by pezblanco »

heartwood wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 2:05 pm I started Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson. OK but not keeping me completely interested in finishing it. I have not given it up yet, but have put it aside to read Billy Summers by Stephen King.

I almost always enjoy King's writing. This book is no exception for me. Billy's a hired killer, but he only kills bad people. Billy's also started a novel as his cover story while he waits for his victim. So at least two stories going on.
I'm reading Billy Summers also right now. In total agreement about Stephen King's writing ... it's like one of your favorite single malts that you keep on coming back too ... familiar and easy to enjoy. This book is one of his better ones in recent times ...
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by brian91480 »

RELENTLESS --- the newest release of the Grey Man series by the author Mark Greany.

If you haven't read the Grey Man series... you are missing out! All the stories are fabulous with none in the entire series being a disappointment. It's action / thriller genre.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by pezblanco »

Reading Star Gazer by Anne Hillerman. To those of us hooked on the Chee/Leaphorn detective novels about the Big Rez in New Mexico/Arizona created by her father Tony Hillerman, its a way of keeping in touch with a magical series about a magical place, the almost limitless expanses of the Four Corners high desert. Inevitably Anne will be compared with her father ... I'll just say that not all of Tony's books were great (I think all are very good) ... but some like Skinwalkers or Dance Hall of The Dead are just towering contributions to the detective novel genre. I don't think Anne has come up with anything quite to those levels but she really is good. I'm willing to continue reading her output ...
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Arpanet »

TomatoTomahto wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 7:26 am
Mr. Rumples wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 6:37 am Bringing Nature Home How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Douglas Tallamy. This takes gardeners to the next step in developing a garden, from planting plants which feed pollinators to planting native species on which they thrive. A gift for anyone on your list who loves to garden.
Any and all of Tallamy’s books are worth reading. Because we lost 8 majestic oaks in the past two years, I especially enjoyed The Nature of Oaks, which inspired us to plant some replacement oaks and also to plan for planting acorns in the future.

Tallamy changed my whole mindset about the monoculture lawn that we inherited from our house’s previous owner. Oaks and meadows, baby!
You would probably really enjoy The Overstory by Richard Powers.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by TomatoTomahto »

Arpanet wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 7:48 pm
TomatoTomahto wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 7:26 am
Mr. Rumples wrote: Fri Aug 06, 2021 6:37 am Bringing Nature Home How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Douglas Tallamy. This takes gardeners to the next step in developing a garden, from planting plants which feed pollinators to planting native species on which they thrive. A gift for anyone on your list who loves to garden.
Any and all of Tallamy’s books are worth reading. Because we lost 8 majestic oaks in the past two years, I especially enjoyed The Nature of Oaks, which inspired us to plant some replacement oaks and also to plan for planting acorns in the future.

Tallamy changed my whole mindset about the monoculture lawn that we inherited from our house’s previous owner. Oaks and meadows, baby!
You would probably really enjoy The Overstory by Richard Powers.
A good friend loved that book and recommended it because of the subject, but I just could not get into it. I read very little fiction for some reason. Maybe I should try again.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by lostdog »

The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by runninginvestor »

TomatoTomahto wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 8:13 am I’m a bit promiscuous in how I read, keeping a bunch of books going at the same time, but usually with a theme. Right now:
......
This is how I like to usually read also. Mostly for nonfiction, 2-3 books that are kind of similar themes from different fields of study. Recently coupled
A Brief History of Time by Hawking,
The Outer Limits of Reason by Yanofsky, and a curve ball fiction spy thriller to take a break from the previous heavy reading
The Quantum Spy by Ignatius.

I like reading like this. I don't know why. I'm glad I'm not alone!
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by ResearchMed »

runninginvestor wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:26 pm
TomatoTomahto wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 8:13 am I’m a bit promiscuous in how I read, keeping a bunch of books going at the same time, but usually with a theme. Right now:
......
This is how I like to usually read also. Mostly for nonfiction, 2-3 books that are kind of similar themes from different fields of study. Recently coupled
A Brief History of Time by Hawking,
The Outer Limits of Reason by Yanofsky, and a curve ball fiction spy thriller to take a break from the previous heavy reading
The Quantum Spy by Ignatius.

I like reading like this. I don't know why. I'm glad I'm not alone!
Those books by David Ignatius were a real treat. I think I liked the first one best, perhaps because it was so unexpected.

RM
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Arpanet »

TomatoTomahto wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:12 pm A good friend loved that book and recommended it because of the subject, but I just could not get into it. I read very little fiction for some reason. Maybe I should try again.
I found it to be a pretty powerful work of fiction, but it also contains a lot of information about trees and forests that really changed the way I see natural landscapes.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by OpenMinded1 »

It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis. It's a political novel describing the rise of a dictator in the US. It was published in 1935.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Jazztonight »

Amazon Unbound by Brad Stone.

(He also wrote The Everything Store.)

I like the book. How Bezos and his people put big concepts and ideas into practice over periods of years and despite the barriers they face is fascinating. My DW, who reads fiction and non-fiction all day long, does not find this story as compelling as I do, and probably won't finish it.

btw, I borrowed the eBook using Overdrive from my public library and am reading it on my Kindle.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by shah8 »

I'm reading The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking by Saifedean Ammous
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by MP173 »

"Glory Days, The Summer of 1984 and the 90 Days that Changes Sports and Culture Forever" by L. Jon Wertheim.

I enjoy reading time period books (such as "The Fifties" by David Halberstam). This is a quick review of the summer of 1984 in which we see....the emergence of Michael Jordan, The 1984 Summer Olympics, John McEnroe/Martina Navratilova, Donald Trump, Michael Jackson, New England Patriots (related to Michael Jackson), Mike Tyson, ESPN, and other events, primarily sports related.

I was 29 at the time and had yet to enter the world of cable TV, let alone the internet...things were different then.

Pretty interesting book.

Ed
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Finridge »

lostdog wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:25 pm The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.
Great book. Everything I've read by Richard Dawkins has been great, but The Selfish Gene is probably his best and most influential book.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

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The Fights on the Little Horn, by Gordon Clinton Harper.

The subtitle is: Unveiling the mysteries of Custer's last stand. This is a history of the battles of June 25-26, 1876, which ended in the defeat of the U.S. 7th Calvary and Crow and Arikara scouts by Souix, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors. This is based on contemporary first person accounts of survivors, testimony at the Army's Reno Court of Inquiry, later interviews with participants on both sides, and archeology of the battlefields.

I didn't know there were any survivors from the 7th Calvary, and was surprised that there were so many letters, diaries, and other first person accounts of officers and enlisted men from the 7th Calvary, interviews with Crow scouts, and Souix and Cheyenne participants, etc.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by 40 Years' Gatherin's »

The Unabomber Manifesto, by F.C.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by cheese_breath »

Pilgrim's Progress. Last time I read it was many decades ago in college. I finished Christian's journey and am starting on his wife Christiana's journey.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Barkingsparrow »

Too Close to the Sun - Sarah Wheeler

A bio of Denys Finch Hatton - the character played by Robert Redford in the movie, "Out of Africa". A little bit of slog at times due to the fact that Denys himself did not leave any written materials - diaries or letters - so the author had to construct a roundabout bio out of what other people wrote, primarily from Karen Blixen (aka Isak Dineson). The big interest to me was the time period - pre- and post-WW1 where British society was undergoing a radical transformation, and the British aristocracy saw the steady erosion of it's privileges and wealth. As for Denys himself, he primarily went through life making it on his substantial charisma, but in reality was more of a failure in business and in his personal life, drifting along aimlessly. One big difference from the movie - Denys was actually bald.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by brak »

Shuggie Bail - a novel
By Douglas Stuart
Hold onto your hat - intensely emotional
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by brak »

Correction - Shuggie Bain
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by runninginvestor »

ResearchMed wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:45 pm
runninginvestor wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:26 pm
TomatoTomahto wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 8:13 am I’m a bit promiscuous in how I read, keeping a bunch of books going at the same time, but usually with a theme. Right now:
......
Those books by David Ignatius were a real treat. I think I liked the first one best, perhaps because it was so unexpected.

RM
Which one is that? This was the first I read by him.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Colorado14 »

I recommend "Remember" by Lisa Genova.

The author is a neuroscientist who describes how memories are formed, why/when they are reliable and how they can be recalled and forgotten. She also describes typical aging behaviors and discusses Alzheimers disease.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by carolinaman »

quantAndHold wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 4:24 pm
gatorking wrote: Thu May 20, 2021 9:45 am The Premonition by Michael Lewis
The back of the book has a quote: "I would read an 800-page history of the stapler if he wrote it." I concur.
I just finished this. Some great storytelling. Also, eye opening.
+1. I just finished it as well. I now have even less confidence in the CDC than before, and I did not have much to begin with. Lewis uses the same approach as in "The Big Short". The experts and institutions have no clue what is going on but there is a small group of doctors who do, even though it is not there day job.

One chapter is called "L6" which stands for the level of management people typically operate at who really understand what is going on. I find this to be true as the top level officials in large organizations do not typically know what is going on in their organizations.

My biggest takeaway from the book is the US is no better prepared for the next pandemic than they were for this one.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by TomatoTomahto »

carolinaman wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 9:20 am
quantAndHold wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 4:24 pm
gatorking wrote: Thu May 20, 2021 9:45 am The Premonition by Michael Lewis
The back of the book has a quote: "I would read an 800-page history of the stapler if he wrote it." I concur.
I just finished this. Some great storytelling. Also, eye opening.
+1. I just finished it as well. I now have even less confidence in the CDC than before, and I did not have much to begin with. Lewis uses the same approach as in "The Big Short". The experts and institutions have no clue what is going on but there is a small group of doctors who do, even though it is not there day job.

One chapter is called "L6" which stands for the level of management people typically operate at who really understand what is going on. I find this to be true as the top level officials in large organizations do not typically know what is going on in their organizations.

My biggest takeaway from the book is the US is no better prepared for the next pandemic than they were for this one.
I reluctantly have to agree about the CDC. I naively assumed that they were apolitical and science driven. After reading The Premonition and The Plague Years, I have revised my thinking. That said, it’s a tough job.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by MrBobcat »

I'm reading Discworld by Terry Pratchett for the first time. Apparently I have a few to get through after the first one, lol.

That being said I just finished up Beartown and Us Against You by Fredrik Backman, really good books. I'd also recommend A Man Called Ove by him too.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by heartwood »

I'm reading Trespasser by Paul Doiron. It's the 2nd in his series of novels about Maine Game Warden Mike Bowditch. I read the first several weeks ago and was impressed with the story and the writing. There are 16 books and a short story. I'll keep reading.

I don't think I'd heard of Doiron before this year when he released two books that went to the best sellers lists where I saw them.

Apparently a Maine Game Warden does a lot more than work with game. Both the first and second books involve murders. So they're about more than moose.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by heartwood »

I quickly read the new Louise Penny book, The Madness of Crowds. OK, with the usual cast of characters. As she often does, she only reveals the killer in the last chapter and keeps you thinking you know who it is at various points in the story. Decently done!

In her thanks and summary after the story she mentions she avoided making the story directly about the pandemic. It's in there, but peripherally, and serves as a foil for euthanasia, and other discussions.

Right now I'm a third into Red Line by Brian Thiem. I'm not sure where I found him other than as a recommend from somewhere that it's a good read. I agree. It's about an Oakland California police detective initially handling the murder of a student left at a bus stop outside a hospital. I like the story. I like the writing. He's got two more with the same character.

I get all my books as ebooks from libraries on Libby. Interesting to me this author is readily available in hardcover or audio book, but none of my 3 libraries carries him as an ebook. I did find him on Hoopla, a service provided by a couple of my libraries. You use the Hoopla reader. It works well.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Dottie57 »

pezblanco wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 7:21 pm Reading Star Gazer by Anne Hillerman. To those of us hooked on the Chee/Leaphorn detective novels about the Big Rez in New Mexico/Arizona created by her father Tony Hillerman, its a way of keeping in touch with a magical series about a magical place, the almost limitless expanses of the Four Corners high desert. Inevitably Anne will be compared with her father ... I'll just say that not all of Tony's books were great (I think all are very good) ... but some like Skinwalkers or Dance Hall of The Dead are just towering contributions to the detective novel genre. I don't think Anne has come up with anything quite to those levels but she really is good. I'm willing to continue reading her output ...
Thanks. I’ve read many of Tony Hillerman’s books. Gonna check this out. ( P.S. I did end up vacationing in New Mexico - beautiful place).
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ResearchMed
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by ResearchMed »

runninginvestor wrote: Wed Aug 18, 2021 8:26 pm
ResearchMed wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:45 pm
runninginvestor wrote: Sun Aug 15, 2021 8:26 pm
TomatoTomahto wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 8:13 am I’m a bit promiscuous in how I read, keeping a bunch of books going at the same time, but usually with a theme. Right now:
......
Those books by David Ignatius were a real treat. I think I liked the first one best, perhaps because it was so unexpected.

RM
Which one is that? This was the first I read by him.
I went back to look at the list of his books:

( https://www.google.com/search?client=sa ... 8&oe=UTF-8 )

and I'm no longer sure which one was the "first that *I* read". I'm now guessing that I didn't read all of them.
So... now I need to figure out (from plot descriptions) which ones I actually read.
Finding some that I didn't read yet will be nice :wink:

RM
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nisiprius
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by nisiprius »

cheese_breath wrote: Tue Aug 17, 2021 9:13 pm Pilgrim's Progress. Last time I read it was many decades ago in college. I finished Christian's journey and am starting on his wife Christiana's journey.
I gave it a shot a few years ago but still bogged down. So I didn't even know there was a Christiana.

(Pause) OK, it's for real, it's a second book, not usually included in copies of "A Pilgrim's Progress," and surprisingly hard to find online.

I was reading Little Women and I have always wondered if kids really played "Pilgrim's Progress."
Do you remember how you used to play Pilgrim's Progress when you were little things? Nothing delighted you more than to have me tie my piece bags on your backs for burdens, give you hats and sticks and rolls of paper, and let you travel through the house from the cellar, which was the City of Destruction, up, up, to the housetop, where you had all the lovely things you could collect to make a Celestial City."

"What fun it was, especially going by the lions, fighting Apollyon, and passing through the valley where the hob-goblins were," said Jo.

"I liked the place where the bundles fell off and tumbled downstairs," said Meg.

"I don't remember much about it, except that I was afraid of the cellar and the dark entry, and always liked the cake and milk we had up at the top. If I wasn't too old for such things, I'd rather like to play it over again," said Amy, who began to talk of renouncing childish things at the mature age of twelve.
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ruralavalon
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by ruralavalon »

For Cause and Comrades, by James M. McPherson.

The subtitle is: Why men fought in the Civil War.

The book is based on diaries, and letters home by officers and enlisted men both federal and rebel.

The book focuses primarily on volunteers, and discusses what motivated both initial enlistment and reenlistment, the changes in motivation as the war progressed, and reasons for continued devotion over the years of the Civil War in spite of enormous hardships and casualties.

I usually appreciate history based on first hand contemporary sources, rather than later recollections or secondary sources. Recommended.
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Dave55 »

Just finished "Another Kind of Eden" by James Lee Burke. This is the 2nd of the Aaron Holland Broussard series. As usual, Burke uses his masterful poetic prose in telling the story. Now reading "Dead Souls" by Ian Rankin the 10th book in the John Rebus series.

Dave
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Mr. Rumples »

An Essay on Calcareous Manures by Edmund Ruffin 1832; reprint edition 1961. Edmund Ruffin was an interesting character known for his diehard Confederate views (allegedly firing the first shot at Ft. Sumpter and committing suicide after Richmond fell). But before that, he was a well respected and known agronomist bringing science into agriculture. HIs novel idea, now standard practice, was that Tidewater VA soil was depleted in calcium and that by adding various fertilizers you can only bring the emaciated soil up to a certain level. I was drawn to this book since some of my property was used to grow tobacco which strips the soil which was poor to start with and deficient in calcium. I realize not many people would have an interest in this, but perhaps they will in the author.
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Lambeau
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by Lambeau »

The Great Chain of Being - Arthur Lovejoy

There is a lot of meat to digest in this one!
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Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Post by jebmke »

Two going right now.

“Force of Nature”by Jane Harper and “The Tangled Tree” by David Quammen
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