What Are You Reading Now?

[happyone]

Our Japanese returned RMs might be interested in this little book that I just finished

A beginner's guide to Japan

It is both rather short (just over 200 pgs) and physically small (it will fit in a shirt pocket). It is observations of a journalist who has lived in Japan for over 30 yrs and is married to a native about Japanese culture, how it differs from Western and more specifically US culture. It was a bit hard to read because it is presented in a bullet point format. The the observation are grouped by topic - some are only a sentence or two, but other are two are three pages

[SeattleUte]

I finished Moby Dick last week. First time ever reading it beginning to end straight through.

[SCcoug]

I finished Moby Dick last week. First time ever reading it beginning to end straight through.

Does it deserve to be "The Great American Novel" in your opinion?

[CardiacCoug]

I finished Moby Dick last week. First time ever reading it beginning to end straight through.

What a boring turd of a book.

I have read a couple of non-fiction books by SC Gwynne recently that I highly recommend:

Empire of the Summer Moon. How did I not know the story of Quanah Parker already? Fascinating stuff.

And

The Perfect Pass which is a must read for BYU football fans. Really interesting read about Hal Mumme, Mike Leach and the development of the Air Raid offense at Iowa Wesleyan, Valdosta State, and eventually Kentucky. BYU coaches get a shout out in pretty much every chapter.

[creekster]

What a boring turd of a book.

Moby DIck? Are you trolling?

[clackamascoug]

A listened to a couple of hours of Ronan Farrow - he reads his own book Catch and Kill. He's so bad, that I had to quit listening. He was bugging me more than the story was worth.

[Jeff Lebowski]

A listened to a couple of hours of Ronan Farrow - he reads his own book Catch and Kill. He's so bad, that I had to quit listening. He was bugging me more than the story was worth.

That’s a shame. Great book.

[SeattleUte]

Does it deserve to be "The Great American Novel" in your opinion?

Yes. I think so. I've read Moby Dick for years like scripture, passages here and there (though every religious person should read the canon start to finish). The preacher's sermon about Jonah from the prow-shaped pulpit early-on, Ahab's monologues and exchanges, especially with Fedallah and Starbuck, rival Shakespeare and the Old Testament. The poetic imagery is beautiful and vividly cinematic, including some serene ocean scenes. the chapters about the whaling industry are a slog, but they are clear as a pane of glass, with fine imagery.

Thematically, it is a modern novel still; given that it was published in 1851 that means it's timeless. It covers most of the issues that captivate us. Race: the Pequod has every race under the sun on it, and they work together with admirable harmony and cooperation. The novel has almost no racial anachronisms or negative stereotypes. It touches on the injustice of slavery and treats black, white, Asian, Middle Easterner and indigenous alike with dignity. The environment: Ishmael ruminates on our kinship with the whales, and whether like the buffalo they will disappear under man's onslaught. Scripture/God: the story is braided with exegeses especially of the Old Testament and man's place in the universe. Ishmael is a Buddhist or Epicurean, ever observant and at peace with the world as it is. Moby Dick of course is a metaphor for evil. Oppression and class struggle: Ahab is a dictator or a bad boss, driving his men hard and to destruction, and Starbuck pays for not following his conscience. Some of the whaling industry scenes are like Sinclair’s The Jungle. Homoeroticism: Ishmael and Queequeg make explicit marriage vows and sleep together.

The only thing it lacks in thematic material for our times is women and family--but not totally. Ahab's grieving about the young wife and son he left behind for his true lover, whaling and the sea, is very evocative, and timeless. It's probably the first novel with magic realism. Seemingly, the story is all gritty realism, but there is also otherworldly Fedallah, Fedallah's prophesies that come to pass, and the eternal, spiritual, ubiquitous quality of Moby Dick. And finally, it is a terrific adventure novel. Melville knew how to write a literary thriller.

[SeattleUte]

Moby DIck? Are you trolling?

No. He's just ignernt.

[frank ryan]

That’s a shame. Great book.

He didn't sound bad narrating the podcast of the same name. It was compelling enough to make me want to read the book.

[happyone]

What a boring turd of a book.

I have read a couple of non-fiction books by SC Gwynne recently that I highly recommend:

Empire of the Summer Moon. How did I not know the story of Quanah Parker already? Fascinating stuff.

And

The Perfect Pass which is a must read for BYU football fans. Really interesting read about Hal Mumme, Mike Leach and the development of the Air Raid offense at Iowa Wesleyan, Valdosta State, and eventually Kentucky. BYU coaches get a shout out in pretty much every chapter.

Empire is a great book - when we lived at Ft. Sill, I got to visit Quannah's home

[wuapinmon]

It's probably the first novel with magic realism.

I've never considered this. I'm going to re-read it this summer and think about it.

[Green Monstah]

Talking to Strangers byMalcolm Gladwell. I give the guy props for looking at events from alternative angles. The first half was great, but I'm having trouble seeing how he's going to tie all of the loose ends together about 2/3rds of the way through.

Sense and Sensibility by some lady named Jane Austen. I really, really dislike these stories, but I have this pipe dream of taking the Jeopardy test and it's kinds of sad how little English literature I've read over the years.

[Pelado]

Talking to Strangers byMalcolm Gladwell. I give the guy props for looking at events from alternative angles. The first half was great, but I'm having trouble seeing how he's going to tie all of the loose ends together about 2/3rds of the way through.

Sense and Sensibility by some lady named Jane Austen. I really, really dislike these stories, but I have this pipe dream of taking the Jeopardy test and it's kinds of sad how little English literature I've read over the years.

You don't have to know anything about Sense and Sensibility or Jane Austen to take the Jeopardy test. Passing it, on the other hand...that should be the pipe dream.

[clackamascoug]

Talking to Strangers byMalcolm Gladwell. I give the guy props for looking at events from alternative angles. The first half was great, but I'm having trouble seeing how he's going to tie all of the loose ends together about 2/3rds of the way through.

Sense and Sensibility by some lady named Jane Austen. I really, really dislike these stories, but I have this pipe dream of taking the Jeopardy test and it's kinds of sad how little English literature I've read over the years.

My favorite line from S&S upon the ladies being evicted from their estate, and subsequently moving to a cottage on their uncles estate, and then having to socialize with them.... "The rent is very reasonable - but the terms are intolerable. "