What Are You Reading Now?

[LA Ute]

Amazon.com: Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption (9781400064168): Laura Hillenbrand: Books

Wow!!

I spent almost 6 months listening to this book along with browsing the text copy. I am embarrased that such a gripping story could take me so long..... the only reasonable excuse was my inability to endure the suffering described. What an incredible and heart-wrenching narrative this was.

I think the story told itself, and the author did a wonderful job of "staying out of the way" as the tale unfolded.

I also have taken some of the lessons learned by the individuals described to heart, and hope to be a better person thereby.

The story goes onto my top-10 of all time list and will certainly remain a part of my personal reflective meditations.

Laura Hillenbrandt is a gifted writer. The book unfolds like a novel, almost a page-turner. Louie Zamperini is still alive, BTW. He's about 94 years old. I heard him on a radio program recently.

The book is a great gift. I've given out three copies already.

[Flattop]

Such Men As These: The Story of the Navy Pilots Who Flew the Deadly Skies Over Korea by David Sears.

"We forget," said author James Michener who made at least six trips to Korea. "Even those of us who know better forget that today, in the barren wastes of Korea, American men are dying with a heroism never surpassed in our history. Because they are so few, we forget that they contribute so much."

"I hold their heroism," wrote Michener in the Saturday Evening Post in May 1952, "to be greater than what I witnessed in 1941-45. The soldier on Guadalcanal could feel that his entire nation was behind him. . . . But today the fighter in Korea cannot feel this sense of identification with his own nation." Instead, Michener believed, "we have told a few men, 'You do it, bub. You be the hero.'" The Navy pilots Michener met on his sixth trip to Korea went out on their missions, he was "ashamed to say", alone.

It is these Navy pilots which David Sears writes about in this book. There is Jesse Brown, the first African-American naval aviator, who had to make a crash landing on a North Korean mountain. There is Neil Armstrong, a pilot who flew one of the Navy's first combat jets over Korea, and who later became the first man to walk on the moon. There is Ed Jackson, who encountered an unusual, if clever, air defense weapon that damaged his jet and blinded him. There are the dam busters and the tunnel busters, and the helicopter pilots who risked their lives to save others.

This is a great book about the forgotten pilots of the Forgotten War; it is filled with unforgettable portraits and action-packed accounts of combat in the skies over Korea.

[happyone]

FInished Lady of the English - average, interesting period of history, but I like Sharon Pennman's take better.

Currently reading

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Autobiography-Mark-Twain-Vol-1/dp/0520267192/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1314104610&sr=8-1"]Amazon.com: Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 1 (9780520267190): Mark Twain, Harriet E. Smith, Benjamin Griffin, Victor Fischer, Michael B. Frank, Sharon K. Goetz, Leslie Diane Myrick: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41LndGG6ArL.@@AMEPARAM@@41LndGG6ArL[/ame]

[Flattop]

MASH Angels: Tales of an Air-Evac Helicopter Pilot in the Korean War by Richard C. Kirkland.

Kirkland flew the P-38 Lightning in combat during World War II and would have preferred to fly fighters in Korea. Instead he wound up as a helicopter pilot flying medi-vac missions. He flew wounded GIs to the 8055 M.A.S.H., which inspired the movie and television series, and where he met the real "Hawkeye." Kirkland would also fish downed fliers from the cold Yellow Sea, as well as from behind enemy lines.

The is and excellent and very well written book by a pilot who helped forge a new era in military medical care. The Korean M.A.S.H.-helicopter team dramatically cut the mortality rate of WWII.

[Flattop]

Pacific Sweep by William N. Hess

A pretty good book about the 5th and 13th Fighter Commands of the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II.

[happyone]

Finished Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 1 finally, too much talk about Big XII expansion It is a must read for anyone who has the slightest interest in 19th century America! It is arranged differently than most autobiographies that I have read. He is dictating his remininces as they come to mind - it is NOT is cronological order. Twain made several attempts to write this autobiography, but each time he would get bogged donw and stop. He finally figured out how he wanted to approach it in 1906 and continued on till just before his death in 1910. This volume include the material he dictated form Jan 1906 - March 1906. Currently two more volumes are planned. It is published by Cal-Berkley and includes a very lengthy notes section - appox 200 pgs of the 600 pg book.

This volume inclued as much of the aborted attemts as the archivists have, including quite a large section on his involvment in US Grant's memiors.

The reason the complete autobiography has not been published until now, is that Twain gave instructions that it wasn't to be published until 100 yrs after his death, so his opinions would not hurt anyone living or there children. He has some quite strong opinions about certian indivuals.

Some impressions that I have

- he really liked Grant, but thought he was naive in respect to the business world and he was being taken advantage of in the writing and publishing of his memiors.
- he didn't like organized religion or clergy for the most part, but made execptions for indivual members of the clergy
- he didn't have much use for Doctors as a group, but again made exceptions on a case by case bases
- while he doesn't come out and say it, he thought the Rockefellers were hypocrits

For me probably the most poigent part is where he is comments on one of his daughters biographical sketch of him, after she had passed away.

This is amusing in some spots, laugh out loud in others, and very tender and sad in still others esp as he recalls the death of his wife and daughters.

I can't recommend it highly enough.

currently reading

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Moneymakers-Surprising-Adventures-Notorious-Counterfeiters/dp/B005CDUL9K/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315236612&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: Moneymakers: The Wicked Lives and Surprising Adventures of Three Notorious Counterfeiters: Ben Tarnoff: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61TnPqeOKsL.@@AMEPARAM@@61TnPqeOKsL[/ame]

It is the story of three famous American counterfiters from the 1750's, early 1800s and the Civil War.

[Flattop]

Pacific Vortex! by Clive Cussler.

Billed as the first Dirk Pitt adventure. An American nuclear submarine disappears in a fog-shrouded area where dozens of ships have vanished without a trace. Pitt must find and salvage the submarine before the Russians do.

Excellent.

[happyone]

finished The Moneymakers - very interesting. It is a look at the hard money/paper money saga through the eyes of 3 counterfiters, One from the 1750, one from the late 1810s and the last one from the 1860s. Tarnoff uses these three men to illustrate the evolution of the American money supply and the tension between paper and hard money.

Some interesting factiods

Until the Civil war there was no federal paper money - indivual banks printed there own bank notes with there own designs - That made counterfiting and passing counterfit bills relatively easy. By the time of the Civil War there were over 1600 state banks printing there own currency. The Civil War era Greenback were the first federal paper money.

The penality for counterfiting in New York and a few other states was death - the second counterfiter in the book was delibrately arrested in New York so he would hang.

The third counterfiter, Samuel Upham, printed Confederate notes in Philadelphia during the Civil War. He started out selling them as "mementos" in his stationary shop. He even had a small tag on the bills saying they were facsimilees, but it soon developed into a major counterfiting operation as people, mainly soldiers and smugglers, heading south stocked up. He stopped printing the bills in 1863 when he started getting compition and the profits dried up.

It is a fairly quick read - only 260 pages and I found it very fascinating.

currently reading

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Brothers-Rivals-Victors-Eisenhower-Partnership/dp/0451232127/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315490603&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: Brothers, Rivals, Victors: Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley and the Partnership that Drove the Allied Conquest in Europe (9780451232120): Jonathan W. Jordan: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CG5hOUsDL.@@AMEPARAM@@51CG5hOUsDL[/ame]

[happyone]

finished Brothers, Rivals, Victors - liked it. I think it is a pretty good look at the relationships between the 3 most famous US generals of the European War. Not a whole lot of new information, but it presented in the context of the three men’s relationship to each other. Jordon has a very easy writing style and some case got carried away with florid descript

Some interesting facts/opinions.
Jordon explains the three men's personalities by the sports they chose to particpate in - Patton excelled in indivual sports - fencing, compeditive horseback riding - things that would bring indivual glory. Bradley and Ike played football and baseball -sports that required teamwork.

Ike and Patton were long time personal friends - they first served together after WW I at Camp Colt PA in the Tank Corps, and kept a correspondence up throughout the interwar years.

Bradley served with Patton in Hawaii in the 20's and tried out for his Skeet team

In spite of being a classmate of Ike and being in the same company at West Point Bradley didn't really know Ike until the Torch operation. He came highly recommended by Marshall.

Ike served as Patton’s Chief of Staff in the Louisiana War Games of the Fall of1941. That is when Patton really hit the headlines as he was the winning commander

Ike thought Patton was the best general he had at pursuit and fluid battles, but didn't think he did well in a set piece battle/slogging match, like the ones he fought around Metz and Nancy in France. Because he did so well at what he did, Ike kept pulling Patton's chestnuts out of the fire when he did stupid things IE the slapping incidents in Sicily.

Bradley didn't care for Patton's style and when he became 12 Army Group commander thought Hodges of the 1st Army was every bit as good.

Patton feelings in his diary about Ike and Bradley were less than flattering. He thought they were afraid to take chances and kept him from achieving even more glory. He also thought that they let Montgomery get his way to often, usually at the American Army in general and GS Patton's in particular expence. That caused some heartburn after the war when they were published.

Jordon doesn't expound on Ike's relationship with Kay Summersby, other than to say that there something to it. He does say that we will probably never know just what it was. He does use her diaries as a source throughout the book. He does suggest that the 100 miles from the flagpole rule was in effect for many on his staff though, and does bring up Patton's mistress

I really liked this book and highly recommend it.

Currently reading the new Micheal Jecks Knights Templar novel

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Knights-Templar-Michael-Jecks/dp/0857201115/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315927068&sr=1-2"]Amazon.com: King's Gold (Knights Templar) (9780857201119): Michael Jecks: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51-8UDdzHOL.@@AMEPARAM@@51-8UDdzHOL[/ame]

[happyone]

Finished King's Gold I thought it was fairly good historical fiction with a mediocre mystery tacked on. It dramatizes the captivity of Edward II after he abdicates and his movement from Kenilworth to Berkley after an attempt to free him and return him to the throne.

Currently reading

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Wolf-Hall-Novel-Hilary-Mantel/dp/B005HKKR38/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1316529600&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: Wolf Hall: A Novel: Hilary Mantel: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51-uQ1OIHAL.@@AMEPARAM@@51-uQ1OIHAL[/ame]

Somebody (SU?) recommeded it a few pages back. Historical fiction set in the court of Henry VIII.

[Flattop]

Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of Seal Team 10 by Marcus Luttrell, with Patrick Robinson.

A fantastic book about a SEAL mission in Afghanistan gone horribly wrong. As the lone survivor of the mission, Luttrell has to live with a decision that may have cost the lives of his buddies. The consequences of his choice lie behind his criticisms of the rules of engagement, the media, and liberals. But the book also gives a great look at the SEAL training, particularly the beginning from Indoctrination to Hell Week.

The writing quality is not the best, but it has the style of a hard bitten veteran telling it like it is, which I find appealing. This book is a must read for everyone.

[Green Lantern]

Down in St. George I visited Doc's Book Loft with my daughter. Great used bookstore packed to the gills with every genre in existence. I picked up some Elmore Leonard Westerns and read one of them, Escape From Five Shadows, on the drive home. Great read.

[Flattop]

In the Graveyard of Empires: America's War in Afghanistan by Seth G. Jones.

A very good book about how we got to where we are in Afghanistan. After a brief discussion of the invasions by Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan, as well as the three Anglo-Afghan wars, the book follows the gradual collapse of governance in the late 1960s and 1970s that culminated in the Soviet invasion of 1979, the Mujahideen insurgency, the post-Soviet withdrawal civil war, the rise of the Taliban and events following 9/11 through 2009. This book is a must read for those interested in the war in Afghanistan.

[happyone]

In the Graveyard of Empires: America's War in Afghanistan by Seth G. Jones.

A very good book about how we got to where we are in Afghanistan. After a brief discussion of the invasions by Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan, as well as the three Anglo-Afghan wars, the book follows the gradual collapse of governance in the late 1960s and 1970s that culminated in the Soviet invasion of 1979, the Mujahideen insurgency, the post-Soviet withdrawal civil war, the rise of the Taliban and events following 9/11 through 2009. This book is a must read for those interested in the war in Afghanistan.

This looks good - it will go on my request list at the library

[happyone]

finished Wolf Hall - good read. It is the story of Thomas Cromwell's career up to the time of the execution of Thomas More (of "A Man for All Seasons" fame). Interesting look at the court of Henry VIII. The protrayal of Cromwell is sympathetic. Thomas More is not the saint of AMfAS - but is much more complex, not exactally a villian, but ...

Mantel is supposedly at work on a sequal.

Currently reading

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Tudors-Complete-Englands-Notorious-Dynasty/dp/038534077X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1317648819&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: The Tudors: The Complete Story of England's Most Notorious Dynasty (9780385340779): G.J. Meyer: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51QoECvQYqL.@@AMEPARAM@@51QoECvQYqL[/ame]

That Brian mentioned

It is a one volume history all 5 Tudor monarchs