What Are You Reading Now?

[SeattleUte]

I Just finished this book. Then a couple of days later I saw the trailer for the movie Oppenheimer in the theater. Wow, I can't wait to see that movie! So much of what is in the trailer is what I pictured in my mind as I read the book. My grandfather work in Los Alamos in the 50's. My mom lived there for a few years in her childhood. With all of this, I am a bit worried that I'll build this up in my mind too much and be disappointed. Regardless, I'm glad to have read the book and better understand the extraordinary and terrible accomplishment of the Manhattan Projec.t

Now read Chip War by Chris Miller as a sequel. As I said before, at the deepest both these books are about why some countries succeed and most fail. Liberalism just works.

Recently I've read Borges, awesome. I read To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf. First Woolf novel I've read. Like finely cut crystal. I'm most of the way through Suttree by Cormac McCarthy. It's one of his early works and belongs in the pantheon of American literature. Stunning achievement. His longest novel. For non-fiction, Humanly Possible by Sarah Bakewell. The kind of broad history of ideas that I like. This book surveys humanism over the past 700 years.

[chrisrenrut]

So I finally finished Demon Copperhead. The opioid crisis becomes the main theme midway through the novel and that caused some difficulty for me having a sister who is an addict and several friends who have struggled the past few years (none of them opioids but the behaviors are all too familiar). The difficulty came from me being somewhat exhausted with the ups and downs of it all. Because it’s not a problem for me currently, I find I have decreasing patience with them at times. Reading about people doing the same stupid shit became irritating. But as all good fiction does, it made me look inward and reflect on why those behaviors make me so angry and what kind of a mental place my family and friends are coming from.

TLDR: phenomenal novel that took an unexpected turn and challenged my empathy. Recommend.

Finishing this book up, and the drug aspect has similarly made it more challenging for me. It was such a dark feeling the first time he got high with Dori, it was a definite turning point. I have close family members who are addicts in various stages of recovery, one in jail and one living with us. It’s hard to listen to, seeing time and again the stupidity and bad decisions and outcomes that drugs can cause. But understanding the humanity Demon maintains throughout reminds me that despite an addicts challenges, they are still human and can be a good person at heart when not chasing the dragon.

One observation, it’s pretty remarkable that this first person narrative of a boy growing to a man was written so incredibly well by a woman. I can’t imagine writing something trying to express the mind of a girl through her childhood through teenage years.

[SteelBlue]

Kelly Link's White Cat, Black Dog. A collection of short stories that are fairy tales re-imagined. If you liked her (Pulitzer finalist) short story collection Get in Trouble then you'll probably want to give the new one a read. You definitely have to be open to a great deal of weird to enjoy Link's work. I am and I do.

[happyone]

I've finished a couple more of Charles Spencer history books. These are on the aftermath of the English Civil war of the 1640s and '50s

The first, KIllers of the King , is about he fate of the men directly involved with Charles I execution. I've read a couple of books about the fate of a couple of them who escaped to Mass/Conn, but Mr. Spencer goes through the fate of all 80 or so men directly involved, the 59 men who signed the death warrant and those actually reponsable for holding and transporting the king to place of execution - not the actual executioner though - he was never identified. Charles II was remarkably lenient with those who rebelled against the Crown. Upon the "Restoration" he pardoned everyone, except those 80 or so. He even disinterred the bodies of those who had already passed away and had the corpses beheaded and drawn a quartered - including Oliver Cromwell. I found it fascinating definate 4 star read

Mr. Spencer's second book, To Catch a King, is the story of Charles II escape from England after he lost the Battle of Worster in 1650. The parlimentary forces wanted nothing more than to scoop him up and put an end to the Stewarts. After the battle most of he closest associates where captured, but he managed to escape - narrowly. One night he even spent a night in a Oak Tree. There were cavalry patrols that actually rode beneath the tree, but somehow didn't spot him. That tree became known as "The Royal Oak." Several Royal Navy ships have been named after it. One thing I found interesting was his attempts at disguise were difficult - Charles was 6'2" in an age where the average adult male was 5'6". One other problem they had was teaching him how to walk like a peasant. He had real problems adjusting his gait to that of shambling one of the common man. After about six weeks on the run he managed to find a ship to France an and returned in triumph 10 yrs later. The rest as they say is history. I didn't think this was quite as good as Killers... but still a 4 star read.

I've also finished a couple of memoirs of men who flew with the 8th AF in the early days of the bombing campaign over Europe

The first, Pathfinder Pioneer has a local angle. The author grew up in the silver mining town of Dividend, Utah. I don't think it is even there any more, but it was close enough to Payson, that he graduated from Payson HS. This memoir is divided into three parts. The first is his growing up in Dividend - his extended family owned the mine, He did work underground during the summers. Raymond then recounts his WWII experiences - his enlistment, courthship of his wife, who was attending Rowland Hall, while he was at the U, his training and finally his time with the 8th in the summer of '43 - spring of '44. He arrived in England as a copilot on a B-17 and the crew was assigned a replacements to try and refill the roster of the 92nd BG during the early stages of the bombing campaign. He was eventually given his own crew and moved to the 482 BG which received RADAR equipped B-17s and B-24 and were assigned to be the lead A/C in formations bombing Germany. He completed his 25 missions, returned to the US and spent the rest of the war training new pilots. The third part of the book his his post war career. He rejoined the AF in 1947 and stayed until 1974 retiring as a COL. He was heavily envolved with Nucular Testing and weapons.

Decent read - there are some minor errors, but the part I really enjoyed was the prewar look at the Tintic Mining district and SLC. Again a 4 star read

The other memoir is Luck of the Draw

This is the memoirs of a navigator, Frank Murphey, who was on one of the original crews of the 100 BG when it deployed to England in the Spring of '43. This was the nadir of the 8th's bombing campaign. While one "only" had to complete 25 missions and ones tour was over, at this point in the war the losses to the bomb groups were such and very few completed the task. The author states that out of the 40 something crews that deployed with the 100th, not one complete crew finished there tour, and only 8 individuals were able to complete them. Sadly Mr. Murphy was not on of them. He was shot down on his 21st mission and spent 18 months as a guest of the Third Reich, first at Luft Stalag III and later in Moosburg near Munich. When he was at Luft Stalag III, the events depicted in the movie "The Great Escape" took place. He wasn't a participant, the Germans had put the British and Americans into seperate compounds by the time the escape took place, but he says he knew about it - after the fact. Much of the book is his experience as a POW.

Unlike, Col Brim, Mr. Murphy did not stay in the military, but he did stay around aviation. After getting a law degree, he went to work for Lockheed and spent much of his career in Foreign Sales. His story the first time flying into London after the war (1968) and the memories it brought back is moving. The is also a preface by his daughter and granddaughter that I also found moving


I think this is a five star read!

[SteelBlue]

Kelly Link's White Cat, Black Dog. A collection of short stories that are fairy tales re-imagined. If you liked her (Pulitzer finalist) short story collection Get in Trouble then you'll probably want to give the new one a read. You definitely have to be open to a great deal of weird to enjoy Link's work. I am and I do.

Finished this yesterday. The final story "Skinder's Veil" is excellent and ties in thematically and stylistically with my favorite story from Get in Trouble, "The Summer People." The rest of this new collection was solidly ok.

[SteelBlue]

There’s some good news for all of us who enjoyed Nathan Hill’s The Nix. He has a new novel coming out Sep.19th, titled Wellness. I have a galley and will be starting it today.

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[Jeff Lebowski]

There’s some good news for all of us who enjoyed Nathan Hill’s The Nix. He has a new novel coming out Sep.19th, titled Wellness. I have a galley and will be starting it today.

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Oh great. Looking forward to your review.

[SteelBlue]

Cormac McCarthy dead at 89. So glad we got the last two novels.

[BigPiney]

https://www.theguardian.com/books/20...-up-the-system

Good article about Demon Copperhead.

[Pelado]

https://www.theguardian.com/books/20...-up-the-system

Good article about Demon Copperhead.

Thanks. Almost makes me want to read David and Demon.

[Northwestcoug]

"A Snake Falls to Earth", by Darcie Little Badger. This was on a local bookstore's book club recommendation. Glad I read it. Young adult fantasy with strong Native American origin mythology. It had a surprisingly touching friendship story between a snake and a frog. Well, an origin snake and frog from the reflecting world, and their encounter with our world. Basically if those last 2 sentences didn't scare you away then you will probably like the book. It's a quick read with an oral tradition vibe. Some loose ends could have used an editor but the ending is satisfying. Give it a go if you're a fantasy nerd.

Her first book "Elatsoe" apparently got great reviews. I ordered it and will report, probably not for awhile.

[SteelBlue]

The Book of Evidence by John Banville. Nobody makes me bring out the dictionary like Banville.

[PaloAltoCougar]

There’s some good news for all of us who enjoyed Nathan Hill’s The Nix. He has a new novel coming out Sep.19th, titled Wellness. I have a galley and will be starting it today.

9F95A38C-5280-474B-83BD-321CC76F75C1.png

Halfway through this, and enjoying it VERY much. Too much to comment on, and better to let the Nathan Hill fans here read it without any expectations.

I once attended a small fireside that was essentially a two-hour conversation with Neal Maxwell. He let us ask anything we wanted. Part of his answer to the question, "What do you like to read?", was something like, "I only read books that make me think, you know, pause and go "Hmmmmm!", many times as I'm reading. If a book isn't making me do that, I toss it and move on to another." Wellness has "Hmmmm" moments on pretty much every page, whether it's a well-turned phrase or an underlying theme. We need to have a reading group sesh after a few of you have finished Wellness.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I need to re-up my Audible account and get that. The Nix might be my favorite novel ever.

[SteelBlue]

Halfway through this, and enjoying it VERY much. Too much to comment on, and better to let the Nathan Hill fans here read it without any expectations.

I once attended a small fireside that was essentially a two-hour conversation with Neal Maxwell. He let us ask anything we wanted. Part of his answer to the question, "What do you like to read?", was something like, "I only read books that make me think, you know, pause and go "Hmmmmm!", many times as I'm reading. If a book isn't making me do that, I toss it and move on to another." Wellness has "Hmmmm" moments on pretty much every page, whether it's a well-turned phrase or an underlying theme. We need to have a reading group sesh after a few of you have finished Wellness.

The Nix was always a slam dunk recommendation because somehow, as excellent as the novel was, it seemed few had actually heard of it. This always left you as the recommender covered in glory. I've been expecting the same for Wellness however about a week ago Oprah picked it as the newest selection for her book club. This essentially ensures that the novel is about to blow up.

I agree with PAC, we need to book club this one.