What Are You Reading Part 3

[CTRLZero]

On 8/1/2022 at 3:09 PM, CTRLZero said:

just finished Anderson Cooper’s story of his family (mostly his mother), “Vanderbilt.” He really emphasizes how the fortune was squandered in the first couple generations, but the name still carries the assumption of wealth.  An interesting read, especially the opening about The Breakers estate, the custody battle affecting his mother’s childhood, and her social circle.

Then, I pulled from my personal  bookshelf “The First Tycoon:  The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt” by T.J. Stiles.  There isn’t much overlap between this Vanderbilt and Cooper Anderson’s book (different generations), but I wanted to refresh my memory of the person who accumulated the wealth in the first place.  Anderson Cooper’s book does conclude with a listing of some of the more famous Vanderbilt holdings built by Cornelius’s wealth.  It’s astounding. 

Quoting myself, but I found this article about Anderson Cooper releasing a podcast about his grief over being the last remaining member of his immediate family.  He has been sorting through his late mother’s personal papers, etc., and found lots of interesting items.  CNN article re Anderson Cooper and grief podcast

I’m listening to Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series.  It was published in the early 1950s, and I notice a definite shortage of women characters this time around.  Nevertheless, he has an interesting perspective on how history repeats itself, and if there is anything individuals can do to influence better outcomes in the future.  This reading, I’m adding in my understanding that WWII had just ended, and what is happening in the USA today.

Also listening to various Agatha Christie mysteries.  I’m picking up more nuances in the stories in audiobook format.  

[clueliss]

I finally finished night road by Kristen Hanover this morning. I gave it to out of 5 stars. It's probably me. I have identified exactly what it was that was making me a crazy person with this book and why I didn't like it. Had a lot to do with the pacing since it covers a good 10 years in time. And other authors that I read that deal with time sequencing differently and their work reads much smoother.

[CTRLZero]

Newest reads:

This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub - Well done time travel novel with nothing really unsurprising (a time travel “cozy”?).  It starts out with a 40-year-old at the hospital bedside of her declining father, then things start to happen.  Emma is the daughter of author Peter Straub, who recently died, so this may be why some of the aging parent scenes ring true.

When the Moon Turns to Blood by Leah Sottile - Recap of Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow’s life and [alleged] crimes.  Very interesting glimpses into end times groups, conspiracy theorists, and dysfunctional families.

Velocity Weapon - and - Chaos Vector by Megan O’Keefe.  Sci fi novel and sequel (just starting the sequel) that have some decent plot twists and are, so far, well  written.

[church_of_dog]

My September reading:

 

First off, I didn't finish or even make much progress in the mysterious 😊 reading project I mentioned last month.  But I might as well describe it just so I don't drag out the drama.

I'm rereading the two classic Ayn Rand books I read in the 80s, plus the biography I read of her back then.  My goal is to understand why I liked the books then, and what I think of them now, and to understand the politics I was oblivious to in the 80s.

This was somewhat prompted by my finding a new book about her that puts her philosophy in context with current right wing politics, and I will read that new book soon as I finish rereading the other three.

In August I listened to The Fountainhead, but I didn't mention it when I listed my books, thinking I would have all the others read in September and would describe all my thoughts and reactions at that time.  Well, these are LONG books!  And my outdoor/listening time was limited in Sept. until it finally cooled off a bit.  I got halfway through Atlas Shrugged and then had to pause to listen to some other books that had approaching return deadlines.  I think I'm about to get back to it, but we'll see what else comes up,  This is the time of year when long-awaited new releases appear, and if something I'm in line for shows up, I'm going to go for the new book.

Anyway, all that said, here's what I've read since my last post:

Fiction:

The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand

I'll wait until I've finished the others for any deep thoughts, but at this point will say I liked it a lot less than I did in the 80s, and disagreed with every single character, although some of them more thoroughly than others.

 

First Bones and Bones on Ice, by Kathy Reichs

These are both novellas.  I liked both, and I've now completed her Bones series until she writes more.

 

The Bullet That Missed (Thursday Murder Club #3), by Richard Osman

Really delightful cozy series!  Set in England, the four primary protagonists  all live in the same retirement community.  I laughed out loud several times and almost cried once as well.  Of course now I have to wait another year for the next book.

 

 

Non-Fiction:

Miracle Cure: The Creation of Antibiotics and the Birth of Modern Medicine, by William Rosen

Really interesting, background of how early antibiotics were discovered, lots of good info about the big pharma companies too.  In spite of all the negatives about the big companies, I also found myself really glad for all the research that has been funded and the discoveries that have been made.

 

Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry That Radicalized America, by Ryan Busse

Not the best written book I've read, but a really interesting topic and most especially a valuable perspective.  Busse started out as a Republican because he was a rural gun guy.  He ended up working in the gun industry because of how much he enjoyed guns, hunting, shooting, etc. 

But then he started to see how the gun industry was really becoming about the politics of the NRA rather than true sportsmanship, and he had the courage to change his politics and stand up for his values.  He comes across as a bit braggy, but if the topic is of interest I highly recommend the book.

 

Chase Darkness With Me: How One True-Crime Writer Started Solving Murders, by Billy Jensen

As with the above book, not the best writing but still interesting.  Jensen developed a strategy of targeted Facebook pages to find witnesses with information about unsolved crimes.  He tells the story in this book of some of his most high profile cases, plus how he developed his approach.  I hadn't heard of him until I started reading about the Golden State Killer -- Jensen was close to Michelle McNamara who wrote the book about the search for the GSK.

 

They Knew: How A Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent, by Sarah Kendzior

This is the second book I've read by Sarah Kendzior.  She writes about Trump and the people around him, and how we got to the point where he was able to acquire and wield power as he did.  In this book she focuses on America's history of conspiracy theories as well as some actual conspiracies.

I really enjoy her books although I find it hard to remember specific details afterwards in order to describe what I liked.  In spite of that I do recommend her books.

 

Edited October 3, 2022 by church_of_dog

[CTRLZero]

On 10/2/2022 at 9:03 PM, church_of_dog said:

I'm rereading the two classic Ayn Rand books I read in the 80s, plus the biography I read of her back then.  My goal is to understand why I liked the books then, and what I think of them now, and to understand the politics I was oblivious to in the 80s.

I went through an Ayn Rand phase a long time ago.  Maybe it’s time for a revisit.

I’m sort of doing the same with Asimov’s Foundation series.  A while back, I read a quasi biography of him and a couple of other sci fi writers that he interacted with.  One of those writers was L. Ron Hubbard who later developed Scientology.  Apparently, Asimov and Hubbard had discussions about whether and how one could start a successful religion/cult.  The Foundation series has its psychological and philosophical moments, so I’m reading it this time with more attention to any subliminal (or blatant, lol) messages along those lines.  I probably won’t reach any profound conclusions, but these novels are always a good way to pass the time.

One book I recently read which I can recommend is The Measure by Nikki Erlick.  You don’t want to overthink this book, but the basic premise is what happens to the world when every single adult knows almost the exact date they will die.  Pretty engrossing.

 

[freethemall]

I am reading Cultish by Amanda Montell and am loving it - the focus is on language of cults/cult-like groups, and she at one point discusses being among evangelical Christians and learning phrases like "convicted" and "being in the Word" and "on my heart". Really fascinating read for anyone interested in fundies.

[CTRLZero]

On 10/27/2022 at 1:30 PM, freethemall said:

I am reading Cultish by Amanda Montell and am loving it - the focus is on language of cults/cult-like groups, and she at one point discusses being among evangelical Christians and learning phrases like "convicted" and "being in the Word" and "on my heart". Really fascinating read for anyone interested in fundies.

I’m just finishing up this book and can recommend it as an overview of how language is used to lure us into cults, MLMs, really just any entity that wants our loyalty and/or money.  It’s all a type of marketing, IMO.  One segment of the book that interested me especially was why some people are skeptical and resistant.  I grew up in a household where my father pursued all sorts of conspiracy theories and cultish entities, and I and all but one of my siblings gave his beliefs a side eye.  He’d drag me to services and events, but everything just rolled off me, despite his fervor du jour.

This book is an especially good pairing with a couple YouTube series I’m watching on Mormons (Jordan and McKay), and some familiar fundies (Fundie Fridays).  Lots of peer pressure and marketing. 

[danvillebelle]

Currently reading The Oxford History of Islam and Rationality by Steven Pinker.  Both great.

[CTRLZero]

Speaking of cults…. Oh, boy, I’m only a third of the way through The King of Confidence by Miles Harvey and can already tell it’s the wildest historical narrative I’ve read recently.  It’s about James Strang, huckster or king of the universe (you decide).  Strang appointed himself Mormon church leader after Joseph Smith’s demise, and the rest is a crazy series of events.  Interesting insight into American westward expansion religions and mindset of people at the time.

[church_of_dog]

My October (and first part of November) reading:

I finally (finally!!) finished my Ayn Rand project.  I'm really glad I did it -- I now have a much better understanding of what I liked about her books forty years ago, and what I think now, which is -- about 10% agree, 80% disagree, and 10% confusion because she doesn't really define her terms but also doesn't seem to use standard understandings for words like "objective" or "rational" or "moral" or "selfish" or "altruism".

 

Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand.  Probably the longest book I've ever read or listened to.  Her actual writing style is fine, though her scenes aren't realistic, even for the era in which they are set.  But I know plenty of books are like that.  But she has her characters speak in lectures and often the same concepts and assertions are repeated multiple times throughout the story.  And she has a messed up (in my opinion) concept of sex and love, which leans heavily on violence and self-deprivation and wanting to hurt the one who is loved.  If she presented these things to make some point, that point was mostly lost on me.

The biography of Rand I had intended to reread, I couldn't find in audio format, so I skipped it, but in the course of listening to the other biography I had come across, yet another was mentioned, so I listened to both.

 

Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right, by Jennifer Burns

This is the book that started me on this project.  I wanted to read it but needed to refresh my memory of Rand's writings first.  This book did not disappoint in terms of putting Rand's philosophies into context with the American political right, except that it was written in 2009 so it didn't carry all the way into the present political context.  But I enjoyed this book, both the history aspect as well as the biography aspect.

 

Ayn Rand and the World She Made, by Anne C. Heller

This is the book I came across partway through the last one, and decided to include it.  Interestingly, it was also written in 09 although this book is "just" a biography and doesn't delve into much wider historical effects of her work.  The book was okay but considering how much of it was a repeat of the other book I had just read, it didn't feel as compelling.  One interesting thing I noted was the description of how people would tell Rand they didn't agree with some aspect of her philosophy, then they would spend a few hours talking about it and the dissenter would be persuaded -- this amazed me because there was so much about her approach which didn't seem logical to me, and I would have liked to challenge her perspectives with my own and see whether either of us would come to a new understanding.  It's hard for me to see how really bright people could find her views reasonable.  I don't think my own worldview is so extreme in comparison, but who knows, maybe it is...

 

Other books read since my last post:

American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy, by David Corn

I really, really liked this book.  Written by David Corn who is one of the primary writers for Mother Jones.  Excellent writer.  He goes all the way back to the Lincoln-era beginning of the Republican Party, when they were the party against slavery and in favor of human rights.  From about the 1950s onward he goes into great detail, showing the development of the connections between the John Birch Society and the Republicans, and then including industry and secret funding and religion and many other tentacles that all joined together to create the current dysfunction.  I read this one within a few days of the Sarah Kendzior book I reported on last month, which may be why I had a hard time recalling specifics from her book -- both books aimed at the same broader topic and included some overlap of history, which is good for me to learn history but not so good for remembering which book said what.

 

Lady Justice: Women, the Law, and the Battle to Save America, by Dahlia Lithwick

Another book I really liked.  New release.  Lithwick delves into the stories of several woman who played key roles in moving forward important legal rights for women and women's issues.  Some of the women I knew a little about (Roberta Kaplan, Stacey Abrams, Sally Yates) while others I did not (Vanita Gupta, Pauli Murray, Becca Heller).

 

Cool: How Air Conditioning Changed Everything, by Salvatore Basile

This book is not available in audio, so I have been slowly working my way through a print copy for most of the last year(!).  The subject matter was quite interesting, but the book was written in a dry and hard-to-absorb style.  But I wanted to know the history and couldn't find another book that dealt with the same topic.  Fortunately the book was short and the photos were interesting!

 

 

 

 

[clueliss]

Yesterday I finished Our Missing Hearts by Celeste No.  Highly recommend to this crowd.  It fits into Speculative fiction.  Covers things like racism, and politics.  The audio had a bit from the author at the end and she shared some of the many influences.

[Scrabblemaster]

I am reading "Ich möchte lieber nicht" = I would rather not to from Juliane Schreiber It is a book about the toxic positivity lifeö style that is arising everywhere, in social media or in the stores. She has some interesting thoughts about the coaching businesses and that you are supposed to optimize yourself. But to be fair I would have prefered some more of the scientific researches to back up her theories. 

And I read 'The house of the spirits' from Isabel Allende. Very good classic book. 

[church_of_dog]

My November reading:

This is the kind of month's reading that I love -- a wildly disparate gaggle of books that each came to my attention for different reasons.

 

NON-FICTION

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism, by Amanda Montell

Recommended by several FJers.  An interesting perspective on cults and their use of language.  I was familiar with some of the groups but would not have thought of the MLM sales scams as cults, nor Crossfit or the other exercise groups.  But looking at the psychology of how they use language to manipulate people, they fit the author's classification.

 

Julia Morgan: An Intimate Biography of the Trailblazing Architect, by Victoria Kastner

I recently came across a new book about the Berkeley City Club, one of Julia Morgan's iconic buildings.  I was interested in learning about Morgan but also about that building in particular because a dear friend had worked on its restoration a decade ago.  However, that new book hasn't come out in audio format, so I listened to this biography of Morgan instead.  Still quite interesting, a combination of her biography and some California history, some of which I hadn't known.

 

California Burning: The Fall of Pacific Gas and Electric -- And What It Means for America's Power Grid, by Katherine Blunt

This book is a bit too densely packed with complex politics that are beyond my understanding (financial structures such as Enron, etc) to make good listening, but it was worth it.  Even though I had to listen at 1.15x speed in order to get through it before it had to be returned -- finished with less than ten minutes to spare!  A brief but good history of the origins of PG&E, then the story of how they found themselves in trouble with gas pipeline explosions and their electrical equipment causing destructive wildfires.  Really, really interesting and with lots of food for thought about the future of the electric grid.

 

FICTION

We Have Always Lived In The Castle, by Shirley Jackson

A friend who is much more literary in her reading choices than I am, recently read this in her book group and then passed the book along to me.  I found it a bit creepy, but clearly that was the intent of the author.  The superior quality of Shirley Jackson's writing was obvious -- even though the story was confusing and even unpleasant, I nevertheless felt a strong desire to keep reading -- an immediate sense of being caught up in what happens to the characters.  This book is short and easy to read, just hard to explain.

 

Billy Summers, by Stephen King

My annual Halloween reading of a Stephen King book, just a month late this year.  I liked this book but not as much as I usually like King's books.  Something about the second half of the book just seemed off to me.  I can't claim it's "unrealistic" since most of King's books are unrealistic.  Just didn't flow well for me.  Overall I still liked it though.

 

The Twist of A Knife (Hawthorne and Horowitz Mystery #4), by Anthony Horowitz

The fourth book in this series, lighthearted/cozy mysteries with a nice bit of humor in them.  As above, I liked the book but not as much as I had the earlier books in the series.  Will see whether I'm losing interest in the series or maybe this was a one-off.

 

Edited December 7, 2022 by church_of_dog

[Pecansforeveryone]

A Southerner's Reckoning with the Myth of the Lost Cause: Rober E. Lee and Me by Ty Seidule. It's written by a retired Brigadier General and professor of history at West Point. He is honest qbout how we don't honestly reckon and teach what the Civil War was really about, and how we continue to glorify racist, traitors like Robert E. Lee. It's very good. 

[clueliss]

Popping in to point out that Primes has Three Pines a series based on the books from Louise Penny.

 

 

also, I read Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarity but didn’t like it.  I blame the structure and the WTF ending that suddenly involved the real world Covid stuff.  

[keen23]

Dance Away With Me by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. So good! It's from 2020, but wow, it's awesome. Highly recommend.

[clueliss]

Checked Jessica Willis Fisher’s book Unspeakable out of the library earlier this week and just finished it.  I found it devastating and insightful.  (And we learn why Jair’s first engagement was broken off).  

[AnywhereButHere]

On 12/10/2022 at 3:31 PM, clueliss said:

Popping in to point out that Primes has Three Pines a series based on the books from Louise Penny.

 

 

also, I read Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarity but didn’t like it.  I blame the structure and the WTF ending that suddenly involved the real world Covid stuff.  

I’ve been watching the Three Pines series. I am enjoying it, but I find I like it more if I treat it like it’s not associated with the books - if that makes any sense. My obsession with the books may be a touch unhealthy… 😂

I’m starting Tana French’s The Witch Elm and hoping that she’ll do another Murder Squad book in the future. 
 

Last year, I gifted myself a subscription to the Wordy Traveler (because yeah - just what I need is more books), so I’ve found some interesting reads that I would probably never choose for myself. Recently finished The Twelfth Transforming by Pauline Gedge. I was iffy about it when I started it, but it really drew me in! Fascinating fictional look at a period of Egyptian history. 

 

[church_of_dog]

9 minutes ago, AnywhereButHere said:

I’ve been watching the Three Pines series. I am enjoying it, but I find I like it more if I treat it like it’s not associated with the books - if that makes any sense. My obsession with the books may be a touch unhealthy… 😂

I’m starting Tana French’s The Witch Elm and hoping that she’ll do another Murder Squad book in the future. 
 

Last year, I gifted myself a subscription to the Wordy Traveler (because yeah - just what I need is more books), so I’ve found some interesting reads that I would probably never choose for myself. Recently finished The Twelfth Transforming by Pauline Gedge. I was iffy about it when I started it, but it really drew me in! Fascinating fictional look at a period of Egyptian history. 

 

I don't plan to watch the Three Pines series, but I'm curious -- do any of the plots match the books or is it new/different happenings just with the familiar characters?

I have A World of Curiosities audiobook from Overdrive right now and it will be my weekend listening.  Can't wait to start it in the morning!

Thank you for reminding me that Tana French has standalone novels -- I need to load up on a few of those and, like you, am eagerly hoping for a new Murder Squad book soon.

[CTRLZero]

2 minutes ago, church_of_dog said:

have A World of Curiosities audiobook from Overdrive right now and it will be my weekend listening.  Can't wait to start it in the morning

I’m 44th in line to check this out, but hopefully I’ll get this soon.  I plan to watch the series at some point.

I’ve been listening to podcasts on primarily Mormon history, so I’ve been missing in action as far as the reading thread is concerned.  One of my interests is U.S. western expansion religions, so it may be awhile before I resurface, lol.  

[AnywhereButHere]

@church_of_dog They are based on the books, but there are a lot of liberties taken. The first episode is based on A Fatal Grace, so they didn’t start at the beginning, and they’re bringing in characters and events that may have come earlier or later in the books just to be sure they get in the major plot points.
 

They are really highlighting the horrible treatment of the native Canadians, and because they didn’t start with Still Life, that whole plot is nonexistent, so there’s no Hadley house. They made it an old residential school instead, so it still does have an evil history, and it helps bring the various story lines together. 
 

I really like Rossif Sutherland as Jean-Guy. Alfred Molina doesn’t look like my vision of Gamache, but his attitude and manner work. 
 

There’s enough that’s different where I can watch it and enjoy it for what it is without it ruining the books for me. Hopefully it stays that way, because I’m 23rd in line at my library for A World of Curiosities. 

[church_of_dog]

36 minutes ago, CTRLZero said:

I’m 44th in line to check this out, but hopefully I’ll get this soon.  I plan to watch the series at some point.

I’ve been listening to podcasts on primarily Mormon history, so I’ve been missing in action as far as the reading thread is concerned.  One of my interests is U.S. western expansion religions, so it may be awhile before I resurface, lol.  

I think I was #1 in line, requested it back in May(!) from Santa Clara County -- not where I live but my mom is there so I have a card for their system, and they serve crowded Silicon Valley and thus buy many more copies of each book than my podunk library system, where I am also in line but months away from getting it.

Since audiobooks "count" for this thread, I think podcasts should too.  Your focus on western expansion religions sounds interesting -- are there many other than Mormonism and its offshoots?  Are things like the Lutherans settling in the upper midwest, or the Amish in their regions, part of your topic?

 

@AnywhereButHere I must ask -- is Rosa the duck there? 🤣🦆

[AnywhereButHere]

Oh yeah. Rosa is definitely there! 😂

[church_of_dog]

Just now, AnywhereButHere said:

Oh yeah. Rosa is definitely there! 😂

Thanks!  And thanks for your description.  Overall it does sound appealing so maybe at some point I'll figure out how to be able to watch it.

[CTRLZero]

6 minutes ago, church_of_dog said:

Since audiobooks "count" for this thread, I think podcasts should too.  Your focus on western expansion religions sounds interesting -- are there many other than Mormonism and its offshoots?  Are things like the Lutherans settling in the upper midwest, or the Amish in their regions, part of your topic?

Reading the book about James Strang mentioned a few posts up really made me interested in Mormonism.  I have also learned a little of spiritism, which was popular in that same region.  I’ll keep branching off as various historical events lead me down other paths, so thanks for the idea of investigating Lutherans and Amish.  There is just so much to keep me busy for the foreseeable future.