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What Are You Reading Right Now?

Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson. Highly recommend.
 
JBG said:
I just finished reading Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis. The book has been kicking around my TBR pile since before I graduated high school and I never got around to it. I confess that maybe I started it, read one page and actually liked it and then I had to ditch it for assigned reading in one of my courses.

This is the kind of book that makes me pine for the days of having a high school teacher to help me with the symbolism and references, of which this book is dense. Mr. Ladensack and Mr. Myers (they were not young men when I graduated in 1975 so I am not outing anyone), where are you when I need you? Still, I much enjoyed it. Basically the story is about an employer and a much older hire, Zorba, who is full of lessons and more full of ego. An excerpt:

Zorba was a person who lived life to its fullest. A model I can admire and learn from, as did the narrator.
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Sounds very philosophical. If you Google the title + 'analysis' you will get some of that help you are seeking. Might not be as good as listening to your teachers, though. Bless high school English teachers.
 
MaryP said:
Sounds very philosophical. If you Google the title + 'analysis' you will get some of that help you are seeking. Might not be as good as listening to your teachers, though. Bless high school English teachers.
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You deserve to be in a book club with some very thoughtful other readers. Maybe you can form one on-line if you cannot join one already in progress and get everyone to read Zorba with you. They will come up with ideas (maybe not the same ones your teachers would) that you have not, yet, thought of. I miss my book clubs. I know that when I read Crime and Punishment on my own that I was missing what teachers would have taught me, even though I read about it and discussed it with my husband (who had a very good recall of it). :)
 
NewfieMom said:
You deserve to be in a book club with some very thoughtful other readers. Maybe you can form one on-line if you cannot join one already in progress and get everyone to read Zorba with you. They will come up with ideas (maybe not the same ones your teachers would) that you have not, yet, thought of. I miss my book clubs. I know that when I read Crime and Punishment on my own that I was missing what teachers would have taught me, even though I read about it and discussed it with my husband (who had a very good recall of it). :)
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It is JBS who seems interested in analysis of Zorba. I read for pleasure only, even when it's classics. You're right, a book club might be fun. I'll check at the library in town.
 
NewfieMom said:
You deserve to be in a book club with some very thoughtful other readers. Maybe you can form one on-line if you cannot join one already in progress and get everyone to read Zorba with you. They will come up with ideas (maybe not the same ones your teachers would) that you have not, yet, thought of. I miss my book clubs. I know that when I read Crime and Punishment on my own that I was missing what teachers would have taught me, even though I read about it and discussed it with my husband (who had a very good recall of it). :)
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How do you find those? I live in a densely populated area so they should exist.
 
I just finished reading (with some skips, see later in review) The Downing Street Years by Margaret Thatcher. This book gets a "four star" from me. It was densely packed with information. Given that this is now 2025 and the last period covered in the book is late 1990, certain of the people and events covered are lost to the sands of history. On the other hand, her impressions of U.S. and other political leaders is invaluable.

The Downing Street years has a lot of wisdom important to the here and now. I confess to putting the book down and skipping parts that just did not particularly interest me. Frankly, the book could have used some editing. All the same, I do recommend it.
 
I am reading How To Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley and the dog in the story (set in England) is named Maggie Thatcher. She is called "Margaret" by one character, ""M" by another, and "Maggie" by a third. It's a great book. Very British.
 
I just finished reading The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience of a Divided Nation in a Turbulent World by Dan Senor. This book is a sequel to Startup Nation, by the same authors. The book was a bit of a falloff from Startup but still worth reading. A couple of chapters, a bit too celebratory about relations with Israeli Arabs, became outdated on October 7, 2023. That being said, Daniel Senor does a good job explaining Israel's relative cohesiveness despite toxic internal politics. Worthy of note was the description of the mechinot, which is described in Mechinot: post High-School service learning. It is a one-year program for recent high school graduates, of about forty 18 year olds living together for a year of study, hiking and volunteering, prior to their entry into the IDF.

This book also explains the importance of Israel's population's relatively young age, and its contribution to optimism. A good read, which I am giving four stars.
 
I am reading The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. It is historical fiction. I just finished 25 Alive which is part of a series of books (The "Womens Murder Club Mysteries") written by Alexander Patterson and Maxine Paetro. It is the 25th book in the series and I wait for each one to come out. Four women tied to the San Francisco Police Department and their friends appear in the different books and become familiar characters each of whom has a personal history and story line.
 
Recently finished God of the Woods by Liz Moore and Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon. I enjoyed both. I joined a book club a little while back, and these were the recent choices.
 
Josie said:
I liked it.
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@JMR and @Josie, this was the choice of my niece's book club. After she and my brother (who is not in her book club but always reads the selection) read the book club's preferred book, they tell me if I should read it. Book clubs are very useful. :)
 
I finished The Personal Librarian and it really deserves much more attention than simply being called "historical fiction" by me. It was an absorbing book to read, but I read it as fiction and therefore really read it mainly for pleasure. I was not keeping an eye out for historical accuracy, although I couldn't help but notice many famous figures from the early twentieth century who put in cameo appearances. At the end, when I read the footnotes, however, I was very impressed. I had not realized while I was reading how closely the story line had hewn to reality. The research was truly professional in quality.

After reading The Personal Librarian I read another book club selection that my niece's book club read some months back: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. It, also, is a novel. The author shared some of her experiences writing the book at the end. When the author submitted it to be considered for publication a reader at the literary agency, "who reviewed my query letter, realized there was an octopus narrator, and wrote in the margin, 'This is either brilliant or bananas'."

Indeed the narrator is an octopus, about whom one grows to care as he acts with incredible love towards human characters in the book. It is highly imaginative and highly readable. I found it difficult to put down.
 
Husbands and Lovers by Beatriz Williams. Just started it, so can't really comment
 
I just finished I'm Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett

"I Am Not Sidney Poitier (2009) is a novel by American writer Percival Everett. Originally published by Graywolf Press, in 2020 it was published by Influx Press in the UK.[1] It explores the tumultuous life of a character named Not Sidney Poitier as the social hierarchy scrambles to balance his skin color with his wealth.

Each adventure reflects a prominent film starring Sidney Poitier, such as The Defiant Ones or Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and incorporates a significant twist. The novel reflects a Post-black writing style by parodying the traditions of Black literature."

Everett just knocks me out. This is not my first Percival Everett book and it won't be my last. Everett is a brave, accomplished author, thoughtful and humorous and thought provoking.


Just started Can You Feel the Silence: Van Morrison, A Biography - Clinton Heylin

"A definitive biography of a troubled musical genius​

This groundbreaking biography of a brilliant but disturbed performer explores the paradox of the man and the artist. Based on more than 100 interviews, this intelligent profile explores Morrison’s roots; the hard times he went through in London, New York, and Boston; the making of his seminal albums such as Moondance and Astral Weeks; and the disastrous business arrangements that left Morrison hungry and penniless while his songs were topping the charts. Detailed are the breakdown of Morrison’s marriage, the creative drought that followed, and his triumphant reemergence. In addition, this biography attempts to explain the forbidding aspects of Morrison's persona, such as paranoia, hard drinking, misanthropy, as well as why, in the words of his onetime singing partner Linda Gail Lewis, Morrison’s music “brings happiness to other people, not him.” Also included is a Van Morrision sessionography that spans 1964 to 2001."

Van Morrison has long been one of my favorite song writer/singers. Some critics rank his musical genius in the top ten of all time along with Mozart and others. Though his music is nothing like Mozart I believe his talent might well be that exceptional. Beyond his music Morrison is a most tortured soul. Not someone you'd want to try to have a conversation with. How can an asshole write such deeply meaningful lyrics? That's Van.
 
NewfieMom said:
I finished The Personal Librarian and it really deserves much more attention than simply being called "historical fiction" by me. It was an absorbing book to read, but I read it as fiction and therefore really read it mainly for pleasure. I was not keeping an eye out for historical accuracy, although I couldn't help but notice many famous figures from the early twentieth century who put in cameo appearances. At the end, when I read the footnotes, however, I was very impressed. I had not realized while I was reading how closely the story line had hewn to reality. The research was truly professional in quality.

After reading The Personal Librarian I read another book club selection that my niece's book club read some months back: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. It, also, is a novel. The author shared some of her experiences writing the book at the end. When the author submitted it to be considered for publication a reader at the literary agency, "who reviewed my query letter, realized there was an octopus narrator, and wrote in the margin, 'This is either brilliant or bananas'."

Indeed the narrator is an octopus, about whom one grows to care as he acts with incredible love towards human characters in the book. It is highly imaginative and highly readable. I found it difficult to put down.
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I expected Remarkably Bright Creatures to be better after hearing a glowing review by my favorite bookstore owner. I thought it was just fine.
 
Josie said:
I expected Remarkably Bright Creatures to be better after hearing a glowing review by my favorite bookstore owner. I thought it was just fine.
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I hadn't had anyone tell me what he thought of the book before I read it, so I didn't have an opportunity to be disappointed. I thought the book was quite nice, however, so perhaps I wouldn't have had your reaction. I was very moved by the struggles in several of the characters' lives, including those in the life of Marcellus, the octopus. I feel that the author had a gift for characterization.

I really enjoy being able to discuss books we have both read with you. It is nice that you are such a prodigious reader. Nice for me, that is. But also nice for you, I am sure!
 
I recently read The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris by Evie Woods, an Irish author who wrote The Lost Bookshop which I also "reviewed" here. I enjoyed it, but I did not find it as touching as The Lost Bookshop. I think that her books, although filled with some superficial charm, which they are, do not really reach me on a deep level. I want to say that they are not deeply felt, but that may be unfair. I cannot, of course, speak for everyone who reads them. I do not think her work is for me, however.

Next I tried Cookies and Christmas, just to give another "cozy murder mystery" series a try. It was terrible, however. I do not mind reading about English spinsters solving mysteries while baking and knitting, but the author has to have some charm and humor and the ability to make the characters unique (characterization). This book was a real disappointment, so I will not be reading any more books about Pelican Cove (set in Virginia) by Leena Clover.

I changed my pace with my most recent book. I read The Keeper pf Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen, a Danish mystery writer whose book had been translated into English by Lisa Hartford. It has been published under different titles in the UK. It is considered the "Nordic Noir" genre and Adler-Olsen has been compared favorably to Stieg Larsson. I found the book harrowing and have revised my decision to read one of his books. It was extremely well written and gripping, but I am not sure I need my crime novels to be quite that edgy,

I am about to start Nightshade by Michael Connelly. I will let you know how it goes.
 
Over the last 2-3 years....

Cixin Liu:
The Three Body Problem, The Dark Forest, Death's End. (The best out of everything I'm listing. The man's imagination is something to behold. It's proper sci-fi, right down to the philosophizing. Wonderful).​
​

Ball Lightning. (Very interesting, but not as engaging as the above trilogy.)​
​
Supernova Era. Flew along.. each story is 45-60 pages. Each brilliant and self-contained.​
​
Short story/writing compilation (name escapes me).​


Steinbeck: Travels with Charley: in Search of America (I love this man's writing. This is nonfiction).

Hyperion, Fall of Hyperion, and on Endymion, Rise of Endymion (four part Dan Simmons series; ehhh... loose ends and plot holes everywhere).
The "silo" trilogy (with an extra short story set after the ending) (Huge Howey) (BRILLIANT!)
The Man in the High Castle {Philip K. Dick} (the pkd ones were a reread; he is no master of prose, but his ideas are brilliant.)
The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch{ Philip K. Dick}
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep {Philip K. Dick}
Ubik {Philip K. Dick}
Martian Time-Slip {Philip K. Dick}
Dr. Bloodmoney {Philip K. Dick}
Now Wait for Last Year {Philip K. Dick}
Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said {Philip K. Dick}
A Scanner Darkly {Philip K. Dick}
Asmiov's Foundation trilogy (must get the rest)
Captain Corelli's Mandolin (Louis de Bernières)



I probably already posted some here. And I'm sure I forgot some.




Now on: Patriot (Alexander Nalvany). Praise him with great praise!
 
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I enjoy reading American military history. It started quite a while ago when I finally got fed up with reading books with the same plot line/propaganda of good guys won, bad guys lost. Almost everyone listed the same high ranking cast of characters, same units, blah, blah, blah. There was no in depth explanation of everything that went into making a battle or operation a success or a humiliating failure. There was very little written about small unit actions and sacrifices of ordinary soldiers and sailors. The only service which seemed to get all of the accolades was the USMC. For the army it was the 82d and 101st airborne, 1st and 3rd infantry divisions. No one else won WWII. It was unthinkable to publish anything about our opponents other than the usual biased propaganda echo chamber. Finally things started to change within the past 10-15 years with more in depth historical facts and credit given where credit is due to the often overlooked soldiers and sailors which help explain the bigger picture of what was happening at that time in history.
I’m currently reading SUPREMACY AT SEA (Taffy 58 and the central pacific victory), by Evan Mawdsley. In his narrative he discloses the immensity of the Navy’s efforts to support the giant fleets which made the news. It’s a good read especially for the Swabbies who’ve served or anyone interested in reading more than just about a battle.
 
I just finished Bob Dylan: Stories Behind the Songs 1962-1969 by Andy Gill and I'm a bit disappointed. I had expected a better analysis of the songs and stories behind them. I think he did a good job analyzing Bob Dylan's "going electric," largely abandoning acoustic protest music and his forecasting, with Basement Tapes, John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline the development of country-folk and country rock. The song-by -song analysis was sometimes shallow and sometimes offhand and whimsical.
 
JBG said:
I just finished reading Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis. The book has been kicking around my TBR pile since before I graduated high school and I never got around to it. I confess that maybe I started it, read one page and actually liked it and then I had to ditch it for assigned reading in one of my courses.

This is the kind of book that makes me pine for the days of having a high school teacher to help me with the symbolism and references, of which this book is dense. Mr. Ladensack and Mr. Myers (they were not young men when I graduated in 1975 so I am not outing anyone), where are you when I need you? Still, I much enjoyed it. Basically the story is about an employer and a much older hire, Zorba, who is full of lessons and more full of ego. An excerpt:

Zorba was a person who lived life to its fullest. A model I can admire and learn from, as did the narrator.
Click to expand...
I went on a
 
JBG said:
I just finished reading Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis. The book has been kicking around my TBR pile since before I graduated high school and I never got around to it. I confess that maybe I started it, read one page and actually liked it and then I had to ditch it for assigned reading in one of my courses.

This is the kind of book that makes me pine for the days of having a high school teacher to help me with the symbolism and references, of which this book is dense. Mr. Ladensack and Mr. Myers (they were not young men when I graduated in 1975 so I am not outing anyone), where are you when I need you? Still, I much enjoyed it. Basically the story is about an employer and a much older hire, Zorba, who is full of lessons and more full of ego. An excerpt:

Zorba was a person who lived life to its fullest. A model I can admire and learn from, as did the narrator.
Click to expand...
I went on a Kazantzakis reading spree in the late 1960s. His other books are great too. I remember one magnificent short poem or haiku either composed by Nikos K or quoted by him: “I said to the almond tree, sister speak to me of God. And the almond tree blossomed.”

Also a great line when Zorba - in the film at least - is asked if he ever married, with his response something like, “ Am I not a man, and are not men stupid. Wife, house, children… the full catastrophe.” Some psychologist wore a book, “Full Catastrophe Living,” as a guide for dealing with life and its complications.
 
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