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Thread: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

  1. #256
    Member NebraskaRed's Avatar
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    I just finished re-reading A Christmas Carol for the 4th or 5th time in my life.

    As familiar as you are with the story, and despite Dickens' sometimes corny, obvious attempts at crowd-pleasing, the narrative just moves and moves and is perfectly satisfying.

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  4. #257
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    I am about to embark on Ron Chernow's biography of Grant. I know some of you have read it. Is it worth it?

    Just finished volume one of Gary Giddens biography of Bing Crosby: Pocketful of Dreams. Long book and extremely detailed. Almost too much so. Still it was very good and emphasized the fact that Bing was a huge, huge star in his time. This book only covered his life from 1903 to 1940. Giddens 2nd volume on Bing goes from 1940 to 1946. As far as I know a third volume has not been released yet.
    Reds Fan Since 1971

  5. #258
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by cumberlandreds View Post
    I am about to embark on Ron Chernow's biography of Grant. I know some of you have read it. Is it worth it?

    Just finished volume one of Gary Giddens biography of Bing Crosby: Pocketful of Dreams. Long book and extremely detailed. Almost too much so. Still it was very good and emphasized the fact that Bing was a huge, huge star in his time. This book only covered his life from 1903 to 1940. Giddens 2nd volume on Bing goes from 1940 to 1946. As far as I know a third volume has not been released yet.
    The Grant bio is definitely worth it. The account of reconstruction is itself worth the read.
    It is on the whole probable that we continually dream, but that consciousness makes such a noise that we do not hear it. Carl Jung.

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  7. #259
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by NebraskaRed View Post
    I just finished re-reading A Christmas Carol for the 4th or 5th time in my life.

    As familiar as you are with the story, and despite Dickens' sometimes corny, obvious attempts at crowd-pleasing, the narrative just moves and moves and is perfectly satisfying.
    Dickens is a master. The plots are always silly, and the characters typical, yet his books are great and super-readable.

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  9. #260
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by BillDoran View Post
    Dickens is a master. The plots are always silly, and the characters typical, yet his books are great and super-readable.
    His paragraphs are way, way, way, way, way too long. It was a common problem of the time where intellectuals tried to impress everyone by seeing how many words they could put together before using a period. It made for poor transitions in thought. Master, yes. But, because of his stories. The writing was poor, at best. It took the genius of Samuel Clemens to end that idiocy of writing that labored the mind of the average reader to boredom. It helped them a ton when their stories were made public via weekly periodicals, thus shortening the length of their endless sentences to an amount of reading one could tolerate.
    "One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."

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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by Kingspoint View Post
    His paragraphs are way, way, way, way, way too long. It was a common problem of the time where intellectuals tried to impress everyone by seeing how many words they could put together before using a period. It made for poor transitions in thought. Master, yes. But, because of his stories. The writing was poor, at best. It took the genius of Samuel Clemens to end that idiocy of writing that labored the mind of the average reader to boredom. It helped them a ton when their stories were made public via weekly periodicals, thus shortening the length of their endless sentences to an amount of reading one could tolerate.
    I understand your points. So what do you say about Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom, with paragraphs that go on for pages? Definitely harder to read, per your point. But also definitely rewarding. He confronts tough ideas that Twain never did.

  11. #262
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by Betterread View Post
    I understand your points. So what do you say about Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom, with paragraphs that go on for pages? Definitely harder to read, per your point. But also definitely rewarding. He confronts tough ideas that Twain never did.
    There's always been a lot of academical snobbery.
    "One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."

  12. #263
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    As I'm sure a lot of you have, I've read a ton of books in quarantine this year. I'd love to hear everybody's favorites. Mine:

    Nonfiction
    Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Ours, Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
    The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, Robert Caro
    We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, Ta-Nehisi Coates
    Mo' Meta Blues, Questlove
    A Promised Land, Barck Obama

    Fiction
    The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead
    Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead
    Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
    Beloved, Toni Morrison
    Jayber Crow, Wendell Berry
    The Glass Hotel, Emily St. John Mandel
    "I never argue with people who say baseball is boring, because baseball is boring. And then, suddenly, it isn't. And that's what makes it great." - Joe Posnanski

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  14. #264
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by WildcatFan View Post
    As I'm sure a lot of you have, I've read a ton of books in quarantine this year. I'd love to hear everybody's favorites. Mine:

    Nonfiction
    Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Ours, Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
    The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, Robert Caro
    We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, Ta-Nehisi Coates
    Mo' Meta Blues, Questlove
    A Promised Land, Barck Obama

    Fiction
    The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead
    Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead
    Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
    Beloved, Toni Morrison
    Jayber Crow, Wendell Berry
    The Glass Hotel, Emily St. John Mandel
    I have read a lot this past year too. Some of the books I read were very long. So I didn't have the quantity as much. I have mentioned here before I am reading US history from the beginnings by following the line of Presidents. I am hoping to be able to read a biography of every President at some point in my life. I am up to Grant and have just started Ron Chernow's epic about him. This year was mostly about the Civil War in which I read. I read Shelby Foote's trilogy which was very good. The best book I read was Doris Kearns Goodwin's, Team of Rivals. Just a sensational book about Lincoln and his cabinet.

    Also read a number of baseball related books. Some of the better ones I read:

    Joy in Tigertown
    I Had a Hammer
    Drinking Coffee With a Fork
    Hairs vs Squares
    Phinally!

    I keep a list of books I read during each year and I read 27 in total. Also today marked 365 straight days I have read in my Kindle. In case you didn't know Kindle keeps track of those things and you can look at those stats through Kindle Insights. I just found this feature during this past year. I have also read have read on my Kindle for 127 straight weeks!
    Reds Fan Since 1971

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  16. #265
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    I'll have to think about this a bit; the years run together. Per usual, I read mostly genre fiction. Right now, I'd say the best was the one I finished today: Lovecraft Country. The Lovecraft connections were subtle, and the structure, a series of interrelated stories that come together in the end, reminded me of Machen's Three Imposters. I'll work out what was this year and what wasn't later.
    It is on the whole probable that we continually dream, but that consciousness makes such a noise that we do not hear it. Carl Jung.

  17. #266
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    A couple more for the fiction list (genre stuff, of course)

    The Searcher by Tana French.

    As I mentioned when I read it, less a mystery than a character study. French's move out of the Dublin Murder Squad has been well worth it.

    Next to Last Stand by Craig Johnson.

    I'm a sucker for the Longmire books, which have more humor and depth than the TV series (which was itself good). It doesn't hurt that Longmire's a Marshall alumnus.

    The Other People by C.J. Tudor.

    A crime story with a touch of the supernatural. Tudor's becoming a favorite.

    Battle Ground by Jim Butcher.

    The second of two Dresden books released in the second half of 2020. They were meant to be one, and the first suffers greatly. This one was good, though, even though I don't usually like fight sequences, and this is one long fight sequence. Major changes.

    Nonficton will come tomorrow, as well as fiction I've likely forgotten.
    It is on the whole probable that we continually dream, but that consciousness makes such a noise that we do not hear it. Carl Jung.

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  19. #267
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    I feel like I should add the Ramsey Campbell books I've read this year to the fiction list: The Darkest Part of the Woods and The Influence. Woods was scarier, but the surreal final section of Influence probably puts it slightly ahead. And mentioning Campbell, I also should say that I had looked forward to reading Phil Rickman's latest Merrily Watkins book, but he's pushed it into next year once again. He says he had almost finished it when he had an "elf stroke" a couple of years ago, but he still hasn't done so. If you're not familiar with Rickman, his Merrily Watkins books, about a "deliverance minister" (exorcist)on the Welsh border have become my favorites. He says they aren't horror but rather mysteries with possible supernatural aspects. Still, he reminds me of Campbell, and they seem to be friends.

    I haven't read as much nonfiction this year. After finishing my dissertation, I looked for escape. The best I read was The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmond Morris, the first of a trilogy. I have the second ready to read next. Otherwise, I've mostly read Celtic mythology as research for some fiction I'm writing. I'd like to get back into some Civil War books and also have Brian Greene's latest on my shelf.
    It is on the whole probable that we continually dream, but that consciousness makes such a noise that we do not hear it. Carl Jung.

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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    In the last month, I read:
    —Tecumseh and the Prophet by Peter Cozzens (2020) interesting period of history just before Ohio and Indiana transitioned from territories to states. No cities, just forts at first.
    —Redeployment by Phil Klay (2014) finally got to this excellent set of stories about Americans serving in Iraq. Often compared to Tim O’Brien, I thought the strongest stories were even better.
    —The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (first written in 1930s, I read a 1990s English translation) Faust story set in Soviet Moscow, famous for the standing/walking cat (called Behemoth). The Devil (called Woland) “frees” Pontius Pilate so he can be friends with Jesus in a side story. Finally got around to reading this magic realist classic.
    Last edited by Betterread; 01-02-2021 at 01:21 PM.

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  23. #269
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by cumberlandreds View Post
    I have read a lot this past year too. Some of the books I read were very long. So I didn't have the quantity as much. I have mentioned here before I am reading US history from the beginnings by following the line of Presidents. I am hoping to be able to read a biography of every President at some point in my life. I am up to Grant and have just started Ron Chernow's epic about him. This year was mostly about the Civil War in which I read. I read Shelby Foote's trilogy which was very good. The best book I read was Doris Kearns Goodwin's, Team of Rivals. Just a sensational book about Lincoln and his cabinet.

    Also read a number of baseball related books. Some of the better ones I read:

    Joy in Tigertown
    I Had a Hammer
    Drinking Coffee With a Fork
    Hairs vs Squares
    Phinally!

    I keep a list of books I read during each year and I read 27 in total. Also today marked 365 straight days I have read in my Kindle. In case you didn't know Kindle keeps track of those things and you can look at those stats through Kindle Insights. I just found this feature during this past year. I have also read have read on my Kindle for 127 straight weeks!
    The book titled, "Documents of American History" edited by Henry Commager of Columbia University, original copyright 1934, begins with a foreward by the general editor Dixon Fox of Union College from the 12th Printing (3rd edition, October of 1948), "Here are the fundamental sources of American history which all students of the subject read about, but for the most part, have not read; in this they share embarrassment with many of their teachers, well-read scholars though they be. It is reassuring, nevertheless, that such confessions are now made with shame, whereas our grandfathers, unless they were lawyers, would have quoted fifth-hand testimony with as clear a conscience as documents themselves. The literary historians of the mid-years of the nineteenth century cared little where they found material, so long as it molded well into a moving narrative."

    Fox clearly didn't take into account that it was the mid-years of the 19th Century that copyright protection for authors began having some teeth in courts, so that authors could finally earn a living in the United States through their pen alone without having to have been born into upper society so that their craft could be supported through other income. It definitely changed the depth of the research that went into creating works with historical accuracy. The race to make money became more important than the admiration of fellow scholars.

    That said, it has to be true today that "the fundamental sources of American history which all students of the subject read about, but for the most part, have not read", should cause for more embarrassment since these documents are more readily available than they were 73 years ago when Dixon wrote this in 1948, for today less than two percent of Americans cannot pass an immigration exam without studying for it first, something that would have been taken for granted that a majority could do it in 1948 without studying first. It's unlikely than one in 1000 Americans have read even one of these documents completely from beginning to end who were born after 1959, marking an end to an era of understanding and respecting the past so that one can try to avoid the same mistakes in the future. The only way to understand and respect something is to study it, listen to it and try to see it from it's point of view without comparing it to your own values and beliefs (this is how one tries to understand another's point of view or another culture or language).

    Original sources are important. They are all that matters. Everything else is a guess and full of errors. Try learning about the people of China by speaking to an American who spoke to a Brazilian who spoke to an Afrikaanen who read about China. That's what learning about John Adams through a book written by David McCollough is like. McCollough is like those mid-years nineteenth century authors that Dixon was speaking about in 1948, ones who cared little for accuracy as long as they could make a buck. One doesn't learn about American history through these authors, but instead gets bad information that's hard to undo, as McCullough would accept the words he endorses on his pages as fact as though they are documents, when they are merely poor opinions which his publishers agreed make for good narative. David McCullough doesn't have a scholastic bone in his body. It's sad that he is who America puts on a pedestal as a good writer of history over the last 40 years. His is always a distorted view of history full of misinformation and unchecked sources of facts and opinions.

    Commager decided to place these documents in chronological order as it would make the most sense, and it's old enough that it should be able to be found online for free through the library system in the United States or some other source. Commager gives a brief background analysis of each document with more references than one could possibly look up. So, when it comes to fact-checking, the facts are there in black-and-white. Nothing explains American history better than what happens through legal documents, and Commager's "Documents of American History" is the best source I have ever seen that covers from the beginning up to WWII in an abbreviated volume.
    Last edited by Kingspoint; 01-03-2021 at 05:21 AM.
    "One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."

  24. #270
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    Re: What Are You Reading Now Part Two

    Quote Originally Posted by Betterread View Post
    In the last month, I read:
    —Tecumseh and the Prophet by Peter Cozzens (2020) interesting period of history just before Ohio and Indiana transitioned from territories to states. No cities, just forts at first.
    —Redeployment by Phil Klay (2014) finally got to this excellent set of stories about Americans serving in Iraq. Often compared to Tim O’Brien, I thought the strongest stories were even better.
    —The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (first written in 1930s, I read a 1990s English translation) Faust story set in Soviet Moscow, famous for the standing/walking cat (called Behemoth). The Devil (called Woland) “frees” Pontius Pilate so he can be friends with Jesus in a side story. Finally got around to reading this magic realist classic.
    The story and times of Tecumseh are fascinating for me. Cross-referencing turns into a discovery into a goldmine making it difficult to stay focused on the story of Tecumseh. Just had a conversation about Tecumseh on Christmas Day with the family. I was trying to explain why, if I could be born anywhere and at anytime, why I would have wanted to be born in the mid-to-late 1860's in Indiana. Part of that would be because I would be third generation from the settlers who moved to that area so I could get first-hand accounts from those who were there first, perhaps even some who fought alongside Tecumseh in the Battle of Detroit, but for the most part, there would be endless first-hand accounts from people who first began settlements and communities. I would be in the first generation of new Universities and could still see, feel, smell and touch original flora and fauna species that existed there for the past 10,000 years that would soon be 100% extinct and plowed over. So many reason to have been born then and have the connection of it's recent past, present, and near future.
    Last edited by Kingspoint; 01-03-2021 at 05:32 AM.
    "One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."

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