# Khadaji’s Whatcha Reading Thread - June 2021 edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [May 29, 2021, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184 "2021-05-29T18:19:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/41 "2021-06-13T18:50:30Z")
Finished _The Smartest Kids in the World: and How They Got That Way_ , by Amanda Ripley, which was okay. Now I’m reading _Aristoi_, by Walter Jon Williams. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2021, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/42 "2021-06-14T18:58:25Z")
**The Man from Beijing** Henning Mankell Not a Wallander book, but similar in structure and style. A group of elderly people in a small Swedish village is murdered, and Brigitta Nilson, a judge, is related to some of the victims. So she sets to investigate, and finds strange connections to American history and the People’s Republic of China. I really enjoyed the Wallander books, but this one (especially the parts set in China), is rather lifeless. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2021, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/43 "2021-06-15T14:15:58Z")
I’m about halfway through two books right now, both of which are decent but not great. One is [Humble Pi: When Math Goes Wrong in the Real World](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45553812-humble-pi) by Matt Parker. The stories are interesting, but where this book falls short is with the actual math. I can’t decide if the author made this too accessible or not accessible enough. In many cases, the descriptions of the actual math behind what went wrong is too brief, and I can’t tell if that’s because (a) the math isn’t really the point, and the author is trying to stick to the stories of disaster, or (b) the author assumes the reader has a working knowledge of things like physics and binary code, and I’m just less intelligent than the target audience. The other book is [The Summer Wives](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36381085-the-summer-wives) by Beatriz Williams. The book is beautifully written, but I feel at a remove from all the characters in the book. As a result, when I step away, I don’t find myself particularly eager to get back to the book. I’m not engrossed in the plot or attached to the characters. But every time I do pick up the book, I do feel an urge to keep turning the pages because the writing is so lovely. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2021, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/44 "2021-06-16T14:25:58Z")
Finished _Aristoi_ , by Walter Jon Williams. Meh. SF Gary Stu vs. a boring Big Bad. It would’ve been much better if it had focused on his relationship with his mother. He’s worshiped as a god, and his mother is basically his chief prophet. That part is funny. Now I’m reading _Summer at Tiffany_, by Marjorie Hart. It’s a memoir about working at that store in 1945. ---
**Author:** ![Boycott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boycott/32/6741_2.png) [@Boycott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boycott)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2021, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/45 "2021-06-16T22:44:25Z")
Henning Mankell was one of my favorite authors. I loved the Wallander books and there was a tremendous tv show doing the adaptations in Sweden which if you haven’t already seen I recommend. You can find English subtitles pretty easily. Wallander nailed the depressing anti-hero vibe of crime fiction writing. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2021, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/46 "2021-06-17T19:41:21Z")
Finished _Summer at Tiffany_ , by Marjorie Hart. It’s a memoir about working at that store in 1945. It was okay, but I wished it had talked more about the store. Now I’m reading _Jonah’s Gourd Vine_, by Zora Neale Hurston. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2021, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/47 "2021-06-18T12:29:32Z")
I finished Project Hail Mary yesterday, and gave it the rare five stars at Goodreads. Usual disclaimer: that doesn’t mean it was the best darn book ever. It got more and more implausible as it went along. But I really liked the characters and needed to know what would happen next, and was thoroughly entertained. Recommended. I started today on a book of short stories, Ray Bradbury’s [Golden Apples of the Sun](https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Apples-Sun-Ray-Bradbury/dp/0380730391/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3GEVQWPHEV0W7&keywords=golden+apples+of+the+sun+ray+bradbury&qid=1624018636&sprefix=golden+apples+of+the+sun%2Caps%2C161&sr=8-1). I know many of these stories already and actually may own them in a different book, but what the heck. I’m pleased to revisit them. The first story, _The Fog Horn_, is one of my favorites. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2021, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/48 "2021-06-18T16:01:07Z")
Yeah, I agree about Wallander. I’ve read most of the books, and really liked them. But The Man From Beijing wasn’t as enjoyable. The Brigitta character wasn’t as deep as Wallander, and the long discourses on the direction of the Chinese Communist Party held little interest for me. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2021, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/49 "2021-06-18T20:19:41Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > Just finished: _1637: The Volga Rules_, by Eric Flint, Gorg Huff, and Paula Goodlett > Now reading: _Up-Time Pride and Down-Time Prejudice_ , by Mark H Huston > Up next: _1637: The Peacock Throne_, by Eric Flint and Griffin Barber Was getting burnt out on the 1632 series, having read 41 books since February, so I set the last two aside for a while. Instead: Now reading: _The Long Summer: How Climate Changed Civilization_, by Brian Fagan (reread) Up next: _Love and Hate in Jamestown: John Smith, Pocahontas, and the Start of a New Nation_, by David A Price ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2021, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/50 "2021-06-19T16:03:59Z")
Finished _Jonah’s Gourd Vine_ , by Zora Neale Hurston. This was her first novel, and loosely based on her parents’ lives. Powerful and disturbing. Now I’m reading _Secret Lives of the Great Composers: What Your Teachers Never Told You About the World’s Musical Masters_, by Elizabeth Lunday. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2021, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/51 "2021-06-19T17:42:46Z")
Just started _Who is Maud Dixon?_, debut novel by journalist Alexandra Andrews. It was recommended by a close friend, and it’s gotten some decent reviews. ---
**Author:** ![DZedNConfused](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dzednconfused/32/15991_2.png) [@DZedNConfused](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DZedNConfused)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2021, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/52 "2021-06-20T16:29:30Z")
Soooooooo… I just started the first Murderbot book today, and it appears I am hooked! I’m not thrilled with the narrator for the audio book, he’s a little TOO unemotional android, but the rest is great. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2021, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/53 "2021-06-20T21:35:58Z")
_Secret Lives of the Great Composers: What Your Teachers Never Told You About the World’s Musical Masters_ , by Elizabeth Lunday. I found it very interesting–it contains lots of historical anecdotes, which I really enjoy reading. Now I’m reading _Terns of Endearment_, a cozy mystery by Donna Andrews. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2021, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/54 "2021-06-23T23:23:50Z")
Finished _Terns of Endearment_ , a cozy mystery by Donna Andrews, which was okay. Now I’m reading _Hidden and Triumphant: The Underground Struggle to Save Russian Iconography_, by Irina Yazykova, translated by Paul Grenier. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2021, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/55 "2021-06-24T15:47:28Z")
**Winds of the Steppe: Walking the Great Silk Road from Central Asia to China** Bernard Ollivier A travelogue by a Frenchman who walks the Silk Road from Istanbul, Turkey to Xi’an, China. Considering that he is in his 60s, it’s quite impressive. This is actually the third book in a series, and covers the last section of his journey from Samarkand, Uzbekistan to Xi’an. There are some sections about the history of the region he passes through, but it’s mostly about the people (welcoming and friendly in Central Asia, not so much in China) and the beautiful landscapes he encounters. It’s rather strangely written. There is at least one explanation point per page, and lots of stream of consciousness digressions. But I quite enjoyed it, and look forward to reading the other two books. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/56 "2021-06-25T02:30:11Z")
I took a break from the books I’ve been reading for research and just zipped through **Forget the Alamo: The Rise and Fall of an American Myth** by Bryan Burrough (“Barbarians at the Gates”), Chris Tomlinson, and Jason Stanford. It’s a history of the history of the Alamo – what really happened there, how the myths about it grew up, the way it’s been portrayed and displayed, and how it has become even more of a political football recently. The book is told in a jaunty, familiar style, with so many current references that it reads more like a magazine story than a book. Which is too bad, because this is a good history, and in only ten years’ time people aren’t going to understand the jokes and asides. The gist of it is something I’m familiar with – the Texans were fighting for the “freedom” to keep slaves. They had built up an agricultural kingdom based on cotton, and they needed the slaves to work the fields. Their economy couldn’t exist without it. But Mexico was committed to anti-slavery. The Texans couldn’t give up slavery, so they had to give up Mexico. I’m also blasting through Mark Edlitz’ **The Lost Adventures of James Bond** , which gives the details about Bond films never made, although thee are screen treatments and scripts. It concentrates on the next two Timothy Dalton films which weren’t made, in large part, because of the poor box office of _Licence to Kill_. There was a six year hiatus before Pierce Brosnan showed up as Bond in _Goldeneye_ I’ve also picked up a wonderful pair of CDs. One contains the first twenty volumes of the Catholic comic book _Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact_, which had some excellent stuff in it. I learned about sports from their sports features (taught me how to ski before I ever saw a slope) and how to draw from Frank Borth’s “Learn to Draw” feature. And Borth created some excellent “kids’ adventure” stories. The other CD has EVERY SINGLE ISSUE OF CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED. There are plenty of them I haven’t read, and now I can. Not only are all the regular issues these, but also the Classics Illustrated Junior and the Special Issues. Actually, it doesn’t have all of them – the collection lacks the "World Around Us " series, and I would’ve preferred those to the Juniors. Still, a excellent set at a low price. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/57 "2021-06-25T12:36:11Z")
I finished Bradbury’s Golden Apples of the Sun. It wasn’t full of his best stories, but they were all beautifully written, of course. Next up, [Fugitive Telemetry](https://www.amazon.com/Fugitive-Telemetry-Murderbot-Diaries-6/dp/1250765374/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1624624475&sr=8-1), the most recent Murderbot book from Martha Wells. A known quantity. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/58 "2021-06-25T13:46:59Z")
Finished _Hidden and Triumphant: The Underground Struggle to Save Russian Iconography_, by Irina Yazykova, translated by Paul Grenier. It was quite interesting. Now I’m reading _Sun of Suns_, by Karl Schroeder. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/59 "2021-06-25T15:33:25Z")
Just finished: > **[Sooley - Limited Edition](https://books.google.com/books/about/Sooley_Limited_Edition.html?id=1tI7zgEACAAJ)** > > Books are leather-bound, signed and numbered, with printed endpapers, gold stamping, a slipcase, and a ribbon marker. New York Times bestselling author John Grisham takes you to a different kind of court in his first basketball novel. Samuel "Sooley"... Smooth, very engaging, can’t put it down til finished read. Grisham is indeed America’s storyteller laureate. A year of rags to riches NCAA college basketball and I hung on every word. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184/60 "2021-06-25T16:45:48Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I took a break from the books I’ve been reading for research and just zipped through **Forget the Alamo: The Rise and Fall of an American Myth** by Bryan Burrough (“Barbarians at the Gates”), Chris Tomlinson, and Jason Stanford. It’s a history of the history of the Alamo – what really happened there, how the myths about it grew up, the way it’s been portrayed and displayed, and how it has become even more of a political football recently. The book is told in a jaunty, familiar style, with so many current references that it reads more like a magazine story than a book. Which is too bad, because this is a good history, and in only ten years’ time people aren’t going to understand the jokes and asides. The gist of it is something I’m familiar with – the Texans were fighting for the “freedom” to keep slaves. They had built up an agricultural kingdom based on cotton, and they needed the slaves to work the fields. Their economy couldn’t exist without it. But Mexico was committed to anti-slavery. The Texans couldn’t give up slavery, so they had to give up Mexico… Excerpted here, in a magazine no less, and with a funny graphic: [The Next Battle of the Alamo! – Texas Monthly](https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/next-battle-of-alamo/) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadaji-s-whatcha-reading-thread-june-2021-edition/943184.md?page=4)