# Khadaji's Whatcha Readin' - April, 2014 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 31, 2014, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027 "2014-03-31T22:16:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**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:** [April 16, 2014, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/81 "2014-04-16T19:44:44Z")
I like to read three books at a time: one fiction, one non-fiction, and one audio. The fiction book is [How High the Moon](http://www.amazon.com/How-High-Moon-Sandra-Kring-ebook/dp/B0036S49ZU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397677203&sr=8-1&keywords=How+High+the+moon), an adorable book about a spunky 10 year old growing up in a small town in the 1950s. I’m pretty early on in the book still, but I’ve read and adored two other books by the author, so I have high hopes for this one. The nonfiction book is [The Signal and the Noise](http://www.amazon.com/Signal-Noise-Many-Predictions-Fail-but-ebook/dp/B007V65R54/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397677277&sr=1-1&keywords=the+signal+and+the+noise), by Nate Silver (creator of the FiveThirtyEight blog). It’s about forecasting, and the techniques and limitations associated with the craft. I was expecting it to be more dumbed down than it is, and I must say I’m pretty impressed with the amount of respect Silver has for his reader audience. It’s also heavily footnoted, so that if you’re fascinated with the topic you can read more about it, but if you’re not fascinated you can just skip over the extra info. The audio book is [The Book of Lost Things](http://www.amazon.com/Book-Lost-Things-Novel-ebook/dp/B000JMKVJE/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397677400&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Book+of+Lost+Things). I already read the book in print form, and liked it so much I decided to buy it in audio format. It’s about a boy who slips into an alternate world populated with characters from fairy tales, but it’s not a cheerful story. There’s a good bit of death and darkness, and lots of adventure. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2014, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/82 "2014-04-17T11:17:35Z")
I’m just finishing off _The White Guard_ by **Mikhail Bulgakov**. It’s mainly set in Kiev in December 1918, just as the Germans are withdrawing and Ukrainian nationalists, Tsarists and Bolsheviks are jostling for control. It only covers about a month and feels very modern in style, with flashbacks, dream sequences, visions, violence, brutality, horror and more! It centres round a young doctor just de-mobbed from the defeated Russian army returning to his hometown and his friends, who are in the same boat. Intrigue and rumour swirl about; no one really knows what’s going on as attempts are made to rally the city’s defences, only for them to collapse in disarray and desertions in the snow and gloom of winter. A great look at the dying days of middle-class Tsarist society, as they hide their valuables, fear the late night knocks on the front door, and still try to cling on to the niceties of life… ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/83 "2014-04-18T01:32:31Z")
> [@SpazCat](#): > > Today’s finished book is _[Monday the Rabbi Took Off](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6419159-monday-the-rabbi-took-off)._ I liked this one better than _One Fine Day the Rabbi Bought a Cross_, the other “trip to Israel” book. Most of the story was great, but I couldn’t stand the chapters dealing with the congregation’s reaction to the Small’s vacation. They came out looking like a lot of backstabbing double-dealers, trying to second-guess Rabbis Small and Deutch. It got to the point where I was wondering if the council was going to auction off the rabbi’s job. Rabbi Deutch did give them a well-deserved verbal smackdown at the end and I hope they took it to heart. Because you reminded me of these books, I read _Thursday the Rabbi Walked Out_. I’ve read Friday-Thursday, so I’m out of days now; the next one is _Conversations with Rabbi Small_. > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I’m currently reading [The Martian](http://www.amazon.com/The-Martian-Novel-Andy-Weir/dp/0804139024/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397050076&sr=8-1&keywords=the+martian+andy+weir), by Andy Weir. Loving it. Accept the basic premise, and it’s full of [the gotta.](http://books.google.com/books?id=2ANRSQIyYqYC&pg=PT246&lpg=PT246&dq=misery+the+gotta&source=bl&ots=N6kWLUntwt&sig=At2xPW5hH8Gbg2IjfiWvzqzjDWQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=RE1FU-2CHqb10gHC9oCYDQ&ved=0CEUQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=misery%20the%20gotta&f=false) I just finished this, and enjoyed it very much. The writing is a little amateurish, and the book doesn’t have much emotional depth, but it has an engrossing plot, for certain readers. It’s near-future science fiction: an astronaut is left for dead on Mars, and he writes a journal describing in great technical detail the steps he takes to survive long enough for a chance of a rescue. I read the newest Naomi Novik book, _The Blood of Tyrants_. Laurence has amnesia for much of the book :rolleyes: but it was pretty good anyway. Laurence and Temeraire counter Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. I read _The Great Gatsby_, and I didn’t like it very much. I’ve started _The Book Thief_, and I don’t think I’m going to like it very much. So far I am not charmed by the quirky narration. ---
**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:** [April 18, 2014, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/84 "2014-04-18T01:48:26Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > I’ve started _The Book Thief_, and I don’t think I’m going to like it very much. So far I am not charmed by the quirky narration. I read Conversations way back in my teens, I should reread it. Is that the John Dunning novel? If it’s the one I am thinking of it was the weakest of his books in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2014, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/85 "2014-04-18T02:17:25Z")
> [@DZedNConfused](#): > > Is that the John Dunning novel? If it’s the one I am thinking of it was the weakest of his books in my opinion. _The Book Thief_? It’s by Markus Zusak. I don’t go out of my way to read YA books, but this one sounded interesting. It’s a novel of the Holocaust narrated by Death, who is poetic and not entirely coherent. There’s a 2013 movie. ---
**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:** [April 18, 2014, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/86 "2014-04-18T02:34:35Z")
Nope, not the one I was thinking of. Carry on! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2014, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/87 "2014-04-18T02:35:01Z")
I read The \*King’s Daughter \*by Christie Dickason and _Mistress of the Revolution_ by Catherine Delors. I picked both up at a yard sale for under a buck. The first is about the eldest daughter of Charles I. The second is about a young woman in revolutionary Paris. The first works IMO because the main character is likeable. The second does not because none of the characters are even remotely sympathetic. Even the main character is a twit. ---
**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:** [April 18, 2014, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/88 "2014-04-18T12:52:32Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > I just finished this, and enjoyed it very much. The writing is a little amateurish, and the book doesn’t have much emotional depth, but it has an engrossing plot, for certain readers. It’s near-future science fiction: an astronaut is left for dead on Mars, and he writes a journal describing in great technical detail the steps he takes to survive long enough for a chance of a rescue. Yes, I wound up only giving it four stars on Goodreads because although it was lots of fun to read, the main character spent a lot more time doing math than saying to himself, \*Holy crap, I am the only person ever to be alone on a planet! Unless you count Adam. Or The Little Prince. \* If it had been me, I’d have sat around going _Whoa!_ until I [del]died[/del] killed myself. Those astronaut fellers, they’re different from the rest of us. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2014, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/89 "2014-04-18T13:26:36Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Started this morning on a ghostly tale, [The Winter People](http://www.amazon.com/Winter-People-Novel-Jennifer-McMahon/dp/0385538499/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1397651159&sr=1-1&keywords=the+winter+people) by Jennifer McMahon. I got that through Net Galley a few months ago and loved it. I finished Tim O’Brien’s “The They Carried” last week, and I don’t know the last time a book completely knocked me on my butt the way that one did. I highly recommend it. I also completed a re-read of “A Farewell to Arms,” which my book club will be discussing next week. I’m now reading “The Quick,” by Lauren Owen, and “Anne Perry and the Murder of the Century” by Peter Graham, and I’m not enjoying either one a whole lot. “The Quick,” which I got through Net Galley, started out good, but then twisted into something I wouldn’t normally read. I’m going to try to finish it, but I’m struggling. The Anne Perry book is interesting, but the writing style is throwing me off a little, and I’m finding myself confused at times over the 3-4 different nicknames that are used interchangeably for several of the people involved. ---
**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:** [April 18, 2014, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/90 "2014-04-18T14:00:23Z")
I agree, I’m only about midway through _The Winter People_, but it’s really good. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/91 "2014-04-19T09:33:58Z")
Finished going back over the pertinent parts of the _Lonely Planet – Singapore_ guidebook. Now we’re ready to go, just a couple weeks more. Been awhile since we were there last. Now I’ve started rereading a slim volume entitled _Old Singapore_, by Maya Jayapal. It’s part of Oxford University Press’ Images of Asia series. I first read it in the 1990s. It’s a good, concise history of early Singapore, mainly covering the first 95 years from 1819-1914. As you can probably tell, I’m in a Singapore state of mind. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/92 "2014-04-19T15:24:17Z")
My to-read pile is getting a little backed up - after reading a really great collection of George Orwell’s essays, I decided to check out _Keep the Aspidistra Flying_ and _Coming Up for Air_. They were both written while he was struggling financially, especially _Keep the Aspidistra_. _Coming Up for Air_ is a bit strange in that it has almost no dialogue, but isn’t too dense - it’s like a massive stream of consciousness of a man in a midlife crisis. Apart from them, I also am looking forward to _Raising Steam_, by Terry Pratchett (YAY! TERRY PRATCHETT!), and _The Ocean at the End of the Lane_, by Neil Gaiman. I’m really not much of a Gaiman fan (apart from _Good Omens_, which I could talk about forever), but I heard that _The Ocean_ is pretty different from his other work, so I’m giving it a try. > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > So I broke out the Kindle and read _The Wee Free Men_ by Terry Pratchett, which I’d saved for a rainy day. It was wonderful, as you all know. It’s silly, but I’ve always felt I was just too late to the Discworld party to start now. So anyway, I’m going to go back and start properly with _The Colour of Magic_, though I’m already disappointed knowing there will be no Nac Mac Feegle. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll at least go and read the rest of the Tiffany Aching books. It’s never too late to join the Discworld party! I agree with the others upthread - _The Color of Magic_ isn’t amazing unless you enjoy the fantasy quest genre, in which case it’s a clever satire of it. My first Discworld novel was _The Hogfather_ - if you want to get into the whole Death mini-series, and get used to Ankh-Morpork, it’s a great place to start. Most books you can just jump right into, but for some it’s more enjoyable to have background knowledge (for example, my favorite Discworld book is _The Truth_, but it’s really hard to get through it if you’re not familiar with Vetinari, the Guards, Ankh-Morpork, etc, etc). If you like Tiffany, you might also like Susan, in which case _The Hogfather_ is great as well. ---
**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:** [April 19, 2014, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/93 "2014-04-19T16:40:43Z")
Susan \<3 For that you need to start with Mort, Soul Music, The Hogfather, Thief of Time. (I’m holding out for Susan and Lobsang romance 😉 ) I really liked Ocean at the End of the Lane, it’s a “dreamy” narrative but well done and easy to read. I read it in an afternoon on vacation last summer. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/94 "2014-04-20T00:23:04Z")
Finished _Old Singapore_, by Maya Jayapal. Very good, like I remembered it. Among the more interesting nuggets is the fact that the [Revere Bell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revere_Bell), a bell cast by Paul Revere, was in 1843 presented to [Saint Andrew’s Cathedral](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Andrew%27s_Cathedral,_Singapore) in Singapore by his daughter Maria, whose husband Joseph Balestier was the first American consul there. It’s now on display in the [National Museum of Singapore](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Museum_of_Singapore). And the first motorized ambulance appeared in 1913, but a shortage of spare parts meant it was not uncommon for the patient being transported having to get out and push. Next up: _Bangkok Noir_, a collection of crime-fiction short stories by 12 local writers, mostly expats but a couple of Thais, edited by the Canadian writer Christopher G. Moore, who also contributed one of the stories. The authors and publisher are donating half the earnings from the book to selected charities providing education to needy Thai children. ---
**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:** [April 20, 2014, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/95 "2014-04-20T03:59:25Z")
> [@yellowval](#): > > …I finished Tim O’Brien’s “The They Carried” last week, and I don’t know the last time a book completely knocked me on my butt the way that one did. I highly recommend it… Yes, it’s excellent. Check out his novel _In the Lake of the Woods_ sometime - a modern mystery with a Vietnam War backstory. Very good stuff. I’m alternating these days between _Machine of Death_, ed. by Ryan North, Matthew Bennardo and David Malki, and _Cloud Atlas_ by David Mitchell, and enjoying both. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/96 "2014-04-20T18:00:34Z")
I finally finished [The Perfect Storm](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/108229.The_Perfect_Storm). My sea-faring ancestry was fascinated by the descriptions of storms at sea, professional fishing, and how fishing boats work. The part of me that’s currently living in the NC mountains was thrilled at the mention of the Blizzard of '93 in the final chapter. I remember that blizzard, although I was living near Charlotte at the time and all we got were thundersnows. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/97 "2014-04-20T19:08:05Z")
[Pressing On](http://www.amazon.com/Pressing-On-Stoneman-Story-American/dp/0252074343), Roni Stoneman’s story of her family (bluegrass, ya’ll). I recently met someone who knew the family and helped with the book. He says she’s a nutjob (a compliment) and that the book is a hoot. Also re-reading _A Dance With Dragons_. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/98 "2014-04-21T03:48:49Z")
I just finished _The Son_, which was absolutely splendid! Now I’ve got that deer in the headlights, what ever will I read next, thousand yard stare. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/99 "2014-04-21T04:06:57Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Also started _Machine of Death: A Collection of Stories About People Who Know How They Will Die_, ed. by Ryan North, Matthew Bennardo and David Malki. Very odd, somewhat inconsistent, but with an interesting premise (a machine is invented which will correctly - but sometimes ironically - tell you _how_ you will die, but not when. Zany hijinks ensue). I read that a while ago. In fact, I think I started a thread based on that premise. I agree, it’s a bit uneven but the fact that it’s so novel made up for a lot of the weaknesses. If you are interested in short story collections might I suggest “The End is Nigh”? ---
**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:** [April 21, 2014, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027/100 "2014-04-21T04:08:27Z")
Oh! I spent yesterday (10 hours and 49 minutes, less the trip to the store for Easter choco and walking the dogs) reading **Coming Back** by Marcia Muller. It was Sharon McCone’s first case since being shot in the head in **Locked In** and it was a decent page turner. Having sort of been there, my husband had a severe brain injury 20 years ago, I appreciated the POV both of Sharon and of her co workers who started out uncertain of whether they wanted to “trust” her or not. Fortunately the action ramped up before I could more than mildly annoyed at the men for treating Sharon like a child… my own emotional scars from that time got pretty itchy tho. ☹ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-april-2014/685027.md?page=6)