# Khadaji's Whatcha Readin' thread - May 2016 edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 28, 2016, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337 "2016-04-28T14:38:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**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:** [May 15, 2016, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/41 "2016-05-15T23:30:15Z")
Okay quick up date: Finished: **A Point of Law** by John Maddox Roberts. Roberts is definitely tiring of Decius, this book was completely phoned in. Interesting if you are interested in Ancient Roman law and how it differs from any law since then, but so lacking in action that the characters literally sit around and talk out the plot. Curently Reading: (because I have the attention span of a grasshopper) **The Master and Margarita** by Mikhail Bulgarov. Satire and farcical, I’m not sure what the point is yet, but I have a ways to go yet… if those darned Russian names don’t strain a brain muscle 😃 **Beggars, Cheats and Forgers** by David Thomas. Picked it up today in Barnes & Noble. I went IN to use the potty and those scurrilous blackguards threw tables and tables of marked down books in my path! I barely got out with my life much less my wallet. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/42 "2016-05-17T16:46:01Z")
Just finished two books, **The Opium War** by Julia Lovell and **Ring of Fire IV** edited by Eric Flint. The Opium War is something I’ve been plodding through for months, not because it isn’t a good book, but it is …dense…and I haven’t had the time to devote to it that it deserves. Excellent on the lead-up and causes and the details of the First Opium War, less so on the Second War and I am not sure I agree with all the conclusions she draws for 20th century and current history, but I still recommend it if you want deeper knowledge of this particular event. Ring of Fire IV is a collection of stories set it Flint’s “1632” universe, where a small W. Virginia town is transported back to 1630’s Germany in the middle of the Thirty Years War. What happens next has filled about eighteen novels and dozens of short stories, and these are the ones that Flint has chosen to add to the “canon” line. With a huge amount of the writing dealing with 1635-1636, it can get confusing, but most of the stories are well-written and enjoyable if you’re into this type of fiction. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/43 "2016-05-17T16:59:07Z")
Just started “The Fireman” by Joe Hill, which was released today. Sort of post-apocalyptic (disease spreads that causes people to spontaneously combust). Only a few chapters in, but really enjoying it so far. I’ve greatly enjoyed every Joe Hill book I’ve read (Horns, NOS4A2, and one I can’t remember the title of – something like Heart-Shaped Box). ---
**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:** [May 17, 2016, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/44 "2016-05-17T18:17:50Z")
I have a few thank you’s to dole out. In [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=764087&page=2) thread, **DZedNConfused** , \*\*amarinth \*\*, and \*\*Finagle \*\*suggested I read Neil Gaiman’s _Anansi Boys_, even though I was immensely disappointed with _American Gods_. And indeed, _Anansi Boys_ is everything I was hoping _American Gods_ would be. I’m 100 pages in and thoroughly enjoying it. I’m also currently reading _Stumbling on Happiness_ by Daniel Gilbert. I think the author comes to some premature conclusions, but overall, i find the book interesting and highly readable, and I would recommend it. ---
**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:** [May 17, 2016, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/45 "2016-05-17T18:18:55Z")
> [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](#): > > My non-fiction pick is Elizabeth Gilbert’s [Big Magic](http://www.amazon.com/Big-Magic-Creative-Living-Beyond/dp/1594634718/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462372012&sr=8-1&keywords=elizabeth+Gilberthttp://), and god I hope it gets better. I adore Elizabeth Gilbert’s writing; I’ve read three of her other books and liked all of them, but this book is just … honestly, it kind of strikes me as nonsense. Like you know when someone develops some completely baseless theory, and then writes about it like it’s the gospel truth, and you’re in disbelief about how someone can be so convinced about something so random? It feels that way so far. But I think I’m only about 20% of the way in, so it’s entirely possible that the book could improve. Not probable, but possible. In case anyone’s wondering, the book didn’t get better. ---
**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:** [May 17, 2016, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/46 "2016-05-17T19:00:20Z")
I finished - but only because I had to, for a book club - Michael McGerr’s _A Fierce Discontent_, a history of the Progressive movement in the U.S. McGerr has a very dry style and tries to make up for it, it seems, by finding synonyms for “said” (people in the book “insisted,” “declared,” “argued,” etc., but never just “said”). He also made two factual errors that I noticed, which makes me suspect there were others. Unless the subject passionately interests you, I’d say give this one a miss. I also just wrapped up _Cheap Shot_ by Ace Atkins, who’s continuing Robert Parker’s Spenser detective series. It was pretty good, but the ending left a lot to be desired - a key character does something totally implausible, which left a bad taste in my mouth. Having now seen all eight parts of _11.22.63_ on Hulu, I’m re-reading some favorite bits of the Stephen King novel on which it’s based. Some significant differences between them; I think I prefer the book. I’ve also resumed Randall Munroe’s _What If?_, a collection of XKCD columns, which is good farfetched-science fun. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/47 "2016-05-17T20:35:08Z")
Earlier this month I finished David Baldacci’s _**[The Last Mile](http://www.amazon.com/Last-Mile-Amos-Decker/dp/1455586455/)**_, book #2 in the Amos Decker series. I enjoyed the first Decker book so much that I pre-ordered this one, and I wasn’t disappointed. Interesting plot about a guy on death row who is literally moments from execution when someone confesses to the crime he was convicted for, plus I really like the Amos Decker character. I’m currently ~35% of the way into Marcia Clark’s _**[Blood Defense](http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Defense-Samantha-Brinkman-Marcia/dp/1503954005/)**_. I’ve never read anything by Clark before, but it was one of last month’s Kindle First options and I tend to enjoy legal thrillers so I figured I’d give it a try. So far it’s ok, but I haven’t decided yet whether I’ll keep reading it tonight or start _**[The Fireman](http://www.amazon.com/Fireman-Novel-Joe-Hill/dp/0062200631/)**_ – which, as **iiandyiiii** mentioned, was released today (and which I also pre-ordered). > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Just started “The Fireman” by Joe Hill, which was released today. Sort of post-apocalyptic (disease spreads that causes people to spontaneously combust). Only a few chapters in, but really enjoying it so far. I’ve greatly enjoyed every Joe Hill book I’ve read (Horns, NOS4A2, and one I can’t remember the title of – something like Heart-Shaped Box). I’ve loved every Hill book so far, too (and yes, it was _Heart-Shaped Box_). The more I think about it, the more I think Marcia Clark is going to lose this one. And the next book I’ve pre-ordered is expected to be released on 6/7 (_[End of Watch](http://www.amazon.com/End-Watch-Novel-Hodges-Trilogy/dp/1501129740/)_), followed by another just seven days later (_[Stiletto](http://www.amazon.com/Stiletto-Novel-Files-Daniel-OMalley/dp/0316228044/)_), so Ms. Clark might stay on the shelf for a while. 😃 ---
**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:** [May 17, 2016, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/48 "2016-05-17T22:22:04Z")
> [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](#): > > I have a few thank you’s to dole out. In [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=764087&page=2) thread, **DZedNConfused** , \*\*amarinth \*\*, and \*\*Finagle \*\*suggested I read Neil Gaiman’s _Anansi Boys_, even though I was immensely disappointed with _American Gods_. And indeed, _Anansi Boys_ is everything I was hoping _American Gods_ would be. I’m 100 pages in and thoroughly enjoying it. YAY!!! Im so glad to hear that you are enjoying it ---
**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:** [May 18, 2016, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/49 "2016-05-18T04:17:51Z")
Forgot to mention, I’ve also begun an audiobook of Thurston Clarke’s _JFK’s Last Hundred Days_. It feels a little padded, but is interesting overall. Clarke argues that Kennedy had grown markedly, as a man and as a leader, in the last year of his life. This was due to his grief over his short-lived infant son Patrick, while also succeeding in the Cuban Missile Crisis, taking a brave stand on civil rights, and winning ratification of the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty despite strong opposition in Congress. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/50 "2016-05-18T10:32:47Z")
I finished reading **Barry Lyndon** by William Thackeray. I thought it was going to be about a picaresque rogue like Tom Jones or Peregrine Pickle, and it started out that way. However, once he gets into torturing Lady Lyndon (with stalking, blackmail, beatings, emotional manipulation, threats on her children, etc.) it got a lot less funny; he turned out to be an evil, destructive, manipulative glutton. I still thought it was an interesting, well-written book, however. On a side note, I first read **Vanity Fair** and then – for no particular reason – I proceeded to read Thackeray’s other books in reverse order from when he wrote them. I wouldn’t recommend that. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2016, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/51 "2016-05-18T13:12:49Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I finished reading **Barry Lyndon** by William Thackeray. I thought it was going to be about a picaresque rogue like Tom Jones or Peregrine Pickle, and it started out that way. However, once he gets into torturing Lady Lyndon (with stalking, blackmail, beatings, emotional manipulation, threats on her children, etc.) it got a lot less funny; he turned out to be an evil, destructive, manipulative glutton… You might want to see the 1975 Kubrick adaptation - he ends up much the same in it, too. I hated him by the end: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lzSoKOs1fc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lzSoKOs1fc) ---
**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:** [May 18, 2016, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/52 "2016-05-18T14:11:25Z")
Finally finished David Mitchell’s [The Bone Clocks](http://www.amazon.com/Bone-Clocks-Novel-David-Mitchell/dp/0812976827/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463579532&sr=1-1&keywords=the+bone+clocks). It was really dense, and at times it bogged down a bit. But overall, I was deeply engaged with it. Not flawless, but still five stars at Goodreads. I wouldn’t mind if all books swallowed me up like that! (Glad I read _Slade House_ first though). I have a tee-tiny bit of reading time left this week before I pick up _The Fireman_ at the library, and go on a short trip during which I will get no reading done :mad:, so I’m burning it off with [We Are All Completely Fine](http://www.amazon.com/We-Are-All-Completely-Fine/dp/1616961716/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463580381&sr=1-1&keywords=we+are+all+completely+fine) by Daryl Gregory. It’s about a group of people in therapy, chosen because they survived some sort of supernatural horrors. It was the shortest thing in the TBR pile. > [@Misnomer](#): > > I’ve loved every Hill book so far, too (and yes, it was _Heart-Shaped Box_). The more I think about it, the more I think Marcia Clark is going to lose this one. And the next book I’ve pre-ordered is expected to be released on 6/7 (_[End of Watch](http://www.amazon.com/End-Watch-Novel-Hodges-Trilogy/dp/1501129740/)_), followed by another just seven days later (_[Stiletto](http://www.amazon.com/Stiletto-Novel-Files-Daniel-OMalley/dp/0316228044/)_), so Ms. Clark might stay on the shelf for a while. 😃 OMG, the tsunami is upon us. Yippee! ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/53 "2016-05-18T15:22:07Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > OMG, the tsunami is upon us. Yippee! Exactly! LOL! 😃 (And I did wind up putting the Clark book aside last night so I could start _The Fireman_.) ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/54 "2016-05-18T16:02:39Z")
If you like the _Daryl Gregory_, his recent YA novel, **Harrison Squared** , is about the childhood of one of the participants in the therapy sessions in **We Are All Completely Fine**. Currently enjoying reading **Barsk: The Elephant’s Graveyard** by _Lawrence M Schoen_. It’s set in a galaxy entirely populated by different Uplifted and ‘humanised’ animal species and the elephant-men have the short end of the stick. It was a Nebula contender this year but lost out to Naomi Novik’s Uprooted. Also starting to re-read _Branch Point_ (1996) by **Mona Clee**. It’s a time travel novel initially set in 2062 as three Bunker-born people who have never been outside before go back 100 years in time to try to prevent the catastrophic nuclear war that the Cuban Missile Crisis became… She only wrote two novels, I think, but I wish she had written more. ---
**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:** [May 20, 2016, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/55 "2016-05-20T03:47:48Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > For now, next up is _Hearts in Atlantis_, by Stephen King, a collection of two novellas and three short stories all set in or centered on the 1960s. There is a connection to the Dark Tower series, as it contains at least one of the Dark Tower series’ minor characters, and at least some of the stories in this work are referenced in the series. Finished _Hearts in Atlantis_, by Stephen King. Very good. It stands on its own, but I’m very glad to have read King’s Dark Tower series first, as the first entry, “Low Men in Yellow Coats,” makes a bit more sense that way. That one features Ted Brautigan, a character in the seventh and final volume of the series. In that volume, Ted makes a passing reference to the events in this story and says that’s a tale to tell another day. Well, this is another day and this the tale. But it’s not completely necessary to have read the Dark Tower series to enjoy it. Next up is _Perfidia_, by James Ellroy. A Japanese-American family in Los Angeles is brutally murdered amid America’s entry into World War II. ---
**Author:** ![Flamsterette\_X](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/41988e/32.png) [@Flamsterette\_X](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flamsterette_X)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/56 "2016-05-20T05:38:28Z")
I’m re-reading Edward Rutherfurd’s _London_. I love that the story spans multiple generations over a very long period of time. ---
**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:** [May 20, 2016, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/57 "2016-05-20T11:50:58Z")
My 22 year old opinion of **The Master and Margarita** was right, the book IS a slog and dreadfully boring. I will finish it because I’m stubborn but yeah, it’s not working for me. ---
**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:** [May 20, 2016, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/58 "2016-05-20T12:19:38Z")
I’m reading **The Finches’ Fabulous Furnace** , by Roger Wolcott Drury. My husband loved it as a kid, but couldn’t remember the title, only that the “furnace” was a volcano in the basement. One day in a used book store, I found it. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/59 "2016-05-20T14:00:45Z")
Slowly reading **[Let’s Pretend This Never Happened](http://amzn.com/0425261018)** by Jenny Lawson. It’s basically an autobiography about her, growing up in an insane family, and her own mental illness. It’s funny to the degree that it’s unsafe to read in public. My wife got me a signed copy of her second book, **[Furiously Happy](http://amzn.com/1250077001)**, for Christmas. I decided to jump back and read the first one before I started that one. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337/60 "2016-05-20T15:06:05Z")
I finished **Dark Money** , which was every bit as depressing as I had feared. Back now to continuing with **Sea of Glory** , by Philbrick, which is light reading by comparison. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/khadajis-whatcha-readin-thread-may-2016-edition/753337.md?page=4)