# Whatcha Readin' August 2010 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 2, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894 "2010-08-02T14:59:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**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:** [August 11, 2010, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/61 "2010-08-11T18:56:38Z")
> [@TheMerchandise](#): > > _The Blade Itself_, by Joe Abercrombie. The first in the First Law Trilogy. I heard a bunch of complaints/warnings that the first book was all character development. Yes, but what of it? They were great characters and I can’t wait to continue with this fantasy epic. I loved that whole trilogy - the next two books are just as good as the first one. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/62 "2010-08-11T21:49:00Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > Right now I’m reading _Starfish_, by Peter Watts, and I’m not sure that I’m going to like it. I picked this up because I enjoyed his Hugo-nominated novel _Blindsight_. \*Starfish \*is about a team of people manning a facility at the bottom of the ocean that is harnessing geothermal power. Usually in these cases we send down the best and the brightest - the most psychologically stable people we can find, to handle the stressful environment, right? In this book management seems to have felt that it was a pity to screw up good resources, so instead they have sent down a collection of violent, perverted or otherwise emotionally damaged people, apparently on the theory that these folks are already “preadapted” for stressful situations. A whole team of unsympathetic I agree that _Blindsight_ was much, much stronger than Starfish. Part of it may just be that Watts has grown as a novelist over time, but I think another important factor is that the world of _Blindsight_ is just much, much more interesting than _Starfish_ - the latter just feels like recycled cyberpunk whenever it isn’t stuck at the bottom of the ocean, while Blindsight has a genuinely unique feel to its world. Also, there’s much more a sense of _dread_ to Blindsight, I think - it propels the story along nicely. ---
**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:** [August 11, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/63 "2010-08-11T22:06:33Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > I agree that _Blindsight_ was much, much stronger than Starfish. Part of it may just be that Watts has grown as a novelist over time, but I think another important factor is that the world of _Blindsight_ is just much, much more interesting than _Starfish_ - the latter just feels like recycled cyberpunk whenever it isn’t stuck at the bottom of the ocean, while Blindsight has a genuinely unique feel to its world. Also, there’s much more a sense of _dread_ to Blindsight, I think - it propels the story along nicely. He’s working on a sequel to _Blindsight_, and I look forward to it. (But jeez, do I hate his website.) ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2010, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/64 "2010-08-12T14:07:00Z")
Finished _Discord’s Apple_ by Carrie Vaughn. I have read her Kitty Norville series and enjoy it well enough, so I gave this a shot. I haven’t decided yet what I think. Vaughn’s story is set in a bleak world in the near-future, ravaged by wars. (For instance India and Pakistan have exchanged nukes.) There are security checks in all towns and rations on groceries. Into this she brings beings of legend, some trying to obtain the apple out of Greek legend that started the Trojan war. This apple is guarded and stored by a family in Colorado who guard other artifacts from legend. It had potential, I admit, but never really gained its stride and overall was a mediocre offering. I will admit that I was surprised by the ending, but didn’t really find it satisfying. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/65 "2010-08-13T18:19:42Z")
_Blood Men_ by Paul Cleave. Now-adult son of a serial killer is in a bank with his wife when it’s robbed; she is killed. His incarcerated father urges him to seek revenge. Will he do it? (I don’t know!) I think this is the first book I’ve ever read that’s set in New Zealand. _Booklist_ loved it; _Publishers Weekly_ said it was disappointing. So far it’s fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/66 "2010-08-13T18:44:48Z")
I think I’m on an early American history binge. I’m now reading _The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America_ by Walter R. Borneman and I’ve got Borneman’s previous book _1812: The War That Forged a Nation_ and Jack Rakove’s _Revolutionaries: A New History of the Invention of America_ in the queue. ---
**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:** [August 14, 2010, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/67 "2010-08-14T03:08:40Z")
Just finished Richard Ketchum’s _Victory at Yorktown_, a pretty good overview of the last years of the American Revolution, culminating in Washington’s and Rochambeau’s great 1781 triumph over Lord Cornwallis. Ketchum does a good job of showing the political, economic and military dimensions of the war, and emphasizes how everything went just right for the American and French forces, while the British made blunder after blunder. ---
**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:** [August 15, 2010, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/68 "2010-08-15T03:46:18Z")
In one day, I zipped through Clive Cussler’s 1978 thriller _Vixen 03_, which I read back when it first came out. Most of his recent stuff is crap IMHO, but this book (about a secret 1954 Air Force flight, insurgents trying to topple the Apartheid regime of South Africa, and a false-flag attack on Washington, D.C.) is just about as good as I remember, despite some clunky exposition and quaint chauvinism. ---
**Author:** ![Enterprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/76d3ee/32.png) [@Enterprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enterprise)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/69 "2010-08-15T10:20:38Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I think I’m on an early American history binge. I’m now reading _The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America_ by Walter R. Borneman and I’ve got Borneman’s previous book _1812: The War That Forged a Nation_ and Jack Rakove’s _Revolutionaries: A New History of the Invention of America_ in the queue. _1812_ is an excellent book, but if after it, you’re still interested in more on the War of 1812, I’d recommend Donald Hickey’s _The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict_, which I liked better than Borneman’s book, simply because it was more thorough. Another interesting perspective is John Latimer’s _1812: War with America_ from the British perspective, an especially necessary corrective to the prevalent American views of the war. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/70 "2010-08-15T16:44:17Z")
Finished _The Gargoyle_ by Andrew Davidson. It’s about a man who’s severely burned in a car accident. In the hospital, he’s visited by Marianne, a psychiatric patient. Marianne tells him they were lovers in past lives in Italy, Germany, Iceland, and Japan, and she relates these stories to him as he recovers. These parts of the book had a fairy tale quality and I really enjoyed them. The other part of the story has to do with Marianne’s gargoyle sculptures, and that was less enjoyable. Funny that I could totally buy into the reincarnation aspect, but the sculpting part – the reason she did it – had me rolling my eyes. It wasn’t necessary to the story – I was already hooked with the past lives relationships. Started _The Good Wife_ by Stewart O’Nan. His writing is so good that it’s almost distracting. It’s about a young pregnant woman whose husband goes to prison for murder. Like a lot of O’Nan’s books, it’s a “slice of life” story – no plot to speak of, just excellent characters in rather ordinary situations, how they cope, what their relationships are like, and lots of detail. I love this guy. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/71 "2010-08-15T18:13:51Z")
I just finished the second book of the [Rashi’s Daughters](http://www.rashisdaughters.com/) trilogy. Rashi remains probably the most noted torah scholar ever. The books look at an 11th century French Jewish and Christian world from the viewpoint of his daughters. An excellent narrative that really brings you into how they understood the universe at the time. She delves into medical issues, marital relations, marriage laws, wine making, dress making, animal husbandry, the role of women in the household and out of it as well as the customs of the people of the day. A Jewish background helps when you read the novels but I think they’re very accessible and well done historical fiction that anyone would enjoy reading. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/72 "2010-08-15T19:08:53Z")
> [@Enterprise](#): > > > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > > > I think I’m on an early American history binge. I’m now reading _The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America_ by Walter R. Borneman and I’ve got Borneman’s previous book _1812: The War That Forged a Nation_ and Jack Rakove’s _Revolutionaries: A New History of the Invention of America_ in the queue. > > _1812_ is an excellent book, but if after it, you’re still interested in more on the War of 1812, I’d recommend Donald Hickey’s _The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict_, which I liked better than Borneman’s book, simply because it was more thorough. Another interesting perspective is John Latimer’s _1812: War with America_ from the British perspective, an especially necessary corrective to the prevalent American views of the war. I’ve already bought _The War That Made America: A Short History of the French and Indian War_ by Fred Anderson and will probably read it as soon as I finish the Borneman book. I sometimes read two books on the same subject in succession - it gives me a parallax on history. So I may do the same with Hickey’s or Latimer’s book. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/73 "2010-08-15T23:36:05Z")
Finished _The Freightened Man_, the start of a detective series set in early 1900’s London. A gruesome murder of a prostitute may or may indicate the return of Jack The Ripper. Denton, an American with a past in law enforcement and an author, is sucked into the investigation. I’m not sure if Denton was supposed to represent a real person, or not. If he was, I didn’t have a clue who. The picture the author painted of the life of women in the 1900, while possibly accurate, was bleak and depressing. The mystery never really sucked me in. I am doubtful that I will read the next installment. ---
**Author:** ![Alpine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpine/32/17813_2.png) [@Alpine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpine)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/74 "2010-08-16T00:58:48Z")
Haven’t dropped into one of these threads for a while, but I haven’t read anything exciting for a while, either. It’s great to hear about the variety of literary interests. I just finished Gary Taubes’ _Good Calories, Bad Calories_ thanks to a mention in GQ, and I have to say it’s got me thinking good and hard about my diet and about the medical establishment. I have had faith in Western medicine and science, and a lot of skepticism about conspiracy theories and fad diets. However, this synthesis of history and science is making me question life-long assumptions. Something I enjoy in a book. Also listening to Harry Potter on audio, which is something I do every summer, believe it or not (hiking season). Jim Dale ranks up there with Simon Prebble and Barbara Rosenblat as a performer, IMO. I love the books, and his readings are exquisite. I’m looking forward to Collins’ third book (_Mockingjay_) as well. ---
**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:** [August 16, 2010, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/75 "2010-08-16T12:20:26Z")
Just finished Paco Underhill’s What Women Want: the global marketplace turns female-friendly. It was just okay. I like Mr. Underhill’s books about shopping, but by the time I got to the end of this one, I wasn’t sure if it had a point beyond, “Women prefer things to be clean and safe and have curvy lines.” I’m now starting on Joe R. Lansdale’s Savage Season, the first of his Hap and Leonard books. This is one of those things I always meant to read…someday. Liking it so far. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/76 "2010-08-16T15:24:20Z")
Just started _The Whisperers_, latest in John Connolly’s Charlie Parker series. Yum. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/77 "2010-08-16T15:51:13Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I’m now starting on Joe R. Lansdale’s Savage Season, the first of his Hap and Leonard books. This is one of those things I always meant to read…someday. Liking it so far. I love these. Be sure to read them in order, so you won’t be like me and wonder “Whatever happened to . . . ?” Finished the O’Nan and thought it was brilliant. Next up is _Hunted Past Reason_ by Richard Matheson. I was suprised to find this at the library. It’s fairly recent, and I thought Matheson was dead. Glad he’s still around, and still writing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/78 "2010-08-16T17:47:26Z")
I just finished **A Feast For Crows** , and you know what? I don’t care if the last three books are ever published. It’d almost be worth not reading them just to never hear Arya’s stupid prayer about people she wants dead ever again, or the boyscout merit badge-like earning of chain links. Is Martin somehow under the impression that he’s being paid by the word or what? So many useless details are repeated over _and over_ throughout the series, but no light is shown on more interesting questions, like: What exactly happened in Winterfell when Stark showed up with a baby that (or perhaps so he claimed) was his? ---
**Author:** ![Enterprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/76d3ee/32.png) [@Enterprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enterprise)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/79 "2010-08-16T18:53:17Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > > [@Enterprise](#): > > > > _1812_ is an excellent book, but if after it, you’re still interested in more on the War of 1812, I’d recommend Donald Hickey’s _The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict_, which I liked better than Borneman’s book, simply because it was more thorough. Another interesting perspective is John Latimer’s _1812: War with America_ from the British perspective, an especially necessary corrective to the prevalent American views of the war. > > I’ve already bought _The War That Made America: A Short History of the French and Indian War_ by Fred Anderson and will probably read it as soon as I finish the Borneman book. I sometimes read two books on the same subject in succession - it gives me a parallax on history. So I may do the same with Hickey’s or Latimer’s book. The Anderson book is great–as is his 900 page tome on the same conflict, _Crucible of War_. Leastways, that’ll leave you with very few questions, though it’s comparatively short on the military details. But still–very good books. And then you could segue into Robert Middlekauff’s _The Glorious Cause_ and get your fill of Revolutionary history… > [@](#): > > I just finished A Feast For Crows, and you know what? I don’t care if the last three books are ever published. It’d almost be worth not reading them just to never hear Arya’s stupid prayer about people she wants dead ever again, or the boyscout merit badge-like earning of chain links. Is Martin somehow under the impression that he’s being paid by the word or what? So many useless details are repeated over and over throughout the series, but no light is shown on more interesting questions, like: What exactly happened in Winterfell when Stark showed up with a baby that (or perhaps so he claimed) was his? You know, I’m on board with you on this. There’s a slim chance, I guess, that he’ll pull it all off and give us a satisfying resolution to the whole, so that we don’t feel cheated by the amount of time spent on stuff that never, ever leads anywhere (and right now, he’s certainly got more leads than anything else). And besides: I’ve not read a book of his in four years, I think…my interest has slightly waned, and it might take some prodding to get into a fifth book when I know there’s years of waiting ahead again until book six…and no end until book seven, if then. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894/80 "2010-08-16T21:48:09Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > I just finished **A Feast For Crows** , and you know what? I don’t care if the last three books are ever published. It’d almost be worth not reading them just to never hear Arya’s stupid prayer about people she wants dead ever again, or the boyscout merit badge-like earning of chain links. Is Martin somehow under the impression that he’s being paid by the word or what? So many useless details are repeated over _and over_ throughout the series, but no light is shown on more interesting questions, like: What exactly happened in Winterfell when Stark showed up with a baby that (or perhaps so he claimed) was his? 😃 I felt that way with the first book - but I was under a lot of pain meds when I read it, so I thought it might just be that I was having hard time concentrating. None-the-less, I never got around to reading the rest. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-august-2010-edition/548894.md?page=5)