Finished *Hard Day’s Knight *a light urban fantasy featuring two vampire Private Detectives. It poked fun of the genre and it had its moments, but was mostly a time-killer. I doubt I will read the next, if there is one.
Finished The Interpretation of Murder: A Novel a historical fiction based on the visit of Freud and Jung to the US in the 1900s. Again, it had its moments, but I found the plot needlessly confusing. The bi-play between Freud and Jung was of some interest, and the author did a good job of keeping the fiction as accurate to the time as possible.
I am not an expert in psychology, but I am under the impression that most of Freud’s theories are no longer accepted, yet the book treated them as if they had valuable insight. I doubt I will read more from this author.
I know it now, but I didn’t know it when I visited London, or I would have gone to see it. There’s the Beau Brummel store in New York, of course, and I haven’t been there, either.
Here’s a picture of the gorgeous James Purefoy dressed up as Brummell for the BBC movie.
Finished Strip Tease, by Carl Hiaasen. A fun beach read. Always liked Hiaasen. Hard to believe they managed to turn the book into the single-word Striptease starring Demi Moore, a film so widely reviled (unseen by me) that it won six Razzies and was named Worst Film of 1996. The book is worthwhile though.
Next up is my first-ever John Grisham: The Last Juror.
I’m about halfway through John Julius Norwich’s “A History of Venice” - the compendium edition of the two previously separate volume.
Enjoyable but not a patch on either his *Byzantium *trilogy or *The Kingdom of the Sun *(Norman Silicy) but maybe it is just the Doges are not as colourful characters as Roman Emperors or badass Norman Dukes.
A *Knights & Aliens *movie, if based on Anderson’s The High Crusade, would certainly have to be a comedy. The book is quite funny, but does have some pretty good battle scenes, too.
So I’m about to start Santaland Diaries by David Sedaris. I’ve read (and enjoyed) another book by Sedaris, and this one seems like the sort of thing I want right now.
I’m halfway through *Heartless *now, and really enjoying it - I think it might turn out to be my favorite of the series. It has lots of Akeldama and Biffy.
These are very silly, so you have to be in the right mood for them, but I think they’re fun.
Finished In the Woods by Tana French. The book has a lot of 1-star reviews at Amazon because readers felt it lacked resolution of an old mystery. I had no problem with that, maybe because I read those reviews before reading the book. I liked it, but felt that the villain was too obvious.
Also finished Room by Emma Donoghue and liked it a lot. She did a great job, imagining the thought processes of a child in a horrific (to us) situation.
Starting a novel by Evan S. Connell about the Crusades – forgot the title.
Thanks to Crotalus’ friendship with and recommendation of, I’m now reading The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollack. He’s the author of Knockemstiff, this being his second work.
More a rant than a spoiler, except in the most general sense, but
I have a question: does Agent Pendergast ever actually DO anything for the FBI? Isn’t he supposed to check in now and then? Use their resources? Have a partner? Get in trouble for freelancing? I like him and everything, but my disbelief is getting exhausted by having to be suspended indefinitely! I wish Preston and Child would write a ‘Pendergast solves a murder’ book, like Still Life with Crows, without all the Constance/Big Conspiracy/Mythology folderol.
I started out with a biting anti-Freud anthology once mentioned by none other than Cecil motherflippin’ Adams himself, namely Unauthorized Freud: Doubters Confront A Legend, put together by noted Freud-basher Frederick Crews.
In the interest of keeping things fair and balanced, I then went on to read a somewhat less bloodthirsty (though still pretty critical) account: Paul Roazen’s Freud And His Followers.
And now, to kinda step back and place the whole 20th century psychology thing in its proper context, I’ve started reading Henri F. Ellenberger’s Biblically-proportioned thousand-page doorstopper The Discovery Of The Unconcious, which draws a line from “primitive” medicine, to medieval exorcism, to spiritism and magnetism, to hypnotism, and from there to, well, Freud and his gang all over again.
Oh and I’ll admit that I still haven’t finished Orhan Pamuk’s The Black Book, from last month. I blame Faber & Faber for making the font too damn small. What gives?
I’ve recently finished Michael Connelly’s The Brass Verdict (which I enjoyed) and I’m currently reading his latest one, The Fifth Witness. Whilst I’m enjoying the books (and his writing in general), I have to say I’m not sure I necessarily like the direction he’s taken the “Lincoln Lawyer” protagonist over the course of the books I’ve read.
Just finished Bloodroot. It was dark but very real. He sustained that prickly-back-of-the-neck feeling thruout. The dialogue was spot on. Going to read more of his. Oh, & the ending was GOOD. Thnx for helping me to decide to read it next.
I’d watch Fassbender in anything, so yes please! Christoph Waltz as papa Freud (the original casting choice, sez Wiki) would have been amazing – let’s see if Viggo can pull it off.
I finished reading Bleachers by John Grisham. It is the story of a legendary high school football coach, his ups and downs his coaching insisting on sticking with the basics of football. It’s also the story of the town and of the players. The story begins at the end of his life as former players gather in the small town waiting for his death. The story is told through the various players who played for him. Not a legal book at all, like Grisham usually writes, but a reminiscence. I thought it was good.
Also read The Goodbye Look by Ross MacDonald. This is the first I’ve read by him. It is a convoluted mystery/thriller/whodunit book. I get confused keeping all the names and relationships straight. A pretty good book, however.
Finished P is for Peril by Sue Grafton, another nice whodunit that isn’t revealed until the very end.
I am still reading My Grandfather’s Son by Clarence Thomas and State of Fear by Michael Crichton. I have also started Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and The Girl who Played with Fire by Steig Larsson. I’ve already read the prequel The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and enjoyed it. Lisbeth Salander, the protagonist of these ‘The Girl…’ stories is an offbeat, kick ass and take names kind of person that I really can relate to.
I’ve just finished Beside the Sea by Veronique Olmi. It’s the biggest emotional kick in the teeth I’ve had since I read Germinale, but with the added twist of always knowing something like the ending is going to happen.
I’m also working my way through Tomas Sedlacek’s Economics of Good and Evil, which is turning out to be quite an interesting exploration of the ethical bits of Mammon worship that tend to get swept aside when talking about the markets. I read *Wealth of Nations *years and years ago and had long been frustrated that everybody citing Adam Smith left out the implicit (and sometimes explicit) sense that what he was describing wasn’t necessarily good, but just happened.
I recycle most of the books I read. About five out of every six go back to a used-book store. I save the ones I really enjoyed with the idea that I will re-read them some day. Actually, I save many because I just want to be able to see them on my book shelf and think “I really enjoyed reading that book. It rewarded me for the time I took reading it so it has a secure home here for the foreseeable future.” Kind of a sanctuary for good books.
The latest to take up residence here is *The Dawn Patrol *by Don Winslow. A mystery set amongst the surfers of San Diego County in the days preceding a giant swell moving south out of the Gulf of Alaska. The book may be a bit hard to understand by those unfamiliar with the surfing world and its arcane lingo, but it moves with the power of a monster south swell, mixing murder, drugs, child sex slavery, pro surfing, the bonds of friendship, family and love and the unstoppable power of the ocean.
If you like other SoCal writers like T. Jefferson Parker or Joseph Wambaugh, check out Winslow.
