# Whatcha Readin' Jan 2013 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 31, 2012, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685 "2012-12-31T18:06:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ian_D.Bergkamp)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/221 "2013-01-27T17:54:12Z")
What a fantastic idea. And, in recognition of that, I’ll go ahead and nominate **Le Ministre de l’au-delà** as a suitable thread-starter for next month. RIP, Khadaji. ---
**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:** [January 27, 2013, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/222 "2013-01-27T18:01:03Z")
I second that, since it was his idea! ---
**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:** [January 27, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/223 "2013-01-27T19:02:53Z")
All those in favor…? AYE! ---
**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:** [January 27, 2013, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/224 "2013-01-27T19:10:53Z")
AYE!!! ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2013, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/225 "2013-01-27T21:36:37Z")
Aye! ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2013, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/226 "2013-01-27T21:42:03Z")
How about every month, assuming he’s willing? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2013, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/227 "2013-01-27T21:45:23Z")
Sorry to hear about **Khadaji** , so AYE. Here is what I’ve read this month: 1. You Never Give Me Your Money, Peter Doggett 2. The New Space Opera, Dozois/Strahan (ed) 3. The New Space Opera 2, Dozois/Strahan (ed) 4. The Signal and the Noise, Nate Silver 5. Inquiry into the Causes of the 2008 Financial Panic, FCIC 6. Moonseed, Stephen Baxter 7. Eternal Light, Paul McAuley 8. Giant Steps, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar _Eternal Light_ was **so** boring. _You Never Give Me Your Money_ was a good read, being about the Beatles’ legal and financial battles of the 1970s (Did y’all know that George Harrison started an affair with Ringo Starr’s wife, Maureen?) The Space Opera books were collections of short stories that I made quick work of, and _The Signal and the Noise_ was a surprisingly fast read. _Inquiry into the Causes…_ is pretty much what it says - an analysis into the causes of the 2008 financial meltdown. The most interesting part of the book was the end, which had some dissenting opinions from the FCIC’s findings. Fascinating that a couple of committee members tried to blame a 30-year old law (Community Reinvestment Act) for the financial meltdown even when their own studies found that fewer than 5% of all subprime mortgages could be traced to that law. :rolleyes: _Giant Steps_ was interesting from a historical perspective - I don’t get why Bill Simmons is so hard on Kareem, but that’s likely because Simmons is a Celtics apologist. 😉 ---
**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:** [January 28, 2013, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/228 "2013-01-28T03:38:18Z")
Aye to everything. ---
**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:** [January 28, 2013, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/229 "2013-01-28T05:02:26Z")
Still reading Penny Le Couteur and Jay Burreson’s _Napoleon’s Buttons_, pop science about important molecules (Vitamin C, silk, tin, etc.) and how they’ve changed history. About a third of the way through and it’s getting better. This weekend I also raced through Kitty Kelley’s _Capturing Camelot_, about the photos of Stanley Tretick, who took so many iconic photos of the Kennedys, perhaps most notably the shot of John Jr. under the President’s Oval Office desk: [http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr\_llefmsDyxA1qzrfmk.jpg](http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_llefmsDyxA1qzrfmk.jpg). Worth a look for anyone interested in JFK and his times. Also started Stephen C. Neff’s _Justice in Blue and Gray_, about the legal issues (sovereignty, belligerency, secession, military tribunals, habeas corpus, etc.) raised by the American Civil War. ---
**Author:** ![AlohaBear32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47774/32.png) [@AlohaBear32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlohaBear32)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/230 "2013-01-28T06:40:36Z")
This month so far: Life of Pi: loved it, didn’t like the overall message per se, but was a good story and haven’t seen the movie yet), Green by Jay Lake: Liked it, beginning and middle were great, end was a bit of a mess, also cover art was very misleading in regards to the looks of the main character. That hit a sour note with me Now reading Robopocolypse. So far, pretty good. Basically World War Z with a Grey Goo machine takeover scenario vs a Zombie Outbreak one… ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/231 "2013-01-28T06:51:51Z")
I finished The Gold-Bug; like the House of Usher, it was shorter than I remembered. I also listened to Usher II by Ray Bradbury, as read by Leonard Nimoy. That had some fun references to other Poe stories. I’m now about half way through the Wool Omnibus by Hugh Howey. I don’t read much sci-fi, but I’m enjoying this. ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/232 "2013-01-28T07:06:46Z")
I have finished [The Violinist’s Thumb](http://www.amazon.com/Violinists-Thumb-Genius-Written-Genetic/dp/0316182311): _And Other Lost Tales of Love, War, and Genius, as Written by Our Genetic Code_ by **Sam Kean** (author of _The Disappearing Spoon_). Good stuff. Quite fascinating, really, and I learned a few new things. A really good overview of the history of DNA and human knowledge about it. ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/233 "2013-01-28T07:09:16Z")
I hit post too early, meant to add that I’m now reading [Goodbye 20th Century](http://www.amazon.com/Goodbye-20th-Century-Biography-Sonic/dp/0306816032) A Biography of Sonic Youth. Pretty interesting so far, quite well written too. ---
**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:** [January 28, 2013, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/234 "2013-01-28T15:40:46Z")
> [@tellyworth](#): > > …I also listened to Usher II by Ray Bradbury, as read by Leonard Nimoy. That had some fun references to other Poe stories… I knew you’d like it! ---
**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:** [January 28, 2013, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/235 "2013-01-28T18:11:25Z")
So sorry to hear about **Khadaji**. I just finished _Of Human Bondage_, and it was excellent. It sounds awful when I try to describe it, so I won’t, but it was compulsively readable. **AuntiePam** , thanks for mentioning this in the 2012 favorites thread. I’ve just started reading _Neuromancer_, and I don’t think I’m going to make it much farther. Cyberpunk generally bores me to tears, but I thought this sci-fi classic might prove to be an exception. So far I dislike everything about the book, especially the writing style. I have read one of Gibson’s newer novels, _Pattern Recognition_, and I liked it well enough, but this one seems nearly incoherent. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/236 "2013-01-28T18:51:38Z")
Well, of course I’d be willing - in fact, I’d be honoured. However, as Lloyd Bentsen would say, I’m no Khadaji. I’ll start the next one in a couple of days. Over the course of January, I’ve finished ‘Beasts and Super-beasts’ by Saki, ‘Whose Body?’ by Dorothy Sayers, ‘My Man Jeeves’ by P. G. Wodehouse and ‘Saint Francis of Assisi’ by G. K. Chesterton. Loved them all but the Chesterton. I just felt there was far too much editorializing in his writing. I’m reading a hagiography of a saint; of course I’m expecting that you believe everything about him. I don’t need to be hit over the head constantly with what I fool I am in your mind because I don’t happen to be Catholic. Wodehouse, Saki and Sayers, on the other hand, are just delightful writers. I just finished Cory Doctorow’s “Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom”. I didn’t like it very much - none of the protagonists were the least bit likeable, and none of their actions seemed motivated by anything I could relate to. Currently reading ‘Right Ho, Jeeves’ by P. G. Wodehouse, ‘Mysticism and Logic’ by Bertrand Russell and ‘The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes’ by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I’m also reading ‘Winnetou I’ by Karl May in German, and Des Chrétiens et des maures by Daniel Pennac in French, at a rate of about 10 and 25 pages a day, respectively, in an attempt to keep my second languages somewhere between ‘rusty’ and ‘halting’. Winnetou is a riot - it’s a series of westerns originally written in German by someone who never visited North America until much, much later in life. They’re great adventure stories. Historically accurate? No so much… And why, oh why, has nobody ever done a good job of translating Daniel Pennac? The French originals are delightful and witty; any time I’ve thrust an English translation into somebody’s hand, they just go ‘meh’ and walk away shaking their heads. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/237 "2013-01-28T19:08:23Z")
Thanks for all of the great threads, Khadaji. You’ll be missed. I stumbled across books in a series I thought had ended because of the death of the author (apparently, she isn’t dead. No idea how I got so confused), so I read two Fiona Buckley mysteries in the last few days. I found her originally when my first husband died and I needed some comfort reading, so I have a deep affection for the series that may not actually be warranted by their quality. BUT I LOVES THEM. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/238 "2013-01-28T19:08:35Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > I just finished _Of Human Bondage_, and it was excellent. It sounds awful when I try to describe it, so I won’t, but it was compulsively readable. **AuntiePam** , thanks for mentioning this in the 2012 favorites thread. You’re welcome. 🙂 I’ve dumped _Ready Player One_, about a third of the way in. I’m more interested in the real world (sucky as it is) than the virtual one, and it appears this story is mostly set in the virtual one. If I’m wrong, someone let me know and I’ll keep reading. Picked up _Crossroads Road_ by Jeff Kay. Not sure where I heard about it – maybe here. It’s about a bitch of a woman who wins a big lottery jackpot and bribes her dysfunctional family to live in a compound with her. It would make a heck of a reality show, and I think that’s where the author got the idea for most of his characters. It’s fun. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/239 "2013-01-28T19:11:29Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > Over the course of January, I’ve finished ‘Beasts and Super-beasts’ by Saki, ‘Whose Body?’ by Dorothy Sayers, ‘My Man Jeeves’ by P. G. Wodehouse and ‘Saint Francis of Assisi’ by G. K. Chesterton. Loved them all but the Chesterton. I just felt there was far too much editorializing in his writing. I’m reading a hagiography of a saint; of course I’m expecting that you believe everything about him. I don’t need to be hit over the head constantly with what I fool I am in your mind because I don’t happen to be Catholic. For Chesterton, I’d recommend _The Man Who Was Thursday_ (if you haven’t already read it). This non-Catholic enjoyed it thoroughly. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685/240 "2013-01-28T19:30:13Z")
What sad news about **Khadaji**. He will be missed. I read _Former People: The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy_ by Douglas Smith, which was an intriguing read. I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say that it didn’t go well for them. The author primarily follows two families. It was a heavier book than what I was expecting, but engrossing. It also made me want to go to Siberia. I just finished _Every Day_ by David Levithan, a YA novel about a teen who wakes up every day in a different body. Intriguing premise, I guess the author and I didn’t agree on what would be the most interesting aspects of it to explore. It’s gotten great reviews, but I was overall meh on it. Currently reading _Tell The Wolves I’m Home_, so far, so good. Set in the mid-80s, a teenage girl loses her uncle to AIDS. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-jan-2013-edition/645685.md?page=13)