In regards to French books about WWI, I stumbled upon this list:
https://shepherd.com/best-books/fran...irst-world-war
The author also mentions a novel called Le Feu (Under Fire) by Henri Barbusse…
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In regards to French books about WWI, I stumbled upon this list:
https://shepherd.com/best-books/fran...irst-world-war
The author also mentions a novel called Le Feu (Under Fire) by Henri Barbusse…
This fall/winter I did a deep dive on WW1 followed by WW2 media. Books and movies (fiction and non fiction). Probably read 20 books and watched 30 films and documentaries.
I really enjoyed the Oxford Press “short introduction” books on each of these wars - I found they gave the perfect level of detail to give you the overview of how it played out.
I believe there is currently 3 movie adaptations of “all quiet”. I watched the middle one and the most recent one.
That war came at a perfect storm time where technology and tactics were evolving yet the message hadn’t been received by everyone involved (or was ignored). High ranking officers just sending masses of men to certain death in a war of attrition between trenches. So crazy and sad.
I still have more to consume but I’m taking a break for the summer to read about other themes such as sailing stories and books about trees - currently reading “The Bounty” about the mutiny of that ship.
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Originally Posted by The AD
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Originally Posted by yeahman
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Originally Posted by The AD
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Originally Posted by teledad
Thanks for the recommendations...Harlem Shuffle and The Underground Railroad were both great. Fantastic author.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
Cool. I recently saw that a sequel to Harlem Shuffle just came out, psyched to read it.Quote:
Originally Posted by oldnew_guy
Picked this up at the local used bookstore last month.
It’s a quick and breezy read that analyzes Cage’s career, as well as the shifting business trends of Hollywood.
My only critique is that the last few chapters feel incredibly rushed. I would have enjoyed more insight into Cage’s recent arthouse resurgence in films like Mandy and Pig (methinks the author was under a deadline and didn’t have the time to give these films (and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent)) more attention.
My main takeaway was that I had believed myself to be a pretty solid fan of Cage’s work and thought I had seen most, if not all, of his core films. Boy, was I wrong on that front!
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Nice - have that Cage book on my list so glad to hear it’s worthwhile.
Just finished Something of Value, by Robert Ruark, a novel about the Mau Mau uprising of Kenyan rebels against British rule post-WW2. Sad story but a fascinating look at Africa at that time.
Alright mags. Need your advice on a new book. Been on a bit of a science fiction tear lately, so it'll be hard to summarize everything I have been reading, but I definitely want a change of pace. I just finished book three (Death's End) of the Three Body Problem trilogy, which I picked up after learning about in this thread. Absolutely phenomenal read; I don't usually go for hard sci-fi but I absolutely loved it.
Previous to Death's End I read Calvino's Invisible Cities which was an absolute gem of a book. It felt to be equal parts prose and poetry; more of a series of dreams than a story. I'm not sure what to compare it to; gently similar to the magic realists but like... magic realism meets the poetry of Fernando Pessoa or Borges. Such a little delight of a book; like a box of absolutely divine chocolates, all I would need is a few morsels every night. Strongest recommendation for those who like heady dreamscapes, introspective observations, and clever parables.
So...what should I read next? Leaning towards history, open to ideas. Recently went on a Stegner kick, I could fuck with some American west or similar.
Quote from Invisible Cities to give you a sense of the flavor of the book.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...24c03d004f.jpg
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I just finished David McCullough's biography of the Wright brothers. Quite interesting. I knew the basics about them: from Dayton, had a bicycle shop, went to the Outer Banks to practice flying, but that was about it. There is lots more to their story. For example, neither of them went to college, but they had an insatiable thirst for knowledge and great practical mechanical skills. They weren't afraid to get their hands dirty. Just before they made their first flight in late 1903, the director of the Smithsonian, a Boston Brahmin named Samuel Langley, was also trying to be the first to make a manned, powered flight but failed miserably despite having massive funding for the project. The Wrights, of course, did it all with their own resources. I feel like the book trailed off a bit toward the end, but I guess with a story like theirs that's sort of inevitable.
Tgapp maybe you’ve already read this - but this biography was the best one I’ve yet to read. It’s a tome for sure - but it’s like reading Game of Thrones will all the various characters and intrigue.
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Children of Time.Quote:
Originally Posted by tgapp
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Magical realism a la Calvino?Quote:
Originally Posted by tgapp
Anything by Jeorges Luis Borges, most of which are just short stories. A great compilation is "Collected Fictions".
In that vein is Gabriel Garcia Marquez ("100 Years of Solitude" etc) which may be a bit of a cliche', up there but not as trodden as Carlos Casteneda ("The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge" et al).
American West history? Gotta read "Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West".
Another great read in that mode is "Astoria: John Jacob Astor and Thomas Jefferson's Lost Pacific Empire: A Story of Wealth, Ambition, and Survival" by Peter Stark.
Add "Beyond the Hundredth Meridian" by Wallace Stegner. Primarily of a biography of the brilliant and courageous John Wesley Powell, but essential for understanding how the modern American West came to be. Powell was pretty much a total badass.Quote:
Originally Posted by Buster Highmen
I liked Horn of the Hunter when I read it a couple decades back but how goes a 1955 MauMau book stand?Quote:
Originally Posted by yeahman
Stegner is to my reading a post CA gold rush, pre WW2 author for time, is that the desire? Or is it style?
I think it holds up because Ruark is a good writer, and to me the African setting held a lot of appeal as I'm totally unfamiliar with it. The racism of some of the white characters is a bit offputting, but I'm sure it's accurate, and ultimately the story is mostly sympathetic to the natives. Also I had a personal connection to the book as my dad recommended it to me. In the 1950s he was in the Army stationed in Africa, working in some of the same locales as in the book, trying to intercept and crack coded Russian communications. He read it while stationed in Africa and it made an impression on him.Quote:
Originally Posted by dunfree
No, that's more Faulkner. Stegner is one of the contemporaries, alongside Vonnegut and Pynchon and David Foster Wallace - just distinctly Western. Beyond the 100th Meridian is definitely on my list.Quote:
Originally Posted by dunfree
And thanks, all, for the reccs. @bennymac, I might check out the Peter the Great book; how does it fare as an audiobook?
and @Buster Highmen definitely am into Borges and other similar magic realists. Have you read Saramago? I feel like you would dig him. Blindness is absolutely amazing in the genre, a complete masterpiece.
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this is where i'm at. recently finished the first two and was debating taking a break from the sci-fi or just powering through w the 3rd...Quote:
Originally Posted by tgapp
Oh man. Book three was phenomenal. It's also the longest of the trilogy, but it was very satisfying. What a delightful series.Quote:
Originally Posted by criscam
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Pretty sure I have a problem/addiction…
Just can’t seem to visit the local used bookstore without always walking out with something or two…
Latest scores:
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I read it but I bet it’s great as an audiobook as wellQuote:
Originally Posted by tgapp
Tgapp: highly recommend this Montana author, Ivan Doig.
This House of Sky: Landscapes Of A Western Mind is a good one to start with.
Dancing At The Rascal Fair is another favorite by him.
He has a bunch of great books, but I definitely like his earlier stuff compared to his later writing.
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Read Big Rock Candy Mountain and Angle of Repose if you want a good feel for late 19th Century and early to mid 20th Century Western US. Throw in The Crossing too.
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+1. Dancing at the Rascal Fair is part of the English Creek trilogy. I would highly recommend all three books. The first book in the series is English Creek, one of my favorites.Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
ahahahaha yeah all of those are among my favorites, I talk about Stegner and McCarthy all the time in this threadQuote:
Originally Posted by MagnificentUnicorn
@Harry gonna grab this house of sky from the library, since I've gotten to a point where I am spending too much on books. unless you think this is a "must own" title?
@bennymac I think I'll do Peter the great as an audiobook, sounds right up my alley and perfect for driving around
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I mentioned “This America of Ours” upthread a ways. It’s a biography of Bernard and Avis DeVoto. Highly recommended if you’re interested in the early-mid 20th Century western US. He deserves to be rediscovered.
I recently ran across Chris Moore while perusing the shelves of the local library.Quote:
Originally Posted by dookeyXXX
Fun author, a mix of Tom Robbins, Castaneda and even a smattering of Vonnegut.
Noir (fun read once you get used to the 1947 lingo. Coyote Blue ( A Crow native American who re-embraces his roots, and now A Dirty Job ( Some random guy becomes a merchant of Death.
I just finished Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann. It's about a string of murders of the Osage people and subsequent investigation in the 1920s. A movie version is coming out this fall starring DeNiro and DiCaprio and produced by Scorsese.
Honestly, I was a bit disappointed by the book. It moved along at a nice pace, and was fairly interesting, but I felt like it petered out a bit at the end. There's a good 50 pages at the end that discuss the author's investigations trying to tie up some of the loose ends and I felt like that part didn't really fit in well. I do think the movie version could be good, though.
That's good to know. I started it but then got sidetracked on another book. I've read The Wager and The Lost City of Z by Grann and I enjoyed both but would describe the endings the same way. They both kind of petered out and had anti-climactic conclusions, but still worth the read if you enjoy the subject matter IMHO.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
Maybe that's just his style then, I guess. Seems like lots of people really liked it, so you can take my opinion with a grain of salt.
I'm still on my Native American kick and finished two good ones recently. The first was Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher by Timothy Egan. Quite a fascinating biography of photographer Edward Curtis. The second was Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese. It's the story of an Ojibway kid who spends his early years living in the bush in Northern Ontario, then gets sent to an Indian residential school where he learns to play hockey. I'll leave it at that, but it's a quick read and really good.
What The Dead Know by Barbara Butcher... A well written memoir by a former death scene medical investigator in New York City.. Sometimes difficult to read because of some graphic descriptions and the subject matter..
Between work, skiing, watching way too many movies, and wasting time on the webz, I have neglected reading much this summer.
Yet that hasn’t deterred me from buying new books…
Scored this at the local new & used on Sunday:
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Great audiobook I listened to recently. Been on a JCO kick lately and she's not really what I expected.
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Read this last week and that was exactly my impression. After seeing a few interviews with the author I get the impression that he was incredibly disturbed by his research and findings. Apparently a 10-year project, the book's ending chapter has the the feel of someone wanting to leave it all behind, and quickly.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
Area 51 by Annie Jacobson.
Interesting look into the famed Area 51 and surrounding areas, including reported alien activity and what really went on there.
I'd recommend this if you're into history but not to the casual reader nor alien fan because...well, Area 51 wasn't actually as much about aliens as it was cold war technology and nuclear testing. If you enjoy learning about military history or technology development, it's a great book.
Agreed on all counts. Didn't live up to all the hype for me and personally, I actually found it hard to really start and get going.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
Too lazy to read when the whole thread but if you're on a Native American journey, I assume you've read Empire of the Summer Moon? Absolutely phenomenal book.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
That was a good one.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Reverend Floater
I have Fifth Sun on my shelf but haven’t started it yet. It’s a new history of the Aztecs (Mexica) based on their written sources, rather than Spanish ones.
Finishing up Losing Eden, the second edition. It goes into detail on how natives and whiteys have changed the landscape of the American West from an environmental perspective. Now I can precisely and smugly tell people when the west we live in went from an Eden to a ruined place - "It was the nineties, man! Eighteen nineties!!"
No, I haven't read that one. I'll add it to the list.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Reverend Floater