The Second World War by Antony Beevor My rating: 3 of 5 stars This book took my literary Stockholm Syndrome to a whole new level. After nearly three years by my bedside, I am finally done with this agonizingly long tome. Agonizing in a good way I suppose. But if your looking for a quick […]
Just Enough: Lessons in Living Green from Traditional Japan by Azby Brown My rating: 4 of 5 stars An absolutely lovely read that is infused with history while looking disapprovingly at our current consumption driven culture. The author uses the unique device of placing Edo era travelers in distinct locales, partaking in a kind of […]
LPI Linux Certification in a Nutshell by Adam Haeder My rating: 3 of 5 stars A compehensive look at all the objectives on the LPIC1, though slightly dated in its lack of GRUB2, systemd and udev coverage. The first half, focusing on the 101 exam, does a decent job of bringing the reader along with […]
The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Self help books rarely get to the crux of the matter. Anyone with an intellect, an inquiring mind, or a shred of awareness will realize that modern “self help” is based on the supposition that one can […]
Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil My rating: 4 of 5 stars This book takes the dirty, desolate, destructive lives of addicts, turns them on their head, spins them around,and spits them back at you in repeatedly surprising ways. How do you make a story about opium/heroin dens in Bombay more decrepit? Make your lead character a […]
The Road by Cormac McCarthy My rating: 4 of 5 stars A short, powerful book that follows all the familiar McCarthy themes of death, duty to family, trust and the often hidden nature of humanity. Far more readable than many of his earlier works, primarily because of its exclusion of Spanish dialogue (a realistic but […]
Sumo: A Thinking Fan’s Guide to Japan’s National Sport by David Benjamin My rating: 3 of 5 stars Sumo, as a sport, too often gets deified and lost in the Shinto ceremonies that are blatantly evident to all who watch, from the throwing of salt to the traditional mawashi(loincloth) the wrestlers wear. David Benjamin does […]
Shogun: A Novel of Japan by James Clavell My rating: 2 of 5 stars Picking up this book seemed like a natural choice. I have an acute interest in Japanese History and have lived in the country for the past three years. It is consistently the first book recommended when you search for historical fiction […]
Lies, Inc. by Philip K. Dick My rating: 1 of 5 stars For fans of Philip K. Dick, this posthumously compiled novel, works with many of the themes common to most of Dick’s work. Reality, para-worlds, paranoia, and government conspiracy all manifest themselves in the final published novel, but unlike other more recognized titles, fails […]
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe My rating: 3 of 5 stars It’s always good to reread “classic” novels. Achebe’s most renown work, originally assigned during a freshman World Literature class, certainly reads better the second time around without the lens of academia and political correctness to distort reactions. Things Fall Apart keeps a fairly […]