What are you reading?

[Synthaholic]

I'm buying this tomorrow. I am completely emotionally invested in this man's mission. He is a saint. And Niall being Niall, every cent goes to Tina's Hospital.

View attachment 1108318

https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Tina/Niall-Harbison/9780008725716

Tina: The Dog Who Changed the World|Hardcover

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES AND IRISH TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER. THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER. _...

www.barnesandnoble.com

Niall Harbison (@niallharbison.bsky.social)

On a mission to save street dogs around the world. You can support here... https://www.happydoggo.com/donate

bsky.app

https://x.com/NiallHarbison

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience of a Divided Nation in a Turbulent World by Dan Senor. This book is a sequel to Startup Nation, by the same authors. The book was a bit of a falloff from Startup but still worth reading. A couple of chapters, a bit too celebratory about relations with Israeli Arabs, became outdated on October 7, 2023. That being said, Daniel Senor does a good job explaining Israel's relative cohesiveness despite toxic internal politics. Worthy of note was the description of the mechinot, which is described in Mechinot: post High-School service learning. It is a one-year program for recent high school graduates, of about forty 18 year olds living together for a year of study, hiking and volunteering, prior to their entry into the IDF.

This book also explains the importance of Israel's population's relatively young age, and its contribution to optimism. A good read, which I am giving four stars.

 

[bluzman61]

I'm currently (still) reading Chronicles by Bob Dylan. He tells the story of his working with other musicians throughout the years. He worked with Johnny Cash on his song "Sunday Morning Coming Down" from the late 1960's. I've almost finished the book. It's an interesting and captivating read.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright. I am giving this book about the background of the massacres of September 11, 2001 a "Five Stars" though it made my blood boil reading it. It seems that our governments at the time (Clinton and Bush, so my screed is nonpartisan) did not have as their first objective the protection of American life; it seems as though: a) adherence to "procedures" b) being chummy with hostile foreign governments; and c)pursuit of petty bureaucratic wars all took precedence to the oaths of office all involved took. Even the books "heroes" Michael Scheuer of the CIA and John O'Neill of the FBI put their mutual internecine hatreds above their missions.

I will spare the details. For reasons I state I simply cannot write them out. The book is powerfully written, starting with the "intellectual" roots of the movement to slaughter Americans indiscriminately and progressing to the ultimate horror of September 11, 2001. I am frankly too angry to write more. An effectively written piece of literature can and does accomplish that.

 

[JBG]

I just finished Bob Dylan: Stories Behind the Songs 1962-1969 by Andy Gill and I'm a bit disappointed. I had expected a better analysis of the songs and stories behind them. I think he did a good job analyzing Bob Dylan's "going electric," largely abandoning acoustic protest music and his forecasting, with Basement Tapes, John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline the development of country-folk and country rock. The song-by -song analysis was sometimes shallow and sometimes offhand and whimsical.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading 1861: The Lost Peace by Jay Winik. It is a worthwhile read for history buffs, especially Civil War buffs. I was not as overwhelmed as I was by The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788-1800 or 1944: FDR and the Year That Changed History, both by Jay Winik. I really wanted to learn more about what swung Virginia to secede, since it it my view that without Virginia the rebellion would have sputtered. Also missing was any real discussion about Maryland's remaining, or the spiriting of governmental papers to New York City.

On a more positive note he did a very good job of analyzing Lincoln's resistance to his bureaucracy's tendency to appease the South. 1861 was only a "lost peace" if odious surrenders were made to the Confederacy. This would have begat more and more surrenders. I did not realize how strong were the forces that Lincoln bucked in this regard. I am giving this a "four" even though it's really a "three and a half."

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading When the Stones Speak: The Remarkable Discovery of the City of David and What Israel's Enemies Don't Want You To Know by Doron Spielman. Excerpt:

In Jerusalem the stones have a story to tell, a story not only about Jerusalem. Rather, it is all the stories of our people, both in the Land of Israel and in exile. It is as if the stones of Jerusalem gather the stories in our absence, catching them out of the air, storing them away safely, until a time we need to hear them, to remind us how we longed to come home.

The City of David is not just an excavation of Jerusalem; it is an experience that encapsulates Jewish history….(A tourist asked)"Hey, where are you guys from?" Without even missing a step, Raanan called back to them non-chalantly. "We are from long ago..." Raanan could not have said it better: The Jewish people are from long ago…. Little did they (the conquering Romans) know that two thousand years later, Jews would still be around, and from wherever they were scattered among the four corners of the earth, they would turn to face the Temple when offering up a prayer.

The book is truly spellbinding; one of the best I have read. This is the author's maiden books. He is a spokesman for the IDF. Charitably, I have felt that Israel's PR could use some work. If this book is any guide, they are making progress. Doron Spielman reviews the lengthy history of The Temple, and makes a good case for its connection to the nearby City of David. These archaeological developments understandably make surrounding people unhappy, as did the Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in the 1940's and/or 1950's. The case successfully made is that the Hebrews are a true indigenous people, and constitute a rare if not unique case of a return to prior lands.

Definite "five stars." I literally could not put the book down!

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading Sledgehammer: How Breaking with the Past Brought Peace to the Middle East by David Friedman.

This is one of the fastest reads and one of the best books I’ve read. It was recommended to me by the book I had just finished reading, When the Stones Speak by Doron Spielman. Both books imbue and demonstrate an intense pride in being Jewish, and supporting the State of Israel. This book skillfully and excitingly covers the run-up to the recognition of Jerusalem ss the capital of Israel, the move of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and the creation of the Abraham Accord.

The author, the former US ambassador to the state of Israel, very creatively decided to tackle soluble issues, such as creating relations between Israel and Muslim countries, rather than being defeated, as so many administrations in the past were, by the insoluble and probably impossible problem of satiating the “Palestinian leadership.”

Ultimately, and I’m not particularly religious, there is a divine role here. The Jews have survived for 2000 years, in much smaller numbers than the far mightier empires. Where, for example, are the Babylonian empire, the Roman Empire, the Assyrian Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire? Where are the pharaohs? And finally, where are the Hittites and Jebusites?

I do not want to spoil the book for others so I will say no more. This was truly one of the best books have read.

 

[JBG]

I just read and did not finish One Jewish State: The Last, Best Hope to Resolve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (Hardcover) by David Friedman. While the I generally agree with the author's premise that a two-state solution in the Middle East is unworkable, parts of it hark back to The White Man's Burden by Rudyard Kipling. In addition, the book contains numerous factual errors. While minor by themselves the include:

1. Misstating the date of the independence of Transjordan, now known as Jordan. It is 1922, not 1946;
2. Misstating the date of the Munich Olympic Massacre. It is September and not July 1972; and
3. Misstating the location of the U.N. It is on First Avenue and 44th Street, not Second Avenue.

A well-known expert on the region should be careful and not sloppy. One cannot use his stated facts with confidence if an unschooled reader can pick up so many errors in a few short pages.

 

[JOSweetHeart]

I just finished this awesome book.

God bless you and Mark always!!!

Holly

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand. There are not enough superlatives to describe how much I enjoyed reading it. Perhaps it was surpassed by Unbroken, by the same author. It is too bad that this author has not written more.

While the book had an inevitable focus on the famous horse, a wisely also concentrated on the trainer and the various jockeys. My grandfather always said come with horses, “watch the jockey more than the horse” because “the horse is just an animal.” Obviously the trainer must have material to train, and the jockey must have material to ride. The trainer often gets less notice than even the jockey. The names Secretariat (Triple Crown 1973), Seattle Slew (Triple Crown 1977) and Seabiscuit are household words. Their trainers and jockeys are relative unknowns.

Overall, it is the kind of book that leaves one with a good feeling. It shows what is possible. And to always aspire to excellence.

 

[lg325]

Smokey by Will James A gift from my grandmother when I was a young boy.
Fine reading while listening to this rainstorm with a cup of coffee and a sweet.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again by Jake Tapper. I was always taught as a child never to kick someone when they are down, and never pick on someone weaker than myself. While a thrilling and quick read, this book violates those rules and more.

The book lays out in detail the cognitive and frightening decline of President Biden. Clearly he was never, at least after the Afghanistan withdrawal in 2021, making too many decisions. That may have been for the better. And Tapper outlines how the 25th Amendment is well-intentioned but impractical.

I borrowed this book from the library since I would not contribute one thin dime to the owners of the "intellectual property" of this work. Most objective people arrived at the same conclusion with the June 27, 2024 debate; he could not run or serve again. Presumably, Jake Tapper, once a leading Biden sycophant, was among them. He then wrote this book, which is like between traded from a losing team to the opponent in a game in the eighth inning. While I did not vote for him, ever, I consider this book an A-1 act of bullying. That is why I give it one star.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading The Year of No Garbage by Eve O. Schaub. I will give this book a 3 1/2. Since that is not available, I rated it a four. In an effort of personal disclosure, I gave some weight to the fact that the author is alumnus of my Alma Mater, Cornell.

The writing flows well. There is some humor. The book makes points that I believe needs to be made, which is that we torture ourselves to be environmentally perfect, to little real effect. She does praise the widespread effort to do better. She analyzes, in excruciating detail, what is wrong with most personal environmental efforts. She never calls it environmental theater, but she may as well have.

What is wrong with the book and why do I not give it a higher reading? Like many books there is an apparent effort to inflate the number of pages. There was enough repetition that I skimmed much of it and actually skipped half of a very long chapter. Quibbles aside, the book is worth reading.

 

[JBG]

Just before Labor Day I finished reading Hidden History of Vermont by Mark Bushnell. I highly recommend this book. Vermont has a lot of history given its key geographic position. Especially during the revolutionary period. This book contains a series of vignettes about the state, in various periods.

 

[my2¢]

I just wrapped up Lion & Lamb on Wednesday, a crime fiction about the murder of Philadelphia Eagles star quarterback as the team is heading into the playoffs.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology by Mike Rinder.

"But most of all, I felt the embrace of the realization that suddenly, I was answerable only to myself. I felt the elation of freedom for the first time in decades. Nobody to tell me what to do. Nobody to criticize or punish me. Nobody looking over my shoulder, second-guessing everything I did. I had never been in that position before and it sure felt good." This is a quote from A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology, a book recommended to me by a Canadian friend I know on Goodreads. This book is simply excellent. The author describes the abuses of Church of Scientology and how difficult they make life for people who deign to escape. It describes in riveting detail how many people are simply into this cult and its bizarre belief systems.

My main quibble with the book is that It spins far too little time on the “escape” of the author. The book purports to be about the escape and only approximately 1 eighth of the book is spent describing the events leading to his decision and the life afterwards. Thus, four rather than five stars. Otherwise, I fully recommend the book. It was a very quick and gripping read.

 

[my2¢]

I mostly read crime mysteries novels. I'll be finishing up Harlan Coben's Nobody's Fool in a day or two.

 

[JBG]

I just finished reading Lawless: The Miseducation of America's Elites by Ilya Shapiro. It is very worthwhile I rarely give books 5 stars, but Lawless is a very important book. It focuses on legal education, but many if not all of the lessons are applicable to all university education. And perhaps to high school education. From a rightful condemnation of “hate speech“ has evolved cosseting restrictions upon any kind of advocacy that does not meet current orthodoxy. Put bluntly, adults should not need protection from opinions they do not like or they do not belong in college or law school. They belong in the continued nurturing of their parents in their own bedrooms.

The backstory is the authors mistreatment at Georgetown law school. He was hired as a professor and, before his employment sent a tweet that criticized the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice. But his own admission the Tweet’s wording was “inartful.” he was suspended for a four month “investigation.“ This “investigation“ was dragged out so it’s conclusion would be announced after students have left the campus.

I will not spoil the book for readers. It is important for anyone who believes in American style free speech.

 

[Zavulon]

Just started "Doomsday Morning" by C.L.Moore. So far it's a pretty nice piece of masterwork. The Spitit of Old America and all that things. Written in 1957, its kinda abosolet, but it show us alternative way of American history. Same people in the different circumstances.