Last Book You Read

[Cusser]

I'm not kidding:

The Good, the Bad & the Ugly Pittsburgh Steelers: Heart-pounding, Jaw-dropping, and Gut-wrenching Moments from Pittsburgh Steelers History

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Ugly-Pittsburgh-Steelers-Heart-pounding/dp/157243922X

Next up: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pittsburgh Pirates: Heart-Pounding, Jaw-Dropping, and Gut Wrenching Moments from Pittsburgh Pirates History

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Ugly-Pittsburgh-Pirates-Heart-Pounding/dp/1572439823/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324575995&sr=1-2

[Groggy]

I'm not kidding:

The Good, the Bad & the Ugly Pittsburgh Steelers: Heart-pounding, Jaw-dropping, and Gut-wrenching Moments from Pittsburgh Steelers History

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Ugly-Pittsburgh-Steelers-Heart-pounding/dp/157243922X

Next up: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pittsburgh Pirates: Heart-Pounding, Jaw-Dropping, and Gut Wrenching Moments from Pittsburgh Pirates History

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Ugly-Pittsburgh-Pirates-Heart-Pounding/dp/1572439823/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324575995&sr=1-2

I'm pretty sure my dad has both of those books. I've glanced through them myself a few times.

[Groggy]

Flashman in the Great Game - George Macdonald Fraser - 3rd reading. Fifth entry in the series sees Flashy mixed up in the Indian Mutiny, from romancing a ravishing Rani to matching wits with a crafty Russian spy, all the while avoiding murderous Sepoys and rampaging English troops. This is easily the most serious installment, with very graphic and harrowing descriptions of violence and atrocities on both sides of the Mutiny; even Flashman is compelled to act heroic and noble in spots. Lots of memorable set-pieces (especially Flashman's trip to Balmoral) but the best moment is Flashman's reaction to the publication of Tom Brown's Schooldays! Third best Flashman book after Flash for Freedom and the original.

Earlier this week I gave Fraser's Mr. American a go and gave up on it halfway through. How many 25 page bridge games does a novel need? Even a cameo by Flashman himself couldn't make it worthwhile.

[titoli]

I bought this in Paris, most appropriate place to read it. Which I did. The plot is somewhat strained but you don't care because it is mostly a comedy and also an effective guide to how Paris  works. Hate for Frogs is not required before reading but it helps. 8\10

[titoli]

This is one of the most important books in the development of the mystery novel. The structure though is different from what the genre arrived later to define itself. It is more than 800 pages long in the french edition but the novel is divided in two parts the second of which (occupying 2\3 of the entire book) it is just a prologue to the detective novel developed in the first 200 and oods pages. Somebody wrote that this is almost illegible now, I read it quite easily in spite of the lenght, the first part being absolutely masterful in the structure of the detective method. 8\10

[cigar joe]

Just finnished Nightwebs, Cornell Woolrich compilation which has a nice checklist of all of Woolrich's work and screen adaptations in total 23, the Noirs in bold.

Children of the Ritz (1929)
Manhattan love Song (1934)
Convicted (1938)
Street Of Chance (1942)
The Leopard Man (1943)
The Phantom Lady (1944)
Mark Of The Whistler (1944)
Deadline At Dawn (1946)
The Balck Angel (1946)
The Chase (1946)
Fall Guy (1947)
Fear In The Night (1947)
The Guilty (1947)
I Wouldn't Be In Your Shoes (1948)
Return of the Whistler (1948)
Night Has A Thousand Eyes (1948)
The Window (1949)
No Man Of Her Own (1950)
Rear Window (1954)
Nightmare (1956)
The Boy Cried Murder (1966)
La Mariee Etait en Noir (The Bride Wore Black) (1967)
La Sirene du Mississippi (Mississippi Mermaid) (1969)

[titoli]

La sirene du Mississippi is based on Waltz into Darkness.

[tintinteslacoil]

"Century of the Surgeon", Jurgen Thornwald.  A historical drama odf the pioneers, and, ultimate  accepance, of asepsis, anesthesia, and abdominal surgery. Seems hard to fathom nowadays  that doctors even Resisted Washing Their hands. The Good, Old Days...

I've read it before; it's fascinating. Like you are really there; meeting Lister and Koch.  He has a sequel;"Triumph of Surgery", about even more pioneers.

[Groggy]

The Fate of Africa: A History of the Continent Since Independence - Martin Meredith - Extremely ambitious in its subject and scope, analyzing why post-colonial Africa has (mostly) failed to function. Meredith's central thesis is that the European powers utterly failed to prepare Africa's people for independence, and their continued intervention in the region tends to exacerbate existing problems. Fortunately, it's far from a simple-minded polemic: Meredith sees plenty of blame to go around, with African despots, unworkable ideologies, ethnic and tribal tensions and monstrous mismanagement of natural resources playing their part. Meredith shows an enviable skill of analyzing the political, sociological and economic with equal skill and verve. An excellent read.

The White War: Life and Death on the Italian Front - Mark Thompson - 2nd reading. One of the best books on the First World War. Thompson covers Italy's disastrous involvement in the Great War, showing how it set the stage for Fascism. Thompson covers the war from every angle: harrowing accounts of the front (imagine if the Somme was fought on the sides of mountains), the stupidity of the military and politicians, the erosion of democratic institutions and the efforts of demagogues and fanatics to drive Italy into war. The only niggle is Thompson's annoying change of tense while recounting battles and events.

Crurently reading David Starkey's Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII, which I'd read many years ago. Very dense and it might be awhile before I finish it. I also received Flashman and the Tiger yesterday, completing my collection of Flashman books.

[Groggy]

"Century of the Surgeon", Jurgen Thornwald.  A historical drama odf the pioneers, and, ultimate  accepance, of asepsis, anesthesia, and abdominal surgery. Seems hard to fathom nowadays  that doctors even Resisted Washing Their hands. The Good, Old Days...

I've read it before; it's fascinating. Like you are really there; meeting Lister and Koch.  He has a sequel;"Triumph of Surgery", about even more pioneers.

Candice Millard's recently published Destiny of the Republic, about James Garfield's assassination and the horribly incompetent medical treatment he received, which might interest you.

[Groggy]

Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII - David Starkey - this is to Alison Weir's book what Richard Evans' Third Reich trilogy is to Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. Starkey paints a very meticulous, detailed and complex portrait of Tudor England, and presents some fresh and interesting analyses of the players in this familiar drama. Unfortunately, his prose is stilted and the book gets a bit dense in spots, rushing over some events while dwelling on others, so it's not the most readable work. Strakey's injecting himself into the story ("I" is used way more often than it should be in an historical work) grates too.

[titoli]

this is what Richard Evans' Third Reich trilogy is to Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.

what?

[Groggy]

More accurate and analytical but more of a chore to read.

[Groggy]

Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations - Georgina Howell - I'd only read about Bell peripherally through the many T.E. Lawrence bios that I'd read, so it was nice to find a full-fledged biography. Ms. Bell really was a remarkable woman: archaeologist, explorer, mountaineer, Arabist, intelligence agent, political powerbroker, founder of modern Iraq - a pretty impressive resume for anyone at any time, let alone a woman in turn-of-the-century England. Howell's an engaging writer and while she's a bit too enamored of her subject (surely the longer term ramifications of the Iraq mandate are worth considering?), Bell is impressive enough to warrant idolatry. She gives equal attention to her oft-tortured personal life, difficult professional relationships and the scope of her achievements. Not surprising they're planning a biopic of her, though I'm not happy about the proposed casting of Angelina Jolie (!). Anyway, highly recommended.

[tintinteslacoil]

Candice Millard's recently published Destiny of the Republic, about James Garfield's assassination and the horribly incompetent medical treatment he received, which might interest you.

I've also read "A Surgeon's World".   Autobiography about  a Mayo clinc surgeon who decides to move to a small town in MN. He  onmce helps the only local  doctor in a smaller  town, they have to go to Woolworth's and buy silk thread for sutures! That's how off the beaten track they are.