Brian's 2013 Book Log

[Devi]

I have a similar distrust to a certain extent but I find religion so interesting that I read a lot about it. Some of it is fascinating so dive right in.

 

This is me too. I went to a religious school in my early years and had a bad experience with the nuns. They didn't like me questioning religion, told my parents I was a bad child and suggest I leave the school. So it kind of grew from there.

[Mac]

I don't want to take the words out of his mouth but I think VF was meaning that he swapped extreme Muslim views for extreme Christian views.

 

 

I have a similar distrust to a certain extent but I find religion so interesting that I read a lot about it. Some of it is fascinating so dive right in. How are you enjoying The Savage Altar?

 

I'm liking it. There's a tag on the front which says "If you like Stieg Larsson, you'll love Asa Larsson" which is misleading, because there two are incomparable. This is more of a thriller-by-numbers, but I'm quite busy at the moment and enjoy the fact that I can pick it up, read a few chapters (they're all quite short) and then maybe not pick it up again for a couple of days. I'll write my thoughts on this book in my Mac Reads thread. 

[Brian.]

I'm liking it. There's a tag on the front which says "If you like Stieg Larsson, you'll love Asa Larsson" which is misleading, because there two are incomparable. This is more of a thriller-by-numbers, but I'm quite busy at the moment and enjoy the fact that I can pick it up, read a few chapters (they're all quite short) and then maybe not pick it up again for a couple of days. I'll write my thoughts on this book in my Mac Reads thread. 

 

My copy says the same thing and like you say, the comparison is daft. I have also read the next 2, The Blood Spilt and The Black Path both of which I found enjoyable.

[Brian.]

Why I Am a Buddhist by Stephen T. Asma




Synopsis

Profound and amusing, this book provides a viable approach to answering the perennial questions: Who am I? Why am I here? How can I live a meaningful life?
For Asma, the answers are to be found in Buddhism. There have been a lot of books that have made the case for Buddhism. What makes this book fresh and exciting is Asma's iconoclasm, irreverence, and hardheaded approach to the subject. He is distressed that much of what passes for Buddhism is really little more than "New Age mush." He loudly asserts that it is time to "take the California out of Buddhism." He presents a spiritual practice that does not require a belief in creeds or dogma. It is a practice that is psychologically sound, intellectually credible, and esthetically appealing. It is a practice that does not require a diet of brown rice, burning incense, and putting both your mind and your culture in deep storage.
In seven chapters, Asma builds the case for a spiritual practice that is authentic, and inclusive. This is Buddhism for everyone. This is Buddhism for people who are uncomfortable with religion but yearn for a spiritual practice.
(Taken from Goodreads)

 

My Thoughts

This was the last of my batch of library books and probably the one I was looking forward to the most. I left it until last to break up the non-fiction I was reading and hoping that it lived up to the expectations that I had. I was drawn to the blurb on the back especially Asma's non tradition outlook on Buddhist.

 

The book starts promisingly enough and initially his writing style is pretty engaging with some good humour thrown in. However after that his style becomes very 'educational', this is probably due to the fact that he is a professor but I felt that it slowed the book down and it became too wordy. In particular the first few chapters on the nature of humans craving sex and our interactions with each other felt like I was wading through glue. There were some interesting points introduced but it felt very laboured and I really had to concentrate.

 

There is a chapter on raising children and this was a far better chapter. It felt as though Asma fell back into a more relaxed style complete with amusing anecdotes. I could completely identify he assertion that small boys in particular seem to spend there time finding ways to hurt themselves.

 

Two other chapters stood out to me, one on the beat generation of writers and one on music, in particular jazz and blues. I found the beat section very interesting but then I suspect that I would find this interesting regardless of who wrote it. There seems to a be magic that surrounds that particular group of writer and beatniks that makes any writing about them absorbing. As a fan of blues I also found this part interesting although I suspect that non fans wouldn't find it that interesting at all.

 

Although it is portrayed as a book for beginners or people who don't like the tradition or religious parts of Buddhism I would disagree. There is a lot of info crammed into the 'educational' sections and a bit of background knowledge goes a long way here. I followed it fine but I have read about Buddhism extensively over the years. For people who are looking for a non-dogmatic look at Buddhism I would heavily recommend Buddhism Without Beliefs by Stephen Bachelor. This is a much more relaxed book which assumes no prior knowledge and takes a much better look at the subject in my opinion.

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

The Journey to the East by Hermann Hesse




Synopsis

A classic of modern literature, The Journey to the East is a profound rendering of the struggle between faith and despair. The hero, identified only as H.H., recounts a fantastic spiritual and geographic pilgrimage he took years ago with the League, a secret society whose members include the likes of Paul Klee, Mozart, and Baudelaire. Traversing both time and space, the pilgrims come across Noah's Ark in Zurich and meet Don Quixote at Bremgarten, only to part ways in seeming discord at the dangerous Morbio Gorge.
(Taken from Goodreads)

 

My Thoughts

The other morning as I was grabbing my stuff to head out to work I realised that I didn't have a book with me. A quick glance at the bookcase and my eyes fell on this little novella. I am not sure why I decided on this, I've had it ages but never picked it up before.

 

The book started off in an easy enough way and I did wonder where it was heading. There didn't seem to be much happening and I was left feeling a little deflated. One thing that did stand though was that I liked Hesse's writing style. Its fairly light, flows off the page a paints images of magical places very well. The land in which the journey occurs is no real place but one which I could see in my minds eye quite well.

 

Once the parting of the ways had occurred the book really picked up and started to make a bit more sense. The drama in the second half of the book was fantastic and it all felt very mystical. In the end the books struck me as an idea which hadn't been fully developed. I don't know if this was actually the case but I wonder if Hesse had bigger plans for it eventually.

 

This was a decent quick read.

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

Letting Go by Wil Gritten




Synopsis

From the beach he lives on with only a stray dog for company to his ultimate departure and the tearful goodbyes that accompany it, this is the story of the author’s trip to South America as he searches for freedom of the soul. Written
with a self-deprecating sense of humor and an equally refreshing emotional honesty, the book speaks candidly of friendships, drugs, sex, and politics—and the fear and elation of wandering off the map. With a central theme focused on how dangerously close "letting go" can come to "losing it," this biographical work looks at what happens when the boundary between exploration and hedonism becomes blurred.

(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

For some reason my library mixes travel writing, travel guides and history of countries and regions all in together. I was taking a mooch about looking for nothing in particular when I spotted this amongst the other books. I picked it up and decided to read the blurb on the back, this turned out to be much harder than I had expected. The cover is a dark metallic blue and the blurb written in black but I managed to read enough that made this book seem like an interesting prospect.

 

Like many people I have a romantic image of traveling being all sunshine and delights. However the reality is often different. Don't get me wrong, I love traveling but it can get pretty stressful at times and it is often not until after the trip that I appreciate how much I enjoyed it. Perhaps I am just a bit odd like that. I expected this book to be full of the delights of traveling South America and thought it would make a nice 'reality escape' read.

 

However this isn't the glossy, wonderful travelogue that I had expected, it was so much more and so much better. Gritten tells the tale of being sick of travelers he meets along the way who are 'doing' traveling, ie seeing what you are expected to see and ticking them off your list. He wants to travel off the beaten path and meet the locals along the way, all of this fueled by drink, drugs and youthful exuberance.

 

At times he gets pretty low and things get pretty hairy. He described the numbing fear experienced when landing in a new country with no idea where to stay, how to speak the language or what to do. He knows by experience that pushing on will ease the fear until he can enjoy himself but this is never easy. There is also the beautiful friendships that are made along the way and the strain that this kind of travel can put on them. Along with the social tensions there is also the mental pressure and fatigue that comes along the way. This is where letting go can turn into losing it, something that many travel writers overlook.

 

This is a great read on the realities of traveling off the beaten path.

 

3/5 (I really liked it).

[Mac]

Nice reviews, Brian. The Hesse, in particular, intrigues me.

[vodkafan]

Are you really saying that Hamas the terrorist organisation and Christianity are both extreme ideologies of the same ilk? Sounds like you have some black and white views of your own

 

Hi Andrea  only just saw this. My thoughts are getting less and less black and white these days; about religion I like to stay comfortably in the grey!

[Brian.]

Monster by Allan Hall




Synopsis

On 28 August 1984, Josef Fritzl drugged his teenage daughter with ether and imprisoned her in an underground bunker behind eight locked doors. Over the following twenty-four years, he raped and abused her, never letting her or the children she bore him out of the dark, windowless cellar.

Based on 150 new interviews with psychologists, neighbours, colleagues and friends who knew Fritzl, as well as the insight of his own chilling confession, Allan Hall reconstructs the monstrous personality behind this hideous crime. He exposes Josef Fritzl's dark past in Nazi Austria, his previous conviction as a rapist, the appalling conditions in which Elisabeth and her children were kept and her astonishingly brave conduct while held prisoner. Including exclusive photographs and previously unseen evidence, this is a truly heart-stopping record of one of the most elaborate and disturbing cases of abuse in modern times.

(Taken from Amazon)

 

My Thoughts

As usual I picked my next read entirely on a whim and found myself picking up this book. I'm not sure when or where I got it from but it looks pretty new so it was probably fairly recent. I really enjoyed 3,096 Days by Natascha Kampusch and I hoped this book would give similar insights into another heinous crime.

 

The book starts with a look into the formative years of Josef Fritzl and Austria's involvement in the Nazification of Europe around the time of WWII. I found this section fairly interesting and it does shine some light on how the Austrian character has developed since those times. It did all feel a little 'clever after the fact' though and it did draw some fairly broad stereotypes.

 

The remainder of the book details what is believed to have occurred during the 24 years that Elizabeth Fritzl was kept captive by her father. There is no other way to describe this as pretty harrowing to read, especially where the young children are involved. As is often the case in these circumstances there were many missed occasions where his crime could have been discovered and it doesn't paint the Austrian legal system in a very good light. There were some revelations which I was unaware of. For example Josef Fritzl was jailed for rape when he was 32 but only served 18 months after which his record was hidden.

 

The final sections of the book deal with the aftermath and recovery process which the family is still under going. If anything it shows the triumph of the human spirit but it is also a hard read. I can't imagine what life must have been like for them for even a second and its clear that the mental scars will exist in them for ever.

 

The author finished off by trying to portray Fritzl as a product of Austria and it's Nazi past. While this is an interesting theory and no doubt has some merit I felt it was too simplistic. Austrian authorities no doubt failed to protect the family from Josef Fritzl but saying that society is to blame is a leap too far for me. There also seems to be motive by the author to portray Austria as a country which still supports the Nazi ideal. This is a theory that should have been left for another book, one which would be equally fascinating.

 

In the end the book felt like it was rushed and it contained far too many insights from anyone who would talk to the author. Whilst I appreciate that there is a thirst for knowledge about the case it probably would have been wiser to wait until the case was concluded before writing this book.

 

2/5 (It was ok).

[Devi]

I was just wondering the other day how she and her kids were going. I can't imagine what it would of been like to finally see the light, and see/feel things they had never felt before. You would imagine it would be rather overwhelming, and if the feeling of wanting to run back to an enclosed, protected room from the outside world ever hit them.

[Brian.]

The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein




Synopsis

The shock doctrine is the unofficial story of how the "free market" came to dominate the world, from Chile to Russia, China to Iraq, South Africa to Canada. But it is a story radically different from the one usually told. It is a story about violence and shock perpetrated on people, on countries, on economies. About a program of social and economic engineering that is
driving our world, that Naomi Klein calls "disaster capitalism."
 

Based on breakthrough historical research and four years of on-the-ground reporting in disaster zones, Klein explodes the myth that the global free market triumphed democratically, and that unfettered capitalism goes hand-in-hand with democracy. Instead, she argues it has consistently relied on violence and shock, and reveals the puppet strings behind the critical events of the last four decades.

Klein vividly traces the origins of modern shock tactics back to the economic lab of the University of Chicago under Milton Friedman in the 60s, and beyond to the CIA-funded electroshock experiments at McGill University in the 50s which helped write the torture manuals used today at Guantanamo Bay. She details, in this riveting - indeed shocking - story, the well-known events of the recent past that have been deliberate, active theatres for the shock doctrine: among them, Pinochet's coup in Chile in 1973, the Falklands War in 1982, the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991; and, more recently, the September 11 attacks, the "Shock and Awe" invasion of Iraq, the Asian tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. And she shows how - in the hands of the Bush Administration - the "war on terror" is a thin cover for a thriving destruction/ reconstruction complex, with disasters, wars and homeland security fuelling a booming new economy. Naomi Klein has once again written a book that will change the way we see the world.

(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

I bought this book quite a few years ago (it was published in 2007) and it has sat on my bookcase gathering dust ever since. I picked it up at a discount because it was packaged with another book written by John Pilger. It's probably not the kind of book I would normally read but something in it must have sparked some interest in me.

 

To be honest I am not too sure where to start with this book. The title is very apt, it has left me pretty shocked and a little dazzed and confused. I think I can sum it up by saying that this is one of the most remarkable and well researched books that I have read. I have read quite a lot of good non-fiction books on a wide variety of subjects and it is up there with the very best of them. It contains so much information that I started to take notes on things that I thought may help with my review.

 

The introductory chapters of the book seem a little cryptic at first as they are about electroshock therapy used on patients in the 40's and 50's. It then details how this was adapted by the CIA and tied up in the MK ultra project. During this time an interrogation manual was created by the CIA called KUBARK. This manual focuses partly on the fact that fear and shock can induce a short period of time in which the subject is very susceptible things that they would have been against previously. This period of time is essential in the interrogation process and a phenomenon that can be mirrored in economics.

 

This was popularized by Milton Friedman who called for completely free markets which no intrusion from the government. He believed that nationalized services and social care were an interference to a natural economic order which would exist. Obviously people are not going to accept a government removing social care, de-restricting prices etc so a bit of economic 'shock therapy' is needed.

 

In the early days of this theory there was no sure way to test this as no country could or would adopt it. Friedman argued that lots of reforms had to take place quickly and no existing leaders were willing to do it. What was needed was a new country, one with a clean slate to start from and that presented itself as South American countries that had under gone military coups or the over throwing of the government. This allowed the new leaders who bring in these changed saying that temporary hardship would give way to prosperous times. A population still reeling from coup is must more agreeable in this situation that normal. Those that were not agreeable were often put down by military force, think of Chile & Pinochet.

 

To keep things short the book presents a case that shows huge profits being made by companies off the back off the Iraq war, hurricane Katrina, 2004 tsunami etc. This is down to the economic demands being placed on the places involved to secure funding. Often foreign investors come in, privatize the place, employ only foreigners and then take the huge profits out the country.

 

There is also growing evidence to show that the IMF and World Bank were able to manipulate the markets forcing non compliant countries into financial distress by destabilizing their currency. Another way the markets were exploited in South East Asia were to take economic control of one country and create investment funds that include the markets of surrounding countries. By bringing the controlled country to its knees financially the linked funds ensured that the others were dragged into the mire. The IMF could then step in, offer a loan but only if they agreed to mass privatization and foreign investors.

 

This review could be so much longer, the wealth of information is incredible. There are loads of references and the research alone must have been a huge undertaking. I must say that I don't go in for conspiracy theories and I do wonder if everything is as Klein says it is. There are a few reasons why I think the book must be mostly true.1) She hasn't been sued, we live in a society where law suits are readily filed. 2) The only real criticisms of the book are based along economic lines and not questioning the human cost or figures that are portrayed.

 

This is an incredible book, I highly recommend it.

 

 

 

5/5 (It was amazing).

[bobblybear]

Great review of The Shock Doctrine. I've had it on my shelf for a few years now, after very much enjoying No Logo (which may be a wee bit dated now). I did attempt it a couple of years ago, but put it aside for something 'lighter'. I shall be sure to pick it up in the near future though, as it sounds well worth a read for anyone interested in the state of the world today.

[Brian.]

Great review of The Shock Doctrine. I've had it on my shelf for a few years now, after very much enjoying No Logo (which may be a wee bit dated now). I did attempt it a couple of years ago, but put it aside for something 'lighter'. I shall be sure to pick it up in the near future though, as it sounds well worth a read for anyone interested in the state of the world today.

 

Thanks. Light reading it certainly isn't. Normally I get through about 50 pages an hour without any effort but I had to slow right down with this book just to take it all in. The writing is easy to read but there is just such a wealth of information and I was surprised at how long it took me to read it.

[Brian.]

Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell




Synopsis

One frozen January morning at 5am, Inspector Wallander responds to what he believes is a routine call out. When he reaches the isolated farmhouse he discovers a bloodbath. An old man has been tortured and beaten to death, his wife
lies barely alive beside his shattered body, both victims of a violence beyond reason.

Wallander's life is a shambles. His wife has left him, his daughter refuses to speak to him, and even his ageing father barely tolerates him. He works tirelessly, eats badly, and drinks his nights away in a lonely, neglected flat. But now Wallander must forget his troubles and throw himself into a battle against time.

(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

After enjoying the books of Stieg Larsson, Jo Nesbo & Asa Larsson it seemed only right that I give Henning Mankell's Wallander series a go. I decided to do the sensible thing and start with the first book in series even though a prequel has since been published. I definitely needed some light reading after The Shock Doctrine and I felt ready for some fiction again. I was a little skeptical however,  the reviews for this book are all over the place which made we wonder how good it would be.

 

The main character Kurt Wallander is in a bit of a rut with his life. His wife has left him, his daughter doesn't seem to what to know him. His father is old and cantankerous and Wallander has let himself go while feeling sorry for himself. He also has that common theme with fictional policemen, he drinks far too much. One thing that stood out instantly is that I saw quite a few similarities between him and Nesbo's Harry Hole. They even share a like of music albeit classical instead of rock in this case.

 

Wallander is a likeable character but still retains a hard edge which makes some of his decision making questionable. The supporting characters are a varied bunch but none of them really come to life with the exception of Rydberg. He is someone who's opinion means a lot to Wallander and is his sounding board when things are on his mind.

 

One of the subjects that was dealt with that I really liked was Wallander's feeling that he is of an older generation and that crime had become far more violent in recent times. This is played out very well and he is stuck in a limbo between his father's generation and that of his daughter. Another topic that is handled superbly is that of immigration. Some books have the main character as some super righteous uber liberal being. Wallander still harbours doubts about the way immgration is being dealt with while treating everyone equally. This is an important distinction that many authors miss in my opinion and something that is even more important given the age of Wallander. Most people of his generation would be worried about what immigration means for his country whilst not being racist.

 

There are enough twists and turns in the plot to keep this interesting and I flew though the book in no time at all. The translation was a bit sloppy and I found some words that had been mis-spelt which was pretty annoying. I really enjoyed the books though and I look forward to reading some more of Kurt Wallander's adventures.

 

4/5 (I really liked it).

[Brian.]

Champions League Dreams by Rafa Benitez




Synopsis

Champions League Dreams is a stimulating and deeply insightful football narrative by Rafa Benitez which focuses on the legendary manager's dramatic six Champions League campaigns with the Liverpool football team. Rafa expertly navigates fans through intriguing European adventures that embrace the triumph and despair of two Champions League finals, three semi-finals, and five quarter-finals in what was a golden era for the Anfield club—an era that supporters felt gave them their pride back after years in the wilderness.(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

The 25th May 2005 is a date that is etched into my heart and a day that I will never forget. Throughout my childhood football had made me weep for all the wrong reasons but that night my tears were tears of joy. Rafa Benitez is a manager I had admired from his time in Valencia and I was delighted when he was appointed as manager of Liverpool. One thing that has always remained a bit of mystery however is what he is like underneath his professional facade.

 

This book details the Champions League campaigns Benitez presided over while at the helm at Liverpool. Fittingly the book starts and ends with the Champions League final in 2005. From the outset I could see that this book would be a little different to others I had read on the subject. It starts with Benitez detailing his still strong emotional attachment to the club, something that no doubt irritates Chelsea fans but is completely understandable. It is clear that he wants to return to the club one day and I would be delighted to have him back in the future.

 

There is a tactical breakdown of some of the bigger games that Liverpool played in the Champions League. On one hand I wish these were a little more detailed but at the same time I guess the book had to sell. These kind of tactical presentations only appeal to a small number of football fans, myself being one. What is included is very good however and things that didn't really make sense at the time are explained in detail. There are numerous glimpses into the person behind the suit such as the revelations that Rafa was made to wear lucky pants by his 6 year old daughter during the European games. Bright red underpants with the Tasmanian devil on them is not something that I would have associated with him.

 

There is also a lot of detail on what was happening behind the scenes with regards to the ownership of the club. It's plain to see that Benitez is still hurt by what happened. It can't have been easy dealing with owners who say one thing, do another and then won't even respond to emails. In the end, although he was told he would be staying he was offered a settlement while on holiday and told he was no longer wanted. After some deliberation Rafa decided that if the owners didn't want him he should step aside. The fact that a chunk of his settlement was donated to 2 local charities speaks volumes about the man.

 

This is a fantastic book and while I don't think fans of other clubs would enjoy it as much as a Liverpool fan it would still be an entertaining read to any football fan.

 

5/5 (I loved it).

[Brian.]

Jet by John Golley

 

Synopsis

In 12 April 1937 Frank Whittle became the first person to successfully start and run a turbojet engine. In May 1941 the engine took to the air in an experimental Gloster-Whittle aircraft, but despite the RAF's desperate need for air supremacy over her enemies, little support was forthcoming from the military establishment. It was the enthusiasm of the American General 'Hap' Arnold that took the next stage of development to the USA and within six months Whittle's invention was powering more American Jets than British.

 

This is the story of the genius throttled by British government bureaucracy, for even when in 1943 Rolls-Royce became
involved with the successful design and manufacture of engines based on Whittle's concepts, his company was nationalised and banned from engine production Although gagged for decades by the secrecy of that period, the story can now be told in full and these revelations provide a fascinating insight into the attitudes of the wartime government and
military establishment, attitudes that led to one of the greatest inventions of all time being offered freely to those who were to become Britain's main aircraft manufacturing competitors.

(Taken from Goodreads)

 

 

My Thoughts

I was loaned this book by a work mate of mine with the recommendation that it was a very interesting read. Being in the aviation industry I was unsure as to how interesting I would find it so it has laid on my bookcase for a while gathering dust. After finishing my last book I was going to read some fiction but I decided that it was about time I gave this a shot.

 

There is a little about Whittle's time at school and its clear that he was a bright student but one who was easily prone to bouts of mayhem. I don't think that this mayhem was meant to be destructive I think that he was just a bored genius. I was glad to discover that this part of his life isn't poured through in detail as I find this a bit boring. The next phase was his student & apprentice days which were very interesting. He found it tricky to settle in as he was from a working class background and most of his classmates were well-heeled. It was during this time that he wrote the thesis for what would become his jet engines.

 

From the outset he encountered many obstacles from may different quarters. Some of his superiors didn't understand his theory so instantly dismissed it as rubbish, unwilling to discuss it further. In the mean time he became a very accomplished pilot, often getting into trouble for his low level acrobatics. Very slowly over years his engine ideas started to gain some traction and things started to come together. However, this was only the start of his problems, the development was done in conjunction with 2 other companies. Neither paid him any real respect and one in fact went on to steal his designs for their own purposes despite this being against the contract written up by the RAF. The politics that him and his team had to deal with on a daily basis were simply mind blowing and ended up putting engine development back many many years.

 

I don't wish to spoil the end of the book but it is very bittersweet in many ways. It is a testament to the man that he stuck with his dreams in the face of so many problems and he remains one of Britain's most important engineering figures.

 

The book is very well written with enough extras along the way to entertain. A little bit of jet engine knowledge would probably be a bit of assistance but it isn't too technical. There are also plenty of drawings and photographs which are a nice addition.

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

Survivor by Chuck Palahnuik




Synopsis

Some say that the apocalypse swiftly approacheth, but that simply ain't so according to Chuck Palahniuk. Oh no. It's already here, living in the head of the guy who just crossed the street in front of you, or maybe even closer than that. We saw these possibilities get played out in the author's
bloodsporting-anarchist-yuppie shocker of a first novel, Fight Club. Now, in Survivor, his second and newest, the concern is more for the origin of the malaise. Starting at chapter 47 and screaming toward ground zero, Palahniuk hurls the reader back to the beginning in a breathless search for where it all went wrong. This time out, the author's protagonist is self-made, self-ruined mogul-messiah Tender Branson, the sole passenger of a jet moments away from slamming first into the Australian outback and then into oblivion. All that will be left, Branson assures us with a tone bordering on relief, is his life story, from its Amish-on-acid cult beginnings to its televangelist-huckster end. All of this courtesy of the plane's flight recorder.

 

Speaking of little black boxes, Skinnerians would have a field day with the presenting behavior of the
folks who make up Palahniuk's world. They pretend they're suicide hotline operators for fun. They eat lobster before it's quite... done. They dance in morgues. The Cleavers they are not. Scary as they might be, these characters are ultimately more scared of themselves than you are, and that's what makes them so fascinating. In the wee hours and on lonely highways, they exist in a perpetual twilight, caught between the horror of the present and the dread of the unknown. With only two novels under his belt, Chuck Palahniuk is well on his way to becoming an expert at shining a light on these shadowy creatures.

(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

As usual I was rushing around getting ready for work and I remembered I needed a book so just grabbed whatever caught my eye off my bookcase. I had no idea what this book was about but I enjoyed Fight Club and thought Snuff was ok so I hoped this would be more of the same.

 

Immediately the page and chapter numbering jumped out at me. The pages and chapters are numbered backward, a very simple but effective gimmick and it gave the effect of racing towards the inevitable end. The story is told by Tender Branson via the cockpit voice recorder of an aircraft he is piloting alone that is running out of fuel and will crash in Australia. Sounds utterly bonkers? It is.

 

As it turns out, Tender Branson was a member of a religious cult who's survivors and dwindling in numbers. Eventually he becomes famous via an insane marketing campaign leading to him becoming some kind of messiah figure. Along the way there is a useless social worker and a woman who can see the future in her dreams.

 

In usual Palahnuik style the writing is minimal and the characters not particularly well developed. However it is also an insane, exciting, whirlwind of a book. There is a vast amount of social commentary on the ultra religious and celebrity culture in a very unusual way.

 

I found this book a pretty good read even though I couldn't really put my finger on why.

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Alexi]

Hi Brian,

 

I read an awful lot of football books (generic and team specific, not all specific to my own!) but steered clear of this one because I'm not really a fan of Benitez (although I think he gets a ridiculously rough ride by some Chelsea fans).

 

Maybe one to try and get hold of though if it goes into analytical detail. I read Brian Reade's book (title escapes me) of the ownership confusion of that period and its fascinating (if for all the wrong reasons).

[Brian.]

I don't know how much you would like it if you're not really a fan of Benitez. The tactical bits are interesting but not as in depth as I would have liked, certainly not to the level you would get in a Jonathan Wilson book.

[Brian.]

Bridge of Spies by Giles Whittell




Synopsis

Who were the three men the American and Soviet superpowers exchanged at Berlin's Glienicke Bridge and Checkpoint Charlie in the first and most legendary prisoner exchange between East and West? "Bridge of Spies" vividly traces their paths to that exchange on February 10, 1962, when their fate helped to define the conflicts and lethal undercurrents of the most dangerous years of the Cold War.
"Bridge of Spies" is the true story of three extraordinary characters - William Fisher, alias Rudolf Abel, a British born KGB agent arrested by the FBI in New York City and jailed as a Soviet superspy for trying to steal America's most precious nuclear secrets; Gary Powers, the American U-2 pilot who was captured when his plane was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission over the closed cities of central Russia; and Frederic Pryor, a young American graduate student in Berlin mistakenly identified as a spy, arrested and held without charge by the Stasi, East Germany's secret police.

(Taken from Goodreads)

My Thoughts

To carry on with alternating between fiction and non-fiction I had to choose my next read from an over stocked non-fiction TBR. As a result I don't recall when or where I got this book, its a hardback and I rarely buy hardback so I have no idea. Berlin is one of my favourite cities and even though I really cold war history I have never been to the bridge so I was looking forward to reading about what occurred there.

 

The book starts and ends with the sparse details of a handover of prisoners at the Glienicke Bridge as seen by a reporter. The press had an idea that a prisoner transfers were a possibility but they had all expected any transfers to take place at Checkpoint Charlie.  The rest of the book is a collection of cold war political history along with details of the main players in the story. William Fisher, Gary Powers and Frederic Pryor are each covered separately in the book, only coming together as the book reaches its climax.

 

The first person dealt with is William Fisher A.K.A Rudolf Abel and  I found his story to be a little bit bland to be honest. This is no fault of the author, it is simply that Fisher was not a very effective spy. It is debated as to how much information, if any, he provided to the KGB during his time as a spy. I guess not all spies can be as exciting or adventurous as James Bond.

 

The story of Gary Power is far more interesting and covers the involvement of the U2 spy plane in the cold war. It also covers the conspiracy theory that it was always planned for him to fail his mission be people wanting to profit from the continuing spending on military weapons. The scope of the missions is covered in a bit of depth and there is a good sense of tension throughout this phase of the book.

 

Frederic Pryor's story felt a little bolted on, again in part because there isn't a huge amount of adventure to his story. You can't help but feel sorry for him though as he genuinely wasn't a spy, just someone who got caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time. He wanted to return to normal life after his release and I wonder if an unwillingness to do interviews perhaps made his tale shorter than it could have been.

 

This is a fairly interesting book which is well written and has a few photographs halfway through. It has made me want to read Mitrokhin Archive which has also been on my TBR for a while now.

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

Pulp by Charles Bukowski



Synopsis

Charles Bukowski's brilliant, fantastical pastiche of a detective story. Packed with wit, invention and Bukowski's trademark lowlife adventures, it is the final novel of one of the most enjoyable and influential cult writers of the
last century.

Nicky Belane, private detective and career alcoholic, is a troubled man. He is plagued not just by broads, booze, lack of cash and a raging ego, but also by the surreal jobs he's been hired to do. Not only has been hired to track down French classical author Celine - who's meant to be dead - but he's also supposed to find the elusive Red Sparrow - which may or may not be real.(Taken from Goodreads)

 

My Thoughts

Following my recent trend the next book up had to be fiction and it was a toss up between a few books. Pulp by Charles Bukowski won and so I threw it into my work bag ready to read my first Bukowski book. As is fairly usual for me, I had no prior knowledge of the plot and bought this purely as an introduction to his work.

 

I guess this book probably falls into the novella category as it is only about 180 pages. I'll start with the things that I enjoyed. I really liked the fact that the story is a very stereotyped private detective story. It really conjures up images of smokey offices, long trench coats, rain soaked streets and beautiful mysterious women. The characters have very fitting names for the kind of story such as Nicky Belane. One thing that really jumped out at me was chapter 10 which consists of the line

 

 

Skip the rest of the day and night here, no action, it's not worth talking about.

 

I don't know why this stuck in my head but it did. Real life is just like this at times, nothing much happens and it really isn't worth talking about. There are some really crazy things that happen. For example space aliens who can change how they appear to humans feature in the story really unexpectedly.

 

Despite this the book failed to really grab me. I would love to be able to explain why but I guess its just one of those books that don't work for me. In places I found my attention wandering off what I was reading and I had to really make an effort to concentrate. In the end I thought the book was OK and I shall read some more Bukowski in the future as this hasn't put me off.
 

2/5 (It was ok).

[Brian.]

Man 2.0 Engineering the Alpha by John Romaniello & Adam Bornstein



Synopsis

In his new book, celebrity trainer and Men's Health expert John 'Roman' Romaniello teams up with expert Adam Bornstein, former editor for both Men's Health and LIVESTRONG. Together, they reveal the secrets they've discovered that will give any man—no matter how old you are—a chiseled body that will turn heads everywhere you go.

You know the kind of body I'm talking about. The kind of body that women seem to drool and stare at when they're at the beach with their girlfriends...

As a former 'fat guy,' Roman struggled for years to find a workout and diet that would give him the body he always wanted. By using the very secrets you'll find in this book—techniques he's spent 10 years perfecting—he overcame his 'fat genes' and boasts a lean and ripped body—the kind that could be (and has been) seen on the cover of magazines.

And the best part is—you don't have to kill yourself to get this body. Man 2.0: Engineering the Alpha will show you exactly how to get the body you've always wanted without starving yourself and without spending 2 hours in the gym every day.

And for all of the guys out there wondering... YES! Man 2.0: Engineering the Alpha will even work for guys in their 30s, 40s, and 50s... Getting lean, ripped, and strong is not just for young guys!

In Man 2.0: Engineering the Alpha, Romaniello and Adam Bornstein present proven, powerful ways for men to improve physical, emotional, sexual, and psychological health. From research in Olympic labs to real-life results with their clients, they are reinventing masculinity and showing every man how to become exactly who he wants to be...

 

My Thoughts

This is not the kind of book I would usually go for when I am looking for exercise advice. It comes across very 'Bro-Science' like and I avoid this kind of thing like the plague (If you are not familiar with the phrase look up the Bro-Science channel on youtube, its hilarious). However, Romaniello is very engaging in interviews and I was really interested in the hormone manipulation aspect of his approach.

 

I have read parts of 4 Hour Body by Tim Ferriss in the past and I expected this to be very similar but it is fairly different. This is advertised as a 'lifestyle book' rather than a fitness book but I disagree. This is definitely a fitness book with a few lifestyle comments thrown in along the way.

 

The first sections are based around explaining the approach along the lines of a zero-to-hero framework along with brief explanations behind some of the concepts adopted. There are scientific research projects mentioned along the way but the publishers removed the reference section which is a huge shame. This makes finding the original study to double check things a bit more tricky than it needs to be.

 

The sections talking about intermittent fasting (IF) are very interesting though. The authors have borrowed (and credit) an IF approach from a previous study but the name of the author has slipped my mind. The basic concept is that you fast for 16 hours of the day including when you are asleep and then eat what you need in the remaining 8 hours. This is a concept which is getting growing attention in the training world and the results seem to speak for themselves. I am not sure that this approach is for me however.

 

The final sections are an eating guide and a training guide. Straight out I will say that you will need access to a very well stocked gym to make use of the training guide. It includes dumbell, barbell, kettlebells and cable machine work. Personally I prefer a simpler free weights way of doing things. The eating plan looks like it would take a significant amount of effort to implement which is a shame.

 

I am fairly certain that anyone who follows this nutrition and training guide will get great results. It will take a large amount of dedication and a chunk of time to do it. Although it has been aimed at people who want significant body composition changes it will be very bewildering for newcomers to training. Another slight issue I have with it is that it appear to be another book based on the self promotional talents of an individual who is involved in the blogosphere love in which is gaining more momentum as time goes on. Some of these individuals come across as modern day snake oil traders. Romaniello seems to be very genuine in his claims and approach so it's a shame that he has fallen in with this crowd.

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

I'd been hoping to finish my current read, Dogs of Riga by Henning Mankell by yesterday but my reading time has been so limited recently. I have really enjoyed it so far and I can't wait to get into it more.

[frankie]

You've been a regular book reading and book reviewing machine! Lots of non-fiction books, and some pretty interesting stuff, too. I've been reading a lot of 'easy' books lately and coming to your log to see what you've been up to, I feel like you've been to the other extreme

 

Monster by Allan Hall

 

Great review! I read the Natascha Kampusch book myself, and somehow with these notorious cases where a man has been kidnapped and kept some woman (and possible offspring) as a prisoner, I'm more inclined to read the story of the survivor. Fritzl seems too nasty a man to read about him, for some reason, which of course doesn't make sense when one looks into the list of all kinds of heinous true crime books I've read in the past...

 

It's kind of annoying when books like these resort to 'clever after the fact'-ism, but then again, it's too easy not to, I guess

 

Edit: I took a look at the first page in your reading log but couldn't see a post including a list of all the books you've read so far this year. I wonder if you keep any kind of log? Not that everyone does, but I'm just curious, I'm a bit of a statistics freak and like reading about how many books other people have been reading

 

Edited May 30, 2013 by frankie

[Brian.]

You've been a regular book reading and book reviewing machine! Lots of non-fiction books, and some pretty interesting stuff, too. I've been reading a lot of 'easy' books lately and coming to your log to see what you've been up to, I feel like you've been to the other extreme

 

 

Great review! I read the Natascha Kampusch book myself, and somehow with these notorious cases where a man has been kidnapped and kept some woman (and possible offspring) as a prisoner, I'm more inclined to read the story of the survivor. Fritzl seems too nasty a man to read about him, for some reason, which of course doesn't make sense when one looks into the list of all kinds of heinous true crime books I've read in the past...

 

It's kind of annoying when books like these resort to 'clever after the fact'-ism, but then again, it's too easy not to, I guess

 

Edit: I took a look at the first page in your reading log but couldn't see a post including a list of all the books you've read so far this year. I wonder if you keep any kind of log? Not that everyone does, but I'm just curious, I'm a bit of a statistics freak and like reading about how many books other people have been reading

 

 

 

When my reading mojo is struggling I find that reading non-fiction helps to kick start it again, I guess I'm just a little odd in that way. I keep a log on Goodreads but I didn't realise that I don't have a list on the first page of my thread. I'll add one at some point in the near future, so far it stands at 33 so far this year.