Brian's 2012 Book Log

[Brian.]

I set myself a target of 50 books last year and fell a little short. I didn't end up logging every book I read which was a bit of a disappointment. 2011 was a good year of books for me, the stuff I read I mostly enjoyed with the exceptions being few and far between. The classics I read really surprised me as did the fact that I just can't help but read non-fiction on a regular basis.

 

So here are the books I've read so far in 2012.

 

01. The Fear Index by Robert Harris

02. The Savage Altar by Asa Larsson

03. Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow

04. I'm With Fatty by Edward Ugel

05. Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

06. Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

07. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

08. Fly By Wire by William Langewiesche

09. The Dead Women of Juarez by Sam Hawken

10. Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

11. Trafficked by Sophie Hayes

12. Slam by Nick Hornby

13. Going Buddhist by Peter J Conradi

14. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

15. How to Practice by The Dalai Lama

16. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

17. Foundation by Isaac Asimov

18. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

19. Carra by Jaime Carragher

20. The Anatomy of England by Jonathan Wilson

21. Casino Royale by Ian Fleming

22. Snuff by Chuck Palahniuk

23. The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo

24. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

25. Super Casino by Pete Earley

26. Pao by Kerry Young

27. Around The World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne

28. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami

29. Task Force Black by Mark Urban

30. Nemesis by Jo Nesbo

31. Superfreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner

32. Alone in Berlin by Hans Fallada

33. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

34. The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy

35. The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbo

36. The Infiltrators by Philip Etienne

37. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

38. Skunk Works by Ben Rich

39. A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka

40. Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

41. Live and Let Die by Ian Fleming

42. After Dark by Haruki Murakami

43. Underground by Haruki Murakami

44. I Am the Secret Footballer by Anonymous

45. Bloggs 19 by Tony Thompson

46. Ecstasy by Irvine Welsh

47. The Redeemer by Jo Nesbo

48. To Live Outside the Law by Leaf Fielding

49. Black Hearts by Jim Frederick

50. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

51. The Secret Race by Tyler Hamilton

52. Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney

53. The Upgrade by Paul Carr

54. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

55. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

56. South of the Border, West of the Sun by Haruki Murakami

57. Brotherhood of Warriors by Aaron Cohen

58. 1984 by Geroge Orwell

Edited December 22, 2012 by Brian.

[Brian.]

To Be Read

 

Fiction

Age of Reason - Jean Paul Sartre

All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque

Alone In Berlin - Hans Fallada

Archangel - Robert Harris

Cairo Swan Song - Mekkawi Said

Casino Royale - Ian Fleming

Catch 22 - Joseph Heller

Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut

Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

Contact - Carl Sagan

Crime & Punishment - Dostoyevsky

Dracula - Bram Stoker

Enigma - Robert Harris

Foucault's Pendulum - Umberto Eco

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Germinal - Emile Zola

Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

I, Robot - Isaac Asimov

Lord of the Flies - William Golding

Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

Money - Martin Amis

Moth Smoke - Mohsin Hamid

Nineteen Eighty-Four - George Orwell

Pompeii - Robert Harris

Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe

Slam - Nick Hornby

Smiley's People - John Le Carre

The Black Dahlia - James Ellroy

The Collectors - David Baldacci

The Dharma Bums - Jack Kerouac

The Prince - Niccolo Machiavelli

The Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie

The Secret Agent - Joseph Conrad

The Shipping News - E. Annie Proulx

Ulysses - James Joyce

 

 

Non-Fiction

Arnhem: Operation Market Garden - Lloyd Clark

Berlin - Antony Beevor

Berlin Soldier - Helmut Altner

Defying Hitler - Sebastian Haffner

Fermat's Last Theorem - Simon Singh

Selling Hitler - Robert Harris

The Mitrokhin Archive - Christoper Andrew

The Origin of the Species - Charles Darwin

The Terminal Spy - Alan Cowell

Triplex - Nigel West

Edited June 10, 2012 by Brian.

[Brian.]

Wish List

 

 

Fight Club - Chuck Palahniuk

IQ84 - Haruki Murakami

Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami

Snuff - Chuck Palahniuk

Choke - Chuck Palahniuk

All Hell Let Loose - Max Hastings

Empire State - Adam Christopher

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress - Dai Sijie

People Who Eat Darkness - Richard Lloyd Parry

Three Comrades - Erich Maria Remarque

Edited June 10, 2012 by Brian.

[Brian.]

Books Acquired

 

The Fear Index - Robert Harris (Xmas Gift)

Through My Eyes - Tim Tebow (Xmas Gift)

The Human Stain - Philip Roth (Xmas Gift)

Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami (Xmas Gift)

2666 - Roberto Bolano (Xmas Gift)

The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen (Xmas Gift)

The Dead Women of Juarez - Sam Hawken (Xmas purchase)

The Savage Altar - Asa Larsson (Xmas purchase)

Generation Kill - Evan Wright (Xmas purchase)

Death in Perugia - John Follain (Xmas purchase)

The Redbreast - Jo Nesbo

Edited March 8, 2012 by Brian.

[Brian.]

Ok, so this thread is official launched

 

I've got some ideas as to what I want to read next year. I want to be able to strike some more books off the '1001' list, preferably some of the more modern titles. I also want to expand the range of countries of authors I read, The Kite Runner was a real highlight of 2011 for me so its given me a push to explore this. I also want to get 1 tome read in 2012, either Crime & Punishment or Ulysses which I plan to read along side other things I'm read to prevent me getting bogged down too much.

 

I've got a while pile of WWII and Cold War books that I bought last year that I'm still to read. I may as well just accept that there is no way I'm going to stop reading non-fiction. I'll try to at least alternate with fiction as I go along or read 1 fiction & 1 non-fiction title at a time.

[Brian.]

Flicking through the books I got as as pressie yesterday I realised the 2666 is absolutely huge at almost 900 pages long. I've also got a few Waterstones & Amazon goodie vouchers to spend

 

Not too sure what to start the year with but I think I'll probably go with The Fear Index as I always enjoy Harris' books. Might start Crime & Punishment at the same time and read it in tandem with whatever I am reading at the time.

[Ben]

For a moment then I was confused as I wondered how it was possibly that you had read a book in 2012 already when it hadn't started yet. Then I realised..

In any case, best of look with your 2012 reading, you do have some great reads ahead of you judging by that to-be-read pile. I'm also planning on reading Crime and Punishment in the early part of the year so I'll looking forward to hearing how you get on, and to reading your thoughts. That also goes for all the other books you'll be reading this year; have a good one, Brian.

Edited December 26, 2011 by Ben

[Brian.]

For a moment then I was confused as I wondered how it was possibly that you had read a book in 2012 already when it hadn't started yet. Then I realised..

In any case, best of look with your 2012 reading, you do have some great reads ahead of you judging by that to-be-read pile. I'm also planning on reading Crime and Punishment in the early part of the year so I'll looking forward to hearing how you get on, and to reading your thoughts. That also goes for all the other books you'll be reading this year; have a good one, Brian.

 

I am a time traveller

 

I did it to keep the format simple and so that I could C&P the format with every new book I read but with the new board software its not really needed anymore.

[Brian.]

I managed to finish The Fear Index earlier so I will be doing a review shortly. However, in the mean time, I really like pics of peoples bookshelves so I thought I'd take a pic now that I have finished sorting them all out again. The middle bookcase is my fiction one and as you can see, my fiction collection is meagre in comparison to my non-fiction one.

 

Edited January 1, 2012 by Brian.

[julie]

Hi Brian

I also have Crime & Punishment. not sure when I'll get to it, but I'll keep an eye out for you to read it to see how you like it .

Nothing wrong with liking to read nonfiction. I prefer it over fiction a lot of the time too ,but will read either one .

Your bookshelves are nice -very neat and orderly .

Happy Reading in 2012 .

Edited January 1, 2012 by julie

[willoyd]

I may as well just accept that there is no way I'm going to stop reading non-fiction. I'll try to at least alternate with fiction as I go along or read 1 fiction & 1 non-fiction title at a time.

Is there any reason why you should? I love reading non-fiction, and whilst I don't currently read as much as fiction (it's about two-thirds fiction to one-third nonfiction), some of the best reads I've had have been nonfiction. I'm actually aiming to read a bit more rather than less!

By the way, if you're interested in WW2, one of my best reads last year was Max Hastings's All Hell Let Loose. I don't read a huge amount on the subject, but this was a real pleasure.

Edited January 1, 2012 by willoyd

[chaliepud]

I read very little non-fiction Brian, but wish I read more. Fiction is great, and I love the escapism it affords but with non-fiction you are learning at the same time. I am endeavouring to read more this year, and have added a few books to my wishlist. All Hell Let Loose is one of them..

[Brian.]

The Fear Index by Robert Harris

 

 

 

Synopsis

His name is carefully guarded from the general public but within the secretive inner circles of the ultra-rich Dr Alex Hoffmann is a legend - a visionary scientist whose computer software turns everything it touches into gold.

 

Together with his partner, an investment banker, Hoffmann has developed a revolutionary form of artificial intelligence that tracks human emotions, enabling it to predict movements in the financial markets with uncanny accuracy. His hedge fund, based in Geneva, makes billions.

 

But then in the early hours of the morning, while he lies asleep with his wife, a sinister intruder breaches the elaborate security of their lakeside house. So begins a waking nightmare of paranoia and violence as Hoffmann attempts, with increasing desperation, to discover who is trying to destroy him.

 

His quest forces him to confront the deepest questions of what it is to be human. By the time night falls over Geneva, the financial markets will be in turmoil and Hoffmann's world - and ours - transformed forever. (Taken from Amazon)

 

My Thoughts

I was planning to wait for this to come out on paperback before buying it as the price of hardbacks does make me wince. It was hard to resist as I really like Harris as an author. Fortunately I was given it as a Christmas present by my parents and it was most welcome.

 

The basic plot was a little different than I assumed it would be. Although it's based on the financial markets the financial institution is an office in Geneva and not the 'stock market' trade exchanges as I had assumed. This is entirely down to me, I hadn't read anything about the book as I didn't want to spoil my enjoyment of it. Despite my incorrect thinking the plot is set up pretty quickly and the story goes along at a good pace.

 

Alex Hoffmann is a social awkward and eccentric computer genius (aren't they all) who has set up a hedge fund with flashy trader Hugo Quarry. The big difference in this fund is that it uses a computer algorithm with learns as it goes along based on the human reaction to fear. Inevitably things start going awry and Hoffmann's world gets turned upside down.

 

The book is based in a very short time period, if memory serves me correctly its a day, two at most. As he has done in may other books Harris uses a historical event (the stock market crash) as a major plot point in the book. Even though I knew that it was coming it does not have a detrimental affect on the story.

 

The main plot twist I saw coming a mile off, in fact I was wondering when it was going to come. Without spoiling the story all I will say is that its been done before and was a let down if I am perfectly honest. There are a few nice twists and turns as the story develops but not enough to leave a lasting impression with me.

 

In the end I would say that it is a decent book, easy to read and an enjoyable read. However, I have to say that it is not a patch on the Cicero books and probably not as good as Fatherland either. Its good but not great.

 

I am going to use the goodreads ratings this year and so The Fear Index gets ...

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

In response to my comments on non-fiction, its because I don't get a huge amount of reading done in a year and sometimes feel I am neglecting my fiction pile. Its just a silly thing I know but I think it comes from the fact that this is only the 3rd year I've been reading fiction and it feels like I have to catch up

 

Thanks for the recommendation of All Hell Let Loose. I might have to see if Waterstones have it in stock tomorrow, I have some gift cards to use.

[willoyd]

Thanks for the recommendation of All Hell Let Loose. I might have to see if Waterstones have it in stock tomorrow, I have some gift cards to use.

My local branch were selling it half-price.

[Brian.]

Defeated in the quest for All Hell Let Loose, my local store had other Max Hastings titles but not this one. I will have to pick up a copy from Amazon. Spent my Waterstones gift cards this morning and picked up the following, all of them are impulse buys. Managed to only spend a few more quid than I had on the cards.

 

The Dead Women of Juarez - Sam Hawken (Fiction)

The Savage Altar - Asa Larsson (Fiction)

Generation Kill - Evan Wright (Non-Fiction)

Death in Perugia - John Follain (Non-Fiction)

[lauraloves]

I've just started to get into non fiction, and I've just realised how much I'm missing out on. So I don't see anything wrong with having lots of non fiction books.

[willoyd]

Death in Perugia - John Follain (Non-Fiction)

I've just clicked! I'm currently reading the first Aurelio Zen story (Michael Dibdin), and it's set in Perugia. I hadn't worked out that it was the same place as this real-life mystery. The university is one of the locations - I gather Dibdin worked there for some time. Adds a certain frisson to the story.

Edited January 2, 2012 by willoyd

[Brian.]

The Savage Altar by Asa Larsson

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

A church in the glittering frozen wastes of Northern Sweden. Inside, a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces, hands severed, eyes gouged out.

 

The victim's sister, Sanna, is first to discover the body and immediately finds herself the police's only suspect. Terrified and confused, she calls on a friend: hot-shot city lawyer Rebecka Martinsson.

 

Rebecka hardly wants to return to Kiruna - the small town she fled in disgrace years ago. But Sanna is frightened and she needs a loyal friend to clear her name. Someone not scared to dig deep and find the true killer.

 

Yet Rebecka is not especially welcomed into the closed-lipped community of Kiruna. She might know the town, the people and how suspicious they can be of strangers. But she has still to find out how dark the town's secrets have become in her absence. (Taken from Amazon)

 

 

My Thoughts

I picked this book up the other day from Waterstones completely on impulse. There is no doubt in my mind that publishers are more prepared than ever to push Scandinavian crime fiction as I haven't seen this book anywhere previously. The synopsis piqued my interest and I think it was on a half price deal so I decided to give it a shot.

 

On the whole I would say that it is pretty standard crime fiction with a hero who is not directly involved in the law getting caught up in a murder trial due to a childhood friend connection. As a character Martinsson didn't instantly appeal to me in any great way. In fact, in the early stages of the book I was more drawn to a dog called Vikhu (I think) and 2 young children in the story. Her friend, the character Sanna was someone who I took an instant dislike to, this felt a bit odd to me but as it turns out it was probably intended that way by Larsson.

 

There are a few things that happen in the story which I instantly recognised as being of great significance. For example, Martinsson loses her keys at one point in the snow and has to get some replacements. I didn't really detect any crazy twists, I comes apparent quite quickly in the concluding part of the book who the killer is but this doesn't detract from the story too much.

 

I have to say that I found the first half of the book a little slow going although not to the extent that it made me regret reading it at any point. During the second half the book really gets into its swing and I read through it in no time at all. It was an enjoyable read if not a great one and I was glad to read that the Martinsson series has more books in it as I will be reading them at some point.

 

3/5 (I liked it).

[Brian.]

So far I am about 150 pages into 'Crime & Punishment' and I am enjoying it far more than I initially thought I would do. I've read all of the first part where the murder is commited and was really taken about how well the tension is ratcheted up over a long period of time. I'm also finding it less wordy than I assumed it would be. I still have to read it in silence because I am finding that I really have to concentrate on it which can prove difficult at work.

[Brian.]

I picked up a couple of books from Amazon only to realise I screwed up the checkout process and hasnt used my voucher, ohh well more books coming then I got

 

The Redbreast - Jo Nesbo

Fight Club - Chuck Palahniuk

Fly By Wire - William Langweische (non-fiction)

 

I am after on peoples opinions on Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I remember it getting a lot of praise on a few podcast I listen to but I'm not sure if it is my thing or not.

[bobblybear]

Fight Club is a great book. Have you read it before, or seen the movie? I haven't really liked anything Chuck Palahniuk has written apart from that.

[Brian.]

I'm a huge fan of the movie but I've seen that his writing can be very polarizing so decided to go with something a little familiar as an intro to Palahniuk.

[Brian.]

Busy week and weekend for me so I haven't got much reading done. Finished 1 book though so here is a short review. The timing is rather apt as well I think.

 

 

Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

Over the course of the last five years, Tim Tebow established himself as one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of college football and a top prospect in the NFL. During that time he amassed an unparalleled resume winning two BCS national championships, becoming the first sophomore in NCAA history to win the Heisman trophy, and in the face of massive public scrutiny, being drafted in the first round of the NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. Now, in Through My Eyes, Tebow brings readers everywhere an inspirational memoir about life as he chose to live it, revealing how his faith and family values, combined with his relentless will to succeed, have molded him into the person that he is today. As the son of Christian missionaries, Tebow has a unique story to tell from the circumstances of his birth, to his home-schooled roots, to his record-setting collegiate football career with the Florida Gators and everything else that took place in between. At every step, Tebow's life has defied convention and expectation. While aspects of his life have been well-documented, the stories have always been filtered through the opinions and words of others. Through My Eyes is his passionate, firsthand, never-before-told account of how it all really happened. (Taken from Amazon)

 

 

My Thoughts

I was given this as a Christmas present this year after I expressed a great interest in the phenomenon that Tim Tebow has become. I am quite a big NFL fan and living in England means that the college came pretty much passes me by. We have little coverage of it so although I knew Tebow had a big following from his college days I wasn't aware of the ins and outs of it all.

 

I guess the reason for writing this book is two-fold. Firstly Tebow gets to tell his own story and set straight a few things that has been mis-told in the press. Secondly it gives him a platform to tell the world about his religious upbringing and beliefs. One thing that comes out strongly in this book is his wanting to bring Jesus into peoples lives. This second point was also a big part of my interest as British athletes and sportsmen don't talk about religion at all.

 

So, onto the book. The first section deals with his upbringing and school life up to and including high school. Obviously god plays a huge part in his outlook on life and although he says he doesn't wish to preach to others the book does get a little preachy in places. If I'm honest though it doesn't spoil the book, after all, you are reading about Tebow, god is going to feature a lot. This section also deals with the fact that he was home schooled and the issues that could and did arise from that. At no point does he seem to think that he missed out on anything. In fact he attributes it in helping because he could schedule it around his sports activities.

 

The second part of the book is all about his time at college and the dilemma he had in deciding which college to choose. I was very surprised to read that he still hadn't made his mind up 15 minutes before he was due to announce it to the nation. Once choosing the college to attend most of the rest of this part details the games, results and certain plays that stuck in his mind. The final part deals with the draft and first season with the Denver Broncos.

 

In the end I had to give the book a rating of 'OK'. There are some compelling parts to it, his drive and and passion to be the best he can be is really inspirational. I have little doubt that it is this drive which has lead to his success. He is also very open about his religion and all aspects of it including his belief in sex after marriage. However I feel it falls down a little when it reaches the college section of the book. Here is turns into merely a collection of game recollections. For me, this is no huge problem as I like American Football, however it does get pretty repetitive. After a while it turns into a bit of a mush. I would liked to have read a bit more about his life outside football, maybe he didn't have much of one so there is little to talk about in that respect?

 

This is a decent read if you have an interest in the individual but will be of little interest to anyone who isn't already a fan in my opinion.

 

2/5 (It was ok).

[Brian.]

To go along with Crime & Punishment which I'm still reading bit by bit I've decided to read Fight Club, inspired partly by the topic in another sub-forum.

 

Crime & Punishment is coming along quite nicely although I can't help but feel that Dostoyevsky likes using 20 words when 2 would suffice. The story itself is pretty interesting but seems to be quite slow moving at times, I am still enjoying it though.