The History Book Club discussion

JANUARY

1. by John Grisham
Finish Date: January 1, 2011
Rating: B+

This is a good and an exciting read but it dragged in places. The subject matter seems in parts to reflect recent news items and a political statement against capital punishment. I think Grisham makes his points well and I enjoyed the read; but do not consider this one of his best though his novels are always page turners.

Synopsis:

Washington Post review of book:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/...

It is funny how you say the book is not "one of his best" though still a page turner. I've read a few books like that, where I just had to keep reading and the excitement was high, but the quality of the book (on many levels) was low.

For your book, goes to show that even a good author can have a blah book once in a while.

When I think of Grisham at his best...I think of the following books;

John Grisham

Yes, the excitement was high and it was a page turner; but some of the plot details sounded old and in some areas...there was a bit of pontificating. And there were some sections which just dragged a bit. But I would still recommend it. I read it in a day.

He's a favorite of mine as well. I can't remember the title of the one that comes to mind, but the audio performance was riveting. He was battling the pharmaceutical industry. I believe it was John Grisham

Thank you Laura for the recommendation..I do not think I read that one.

Sure! I don't think its GR rating is all that great, but sometimes when you listen to a book you come away with a different impression. I really enjoyed it.

Bentley wrote: "When I think of Grisham at his best...I think of the following books;

[aut..."

Hi Bentley

I agree - I would note that Time to Kill, his first was written while he was still working as a lawyer I am pretty sure so it was probably worked over more and there was no publisher pressure.

I beleive The Firm was second and Pelican Brief also at the beginning.

I can only imagine what kind of publisher pressure on him exists now that didn't in those days.

I found some of his non-lawyer books very good -highest on that list was Playing for Pizza



[bookcover:Playing For Pizza|1205297]

A really good read

Vince

Grisham is good - thanks for bringing his latest to my attention.

Vince, I agree; publisher pressure can be intense especially if there is a sizable advance involved. Thany you for your recommendation about the non lawyer book which for some reason is not showing the cover:

John Grisham

Elizabeth (Alaska) you are welcome.

2. by Jan Crawford Greenburg (no author's photo available)
Finish Date: January 27, 2011
Rating: A-

Good personable up close account of the workings and the personalities of the court itself. Some revelations in the book as well about certain Chief Justices and certain Justices including Clarence Thomas. Much more flattering to Thomas than expected.

February

3. by Patrick O'Brian
Finish Date: February 14, 2011
Rating: B-

A B- is a great rating from me; I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the other O'Brian books. I think what I enjoyed the most was seeing the different facets of the Maturin/Aubrey relationship and the various tensions. There were a fair amount of naval scenes and I think one has to give the book a chance to get beyond the opening chapters which dwell maybe a little too much for some on the mores of the period. I enjoyed that detour but some may not have liked the land sojourns in the novel; I happened to.

4. by Colleen McCullough
Finish Date: February 23, 2011
Rating: B

The magnificent glory of Republican Rome is threatened when a struggle for power erupts among the men who shaped its hard-won peace.

At its center are two extraordinary leaders: Gaius Marius, the general who saved Rome from Barbarian invasions, desperately trying to extend his reign for a prophesied and unprecedented seventh term as Consul; and Lucius Cornelius Sulla, once Marius' most trusted right-hand man, now a dangerous rival hungry for his own taste of political success.

As the two men battle for position, they are surrounded by a new generation of statesman, soldier and lovers, from Senate intriguers and their ambitious wives to the child of destiny, Gaius Julius Caesar.

An absorbing tale of treachery, barbarism and never-ending war.

The Grass Crown is a remarkable entry in Colleen McCullough's brilliant and unprecedented series on the rise and fall of the world's greatest civilization.

Source: Publisher's Summary

In progress:

5. by Abraham Verghese
Finish Date: In progress
Rating: To Be Determined

Publisher's Summary:

A sweeping, emotionally riveting first novel - an enthralling family saga of Africa and America, doctors and patients, exile and home.

Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon at a mission hospital in Addis Ababa.

Orphaned by their mother's death in childbirth and their father's disappearance, bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution.

Yet it will be love, not politics - their passion for the same woman - that will tear them apart and force Marion, fresh out of medical school, to flee his homeland.

He makes his way to America, finding refuge in his work as an intern at an underfunded overcrowded New York City hospital.

When the past catches up to him - nearly destroying him - Marion must entrust his life to the two men he thought he trusted least in the world: the surgeon father who abandoned him and the brother who betrayed him.

An unforgettable journey into one man's remarkable life, and an epic story about the power, intimacy, and curious beauty of the work of healing others.

Source: Publisher's Summary

APRIL

6. by Nathaniel Fick

Finish Date: April 2011
Rating: B-

Publisher's Summary:

The global war on terrorism has spawned some excellent combat narratives—mostly by journalists. Warriors, like Marine Corps officer Fick, bring a different and essential perspective to the story. A classics major at Dartmouth, Fick joined the Marines in 1998 because he "wanted to go on a great adventure... to do something so hard that no one could ever talk shit to me." Thus begins his odyssey through the grueling regimen of Marine training and wartime deployments—an odyssey that he recounts in vivid detail in this candid and fast-paced memoir. Fick was first deployed to Afghanistan, where he saw little combat, but his Operation [Iraqi] Freedom unit, the elite 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, helped spearhead the invasion of Iraq and "battled through every town on Highway 7" from Nasiriyah to al Kut. (Rolling Stone writer Evan Wright's provocative Generation Kill is based on his travels with Fick's unit.) Like the best combat memoirs, Fick's focuses on the men doing the fighting and avoids hyperbole and sensationalism. He does not shrink from the truth—however personal or unpleasant. "I was aware enough," he admits after a firefight, "to be concerned that I was starting to enjoy it."

My View:

My impression of the book for this genre was that it was very good. I thought that Fick's writing style was better than most military writings that I have slogged through. I believed his account and the view from his perspective. And I think he was realistic about himself and the circumstances he faced. Sometimes however, I thought he was a bit impressed with himself and seemed sanctimonious to some of his superiors. And in some ways he condoned that kind of insubordinate behavior as he and others saw fit. I cut him some slack while reading this account. I think this is good book; but these are some of the reasons that I did not rate it higher. However, for those folks who really want a realistic account of how it "really" was for our troops in Iraq, this is mighty close. I can't say that it is a book to be enjoyed; but it is thought provoking.

Youtube: One Bullet Away Interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZHHfr...

One Bullet Away: A Marine's View from Afghanistan and Iraq
NIMITZ LECTURESHIP SERIES AT UC BERKELEY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPb9dH...

FICK NOW

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MAY

7. by Walter R. Borneman

Finish Date: May 2011
Rating: C+

Publisher's Summary:

In Polk, Walter R. Borneman gives us the first complete and authoritative biography of a president often overshadowed in image but seldom outdone in accomplishment. James K. Polk occupied the White House for only four years, from 1845 to 1849, but he plotted and attained a formidable agenda: He fought for and won tariff reductions, reestablished an independent Treasury, and, most notably, brought Texas into the Union, bluffed Great Britain out of the lion’s share of Oregon, and wrested California and much of the Southwest from Mexico. On reflection, these successes seem even more impressive, given the contentious political environment of the time.

In this unprecedented, long-overdue warts-and-all look at Polk’s life and career, we have a portrait of an expansionist president and decisive statesman who redefined the country he led, and we are reminded anew of the true meaning of presidential accomplishment and resolve.

My Notes:

Though I learned a tremendous amount about Polk and this was a very worthwhile book; I would not say that for me it was a page turner. Well worth the effort that I made and I think it was a solid book.

8. by Hilary Mantel

Finish Date: May 26, 2011
Rating: B+/A-

Publisher's Summary:

"Lock Cromwell in a deep dungeon in the morning," says Thomas More, "and when you come back that night he'll be sitting on a plush cushion eating larks' tongues, and all the gaolers will owe him money."

England, the 1520s. Henry VIII is on the throne, but has no heir. Cardinal Wolsey is his chief advisor, charged with securing the divorce the Pope refuses to grant. Into this atmosphere of distrust and need comes Thomas Cromwell, first as Wolsey's clerk, and later his successor. Cromwell is a wholly original man: the son of a brutal blacksmith, a political genius, a briber, a charmer, a bully, a man with a delicate and deadly expertise in manipulating people and events.

Ruthless in pursuit of his own interests, he is as ambitious in his wider politics as he is for himself. His reforming agenda is carried out in the grip of a self-interested parliament and a king who fluctuates between romantic passions and murderous rages.

From one of our finest living writers, Wolf Hall is that very rare thing: a truly great English novel, one that explores the intersection of individual psychology and wider politics. With a vast array of characters, and richly overflowing with incident, it peels back history to show us Tudor England as a half-made society, moulding itself with great passion and suffering and courage

My Notes:

This was certainly Mantel's opus and a great feat it was. It was long, very long and it darted around (sometimes in the musings of Thomas Cromwell while even in delirium). It went back and forth in time which made it a bit difficult if you were doing simply an audio listen. So many times I wanted to be able to go back and review a portion of the book which came earlier to tie up the loose ends. For some reason, and I cannot fathom why still, there seemed to be a disconnect between Mantel's view of Thomas More and that of the Catholic Church's view (they are diametrically opposed); Mantel almost had more sympathy for the Protestant view versus the Catholic one. That could be why Thomas Cromwell who we suspect viewed Protestants more favorably in spite of his old mentor Wolsey fared better in Mantel's version of history during the Renaissance period. Still a masterful job of research even though the opinions of the author shine through. And we do have to remember that in England the Church of England still reigns supreme although the Roman Catholic church is allowed to operate, etc. But not as it once did prior to Henry VIII's break with the Pope and Catholicism owing to dear Anne Boleyn.

9. by Steve Hamilton

The Lock Artist

Finish Date: May 28th, 2011
Rating: B+

Awards: Edgar Award for Best Novel (2011), ALA Alex Award (2011)

Publisher's Summary:

Amazon Best Books of the Month, January 2010: Mike Smith is a "boxman." He can open any safe, padlock, or locked door without a combination or a key--a talent that lands him in prison at the age of eighteen. He spends his time writing down the story of his life because that's the only way he can share it. He hasn't spoken in ten years. Not a single word since the tragic day he became known as the "Miracle Boy." Mike is one of those unreliable narrators you can't help rooting for--a traumatized soul fighting his way back from the brink--and the mystery of his silence will have you blazing through pages. A smart, inventive thriller, The Lock Artist is packed with a standout cast of characters, plus enough safe-cracking trade secrets to tempt you to dig up that old combination lock and test your newfound knowledge. --Daphne Durham

My Notes:

A little confusing at times; back and forth in time (and in and out of the mind's eye); a young person caught up in a traumatic youth who is boxed in by his mind, his circumstances and his choices. Boxman has more than one connotation. A bit bizarre in places and yet a page turner.

Edgar Award; Best Novel award (video of Steve Hamilton accepting his award - good speech)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7GJG5...

10. Audible:

Tim Russert Interviews Three Supreme Court Justices

Not in goodreads

Finish Date: May 29, 2011
Rating: A-

Review:

A really entertaining C-Span interview which is on Audible as a download: Russert with O'Connor, Breyer and Scalia. Everyone's personality shines through including the late Russert's. Thoroughly enjoyable and illuminating.

11. Legacy of Ashes

by Tim Weiner

Finish Date: April 2011
Rating: B

Review: A book you wished did not have to written because it somehow tarnishes your belief system.

June

12. Twelve Sharp

Janet Evanovich

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B+

Review:

Mindless drivel - same old - same old - but still a Stephanie Plum page turner set in New Jersey. Ranger look alike tries to take the master down and Plum alongwith him.

13. Break Through the Wall

by Michael Driscoll

Finish Date: April 2011
Rating: A-

Review: For what it is worth, good motivational workout tracker.

14. Alexander Hamilton

Finish Date: Awhile ago
Rating: For what it is; A

Review: Worthwhile reading; gives a basic understanding of our constitution and its beginnings and meaning.

15. Liberty's Blueprint

by Michael Meyerson

Finish Date: Awhile ago
Rating: B+

Review: Good companion to a study of the Federalist Papers.

16. Lean Mean Thirteen

by Janet Evanovich
Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B

Review: Ranger asks Stephanie to plant a bug on her ex husband; he disappears and she is implicated in his disappearance.

17. What is the What

by Dave Eggers

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B (for writing style) and A+ (for authentic and powerfully emotional true life story)

My Review:

There is no doubt that Valentino's story is a real life emotional roller coaster for the reader and/or listener. It is hard to imagine any American boy being able to sustain what this group of Lost Boys from Sudan had to endure.

The part about Tabitha's ending actually had me letting out a gasp of grief. And the part about the Royal Nieces had me in stitches. There was plenty to cry about and plenty to laugh about with Valentino in this book.

I am delighted that Valentino has been able to execute his dreams and got to build a school in Sudan and in his home town.

And really and truly he has a lot to be proud of - because it really is the result of his own efforts. I watched him speak at the Clinton Global Initiatives and it brought tears to many folks's eyes because of how far he has come. George Clooney's Winds of War Dateline Series also featured in one of the segments Valentino giving Clooney a tour of his school.

I would highly recommend reading or listening to this book; you probably will never be the same after hearing this story in all of its detail. Very worthwhile read or listen and it is highly recommended.

18. Pure Drivel

by Steve Martin

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B

Review: Very funny and good comic relief - enjoyed immensely Dear Amanda.

19. Profiles in Leadership

by Walter Isaacson

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating C+

A collection of essays on Americans who showed leadership: strong focus on civil rights. Not that this is a bad thing - because it is not; but this is a very loose compendium.

I so love Isaacson though Bentley - what did you think of the writing?

He is a good writer but this book was extremely dry. Hence the average rating. Also, I thought the organization was haphazard and did not reflect the title in my viewpoint. I got through it but the read did not do anything for me.

Don't forget when mentioning the author to do a citation:

Walter Isaacson

Ah. Will do. Sorry about that. And sorry it was dry. I used to think all history was dry, but now I know better.

I love history; but the storytellers of history and how they tell a story can be dry or not; most often if you get a good storyteller like Doris Kearns Goodwin, Winston Churchill, David McCullough - you find yourself in good hands. It is strange I thought that a veteran such as Isaacson wrote such a dry book. But then I must point out that it is really not Isaacson telling the stories but a bunch of other folks who wrote the essays. Others might like this anthology of sorts but I thought that the title was a misnomer so it was not appealing to me in the final analysis.

Doris Kearns Goodwin

David McCullough

Walter Isaacson

Winston S. Churchill

Thanks for that list, I've not read anything by Winston S. Churchill, but I will definitely have to now! Can you recommend any specific titles?

Laura, I incorrectly had added the wrong photo which I corrected. My hero is the former prime minister not the writer above (lol).

For some reason, goodreads insists that you add the S. or you do not get the right person coming up at all. Bizarre really.

I noticed that as well, and edited my post. The first time I used the middle initial, I did not get the right face, I got no photo actually. Without the initial, I got a different face, a younger one. But the second time, it came through correctly.

Very strange isn't it.

It really is!

Do any titles come to your mind specifically when you mention Churchill as a good storyteller? (It's not working again, I get a no-face when I try to post his photo!)

My Early Life and the multi volume Second World War

both by Winston S. Churchill

Remember you have to put in the middle initial of an S and also the period or it will not come up.

It may have been the period I was missing, thanks for the tip and the recs!

You are welcome Laura and hope this helps.

20. Be Cool

by Elmore Leonard

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B (for its type)

My Review:

Pulp Fiction - the sequel to Get Shorty (the film). Chili Palmer (a la John Travolta) is alive and well.

Goodreads Review:

The film Get Shorty was a success on many fronts. It introduced a new style of hip gangster that revised the stereotype of the Godfather series. It also helped relaunch the career of John Travolta. And it brought Elmore Leonard's impressive body of fiction to larger public attention. In Hollywood, such a triumph usually spawns a sequel--a film that rehashes the great jokes and cool scenes of the first film, but with none of the panache that initially inspired audiences.
In the beginning of Be Cool, the sequel to the novel Get Shorty, readers are reminded that Chili Palmer--like his creator--scored a huge success with a gangster film (his was entitled Get Leo). But the sequel, Get Lost, was a predictable dud. Rather than follow that sordid story, however, Leonard takes Chili into a totally new direction. He places Chili on a murder investigation (in which he is a prime suspect) and then traces Chili's entry into the music business. Meanwhile, Leonard reveals a whole new cast of fresh, funny, and flaky characters to populate Chili's world, characters like Elliot the gigantic, gay, Samoan bodyguard who lives to be on the stage. Throughout, the voice of John Travolta rings in Chili's every speech (word has it that Travolta has already been cast to reprise the role) as Leonard pokes fun at the Hollywood apparatus and the task of a sequel writer.

Be Cool surpasses its original because it is so self-consciously a novel about sequels, about the sometimes cowardice that limits the creativity of the American film industry. It is hard to imagine how Leonard could top the multilayered satire/crime novel/exposé. One only hopes for a sequel. Fans of Be Cool might want to check out music from The Stone Coyotes, the band that served as Leonard's model in the book. --Patrick O'Kelley

About Elmore Leonard:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmore_L...

http://elmoreleonard.com/

Here are some podcasts:

http://elmoreleonard.com/index.php?/p...

21. HMS Surprise

by Patrick O'Brian

Finish Date: June 2011
Rating: B-

Review: These books are great reads. I would have given a higher rating if somehow O'Brian had not added the albatross segment which did not appeal to me.
Goodreads Synopsis:

Third in the series of Aubrey/Maturin adventures, this book is set among the strange sights and smells of the Indian subcontinent, and in the distant waters ploughed by the ships of the East India Company. Aubrey is on the defensive, pitting wits and seamanship against an enemy enjoying overwhelming local superiority. But somewhere in the Indian Ocean lies the prize that could make him rich beyond his wildest dream: the ships sent by Napoleon to attack the China Fleet...

JULY

22. Salvation in Death

by J.D. Robb

Finish Date: July 2011
Rating: C+

Review: Not bad - held my interest but a fair amount of loose ends. Nora Roberts is J.D. Robb.

Goodreads Synopsis:

In the year 2060, sophisticated investigative tools can help catch a killer. But there are some questions even the most advanced technologies cannot answer.

Ridley Pearson has praised J. D. Robb’s suspense as “taut” and “nerve-jangling.” Her latest thriller sets a new standard for suspense, as the priest at a Catholic funeral mass brings the chalice to his lips--and falls over dead.

When Detective Lieutenant Eve Dallas confirms that the consecrated wine contained potassium cyanide, she’s determined to solve the murder of Father Miguel Flores, despite her discomfort with her surroundings. It’s not the bodegas and pawnshops of East Harlem that bother her, though the neighborhood is a long way from the stone mansion she shares with her billionaire husband, Roarke. It’s all that holiness flying around at St. Christobal’s that makes her uneasy.

A search of the victim’s sparsely furnished room reveals little-- except for a carefully hidden religious medal with a mysterious inscription, and a couple of underlined Bible passages. The autopsy reveals more: faint scars of knife wounds, a removed tattoo--and evidence of plastic surgery, suggesting that “Father Flores” may not have been the man his parishioners had thought. Now, as Eve pieces together clues that hint at gang connections and a deeply personal act of revenge, she believes she’s making progress on the case. Until a second murder--in front of an even larger crowd of worshippers--knocks the whole investigation sideways. And Eve is left to figure out who committed these unholy acts--and why

23. Caught

by Harlan Coben

Finish Date: July 2011
Rating: B

Review: A pretty good effort by Coben with many surprises. Theme based upon the idea that you are innocent until proven guilty except by the media and public opinion who will grasp ahold of any gossip or accusation as gospel truth. Some lessons to be learned in this who-dunit.

Amazon Video: (interview with Coban about the book)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalin...

AUGUST

Bentley wrote: "23. Caught

by Harlan Coben

Finish Date: July 2011
Rating: B

Review: A pretty good effort by Coben with many surprises. ..."

Thanks for the post on this one! It is definitely going on my to read shelf. I'm often horrified at how people are tried in the press and are considered guilty by reason of being accused.

Then I think you will like this one then.

OCTOBER

24. My Life

by Bill Clinton

Finish Date: October 30, 2011
Rating:A-
Review: I have read this twice. For me this was a great autobiography, chock full of personal and intimate as well as thoughtful revelations about the former President. He did not withhold any punches and was forthright in his accounting of both his strengths and his shortcomings. I particularly loved the conversational and easy going style of the narrative which has always been his posture in real life (so it was a delightful read and listen).

Bentley wrote: "OCTOBER

24. My Life

by Bill Clinton

Finish Date: October 30, 2011
Rating: TBD when everyone has completed read

Review: I h..."

I am still reading it but thoroughly enjoying it. I bet this would be great in audio.

It was absolutely terrific in audio; it was like someone was talking to you in your car in the passenger seat (smile). I enjoyed it in audio even more than the text. The narrator that I chose sounded and I am not exaggerating - just like him.

Bentley wrote: "It was absolutely terrific in audio; it was like someone was talking to you in your car in the passenger seat (smile). I enjoyed it in audio even more than the text. The narrator that I chose sound..."

Very cool.