Ideas, Opinions, Genealogy, and Book Reviews
I downloaded Q-23: A Novel of Espionage and Racqueteering by Paul R. Theroux from NetGalley and I found it a quick read and enjoyable. Continue reading “Q-23: A Novel of Espionage and Racqueteering, a quick read”
Astoria: John Jacob Astor and Thomas Jefferson’s Lost Pacific Empire: A Story of Wealth, Ambition, and Survival by Peter Stark is a page-turning tale full of great adventures and a true story that was once well-known but until now was a forgotten piece of history.
In this remarkable book, Peter Stark tells us Continue reading “Astoria by Peter Stark”
This is the second in a series. I liked the first and reviewed it about a year ago on this blog. I liked it so much I eagerly jumped at the chance to read and review an ARC of Brooklyn Graves: An Erica Donato Mystery by Triss Stein. Continue reading “Brooklyn Graves: An Erica Donato Mystery”
By the mid to late 1800s major cities had become extremely congested. There were several ideas to help ease that problem. From our vantage point today, we see the subway as a fairly obvious solution. But it wasn’t so obvious then.
This is a history of how we came to see the subway as a solution and some of the interesting personalities involved. Continue reading “The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry That Built America’s First Subway by Doug Most”
Sarah Ettritch’s The Deiform Fellowship Two: The Cult is the second in the The Deiform Fellowship series. I thought the premise a bit odd but the title of the first intrigued me and so I gave it a try.
I wrote my review of The Atheist: The Deiform Fellowship One less than a week ago and as I was writing I was thinking about how good this book was and that maybe I should try the second in the series.
I should mention (for the benefit of those who haven’t read my review yet) that Deiforms are agents of God (or at least believe that to be true) and the main character in The Atheist is Jillian. And there is an interesting conflict of beliefs since Jillian is an atheist. Continue reading “The Deiform Fellowship Two: The Cult by Sarah Ettritch”
I was just browsing Netgalley looking for something that would be an interesting read when the title The Atheist caught my eye. So I looked a bit further and the description seemed interesting:
“Jillian Campbell doesn’t believe in God. When local pastor Jim Preston claims to be an agent of God called a Deiform, and declares that Jillian is one too, she dismisses him as a kook. Two days later, Preston is dead, and Jillian stands accused of his murder.”
Continue reading “The Atheist: The Deiform Fellowship One by Sarah Ettritch”
I saw My Country, ‘Tis of Thee: My Faith, My Family, Our Future by Keith Ellison on Netgalley and it sounded interesting so I thought I would give it a try. I’m glad I did. I think it was not only fascinating but is an important book. It is certainly important Continue reading “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee: life and politics of Congressmen Keith Ellison”
I came in ignorance. But found a good book anyway. In fact, I found what seems to be a good series. Let me explain.
I had heard of Nero Wolfe. I never Continue reading “2 Nero Wolfe Mysteries by Robert Goldsborough”
I read All Standing: The Remarkable Story of the Jeanie Johnston, The Legendary Irish Famine Ship by Kathryn Miles because of an interest in Irish Genealogy. And then thought I should review this book since I enjoyed it and that is one of the things I do here. So that is how the book review got here and why it is listed under both Book Review and Genealogy.
I guess I should make clear than this is not a genealogy book but rather a history book about one of most important important events to Irish Genealogy.
I read the paperback version of the book and that runs to 214 pages excluding reference, acknowledgements, prologue and that type of thing. The book also comes as a hardback (if you want to spent a bit more) and a kindle version if you want to spend a bit less).
The ships the Irish traveled on to emigrate from Ireland during the potato famine were often called coffin ships because so many passengers died during the voyage. The Jeanie Johnson was an exception. It made many round trips between Ireland and North America carrying passengers one-way and cargo on the return voyage without losing a single passenger.
Although the Jeanie Johnston was called a lucky ship, this record was not just a matter of luck. The Irish passengers were usually malnourished and weak before beginning the journey. Conditions on the ship were not great and many succumbed to disease. But conditions on the Jeanie Johnson were better than usual and even more unusual was the presence of a ship’s doctor to care for the passengers. So the words remarkable and legendary in the subtitle are appropriate.
The book is about much more than the Jeanie Johnston. There is quite a bit on the Irish potato famine or the great hunger. And the inadequate relief efforts. The English who were in charge at the time did very little but did get around to apologizing about 150 years later.
There is also quite a bit about Tralee, the home port of the Jeanie Johnston and home of the owner. And a good bit of general information about ships of the time and the hazards they faced. Then whole story is interlaced with the stories of some of the passengers.
Unlike many history books which can have a tendency to bore you with too many detail, this is a lively history that reads well and quickly. I think in part that is because there is sufficient background to understand why this ship was so remarkable and then there are the remarkable stories of the ship and one of the families that traveled on it.
OK, it is not the whole title. The title is – Without Their Permission: How the 21st Century Will Be Made, Not Managed – a bit too long for a reasonable headline.
Much to my surprise, I liked this book quite a bit. But I’m getting ahead of the story so let me begin where this book ended up on my Kindle. Continue reading “Without Their Permission by Alexis Ohanian”
I enjoyed Intelligently Designed: How Creationists Built the Campaign against Evolution by Edward Caudill but did not finish it.
I liked this book and believe that evolution is by far the superior theory but that creationists are often winning the argument in the United States. At least winning much more often than the evidence would support. I am a scientist so I find it shocking Continue reading “Intelligently Designed: How Creationists Built the Campaign against Evolution”
I read Fighting for the Press: The Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles by James Goodale for several reasons. First there was a radio interview with the author on Radio Times and I listened to the podcast. It I found it very interesting and wanted to buy the book as soon as I could.
Second, I was in college at the time of the Pentagon Papers battles and it was interesting to re-visit this history and learn more about it. And third, this battle over the publication of the Pentagon Papers by the New York Times and other papers during the Vietnam War is very relevant to the freedom of the press disputes today.
James Goodale was the New York Times general counsel at a time when the Pentagon Papers were leaked to the NY Times. The Pentagon Papers was classified Top Secret, although that classification now seems excessive. After internal discussions at the Times, the paper battled Richard Nixon’s Department of Justice for the right to publish and won.
Why was this so important? The Pentagon Papers were a history of our involvement in Vietnam prepared for the government and classified ‘Top Secret’. Thousands of young men were being killed in the Vietnam War and the country was being torn apart with political protests, bombings, etc.
The Pentagon Papers showed that the case the government made for going to war was a pack of lies. These papers were leaked (stolen secrets) and the New York Times wanted to publish and, of course, the Nixon administration wanted to keep the secrets away from the public. It was a great story and is told well in this book.
So this is an insider’s story of what may have been the most important case on First Amendment and freedom of the press. I was expecting the book to be dry and legalistic in parts or even much of the story. I was surprised and pleased and it was not. Although this is a true story, it reads more like a legal thriller and kept me reading.
Most of the book discusses The Pentagon Papers case and other cases related to Richard Nixon’s war on the free press. The last few chapters move us into the present. And there is an extensive set of references. The G.W. Bush and Obama administrations have not been good for ‘freedom of the press‘ issues.
So who would I recommend read this? First, there are journalists and lawyers. Although I must repeat again the book is not at all bogged down by any technical aspects of the law or journalism that would detract from the experience of the general reader. Then anyone with an interest in the time period or freedom of the press issues. I find this last particularly important today since the balance of security, surveillance, privacy, and press freedom is so essential to our society,
Looking at the Amazon page, there are both Kindle and Paperback Editions and the Kindle version is much less than the paperback. I went with the Kindle edition since it was much cheaper and delivery was almost immediate.
Woodrow Wilson was a complicated man and he dealt with complicated issue so it seems fairly obvious that this biography must be complicated. In “Wilson”, A. Scott Berg tells this story well. There are some places where the complications and details slow down the reading but I think Berg gets about as close as you can get to a page-turner given the amount of material and complexity of material in some places.
He piqued my interest with an introduction about President Wilson’s journey to Europe to settle the terms of the peace after World War I. I was interested (otherwise I wouldn’t have even attempted the 800+ pages here) but this made me more interested.
Then Berg gives a more or less chronological account of his life giving you a better understanding of this man who would be President. I’ll not go into detail here but I will say Berg tells this well. You can probably find many short summaries of his life online.
Woodrow Wilson graduated from Princeton (Class of 1879) and would return there after practicing law, earning a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University and several faculty positions. He was a respected academic and wrote extensively on government and politics. In 1890 Wilson joined the Princeton faculty and in 1902 became president of Princeton.
In 1910 the political bosses in New Jersey thought he was an electable candidate for Governor and could be easily controlled. He was elected and they were very surprised.
Then with about a year of political experience, he was chosen as the Democratic candidate for President. The bulk of the book describes the next 8 years as president and then his final years. Wilson is often rated among our greatest presidents. Read this book and you’ll learn why.
I enjoyed the book. It is a commitment to read book of this length but it is certainly worth it.
A simple question and a complicated answer. Most of us think we have a clear sense of right and wrong but how do we think about these things>
About 50 years ago Continue reading “The Trolley Problem, or Would You Throw the Fat Guy Off the Bridge? by Thomas Cathcart”
First, I requested this advanced reading copy for review since the write-up on Netgalley sounded like it might be interesting but I wasn’t sure about that.
So I was approved and downloaded the galley to my Kindle. I started reading Doors and was instantly hooked. I am pretty sure this is the only book from Netgalley that I read entirely the same day that I downloaded. It was that good.
The story is a mix of mystery, fantasy, and science fiction with a good bit of psychology and a police chase. But if it was described that way, I wouldn’t have read it. Somehow Daniel Brako puts it all together in a thrilling package that keeps you reading.
Since my first description did not seem very interesting let’s try this:
Imagine you are a psychologist trying to help a patient who sees Doors that no one else sees and these Doors lead to other worlds. While trying to cure this delusion, you begin to see the Doors and go through them. Soon you are a murder suspect. And you need to clear yourself and save those you love.
It is not a very long book – 162 pages in paperback according to Amazon – but it is a good book. Read and enjoy Doors by Daniel Brako.