History – Into the West

My Top 50 Books from Last 10 Years

The end of the year and this decade arrived unexpectedly. Well, not completely unexpectedly for the former, but the whole ‘where did the twenty teens go?’ thing caught me by surprise. I’ve been reading and listening to ‘decade in review’ articles and podcasts for the last couple of weeks. Which inspired me to analyze my reading of 965 books over the last ten years.

The following compilation of ‘Top Five’ books for each year starting in 2010, do not include my occasional re-reads of favorites, like the works of Tolkien, Lewis, Jordan, Donaldson and Modesitt.

2010 (read 102)

Blackout/All Clear by Willis (Hugo/Nebula/Locus Best Novel Awards)
Under Heaven by GGK
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Stein
A Civil Compaign by Bujold
Breath and Bone/Flesh and Spirit by Berg

2011 (read 75)

Wars of Light and Shadow (books 5-9) by Wurts
The Lions of Al-Rassan by GGK
The Wise Man’s Fear by Rothfuss
The Empire Trilogy by Feist & Wurts
Ready Player One by Cline

Audiobook Review: The Killers of the Flower Moon

Killers of the Flower Moon

The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

by David Grann

Read by Ann Marie Lee, Will Patton, and Danny Campbell

Listened in November 2019

My rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars

Synopsis

In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Indian Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe. Then, one by one, they began to be killed off. And it was just the beginning, as more Osage began to die under mysterious circumstances.
As the death toll surpassed more than twenty-four Osage, the newly created F.B.I. took up the case, in what became one of the organization’s first major homicide investigations. Together with the Osage they began to expose one of the most sinister conspiracies in American history. A true-life murder mystery about one of the most monstrous crimes in American history.
GoodReads Synopsis

My Thoughts

If it weren’t for my book clubs, I’d only ever read Tolkien, epic fantasy or the occasional space opera. Thankfully, I have many wonderful women in my life who push my reading boundary buttons and pull me out of my comfort zone. This book, a true crime non-fiction selection published a couple of years ago, was recommended to me last year by one of my small town local library book club members. Killers of the Flower Moon was our final book of the month selection for 2019, which we discussed in mid-November. We typically skip December and choose to read a classic over the winter months for discussion in early January. This year’s classic is Hard Times by Charles Dickens.

Nine of us gathered at the local library for our discussion. A couple of us read the audiobook but most of read the print edition. The general consensus about the book was favorable (good research) but before reading Flower Moon, none of us had heard of the Osage murders, and we are within a couple of hundred miles of where they occurred. Even odder, as I noted during our discussion, that Tim White, the special agent in charge of the murder investigation, left the Bureau to become the warden of the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth. Even more shocking, our resident skeptic (which really isn’t the right word but I can’t think of one that means ‘person who rarely likes the books we read as a group) stated she enjoyed reading Flower Moon.

With respect to the audiobook, I became distracted by Will Patton’s narration. Not because it was ‘bad’ but rather because it was so amazing. I felt sorry for the other two narrators because when compared side by side (or as book ends) to Will Patton’s performance, theirs was forgettable. And that is why I took a half star off of what would have been a four star rating. The content was informative, well researched and sparked very good group discussion. The audio production gets five stars for Will Patton and three stars for the other two.

This book club is still finalizing what we’re reading in 2020. The polls are out and as soon as I get the results, I’ll update our GoodReads group book shelves and post the slate here and at the library. We at least know what we’re reading for January and February. Beyond that, you’ll have to wait and find out!

Jan 2020

Hard Times by Charles Dickens

Feb 2020

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Winter Reading is Coming

A bleak late fall mid-November day at the Plaza Branch of the Kansas City Public Library

The second week of November looked and felt more like the first week of January. My commute Tuesday morning (the day after Veterans’ Day) involved icy drizzle and in at least one hair-raising incident on an icy untreated bridge (Thanks, Kansas City, Missouri, for being consistent in your street maintenance over the last 25 years). At least the traction control works in my new van. By lunch time, the drizzle had converted to snow blown by a bitter cold north wind (see photo above taken right before I ventured across the circle drive for a cup of soup at the Mixx).

Last week I attended the monthly Hobbit Happy Hour of the Tolkien Society of Kansas City. We returned to City Barrell where our two teams were victorious in LotR trivia back in September. During one of my conversations with friends and new acquaintances, I learned that circulation of print editions was down at the Plaza Branch of KCPL. I am as much to blame as anyone else since I’ve almost completely switched to audiobooks and ebooks over the last decade. Anything I read in print is because it’s out of print and/or only available as a printed edition.

Another Take on Income Inequality — L.E. Modesitt, Jr.

I can always count on Mr. Modesitt for my morning refresher course in human nature. Eight thousand years of repeating ourselves. You’d think we’d learn.

Sometime around 7500 B.C., people began building clustered mud-brick houses at Catalhoyuk, Turkey. According to detailed archeological studies, for roughly the next thousand years, the same patterns of life persisted, apparently with all families living in the same fashion and with approximately the same level of goods and the same size houses. Analyses of the…

via Another Take on Income Inequality — L.E. Modesitt, Jr. – The Official Website

How The Sinking Of The Lusitania Heralded An Entirely New Kind Of War

http://io9.com/how-the-sinking-of-the-lusitania-heralded-an-entirely-n-1702800197

A less gentlemanly kind of war. Interesting short history on this 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Lusitania.

Posted from WordPress for Android via my Samsung smartphone. Please excuse any misspellings. Ciao, Jon

Book Review: Testament of Youth by Brittain (4 stars)

Testament of Youth

by Vera Brittain

4 out of 5 stars

Read in January/February 2015

Synopsis (via GoodReads):

In 1914, just as war was declared, 20 year-old Vera Brittain was preparing to study at Oxford. Four years later, her life—and that of her whole generation—had been irrevocably changed in a way that no one could have imagined in the tranquil pre-war era. Testament of Youth is Brittain’s account of how she lost the man she loved, nursed the wounded, survived those agonizing years, and emerged into an altered world. A passionate record of a lost generation, it made Brittain one of the best-loved writers of her time. It still retains the power to shock, move, and enthrall readers today.

My Thoughts:

I heard about this book during the inaugural discussion of The Things They Carried by O’Brien last fall. The professor leading the discussion listed it as one of the better memoirs written post-conflict (didn’t matter what conflict). Continue reading “Book Review: Testament of Youth by Brittain (4 stars)”

Big Read Wrap-Up

The Lansing Community Library completed a successful Big Read of O’Brien’s The Things They Carried with a writing memoir workshop led by the same professor who moderated the panel discussion back in December. I took copious notes, but sadly no group photos. The workshop was well attended and I recorded the audio portion (as I can’t always take notes fast enough) and include it here for your enjoyment. In fact, I’m not sure where I put my notes.

Raw Recording of Memoir Writing Workshop

And, just for completeness’ sake, I’ll include the raw recording of the second group discussion led by a local English professor from the University of St. Mary:

Raw Recording of Second Big Read Book Discussion

I attended all the events and enjoyed all of them. I’m looking forward to the next adult reading program the library cooks up.

Book Review: Judy by Lewis (3.5 stars)

Judy: A Dog in a Million by Damien Lewis

3.5 to 4 stars out of 5 stars

Read in late November 2014

Publisher’s Synopsis:

British bestselling author Damien Lewis is an award-winning journalist who has spent twenty years reporting from war, disaster, and conflict zones. Now Lewis brings his first-rate narrative skills to bear on the inspiriting tale of Judy–an English pointer who perhaps was the only canine prisoner of war.

After being bombed and shipwrecked repeatedly while serving for several wild and war-torn years as a mascot of the World War II Royal Navy Yangtze river gunboats the Gnat and the Grasshopper, Judy ended up in Japanese prisoner of war camps in North Sumatra. Along with locals as slave labor, the American, Australian, and British POWs were forced to build a 1,200-mile single-track railroad through the most horrifying jungles and treacherous mountain passes. Like the one immortalized in the film The Bridge on the River Kwai, this was the other death-railroad building project where POWs slaved under subhuman conditions.

In the midst of this living hell was a beautiful and regal-looking liver and white English pointer named Judy. Whether she was scavenging food to help feed the starving inmates of a hellish Japanese POW camp, or by her presence alone bringing inspiration and hope to men, she was cherished and adored by the Allied servicemen who fought to survive alongside her.

Judy’s uncanny ability to sense danger, matched with her quick thinking and impossible daring saved countless lives. More than a close companion she shared in both the men’s tragedies and joys. It was in recognition of the extraordinary friendship and protection she offered amidst the unforgiving and savage environment of a Japanese prison camp in Indonesia that she gained her formal status as a POW. From the author of The Dog Who Could Fly and the co-author of Sergeant Rex and It’s All About Treo comes one of the most heartwarming and inspiring tales you will ever read.

My Thoughts:

Reminded me quite a bit of Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, but not as well written.

I love a good dog story, but Judy became a minor player during most of this book. Continue reading “Book Review: Judy by Lewis (3.5 stars)”

Big Read Kick Off Snapshots

I attended the Big Read kick off of The Things They Carried by O’Brien yesterday at the Lansing Community Library. Here are a few photos I took with my smartphone (flash turned off):

20141108_103021 — The local American Legion chapter and active serving military came to show their support.

20141108_104008 — Terri Wojtalewicz, Youth Services Librarian at the Lansing Community Library, addresses the audience prior to the viewing of the documentary produced by students of Lansing High School.

20141108_111517 — During intermission, Colonel Devine shared her insights from the documentary.

20141108_115655 — The library has a drop box for cards and letters to be delivered to service men and women deployed overseas.

I have not yet started reading The Things They Carried, but the documentary of interviews with living combat veterans definitely got me thinking. I now wish to write letters to all my living family members who are veterans and ask of them the questions I heard asked by the students in their documentary. Sadly, I desperately wanted to ask them of those who have already left us, namely, my father-in-law, my grandfathers and my great-grandfather.

But that regret just makes me more determined to not waste any more time. My apologies in advance to friends and family whom I will be ‘bothering’ in the near future, once I read The Things They Carried, devise an interview and a plan of action to capture those memories on paper, in audio or video. Whatever they are most comfortable with.

The next event on the schedule is a book discussion lead by Tom Prasch, History Department Chair at Washburn University. Join us on Wednesday, November 19, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. at the Lansing Community Library to share insights from The Things They Carried.

20141108_102946 — Thank you American Legion Post 411 and USAR Community Network of Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas.

Trench Warfare in World War I Was a Smarter Strategy Than You Realize

http://io9.com/trench-warfare-in-world-war-i-was-a-smarter-strategy-th-1637657733

And this article ties in nicely with my Great War Great Read reading project.

Posted from WordPress for Android via my Samsung smartphone. Please excuse any misspellings. Ciao, Jon