What Books Are You Reading? (2018)
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Currently on my second reading of 'Made In America' by Bill Bryson. A wry look at American history from the perspective of popular culture and language.
Bryson is from Iowa though now lives in Yorkshire and has written many travel books, some great and others not so great but always written with his unique style of humour.
Regards,
Jay.
Bryson is from Iowa though now lives in Yorkshire and has written many travel books, some great and others not so great but always written with his unique style of humour.
Regards,
Jay.
Back to Moby Dick. Started months ago and didn't finish. Not enough me-time with toddlers. Also memorizing traditional ballads for singing at our song and dance events. These are medieval ballads and span from about 25 - 250 verses. Memorizing and re-memorizing is an on-going process.
I just finished...
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00J6YBO1U/ref=oh_aui_d_detailpage_o08_?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It’s about the three years preceding the shot heard around world.
I especially enjoyed reading about the people and events on the British side of the conflict.
So now I’m re-reading Sharpe’s Gold by Bernard Cornwell.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00J6YBO1U/ref=oh_aui_d_detailpage_o08_?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It’s about the three years preceding the shot heard around world.
I especially enjoyed reading about the people and events on the British side of the conflict.
So now I’m re-reading Sharpe’s Gold by Bernard Cornwell.
This may be an interesting read for the Sherlock Holmes fans out there. "The Fifth Heart" by Dan Simmons is a novel which features Sherlock Holmes and a number of historical people - Samuel Clems, John Hays, Henry Adams, President Garfield and Henry James - just to name a few. The setting is primarily in the United States in the years between Holmes at Reichenbach Falls and his reappearance in London.
The central plot is Holmes working to prevent the assassination of President Garfield. There are also a peripheral case Holmes is presenting as the reason for him to be in America. The most interesting subplot though is Holmes seeking to answer the question of "Am I real or just a fictional character?" Henry James is the unwitting Dr. Watson in this novel but the narrator is a never identified. The book also has appearances and a interesting take on Professor Moriarty and Irene Adler.
Over all, I found the 617 pages to be entertaining and a quick read. I read over the course of three days. On the negative, the writer at times gets lost in minutia on subjects which I feel where included to "grow" the word and page count. This is not the Sherlock Holmes of Arthur Conan Doyle and Dr. Watson (they are both mentioned a number of times) but he does keep to many of the characteristics of the original Holmes.
The central plot is Holmes working to prevent the assassination of President Garfield. There are also a peripheral case Holmes is presenting as the reason for him to be in America. The most interesting subplot though is Holmes seeking to answer the question of "Am I real or just a fictional character?" Henry James is the unwitting Dr. Watson in this novel but the narrator is a never identified. The book also has appearances and a interesting take on Professor Moriarty and Irene Adler.
Over all, I found the 617 pages to be entertaining and a quick read. I read over the course of three days. On the negative, the writer at times gets lost in minutia on subjects which I feel where included to "grow" the word and page count. This is not the Sherlock Holmes of Arthur Conan Doyle and Dr. Watson (they are both mentioned a number of times) but he does keep to many of the characteristics of the original Holmes.
Just finished "How to Grow Your Own Tobacco: From Seed to Smoke" by Ray French. Good info for me as a novice gardener, tho he kind of breezes through the curing methods, which is the info I was really hoping for.
Just started "Making Tobacco Bright: Creating an American Commodity 1617-1937" by Barbara Hahn. It's an academic study of the history of the plant in the US through the technologies and legislation and cultures that rose up around it's diversification and manufacture. Fascinating, but it's been a long time since I read at the University level. Gonna have to break out my giant Tim West churchwarden/shillelagh to keep my hands busy for those long stretches.
Just started "Making Tobacco Bright: Creating an American Commodity 1617-1937" by Barbara Hahn. It's an academic study of the history of the plant in the US through the technologies and legislation and cultures that rose up around it's diversification and manufacture. Fascinating, but it's been a long time since I read at the University level. Gonna have to break out my giant Tim West churchwarden/shillelagh to keep my hands busy for those long stretches.
This is my last week for pleasure reading before grad school starts back again and I'm reading textbooks and papers 40 hours a week. I'm devoting myself to Tobacco: A Cultural History of how an Exotic Plant Seduced Civilization by Iain Gately and Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian.
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