Ace of Spades HQ

April 20, 2014

Sunday Morning Book Thread 04-20-2014: The Day The World Changed Forever [OregonMuse]
— Open Blogger

Good morning morons and moronettes and welcome to AoSHQ's prestigious Sunday Morning Book Thread.

He Is Risen!

Jesus Christ walked onto the stage of world history 2,000 years ago, and is never leaving it. To be sure, it is very easy to imagine a future history where the Church is either absent or totally irrelevant (and there have been many books written along those lines), that's never going to happen. The gospel of Jesus Christ is so powerful, that His followers can exist even in the most hostile environments, i.e. there are churches in Saudi Arabia and North Korea. Granted, they're small and pretty much entirely underground. But they survive. They know they're in a spiritual battle:

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

(Ephesians 6:12)

Many have lost their lives for the cause of Christ. For example, remember the movie 'Chariots of Fire', about that Olympic athlete who wouldn't run on Sunday? Eric Liddell was his name, and perhaps you don't know that he went on to become a missionary to China, and he died in a Japanese internment camp, where he was ministering to the other prisoners during WW2. There have been a number of biographies written about Liddell, but grammie winger recommends Complete Surrender: A biography of Eric Liddell, by Julian Wilson.

Another interesting character is the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas is a good modern biography. Christians classify Bonhoeffer as a martyr, but I have difficulty with this. What got him in trouble with the authorities was not anything that Christians are traditionally martyred for, i.e. being told not to preach the gospel but preaching anyway, or refusing to worship the leader of the state as divine. Rather, Bonhoeffer was arrested for his active participation in a plot to assassinate Adolph Hitler, and that's why the Nazi government killed him. In my opinion, murdering a political leader is difficult to justify under any flavor of Christian theology, and Bonhoeffer is no longer around to tell us why he thought what he was doing was right, given his understanding of the gospel. That is, I assume he thought it was right, I can't imagine him thinking, "yeah, this is wrong, but we have to do it, anyway." Read his books, The Cost of Discipleship or Life Together or even Letters and Papers from Prison and ask yourself if anything he wrote would lead you to understand how he would ever participate in such an obviously "battling against flesh and blood using worldly weapons" political plot.

I confess I don't understand.

I'm not saying what Bonhoeffer did was wrong. Perhaps it was. But even if not, I just have a hard time thinking of him as a martyr, at least as traditionally understood, like the kind of martyrs described in Foxe's Book of Martyrs, which, being in the public domain, is available on Kindle for $0.

Bonhoeffer was executed on April 9th, 1945. He could probably hear the artillery from the approaching Allied armies, who were only a few days away from liberating the camp he was in.

R.I.P.

The internationally renowned Colombian novelist, screenwriter, journalist and 1982 Nobel Prize winner Gabriel GarcÃa MÃ¡rquez has died at the age of 87. He was most famous for his novels One Hundred Years of Solitude, Love in the Time of Cholera, and The Autumn of the Patriarch.

I've never read any of his books.

Here's an interesting bit from the wikipedia bio:

The popularity of his writing also led to friendships with powerful leaders, including one with former Cuban president Fidel Castro...It was during this time that he was punched in the face by Mario Vargas Llosa in what became one of the largest feuds in modern literature.

Ha! A rat bastard commie gets popped in the puss. I would like to have seen that.
The First Emoticon?

This guy thinks he's found the earliest use of what are now called emoticons:

Robert Herrick

To Fortune

Tumble me down and I will sit
Upon my ruines (smiling yet: )
Tear me to tatters; yet I'le be
Patient in my necessitie.
Laugh at my scraps of cloaths, and shun
Me, as a fear'd infection:
Yet scarre-crow-like I'le walk, as one,
Neglecting thy derision.

I know it could just be a colon inside a parenthesis. In fact, that's what it probably is. But it does seem oddly coincidental that it occurs in a "smiling" context.

This article in Slate takes a different view. I'm not a big fan of Slate, but I was impressed that their response to the "first emoticon" claim contained some actual journalism.

A Cheap e-Book Notification Service

I absolutely hate paying $13.99 and $14.99 for Kindle or Nook books, and so I will do anything not to have to. Like many of you, I'm on the "Daily Kindle Deal" mailing list from Amazon, the one that Vic regularly posts to the morning news thread, and while I'm glad Amazon at least makes the effort, I rarely see anything I'm interested in.

But just yesterday as I was perusing teh internets looking for book thread material, I stumbled upon The Book Bub, a service you can sign up for, which compiles a list of free or low-cost e-books from a number of different sources such as Amazon, B&N, Kobe, Smashwords, etc. Once you've signed up, you can select which categories of books you're interested in, so you can stop from being deluged with, say, paranormal romance novels. The e-mail alerts will be structured according to your preferences, which you can change any time on the Book Bub site. Also, the individual listings will tell you the date the deal expires.

Here's their latest deal list.

And the service is free.

Haven't Read It, But Looks Like It Might Be Interesting

The Remedy: Robert Koch, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the Quest to Cure Tuberculosis by Thomas Goetz. From one of the 5-star Amazon reviews:

What a satisfying read! This book is great - it has amazing historical sweep on the development of the germ theory (fascinating) and the various personalities involved (Pasteur-the original germaphobe and many others), mini-novelistic biographies on two titans (Koch in science and Conan Doyle in literature), their conflict over tuberculosis, and the impacts this incredible disease had on both men and the society they lived in. The Remedy is engaging, amazing storytelling, I learned a ton, and I recommend it highly.

Various other reviewers say reading this book made them grateful for things we take for granted, like, say, medical cleanliness, personal hygiene, and, of course, the germ theory of disease.

Here's an interview with the author.

Moron Books

Sabrina Chase wants you to know that her sister has published her first fiction book. She describes Amy's Amazing Adventures (Across Time and Space) by Juliet Chase as "a very silly book for very silly people". As such, it comes with

Pan-dimensional rabbits, Regency heroines, Sheiks of Araby(tm), Navy SEALs, Ultimate Sacrifices, and pastries. Guaranteed 100% non-serious. Descended (illegitimately) from the Ruritania/Graustark-type novels of the early 1900s!

All that for only $2.99.

Pastries?

Another Book of Note

I'm not a fan of Seth MacFarlane's 'The Family Guy', but I think some of you morons are, in which case you might be interested in Seth MacFarlane's A Million Ways to Die in the West: A Novel. I might be interested, but not for $9.99, I'm not. Also, and this is just a personal peeve, I'm put off by any book that tries to score publicity points by including the author's name as part of the title. Why not just call it 'A Million Ways to Die in the West' by Seth MacFarlane and leave it at that?

And there's supposedly plans to make this into a movie soon.

___________

Some of these graphic novels look interesting enough check out. Haven't read any of them except Maus, which I thought was pretty good (best panel: in the second book, the author is trying to come to grips with his success recounting his father's surviving the Holocaust, so he draws himself in his studio, his work desk perched atop a pile of corpses).

___________

So that's all for this week. As always, book thread tips, suggestions, rumors, threats, and insults may be sent to OregonMuse, Proprietor, AoSHQ Book Thread, at aoshqbookthread, followed by the 'at' sign, and then 'G' mail, and then dot cee oh emm.

What have you all been reading this week? Hopefully something good, because, as I keep saying, life is too short to be reading lousy books.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 06:10 AM | Comments (202)
Post contains 1478 words, total size 11 kb.

1 Finished the Paradise War by Stephen Lawhead. It wasn't that good. I will not be getting the next two in the trilogy as the price on them is up to $10 and they aren't that good.

I moved on to a re-read in the Mitch Rapp series with Protect and Defend. It is a sad thing that Vince Flynn is no longer with us. Even though it is not SF he sure knew how to push all my buttons in a book.

For now I have moved on to the Elder Gods by David Eddings in his "Dreamers" series. I read this series from the library years ago. It is not his best work but few of his books are available for the Kindle yet (at least at Amazon). In any case, we will not be getting any new works from him (or his wife). He died in 2009 and she died in 2007.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 06:10 AM (T2V/1)

2 Thanks for that link to Book Bub OM. I have saved it.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 06:16 AM (T2V/1)

3 If anyone is interested the guy who inspired Wiley the poet in the BC comic past away recently. I dont get the paper any more but remember some classic strips with Wiley on Easter. http://tinyurl.com/k4ovuun

Posted by: freaked at April 20, 2014 06:19 AM (JdEZJ)

4 Not to get into a debate on "works-based" theology, but I'm pretty sure that God gives you a free pass for trying to kill Hitler :-)

Posted by: PabloD at April 20, 2014 06:19 AM (U8qxR)

5 Try "The Chronicles of Old Guy" by Timothy J. Gawne. Good stuff.

Posted by: eman at April 20, 2014 06:20 AM (AO9UG)

6
Nominees for the 2014 Hugo Awards have been announced

BEST NOVEL

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (Orbit US / Orbit UK)
Neptune's Brood by Charles Stross (Ace / Orbit UK)
Parasite by Mira Grant (Orbit US / Orbit UK)
Warbound, Book III of the Grimnoir Chronicles by Larry Correia (Baen Books)
The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson (Tor Books)

Rest at the link:

http://tinyurl.com/lk6z5bh

Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 06:20 AM (kdS6q)

7 Also, "A Sword into Darkness" by Thomas A. Mays.

Posted by: eman at April 20, 2014 06:24 AM (AO9UG)

8 Anyone read Greg Gutfeld's "Not Cool: The Hipster Elite and Their War on You"? Early reviews tend not to be reliable, but it looks to be a more serious book than his previous work. Gutfeld uses "cool" as the reason that lefty groupthink is so ubiquitous. Gutfeld gives an excellent 12 minute interview with Imus -- bit.ly/1eQQGcj

Posted by: doug at April 20, 2014 06:24 AM (pkn7l)

I reread One Hundred Years of Solitude every couple years. regardless of the politics the author may have had, the book is a wonderful story and beautifully written.

I also hesitate to think I know ALL of why someone in another country supports one thing or the other, because my knowledge is limited on their politics and history.

I had a coworker from Bolivia who, during the Salvadoran and Nicaraguan upheavals of the late 70s/early 80s who used to scoff at people who said this or that faction were Communists or some other group.

He said there were villages that were so poor people here wouldn't understand. And if somebody showed up and said to the uneducated people grinding out a living "Hey! we like you so much we want you to have this tractor! Let's be friends!", the people didn't say "are you Christian? Are you Communist? Are you from the government? The CIA?", they said "thanks for the tractor" and took it. And they'd be happy to be "friends" and say "sure, sure, we're Christian/Communist/whatever" if it kept parts for the tractor coming, and seedcorn, and so on.

Give One Hundred Years a try sometime--best magical realism I've read, and no major political message--the endless revolution of one major character shows more of the pointlessness of endless revolution than any particular ideology, and the biggest whack is taken at what a fruit company does to the small town in the jungle, but it is only one part of the long and mesmerizing family saga.

Posted by: barbarausa at April 20, 2014 06:24 AM (WWeoI)

10 p.s.--Happy Easter everybody! and many more to you all!

Posted by: barbarausa at April 20, 2014 06:25 AM (WWeoI)

11 Anyone have a recco for a good WWI or Korean War memoir written from a non-flag officer perspective. I've done a lot of WWII reading, so it's time to expand horizons...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 06:25 AM (FCgaq)

12 Gabriel Garcia Marquez was a communist stooge, but his novels were pretty good--or at least they seemed good the last time I read them 20 years ago. Mario Vargas Llosa-who called Marquez out on his fealty to Castro--is the better writer though. If you haven't read The War of the End of the World and Feast of the Goat, you should.

Posted by: JoeyBagels at April 20, 2014 06:27 AM (QkMmo)

13 Hugo award nominees are out: http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2014-hugo-awards/ Friend of the Blog Larry Correia is up for Best Novel. Good luck to him!

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at April 20, 2014 06:27 AM (Nk6GS)

14 Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 10:20 AM (kdS6q) See, I should read the comments first, yeah?

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at April 20, 2014 06:29 AM (Nk6GS)

15 Finished Neal Stephenson's "REAMDE." Outstanding. Long, but no wasted space. Highly recommended. Get the eBook, if you can. A 1042 page hardcover is heavy. Still, you can't beat free from the library.

Posted by: doug at April 20, 2014 06:31 AM (pkn7l)

16 Even though they have 5 BBC shows up (and 4 of those are Dr. Who!), I think the Red Wedding (Rains of Castamere) will win.

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at April 20, 2014 06:32 AM (Nk6GS)

17 11 Anyone have a recco for a good WWI or Korean War memoir written from a non-flag officer perspective. I've done a lot of WWII reading, so it's time to expand horizons...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 10:25 AM (FCgaq)

Its not a memoir or a biography but the best WWI and WWII book I have ever read was Once An Eagle by Anton Myrer. It is one of the first Kindle books I bought because my paperback copy was worn slap out. It is now almost required reading at the Military Academies. The only drawback is that it's $11.00 (because they can gouge).

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 06:32 AM (T2V/1)

18 Every Easter since 2002 I have re-read the late Fr. Richard John. Neuhaus' excellent book of philosophical musings titled: Death on a Friday Afternoon: Meditations on the last seven Words of Christ from the Cross. The book has had a very profound affect on me person a lot and has deepened my faith immensely. God Bless you all today. He is indeed Risen.

Posted by: Sharkman at April 20, 2014 06:33 AM (K2rtt)

Thanks for the recommendations, Joey B.

Did I read somewhere that Marquez started as a journalist?

Maybe that explains his politics?

Posted by: barbarausa at April 20, 2014 06:35 AM (WWeoI)

20 I must confess to having read One Hundred Years of Solitude many years back. It was given to me by a good female friend as I left Berkeley for the working world. I cannot recall it for good or ill. I think that I still have the book somewhere around here.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars™ [/i] [/s] [/u] at April 20, 2014 06:37 AM (HsTG8)

21 Thanks Vic, I'll add it to the library list.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 06:37 AM (FCgaq)

22 Gabriel Garcia Marquez. There was a blurb on her at Barnes and Noble's site. Never heard of her or him.

Posted by: Boss Moss at April 20, 2014 06:37 AM (f2VuK)

23 "Easter is a story of hope...for a better day to come, just around the corner." -- obama, a rara avis Verily.

Posted by: Soothsayer § at April 20, 2014 06:38 AM (841yG)

24 OT: For fans of rock, soul, R&B The PBS series "Independent Lens" will show "Muscle Shoals" this week (check local listings). The film covers FAME studios and the house band "The Swampers", as well as the major artists who recorded with them. to.pbs.org/RBq6tw These musicians rank up there with Motown's "Funk Brothers" and Stax's "Booker T and the MGs".

Posted by: doug at April 20, 2014 06:38 AM (pkn7l)

25 REAMDE was an awesome book. I honestly couldn't grasp some of the gaming lingo, but it didn't stop me from enjoying the book more than almost any other book I've ever read--and I was an English major back when you had to read A LOT. The fastest 1000+ pages I ever plowed--no, I raced through it. I lost plenty of sleep that weekend....

Posted by: JoeyBagels at April 20, 2014 06:40 AM (QkMmo)

26 Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 10:20 AM (kdS6q) The Hugo Awards are front and center for the whole "We're nobodies writing in the field and if you diss the 57 varieties of gender, we're taking you out" crowd, are they not?

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars™ [/i] [/s] [/u] at April 20, 2014 06:40 AM (HsTG8)

27 Anyone read Greg Gutfeld's "Not Cool: The Hipster Elite and Their War on You"?

I'm reading it. He's got some interesting insights into our culture, the main one being that 'cool' is defined as 'elevated status without real achievement'.

The text is peppered with his jokes, and unlike when he does them on his TV show, they mostly fall flat. But you can ignore them and not lose anything.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 06:41 AM (fTJ5O)

28 I figured Gabriel Garcia Marquez was an obscure lesbian poet since Barnes and Noble was honoring her, but it's actually a dude.

Posted by: Boss Moss at April 20, 2014 06:44 AM (f2VuK)

29
I'd like to recommend an 80's fav.

Steven L. Thompson. Mostly known for his writing and editing on cars and motorcycles, he wrote a series of little known, but excellent technothrillerish novels: Recovery, Countdown to China, Bismarck Cross, Airburst and Top End. Imagine a Tom Clancy book written by Jeremy Clarkson and you get the idea.

Summary of the first book, Recovery:

Max Moss is an enlisted man in the U.S. Air Force. He is definitely a man who chooses his own path. When his father, a retired Major General and founder of Moss Electronics, expected Moss, who had just graduated head of his class at Berkeley, to join the family business, starting at the bottom and working his way up, of course, he was surprised. Moss wanted something else, anything else, than to be under the control of the old man, especially miffed that his father had just assumed, never asked, what Moss would do with his life.

So he looked elsewhere. He was an up-and-coming race car driver for two years until his father intervened and got that cut short. Not wanting to use his electrical engineering education because that would be too close to what his father would have wanted, Moss decided the military was the place for him. But he did not want to be an Army officer like his father. In a further act of rebellion, he chose the enlisted ranks, and the Air Force, which to his father was almost a sin. For the four years prior to the start of the series, Moss has been an aircraft mechanic, rising to the rank of T/Sgt.

His future takes a sudden and interesting change as the series starts when he is offered a chance to join Military Intelligence as a member of a Recovery team, a group of covert operatives who make rapid entries behind the Iron Curtain to pull downed spy plane pilots or to sneak someone in. This leads to adventures far more than Max could have imagined, or likely wanted.

Author website: http://tinyurl.com/ks9a9d9
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_L._Thompson
Spyguide: http://tinyurl.com/kxhkl3h

Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 06:44 AM (kdS6q)

30 Maybe that explains his politics?

In an interview quoted in his wiki entry, Marquez basically admitted that his socialist politics came from him rebelling against his father.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 06:46 AM (fTJ5O)

31 I am getting back into more escapist stuff like when I was a lot younger. Since you can do little to shape the real world why live there?

Posted by: Boss Moss at April 20, 2014 06:47 AM (f2VuK)

32
The Hugo Awards are front and center for the .... if you diss the 57 varieties of gender, we're taking you out" crowd, are they not?
Posted by: Krebs v Carnot

Case in point:

BEST RELATED WORK

Queers Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the LGBTQ Fans Who Love It Edited by Sigrid Ellis & Michael Damian Thomas (Mad Norwegian Press)

And the major theme in Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie is "post-binary genders" or some such.

Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 06:48 AM (kdS6q)

33 Thanks LDC, those seem to be right in my wheelhouse.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 06:49 AM (FCgaq)

34 Ugh - charging more than about $7 for an ebook is obscene. Just my .02 as an independent writer.
Just last night I started "The Birdmen; The Wright Brothers, Glenn Curtiss, and the Battle to Control the Skys" by Lawrence Goldstone - supposed to be out in May. (Advance reader edition, courtesy of Amazon Vine.) It will cost $28 when out - but might be worth it, if the first couple of chapters are any indication. It's about - as the subtitle says - about the early years of heavier-than-air powered flight, and the various eccentric and interesting personalities who were involved. I love reading about the turn of the last century, and this fills the bill. Besides, now I know who and why Chanute AFB was named for. (Prosperous civil engineer who had an interest in the mathematics of airflow over wings, and things.)

Posted by: Sgt. Mom at April 20, 2014 06:51 AM (Asjr7)

35 A Million ways to die in the west will be out in theaters May 30th.

Sometimes you need to just watch a stupid comedy .
Space Balls is a good example of that.

Posted by: American Dawg at April 20, 2014 06:55 AM (p6iIL)

36 Hiya morons, just stopped by to check out the book thread. Happy Easter to all! I'm finally finishing up "A Storm of Swords" book 3 of Game of Thrones by GRRM. I also started "The Strain" on my Kobo by Guillermo del Toro (sp?) and it's pretty intriguing. Last but not least, I'm reading "The Sting Man" which is about ABSCAM and which the movie "American Hustle" is (very, very) loosely based on.

Posted by: DangerGirl at home with her Sanity Prod at April 20, 2014 06:56 AM (GrtrJ)

37 Thanks for the Eric Liddell bio recommendation. He's my favorite Olympian, so I'll have to pick that one up. I recently read "Catcher in the Rye" and didn't hate it as much as I thought I would. I'd never read it because I assumed Holden Caulfield was going to be a pretentious little p****, which he is. But Salinger made him a *sympathetic* pretentious little p****. Most people on Goodreads either love it or hate it, but I give it a rating of "meh" to "ok". I'm currently reading Dan Simmons' "Hyperion" again, trying to make through the entire "Hyperion Cantos". Also started "The Purpose-Driven Life" which after Day 1 I'm giving a "meh." But, hey, it's not about me.

Posted by: sinalco at April 20, 2014 06:56 AM (V42Jv)

38 Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling StarsÂ™ at April 20, 2014 10:40 AM (HsTG

Yes, but Larry Correia in there probably sticks in their craw.

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at April 20, 2014 06:57 AM (Nk6GS)

39 I read somewhere that the IRS worried Robert Lynn Aspirin to death.

Posted by: Boss Moss at April 20, 2014 06:59 AM (f2VuK)

40 Gabriel Garcia Marquez was an amazing writer, but personally, I loved his short stories. Not so much of a fan of his novels. He's a pioneer in the genre of magical realism, which combines realism with a smattering of fantasy. Pretty amazing stuff, if you're interesting. Not fantasy, not science fiction, but not regular fiction either.

Posted by: shibumi who is exceptionally cynical today at April 20, 2014 07:03 AM (25HWz)

41 @11

Great Korean War book:

The Coldest War: A Memoir of Korea. James Brady.

My Mom loved military history, read everything she could get her hands on relating to WWII. Dad was a Marine in Korea, he actually read this book- the one one I think I ever saw him read. Said it was very accurate. So... VERY highly recommending.

Posted by: shibumi who is exceptionally cynical today at April 20, 2014 07:05 AM (25HWz)

42 Also started "The Purpose-Driven Life" which after Day 1 I'm giving a "meh."

I read 'The Purpose-Driven Church' a number of years ago. I thought it was by far the DUMBEST book I had ever read (it's basically about how to grow your church by using corporate marketing bullshit) and I couldn't believe pastors were lapping it up like it was the fountain of youth.

I suppose I might find some good in it if I reread it now that I'm older and less volatile, but there are other, better, books to read.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 07:07 AM (fTJ5O)

43 I'm thinking about re-reading James Michner's works. I love historic fiction, but nobody can weave a story on an epic scale the way he can. Alaska is probably one of my all-time favorite novels.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:07 AM (FCgaq)

44 Octave Chanute was a something of a friend and a mentor to Orville and Wilbur Wright. Together, Orville and Wilbur were a formidable intellect, debating issues about flight (and a lot of other things) endlessly. The hammered out their ideas by these endless discussions. When Wilbur died fairly young, Orville was really lost without him. His sister Katherine was also close but she "betrayed" him by going off and getting married. Katherine also died fairly young. Orville never did marry. Wilbur, Orville and Katherine were the three youngest children of Bishop Wright. He had three older sons who had already grown up and left home by the time the younger children became known. He (Orville) sold most of the Wright company's interest to Glenn Curtiss, who was somewhat akin to Steve Jobs as being an entrenpeneur of early flight, rather than a brilliant engineer or thinker. After Wilbur died, I don't think Orville did anything creative or new with respect to flying for the rest of his life.

Posted by: Bossy Conservative riding Orca at April 20, 2014 07:08 AM (+1T7c)

45 Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 10:25 AM (FCgaq) James Brady's "The Coldest War", published in 1990, is a good book about his Korean War experience as a young officer. He tells the moment when he reported to his platoon and was basically ignored, then later when his platoon Sgt. accepts him and lets him give orders to the platoon.

Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 07:08 AM (hzpoi)

46 Anyone have a recco for a good WWI or Korean War memoir written from a
non-flag officer perspective. I've done a lot of WWII reading, so it's
time to expand horizons...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 10:25 AM (FCgaq)
======
I have two -

A Rifleman Went To War - H. W. McBride Lancer Militaria (pub.)

Shots Fired In Anger (second edition) - John George - NRA Publications

Both books are superbly written. "Shots Fired In Anger" 2nd Edition includes a personal account of George's participation in the formation, training, and operations of Merril's Marauders in India and Burma.

Posted by: mrp at April 20, 2014 07:10 AM (JBggj)

47 @42

You want dumb?

Try reading "Who Moved My Cheese." It's a "business book."

Plot: learn to adapt.

Yep. That's it.... the writer made a ton of money on something that is that simple. I envy his moxie...

Posted by: shibumi who is exceptionally cynical today at April 20, 2014 07:10 AM (25HWz)

48 45 Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 11:08 AM (hzpoi) That was my policy with just about every FDO butter bar that rotated through my FDC...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:11 AM (FCgaq)

49 Yep. That's it.... the writer made a ton of money on something that is that simple. I envy his moxie... Posted by: shibumi There is a parody written about that, called "Who Moved my Soap?", about crooked business people who went to prison.

Posted by: Bossy Conservative riding Orca at April 20, 2014 07:14 AM (+1T7c)

50 I think that Bonhoeffer justified Hitler's assassination under Just War theory.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at April 20, 2014 07:15 AM (V70Uh)

51 The Coldest War: A Memoir of Korea. James Brady. Posted by: shibumi who is exceptionally cynical today at April 20, 2014 11:05 AM (25HWz) He has a sorta followup book, "The Scariest Place in the World", that I just started reading. He returned to Korea in 2003 to see what it was like, and dredged up old memories.

Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 07:15 AM (hzpoi)

52 @51 A friend of the family who was also in the Marines went back to Korea with his wife in the 1990's. Didn't have much to say about it, except for the fact that the plane trip to Korea was absolutely terrifying. As in "I will NEVER fly again" terrifying.

Posted by: shibumi who is exceptionally cynical today at April 20, 2014 07:18 AM (25HWz)

I love Michener too--I know if I can get through the first chapter on the life cycle of the original microbes whose chance meeting in the ectoplasmic slime of the post-big bang cosmos precipitated the chain of events (also excriciatingly chronicled) that created the island, peninsula or plain where the actual story begins, the STORY will be awesome!

"Hawaii" is epic, but my favorite is "Chesapeake".

Just read Marquez on wiki, and his grandfather provided the socialist rebeliion, and his grandmother the magic and superstition that combined to create his storytelling style. His parents left him with the grands when he was little.

Posted by: barbarausa at April 20, 2014 07:18 AM (WWeoI)

54 Speaking of Easter, I highly recommend "Ben Hur" by Lew Wallace.

btw, it's also a great Christmas book.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at April 20, 2014 07:18 AM (V70Uh)

55 "Who Moved My Cheese" was one of the canaries in the coal mine when I worked in the distributor end of book sales. Whenever you saw a local corporation placing a bulk order for it, you knew you'd be reading about layoffs in the next few months. Not incidentally, Bain Capital was one of my corporate accounts.

Posted by: Lincolntf at April 20, 2014 07:19 AM (ZshNr)

56 That was my policy with just about every FDO butter bar that rotated through my FDC... Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 11:11 AM (FCgaq) Heh. It's probably SOP in all 5 of our military services. I did similar things with new Ensigns.

Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 07:19 AM (hzpoi)

57 I was stationed there in '96 to '97. You couldn't pay me to go back.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:20 AM (FCgaq)

58 I still cringe at the smell of kimchi...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:23 AM (FCgaq)

59 huh, and here I thought this was not a blog of Christian believers.

Posted by: Patrick in Michigan at April 20, 2014 07:23 AM (OhrW4)

60 Albert Mohler-Southern Bapttist Convention on "The Jesus Seminar" which voted with various colored balls on whether Jesus said things attributed him or not". They declared Jesus was not literally resurrected: "Marcus Borg, another fellow of the Jesus Seminar, denies that the empty tomb is necessary to the Christian faith. Â“I think the resurrection of Jesus really happened, but I have no idea if it involves anything happening to his corpse, and, therefore, I have no idea whether it involves an empty tomb…. So I would have no problem whatsoever with archaeologists finding the corpse of Jesus. For me that would not be a discrediting of the Christian faith or the Christian tradition.Â” The empty tomb does not matter? The Apostle Paul saw the case quite differently. Speaking for the modern secular naturalistic worldview, the Jesus Seminar may dismiss the resurrection as myth, claiming that, as all right-thinking moderns know, dead persons simply do not rise from the dead. Paul, who evidently would not qualify for membership on the Jesus Seminar, leaves no room for negotiation: Â“But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.Â” Paul sets himselfÂ—and the true ChurchÂ—over against Bultmann, the Jesus Seminar, and all who deny or deride the empty tomb. Either the tomb is empty, or our faith is in vain. Paul wants nothing to do with BultmannÂ’s effort to find a spiritual meaning without a historical event, nor with the Jesus SeminarÂ’s anti-supernaturalism. Against modern skeptics, Paul cared deeply about whether the tomb was empty. Why do so many hate the very idea of the risen Christ? Because the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the vindication of GodÂ’s purpose in sending his Son for the redemption of sinners. A world full of degenerate modernsÂ—who do not even see themselves as sinnersÂ—wants nothing to do with Jesus Christ as our sinless substitute, who shed his blood for the remission of our sins. The work of the Jesus Seminar tells us virtually nothing about Jesus, but a great deal about the liberal scholars who sit around with colored beads, creating a Jesus in their own image. The Jesus invented by the Jesus Seminar is a Palestinian smart aleck who sounds like a cynical and sarcastic intellectual. Coincidence? No historical apologies are needed for the New Testament. The Jesus Seminar fascinates the media because its reports make for a good story. But the Church knows the real story, and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The tomb was really empty. The Jesus of history is the Christ of faith. Looking into the empty tomb, the women heard the angels ask, Â“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen.Â” That has been the faith of the true Church throughout the centuries. That will be the faith of the true Church when the risen Christ returns to claim his own. He is risen. He is risen indeed!."

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 07:25 AM (XyM/Y)

61
And in "the Germans probably have a term for this" news, welcome to the Singularity. Glaciation from information overload is a thing:

Michael Proffitt, the Oxford English Dictionary's new chief editor said the mammoth masterpiece is facing delays because Â“information overloadÂ” from the internet is slowing his compilers.

His team of 70 philologists, including lexicographers, etymologists and pronunciation experts, has been working on the third edition, known as OED3, for the past 20 years.

He said his team working on the definition of new entries has a target of 50 to 60 words a month, slower than in the past because the world wide web has created so much more source material.

Mr Proffitt said: Â“I averaged about 80 when I started because, in 1989, we didnÂ’t have computers on our desks, so there was a limit to how much you could research. The library was our primary resource.Â”

The challenge facing his team was highlighted by associate editor Peter Gilliver, who once spent nine months revising definitions for the word Â“runÂ”, currently the longest single entry in the OED.

Â“We can hear everything thatÂ’s going on in the world of English for the last 500 years, and itÂ’s deafening,Â” he told the New York Times.

http://tinyurl.com/m2jdrey

Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at April 20, 2014 07:25 AM (kdS6q)

62 Happy Easter to all! He is risen! I went to early Mass so I could beat the crowds and get back to work on Easter brunch-tea-dinner. I'm so blessed to have all 4 kids home and figure I'd better feed them well! As for Garcia Marquez, I will not argue with those who call him the greatest writer of our age. I love his novels and short stories. His style is both brilliant and simple, very beautiful in Spanish and not bad in English translation. The man? He was a POS. I don't condemn him for his silly Marxism, given the time and place of his youth. I don't even condemn him for swilling champagne and snorting caviar with Fidel Castro while talking about "equality." But I see him through the autobiography of Cuban novelist Reinaldo Arenas. Naked and starving in the sewer-prison of El Morro, Arenas managed to get messages to Garcia Marquez, begging him to say something on behalf of all the Cuban poets and writers locked up in hell. One word from someone of Garcia's stature could have made all the difference. One word --- and he said nothing. Worse than nothing, he denied that any writers were persecuted by Castro. THAT is why Mario Vargas smacked him silly. And why I hope that, by the power of Eternal Justice, he spends 100 lifetimes in 100 El Morro's.

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 07:27 AM (dfYL9)

63 Garcia Marquez was a very good writer who happened to guzzle lots of commie jizz. Not the first nor the last time that's ever happened. If you require your good writers to adhere to the Moron lifestyle you'll end up being very disappointed. I draw the line at contemporary writers ramming global warming down my throat; fuck that shit, life is too short to waste on those cocksuckers. And taking jabs at Reagan earns a "bite my crank" on the way to the trash can.

As for current reading, I am still thoroughly enjoying "Master and Commander" as it goes further away from late 18th and early 19th century nautical terms and on to character explication of the mini populations that made up a ship's crew and the various interactions on land. I certainly see why people get hooked on this series and plan to read the rest of them as well. On my side study of the Crusades in plowing through Gibbon, Zoe Oldenbourg was a fairly dry writer but not without value as she sets the stage for just how things were in Europe prior to the Crusades; when I get up to the part where Thomas Asbridge starts things in The First Crusade, with not nearly as voluminous of a preamble, I'll be interested in comparing one account versus the other. Finally I'm to the part in the Red Fortress where Peter the Great has just kicked ass on the Swedes, at great financial cost to the country, and will be starting up the new capital in a much more Eurocentric attitude for the country, which was strongly opposed by many.

Posted by: Captain Hate at April 20, 2014 07:30 AM (fRwvt)

64 54 Speaking of Easter, I highly recommend "Ben Hur" by Lew Wallace.

btw, it's also a great Christmas book.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at April 20, 2014 11:18 AM (V70Uh)

You can get that book from Gutenberg free and I have it. It is a HUGE book. I downloaded and started on it and after about 3 hours of struggling I gave it up.

This is one case where the movie is better than the book.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 07:32 AM (T2V/1)

65 Sorry about the long post; I liked what Al Mohler said weigh inI This morning at about 6:45 I posted the poem about the literal resurrection. by John Updike That was in response to someone in my denomination who sent an e-mail with a quote from the Bible and then went on to say nothing about the resurrection of Jesus but talked about little resurrections, "ordinary resurrections" which give us hope=a food pantry starting, a grief support group, etc. That's great. Those things are wonderful and valuable, but unless our faith as Christians is based on the literal resurrection. IMO it is in vain-and Christ becomes merely another rabble rouser from Israel. Thank God that in my time as a layperson I never heard some lame sermon about the happy spring flowers.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 07:33 AM (XyM/Y)

66 Anyone have a recco for a good WWI or Korean War memoir .... Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 10:25 AM (FCgaq) gutenberg.org has a whole bookshelf for WWI. Some are technical, some are just memoirs, and some are propaganda aimed at involving the US. Hope this helps. http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/World_War_I_(Bookshelf)

Posted by: Kindltot at April 20, 2014 07:36 AM (SZM+L)

67 Rubin "Hurricane" Carter has died. I never saw the movie.

Posted by: Soothsayer § at April 20, 2014 07:36 AM (841yG)

68 63 --- "I draw the line at contemporary writers ramming global warming down my throat... And taking jabs at Reagan earns a "bite my crank" on the way to the trash can." ----------- Yep. I draw the line at anything topical or trendy, regardless of politics.

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 07:37 AM (dfYL9)

69 So while driving to Mass this morning, get another story idea. Got about half of a rough outline already written, on the iPhone while in the parking lot before Mass.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 07:38 AM (wIBSj)

70 Conversation in the Cathedral is also a very good Vargas Llosa book.

Posted by: Captain Hate at April 20, 2014 07:39 AM (fRwvt)

71 Is it about rabbits? I like rabbits.

Posted by: Lenny § at April 20, 2014 07:40 AM (841yG)

72 As for Marquez being a pioneer of magical realism, I'm sure you mean the sort of pioneer that followed in the footsteps of Jorge Luis Borges, right? (STAND BACK! I have a BA in Spanish Literature, and I'm not afraid to use it!)

Posted by: Kindltot at April 20, 2014 07:42 AM (SZM+L)

73 Nice image up top. Blessed Western Church Easter. Speaking of books, one day long ago, at the beginning of a break from college, I sat down in my mom's back yard with the practically untouched Bible she'd given me years before for my catechism, and I read the four gospels for myself, really for the first time. Answered many questions, raised many more.

I was persuaded by nothing more than those records Â— and have never had cause to be dissuaded since Â— of his historic reality, and indeed the general accuracy of what he was reported to have said and done. Miracles and all. I'm no inerrantist. (I always say every word of the Judeo-Christian scripture may be divinely perfect, but that doesn't necessarily mean every passage means what we think it means.) However, I find the gospels all the more persuasive in that despite seeming contradictions and some general confusion of sequence (how many times did he do the mass feedings?), despite intervening centuries, and recopying glitches and translation problems known and unknown... Jesus stands there, confounding the 'wise' while both amusing and uplifting the commoners, and readers centuries later, replacing crippling ceremony with liberating simplicity a child can understand (good Samaritan), forgiving his 'enemies' even as they're nailing him to the cross, living his teachings magnificently, through all trials, to the horrifying glorious end, concerned even to the last about others, his mother, his followers, the thief the next cross over, and when it was finally at an end, when his mortal brain was expiring, going down reciting Psalms. Then coming back like a Boss. Among other immortal highlights from his saga. You know the saying, you can't make stuff like this up? I am persuaded that nobody alive then could have made this up. Which leaves this reader confronted with a personal call across two thousand years that I still strive to answer. Books. They're just a bunch of words....

Posted by: mindful webworker - semi-literate at April 20, 2014 07:42 AM (YLiN/)

74 65 --FenelonSpoke---"This morning at about 6:45 I posted the poem about the literal resurrection. by John Updike..." --------- Thank you for that! I love it. I like Updike's poetry far more than his novels, BTW. His light verse included. 70--Captain Hate--- Conversation in the Cathedral is also a very good Vargas Llosa book. -------------- I second that recommendation! My personal favorite.

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 07:46 AM (dfYL9)

75 Thanks for a beautiful post, MWW. A blessed Easter to you!

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 07:46 AM (XyM/Y)

76 Yes, but Larry Correia in there probably sticks in their craw.

Oh, but he's a mere 2nd place on the Hate List after Vox Day (who is on there for Best Novelette.)

Related: Awake in the Night Lands. Just get it.

Posted by: Jabari at April 20, 2014 07:47 AM (eLSfW)

77 73 Posted by: mindful webworker - semi-literate at April 20, 2014 11:42 AM (YLiN/) Plus eleventy.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:48 AM (FCgaq)

78 This is one case where the movie is better than the book. Posted by: Vic at April 20, 2014 11:32 AM (T2V/1) If you haven't seen the 1925 silent version of "Ben Hur" you should. Very good. The ending is a bit different from the 1959 version.

Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 07:50 AM (hzpoi)

79 Rubin "Hurricane" Carter has died. I never saw the movie. Posted by: Soothsayer Â§ at April 20, 2014 11:36 AM (841yG) 'Hurricane' is a terrific song by Dylan, but reading websites apparently there is little doubt he was guilty of murder. I sometimes can make myself read books by far lefties (as long as there's no global warming propaganda or attacks on Republicans when it doesn't tie to the plot) but draw the line at communist pals of Castro. Read 'Countdown City' by Ben Winters, book two of the Last Policeman series. The first book was uneven but overall pretty good, the second is much better and it only took a couple of days to finish it. In book one it was about six months before the big bad asteroid was going to go boom and destroy everything. Now it's only about 75 days off and society is coming unglued. The former detective is approached by a woman he knows, who wants him to track down her husband who disappeared without notice. It's a fine mystery but it's mostly involving for the portrait of a world coming to an end. Looking forward to book three, probably the last one in the series, which comes out in mid-July. Hopefully we get to see the boom.

Posted by: waelse1 at April 20, 2014 07:52 AM (x+P8L)

80 Look Ma! I'm on Teh Amazons...

http://tinyurl.com/mbgdozq

"The inhabitants of the planet Gethsemane, knowing their world was doomed, constructed The Gateway; a device that transport people directly to the Afterlife, and allows them to return..."

Posted by: Gregory of Yardale at April 20, 2014 07:52 AM (6GRz5)

81 78 If you haven't seen the 1925 silent version of "Ben Hur" you should. Very good. The ending is a bit different from the 1959 version.

Posted by: ExSnipe at April 20, 2014 11:50 AM (hzpoi)

I have that version in a combo pack on DVD that I bought years ago. Put the silent version in one nigh and watched for about 10 min and it didn't do anything for me. Maybe I'll try again and move it to the end.

Since then though Amazon had the Blueray on sale and got that. That is what I normally watch now.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 07:53 AM (T2V/1)

82 I tried to a book by that Garcia Marquez guy, bored the living crap outta. The only thing I ever tried to read that was more boring was by that hideously overrated shit-stain Joyce Carol Oates.

Posted by: ghost of hallelujah at April 20, 2014 07:53 AM (XvrTA)

83 from a very non-flag-officer perspective indeed: "With The Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa" by E.B. Sledge. This weeks reading is "Salt as a Factor in the Confederacy", by Ella Lonn. She wrote it as an exhaustive study of the subject so that no one would need to repeat her work, and did a fine job of it. Not halfway through yet, but my takeaway is this: if you're seriously stocking up for any version of The Burning Times, consider adding 10 or 20 bags of salt to your stash.

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 20, 2014 07:54 AM (V0aFE)

84 As for Marquez being a pioneer of magical realism, I'm sure you mean the sort of pioneer that followed in the footsteps of Jorge Luis Borges, right?

(STAND BACK! I have a BA in Spanish Literature, and I'm not afraid to use it!)

Posted by: Kindltot at April 20, 2014 11:42 AM (SZM+L)

Borges was a unique writer who almost defies categorization. What I found most fascinating about him was his ability to write fiction as if what he was writing was completely factual and a historical documentation of something which never really occurred. In that regard (and that is far from the only aspect of his writing which is noteworthy) I find the Serb writer Danilo Kis to be similar,

Posted by: Captain Hate at April 20, 2014 07:54 AM (fRwvt)

85 Is it about rabbits? I like rabbits. Battered and deep fried. Tastes just like chicken. (or so I'm told. Bonded tree cats like them, too.)

Posted by: Fox2! at April 20, 2014 07:55 AM (cHwSy)

86 I always say every word of the Judeo-Christian scripture may be divinely perfect, but that doesn't necessarily mean every passage means what we think it means.

So many this.

Posted by: Gregory of Yardale at April 20, 2014 07:55 AM (6GRz5)

Happy Easter to the Horde! While on vaycay last week I managed to get through "Shovel Ready," which isn't a thick book. I'm just a really slow reader.

I think this title was mentioned here a couple weeks ago. It's set in a future NYC that doesn't seem that far off. After suitcase nukes make parts of the city uninhabitable, those with cash take to "limning," or spending lots of time in coffin-like beds, hooked up to IVs that allow them to live in fantasy worlds rather than the bleak, real one. "Spademan," our protagonist, is a modern-day hitman, who takes out the dreamers if the price is right and he's okay with the job. Bleak, very, very bleak.

Posted by: RushBabe at April 20, 2014 07:55 AM (hrIP5)

88 LOL, just checked to see what it is now (I paid $20). They now have the combo pack Ben Hur + Ten Commandments for $10. That is a steal, especially if you don't have these yet. (and I am mad now)

http://tinyurl.com/n4smbuc

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 07:57 AM (T2V/1)

89 So actually it was probably a good thing that I got the e-mail from the official in my denomination. because I felt like hell last night and this morning (I have some kind of intestinal bug) but the e-mail energized me enough to get out the door and preach what was probably a more fiery sermon on Jesus' "real" resurrection. I would have gone anyway; You can't just cancel a service on Easter and unless you're near death. and if I had there would have been nobody to officiate at Holy Communion. I made a point of not getting to close to people and since they break off the bread on their own I hope I didn't infect them. No I can collapse and let someone else take care of our simple Easter dinner. It will only be our little family for that.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 07:57 AM (XyM/Y)

90 17 Thanks for that recommendation, Vic. Bought it for the kid. His friend who is going to West Point sounds like the Massengale fellow.

Posted by: NCKate at April 20, 2014 07:57 AM (BD6t/)

91 I don't know how many of you have been following it, but Larry Correia has been calling for / sponsoring a Hugo Award counter insurgency to negate the leftist circle jerk that those awards tend to fall into. The butthurt and schadenfreude are delicious. http://tinyurl.com/k8lnnt6

Posted by: Emile Antoon Khadaji at April 20, 2014 07:58 AM (BVTtz)

92 72 As for Marquez being a pioneer of magical realism, I'm sure you mean the sort of pioneer that followed in the footsteps of Jorge Luis Borges, right? (STAND BACK! I have a BA in Spanish Literature, and I'm not afraid to use it!) Posted by: Kindltot at April 20, 2014 11:42 AM (SZM+L) ----------------------- Hah! But Borges absolutely (and rightly, IMO) denied that he was a magical realist. Garcia was definitely influenced by Borges --- who wasn't?--- but I'd say the true pioneer of magical realism was Miguel Angel Asturias. Garcia admits that El Presidente was transformative for him. BTW, Borges is one of those Big Authors I've just never "gotten." I've tried, but some "get" him and some don't.

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 07:58 AM (dfYL9)

93 90 His friend who is going to West Point sounds like the Massengale fellow.

Posted by: NCKate at April 20, 2014 11:57 AM (BD6t/)

If so tell him to watch his back.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 07:58 AM (T2V/1)

94 83 Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 20, 2014 11:54 AM (V0aFE) That was my first WWII read. I couldn't put it down...

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 07:58 AM (FCgaq)

95 I second the recommendation for A Rifleman Went to War. Its a worm's eye view of WWI combat by a guy that becomes a sniper. Currently reading the "Spy with No Name" series by Len Deighton. I finished The Ipcress File and was a bit underwhelmed. The protagonist's adventures are rather disjointed and Deighton doesn't really explain why the spy has to go to Syria and then a Pacific atoll for an American A-bomb test. The part where our hero is kidnapped and tortured is the shortest part of the book. I frankly think the movie adaptation starring Michael Caine is superior to the book. I am in the second of the series, Horse Under Water, and like it pretty well. Our hero is in Portugal rooting out a British Fascists that had collaborated with the Nazis in WWII (the action takes place sometime in the 1950s or early 60s). Its a tighter narrative and I have been enjoying it pretty well.

Posted by: Retired Buckeye Cop at April 20, 2014 07:59 AM (1htQa)

96 Good for you, FenelonSpoke, hope you enjoy the rest of the day, and get better soon.

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at April 20, 2014 08:00 AM (V0aFE)

97 There was a lot of hand-wringing both leading up to, and during the second world war, regarding the role of Christians in the fight against evils like fascism.

I come down on the side of, you either fight, or you subjugate yourself to humans. Pretending you have a third option doesn't change the fact that there is no third option.

I don't know anything about the guy, but martyr seems like a perfectly acceptable term. He was in the service of the Lord, even if it makes some Christians uncomfortable to acknowledge that fact.

Posted by: BurtTC at April 20, 2014 08:02 AM (BeSEI)

98 Note also that they made a TV series from that book with my wife's hunk playing the lead. That was the only thing that the series had going for it. They only took it to the end of the WWII island campaign and they made quite a few changes for PC. Also took a lot of stuff out despite it being a week long mei series (it is a long book).

So, normal case where book much better than movie.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 20, 2014 08:02 AM (T2V/1)

99 I am reading a great mystery series by Stuart Palmer, it is his Hildegarde Withers series about a 3rd grade teacher in the early 1930s who ends up teaming up with a police detective and solving crimes in NYC. They are fun to read. I can usually guess the criminal pretty quickly but it is enjoyable to follow how Hildegarde figures it out.

Posted by: ParanoidGirlinSeattle at April 20, 2014 08:04 AM (RZ8pf)

100 BTW, Borges is one of those Big Authors I've just never "gotten." I've tried, but some "get" him and some don't.

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 11:58 AM (dfYL9)

I think it's all a matter of him just not appealing to a lot of readers. There's almost no character development in his work and they're very dry. I would never think less of anybody's taste based solely on whether they like him or not.

Posted by: Captain Hate at April 20, 2014 08:04 AM (fRwvt)

101 93 I'd prefer he continue as is so I can enjoy watching the fallout. If a kid can be a rat bastard at 17 years old, he is one.

Posted by: NCKate at April 20, 2014 08:05 AM (BD6t/)

102 100 Years of Solitude is great! I just got through a forced march through the five available volumes of A Song of Ice and Fire. Last night. I feel like I've been booglerized, baby.

Posted by: Buddha at April 20, 2014 08:08 AM (s/sIv)

103 In case you thought Big Fascist Media has given up their bullshit campaign to frame Pope Francis as a an obama supporter, ... today on CNN: "Popes And Presidents" with Woof Blitzer. Gee, I wonder what it'll be about (really) ...

Posted by: Soothie § at April 20, 2014 08:09 AM (841yG)

104 since when do we pronounce Kiev as "keev?"

Posted by: Soothie § at April 20, 2014 08:12 AM (841yG)

105 Resurrexit sicut dixit! Alleluia! Terra tremuit, et quievit, dum resurget in judicio Deus, alleluia! If I may, I recommend the Victamae Pashali Lauds. You can find it anywhere, I'm too wiped from the Vigil Mass to type it in. Regina Coeli, Laetare, Alleluia!

Posted by: Tantrumblogo at April 20, 2014 08:12 AM (GwLJQ)

106 "Popes And Presidents" with Woof Blitzer. ---------------- Jeopardy category!!! Should be a hoot!

Posted by: Margarita DeVille at April 20, 2014 08:13 AM (dfYL9)

107 It's been a while since I read Metaxes' Bonhoeffer book. But as I recall, German officers of the Prussian nobility were looking to kill Hitler and wanted to make sure they wouldn't go to Hell for it. Personally, I won't be judging Bonhoeffer. I do think Betsy Ten Boom had the better response to Hitler. And when she died, her body did not suffer corruption.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at April 20, 2014 08:15 AM (V70Uh)

108 I used to have a doorway that looked like that when it was open. Just saying.

Posted by: Up With People at April 20, 2014 08:15 AM (pf+hU)

109 Bonhoeffer was also witness to the Nazis' corruption of his beloved German Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at April 20, 2014 08:17 AM (V70Uh)

110 They closed the CU campus. Library is open but the campus is closed and trespassers will be violated, or something. Probably a 4/20 thing. Feh.

Posted by: boulder toilet hobo at April 20, 2014 08:24 AM (GriRN)

111

10 horrifying Easter bunnies that will haunt your nightmares:

http://tinyurl.com/m8jrndz

Posted by: John Libtardo Industries at April 20, 2014 08:24 AM (+5PEN)

112 wow I predicted Mitch McConnell would lose in 2014, and as usual I was right McConnell is in deep trouble in KY.

Posted by: Soothie § at April 20, 2014 08:24 AM (841yG)

113 In the car I am listening to "Bossypants" by Tina Fey, which is not nearly as annoying as I was expecting. I almost dumped it in the beginning because I wasn't laughing at anything, but I decided to give it a bit more of a chance, and it's not bad. In dead-tree, I am reading Gwen Bristow's Plantation Trilogy which consists of "Deep Summer" (just finished) which begins with settlers in Louisiana before the Revolutionary War, "The Handsome Road" which starts in 1859 so you know what's coming, and mostly focuses on the poor side of the family, and then "This Side of Glory" bringing things back together again set against the background of WW I. And on my Kindle, I am reading "Savile: The Beast" about Jimmy Savile who is, one may hope, currently burning in hell, or being tortured in Purgatory for t=Eternity - 1 nanosecond. The cravenness of the BBC is ... impressive. Everyone could see the dirtbag taking young girls to his dressing room. Everyone assumed what was going on and no one lifted a single solitary finger to stop him. QEII even made him a "Sir" and what's really disgusting is, that's never been pulled. The book still refers to him as "Sir Jimmy Savile." Can't they yank honors? He's dead so he won't care, and one can't imagine his family would have the gall to complain, so why the hell not? Jeez.

Posted by: Tonestaple at April 20, 2014 08:25 AM (B7YN4)

114 You call them emoticons; I call them typoglyphs. Obviously.

Posted by: I lurk, therefore I amn't at April 20, 2014 08:27 AM (ab+jQ)

115 DangerGirl: You can stop there with the GoT series; books 4 and 5, esp. book 4, will make you want to throatpunch GRRM (if you don't want to already). Boring, tedious, and boring again... I quit recommending the series to people because I didn't want them to end up as disappointed as I was.

Posted by: PabloD at April 20, 2014 08:27 AM (SGw+w)

116 "In my opinion, murdering a political leader is difficult to justify under any flavor of Christian theology, and Bonhoeffer is no longer around to tell us why he thought what he was doing was right, given his understanding of the gospel." You missed the asterisk on Commandment number 6, it says: "*except for Hitler"

Posted by: Boxy Brown at April 20, 2014 08:27 AM (88OyH)

117 I'm from Paterson, NJ where Rubin Carter committed that triple murder and every old-timer I ever spoke with, black or white, thought he was guilty as sin. The only one who didn't, a black guy I worked with who grew up with Carter, admitted though he though he was certainly capable of the act. It was outside leftists with political axes to grind who turned it into a cause celebre, and they basically got him off eventually on technicalities. Dylan's song is a great tune, but the words (written by Jacques Levy, a playwright) were bullshit. Dylan did do a benefit for Carter, and Joni Mitchell, bless her, refused to participate, calling Rubin Carter, a " jive-ass ni@@er." That's a direct quote....

Posted by: JoeyBagels at April 20, 2014 08:31 AM (Usdw3)

118 Happy Easter to the horde. I second the recommendation of "Death on A Friday Afternoon" by Fr. Neuhaus. Its an immensely moving meditation on Christs death. One detail Fr. Neuhaus mentioned that has stuck in my head is that although medieval artists depicted very tall crosses,the reality is the Romans didn't waste lumber. There was no reason to hang them high, it was more efficient (and terrifying to onlookers) to have the crucified only about 6 inches or so off the ground. So when Christ spoke to Mary and John on from the cross, He was looking right into their eyes.

Posted by: Donna &&&&V. at April 20, 2014 08:32 AM (+XMAD)

119 I just finished Gutfeld's book. It was okay, but I was a little underwhelmed by it. He's a funny guy, and I agree with most of his assessments, but to be honest it almost seemed like there was no real effort to substantively make his points. Granted that it wasn't his aim to write a serious political tome, but one can only make so many puns before running out of steam. I'd mildly recommend it for the humor.

Posted by: Paul Zummo at April 20, 2014 08:33 AM (ZNIRz)

120 Pastries?

Not surprising. Pastries figured prominently in Sabrina Chase's own book, The Last Mage Guardian.

Posted by: Anachronda at April 20, 2014 08:34 AM (U82Km)

121 Any recommendations from the free section on Kindle? I've got a plane flight to California followed by a train trip to New York, four hours each way on both trips, so I need some entertainment, but I'm being cheap.

Posted by: Paul Zummo at April 20, 2014 08:35 AM (ZNIRz)

122 I say let Sir Jimmy 's-evil keep his knighthood. Add his face to the coat of arms for Saxe-Coburg. Fly his tracksuit over Buckingham Palace. Let it be a warning to future monarchs, that they are to take their responsibilities seriously.

Posted by: boulder toilet hobo at April 20, 2014 08:36 AM (GriRN)

123 Well I guess I should have read the entire post before commenting because The Book Bub was already mentioned.

Posted by: Paul Zummo at April 20, 2014 08:36 AM (ZNIRz)

124 Well the world is deeply absurd, andGutfeld sees that is the best way to understand it,

As for the Valkyrie plot, one wonders how successful they would have been, since some figures in it, were not so squeaky clean, but it was certain a necessary thing to try.

Posted by: Jeffrey Pelt at April 20, 2014 08:38 AM (Jsiw/)

125 "you missed the asterisk on Commandment 6" It doesn't need an asterisk. It's two simple words in Hebrew: "lo tirsah" - don't commit *murder*. Executing criminals and killing enemies in war happened a lot in the Hebrew Scriptures after that, to G-d's approval.

Posted by: boulder toilet hobo at April 20, 2014 08:39 AM (GriRN)

126 Joni Mitchell, bless her, refused to participate, calling Rubin Carter, a " jive-ass ni@@er." That's a direct quote....

Posted by: JoeyBagels at April 20, 2014 12:31 PM (Usdw3)

Wow, did not know that. I thought he was guilty all along. I usually agree with Dylan but think he got sold a bill of rotten goods on this item.

Posted by: Captain Hate at April 20, 2014 08:40 AM (fRwvt)

127 Happy Easter everyone....

Posted by: phoenixgirl @phxazgrl at April 20, 2014 08:40 AM (u8GsB)

128 Soothie, Links? I'd like to read how much trouble McConnell is in. Thank you,

Posted by: Carol at April 20, 2014 08:44 AM (gjOCp)

129 118 -

Lots of Christians missed that asterisk.

It's there.

To call a plot to kill Hitler "murder" is going to cause one's argument to falter on its merits from the start.

Look, you either believe in the justice of war or you don't. If you don't, then you have no business asking others to go over there and fight one for you. You are either prepared to get human blood on your hands, or you accept that other humans are perfectly at liberty to enslave you.

God never said we had to accept being slaves, and the Commandment is not meant to be a proscription against taking human life under any circumstance. If it was, then God Himself is guilty of directing his people to break it.

Posted by: BurtTC at April 20, 2014 08:44 AM (BeSEI)

130 For those interested in the history of the liberal / Progressive movement, I highly recommend Fred Siegel's "The Revolt Against the Masses". It's an excellent review of the racism and classism that birthed liberalism, and continues as it's most salient characteristic to this day.

Posted by: pep at April 20, 2014 08:47 AM (4nR9/)

131 Happy Easter! Hi Phoenix Girl!

Posted by: Carol at April 20, 2014 08:48 AM (gjOCp)

132 Anyway the book I've been going through is a collection of poetry. The Diwan of al-Farazdaq: https://archive.org/details/divandefrazdak01farauoft Al-Farazdaq gets quoted a lot as a primary source for Umayyad propaganda 670-730 AD. But I couldn't find it except in Arabic, and none of it in easily translatable form (it's poetry, so... hard). BUT, I just found out that someone translated it into French in 1870 ... and someone posted the PDF... and OCR'ed it. So, Google Translate, baby! Here's al-Farazdaq as a youth, 670ish AD, hiding out in the City of the Prophet: "If I wanted, the ivory bracelet which jumps (and resounds) upon her plump arms would be mine: "But it belongs to the fairest of the Medinese beauties: who has not lived in poverty, and has never marched behind the frame of a miserable husband. ... "She is not one of those skinny (beauties) whose camps are at el-Adan, and who tread lightly in their long dresses with embroidered sleeves. "She is of a family that collects tax on Christians; the height of her nobility rivals the steep mountains..." ... so, a bit of a chubby chaser, apparently. That and he liked rich women

Posted by: boulder toilet hobo at April 20, 2014 08:49 AM (GriRN)

133 132 Posted by: pep at April 20, 2014 12:47 PM (4nR9/) Bork's "Slouching Towards Gomorrah" is another excellent read along those lines.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 08:51 AM (FCgaq)

134 43 I'm thinking about re-reading James Michner's works.

I'm about halfway through Poland on the recommendation of my Russian prof; also interesting to me as I have Polish ancestors, but know nothing about Poland.

Haven't quite figured out what to make of it. He's lightly brushed over what look to be some very interesting bits of Polish history and is spending an awful lot of time in 1890's Vienna (by then, my ancestors had bugged out for the sunnier shores of Minnesota).

It's the first Michener I've read.

Posted by: Anachronda at April 20, 2014 08:54 AM (U82Km)

135

Look, you either believe in the justice of war or you don't.

Fine. But don't call Bonhoeffer a martyr. Martyrs don't kill people, and then claim the glory of Christ for doing so.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 08:55 AM (RwTMN)

136 135 132 Posted by: pep at April 20, 2014 12:47 PM (4nR9/)

Bork's "Slouching Towards Gomorrah" is another excellent read along those lines.

Agreed. It's Easter, so I'll hold my tongue regarding Teddy Kennedy and his probable current core temperature.

Posted by: pep at April 20, 2014 08:56 AM (4nR9/)

137
Happy Easter to all.

Posted by: Guy Mohawk at April 20, 2014 08:57 AM (hJauc)

138

It was outside leftists with political axes to grind who turned it into a cause celebre, and they basically got him off eventually on technicalities.

Hmmm... lefties idolizing a vicious thug, you say? Unprecedented!

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 08:59 AM (RwTMN)

139 >>a very silly book for very silly people Gasp! It's personalized for *me*? Cool.

Posted by: Mama AJ at April 20, 2014 09:00 AM (SUKHu)

140 136 I've read just about everything he's written. Poland is one of his weaker endeavors. As mentioned previously, Alaska, Chesapeake, & Hawaii are excellent. I'd also add Texas to the mix. I think what appeals to me more than anything is the consistent theme of rugged individualism which flows throughout his stories. The Drifters is also an interesting read, however be prepared for lots of dirty, dirty hippie-ness.

Posted by: Yep, I'm a nerd... at April 20, 2014 09:02 AM (FCgaq)

141 Book Bub is weird. You can favor Historical Fiction Historical Romance BUT There's no category for History!

Posted by: Comrade Arthur at April 20, 2014 09:07 AM (h53OH)

142 137 -

I don't know whether he's a martyr or not, but would not categorically say what he was attempting to do: end the evil that is Hitler, does NOT make one a martyr or a saint.

In other words, the act itself would not disqualify one for the categorization.

If you think it does, then I would suggest you are struggling with this concept about the justice of war more than you may realize.

Posted by: BurtTC at April 20, 2014 09:07 AM (BeSEI)

143 Re: 126 - "Well the world is deeply absurd, and Gutfeld sees that is the best way to understand it" And/or mock it like Breitbart. There's a lot to be said for mockery on the Right, whether by Gutfeld or Dennis Miller. Mockery makes the "cool" seem less than cool.

Posted by: doug at April 20, 2014 09:08 AM (pkn7l)

144 Fenelon, I'm glad you were well enough for communion. Rest the this afternoon & hopefully you'll be good as new tomorrow. I wish you a very blessed Easter.

Posted by: Carol at April 20, 2014 09:08 AM (gjOCp)

145 Re: Bonhoffer, I saw what I thought was a quote that said he viewed trying to kill Hitler in the same light as shooting a motorist in the split second before they plowed their car into a crowd. It's been several years though and I don't remember the source so there's no guarantee it's accurate.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 09:10 AM (GDulk)

146 Ha! A rat bastard commie gets popped in the puss. I would like to have seen that.-open blogger Well, no wonder why I saw a hell of an obituary for this guy, he was a commie.

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at April 20, 2014 09:14 AM (HVff2)

147 Finished listening to Arthur Conan Doyle's "The White Company" on TTS. It was an okay standard historical adventure, nothing special. Of course there's the possibility that it was a bigger deal when it was written. Now listening to Don Quixote. Cervantes seems to have mainly used the character as a way to meet *other* wiser and better characters. I think it was a People's Cube blogger who wrote several years ago that Cervante's meant to show the *danger* of romanticizing the past and past unearned glories and I can totally see that.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 09:15 AM (GDulk)

148 105 since when do we pronounce Kiev as "keev?"

Since we pronounce it in Ukrainian rather than Russian? Same way Lugansk becomes Luhansk.

Posted by: Anachronda at April 20, 2014 09:18 AM (U82Km)

149

In other words, the act itself would not disqualify one for the categorization.

I actually think it does, and you're probably in the extreme minority if you believe otherwise.

The early Christians didn't conspire to kill Nero, an evil monster if there ever was one. They rather left room for God's vengeance, as the Scriptures instructed them.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 09:19 AM (RwTMN)

150 love in the time of diarrhea & vomiting.....sounds wonderful!

Posted by: phoenixgirl @phxazgrl at April 20, 2014 09:22 AM (u8GsB)

151 I read somewhere that the IRS worried Robert Lynn Aspirin to death. Posted by: Boss Moss at April 20, 2014 10:59 AM (f2VuK) Is he dead too? All the authors I grew up reading are dying off. Good thing the Horde is helping renew the genre.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 09:22 AM (GDulk)

152 151 In other words, the act itself would not disqualify one for the categorization. I actually think it does, and you're probably in the extreme minority if youbelieve otherwise. The early Christians didn't conspire to kill Nero, an evil monster if there ever was one. They rather left room for God's vengeance, as the Scriptures instructed them. Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 01:19 PM (RwTMN) This & some past posts, interesting argument to kill or not to kill. I'm feeling like an attorney I can argue both sides out of mouth. Ugh

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at April 20, 2014 09:22 AM (HVff2)

153 Meanwhile the guy who commanded the Blue Angles twice and racked up some nice leadership awards has been relieved of command of the aerial demonstration unit.

The literary connection, the PAO for the Navy in the news release is named Kafka.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 09:23 AM (wIBSj)

154 If the early Christians tried to kill Nero-and failed-he would have wiped out the entire sect, something he was trying to do anyway....

Posted by: JoeyBagels at April 20, 2014 09:24 AM (QkMmo)

155 Happy Easter everyone

Posted by: chemjeff at April 20, 2014 09:30 AM (9GG/0)

156 I thought Bonhoeffer was considered more of a martyr in the way that he faced death instead of what he was attempting to do while alive. Me, I don't care either way. It is important to accept that your actions have consequences to both yourself and the world at large though.

Posted by: Kindltot at April 20, 2014 09:35 AM (SZM+L)

157 He is risen indeed!!! Happy Easter to all of you 'rons and 'ettes!!! Fenelon, I hope you feel better soon. But thank you for standing up for the true gospel. We need more to do that. We have started attending a Messianic Jewish congregation. It is very interesting, and requiring us to learn Hebrew as well. But mainly, it is scriptural, and there aren't Obama bumperstickers in the parking lot. I feel bad thinking this, but if half the cars in a church parking lot have those stickers, I have to think the church is preaching something that isn't the Gospel. As for books, I'm reading B.H. Liddell's The Second World War. It's very British-centric, but gives an interesting perspective on the thought processes of the Allies, especially prior to US intervention.

Posted by: Moki at April 20, 2014 09:43 AM (EvHC8)

158 On Kindle I've read Sarah Hoyt's "Witchfinder" and Ceders Sanderson's "Pixie Noir". Liked them both but would have preferred a less large role for a homosexual supporting character in Witchfinder. Have to give Hoyt credit that she made it an integral part of the plot at least instead of simply pandering. Finished John Ringo's "Council War" series, or at least as much as *he's* finished. There is certainly a possibility for more books but it's been six years so I suspect he's done. Also read Jim Butcher's "Cold Days" from the Dresden series. I guess I'm also falling into escapist fantasy lately.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 09:43 AM (GDulk)

159 Not sure if I would call There Will Be Dragons, Emerald Sea, and Against the Tide as strictly escapist fantasy.

Some of the Council who have gone progressive crazy in a quest to improve humanity and what has happened is they have created monsters instead. After how that one Key ended up where it did, there should be more books.

But Ringo has a problem, he has too many series - aka irons in the fire - and even back in 2010 had doubts he would wrap them all up.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 09:53 AM (wIBSj)

160 Agree w/ pablo on foregoing books 4and5 of GOT. The suckage is strong in those two.

Posted by: Buddha at April 20, 2014 09:55 AM (s/sIv)

161 I can't believe people are criticizing Bonhoeffer for plotting against Hitler. I don't care how you fucking phrase it. It was heroic. And since he had to know the chances of getting away with it were slim, he is a martyr.

Posted by: Maj. Beauregard Pug, Continental Army at April 20, 2014 09:56 AM (8c12T)

162 Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 01:53 PM (wIBSj) Well, yeah....but the last one had Orcs.In.Space! Even said so on the blurb.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 09:57 AM (GDulk)

163

>>98. I don't know anything about the guy, but martyr seems like a perfectly acceptable term. He was in the service of the Lord, even if it makes some Christians uncomfortable to acknowledge that fact. >>

I'm with you.

Posted by: rrpjr at April 20, 2014 09:58 AM (s/yC1)

164 I have that book also. In hardcover. But the title is so wonky never remember it. And the conclusion of that battle did put a timetable for them to end it or else.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 10:01 AM (wIBSj)

165 Posted by: Gregory of Yardale at April 20, 2014 11:52 AM (6GRz5) I'm sure you're sick of hearing this, but when's the *next* one coming out? And have you gotten an editor? Love everything about your books but the hideous typos.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 10:01 AM (GDulk)

166 Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 02:01 PM (wIBSj) I got the hardcover from the library (which I *finally* found a couple of weeks ago). Reminds me of a WoW graphic with orc and human facing off.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at April 20, 2014 10:03 AM (GDulk)

167 One of the "modern" religious book I really enjoyed was Nevil Shute's Round the Bend. His best novel, IMHO.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at April 20, 2014 10:05 AM (u82oZ)

168 And it has been 16 days since I sent a story submission to Liberty Island to the email address they have on their web-site.

So far zero response.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at April 20, 2014 10:11 AM (wIBSj)

169 I read "Love in the Time of Cholera" and "One Hundred Years of Solitude". Both were tedious and stumbled around without going anywhere. Not a fan.

If you are looking for magical realism (or whatever that dumb oxymoronic reference is) read Mark Halperin.

P.S. Happy Easter and He really did rise from the grave!

Posted by: elliot m at April 20, 2014 10:11 AM (vPhnb)

170 Frederick Brown, The Embrace of Unreason I'm looking at this now at the Barnes ampersand Noble. It's about how France, despite having a decent army, failed to "fight on the streets" and in the... riverbanks I suppose are the beaches between Paris and Germany... after the Krauts outmanoeuvred them. It seems the French had decided that fascism was fine, and something had to be done about the Jews. So, why NOT Hitler. A French fuhrer would have been better, but hey. The book makes a good case that this disgusting thought process was a thing with French intellectuals (the other big idea there was of course Stalin, which isn't any better). The Stavisky Affair was a watershed: there had been a Ponzi scheme in 1934, and a lot of French politicians were deep in it. The parallels with Bernie Madoff are chilling (I bet Madoff converted lots of Americans to antisemitism, ditto Goldman Sachs). And then there was the 1937 World Fair in which there was a pavilion dedicated to the wonderful art of the Nuremberg Rally. Pretty damn scary.

Posted by: boulder t'hobo at April 20, 2014 10:18 AM (6mYGI)

171 Methinks OregonMuse is a bit squishy on Hitler.

Posted by: packsoldier at April 20, 2014 10:22 AM (QJGAX)

172 BonhÃ¶ffer isn't even a martyr by Islamic standards, let alone Christian. He didn't die for the faith. He tried to kill, for justice. He died because he failed. Now, what he did *was* just, but it wasn't (specifically) Christian. And saying OregonMuse is "squishy on Hitler" is just slimy.

Posted by: boulder t'hobo at April 20, 2014 10:28 AM (6mYGI)

173 Happy Easter!!!!!!! Vic I LOVE D & L Eddings!! The Belgariad was the first Fantasy I ever read. I'm ecstatic that my son is reading The Mallorean now. I'm going to check out the Elder Gods, Ty for the suggestion

Posted by: ginaswo at April 20, 2014 10:30 AM (VGpgb)

174 Love in the time of cholera is pretty good. I enjoyed it anyway.

Posted by: SailorChick '95 at April 20, 2014 10:34 AM (uhuPK)

175 There was an interesting column in the WSJ the other day viewing Dante's Divine Comedy as s self help guide Added that to my reread list Some works get better and or wildly different when read years apart. I love that

Right now I'm reading The Nag Hammadi Scriptures edited by Meyer Thank God, literally, for inspiring the footnotes that help decipher the words inspired then

Posted by: ginaswo at April 20, 2014 10:37 AM (VGpgb)

176 How come we can have Umlauts and not Ampersands?

Posted by: Tonestaple at April 20, 2014 10:52 AM (B7YN4)

177 Aargh - I always arrive when the Book Thread is practically over! I've been waiting for weeks to get here and ask a question about a book I read once and have forgotten the name of. Always the morons have come through and helped me rediscover these lost books, so I'll post this in the hopes someone will see it. If no one answers, I'll try again next week when the early crowd arrives. OK, it was written, I think, in the late 50s or early 60s, when the Cold War was in full swing. It was that period when people were getting fatalistic about communism, and there was a feeling that eventually it would wear down the West and the best we could do was sort of stall its inevitable progress. It takes place somewhat in the future. The main plot I remember is about a Russian writer who is one of those privileged types who gets to travel in the West. He's in America for some conference and news comes that democratic forces have managed to overthrow the Communists. He gives interviews denouncing communism and welcoming freedom, when an update arrives - the communists have crushed the revolt. He has no choice but to defect to the West now. Now that he has the chance to really write the truth, he has a complete writer's block. He starts to hang out more and more at a restaurant haunted by other Russian expatriates, and ends up sinking into alcoholism. In the end, a Soviet commissar comes to take him back to the USSR and he doesn't even resist. There are some other subplots, about an American girl in love with a Soviet agent, but the one about the Russian writer is the one I remember. The story was very fatalistic, the theme being that the Russians were fated to triumph because of their unwavering certainty, even though their cause was rotten. I had thought it was written by Koestler, but I've looked up his bibliography and nothing there looks likely. Does anyone have any ideas?

Posted by: Dr. Mabuse at April 20, 2014 11:23 AM (FkH4y)

178 Happy Blessed Easter! But go easy on Bonhoeffer. Many here at the HQ would have no problem dropping nukes on the Middle East following 9/11. Certainly, that would have probably sent a stronger message than dicking around there for 10+ years, but it's hard for me to see how a belief in that and in Christ can mingle. And this is from a guy who rolls his eyes everytime the leftist catholic priests here in Tucson make intercessions for "an end to the drone violence and for stronger gun laws." Lol

Posted by: Danny at April 20, 2014 11:23 AM (6HLNw)

179 Just finishing up this book today and I think it's perfect for the Moron Horde. It's called Beverly Hills is Burning by Neil Russell. It's got it all: sex (including lesbians!), violence, action, suspense, mystery, profanity, gangsters, hitmen, actors, aviators and billionaires set against an incredible backdrop of a story that weaves back and forth between modern day LA and 1930s Hollywood, New York, and Cuba. And the main character (Rail Black) is a billionaire former Delta Force operator who loves America. Kind of refreshing no?

http://amzn.to/1hUOwFa

Posted by: SircleMemphis at April 20, 2014 11:27 AM (llp1/)

180 I hope those who have read Stephenson's Reamde don't get hooked on him. I have spent the last year, on and off, plowing (with great glee and occasional frustration) through Cryptnomicon and the Baroque Cycle. That is well over 4,000 pages. I have also done Snow Crash and Zodiac. I am having a lot of trouble getting through Ananthem. But Stephenson is addicting. The cocaine of the paragraph set. Hi, my name is Anchovy and I am a Stephenson addict. I can't help myself. Help me. As a side note, I believe he writes all of these in long hand with a pen and paper. Stephenson is probably one of the top 5 people in the world I would like to meet.

Posted by: anchovy at April 20, 2014 11:28 AM (MNxW+)

181 Marquez may have been a commie, but his writing is amazing. Read "One Hundred Years of Solitude" or "Autumn of the Patriarch" and see if you don't agree.

Posted by: Mark Shaw at April 20, 2014 11:50 AM (g/WXT)

182 If you want Christians genuinely martyred by the Nazis, you could look at Maximilian Kolbe or Edith Stein. Or the 108 Polish martyrs of WWII. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/108_Martyrs_of_World_War_II Or these four men who were guillotined for distributing copies anti-Nazi sermons. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/2739882/posts (Foxe's Book of Martyrs is historically dubious at best...)

Posted by: Res at April 20, 2014 11:54 AM (ljZDy)

183 For those military-minded Morons who are fans of LTC Tom Kratman, the eARC for "The Rods and the Axe""is up on baen.com- will cost you fifteen bucks but at least you know where the Carerra-verse is going a little further.

Posted by: SGT Dan at April 20, 2014 12:10 PM (jUeGo)

184 I just wanted to make a few comments about Dietrich Bonhoeffer (and to quote from Metaxas' book) since I am one of the people here who has read Metaxas' book, "Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy" which I enjoyed very much. I can certainly understand why people would not regard him as a martyr for the faith. He was not a martyr in the sense of giving one's life for the faith as Christians who executed in early Rome did, or the men and women who face death every day in the Mideast who are killed simply because they are Christian. However, he did give his life for a greater cause which is one definition of being a martyr. h gave his life for that of his beloved Germany and against the horror of the evil of Nazism which was absolutely antithetical to what he believed about Christianity. The title of Metaxas' book uses the term martyr, but I don't even know that Bonhoeffer would describe himself that way. I think he would just describe himself as a Christian. (The following comments are taken from the chapter "On the Road to freedom" in Metaxas' biography of Bonhoeffer) Bonheoffer died April 8th-the first Sunday after Easter. Before that happened he was to hold a religious service for other prisoners, several of whom were Roman Catholic and one whom was an Atheist. Bonhoeffer didn't want to impose, but the Atheist in particular insisted. Twenty four hours before he left this world he performed the service of a pastor He read the verses of the day Isaiah 53:5, "With his stripes we are healed" and 1st Peter 1:3 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy we have been born to a living hope through our resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ from the dead." He then explained these verses to everyone, Best (one of the prisoners) recalled that Bonhoeffer spoke to us in a manner which reached the hearts of all, finding just the words to express the spirit of our imprisonment thoughts and resolutions which it had brought." He had hardly finished the last prayer before he was being taken away by the guards. He knew that this meant his end. Best said. "He drew me aside and said, " This is the end he said. For me it is the beginning of life." After his sentence of death was passed the Dr, at Flossenburg said,"I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer kneeling on the floor praying fervently to his God...I was deeply moved by the way that this lovable man prayed, so devout and certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the steps to the fallow, brave and composed. In the almost 50 years I have worked as a doctor, I have hardly every seen a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God." People can certainly come to disagreement as to whether Bohhoeffer did was right. Oregon Muse is quite correct in mentioning that the early Christian martyrs-as far as we know- did not plot against Nero- and indeed prayed for their persecutors. I don't think I personally could have plotted the death of Hitler. However, Bonhoeffer died on the direct orders of Hitler because Hitler wanted to take down the men who conspired against him, even though the Nazi regime was collapsing around him and Hitler would die three weeks later. I guess what makes Bonhoeffer a martyr is that for me is that he would not have died had he stayed in America, and if he had not been faithful to speaking out against Hitler. I think he would have died even without the plot against Hitler. Hitler loathed Christians who didn't support him.In fact, Bonhoeffer was initially imprisoned before the authorities knew about the plat to kill Hitler. He suffered for his faith, and felt like it was his duty to suffer with those who suffered. His body like the Jews who died in the camp at the same time were burned in piles because the crematorium wasn't working." In the memorial service for Bonhoeffer Bishop Bell in London said, of Bonhoeffer, "Wherever he went..he was fearless, regardless of himself, and with it all, devoted his heart and soul to his parents, his friends, his country as God willed it to be, to his church and to his Master."

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 12:19 PM (XyM/Y)

185 Marquez may have been a commie, but his writing is amazing. Read "One Hundred Years of Solitude" or "Autumn of the Patriarch" and see if you don't agree.

Posted by: Mark Shaw at April 20, 2014 03:50 PM (g/WXT)

I did, and I don't. Along with Susan Sonntag, Frantz Fanon and Chinua Achebe, he is on my "most pretentious and I'm bitter I had to read them" authors list.

That was when I was young and had to do what professors told me, however. Now that I am older and the master of my own fate, I can drop a book and run away after the first few pages tell me it's going to be an overwrought, overwritten, self-indulgent stinker. That survival instinct has served me in good stead; it saved me from the Illuminatus! trilogy, the collected works of George R.R. Martin, and everything ever written by William S. Burroughs and anyone he ever met.

Posted by: CQD at April 20, 2014 12:22 PM (4iOIE)

186 As far as fiction and religion are concerned, I've always loved both of these and have re-read them a number of times.

"A Canticle for Leibowitz"

"A Rose for Ecclesiastes".

Happy Easter everyone...

Posted by: HH at April 20, 2014 12:26 PM (XXwdv)

187 And as far as St Maximilian Kolbe, he was a very inspirational man and yes-a martyr for the faith. He was a RC Priest killed for his faith during Hitler's Germany. Here is a short clip from a one man show about him from Saint Luke Productions: http://www.stlukeproductions.com/dramas/saint-maximilian

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 12:32 PM (XyM/Y)

188 Dr. Mabuse, I will post your book bleg in next week's thread and hopefully we'll come up with something. I have done 3 or 4 book blegs and the mighty Horde has always com through.

Posted by: OregonMuse at April 20, 2014 12:38 PM (fTJ5O)

189 I love Foxe's Book of Martyrs-whether dubious or not. :^) ever since I read it at age 15 and requested my mother purchase it- it something she was rather surprised at since we came from an entirely non religious household.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 12:51 PM (XyM/Y)

190 Thank you very much OM! I have trouble getting on the computer on the weekends, as my autistic son tends to monopolize it to watch YouTube videos. It's rare that I get in early on a thread (let alone first!).

Posted by: Dr. Mabuse at April 20, 2014 01:03 PM (FkH4y)

191 Thank you so much, Oregon Muse, for this Easter book thread, and thank you for the very kind mention in your opening remarks. I've been so busy today with church, Easter brunch, and now preparing for Easter dinner that I haven't had time to read through the thread thoroughly, but I'm trying! (In between getting the ham glaze ready and the biscuits done).

BTW, just skimming, and don't have time to go into this too deeply, but I too have qualms about putting Bonhoeffer in the Christian martyr category, as I mentioned previously to Oregon Muse as well. It doesn't mean I'm squishy on Hitler

, it just means that I'm not exactly sure if one could say Pastor Dietrich died because of his Christian faith, or for the fact that he committed what would amount to a treasonous act as a German citizen. I think I might have wanted to do the same as he. But I would hope no one would put my in Fox's Book of Martyrs for it.

Anyway, what matters is that Jesus is alive, and Hitler is dead. Hallelujah.

Posted by: grammie winger at April 20, 2014 02:12 PM (oMKp3)

192 Bonhoeffer: We can judge him ad nauseum, but then God has already doe that. Some critical things to recall or to cause you to read the Metaxas book, Bonhoeffer was a conspirator but did not personally attemp to kill Hitler. That he clearly would have given the chance misses the point of action vs intent. Second, the Metaxas book is worthwhile if for no other reason but that it describes in scary detail how an extreme ideologically driven demagogue can "transform" the Church into a tool of his ideology. In that sense, this book is a superb counterpoint to "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by Shirer in that the Shirer book describes in detail how an apolitical, intensely patriotic and professional military was subverted using similar methods. In a time when many, many otherwise courageous men and women around the globe melted averted their eyes from the truth or surrendered to the ideology, Bonhoeffer fought. He fought for the Church. He fought for the Jews. He fought for the Germany of magnificent culture and intellect and he fought most of all for the heart of Christ ministering to the end as a previous commentor described. I will not judge him. I will simply call myself fortunate for not having to endure the trials he faced.

Posted by: Tom Cantwell at April 20, 2014 02:15 PM (DPIO6)

193 oh, and...Happy Easter! He is Risen!

Posted by: Tom Cantwell at April 20, 2014 02:27 PM (DPIO6)

194 It is a mis-translation of the Bible (Exodus 20:13) that says 'Thou shall not kill', though that is what the King James Version says (and other, lesser known versions also). The 1612 version of the Bible that was Authorized by King James has a lot of these errors. A better translation of the Hebrew is "You will not murder. This is an entirely different way of looking at the topic. If it were morally wrong for a Christian Soldier to kill, then never would a Christian serve in an armed force. Yet many of earliest non-Jewish Christians were soldiers (such as those at Philippi). The difference between "killing" and "murdering" is the concept of "justice". It is okay that a Christian soldier serve, and if necessary kill. But such killing should always be 'just'. Its hard to make a case that any assassination plot against Hitler any time after 1939 would be unjust. Bonhoffer (or any Christian) would have the moral duty to kill Hitler and/or any of his close associates. This is the requirement of justice. To bring this topic up-to-date, consider the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman issue. Zimmerman never claimed that he did NOT kill Martin. Rather, he did not murder Martin. Zimmerman was in fear for his life, and killing Martin was justified. I would not necessarily say that it was a righteous act, but it was justified under Florida law and even that of the Old Testament.

Posted by: Geekasaurus at April 20, 2014 02:35 PM (P9M3r)

195 Next Easter I'm going to go to Grammie Winger's house. :^) Here we just have a little ham in the afternoon and then if anyone is so inclined they just gnaw on leftovers until the evening. At her house they have Easter brunch and then later have Easter dinner with biscuits too. Don't worry, grammie. Iwon't really inflict myself on you. A joyous Easter to you and your fortunate and well fed family. :^)

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 20, 2014 04:03 PM (XyM/Y)

196 I'd recommend some 19th Century/early 20th stuff: Wilkie Collins: "The Moonstone" and "The Woman in White", especially the latter. Thomas Mann: "Buddenbrooks" and if you want to go real heavy -- "The Magic Mountain". And a sleeper by George Orwell: "Burmese Days". More recently Iain Pears's "An Instance of the Fingerpost" and "The Dream of Scipio".

Posted by: BarneyOffal at April 20, 2014 06:18 PM (ul4Lc)

197 91 I don't know how many of you have been following it, but Larry Correia has been calling for / sponsoring a Hugo Award counter insurgency to negate the leftist circle jerk that those awards tend to fall into. The butthurt and schadenfreude are delicious. Posted by: Emile Antoon Khadaji at April 20, 2014 11:58 AM (BVTtz) Yeah, this is 100% worth the forty bucks it cost me to nominate. I didn't expect Vox Day to actually have a shot so I didn't read his work/nominate him. Now I'll have to because if he somehow comes in first the shitstorm would be glorious.

Posted by: BornLib at April 20, 2014 07:44 PM (zpNwC)

198 Sigh. The Book Thread is my favorite thing about this blog, also the most depressing because there are so many great book recommendations. I'll never read them all. But I'll certainly try!

Posted by: sinalco at April 20, 2014 07:50 PM (V42Jv)

199 Post post post...

Posted by: Pixy Misa at May 12, 2014 11:13 PM (2yngH)

200 POST POST POST POSTPOSTPOSTPOSTPOST!

Posted by: Pixy Misa at May 12, 2014 11:13 PM (2yngH)

201 As a member of the Horde who lives in a different time zone, by the time I post here everyone is long gone. However, I want to strongly recommend an excellent book by the only real national leader still alive from the post-WWII era, Lee Kuan Yew. It's titled "One Man's View of the World" and it's very, very good. This guy doesn't mince any words. He's 89 and knows his time is short. Singapore may be the best run country on the planet and he's a big part of the reason. You'd be doing yourself a favor to read what he said. Margaret Thatcher, when in office, read every one of his speeches and stated that he was NEVER wrong. Blurbs don't get much more influential than that, IMNSHO. Happy reading!

Posted by: mac at May 13, 2014 12:14 AM (TVvq0)

202 Thanks for the plug for A Sword Into Darkness (Eman, comment 7)! I think it's a fun read for all, but I'm probably biased. If you'd like a free copy for an honest review, just shoot me an email. I also just put out a collection of military sci-fi short stories that I'm actively looking for reviewers on. Both books have been well received, along with decent sales so far, so I think you'd all be pleased. Take care!

Posted by: Amaysingstories at May 15, 2014 03:23 PM (qpD7G)

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