Bridge of Birds, Barry Hughart

Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart is written in the style of ancient Chinese literature.  It is an imaginary story that takes place in an imaginary China circa 600.  I've had this book on my reading list for 15 years and finally got a copy.

Started:  3/26/2011
Completed: 4/4/2011
Recommendation: EXCELLENT, fun, read!
Recommended By:  I think I read about this book in the Washington Post Book Review
Words I looked up:


bonze -- a Buddhist priest in Japan

Review:  What a fun book!  From references like a story that one of the characters gives of his life that beings with:  "It was a dark and stormy night..."  There is clear humor and there is subtle humor and there is the humor that you get three pages later.  This is the kind of book where you have to share a passage with someone else!  If you read only one book in 15 years, this would not be it, but if you need a good beach read or you want an exciting chuckle (it is an adventure novel) then run out to a used book store (it is out of print) and grab a copy.  You will not regret it.

Empire of Liberty, Gordon S. Wood

Empire of Liberty by Gordon S. Wood is the second in the series The Oxford History of the United States which, oddly, seems to be a very good place to get the history of the US.  I'm reading this book to try and get some material together to teach history to my 5th grade son.

Started: 2/13/2010
Completed:
Recommendation:
Recommended By: A Major at the Pentagon who got to talking with my wife while I took my son on a tour of the Pentagon.
Words I Looked Up:


ancien -- a system or mode no longer prevailing
entablature -- a horizontal, continuous lintel on a classical building supported by columns or a wall, comprising the architrave, frieze, and cornice
labile -- unstable, quick and ready to change
mezzotinto -- a form of intaglio etching in which a metal plate is roughened and then smoothed to bring out an image.(It seems that this word was used to mean fine engraving with a delicate touch.  In the book it was contrasted with an elephant.)
peripatetic -- travelling from place to place, especially working or based in various places for short periods
trenchant -- having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought, expression, or intellect
tympanum -- a vertical recessed triangular space forming the center of a pediment, typically decorated




Review:  Will write one when I'm done.

Jupiter, Ben Bova

Jupiter by Ben Bova is a book written in a series called "The Grand Tour" which has a book for each planet (and some asteroids).  I like the way that Ben Bova takes some science and mixes it with some "extensions" to come up with a really interesting twists for his novels.  By "twists" I mean moral dilemmas, not surprise endings.

Started: 1/19/2011
Completed: 1/27/2011
Recommendation: Gotta be a hard core SF fan to enjoy it
Recommended By: Nobody, I like Ben Bova's stuff and saw this at a yard sale


Review:


This is a book for the hardcore SF reader.  Lots of stuff is assumed, plasma drives, AI, nanotechnology, etc.  If these terms aren't familiar to you, well, the book uses them but doesn't explain them.  There are also several instances of wild hand waving that will frustrate anyone with a science background (aerodynamics seem to be largely ignored though frequently referenced, "scoop ships" get many references but seem to defy any sort of description, and while it is possible to reline with ceramic a running engine nozzle, there is virtually no form of healthcare for the crew anywhere).  The topics evaluated are very broad (if Radar from M*A*S*H was on a space station around Jupiter, what would he do?)  and range from the ethical to religious and off to scientific rather seamlessly.  Some of the science can be jarring (walls for video, but floors that display images are unusual) but the parts that are clearly speculative are treated that way in the novel and the questions that any one of us might ask are briefly addressed (what would it "feel" like if neurons were connected directly to feedback from an engine that was giving out?).  In general, I liked the book.  It was a compelling read, had simple and easy to understand characters.  It is basically a beach book and I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.

Shadowplay, Tad Williams

Shadowplay by Tad Williams is a sequal to Shadowmarch which I read fairly recently and I'm looking foward to reading this one!

Started: December 13, 2010
Completed: May 21, 2011
Recommendation:  Who could read this review and think that I would not highly recommend this book?
Recommended by:  I'm a Tad Williams junkie.  I found the copy of this book in South Carolina after I had checked and my "to read" pile was over 6 feet of books.  I swore, when I realized how much I had to read, that I wouldn't be buying more books.  Well, I bought this one.  And moved it to the top of the pile.

Words I looked up:


chirurgeon -- a surgeon usually in charge of first aid.
pentecount -- this is a made-up word, but probably means group of 50.

Review:


Wonderful, staggering, annoyingly not finished!  Throughout most of Shadowmarch the introduction of the various characters occurred.  A few more were introduced in Shadowplay.  Still the interaction of these characters is, for the most part, as ships passing in the night.  With deft touches the author mixes melodrama with high drama, the believable and the unbelievable, even a trip through a variant on Hades!  Consistently able to build a world of complex interaction, this series will undoubtedly lead to fascinating interactions.  How can I not yearn to read the next book?  I'm hopelessly connected to fictitious characters who loom large and small in their own stages and minds.  How many more times can Tad Williams bring major characters within a knife edge of death without actually killing them?  The few times that he has done so have been shocking and made the rest of the close encounters seem much more "real."  This master story-teller never ceases to drag me into an impossible universe with implausible characters who are viciously (and occasionally heart-stoppingly) real.

Parliament: Canada's Democracy and How it Works, Maureen McTeer

Parliament by Maureen McTeer is a non-fiction account of how Canadian Parliament works.

Started:  December 13, 2010
Completed: May 22, 2011
Recommendation: Excellent as a Primer
Recommended By:  Several years ago I was in Canada and stopped by a library that happened to have a book sale.  This was one of the books in that sale that caught my interest.

Review:


This is a children's book and, as such, explains terms that an adult book would take for granted.  This is a swift overview of the basics of the system while only addressing the broad details of government history.  This is an easy read, I'd have finished in a day if I hadn't lost it amongst some other things.

The Apprentice, Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho is a modern allegory offering a story to describe how people should live their lives.

Started:  December 10, 2010

Completed:  December 13, 2010

Recommendation: Not recommended

Recommended by:  My neighbors read it and thought the beginning was good but it fizzled.

Review:  Sort of a "The Secret" meets "The Celestine Prophecy" kind of book.  I'm not buying that the universe wants me to meet my goals and will work on my behalf.

Jamestown: The Perilous Journey, Olga Hall-Quest

Jamestown: The Perilous Journey by Olga Hall-Quest is a book I had picked up to read to my son before we visited Jamestown.  He found the plot slow and laborious.  I went ahead and read it and found it a very approachable read to the early history of Jamestown.

Started:  About October 12, 2010
Completed:  October 16, 2010
Recommendation:  Very good book to read-aloud to a 5th grade audience.  Needs to be supplemented with other materials.
Recommended by:  Picked this book up at a Barnes and Noble while looking for home school materials.

Review:  The story of Jamestown is dominated by Captain John Smith who wrote the only real history of the founding of the colony.  He is portrayed here in a favorable light, although it is not always flattering.  The book definitely hits all the high points and provides a good framework for more in-depth study.  I would highly recommend this book to any parent taking a child/children to Jamestown and, in many cases, to the child as well.  The book does not "talk down" to the child and it reflects much of the recent archaeology of the site.