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11/09/2021
Paul's Reading
Brett Battles: Rewinder
College buddy Ken Isaacson recommended the Brett Battles Rewinder trilogy: Rewinder, Destroyer and Survivor. One and two were fantastic. I couldn’t put them down, despite the fact that they messed with world timelines and personal timelines in a way that made my head spin, made me lose track of who was who, and made me entertained by that confusion. The third book in the series dragged in the middle, but the superbly satisfying ending made up for it (*****)Isaacson, Ken: Silent Counsel
For the last week, my first priority every day was to read a few [pages of Silent Counsel. To say I couldn’t put it down is no exaggeration. Isaacson’s inspired (and sometimes scary) plot elements are intertwined with explanations of complex issues in an intelligible way. Two small knocks: I dislike child in peril.. Second, the lynch-pin of this novel requires one of the main non-lawyer characters to demonstrate total unfamiliarity with the idea of lawyer-client privilege. Yes, she’s hysterical with grief, but still, it seems unlikely. (****)Isaacson, Ken: Death Benefit: An Elliot Lerner Novel
Dialog and description: impressive. Plotting: clever. Characterization: sufficient for me to distinguish the characters. Often authors are so proud of their research that they flaunt it gratuitously. Isaacson avoided that trap while teaching me enough about the viaticle industry to follow the story. I enjoyed the multiple twist endings.Taylor, H. Claire: Luck Off and Fly: A sci-fi comedy series (The Alice Luck Space Adventures Book 4)
The latest installation of H. Claire Taylor’s comedy science fiction series, Luck Off and Fly, is another impressive piece of work. And that is a definition of impressive with which I WAS previously familiar. Luck, the incompetent Texan thrown into a leadership position for which she is clearly unqualified continues to muddle through somehow, just as she did in her third Sophomore Year at the UT in Austin. Fun to read. (*****)Julie McElwain: A Murder in Time: Kendra Donovan Mysteries Series, Book 1
If you love time travel, romance and well-researched historical novels, Julie McElwain's five-book Kendra Donovanseries is for you. Take an FBI agent and feminist and toss her into Regency England. The story writes itself, except it doesn't; it is deftly written by McElwain. I found all five books impossible to put put down and read then in a matter of weeks.Great dialog, great plotting, and food for thought. What more could you ask?Rob Nelson: Hacking Reality: Upgrade Your Life from the Inside Out
I’m not 100% sure that Rob Nelson is right about everything, but his book, Hacking Reality, and its companion website, have had a profound effect on my life and those of others I know. Can you actually change you past? If not, thinking you have can make a big difference. Recommended. (*****)Taylor, H. Claire: Lucky Stars: A sci-fi comedy series (The Alice Luck Space Adventures Book 1)
This book had me at H. Claire "Jessica Christ" Taylor. She is dramatically reinforcing my opinion that women write the best comic novels. I sped through its 251 pages in one day, thanks to a combination of great writing, great plotting and humor. A bit Douglas Adams-like in the early going, but how many ways can you depict an alien abduction? Of a Texas A&M graduate with a degree in Animal Husbandry? (*****)Sushila Blackman: Graceful Exits: How Great Beings Die (Death stories of Hindu, Tibetan Buddhist, and Zen masters)
This book is a compilation of the death stories of 108 Hindu, Tibetan Buddhist, and Zen masters. It’s an amazing book; I read it a long time ago and forgot to mention it in my column or book list. I am now remedying that error. I highly recommend it, even if you’re not spiritually inclined. A good friend suggested it to me when we were talking about Ellen Goodman's graceful exits column (https://tinyurl.com/goodman-grace--this format does not allow clickable links) (*****)Greaves, Helen: Testimony of Light: An Extraordinary Message of Life After Death
This is a touching and well-written work about life after death. It is well-thought-out, and matches many conceptions of the afterlife from the world's religious traditions. Am I 100% convinced? No. Do I 100% wish this is the afterlife? Yes. (*****)Garmus, Bonnie: Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel
This novel is one of the best I have ever read. It is vivid, well written, and has one of the finest and most satisfying endings ever. Don't read the end first: it's worth waiting for. This book describes the travails faced by intelligent women in American during the 50s and 60s, in academia and at work. (*****)Allen, Woody: Zero Gravity
It is with great pleasure that I welcome Woody Allen back to the world of the short humorous essay. Several of these are direct S.J. Perelman pastiches, especially enjoyable for those of who recognize his long-gone style. If you like Allen or Perelman, you'll like this book. (*****)St. Aubyn, Edward: Double Blind: A Novel
I got this book because I loved the author's previous work Lost For Words. Alas, he appears to have fallen in love with his research and placed too much of it, in chunks, in his novel. The scenes where he describes an attempt at seduction are brilliant and moving; the rest of the novel, less so. (**)Dorrough, David: Revolution
I was pleased and flattered that the author asked me to read this book. I loved his self-description: "David is widely believed to be a male human who grew up on earth and currently still resides there." A funny, clever and witty look at life in a middle-class marriage in Los Angeles in the 21st century, with some nicely turned phrases (“car beautification paraphernalia” describing two cars, one a Cadillac and the other a “huge family style vehicle”) that brought a smile to my lips. I also enjoyed it when, wondering if her husband was really her husband’s son, the mom reviews in her mind “who she might have slept with...” (****)Wingate, Lisa: The Book of Lost Friends: A Novel
Rarely have I been so moved and fascinated by a work of fiction. I was crying, I was apprehensive. Pinpoint plotting, masterful dialog, and a style that is as engaging as anything I have ever seen. This dual story, of a teacher and a freed slave from a century earlier will enthrall you; in fact, it’s like the BBC: it informs, educates and entertains. (*****)- Listed in no particular order
Le Tellier, Hervé: The Anomaly: A Novel
A beguiling novel of science fiction, social commentary, political commentary and French snobbishness about America. With razor-sharp wit, he scores point after point while punching up against our crazy world’s crazy situation. I didn’t care for the ending, so four stars. (****)Cummins, Jeanine: American Dirt (Oprah's Book Club): A Novel
The story of a woman’s desperate attempt to reach the United States after she gets crosswise with a Mexican cartel. I was literally in tears by the time I read the epilogue. It is compelling, well-written and moving. I had difficulty putting it down. (*****)Fforde, Jasper: The Constant Rabbit: A Novel
Jasper Fforde continues to prove that his brilliant and innovative sci-fi "Tuesday Next" novels were not a shot-in-the pan. His staggering imagination is exceeded only by his sense of humor; a worthy successor to Terry Pratchett, with the added benefit of still being alive. (*****)Stoneley, Zara: The Wedding Date: The laugh out loud romantic comedy of the year! (The Zara Stoneley Romantic Comedy Collection) (Book 2)
Another brilliant award winner from Britain's Comedy Women in Print prize committee. Anyone who has ever scrambled for a wedding date... and even those of us who haven't... will find this laugh-out-loud funny. (*****)Norris, Mary: Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen
A brilliant piece of non-fiction by a copyeditor hell-bent on improving the usage of her authors, and, she hopes, yours as well. (*****)Cheryl Strayed: This Telling: Out of Line collection
The woman behind "Dear Sugar" steps into the spotlight with a short autobiographical story that is well written-and thought provoking. (*****)Taylor, H. Claire: The End is Her: A laugh-out-loud satire (Jessica Christ)
This is the 7th and last of Taylor's Jessica Christ novels. I am sorry I didn't mention them earlier. They are hilarious, clever, well written social commentary. I am only sad there won't be any more. Read all of them (*****)Brown, Mark: Zen Pig: The Art of Gratitude
I wish someone had given me this book, and the others in the series, when I was a child. Oh the suffering I could have avoided...Wright, Robert: Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment
It is an amazing and impressive work, using evolutionary biology to demonstrate the wisdom of the Buddha’s teachings about not-self and meditation. (*****)Doty MD, James R.: Into the Magic Shop: A Neurosurgeon's Quest to Discover the Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart
I agree with the Dalai Lama, this is a remarkable and compelling book, similar to The Way Of The Peaceful Warrior, as it tells the story of a young man meeting an unlikely teacher and learning life-changing lessons--in this case about meditation and visualization. It should be given to every 12-year-old in the world. My grandson will get it.Sittenfeld, Curtis: Rodham: A Novel
“Hillary Clinton Fan Fiction,” about her life if she hadn’t married Bill. It mixes fact with fiction and the romantic scenes are chilling in their accurate portrayal of what love is like. The fictional timeline of the American presidency is worth the price of admission by itself. (*****)Kadish, Rachel: The Weight of Ink
Very long but very gripping examination of the difficulties of being a woman during the plague in England in the 17th century, and in American Academia in the 21st century. (*****)Strayed, Cheryl: Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar
This book is sweet and wonderful. Cheryl Stayed was the writer of an advice column called “Dear Sugar,” and the book is a reprint of her advice. In general, I am a sucker for column collections, but this one more so than usual. Her advice is consistent, loving and interesting and her cast of characters is amazing and amusing.Siegel, Bernie S.: Love, Medicine and Miracles: Lessons Learned about Self-Healing from a Surgeon's Experience with Exceptional Patients
Although it was first published in 1984, I just came to this book. It should be handed out by any oncologist to any patient whose diagnosis is cancer. It is an amazing summary of the effect of the mind on physical health. “True healing teaches patients how to live.” Increase your odds of survival? “Independence, optimism, faith and trust in your doctor.” (*****)Kirk, Lucy: The Poison Factory: Operation Kamera
After a half century of avidly reading spy novels, I find, for the first time since my teenage self haunted the newsstand, waiting for the latest episode of James Bond in Playboy, that I am excited about the publication of a new entry into the genre: Lucy Kirk’s novel Poison Factory: Operation Kamera. And I mean REALLY new, because the protagonist is not James or George but Decktora “Decky” Raines. Just as I am tired of pale, male and stale in my choice of politicians, I have grown tired of pale, male and stale spy novel protagonists and authors. (*****)