50 Books - #1 & 2
graveyardgreg was doing this before, I think as some part of an LJ challenge to read 50 books in a year. Obviously, I won't make it by the end of this year (well, probably not), but I can still keep track and provide mini-reviews, and thoughts, and things.
And give me a reason to update, which I haven't been doing so much. So therefore, I give you the first three books.
#1: Grave Peril by Jim Butcher
Book 3 of the Dresden Files. I got into these a while ago, and I've been borrowing the books from my friend as I get through them. Harry Dresden is the kind of character that appeals to me. Yeah, he's a smartass. And he says things like how his trench coat flapped like Batman's cape. If you want more details, you can find them easily enough. This one was quite good, with ghosts and a vampire costume contest and a showdown in a burning building. Harry gets the crap beaten out of him every time, too. It's not like some series where the characters just keep picking up new powers until it's just ridiculous.
#2 Deer Hunting with Jesus by Joe Bageant
The first chapter of this book made me the angriest I've been in months. But not at the book, at the situation it described. It's about Winchester, VA, which is less than 50 miles from where I live, so it hits close to home. But it's mostly about the white working poor in rural areas. By a self-described redneck socialist, who grew up there and came back after he retired, and didn't like what he saw. It's angry, and sad, and a celebration and evisceration of that whole culture all at the same time. And though I've lived in the same areas, and worked the same crappy underpaid exploited jobs, I've not really understood some of the things, the way they're explained here. It's an excellent book, that I recommend to anyone who wants to understand part of the reason things are how they are in America.
There was another book I read, but I forget what it was now, so I'm not sure if I should count it or not. I'll probably have more thoughts on some of these later. Next book: How to Make Friends and Influence People. I really need to learn to deal with people better. For many reasons.
And give me a reason to update, which I haven't been doing so much. So therefore, I give you the first three books.
#1: Grave Peril by Jim Butcher
Book 3 of the Dresden Files. I got into these a while ago, and I've been borrowing the books from my friend as I get through them. Harry Dresden is the kind of character that appeals to me. Yeah, he's a smartass. And he says things like how his trench coat flapped like Batman's cape. If you want more details, you can find them easily enough. This one was quite good, with ghosts and a vampire costume contest and a showdown in a burning building. Harry gets the crap beaten out of him every time, too. It's not like some series where the characters just keep picking up new powers until it's just ridiculous.
#2 Deer Hunting with Jesus by Joe Bageant
The first chapter of this book made me the angriest I've been in months. But not at the book, at the situation it described. It's about Winchester, VA, which is less than 50 miles from where I live, so it hits close to home. But it's mostly about the white working poor in rural areas. By a self-described redneck socialist, who grew up there and came back after he retired, and didn't like what he saw. It's angry, and sad, and a celebration and evisceration of that whole culture all at the same time. And though I've lived in the same areas, and worked the same crappy underpaid exploited jobs, I've not really understood some of the things, the way they're explained here. It's an excellent book, that I recommend to anyone who wants to understand part of the reason things are how they are in America.
There was another book I read, but I forget what it was now, so I'm not sure if I should count it or not. I'll probably have more thoughts on some of these later. Next book: How to Make Friends and Influence People. I really need to learn to deal with people better. For many reasons.