Bookspotting (x2)
85) Storming Las Vegas by John Huddy. Subtitled "How a Cuban-born, Soviet-trained commando took down the strip to the tune of five world class hotels, three armored cars, and millions of dollars". And that's what happened. Jose Vigoa, born in Cuba, trained by the Soviets, came to America during the boat lift, liked some of what he saw, didn't like a lot of it, and proceeded to make his way in the world. He made his way to Las Vegas, started honest, went dishonest (drug dealing), came out of prison ready to *be* honest, but after losing a job because his parole officer told his boss about his past prison term, decided to go where the money is - the casinos.
This is a true-crime story. It's the story of the crimes, of the victims, of the police, and especially that of Jose Vigoa, who comes across as your classic Lawful Evil villain. Huddy interviewed Vigoa often, and Vigoa was not shy in giving details about what he did, and why he did things the way he did. It offers some real insight into the crime-planning process and the crime-planner himself. And, at times, you feel a certain amount of sympathy for Vigoa, despite knowing that he's not a nice person, who has killed people, and was ready to kill a lot more if necessary.
Fascinating reading if this is the sort of non-fiction you like.
86) Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas by Chuck Klosterman. If I were to write this review in the style of Chuck Klosterman, I'd start with comments about how his writing style is very modern, very fluid, and especially conversational; that he writes in a personal manner which seems to get to the heart of the question, and that one of his key strengths is to get to the bottom of a question in an interview. Then I would mention that this is a collection of interviews, humorous essays and one piece of fiction that have appeared in many magazines over the years - Esquire, Spin and others. I would point out that his introduction to the pieces, and his footnotes of them, are as important to the book as the dots over the i's. But, really, the important point of writing in such a way would be to ask the question of my friends: Where the fuck have you been hiding this guy all this time, and why have none of you recommended him to me?
In other words, yeah, I liked it a lot, and will seek out his earlier collections. These cover the era of around 1995-2005 and include profile pieces on: Britney Spears before her first "real" marriage, U2, Radiohead, Billy Joel and all-girl cover bands. He also looks into the phenomenon of Morissey being incredibly popular among the Latino crowd - they love him in LA. His essays are generally humorous, although they don't really hold up long-term; but they're introduced with some fun hypothetical questions, my favorite being (paraphrased): "Suppose you find yourself in Germany in 1933. You find yourself in a position to steal Hitler's wallet. This won't affect history in the slightest, but it will ruin his evening. Are you ethically obligated to steal Hitler's wallet?" It's the phrase "ethically obligated" that makes it a fun question. His article about your "nemesis" versus your "arch-enemy" is a lot of fun though.
Based on this, I'm going to seek out his other collections. Definitely highly recommended.
This is a true-crime story. It's the story of the crimes, of the victims, of the police, and especially that of Jose Vigoa, who comes across as your classic Lawful Evil villain. Huddy interviewed Vigoa often, and Vigoa was not shy in giving details about what he did, and why he did things the way he did. It offers some real insight into the crime-planning process and the crime-planner himself. And, at times, you feel a certain amount of sympathy for Vigoa, despite knowing that he's not a nice person, who has killed people, and was ready to kill a lot more if necessary.
Fascinating reading if this is the sort of non-fiction you like.
86) Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas by Chuck Klosterman. If I were to write this review in the style of Chuck Klosterman, I'd start with comments about how his writing style is very modern, very fluid, and especially conversational; that he writes in a personal manner which seems to get to the heart of the question, and that one of his key strengths is to get to the bottom of a question in an interview. Then I would mention that this is a collection of interviews, humorous essays and one piece of fiction that have appeared in many magazines over the years - Esquire, Spin and others. I would point out that his introduction to the pieces, and his footnotes of them, are as important to the book as the dots over the i's. But, really, the important point of writing in such a way would be to ask the question of my friends: Where the fuck have you been hiding this guy all this time, and why have none of you recommended him to me?
In other words, yeah, I liked it a lot, and will seek out his earlier collections. These cover the era of around 1995-2005 and include profile pieces on: Britney Spears before her first "real" marriage, U2, Radiohead, Billy Joel and all-girl cover bands. He also looks into the phenomenon of Morissey being incredibly popular among the Latino crowd - they love him in LA. His essays are generally humorous, although they don't really hold up long-term; but they're introduced with some fun hypothetical questions, my favorite being (paraphrased): "Suppose you find yourself in Germany in 1933. You find yourself in a position to steal Hitler's wallet. This won't affect history in the slightest, but it will ruin his evening. Are you ethically obligated to steal Hitler's wallet?" It's the phrase "ethically obligated" that makes it a fun question. His article about your "nemesis" versus your "arch-enemy" is a lot of fun though.
Based on this, I'm going to seek out his other collections. Definitely highly recommended.