false 8 68 67 true 5866331 read 1 true 2888650 currently-reading 0 true 2888649 to-read <![CDATA[Craig added 'Letter to a Christian Nation']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76063807 to: Letter to a Christian Nation (Hardcover) by Sam Harris
My regligious friends will no doubt be offended by this book, for which I apologize. But I think it is important to explore all sides. So just as I read the bible (or large portions of it) and Mere Christianity, I also read this.

The author makes a compelling, if somewhat brash, argument for why religion is (a) irrational, (b) Not good for society, and (c) Past its time of useful purpose. Note, he does not pick only on Christainity, but also on Islam, Judaism, and other religions as well.

I found the book a little troubling, mainly because I knew many of my friends would be upset by it. But I think it is an important book. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'Complexity Explained']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74675121 Complexity Explained (Hardcover) by Péter Érdi
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> <![CDATA[Craig is on page 1 of Complexity Explained ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74675121 Craig is starting Complexity Explained ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'Gilead: A Novel']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74674866 Gilead: A Novel (Paperback) by Marilynne Robinson
Not sure what to make of this book. An old man writes a note of rememberances to his young son, a boy practically absent from the book, he is so thinly developed. Not much really happens. But the writing is so deeply spiritual that it is a work of beauty. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'In the Country of Men']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/68805576 to: In the Country of Men (Hardcover) by Hisham Matar
A strange tale, reminiscent of "The Stranger". It is the story of a young boy who grows up shortly after the revolution in Libya. His parents are involved in politics, which inevitably involve him. I found the story a bit implausible. The main character was deeply flawed for a child, and I never came to understand how or why.

But I enjoyed the book for the rich picture that it painted of life in a muslim country, and for life under a dictatorship. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67006782 to: Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right (Paperback) by Al Franken
OK, so I am a little late to read this one. It has been sitting on my shelf for years, and I finally got to it.

It actually was better to read in the post-W era. Now I can laugh and not cry when I read it. And I laughed a lot. I laughed out loud. I laughed on the bus. I laughed walking down the street. And there was something on every page that I wanted to read to my wife, or, even better, send to my politically conservative friends in the hopes that they will see the light.
This book is a must for anyone that cares about their country, or anyone that likes to laugh.
]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'The Corrections']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/65987223 The Corrections (Paperback) by Jonathan Franzen
This was an ejoyable book, but troubling.

It seemed to start off as a comedy. Reminscent of "Running with Scissors" for its tale of a disfuntional family. But as their troubles became more and more serious, somehow it crossed the line from comedy to tragedy--a transition that I was not entirely comfortable with.

In particular, we read of the father's rapid decline due to Parkinsonian dementia. This envoked many memories of my father's slide into Alzheimer's, and this was very hard for me. I think we were meant to laugh at their trials and tribulations, but I could only cry.

That said, it was an engaging story. And very hard to put down. Just a hard story. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'The Amateur Marriage: A Novel']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/64261948 to: The Amateur Marriage: A Novel (Mass Market Paperback) by Anne Tyler
An entetaining read, albeit not a deep read. Perhaps too close to home to make me comfortable, but that is what helped to hold my interest. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'Lost in Translation']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/61615519 to: Lost in Translation (Paperback) by Nicole Mones
A good light summer read. I found most of the characters (other than the main character) to be a little superficial. And the cultural, though interesting, arguably reflected too much to cultural stereotype. But it was a page turner. ]]> <![CDATA[Craig added 'The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court']]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59270333 to: The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court (Hardcover) by Jeffrey Toobin
This was a surprisingly engaging book. It was a gift, and I originally assumed it was a novel. Upon finally getting started, I found it was basically a history of the Rhenquist-Roberts court. Astoundingly well researched, based on hundreds of interviews, it gives an insightful insiders look at the machinations of the court, and the interactions of the court with the COngress and the President. I now have a greater appreciaton for Sandra Day O'Connor's role on the court. The author viewes her as the most important American woman in history, and he may well be right. And I now understand how Harriet Miers happened. Poor W. There is so little he got right.

Despite what others may tell you, this book shows how even the "originalists" on the court (primarily Scalia, Alito, and Thomas) could conveniently forget their principles and Stare Decisis when it suited their political ends. The court's decisions reflect the values of the justices that serve--and not always those of the Presidents who appoint them.
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