Samyann's Blog, page 24

Arlington House in Arlington National Cemetery

Many people do not know that Arlington National Cemetery sits on land that used to be owned by Robert E. Lee, the leader of the Confederate Army. The Union confiscated the 1,100-acre Virginia estate from Lee, and President Lincoln then gave permission for it to be turned into a cemetery. According to some accounts, the idea was that if Lee ever decided to return, he would have to look out at the graves of those killed by the war he helped to create.

Lee’s oldest son sued the federal government after the war and won back the estate, but because it was now a cemetery, he sold it back to the government for $150,000.

The Arlington House today:

The Arlington House in 1864:

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

Not a very long audiobook at just over six hours of listening, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is written by Mark Haddon and narrated by Jeff Woodman. The story is written in first person, and the main protagonist is fifteen year old Asperger victim, Christopher. Asperger syndrome is a disorder on the spectrum of Autism. Christopher is perfectly functional, but has peccadilloes, i.e., he hates anything yellow or brown, food mustn’t touch other food on his plate. Christopher doesn’t like faces, doesn’t want to be touched, is almost savant at math and science, and is literal to the extreme. He’s a fan of Sherlock Holmes, but doesn’t like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – the title is a reference to a Doyle book. His emotions are stoic and his world is very black and white, right and wrong – nothing is gray.

Christopher is driven to solve a murder, the gruesome death of a neighbor’s poodle. He decides to write a book, the one we read. The story is a journey not only through murder mystery clues, but through Christopher’s thought process and logic. This is a realistic portrayal of an autistic mind, familial struggle, an understanding of the human condition.

Mark Haddon initially authored only children’s books, and in fact The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was released with two covers, one for children/teen readers, one for adult. A marketing ploy? The books are supposedly identical and both are available on Amazon. The marvel of this book, as opposed to other books about disabled people, is that there doesn’t seem to be any evidence of autism or autistic people in Haddon’s circle, at least none were found in my limited bit of research. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is all that much more of an amazing read given the character of Christopher is Mark Haddon’s imagination and research alone – very insightful.

The prose is lyrical, the story a slice of life from the viewpoint of a naive and vulnerable child stricken with a disability of which he is completely unaware.

Jeff Woodman’s interpretation is superb.

A thought provoking story well worth your time. Enjoy!

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot – Audiobook

An autobiography, All Creatures Great and Small was written by James Herriot, audiobook narrated by Christopher Timothy, and is close to 16 hours of listening. Narration by Timothy is great, no issues and a pleasant listen.

A Norman Rockwell painting in print, or possibly A Prairie Home Companion radio broadcast, this story tells us of an innocent world cover to cover. No murder, no bad language, no sex, a clean … really clean … story. Depending on perspective, All Creatures Great and Small is young adult, although the story has moments of eloquent prose a seasoned reader will enjoy. Settings and environmental detail is nicely conveyed – you’ll smell the barn.

The story begins early in Jim Herriot’s life as a rural veterinarian and ends with his marriage just prior to WWII. The book is a compilation of short stories, Jim’s adventures as a vet, i.e., birthing pigs and cows, turning a foal in the womb, being “uncle” to a wealthy woman’s Pekinese and pet pig, and eccentric farmers pouring out old wives tales of animal cures. Example: Cut off the tail of a cow to let the worm out. Jim keeps a straight face through such advice if he wants to keep the farmer as a customer.

There are sequels to All Creatures Great and Small, a BBC television series, etc., it’s been around a long time – mid 1970s. A great story for a family read and discussion, or a gift for any animal lover. Just a lovely story. Enjoy.

Bill Hodges Trilogy by Stephen King – Audiobooks

These comments address all three novels in the series. Book 1 Mr. Mercedes – Book 2 Finders Keepers – Book 3 End of Watch. Written by Stephen King, all three novels are narrated by Will Patton and each book is 13-14 hours of listening in the unabridged versions.

Books 1 and 2 are pure police procedural. Book 3 is the more of this, plus stretch-the-imagination stephenkingesque involving mind control and telekinesis. Although the books can be enjoyed stand-alone, you will get the most from the stories by reading all three, in sequence, as several characters traverse the pages of all three novels.

Book 1, Mr. Mercedes, begins in a parking lot. A group of job-seekers is waiting in line for employment opportunity. A car, a Mercedes, intentionally rams through the crowd, killing and crippling. Retired detective Bill Hodges is the thread through all three books. We know who-done-it right away; the fun is the web of clues Hodges must unravel to nail the sick-o.

Book 2, Finders Keepers, brings back a trio of characters introduced in Mr. Mercedes, including Bill Hodges, to a private investigation firm of the same name – the sick-o from Book 1 now being in a vegetative state with traumatic brain damage. Finders Keepers will definitely remind you of Misery, the 1987 psychological horror novel by King about a fan obsessed with an author. A boy finds a chest filled with money and the journals of a murdered author. Of the three novels, this story would definitely stand-alone as there is no connection to Mr. Mercedes nor End of Watch.

In Book 3, End of Watch, our brain-damaged-bad-guy, Mr. Mercedes, develops his mind as he gains strength. We delve into Stephen King’s forte of hide-behind-the-couch spookiness and supernatural powers.

Why I liked. Narration by Will Patton is spot on. You should recognize his voice, Ithere’s no doubt you’ve heard him many times. Will Patton is very prolific in television series programs like The Good Wife, 24, even going way back to soap operas. He does a great job with Stephen King prose, just the right amount of emoting. No trouble discerning who-says-what-to-who. The first two novels are pretty decent police procedural, which I enjoy. Even though there is little mystery since you know who the culprit is, the investigative nature is always fun – ponder the possibilities along with the characters. Book 3 is a continuation of Book 1. Given the author’s love of creepiness, King simply takes literary advantage of a good character, and Mr. Mercedes is a good one to exploit.

Why I didn’t like. Not too many issues, but if you’re familiar with the works of Stephen King, you may find, as I do, that he rambles a bit. Some would say verbose or ‘purple prose’ will be found in places. But, that’s his style – you either like ‘m or hate ‘m.

     

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton – Audiobook

Written by Michael Crichton, narrated by Scott Brick, fifteen hours of listening. This unabridged version was released by Audible in 2015.

I’ll admit it up front. My first exposure to Jurassic Park was the movie. The 1993 special effects were impressive … I mean, the thing was directed by Steven Spielberg … they were awesome. Again, I’ll admit to being trite: The book is better, surprise-surprise. Hollywood doesn’t touch the nerd in me regarding the science that made the park, the animals, and the resulting instability. Some of the movie is reflected in the book, but not much.

Crichton had a great ability to conger an incredible story – very imaginative stuff. If you’re a fan, you know what I mean – several of his books grabbed the attention of movie-makers, starting with The Andromeda Strain. His weakness, in my opinion, is character development. Crichton characters are cardboard cutouts difficult to like or dislike – very bland people with cliche demeanor and virtually no dimension.

Narration by Scott Brick is fine – no trouble discerning who’s saying what to who.

What holds my attention and keeps the pages turning of a Crichton book is story and science – he’s got those elements down! If you enjoy Michael Crichton, or if you saw the movie Jurassic Park and were intrigued with the science – go for it – you’ll enjoy.

The Second Amendment

When was this amendment determined to be the law of the land?  On December 15, 1791, the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution, was adopted, having been ratified by three-fourths of the states and passed by Congress September 25, 1789. The President, at the time, was George Washington.

There were thirteen states in 1790, so that means 10 states ratified this amendment – a significant segment of the original 13 colonies. Based on the 1790 US Census we had a total of 3,929,214 citizens (about the population of San Diego County), or about 4.5 people per square mile at the time. Many of these people fought for the freedom of our country in the Revolutionary War, which ended in 1783. So, it is understandable that the founding fathers decided that they must allow citizen defense. We had no choice. By the way- none of these arms were assault rifles, I believe what is called the Flintlock was a pretty sophisticated weapon at the time. It took some time to load and shoot, however. The rifle, in it’s original form, wasn’t even invented until the mid 1800s – and even it wasn’t automatic.

Anyway, fast forward to the 2010 census. The US population is 100 times what it was in 1790 – over 310 million people.

Knowing what we know today, i.e., that it is possible to kill hundreds of people in seconds with one rifle, ask yourself one simple question:

Would 3/4 of the 50 states, or about 38 states, ratify the 2nd amendment?

Probably not.

 

Killing Floor by Lee Child – Audiobook

Written by Lee Child, narrated by Dick Hill, about 18 hours of listening – Jack Reacher Series Book 1. The original audiobook was purchased from Audible in 2001 and they re-released in 2015. In the second recording Dick Hill is just as good, but older – more grizzly. Purchased the second audiobook by mistake – Audible didn’t indicate that The Killing Floor existed in my library. so I executed a refund. Not sure why, maybe because it has been re-recorded the file I had wasn’t considered a duplication. Anyway …. since I  listened fifteen years ago, I decided to refresh my memory with a re-listen.

Why I liked this book. This is the introduction of Jack Reacher – a former Army MP (Military Police), specializing in homicide. Reacher is super-smart, well read, intelligent, still waters. He now lives the life of a hobo, wandering the country as he pleases, going where he wants, when he wants. Great fodder for the series. Reacher gets in and out of precarious situations, always in the wrong place at the wrong time. Having read several books in this series, I can say they are fun reads. No gratuitous sex – at least nothing graphic, no language issues, ‘clean’ reads.

Complaint about The Killing Floor. There is a serious plot hole you’ll question from the very beginning of the book. No spoiler here. Jack Reacher exits a bus at a little no-where town (a dot on the map) to look into the background of a guitar player that died 60 years ago. Shortly, he is up to his neck in a murder mystery that involves the death of his brother, a guy found shot to death and beaten beyond recognition. This is a brother he hasn’t spoken to in years and the last he knew worked for the government in D.C. – doing what Reacher doesn’t know. Really? A bit of a coincidence, ya think?

Beyond this credibility stretch, the story is typically Jack Reacher and an entertaining story. It’s apparent that Lee Child has his arms around a colorful character – Child has been writing about Jack Reacher for near 20 years and the character hasn’t changed much – still the type A loner, a handsome, self deprecating hero.

Each book in the entire series can stand alone. Don’t hesitate to jump in anywhere. Also, any of these books would make a great gift for a mystery/thriller fan. Enjoy!

Make America Great Again – 150 years ago.

One-third of the soldiers who fought for the Union Army during the American Civil War were immigrants, and nearly 1-in-10 slaves and freed slaves. The Union Army included a significant number of soldiers who had immigrated from Germany, Ireland, France, Italy, Poland, England, Scotland and more.

Did you know that at the end of the American Civil War that the African Americans in the Union Army outnumbered the entire Confederate Army?

Would seem that immigrants and African Americans had a significant role in that war and did their part to ‘Make America Great Again’.

 

The Bone House by Brian Freeman – Audiobook

Written by Brian Freeman, narrated by Joe Barrett, twelve hours of listening, Book 1 in the Cab Bolton series. This is an unabridged audiobook released in 2011 by Blackstone Audio.

Cab Bolton is a detective with a bulldog mentality of seeking truth. The opening salvo to the series is the story of a precocious, oversexed teenaged girl that gets murdered. Mark Bradley, a happily married male high school teacher with a past suspicion of teenaged girl abuse, is the suspect. Clues traverse the pages through Cab Bolton’s efforts to prove or disprove Bradley’s guilt or innocence.

Who-done-it if not Bradley? There are other suspects including a boyfriend, a dance coach, etc. Thus is the thrust of The Bone House.

Why I like the story? The murder mystery is fun. The ultimate doer is well concealed by the author – I couldn’t guess, and I usually can – which is great! The setting is Chicago and Door County, Wisconsin. I live in Chicago and have traveled several times to Door County. They do lake salmon fish boils with cherry pie for dessert, neither of which are in the story, but whatever.

Why I didn’t like? One, as mentioned above, I’ve been to Door County many times and have never heard Minnesota-type-Swedish accents – some of the character voicing is just a bit too ethnic in that direction and doesn’t work with the geography as I remember. Two, although the ending is a surprise twist, it was a little more twisted than necessary. I’ll leave it at that and give no spoilers – you may find it just peachy.

Finally, the narration was a little slow for my taste, bumped it up to 1.5 speed. The narration beefs are minor – Joe Barrett does a fine job; this is an easy listen. No trouble discerning who’s talking to who, male and female voices are okay.

No language issues, no gratuitous sex, a ‘clean’ read. Nothing earth shattering, just a decent mystery. I’ll be following the series. Enjoy!

Justice Redeemed by Scott Pratt – Audiobook

Written by Scott Pratt, nicely narrated by Nick Podehl, this unabridged audiobook is just over eight hours of listening, released in November 2015 by Brilliance Audio.

Justice Redeemed is a legal thriller, but most of the story is post conviction of the lead character, Darren Street. Darren is a successful criminal defense attorney in Knoxville, TN who finds himself convicted of a murder he did not commit. The story is well researched, in my opinion. I learned a great deal about the criminal conviction, the mindset and behaviors of men behind bars – the chilling details of brutality and the jack-booted-thug idiot mentality of prison guards – ignorant jackasses who should be behinds bars themselves.

You know who the bad-guy is right out of the chute – the fun is getting Darren Street through a boat-load of incrimination to ultimate redemption. You’ll be convinced, several times, that there is no way he can get through the story alive.

Wonderful narration, good character development – a very entertaining story. Enjoy!