PETER FLOM'S 50 BOOKS READ IN 2016

[Jill]

Peter wrote: "34. by Michael Wolraich
F..."

That was a great group read, wasn't it, Peter? I think everyone enjoyed that book.

[Peter]

Yes, it was fun .... Although I missed Bentley when he was away.

[Peter]

35. by Mary Beard
Finish date: June 24, 2016
Genre: History
Rating: A
Review: An outstanding one volume history of the first Roman millennium. Beard has a huge depth of knowledge and she conveys both her knowledge and the places where no one knows very well. She writes well and the book flows naturally.

My only issue was not really a complaint about the book but more the reason I prefer reading more modern history (Englightenment and thereafter) - we know so much more.

[Peter]

36. by John Rafferty (no image)
Finish date: June 29, 2016
Genre: Essays/commentary
Rating: B
Review: This is a collection of pieces from Pique, which is the journal of the Secular Humanist Society of New York. Some pieces are kind of dated, but it's still a fun collection

[Peter]

JULY

37. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 1, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: I've liked the Spenser series for a long time and decided to read them in order. This lets me see Spenser grow over time and see Parker add more characters to the series. I also see Parker grow as an author.

In this one - the 2nd in the series, Spenser is hired to find a missing child and we are introduced to Susan Silverman.

[Peter]

38. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 2, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review; The fourth book in the Spenser series, this one starts when a man hires Spenser to find his wife, but spirals to involve crooked land deals and organized crime. We are also introduced to Hawk.

[Peter]

39. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 3, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Fifth in the Spenser series. They are still fun to read but I may take a break after a couple more. In this one, a very rich man hires Spenser to go to London and find the terrorists who killed his wife and children. They turn out to be right wingers and white supremacists. Unlike most of Spenser's cases, in this one he has unlimited resources (the client is very rich and also disabled and lives only to see the killers brought to justice or killed). Good stuff.

[Peter]

40. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 5, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Sixth in the Spenser series. In this one, Spenser is hired to protect a writer who has received death threats for her outspoken views on lesbianism and equal rights. But she fires him when he annoys her. Then she's kidnapped and he has to find her.
I found the plot here a little weaker than some of the series, but we are taught more about Spenser's code of honor.

[Jill]

And I thought that I was obsessed with the Nero Wolfe mysteries!!! You are running a close second with the Spenser books.

[Peter]

Jill wrote: "And I thought that I was obsessed with the Nero Wolfe mysteries!!! You are running a close second with the Spencer books."

I find them addictive. I like Parker's writing. I like the straight-ahead plots. I like the interactions with Hawk and Susan.

Robert B. Parker

[Peter]

41. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 8, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: This is an odd book in the series. Spenser is hired by a divorced woman to bring her son back from her ex-husband. By page 40, he's done that. Then things get complicated. But a lot of the book is about the relationship between Spenser and the boy, and this, in my view, is not where Parker shines.

I think Parker did better with adult relationships.

[Don]

I am obsessed with both Spenser and Nero Wolfe. I have tried re-reading but it's not the same.

[Jill]

Don wrote: "I am obsessed with both Spenser and Nero Wolfe. I have tried re-reading but it's not the same."

I could re-read Nero Wolfe and have, many times.

[Peter]

42. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 10, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Number 8 in the series. Spenser is called to Hollywood to protect a journalist who has been threatened. This leads to the usual complications and violence.

[Peter]

43, by Thomas Harris
Finish date: July 13, 2016
Genre: Thriller
Rating: B+
Review: This book will only appeal to people who have read or seen Silence of the Lambs. It is a thriller, but the thrill - the drive of the book - comes from wanting to know how Hannibal Lecter became what he became. No surprise - it's ugly. This is not a book for the faint of heart, but those fascinated by Lecter will find it interesting

[Jill]

I loved Silence of the Lambs but had heard that this one wasn't quite as good. But your review will make me read it I think. Have you read Red Dragon by Harris?

& Thomas Harris

[Peter]

Jill wrote: "I loved Silence of the Lambs but had heard that this one wasn't quite as good. But your review will make me read it I think. Have you read Red Dragon by Harris?




all by Thomas Harris

[Peter]

42. The Seven Pillars of Statistical Wisdom (no image) by Stephen M. Stigler (no photo)
Finish date: July 20, 2016
Genre: Statistics, history
Rating: B
Review: Prof. Stigler is a specialist in the history of statistics and in this book he posits that statistical practice is based on seven pillars: Aggregation, information, likelihood, intercomparison, regression, design and residual. This is a book for statisticians who are interested in the history of the field; those without training will probably find it incomprehensible.

[Peter]

43. by John Scalzi
Finish date: July 22, 2016
Genre: SF
Rating: A
Review: Good old fashioned science fiction. The Earth has explored the universe and found that lots of planets are at war with each other and so are we. On Earth, when people turn 75, they are allowed to join the colonial defense forces. But they can never come home again. On his 75th birthday, John Perry joins up.
Military SF with a difference (and better written than most).

[Don]

I read this book some time ago. I enjoyed it. I agree the writing is better than most.

[Peter]

44. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 26, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Spenser is asked to find a man's girlfriend; the man says she has been kidnapped by a religious organization. When Spenser finds the woman, there is no sign of kidnapping. But things get complicated, as they always do in Spenser novels. In addition, Susan moves to California.

[Peter]

45. George Makari
Finish date: July 27, 2016
Genre: History, psychology, philosophy
Rating: B-
Review: Where did the idea of "mind" come from? How does it relate to ideas of "body" and "soul"? How do these relate to the broader historical context and to treatment of the insane?

These are the sorts of questions that George Makari tries to answer. I found a lot of this book very interesting, but Makari tries to cover such a wealth of material that he needs a better structure to hang it all on so that the reader (or, at least, this reader) can remember what's what.

[Peter]

46. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: July 30, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: A-
Review: Susan has (temporarily) left Spenser. Then he gets a note that she is in trouble and that Hawk is also in trouble. This leads to complex adventures, a lot of violence and further explorations of the relationship between Susan and Spenser

[Peter]

AUGUST

47. by Clifford A. Pickover
Finish date: Aug 3, 2016
Genre: Math
Rating: B
Review: Pickover looks at 250 milestone achievements in mathematics. On each page, the left hand side has text about the achievement and the right hand side has a picture. The text portions are generally excellent, but clearly the author had to stretch for some of the illustrations - one is a picture of the cover of a book; several are pictures of mathematicians. I think better use could have been made of the space.

Nevertheless, there was a lot of interesting material here and math afficianados will like this book.

[Peter]

48. by Alafair Burke
Finish date: Aug 8, 2016
Genre: Suspense
Rating: C
Review: Suspense novels often have multiple plots and complex plot lines. 212 has too many and too much of both and the author can't maintain them all while keeping our interest. By the time the book ended, I didn't really care what happened to whom or who had done what.

[Peter]

49. by Peter Spiegelman
Finish date: Aug 11, 2016
Genre: Suspense
Rating: A
Review: It's been a while since a book kept me up until 2 AM, but this one did. Adam Knox is a doctor in a clinic in Los Angeles. When a woman and child show up with injuries, little does he realize that he is about to be plunged into combat against both a local sexual slavery ring and one of the most powerful families in America.

Spiegelman makes all of this believable and keeps the tension high, the pages turning and the twists coming.

This is billed as the start of a new series. I'm waiting for volume 2.

[Peter]

50. by Steven Pinker
Finish date: Aug. 13, 2016
Genre: Linguistics, psychology
Rating: A
Review: Pinker uses an analysis of irregular verbs and irregular plurals in English to illustrate not only how language works (it involves both words and rules) but also some aspects of how our brains work. If this interests you at all, so will this book.

[Pamela]

Peter wrote: "43, by Thomas Harris
Finish date: July 13, 2016
Genre: Thriller
Rating: B+
Review: This book will only appeal to pe..."

Silence of the Lambs was one of the few books I literally could not finish. Normally, I'm not too squeamish but that one did me in. Oddly, though, I loved the movie.

So, Peter, I guess I should pass on his other two.

by Thomas Harris

[Samanta]

Pamela, don't forget the link to the author's page in your citation. Thank you!

by Thomas Harris

[Peter]

51. by Matthew Carr
Finish date: August 22, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: This novel is set in 16th century Spain. When Fernando Mendoza is sent to Aragon to investigate the murder of a priest, he winds up digging into a complicated nest of intrigue in which nothing is what it seems and everyone is being scapegoated by someone else

Strong characters, good writing and a plot that keeps moving are all good things and I like novels where I learn something. The only flaw is that, at times, I got lost in the complications of the plot.

[Peter]

52. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: Aug. 24, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B+
Review: After taking a break, I'm back on my Spenser kick.

In this one, Spenser is back tracing April Kyle, who he saved in a previous book. April is heading down a bad path and doesn't really want to be dissuaded. But, Spenser is persistent. Eventually, this leads him into conflict with all sorts of nefarious and powerful people.

This was a typical book in the series: Pretty good, but not outstanding.

[Peter]

SEPTEMBER

53. by Becky Chambers
Finish date: September 4, 2016
Genre: SF
Rating: A
Review: Good new fashioned space opera. That is, like a lot of space opera, it's got a quest/battle theme, but it's new fashioned because the protagonist is female, the aliens are interesting, the characters are developed and the writing is good.

[Dimitri]

TBR :) it will be nice to have the ol' timey good without the ol' timey corny.

[Peter]

54. by Susan Gunelius (no image)
Finish date: September 12, 2016
Genre: Nonfiction
Rating: B
Review: Like most of the "For Dummies" books this is a pretty good introduction to the subject. But, even though this edition was published in 2014, it's already a bit dated and some of the information seems not to have been updated from earlier editions.

Still, it got me up and running with my blog.

[Peter]

55. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: September 13, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: A
Review: A serial killer is on the rampage in Boston. Because the killer may be a police officer, Lt. Martin Quirk enlists Spenser and Hawk to help. And when the police think they've solved the case, Quirk, Spenser and Hawk disagree. Then the stakes are raised when Susan Silverman becomes a target.

This is one of my favorites in the series.

[Peter]

56. by Steven B. Smith (no image)
Finish date: September 16, 2016
Genre: History, philosophy
Rating: B-
Review: Dr. Smith is clearly an intelligent and very well-read man and an expert on what he talks about. However, this reads more like a collection of essays than a book. Nearly all of the book (except for a short introduction and a very short conclusion) consists of chapters about individual thinkers, from Machiavelli to Hegel, from Rousseau to Saul Bellow. Each chapter is fine; well written, informative and so on.
But, until we read the conclusion, it's not really clear what Smith's point is. Nor is it clear why he chose the writers that he did. Some are obvious: Machiavelli, Kant, Hobbes. But why Saul Bellow? Why and entire chapter on The Leopard?

by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa

[Peter]

57. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: September 20, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: A-
Review: In this, the 17th novel in the Spenser series, Spenser is hired to protect TV star Jilly Joyce. But she's a really obnoxious person, she's a drunk, a cocaine addict, a nymphomaniac ... As usual, there are reasons and, while Spenser is protecting her, he learns about them.

[Peter]

58. by Carl Hiaasen
Finish date: Sept 29, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: This is Hiaasen's first novel and, while it has the typical noir zaniness of his work, it isn't quite as good as his later novels.

[Peter]

OCTOBER

59. by Robert B. Parker
Finish date: October 9, 2016
Genre: Mystery
Rating: C
Review: This is a middle of the series Spenser novel. When a wealthy man is shot his widow, who was alone in the house with him, is the natural suspect. Especially because she inherits $10 million. Spenser's been hired by her lawyer. But then things get complicated and lots of people start dying.

One of the weakest of the series. Things get TOO complicated. I got too confused.

[Peter]

60. by Timothy C.W. Blanning
Finish date: October 13. 2016
Genre: History, biography
Rating: A
Review: If you want a biography of FtG I think this is the one to get. He was a remarkable man - abused by his father, certainly an atheist, probably gay, he came to the throne of Prussia in 1740 when it was a 3rd rate power and made it into a 1st rate one. He was also a devotee of the arts, a bully, an innovator, a misogynist, a champion of the serfs (to an extent) and much more.

[Jill]

Sounds like one for my tbr, Peter. Thanks for the tip!!

[Peter]

61. by Neal Stephenson
Finish date: October 30, 2016
Genre: Science fiction
Rating: A
Review: Almost impossible to summarize. A sort of alternate history of philosophy book. With a good plot. And lines like: "Our enemy is in a spaceship filled with atomic bombs. We have a protractor". But also lots of considerations about philosophy.

[Pamela]

That quote alone is enough to put it on my TBR

[Peter]

NOVEMBER
62. by Barry Eisler
Finish date: November 6, 2016
Genre: Suspense
Rating: A-
Review: This is one of the John Rain series. I got it on sale (otherwise, I like to start with the first in a series). Rain, a professional assassin, is called on to kill people. Purportedly, they are going to attempt a coup against the government of the USA. But ... there are twists and twists and twists. It kept me turning the pages. (One odd bit - no one wears a fleece jacket in summer in Los Angeles).

[Peter]

63. by Barry Eisler
Finish date: November 16, 2016
Genre: Suspense
Rating: A-
Review: The first in the John Rain series, about a Japanese American who is a professional assassin. Good stuff. It kept me turning the pages. Lots of violence.

[Peter]

64. by Andrew Vachss
Finish date: November 22, 2016
Genre: Crime
Rating: C
Review: The story of Wesley, who is mentioned in the author's Burke series. Not much plot or character development, lots of killing. I was disappointed.

[Peter]

65. by John Simpson (no image).
Finish date: November 26, 2016
Genre: Language, history
Rating: B
Review: In 1976 Simpson's girlfriend (later his wife) saw an ad for a job at the Oxford English Dictionary. She thought it would appeal to him, so he applied. He was rejected. But he later did get a job there and stayed for 35 years, rising to be chief editor. This book tells his story, mostly about revising the OED and putting it online (first on a CD ROM, later on the Internet).

[Peter]

DECEMBER

66. by James Traub (no image)
Finish date: December 1, 2016
Genre: Biography/history
Rating: A-
Review John Qunicy Adams is relatively little known. This is a shame, as he was a remarkable man, as this biography by Traub demonstrates. He was an easy man to admire but a hard man to love; in one sentence Traub describes him:


Nothing could be more characteristic of Adams than this combination of erudition, ingenuity, hyperbole and spleen.

Adams was stern with everyone, most of all himself. He was a pessimist and a man who often said that he was not built for happiness and well-suited to drudgery. He endured many tragedies including the death of two children (one as an adult) and a sister. Several times people he trusted betrayed him. And he persevered. And when he left the White House, his best years were ahead of him because he made his mark when he became a congressman (yes, after being president) and fought the slaveocracy that ruled the House at the time.

Highly recommended.

[Donna]

Peter wrote: " DECEMBER

66. by James Traub (no image)
Finish date: December 1, 2016
Genre: Biography/history
Rating: A-
Review John Qunic..."

I enjoy your reviews, Peter. I'm adding this book to my tbr list.

[Pamela]

I'm glad to see a good biography of John Quincy Adams. I've always thought he was a very interesting person and his career in public service is amazing. He's been kind of underrated for a long time.