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SP 2017 Completed Tasks
10.2 3,4, or 5To End All Wars: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914-1918 by Adam Hochschild
Review: Hochschild has written another fascinating, readable history. This is a history of WWI from A British point of view.
I visited a village church in England a couple of years ago. I was struck by the memorials listing the parish members who had died in the Great War and in WWII. While the list for WWII was less than 10, the Great War memorial had well over 30 names. I had not realized the devastation that WWI had caused a generation of Englishmen.
Hoschild does a wonderful job of making the history personal following well known and important figures as well as some that history has over looked or forgotten.
Hochschild has helped me, an American, who was raised on US-centric history, to see a more nuanced picture of the war. He has written the clearest explanation of the Boer War that I have ever read. He has placed the Irish Easter Rebellion in context. I am also beginning to get a better picture of the rise of the fear of socialism and communism.
His portrayal of the anti-war movement in England was all new to me. And there were a lot of echoes of the U.S. during the Vietnam Nam War.
Highly recommended.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task total: 20
Season Total: 280
Task 20.10 Hesperus The Comedians (1966) by Graham Greene
Review: Graham Greene spent some time in Haiti in the early 1960s, left Haiti, then wrote this novel. Then-President Duvalier of Haiti was so upset with the novel that he spoke out against it, and had it banned. (The ban probably increased sales.) I found the background about the novel interesting. The novel itself was really good, also. It is told in first person by a 50ish year old man. He has inherited a hotel in Port-au-Prince; having nothing else going on at the time, he decides to move to the hotel and make his living by managing it. While he is there, Haiti falls apart. The electricity and phone service stop, civil service bureaucrats respond only to bribes, and the Haitian police (called Tonton Macoute) are violent bullies. Our narrator tells of the people he knows in Haiti and what becomes of them. He survives his experiences in Haiti. The narrator writes this novel after he leaves Haiti. Overall, the prose and the storyline are easy to follow. It is depressing that the most horrific events of the novel actually happened to real people. Recommended for readers of “serious” fiction.
+20 Task
+10 Combo (#10.3, #20.1)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 10 = 40
Grand Total: 590 + 40 = 630
15.6 AOTD Time travelerHalf Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize
15 task
____
15
Running total: 650
15.3 AotD (2nd Round)1925
1923-1932
Time Traveler
All Pultizers for Drama:
They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard
task = 15
oldie=5
not a novel (play)= 5
task total= 25
grand total= 1140
10.3 English LanguageThe Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes
This is the only book I took with me on vacation--when I was getting ready to leave, it would have fit for 20.6 (I knew I wanted to read a Jojo Moyes books and this was the only one that fit the 20.6 bill which is why I ended up choosing this one--note to self: get it cleared in the help thread immediately!) and then when I got back it had gained over 500 ratings which put it over the tipping point. Humbug.
Normally, that would irritate me a bit. However, this book was so good that I didn't particularly care...
In the '60s, wealthy London socialite Jennifer Stirling has awakened from a post-accident coma with no memory. As the story progresses, she slowly begins to figure her life out.
About halfway through the book, we jump forward in time and into the life of Ellie Haworth, a writer at a newspaper whose life is a hot mess. She happens across a love letter that was written to Jennifer back in the '60s and she decides to investigate more about the story.
I don't know how to write this review without giving anything away--and I don't want to write any spoilers because it was the slow uncovering of everything that made it so lovely. The parts written about Jennifer felt like watching a slightly grainy, sepia-toned movie starring Grace Kelly, while the Ellie sections were reminiscent of Bridget Jones (minus the humor...just a girl having a kind of crap time adulting).
+10 Task (born/lives in London)
Task total: 10
Season total: 1025
10.7 Dead Poet's SocietyThe Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie
+10 Task
+10 Combo 10.2, 10.3
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 695
From Post 630Natalie *Amberjune* wrote: "20.2 Rebecca
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Task +20
Jumbo +5: 642 pages
Task Total 25
Season Total: 115"
This actually earns 10 Jumbo points, there are over 700 pages in the most popular English written edition (MPE).
From post 626Bea wrote: "10.8 Beth's Task: Anthology
Home Improvement: Undead Edition by Charlaine Harris among others
BTW, although Charlaine Harris is listed as an author for this anthology - and on the 20.5 list -, I did not claim points for Combo, since she was only one of quite a few contributors to this book. Was that correct? "
We are giving you these points. As a contributor/editor we consider her the first listed author in a work with multiple authors.
From post 659Katy wrote: "20.8 Yours, Mine, and Ours
A Study in Sherlock: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon edited by Laurie R. King
What a great collection for anyone who enjoys Sherlock..."
+5 Combo 20.5
From Post 663Deedee wrote: "Task 20.10 Hesperus
The Comedians (1966) by Graham Greene
Review: Graham Greene spent some time in Haiti in the early 1960s, left Haiti, then wrote this novel. Then-Pr..."
+5 Combo 10.6
20.4 My Family and Other AnimalsMedea and Other Plays by Euripides
review
I haven’t read a play for quite some time especially not Greek tragedies! As far as I can remember the only ones I’ve read were The Theban Plays (you know, Oedipus Rex) and it really whetted my appetite… NOT! That was back in highschool though (many many many years ago) however Greek tragedies (especially those involving Greek gods) are one of things I avoid in books. I found them too fickle and I do not enjoy those type of books; they exasperate me.
This books consisted of 4 Euripides’ plays: Alcestis, Medea, The Children of Heracles, and Hippolytus. I actually really enjoyed the first 3 though the last one, Hippolytus, was a style/plot that I’d do my best to avoid (blergh!). I loved Alcestis for her sacrifice though I can’t stop asking why did she need to sacrifice at all? Why couldn’t the husband just die himself? Why did she have to take his place? Why didn’t he refuse her offer of sacrifice? I don’t understand the reason though in the end all is well. So, not so much a tragedy. Medea, I also loved… despite the killing your own children business but seriously hell hath no fury like a woman scored! The Children of Heracles was okay but nothing to write home about (or maybe I just don’t understand the point of it all). Hippolytus, I refuse to speak of. I may, however, give some other Euripides’ play a go!
+20 Task
+10 Combo (10.2 - 4 words; 10.7 - Euripides)
+10 Review
+10 Canon
Task Total: 50
Grand Total: 825
10.2 - 3, 4, or 5Blush for Me by Kristen Proby
It's nice to try a mainstream contemporary once in a while if only to remember that it's not my thing. Nothing wrong with this one - well written, a great meet cute, and a story that kept me interested. I like that the heroine is successful in her own right as a part owner of a restaurant/wine bar, as she's not seduced by the hero's money. And the fact that they both live in the same building adds a neat dynamic.
But sadly there are a bunch of tropes I don't like (baby showers/lots of baby talk, money problems, abuse {outside the couple}) as well as suspense elements that I can do without.
A decent read, even if it wasn't for me.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20 points
Grand total: 330 points
10.2 - 3, 4, or 5The Night Mark by Tiffany Reisz
If you like time slip romances The Night Mark is a good entry point into Reisz's work. The historical elements are well researched and, barring a couple short info dumps, well presented. The writing is good and the characters are fully developed, from top to bottom. Props for all kinds of presentation (POC, deaf, gay) with nods to what that means in different points in time. Reisz doesn't ignore inconvenient parts of history, and I wish more authors did the same.
That being said this standalone lacks the extra oomph I love in the rest of her books. While the characters feel real the relationships between them are a bit lacking. Some are distant, some are short, and some are with people who died long (or not so long) ago. Many characters feel like islands - connected to neighbors with bridges and tunnels and waterways, but islands all the same.
I'm glad Reisz is expanding the genres she writes in and hope this book will get her more mainstream attention, but it didn't quite hit the spot with me.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20 points
Grand total: 350 points
10.2 - 3, 4, or 5The Reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent
A friend lent me a hard copy of this book saying, "It's a fun read, I think you'll like it! You could probably blow through it in an afternoon."
And I totally could have but no, I had to be cute about it. I read it on the train home after we parted. I put random moments at home towards it, as it's hard to fit a paper book in my work bag. A huge chunk of my reading time is on my commute so my progress suffered, and this 'afternoon read' took over a month to complete.
First things first - it's not the book's fault. Didierlaurent weaves a charming story that reminded me in some ways of The Red Notebook. I like the way details are unspooled over time and the characters kept me interested. The pages of text Guylain reads on the train may have been the best parts. In a way that was frustrating - why wasn't the whole book written like that? - but the contrast sets off differences nicely so I can't complain too much.
The whole thing feels a little thin when stretched out over weeks but it would have been perfect on a lazy weekend. So if you're in the mood for charming with a side of 'book on books' give this a go - and set some quality time aside for it so you don't end up like me.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20 points
Grand total: 370 points
Kate S wrote: "From post 626Bea wrote: "10.8 Beth's Task: Anthology
Home Improvement: Undead Edition by Charlaine Harris among others"
We are giving you these points. As a contributor/editor we consider her the first listed author in a work with multiple authors."
Thanks, Kate.
10.3 English LanguageShakespeare's Sonnets by William Shakespeare
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.7 Dead Poet's Society
+10 Canon
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 1035
10.3 English LanguageHenry IV, Part 2 by William Shakespeare
+10 Task
+10 Combo: 10.2 3, 4, or 5 / 10.7 Dead Poet's Society
+10 Canon
Task Total: 30
Season Total: 1065
10.4 International Question DayWhat is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.3 English Language
Task Total: 15
RwS Finish: 100
Season Total: 1180
10.7 Dead Poet's Society (Ed's Task)Nemesis by Agatha Christie
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.3 English Language
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 1205
20.2 RebeccaCrooked House by Agatha Christie
+20 Task
+10 Combo: 10.3 English Language / 10.7 Dead Poet's Society
Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 1235
20.7 #AWW2017 (Tien's Task)Ambulance Girls by Deborah Burrows
+20 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.6 Spring Equinox
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 1280
10.2 3, 4, or 5All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew
My grandpa had a fantastic garden--he'd spend hours puttering around in it, weeding and watering and babying his tomatoes and kohlrabi.
My mom followed in his footsteps, but since she had built in slave labor (i.e.: children) we were the ones who did the weeding and painstaking harvesting of strawberries and raspberries, carrots and peas.
This year, I decided to take another stab at a garden of my own. I've tried in the past, but have always been disappointed at the outcome. Now, though, I have a bigger yard and some willing slave labor of my own (i.e.: new husband). ;-)
I'd heard about the square foot gardening (SFG) method and decided to investigate further. The premise is simple: create your garden of nutrient-rich compost (many varieties, not just one source), plant seeds in a grid to their precise needs (inches apart as recommended on the seed packet), mix them up to confuse the bugs (think a patchwork quilt--no two "colors" together), check on it daily and water each plant as needed rather than wasting water on the entirety of the soil, and grow up (on a trellis) not out (so, train your vine plants up the trellis rather than extending flat out over the garden).
Of course there are lots of other things covered: building your own compost bin; plans for building a cover for your garden to make it into a mini-greenhouse or using netting to keep birds, cats, and dogs out; A LOT of bragging and self-back-patting (which got really old, but was realatively easy to ignore since I was soaking up so much interesting and informative material).
I had the box built for my SFG and had read half of the book before leaving on vacation...silly me, I filled the box with the soil mix and planted everything before having finished reading--so much I should have done and didn't know to. Ah, well...if it doesn't work this season, I'll put the entirety of my knowledge to work when I put in a fall garden! Wish me luck!
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task total: 20
Season total: 1045
20.6 My Name is RedAmerican Gods by Neil Gaiman
+20 Task
+ 5 Combo (10.3 -- born in UK)
+5 combo (10.7-- Dead Poet's Society, thread post 21)
_+5 combo (20.10 Hesperus)
+5 Jumbo (635 pages)
+10 Review
Points this post: 50
Season total: 130
_____
This one definitely ranked up there in my "how have I not read this yet" pile...and lived up to the title. Wow, what a story! And how well-told could it be?! It is remarkable to me that I have not read Gaiman before this point...although it certainly won't be the last time I do. Gaiman uses a great story to do what literature can do...think through something. He takes on some of the thoughts of America's national mythology, the immigrant myths and native religions...he has them clash with modernity's own myths and ethos and puts the rest of us (as we are) in the middle of it all. He teases with thoughts on literature itself, and peppers the text with aphorisms from characters wizened by this-yet-somehow-other-worldly experience and agelessness. By putting these various deities in our world, making them all "real," he is able not only to capture and portray their mythos...but also develop a personality, a character, around them. If reading literature allows the reader to experience life through other eyes...here, Gaiman has provided the eyes of both failing, and fledgling gods. If you think that would be interesting...this one is up your alley.
10.3 English LanguageHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
+10 Task
+5 Jumbo (635 pages)
+10 Review
Points this post: 25
Season total: 155
---
I continue to be more impressed with this series than I thought I would be. No so much that I regret waiting until this moment in my life to read them, mind you...but still impressed. Rowling is an absolute master at foreshadowing. I don't think this one topped Prisoner of Azkahban for me, but it is running second. There were a few times where the action slowed a bit too much for me...but overall I was very impressed at how well the 750-page book held together. I'm sure it has been said a dozen times, but another talent beginning to really manifest is Rowling's ability to let the characters age, and do so naturally.
10.3 English LanguageAgatha Christie and the Eleven Missing Days by Jared Cade (born in London--see help thread)
Agatha Christie disappeared on the night of December 3, 1926, and her car was found on the edge of a chalk pit on a Surrey road. For eleven days the police and the public searched for the mystery author. She was finally found at a Harrogate hotel and health spa, registered under an assumed name. The story that the family gave to reporters was that she suffered from a concussion and amnesia.
Journalist Jared Cade researched Agatha Christie's life for six years and came up with probable reasons for Christie's disappearance. Christie had two devastating emotional blows during the months before she went missing. Christie had been very close to her mother who recently died. Her husband, Archie Christie, had been having an affair with a younger woman and wanted to leave the marriage. The author shows how Christie may have staged her disappearance at a time when she was very emotionally upset. This period of her life was so painful that Christie never wanted to discuss it.
The book puts the disappearance in the context of the rest of Christie's life. There is also lots of information about her books, especially those that may contain plot elements involving an unfaithful spouse or a missing person. Agatha Christie's own life, including her eleven missing days, is every bit as interesting as the mysteries she wrote.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 630
10.2 3, 4, or 5The Hydrogen Sonata by Iain M. Banks
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.3 (UK)
+5 Jumbo (517 pages)
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 725
Task 10.2 3, 4, or 5The Unseen World (2016) by Liz Moore
Review:This is a literary fiction novel about a Boston scientist and his daughter in the 1980s (mainly). The daughter, Ada, was produced via a surrogate arrangement by her father and a surrogate mother. Ada was raised by her eccentric, absent-professor father. A warm and loving Catholic woman living nearby is also frequently present. Midway through the novel, a mystery appears. The rest of the novel is the process of solving the mystery, and what happens afterwards. I really liked the first half of the novel. The reader really gets inside of Ada’s head. The mystery was interesting, also, and the process used to solve the mystery. The mystery’s solution: meh. It reminded me, oddly, of the real life Watergate ‘Deep Throat’ identity mystery. For years, speculation abounded about the identity of Woodward & Bernstein’s secret source ‘Deep Throat’. Some of the speculation was very inventive. In the end, Watergate’s mystery source turned out to be a rather bland bureaucrat who had been passed over for promotion and wanted revenge. How banal! The solution to the ‘mystery’ part of the novel struck me the same way --- after such a good buildup, a ‘oh, so that’s all it was’ reaction. Still, I really loved the first half of the novel, and the rest was good enough for me to give this one 4.5 stars which I rounded up to 5 stars. Recommended for fans of literary fiction (but not to mystery lovers).
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 630 + 20 = 650
10.3 English LanguageThe Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch
Review: The most recent tale in the Peter Grant series. Peter is a London policeman who works for the special unit that investigates crimes that include weird "bollocks".
I am enjoying Aaronovitch's interesting world and humor. This particular story seemed to advance the over-all story arc a smidge (they have a little bit of a fix on one the arch villains) but offers little or no character development--almost a place holder. It is something that could have been done as part of another book.
This is definitely not a place to start on the Peter Grant series. It would make little or no sense if you have not read most of the preceding books.
If you are into this series, as I am, it is a way to keep up with Peter and Nightingale and the vast array of characters we have met before.
+10 Task (U.K.)
+5 combo 10.2
+10 Review
Task total: 25
Season total: 305
10.3 English LanguageA Song for Issy Bradley by Carys Bray
+10 Task (Stockport, UK)
+5 Combo (10.2)
Points this post: 15
RwS total: 335
AotD total: 15
Season Total: 350
20.10 Hesperus (Elizabeth(Alaska)'s Task)Persuasion by Jane Austen
+20 Task
+5 Combo (10.3 Hampshire, UK)
+10 Canon
Points this post: 35
RwS total: 370
AotD total: 15
Season Total: 385
20.10 HesperusA Tale of a Tub by Jonathan Swift
+20 Task
+10 Combo 10.2, 20.1
+10 Canon
Post Total: 40
Season Total: 765
10.5 CircusLionboy by Zizou Corder
I was disappointed with the ending of this book. The adventure is a bit over the top as well. A London boy is kidnapped and learns that his scientist parents have also been kidnapped. The boy escapes…and because he has a special skill with all cats… he pursues the parents’ kidnappers with the help of several cats. That pursuit leads him onto a circus boat which is heading to Paris where he has learned his parents are being taken. On the circus boat, he helps with the lions…and the lions are part of the boy’s plans to rescue his parents. They (the boy and the 6 lions) all eventually get on the Orient Express where they are holed up on the King of Bulgaria’s cars….and then we are informed “To be continued….”…ugh This is the first of a three part series…and on the 1001 Children’s Books You Should Read Before You Grow Up List. 3 stars.
task= 10
Review= 10
combo = 5 (10.3- see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisa_... )
task total= 25
grand total= 1165
20.6 My Name is RedAn American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
I'm in the minority here. Many of my friends have rated it 4- or 5-stars, though not one has said why. I was happy enough in the beginning and got well enough into it before it became somewhat of a slog. But I was too far into it time wise to set it aside. Dreiser repeated himself over and over and over. Repetition can be done skillfully, presenting the same material from different viewpoints, or adding elements with additional tellings. Such was not the case here, and, frankly, the repetitions became whiny. Whine, whine, poor me, poor me, I didn't have a good childhood, or whine, whine, you don't love me, or whine, whine, they have more money than I do.
I like books with great characterization and I can't take that away from Dreiser on this one. The characterization of Clyde Griffiths is simply superb. Even as unreliable a narrator as Clyde is, we know him thoroughly. But this is nearly 900 pages! With the previously remarked upon repetitions, I'm fairly certain Dreiser could have let us know Clyde inside and out in fewer than 700 pages - maybe even only 600 pages.
Dreiser's prose is even better than his characterization. I say that with the caveat that there are sentence fragments. Dreiser used these primarily at the beginning of a chapter and gave us the setting for what was to come next. Despite my preferring complete sentence structure, he places the reader in the setting so well done that I will always have pictures of upstate New York when I see this title.
With all of that, I'm not sorry to have read it. Even though I told myself occasionally I was being tortured sitting down with it, I'm glad I persevered. I came here grumpily to write this, planning to say this is barely 3-stars. Now that I have thought about what was good about it rather than just dwelling on that which I pretty much hated, I'll bump it to the top of my 3-star group.
+20 Task (26k+, 3.93)
+ 5 Combo (10.2)
+10 Canon
+10 Review
+15 Jumbo (899 pages)
Task Total = 60
Grand total = 735
Task 10.6 Spring EquinoxNagasaki (2010) by Éric Faye; translated from French by Emily Boyce (Paperback, 112 pages)
WINNER: Grand Prix du Roman de l'Académie française (2010)
Review: This novella was inspired by a real event that occurred in Nagasaki, Japan. The main character is a 58-year-old unwed, childless man who lives alone in a suburb of Nagasaki. He works as a meteorologist. Strange things appear to be happening in his house while he is at work. I don’t want to say anymore about the plot, except to say this is realistic fiction, not science fiction/fantasy. Almost all the descriptions are of emotions – very few descriptions are of appearances. The author does make a point of referencing the atomic bomb drop in August 1945 – 2 or 3 times – I’m not really sure why. He could have been making a symbolic observation about the novella’s characters; or, he could have just been determined to reference the atomic bomb for personal ideological reasons. The English translation is brisk and understandable. Recommended for readers of literary fiction.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 650 + 20 = 670
Post 688 Gabriel wrote: "20.6 My Name is RedAmerican Gods by Neil Gaiman
+20 Task
+ 5 Combo (10.3 -- born in UK)
+5 combo (10.7-- Dead Poet's Society, thread post 21)
_+5 combo (20.10 He..."
Sorry, Gabe, this has too many ratings for 20.6. We'll score it for 20.10 so that you only lose the 5 combo points.
20.2 RebeccaA Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle
We all have different ideas about what makes a good book. Most here seem to think the first part of this was good and the second part of not much interest. If it had been up to me, the super-egotistical ass called Sherlock Holmes would not have survived this debut novel. But the second part redeemed it enough for me to want to investigate the seven historical novels that Doyle believed to be his best work.
I found it interesting that the same arid landscape that is this second part is also the arid landscape of my recent nonfiction read, The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl. I enjoyed reading about this vast section of my country 30 and more years before it was homesteaded.
It is, of course, a debut novel. If I believed Doyle never got any better, I wouldn't consider looking at another title. But I'm definitely curious. 3-stars for this, as much for genre, as for any other reason.
+20 Task
+25 Combo (10.2, 10.3, 10.7, 20.9, 20.10)
+10 Review
Task Total = 55
Grand Total = 790
From post 666Anika wrote: "10.3 English Language
The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes
This is the only book I took with me on vacation--when I was getting ready to leave, it would h..."
+10 Review
From Post 681Karen Michele wrote: "10.4 International Question Day
What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.3 English Language
Task Total: 15
RwS Finish: 100
Season Tot..."
I show Oyeyemi's birthplace as Nigeria, so she does not qualify for 10.3.
Well done on your RwS Finish!
Sorry, Kate -- thanks for your work and thanks!
From Post 695Lagullande wrote: "20.10 Hesperus (Elizabeth(Alaska)'s Task)
Persuasion by Jane Austen
+20 Task
+5 Combo (10.3 Hampshire, UK)
+10 Canon
Points this post: 35
RwS total: 370
AotD total: 1..."
+5 Combo 10.7
From Post 689Gabriel wrote: "10.3 English Language
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
+10 Task
+5 Jumbo (635 pages)
+10 Review
Points this post: 25
Season total: 155
---
I continue..."
This qualifies for 10 Jumbo points, over 700 pages in the MPE.
10.2 3, 4, or 5The Dark Circle by Linda Grant
+10 Task
+10 Combo (10.3 Liverpool UK, 10.6)
Points this post: 20
RwS total: 395
AotD total: 15
Season Total: 410
20.4 My Family and Other Animals - set in GreecePlato: The Complete Works by Plato translated by Jowett
review
This rating is an average rating for Plato's life works. There are several works that are 4 and 5 star works; make no mistake, Plato was extremely bright. But there is also a lot of drivel, and much of this is written like arguments with one of those people who just LOVE to argue and think that if they win an argument that makes the right (logic doesn't generally win arguments).
One of the interesting things about this, since it covers 40-50 years of Plato's life and thought process, is how he changes some of his views over time. However, some of his more inane ideas and reasoning manage to remain the same. An example of one of his major fallacies is the idea that children raised without parents by a group will raise superior citizens. Anyone with any understanding of how this works in real life (eg most orphanages) knows that this does not work. This goes far beyond "it takes a village to raise a child" into no parent should know which children are theirs, and no child knows who their parents are. This comes up in great detail in both The Republic and The Laws.
So, if you are interested in reading Plato, stick with his "greatest hits." One of the best ones is Crito, or a trilogy of three of his best is Apology/Crito/Phaedo. This isn't to say I agree with many of his premises or that there are zero fallacies in these, but they are quite brilliant despite problems (and this is ancient, archaic philosophy). My favourite is the Crito.
+20 Task
+10 Bloom's Western Canon
+10 Review
+25 Jumbo
+10 Combo (10.7 Dead Poets Society http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM... and 0.2 3,4,5 words for entire title)
Task Total = 70 points
Season/Grand Total 355 points for 7 books
15.9 AotDTime Traveller | 1 Award
Killing Jodie: how Australia's most elusive murderer was brought to justice by Janet Fife-Yeomans
Winner of Davitt Award for True Crime 2008
+15 Task
+5 Not-a-Novel
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 845
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Letters to the End of Love (other topics)Made in the U.S.A. (other topics)
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (other topics)
The Goldfinch (other topics)
The Boy on the Bridge (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Yvette Walker (other topics)Billie Letts (other topics)
Arthur Conan Doyle (other topics)
Donna Tartt (other topics)
M.R. Carey (other topics)
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Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah
"Born a Crime" is an enormously engaging memoir about the early years of Trevor Noah's life. Noah is the successful host of The Daily Show, the satirical American news show on Comedy Central. He was born in 1984 during apartheid in South Africa to a black Xhosa mother and a white Swiss father. His parents could have been jailed for five years for having a mixed race child, and Noah could have been sent to a state orphanage. He spent much of his childhood indoors at his grandmother's home with his cousins for playmates since it was dangerous for him to be seen outdoors.
Post-apartheid, Noah went to school but he felt like he did not fit in because of his mixed heritage. Noah had picked up multiple languages from his mother and other people so he used language to be accepted in school and on the street. "I became a chameleon. My color didn't change, but I could change your perception of my color. If you spoke to me in Zulu, I replied to you in Zulu. If you spoke to me in Tswana, I replied to you in Tswana. Maybe I didn't look like you, but if I spoke like you, I was you." (56) South Africa has 11 official languages so Noah's facility with languages was important.
Noah's mother was a secretary who tried to expose Noah to the world. She was also very religious, and Sundays were spent going to multiple churches. Money was tight, but she made sure her son went to good schools and had books to read. Even when things were hard, their senses of humor always came through. When she married Noah's stepfather, Abel, their world changed. Although Abel was a good mechanic, he was a violent person when he was drinking. Noah left their home when he finished school, and continued his business of copying and selling pirated CDs for a few years. He also worked as a DJ at dances. Eventually he went on to become an internationally known comic.
This book is dedicated to his mother: "For my mother. My first fan. Thank you for making me a man." Noah's stories are sad and humorous at the same time. There's a wealth of knowledge about South African people in this book. Every time I put the book down, I wanted to get back to it to read more. Highly recommended!
+10 task
+15 combo 10.2, 10.3, 20.6
+10 non-Western
+10 review
Task total: 45
Grand total: 610