The Book Challenge discussion
finished challenges
>
Mike's Book Challenge 2012
date
newest »
newest »
VegasGal wrote: "Hey Mike -Maybe you need a "reading friend" who can get you motivated to read again, or virtually poke you back into gear and get you to continue with your goal.
What's helped me get to my read..."
Hi VegasGal,
Thanks for the note. I like your idea of trying to mix in a fun or silly book to build some reading momentum. I generally don't like to give up a book even if I am not completely into it. It is the kind of thing where once I start I need to finish - even if it takes me forever. I think I would be best off if I simply read one book at a time!
Happy reading!
The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam by Barbara TuchmanCompleted on November 10, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: A good book by Barbara Tuchman that exams why leaders continually choose folly over right. The book focuses on three main topics after an introduction dealing with the story of the Trojan Horse.
The first topic was surprisingly my favorite of the book and that dealt with the Renaissance Popes. Tuchman takes us through the seven Popes who brought shame upon their church while enriching themselves and removing the church from the international power and prestige it had maintained for centuries. A lot of great information in this section.
The second part tells the story of the American Revolution from the British point of view. I was most excited for this part, but found that is spent a lot of time on individuals rather than the story as a whole. That might be unfair criticism, but being a big fan of the period, I was hoping for more.
The third part tells the story of Vietnam, from the French occupation through the withdrawal of American troops. I knew the least about this part, and enjoyed learning about the war from a general overview. My impression is that people who are expert on this time period would probably take issue with many of Tuchman's characterizations, but they seemed fair to me based on the evidence provided.
A solid read recommended for any lovers of history.
The Girl Who Played With Fire by Steig LarssonCompleted on November 17, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: I enjoyed this sequel to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. This time the story more closely follows Lisbeth Salander as she becomes involved in a new murder investigation. The character development for her was very good as we learn her background story throughout the book.
The overall suspense of the book was good, but not amazing. Many reviewers write that they enjoyed this book more than the first, but for me that was not the case. I felt that the story dragged a bit in places, and there was not any real action until the last 100 pages of the story. I did enjoy the book and found it to be a page turner, but I was expecting more.
Legend by David GemmellCompleted on November 23, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: A really good book that I should have read a long time ago. The novel is basically the story of a siege battle with some fantasy element mixed in. The characters in the story are very well done, if a bit caricatured, but very enjoyable nonetheless. The fantasy elements are understated, and the ending was satisfying but not very surprising. A great read that will have me looking for books by this author again in the future.
The Messenger by Daniel SilvaCompleted on November 26, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: Another great read by Daniel Silva. This one was not as good or as original a story as some of his earlier books, but I am hooked on the Gabriel Allon character and loved the story. I am not sure I enjoy the fact that Allon has become famous at an international level, but so far it has worked well. I think he has stayed true to the character even with the new fame.
The story itself was mostly about one particular operative who was placed inside a terrorist network. The training and operations parts of the story were done well and reminded me a bit of some old Tom Clancy. In the end everything wraps up nicely like all of these books, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment in any way.
Looking forward to the next books in the series.
The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses Grant in War and Peace by H.W. BrandsCompleted on December 10, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: A solid read about one of our great historical figures who somehow gets lost in the shuffle. This book takes us through the life of U.S. Grant, with the two major sections covering the Civil War and his Presidency.
I enjoyed the book because I learned a lot. None of the Civil War stuff was very new, but the information about his early life, his Presidency, and especially the short section on his post-presidential life were fascinating.
I would have given this five stars but something about the style of the book left me wanting more. Grant came across as emotionally detached throughout the book, and the book was written in more of a survey style textbook that included Grant in the events of the time. If that makes sense. But overall I would recomment it and am excited to read more about Grant in the future.
Oliver Twist by Charles DickensCompleted on December 15, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: It had been many years since I read Charles Dickens, but this is pretty much exactly what I remember of him. This was a classic story where the good guys end up being good, and the bad guys end up being bad. The writing style and the atmosphere are where Dickens makes his money, and I loved being transported back to 19th century London. The story itself was not really a page-turner for me, but I did enjoy the characters enough to have no trouble getting through the novel. I will certainly be reading more of Dickens.
My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin OliveiraCompleted on December 21, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: A very enjoyable read that I wish had taken more time. I very much enjoyed the characters and the historical research that defined this short book. Mary Sutter is a strong woman who is put into impossible situations but manages to keep control of herself. I wanted to read more about her and the people in her life. I don't know how the author could have kept it going, but that is all that I was disappointed with.
I recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the Civil War or historical fiction. It deals with the medical practices of the time, so some of the reading might be difficult for some people to get through as it is very graphic and accurate to the time. If you can handle all of that, I think you will enjoy the read.
Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America by David Hackett FischerCompleted on December 23, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: Very difficult book to rate. I give this a 5 in terms of the history covered, and a 3 in terms of its readability. It is not that it was poorly written, because it was not, but the style and format of the book makes it more of a reference book that an historical narrative. At no point while reading this did I think to myself, "I can't wait to get back to this book."
With that criticism out of the way, the actual study was fascinating. Fischer looks at the founding of America through the perspective of four cultural groups. He makes the argument that many cultural aspects of each group can directly trace their origins to the regions of England the original immigrants came from. Great information here and a thesis that is hard to argue against.
While this is not a great review, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys colonial history. However, understand that this is not a quick read and does not tell a story so much as it documents a time period.
War and Peace by Leo TolstoyCompleted on December 30, 2012
Rating: 5/5
Review: Wow - that word pretty much sums up my reaction to this book. My first thought upon finishing was that I want to reread this book sometime soon because I want to revisit the characters that I loved through the last part of the book from the beginning. It is such a long book, and did take me such a long time to get through, that I feel like I would get so much reading through it again.
There is not much more to say about it that hasn't been said hundreds of times by countless others. I enjoyed the characters, love stories, war stories, the plot, and even the diversions into farming and war theory. The last thirty pages were tough because they deal with Tolstoy's views on why history happens. It was tough because I wanted more about the characters and their lives.
I would recommend this to anyone who has the discipline to read a book of this size. It is well worth your time.
1861: The Civil War Awakening by Adam GoodheartCompleted on December 31, 2012
Rating: 4/5
Review: ***I technically finished this on January 1st, but back-dated it by one day so I can keep my 2013 numbers clean.***
A surprisingly great read that cover the first five to six months of 1861. Rather than focus on the military outbreak, or even the politics, the majority of the book looks at various people and groups around the country and their backgrounds and reactions to the events that started the war. The only military discussion is about Fort Sumter, and that was not truly a military action as much as strategic maneuvering. I learned a lot from this book and would loved it to continue through the first battles and beyond.
Final ThoughtsWell I did not even come close to reaching my goal for 2012. I had to many stretches of time when I did not read enough and I too often read more than one book at a time and never finished any of them. I also chose to read too many large books, especially history books.
A good year though and am excited to push ahead in 2013.
The Book Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
1861: The Civil War Awakening (other topics)1861: The Civil War Awakening (other topics)
War and Peace (other topics)
War and Peace (other topics)
Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America (other topics)
More...
Completed on November 4, 2012
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: Another solid offering from Kim Harrison. I would probably give this more of a 3.5/5, but enjoyed it enough to round up. The Hollows stories are all basically books that for half the time talk about Rachel Morgan's emotional angst, and the other half moves the story along. There seemed to be more eye-rolling moments for me this time around, but the action, especially towards the end made the story good for me.
The character development in this story was good for some of the secondary characters. I also enjoy the world building and the various races/types of the characters and the interplay between them. It keeps me interested enough to want to keep going through the series.