Christopher > Recent Status Updates

No sources. So many factual claims, but no statement as to where they came from and where more can be found. I love bibliographies - they are usually the first part of a book which I read - but the one in this book is abysmal. I'm thinking 3 stars on this one.

As wonderful as I expected, and then some. Considering that I just read 173 pages straight through, rather than alternate between various books as I usually do, indicates how fond I am of this biography.

I liked Einhard, but Notker is harder to read. I get through a few pages a day, so I'll finish it eventually no doubt.

A hero of mine since I was a child, the life and adventures of this most heroic of men has captivated me for most of my life. I cannot wait to learn what is in store for me in this book. My one complaint is that 700 pages seems far, far too few for so vast a life.

This one has been hard for me to focus on. So many other - non-fiction - books to read that fiction almost always ultimately takes a back seat. However, I adored the previous books, and, despite the lack of Gaius Marius, look forward to the rest nonetheless.

I'm divided on this one. I dislike her style of alternating between the present and the past in the same paragraph, often with dizzying results; also, the focus on the "empire" rather than Venice is not what I was expecting, despite the title. However, the [is]lands which Venice ruled do, ultimately, make for an intriguing tale.

This shall be a long but, as always for Durant, extremely pleasurable read. I cannot wait to delve into it further.

Interesting so far. I've always wanted to read Xenophon, but until recently had never seen any of his books for sale.

I still don't know what to make of this, despite being pretty much half done. It is weird. It is dogmatic. It is sensationalist. Do I agree with its conclusions? At times, yes; nobody can pay even a middling attention to American society and politics without believing that there is truth to his words; however, in the end, they seem to be too extreme for the situation.

Almost done! This has been such a wonderful story that I am upset it is done. I guess all there is to do is to find another, even grander history of the Renaissance in Italy (if anybody can write a grander history than can Master Durant) and lament over its all-too-quick completion.

The first chapter has been interesting. I've been hoping to find a "global" history the author of which understands that Europe is not the entire globe, and I seem to have found that author in John Darwin.

Interesting, but it seems to me that the author makes too definitive and sweeping of statements without the requisite authority to do so. Not that the future about which he warns does not seem to be evident, for I cannot disagree with the frightening trend in American politics these last few decades, but so far I'm finding a bit of trouble suspending disbelief.

Excellent book so far. Hard to put down. Filled to the brim with case studies, legal opinions and malfeasance, and human buffoonery mingling with the occasional noble act almost guaranteed to be punished. It would seem that Congress/the-Judiciary believed that the speaker ought to be punished for riling a crowd to violence rather than the crowd being punished for being violent. What a scary reality that would be.

This has been slow reading. Not because I don't want to read it - I love it! - but because it is just so damned interesting that I find myself cross-referencing a dozen statements per page. Best book of the series so far.

I thought people were just whining when others complained about the length - it IS only 615 pages. But Oh What a Massively Long Book! I like it, but it coulda been said with half the page-count. Oh, and what is with the absence of Edgardo Mortara? There's one story I was looking forward to.

Intriguing.
Typically batty Freud,

Very interesting work. I was only intending to read Confessions, but I like it so that I shall probably ultimately read Suspiria, as well.

Who would have thought sexuality could be soooo boring?! Especially coming from somebody as sexually devious as the great Foucault. I'll assume that this is because vol. 1 is "Introduction", for introductions tend to be boring, and look forward to vol. 2.

Interesting work, but relatively slow-moving.

I'm really not feeling this one. I don't like Klingaman's style, nor do I find his characters come alive whatsoever, a real shame considering that he's working with people who were, in fact, living at one point.

The best of the series so far, which says a LOT. I loved the first, second, and fourth and can't wait to read the rest.

Intriguing work. Looking forward to its arguments and conclusions. So far he has said nothing which I haven't been saying for years, which makes the book both easily enjoyed but also encapsulating in a way, for one ought never to seek out only arguments which agree with one's own beliefs.

An important book, I think everybody should have at least a propaedeutic understanding of the irrationality of government policy: to wage a war on their own citizens! And not just citizens, but sick people! Definitely a book I'll be recommending.

Can't wait to see how this one plays out: Spartacus, Caesar abducted by pirates, Sulla's dictatorship. Am I in for a treat...