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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
Paul McFarland has commented on (52) products
Naked Economics Undressing the Dismal Science
by
Charles Wheelan
Paul McFarland
, January 29, 2008
A wonderful book on the laws behind everyday headlines. From why sweatshops are good to the problems with used cars, this explains our economic system better than any of the popularizations that I have read. A must read for anyone who is not an Econ major.
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Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates
by
Tom Robbins
Paul McFarland
, August 19, 2007
Tom Robbins brings us a CIA man on a spiritual journey. That comes to involve everything from the most complex novel in the English language to the third prophecy of Fatima. In a multicontinental pursuit of love, religion, and the answer to life the universe and everything (spoiler - it is not 42) this is a funny, thoughtful romp with Switters, the mad metaphysician. Robbins pulls of another great novel.
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Bring The Jubilee
by
Ward Moore
Paul McFarland
, August 18, 2007
This 1955 book presages the current mass of alternative history that make up a category of their own in the major online bookstores. Writing from a world were the south had won the civil war a major historian returns to view and perhaps affect the Battle of Gettysburg. Ward Moore penned the classic science fiction novel that showed everyone how it was done.
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How to Shit in the Woods An Environmentally Sound Approach to a Lost Art
by
Kathleen Meyer
Paul McFarland
, August 17, 2007
Writing mostly from a female standpoint but including knowledge that is of great help to anyone, the author takes a straightforward look at an age-old problem. What do you do when you have to go and you are miles from anywhere that makes a flushing noise? With humor, good sense, and a remarkable tastefulness, Kathleen Meyers tells all. Including some tragically funny personal stories of how not to go.
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Emergence Reality Dysfunction 02
by
Peter F Hamilton
Paul McFarland
, August 16, 2007
The first volume of a huge six volume science fiction series. A massive work that ranges through an enormous spectrum of characters. Not just a collection of technological forecasts of the future, although those are here and wondrous indeed. But a cast of real people that you become involved with. This is in truth a science fiction novel in all the best senses of the word. A brief plot outline would run to several pages. If you ever loved science fiction, you have to read these books.
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Give War a Chance: Eyewitness Accounts of Mankind's Struggle Against Tyranny, Injustice, and Alcohol-Free Beer
by
P. J. O'Rourke
Paul McFarland
, August 15, 2007
Yes, it is possible to be a conservative and be funny, as P.J. O?Rourke proves in each of his books. Another fine collection of political satire ranging from Dr. Ruth to the wisdom of the two-thousand-year-old U.S Middle East Policy Expert. This joins the rest of O?Rourke?s books as being insightful and truly funny.
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Give War A Chance
by
P J ORourke
Paul McFarland
, August 15, 2007
Yes, it is possible to be a conservative and be funny, as P.J. O?Rourke proves in each of his books. Another fine collection of political satire ranging from Dr. Ruth to the wisdom of the two-thousand-year-old U.S Middle East Policy Expert. This joins the rest of O?Rourke?s books as being insightful and truly funny.
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Molly Ivins Cant Say That Can She
by
Molly Ivins
Paul McFarland
, August 14, 2007
Remarking in print that if a local politician?s IQ slipped any lower he would have to be watered twice a day provoked the title of the fine selections of essays by the funniest writer on the left. Taking on everything from Women in the south to the sacred subject of football Molly rides roughshod over hypocrisy and cant. A wonderful assemblage of social and political wisdom as pertinent and hilarious now as it was in 1991 when published
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Soul of a Chef The Journey Toward Perfection
by
Michael Ruhlman
Paul McFarland
, August 13, 2007
If you ever wished you were someone else, this book is another look at how others live. In this case students trying to become a Certified Master Chef at the Culinary Institute of America. In a fine sequel to The Making of a Chef, Michael Ruhlman takes us deeper into the world or the upper level of professional chefs. He looks at several styles of cooking and ponders why some restaurant will work and another will fail. A delicious read
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Napoleon Of Crime The Life & Times Of Adam Worth Master Thief
by
Ben Macintyre
Paul McFarland
, August 12, 2007
Adam Worth was perhaps the most successful criminal of the Victorian era. He most likely served as a model for the Professor Moriarty of Conan Doyle. This Biography traces the life of a man who changed his identity after being listed as killed at Second Manassas, moved to England and became a master thief. He lived a life of deception and was the mastermind behind most of the large criminal enterprises of the era. The height of his career was lifting Gainsborough?s portrait of the Duchess of Devonshire a distant relation of Princes Di. In what may have been the most unlikely friendship of all times he became close to William Pinkerton the great detective of the age. Perhaps most remarkably he lived his life in the criminal underworld without committing a single crime that involved violence and was never know to carry a firearm.
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Green Ripper
by
John D MacDonald
Paul McFarland
, August 11, 2007
Was Travis McGee an action hero or a social commentator? You can make a fine argument either way but John D. MacDonald created one of the most memorable characters in popular fiction in this series of books. Travis takes on terrorism in this exciting book. The insights that he penned in 1978 are all too real today. It is hard to believe that this is not a contemporary novel. It stands the test of time very very well.
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Fiddlers 87th Precinct
by
Ed McBain
Paul McFarland
, August 10, 2007
Ed McBain never wrote an 87th Precinct novel that I did not love and this is no exception. The detectives of the 87th track a very unusual serial killer. No one did the police procedural any better than McBain (Evan Hunter) and he is at the top of his form in this book. This was the last of the 87th precinct novels written before his much-lamented death at the age of 78. One of a fine writer final works.
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Rainbows End
by
Vernor Vinge
Paul McFarland
, August 09, 2007
Set in San Diego in the year 2025 Vernor Vinge outlines his vision of how the internet will change everything. Will Google, Wikipedia, and Youtube result in this, after reading this book you will wonder just how true it is. The novel gives an exciting peak into a very possible future. Will we find ourselves sharing our days between a nursing home and the special needs class of a grade school. This is a worthwhile read.
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Wild Blue The Men & Boys Who Flew the B 24s Over Germany 1944 45
by
Stephen E Ambrose
Paul McFarland
, August 08, 2007
Another fine military history by Stephen Ambrose tells the story of American B-24 pilots in Europe during WWII. Although this book focuses on the Experiences of George McGovern who flew 35 missions and received a Distinguished Flying Cross it does an excellent job of telling the story of everyone involved in the bomber war against Germany. This is a fine and an exciting tale.
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UFOs JFK & Elvis Conspiracies You Dont Have to Be Crazy to Believe
by
Richard Belzer
Paul McFarland
, August 07, 2007
Perhaps the sanest look at conspiracy theory I have read. I will not say I came away from this book convinced but I did come away from it thoughtful. An insightful and often funny look at the leading conspiracies of our times.
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Nothing Like It in the World The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1865 1869
by
Stephen E Ambrose
Paul McFarland
, August 06, 2007
Stephen Ambrose, that prince of storytellers, views the building of the transcontinental railroad. The great race between Union Pacific and the Central Pacific railroads frames this account of the people who built this great link across the continent. From the politicians to the men who used the hammers both the sweep and the detail are covered in this fine book.
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Lila An Inquiry Into Morals
by
Robert M Pirsig
Paul McFarland
, August 05, 2007
In his first book, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Pirsig looked at what was good and how that is determined. In this follow-up work, he examines what is right. Ranging from Anthropology to the structures of quality outlined in his first book he again uses the vehicle of story telling to explore his points. In this, case a boat trip and a meeting with a young woman. A good sequel to a good book
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Zen & The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance
by
Robert M Pirsig
Paul McFarland
, August 04, 2007
The author uses the form of a story about a motorcycle trip to examine one of the most interesting questions of philosophy. How do we determine what is good? It is a judgment that we can mostly agree on ? but just how is it made? Pirsig examines this closely and explores the false dichotomy between the artistic and the technical view of life. The hipster and the geek. An important book on what we think and why we think it.
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Fox At The Front
by
Douglas Niles
Paul McFarland
, August 03, 2007
The sequel to the alternative history Fox on the Rhine. With the German Army fought to a standstill and collapsing the USSR reenters the war. The only way to stop the Soviets from ruling most of Europe is an alliance between George Patton and Erwin Rommel. An exciting conclusion to this two-book look at how WWII might have turned out.
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Fox On The Rhine
by
Doug Niles
Paul McFarland
, August 02, 2007
An entertaining alternative history of World War 2. In this scenario, Hitler is killed by the bomb in the Bunker and power falls to Himmler. Without the direction of the madman, Hitler the war in the west takes a very unexpected turn for the worse for the allies. A very believable piece of historical fiction.
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Judas Unchained
by
Peter F Hamilton
Paul McFarland
, August 01, 2007
The direct continuation of Pandora?s Star. Do not read this without reading Pandora?s star first. It is all one long book and it will not make since. The continuation of the conflict between the Commonwealth and the Primes. With the continued mystery of the existence of the Starflyer. A magnificent giant novel of the future.
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Pandora's Star: The Intersolar Commonwealth Saga 1
by
Peter F Hamilton
Paul McFarland
, July 31, 2007
A huge multicharacter sweep of hard science fiction that harks back to the best of Heinlein in its detail of the future. In 2380, an astronomer discovers that the light from two distant stars has winked out in an instant. An investigation is launched ? complications ensue. Do not buy this book without having Judas Unchained. One book flows directly into another with a cliffhanger ending.
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Iraq War
by
John Keegan
Paul McFarland
, July 30, 2007
This book by John Keegan, the author of The Face of Battle, is a look at the first episode of the current conflict. The straight military action that defeated the Iraqi army and conquered Iraq. Somewhat overshadowed by the events of the occupation the tremendous military achievement of the early war has been lost. This account by Britain?s leading military historian puts that side of the story in perspective. A good read by a great writer of history.
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Bridge at No Gun Ri A Hidden Nightmare from the Korean War
by
Charles Hanley
Paul McFarland
, July 29, 2007
In July of 1950, U.S. troops fired on a large group of South Korean civilians at a bridge near White Horse Mountain. This action was suppressed for years. In 1999, the Associated Press broke the story. This book gives a detailed account of that event. Marking clearly that this was not only the action of a few frightened young GI?s, but also the result of a policy on refugees that extended all the way up the chain of command. A detailed story of a military mistake.
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Black Angels The Story of the Waffen SS
by
Rupert Butler
Paul McFarland
, July 28, 2007
A British military history study of the Waffen-SS, the private army formations of Adolf Hitler. By the end of World War II, the Waffen-SS had over half a million men under arms. This detailed history studies both the military role of the Waffen-SS and its role in repression and terror. There is often a separation made between the SS and the Waffen-SS this book looks closely at that concept. A UK Pen & Sword Military Classic.
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Blind Mans Bluff The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage
by
Sherry Sontag
Paul McFarland
, July 27, 2007
Throughout the Cold War, the US Navy conducted submarine espionage and intelligence gathering against the USSR. This work traces some of the newly declassified stores of that period. From taping underwater cable traffic to the story of the Glomar Explorer, this is an exciting true story of submarine adventure.
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Iron Bravo
by
Stroud, Carsten
Paul McFarland
, July 26, 2007
Subtitled hearts, minds, and sergeants in the U.S. Army this fiction vehicle tells the story of the Big Red One infantry division through the eyes and mind of one sergeant. This book both traces the history of the division from Custer to Patton to Desert Storm and gives the best insight into the mind of a fighting man I have read. A must for anyone who wants to understand the profession of arms in the United States.
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Courtroom 302 A Year Behind The Scenes I
by
Steve Bogira
Paul McFarland
, July 25, 2007
Chicago?s Cook County Criminal Court is the busiest courthouse in the country. For one year, Steve Bogira watched and reported the activities of one courtroom in that system. This is a very disturbing look at what really happens in our criminal justice system. Reading it is almost frightening. They say you should never look into how sausage is made, after reading this book I feel that perhaps one should not look into how folks are sent to jail. This is an eye-opening book and I fear it is not limited to Chicago.
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Making of a Chef Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute of America
by
Michael Ruhlman
Paul McFarland
, July 24, 2007
Journalist Michael Ruhlman joins a class at The Culinary Institute of America and fully convinces me that I am not smart enough or coordinated enough to ever be a Chef. However, I got a great deal of enjoyment in reading about other people undergoing the trials of becoming one. They say that adventure is someone having a very hard time far away. This book fits that well. The stress and dedication that is needed to become a chef makes for an adventure indeed.
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On The Wealth Of Nations
by
P J ORourke
Paul McFarland
, July 23, 2007
This book is subtitled P.J. O?Rourke reads Wealth of Nations so you don?t have to. I truly wish I had had access to this volume before I read Wealth of Nations. I think I would have come away with a better grasp of Smith?s points and spent a whole lot less time doing it. I would have had, by the way, a far better time reading. This is a funny book as are all of O?Rourke?s works. I do not share all of his political views but the man can write well and with humor. He presents an evenhanded synopsis of Smith?s work and has a wonderful time doing it. You should join him.
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Secret Life Of The Seine
by
Mort Rosenblum
Paul McFarland
, July 22, 2007
One of the best travel books I have read. A five-knot voyage down the central river of France. The book is filled with the facts and history of the river and is bound together with a wonderful story of a journey of a lifetime. This would be the way to see France. However, since few of us are going to make this trip, you must read this book.
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Travels
by
Michael Crichton
Paul McFarland
, July 21, 2007
A collection of essays by the very popular author of just about everything from books to TV. Michael Crichton takes us into his own search for meaning and explanation. I found him to be a far different individual than I had imagined him. I finished the book with mixed feelings. He became less of a hero and more of a man. A book of real courage. I am not sure that many writers would put this much of themselves on view. An excellent book by a major writer.
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Eiger Dreams Ventures Among Men & Mountains
by
Jon Krakauer
Paul McFarland
, July 20, 2007
In this collection of essays on climbing Jon Krakauer, the author of Into Thin Air looks at mountains and the people who climb them. Touching on many of the major summits in the world from K2 to the authors attempt on Eiger itself, we get a good introduction to the world of people who dream of the high places of the earth. A good solid read that is best appreciated inside by the fire.
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Into the Wild
by
Jon Krakauer
Paul McFarland
, July 19, 2007
Jon Krakauer, the author of Into Thin Air tells the story of Chris McCandless whose attempt to find life in the wilderness led to his death in 1992. Delving deeply into the background and motivation of this young man the author tells a reveling story of what can drive an individual to this kind of action. He also looks at the experiences of others, including himself, who have walked close to the edge of dying alone and tries to find a common feature that would turn a person away from out social net. A powerful and insightful book.
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How Doctors Think
by
Jerome Groopman
Paul McFarland
, July 18, 2007
In this excellent and very accessible work, Dr. Jerome Groopman looks closely at the mental process of making a diagnosis. In showing the thought patterns that an MD uses to decide what is wrong with us, he gives information and warnings. He clearly lines out the pressures on the modern MD and the types and causes of errors. This book makes clear to any reader of average intelligence how medicine is really practiced. Most valuable of all he includes the three critical questions that you should ask your doctor to help them stay on the right track toward solving your problem. As an RN, I would push this book on any patient I cared for.
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Skipping Towards Gomorrah The Seven Deadly Sins & the Pursuit of Happiness in America
by
Dan Savage
Paul McFarland
, July 17, 2007
Just how do the seven deadly sins fare in modern America? Doing quite well, judging from this survey by Dan Savage. The author looks at everything from how the rich live to being a Jewish swinger. In his exploration, he finds us not quite as up tight as one would perhaps think. The book is, almost as a byproduct, a very funny look at the weaknesses of the flesh. The experiences of the author, a gay male, being repeatedly hit on at a convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Fat Acceptance by a number of BBW ? Big Beautiful Women is worth the price of the book in itself.
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The Book on the Bookshelf
by
Henry Petroski
Paul McFarland
, July 16, 2007
A fine work by Henry Petroski, that prince of explainers. In this volume, he looks at the history of the book itself and the ways that it has been stored and preserved. Starting with the manufacture of scrolls and the efforts to keep them intact Mr. Petroski leads us up to modern books and the ways they are stored, retrieved, and protected. With fascinating stops at everything from labels to bookends, the whole world of books is surveyed. A must for any booklover.
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Dishwasher One Mans Quest to Wash Dishes in All Fifty States
by
Pete Jordan
Paul McFarland
, July 15, 2007
This is one-half of a wonderful book. The book traces the adventures of a full time slacker through his quest to earn a living by washing dishes in all fifty states. Along the way, the author imparts fascinating information about the history and art of washing dishes on a commercial level. He also treats us to an honor roll of famous people, from Woody Guthrie to Gerald Ford who were ?dish men? or ?pearl divers?. However, this dishwasher fundamental rule was to ?never work at a place where I couldn?t just up and leave?. He applies the rule to finishing books also, leaving his quest undone just as the book hits its stride. This is a good book, never the less, but it could have been a great one.
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Sleeping Doll
by
Jeffery Deaver
Paul McFarland
, July 14, 2007
Stepping briefly away from his best selling Lincoln Rhymes novels, Jeffery Deaver gives us an entire novel based on Special Agent Kathryn Dance. This character who made a brief appearance in an earlier Rhyme novel is an expert at Kinesics the art and science of interrogation. Along with Deaver's usual mass of detail on police procedures, he gives us a very believable California Bureau of Investigation and lots of local color. With several plot twists, this one kept me guessing until the very end. A wonderful thriller.
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All the Shahs Men An American Coup & the Roots of Middle East Terror
by
Stephen Kinzer
Paul McFarland
, July 13, 2007
The story of the CIA operation that returned the Shah of Iran to the Peacock Throne. This is an in depth look at the circumstances and people surrounding the fall of the government of the democratically elected ruler of Iran in the 1953 coup. The plot extends from President Eisenhower and Prime Minister Churchill to the father of Norman Schwarzkopf. However, the largest role is that of Kermit Roosevelt. Yes, that Roosevelt - who took a huge amount of CIA cash and ended up with a man on the throne who sparked the Islamic Revolution of 1976 and the resulting hostage crisis that brought down the Carter administration. A deep look at the early days of US involvement in the Middle East.
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Dispatches
by
Michael Herr
Paul McFarland
, July 12, 2007
An explicit account of the war in Vietnam that comes as close as anything I have read about that misbegotten conflict to capturing the mood of the fighting. The author of this nonfiction work co authored the screenplays of Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket. This book shows clearly the roots of those films. A very powerful read.
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Rant
by
Chuck Palahniuk
Paul McFarland
, July 11, 2007
A multilayered book containing a classic science fiction time travel story wrapped in a social commentary and studded with troubling facts. This novel by the author of Fight Club contains some disturbing ideas but those are far outweighed by the shear creativity of the story. Told as a series of short interviews it puts together the Biography of Buster Casey. The man at the center of this whirlwind of ideas. I will not say you will enjoy this book but you will come away thoughtful. And than can be a rare thing in current books.
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Now Playing at the Valencia: Pulitzer Prize-Winning Essays on Movies
by
Stephen Hunter
Paul McFarland
, July 10, 2007
Steven Hunter, the Pulitzer Prize winning author of many novels and one excellent history book talks about his lifetime love affair with the movies. Imagine loving movies and being the film critic for The Washington Post. And still finding time to write thirteen plus books. This is a collection of the author?s favorite reviews written between 1997 and 2003. The book is grouped into categories from Westerns to Cartoons and ranges from Star Wars to Saving Private Ryan. Hunter provides a thoughtful look throughout. Unless you are a true movie nut, you will finish this book with a list of films you have got to see.
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The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal 1870-1914
by
David McCullough
Paul McFarland
, July 09, 2007
David McCullough turns his prolific pen to the story of the Panama Canal. This long dense book proves to be a quick exciting read. The author has the gift of somehow making you forget how events turn out and you find yourself wondering if the Canal will indeed be successfully built. A fine period study that relates the construction to overall events. As one of the major players would have said this is a ?thumping? good read.
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Dark Star Safari Overland from Cairo to Cape Town
by
Paul Theroux
Paul McFarland
, July 08, 2007
Perhaps the best living travel writer. Paul Theroux takes us the length of Africa by all forms of transportation. Moving with and interacting with all whom he meets. I have been to Africa once in the mist of a war long ago and I thought nothing would ever tempt me to return. This book proved me wrong. This is a very honest, a very sad, and a very wonderful book, usually all at the same time. It is more than worth reading.
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Other Peoples Dirt A Housecleaners Curious Adventures
by
Louise Rafkin
Paul McFarland
, July 07, 2007
This collection of essays from Louise Rafkin takes a humorous and insightful look at the world of cleaning. From working with a mad group of ex pats cleaning in France to learning Zen in Japan by door-to-door gifts of cleaning this is a wide-ranging tail of personal experiences tied together by the art and science of cleaning. The style is bouncy and pleasant. The author is likable and there is a world of unusual information. The New York Earth Room ? who knew?
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Chinese In America A Narrative History
by
Iris Chang
Paul McFarland
, July 06, 2007
The author of the well-respected book The Rape of Nanking tells the 150-year story of Chinese immigrants in the US. Tracing the Chinese Diaspora from the mid 1800s to the present. Ms. Chang presents a hugely readable account of a major segment of the American spectrum. Showing both the broad sweep of the three waves of immigration and the fascinating details of individual stories this is a wonderful and enjoyable book.
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Stonewall
by
Martin Duberman
Paul McFarland
, July 05, 2007
I think the best account of the early days of Gay Liberation. Martin Duberman takes the stories of six individuals and blends it into the beginning of the modern Gay movement in the 60s. The book starts with the background of all involved and leads up to the police raid on the Stonewall, a gay bar in New York?s Greenwich Village, and the five days of rioting that ensued. This resulted in the first Gay Rights March of 1970. A powerful story of the background of what, even today, is still a struggle in much of America.
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Thunderstruck
by
Erik Larson
Paul McFarland
, July 04, 2007
A history of the murderer Dr. Hawley Crippen and that of Guglielmo Marconi. Two men whose lives intersected by the fact that Dr. Crippen was the first criminal to be apprehended as a result of wireless communication. The parallel stories shed light on the daily life of England in the days before World War 1. This was an age not only of progress but also in the very strong belief in the idea of progress itself. A time in which all things seemed possible. However, at the same time the age-old causes that lead first to the murder of a no longer tolerable wife by Crippen and indeed to the much larger crime of the coming war still worked strongly. The story of Crippen and Marconi are well told. Crippen strangely enough ends the book having garnered more sympathy than Marconi who does not stand in a good light despite his great invention. The day-to-day details of the time are interesting and well developed. Overall a good read.
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American Gunfight The Plot To Kill Harry
by
Stephen Hunter
Paul McFarland
, July 03, 2007
A moment by moment look at the attempted assassination of Harry Truman by two Puerto Rican Nationalists in 1950. This is a careful look at a gun related historical incident by an author who understands firearms very well. That understanding reveals many faults with the classic account of the incident. Steven Hunter is the Pulitzer Prize winning film critic at The Washington Post and the author of twelve novels. He is a veteran with an exhaustive knowledge of firearms. Seen by an expert the history of this short period of time in American History gives up a wealth of information. Far too many authors write about firearms and violence who understand neither. This is not the case with this excellent study.
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Hitler Virus The Insidious Legacy of Adolf Hitler
by
Peter Wyden
Paul McFarland
, July 02, 2007
An excellent exploration of the lingering effects of the cult of Adolf Hitler. Starting with what the author sees as the failure of the de nazification program and re education and ending with the current appeal of far right politicians this is a wide ranging survey. The author explores the popularity of Hitler related sites as tourist destinations and the thriving market for Nazi memorabilia. An excellent case is made that the ideas of National Socialism are still very much alive. In a closely related area, the author also looks closely at the academics who are involved in Holocaust denial.
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Paperboy Confessions Of A Future Engineer
by
Henry Petroski
Paul McFarland
, July 01, 2007
Henry Petroski is perhaps the best explainer of technology writing today. In The Pencil and The Evolution of Useful Things, he gave us great insight into how things work. In this book that tells the story of his young life and experiences as a paperboy he shows us how an individual with a grasp for the mechanical grew up. His tenth book is in many ways the most interesting. Every young person has a curiosity about how the world is put together. This is a tale of a man who kept that curiosity and made it into his way of life.
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