Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett - great fluff
Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen - wow
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Catch-up Notes Post
Livability
Master and Commander
Cod
The Places In Between
War
A Year in Provence
Treasure Island
Master and Commander
Cod
The Places In Between
War
A Year in Provence
Treasure Island
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Wolf Hall
Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel
Summary
A novel of the period from Henry VIII's failed marriage to Katherine of Aragon to almost the end of his failed marriage to Anne Boleyn, as told through the lens of a much-rehabilitated Thomas Cromwell.
Cromwell is portrayed as a sensible capitalist liberal (in the modern American sense). In fact, he is portrayed as a very modern fellow overall, quite out of line with his supposed betters in the court of Henry. The novel traces his dutiful loyalty to Cardinal Wolsey through his triumph and fall, and then on to Cromwell's zenith of influence in court culminating in his conviction of Thomas More for treason. This is all playing against the backdrop of the beginning of what would eventually be the English Reformation.
A lot of good history and a healthy dose of supposition and insertion of non-facts that might have been.
Reaction
A very, very good read. Cromwell is exactly the kind of hero I go in for: clever, compassionate, business-minded. A great read.
A little playing with pronouns more than I would have liked. If you read this one, know that when she uses "he" and it's at all ambiguous, she means my man Cromwell.
Reading Inspired by This One
An English history, at least of the Tudors (I didn't know Henry VIII was Elizabeth I's father!!!0
maybe some more Mantel, she's really quite good.
Summary
A novel of the period from Henry VIII's failed marriage to Katherine of Aragon to almost the end of his failed marriage to Anne Boleyn, as told through the lens of a much-rehabilitated Thomas Cromwell.
Cromwell is portrayed as a sensible capitalist liberal (in the modern American sense). In fact, he is portrayed as a very modern fellow overall, quite out of line with his supposed betters in the court of Henry. The novel traces his dutiful loyalty to Cardinal Wolsey through his triumph and fall, and then on to Cromwell's zenith of influence in court culminating in his conviction of Thomas More for treason. This is all playing against the backdrop of the beginning of what would eventually be the English Reformation.
A lot of good history and a healthy dose of supposition and insertion of non-facts that might have been.
Reaction
A very, very good read. Cromwell is exactly the kind of hero I go in for: clever, compassionate, business-minded. A great read.
A little playing with pronouns more than I would have liked. If you read this one, know that when she uses "he" and it's at all ambiguous, she means my man Cromwell.
Reading Inspired by This One
An English history, at least of the Tudors (I didn't know Henry VIII was Elizabeth I's father!!!0
maybe some more Mantel, she's really quite good.
Ill Fares the Land
Ill Fares the Land, by Tony Judt
Summary
A loud criticism of the modern left more than of the modern right. Judt argues that in the 60s and since the left in the US and UK has become so interested in individual freedom and liberty that it has lost sight of its original rallying cry - collective action for the collective good. He decries the success that the right has had in making the very notion of collective action a taboo subject in modern political discourse by loudly ridiculing every failure or inefficiency of government action, and downplaying the inefficiencies of privatization and the market.
Judt gives a brief summary of how social democracy (his shorthand for collective action) arose, out of the Depression and the wars, how it triumphed, and what has happened since. Long on details of the rise, and short on answers for how to pay for all of this when the demographics sit as they do rather than as they did, it is nevertheless an impassioned argument for public goods provided by government.
Reaction
A polemic but a persuasive one. We have lost faith (I have lost faith) in government's ability to achieve anything productive. I personally was blown away at the passage of a pretty mediocre, uninspired, health care reform program through Congress - it was far beyond what I thought our elected officials could achieve, even in its pasty imperfection. Judt argues that the ideologues of free market faith have done a master's job of instilling this mind set in me. I would counter that there has been plenty of good reason to think this way but that's not an excuse for giving up on collective action for humanity's good - a position I've taken too often.
Reading Inspired by this one
I really enjoyed Judt's writing style and intend to read more of him.
Summary
A loud criticism of the modern left more than of the modern right. Judt argues that in the 60s and since the left in the US and UK has become so interested in individual freedom and liberty that it has lost sight of its original rallying cry - collective action for the collective good. He decries the success that the right has had in making the very notion of collective action a taboo subject in modern political discourse by loudly ridiculing every failure or inefficiency of government action, and downplaying the inefficiencies of privatization and the market.
Judt gives a brief summary of how social democracy (his shorthand for collective action) arose, out of the Depression and the wars, how it triumphed, and what has happened since. Long on details of the rise, and short on answers for how to pay for all of this when the demographics sit as they do rather than as they did, it is nevertheless an impassioned argument for public goods provided by government.
Reaction
A polemic but a persuasive one. We have lost faith (I have lost faith) in government's ability to achieve anything productive. I personally was blown away at the passage of a pretty mediocre, uninspired, health care reform program through Congress - it was far beyond what I thought our elected officials could achieve, even in its pasty imperfection. Judt argues that the ideologues of free market faith have done a master's job of instilling this mind set in me. I would counter that there has been plenty of good reason to think this way but that's not an excuse for giving up on collective action for humanity's good - a position I've taken too often.
Reading Inspired by this one
I really enjoyed Judt's writing style and intend to read more of him.
The Third Tower Up from the Road
The Third Tower Up from the Road: Kevin Dolgin tells you About Places You Should Go, by Kevin Dolgin
Summary
A short collection of essays about travels the world over, though mostly in Europe. Written in a wry sneaky style with little effort made to be a travel guide and lots of effort made to write in some detail about some very small overlooked element of a usually well-known destination. The world's oldest standing Ferris wheel in Vienna, for example. Or the statue of Frank Zappa in Vilnius Lithuania.
Reaction
Fun. Entertaining. Whimsical. Inspiring of a certain amount of wanderlust. Uninformative.
Summary
A short collection of essays about travels the world over, though mostly in Europe. Written in a wry sneaky style with little effort made to be a travel guide and lots of effort made to write in some detail about some very small overlooked element of a usually well-known destination. The world's oldest standing Ferris wheel in Vienna, for example. Or the statue of Frank Zappa in Vilnius Lithuania.
Reaction
Fun. Entertaining. Whimsical. Inspiring of a certain amount of wanderlust. Uninformative.
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