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A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption (Hardcover)
Laura Hillenbrand's new book, "Unbroken", is one of the most incredible books I've read in recent years. It is the true story of Louie Zamperini. Zamperini, an Olympic 5000 meter runner for the US(Berlin; 1936) survives the plane crash of his bomber in the Pacific in May of 1943. The book recounts in vivid detail all that occurs over the next 2 and 1/2 years. Mr. Zamperini's story is absolutely incredible. This ranks with the best personal accounts of WWII ever written. This book is riveting!! Ms Hillenbrand's narrative style compels you to continue turning pages long after her accounts of the horrors Zamperini has endured have left you exhausted. This book is a MUST READ!! It is destined to be perched at the top of the bestseller lists for months to come.
Recommend Link>>.
| Create Date : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 | | |
| Last Update : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 17:46:03 น. |
| Counter : 595 Pageviews. |
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Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World (Hardcover)
Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World (Hardcover)
This book was not as good as Moneyball or previous books, but it is interesting if read with certain qualifications in mind. One problem was his rather eccentric approach to certain countries. For example, he used the controversial work of Alan Dundes as a prism through which to examine German culture. Alan Dundes takes a rather discredited Freudian view, which posits "anal-erotic" fixations that supposedly drive some cultures. Basically made-up Freudian ideas that no one takes seriously anymore. Although Mr. Dundes was Jewish, he offended Jews when he published a 1983 paper about Auschwitz jokes, which prompted demands that he be fired. There seems to be something of a grudge to the work of Dundes, a desire to insult, which seems prevalent in his "analysis" of German culture.
Michael Lewis references him repeatedly and that does not inspire confidence or a sense of originality. Lewis basically pathologicalizes (that is, to make it seem like an illness) the German trait of contentiousness and diligence. As fat lazy Americans, these traits may indeed strike most of us as strange! Here is a line from the article on Germany:
""Jörg Asmussen offers the first hint of an answer--in his personal behavior. He is a type familiar in Germany but absolutely freakish in Greece--or for that matter the United States: a keenly intelligent, highly ambitious civil servant who has no other desire but to serve his country. His sparkling curriculum vitae is missing a line that would be found on the résumés of men in his position most anywhere else in the world--the line where he leaves government service for Goldman Sachs to cash out. When I asked another prominent German civil servant why he hadn't taken time out of public service to make his fortune working for some bank, the way every American civil servant who is anywhere near finance seems to want to do, his expression changed to alarm. "But I could never do this," he said. "It would be illoyal!""
Needless to say, we no longer find people like that in the US, so perhaps loyal, hardworking people who serve their country do seem bizarre to us, but one suspects it is not some strange German obsession that needs to be explained, but rather the grotesquerie of the average lazy irresponsible Greek or American. You also see how German children have been guilted since birth for being "evil", for WWII. It is rather disturbing to think of innocent kids treated that way.
The writing is very good, as always, and entertaining. As someone mentioned, you can get most of the articles online for free.
Recommend Link>>.
| Create Date : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 | | |
| Last Update : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 17:42:38 น. |
| Counter : 448 Pageviews. |
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Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever
Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever (Kindle Edition)
The surrender of the confederacy, and the assassination of "Mr" Lincoln, all within days of one another....and no CNN or internet. The thrill, sadness and disarray had to be unimaginable!
The 300 page historic narrative by O'Reilly/Dugard, is a well told story that reads quickly and riveted my attention. A snap shot view of our greatest president, told over a 25 day period in April 1865 in four time line parts, it is clear, concise, very easy to follow and understand. Starting with the give and take of the Grant/Lee confrontations from Petersburg to Appomatix, on to the conspirators planning, to the day of the assassination, and finally the chase and apprehension of those responsible.
I definitely agree with Vince Flynn's praise for the book..."a must read historical thriller". If you are a scholar of the time...please look elsewhere, although the authors clearly list their research sources separately for the individual parts, at the rear of the book. As for Civil War fans, a must read, especially for the exciting and detailed story, of the last breaths of the confederacy.
I never knew the assassination of Lincoln, included the attempted assassination of Sec. of State Seward, and the planned assassination of VP Andrew Johnson...all on the same day in 1865! Amazing to say the least, when thinking forward 136 years.
A worthy read indeed.
Recommend Link>>.
| Create Date : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 | | |
| Last Update : 14 ตุลาคม 2554 17:39:23 น. |
| Counter : 717 Pageviews. |
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Makita PW5001C 4-Inch Hook and Loop Electronic Wet Stone Polisher
There are several features that I liked on this. The variable speed dial is great. Being able to set it for specific RPMs is mandatory. It's quality is great and so far has held up to my abuse. It has a flexible rubber splash guard on the back that keeps you from getting too wet. Also the water valve is variable which is useful for the lower speed RPM work. It has GFCI built into the power cord which is a must when working with electricity and water. The only downside was having to buy the special adapter for the water hose. I had read where others had made a make-shift solution but I found that the one designed for it is worth the money. It can be bought for about $8 and it has a quick release feature which is key during cleanup. Having nothing to compare this to, as I have only owned this one wet grinder, I like it alot. I have compared it to several others and found that it was the best value out there.
| Create Date : 12 ตุลาคม 2554 | | |
| Last Update : 12 ตุลาคม 2554 0:05:47 น. |
| Counter : 323 Pageviews. |
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Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games)
Product Description
This review is from: Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) (Hardcover)
. . . is that darn book in the middle! You know how it goes - the first book is dynamite, because it's all new and there's so much to discover. The last book is explosive too, since we find out what happens "in the end." But the book in the middle . . . well, it's sort of like treading water. It's a place holder, filler maybe, a way to stall the reader until the good stuff can start.
Hunger Games was exiting and compelling; we found out about Katniss's world slowly, which drew us into it completely. My guess is, the final book will be equally engaging - after all, we'll learn all about District 13, we'll find out which of her two suitors Katniss will finally choose, and we'll get a glimpse of what lies in store for the Capitol and its totalitarian government. But Catching Fire is a disappointment. Nothing much happens. The plot can be summed up very succinctly - unrest grows slowly in the aftermath of Katniss and Peeta's Hunger Games victory. That's it. Katniss can't make her mind up about Peeta and Gale, she can't make her mind up about whether or not to rebel, and she can't make her mind up about who to really trust. In the end, not only is there no resolution, but little progress has been made toward one.
The biggest problem with Catching Fire is its pacing. The first third of the novel is really told in summary - Katniss explains what happened when she and Peeta came home, what happened on their tour of the Districts, what happened when she talked to Gale, etc. By telling it all in long paragraphs of summary, Collins removes the reader from the immediacy of the action - and it's both disappointing and disengaging. I wanted to experience Katniss's first meeting with Gale after she returned from the Games. I wanted be part of her trying to get her life together after her horrific experiences. But that's not the way this story is told. Then, about midway through the novel, things start to feel very much like Hunger Games revisited. From the moment it's announced that Katniss will be thrown back into the arena it all starts to feel very much like a re-run. What was exciting and new in the first book, is expected and redundant in the second book. It's not that the final section isn't exciting - it is. There's plenty of action in the last chapters of the novel. But it just wasn't as gripping. I found myself reading to get to the end, rather than to find out what was going to happen.
As with most "middle books," Catching Fire was written to set up the final part of its trilogy. There will be a rebellion. And there will be a love triangle. The sparks of the rebellion are there, although the reader is kept away from the actual embers. Collins put more time into Katniss's confusion over which boyfriend to pick - I found myself wishing for something, anything to happen to make that rather silly conflict moot. Katniss, as written by Collins, seems very, very young. It's hard to imagine her actually "torn between two lovers." Additionally, Gale plays such a peripheral role in this novel that it's hard to really know him. Peeta is present in almost every chapter - the sweet, loving, doting boyfriend who will be eternally true to Katniss. Gale, however, appears in only a few brief scenes, and never says more than a few words. Book 3 may give us a better picture of what these two young men really meant to Katniss; Catching Fire does not.
Actually, I think the title accurately reflects what this novel is all about - things in Katniss's world begin to catch fire. They don't actually CATCH fire - it just begins; it's "catching," so to speak. The conflict was set up in Hunger Games. The actual conflagration will play out in the third and final installment. Here, in Catching Fire, we just see the striking of the match. It's not a bad read, and fans of the first novel will enjoy this one. I just found myself wishing for more - more of an understanding of Katniss, Gale, and Peeta; more of an understanding of the totalitarian government they live under; and more of a connection to a story that won me over brilliantly in Hunger Games. This time, I felt a little lost.
| Create Date : 09 ตุลาคม 2554 | | |
| Last Update : 9 ตุลาคม 2554 20:39:48 น. |
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