The Coming of the Third Reich (2003) 622 pages, by Richard J. Evans, is the first of a trilogy of books by Evans describing the rise and fall of the 20th century’s most documented dictatorship. Evans describes the social, political, and cultural factors that led to the Nazi’s assumption of power. Most of the book centers on the period from 1918 until the Summer of 1933, about six months after Adolph Hitler was appointed Reich Chancellor. What were they thinking? What were we all thinking?
True Grit, by Charles Portis
Is not a great American classic, but it’s a fine read. More suitable for an airplane ride than for a month in the desert.
Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II, by John W. Dower
Recommended by my brother in law Travis Doty, a comprehensive look at American occupation of Japan between 1945 – 1952. What worked, what didn’t, and the lingering question – was it a success?
A World at War: Books on World War II, by Brian P. McLean
Last Fall I began an ambitious project: read six books that describe some of the critical battles, personalities, materiel, politics, aftermath, and enduring effects of World War II, starting with the invasion and occupation of North Africa by allied forces, and ending with the war in the Pacific. The following are strongly recommended: Continue reading A World at War: Books on World War II
One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel García Márquez (1967), is a great book, obviously, but in reading it in English I wonder how much of the original Spanish is lost in translation. It is a brilliant yet exhausting book to read, where there are no heroes, no true and enduring love, no real meaning to life, and, after a hundred years, the magic is gone.
Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel, is fiction based on the life of a real person,Thomas Cromwell. Picked by a number of pundits as one of the best books of 2009, it doesn’t disappoint. It does well what some of the best books do well: capture a world and populate it with believable characters whose actions and motives ring true.
No Way to Treat a First Lady, by Christopher Buckley, is a quick read, well-written, funny, quirky, and romantic. The novel probably most closely resembles a Reader’s Digest version of a Scott Turow novel, penned by Dave Barry.
Born to Run is gripping, well-written, and destined to perpetuate the cult of barefoot running. Particularly inspiring to a fat guy like me.
The Big Short, by Michael Lewis, explains how a few people made a lot of money shorting worthless mortgage-based securities. A terrific tale of greed and the Emperor’s New Clothes.
The Blind Side, by Michael Lewis, reads subtly as an apologia for the Tuohys and their decision to bring sports athlete Michael Oher into their Mississippi Christian home. It works best when talking about the strategic interests and money that drives professional football, and the farm leagues that are college. The book is better than the movie, which makes necessary compromises in order to tell the story.
