From your editor:

49 weeks to go! 49 looks a lot more impending than 50, n'est-ce pas?
The sense of urgency is killing me!

Here's another online literary gem for you:
The Literary Encyclopedia

(Or for lovers of places, a placeopedia!)

Oh, and may I add, best picture this week:

tina: 2/26: The Lexus and the OliveTree by Thomas Friedman

Always meant to read this book and what better opportunity when I'm pushed to read it for school! Actually, read this book to prep for my next book also written by Friedman. There are a lot of books out there about globalization already, but Friedman's outlook on this new century phenomenon is fairly comprehensible and easy to read. He made his name by writing for the New York Times Foreign Affairs column and he has a flare for writing by including his endless anecdotes about his travels all over the world.

swingbeat: 9/26: The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

This is the tale of a young Indian-American man, Gogol Ganguli, starting from his father's generation. The author poignantly speaks of life for the two generations of Indian-Americans, his parents who moved here as adults, and those who were born here. Gogul was named after a Russian author named Nikolai Gogol, one of whose books saved his father's life.

Jhumpa Lahin writes well. She tells a compelling tale of adaptation for Gogul and his parents. She describes realistic situations that I, as a first generation Asian-American, can understand and empathize with. One major theme throughout the book is the love/hate relationship he has with his name, something I can also empathize with. The story takes place on the East Coast, primarily Boston and New York, and so there was a ring of familiarity with many of the locations with me.

I liked most of this book, but I just didn't like how the story ended, starting from the last few chapters. So I recommend this with reservations. I'd go into the ending, but that would just bring up spoilers :). But I know others who liked this book.

From your editor:

I am officially in way over my head.

My classes start next week, and I am in the middle of..(counting).. I don't even remember how many books. I also have a pile of 8 books patiently waiting for attention like quiet, shy school children. Poor books! I will get to you soon!

In the meantime, enjoy this:

Artistic Interpretations of Literary Figures

- K

swingbeat: 8/26: Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Blink is a non-fiction book about "The Power of Thinking Without Thinking". Gladwell starts us off with an example of a fake statue on display at the Getty museum, and how outside art experts who saw it knew immediately it was a fake. There were things of the statue that tipped them off, but they couldn't articulate what they were. The art experts used their unconscious mind to "thin slice" the experience - they made a snap judgement and came out right.

When I started reading, I thought that the book would be just about how we can throw facts and analysis out the door, and just go with our guts, but that's not what the book is about. He gives examples of when snap judgements did well, and when they failed miserably (i.e. Warren Harding's presidency). The book is pretty entertaining and easy to read. As a reporter, Gladwell has an easy-going writing style, telling stories, and getting the heart of various human-interest features. Each chapter tackles a particular theme of the unconscious mind and how we use it to make decisions.

He spends a couple of chapters on snap decisions and the unconscious mind, with examples of good snap judgements people have made. Then he spends a chapter on bad judgements (the chapter is called "The Warren Harding Error") and why they occur. The next chapter is on sponteneity and improvisation - and how too much information (analysis) at the wrong time can cause misjudgements. The next chapter is on market studies and how they are often wrong (e.g. If Pepsi is better than Classic Coke, why didn't they win the market? If new Coke is better than Pepsi, why did it fail miserably and get deshelved? It's in this chapter). This chapter is probably stuff that you MBA-types would know about (or maybe not?).

The final (non-conclusion) chapter is on the art of mind-reading, and he goes into the research of a couple of psychologists who have numbered and mastered many permutations that our facial muscles can get into. He talks about the prejudices that our unconscious minds make, and he also cites many interesting facts/studies.

The last two chapters were the most interesting, I think. The beginning was kinda fluffy, but it got better.

I recommend this book, with the caveat that some of it should be taken with a grain of salt :).

swingbeat: 7/26: Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin

Yet another George R. R. Martin book! I cant say it'll be my last. This sci-fi book is about a interstellar trader, Haviland Tuf, who in the first chapter comes across an Ecological Seedship, which would let him clone animals, plants, and other living creatures. The character has an interesting speech pattern - he tells the truth, and if you're a wordsmith like myself, you'd enjoy the things he says (many understatements come out that evoke humor) :).

This seedship is a very powerful tool, the last of its kind - he gets to play God, and there are themes of this near the end of the book. After all, he can destroy a world by sending a viruses or huge dinosaurs, or he can help a famished world by creating a complex self-sustaining ecology (which is obviously more difficult). Fortunately, he's probably the only character in the universe who remains uncorrupted by his newfound power (remember, he's an honest guy).

This book is really good and funny, Tuf is such a unique character (I've never seen anyone like him), and he loves cats. Which is kinda quirky but it actually furthers the plot :).

An interesting theme pops up. If you had such power, it's impossible to abstain from certain decisions. One can complain to him that he has no right to decide the fates of worlds, but even if he did nothing, that's a choice of his too (and thus a famished world would continue dying). I don't think I articulated that well enough, but hopefully you get the idea :).

This book was originally published as a series of short stories in Analog magazine, and Martin captured them in this novel. So each chapter is pretty fulfilling and complete.

This is better than Windhaven, but still not as good as the A Song of Ice and Fire series (but then nothing is). But I was nevertheless impressed, admittedly because I had low expectations because the cover was so unappetizing. Definitely recommended.

Bridget: 10/26: The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/078681859X/002-2367881-9487254?v=glance

Summary: 462pp. This book may appear to be somewhat of a Harry Potter knockoff but I assure you they very different books.

Plot in short: The story is set in modern day London. A young magician's apprentice named Nathaniel summons a djinn (5000 year old demon with really cool abilities) named Bartimaeus to help him steal an amulet from a older, more powerful magician because this magician had embarrassed him once. As readers, we discover that the amulet was stolen to do something big at the end of the story but you will have to read it yourself to find out what that is :)

Here are some cool things about this book that makes it differ from HP. Throughout the book there are footnotes (not unlike the ones you find in the Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker) which are always narrated by Bartimaeus, give some more detail to the new terms/characters used, and for the most part are used to add more humor to the story. Something else refreshing about this book is that humans are completely useless against the magicians. Also, there is no distinct dichotomy between the good magicians and the bad ones. Their motives may be driven by power, fear, and some even have noble motives too.

I would say that this book is less of a children's novel than Harry Potter. It's like the Looney Tunes cartoons or Scooby Doo or even Disney Movies like Aladdin: kids can enjoy the book but I think that adults would understand the jokes more.

If you like Harry Potter, I would recommend you try this book out. "Highly Recommended" for HP fans like me, "Recommended" for all others.

Jonny: 3/26: The Story Of My Life by Farah Ahmedi

Farah Ahmedi is an immigrant from Afghanistan and a junior in high school. This book is her story thus far, and it is beautiful. I started reading it on an airplane last weekend, and I believe I had tears in my eyes a quarter of the way to L.A. (although those might have been tears of joy that my Southwest flight was on time and not overcrowded). The story moves quickly as Ms. Ahmedi describes stepping on a land mine while walking to second grade, her receipt of a prosthesis in Germany, and her return to Kabul in time to see the Taliban drive the mujadeen out. Her writing is the candid, unpretentious writing of a teenager who has endured great hardship, and the reader cannot help but be moved when she relates the loss of her family and the decision to flee to Pakistan with her shell-shocked mother, the only person she has left in the world.

Ms. Ahmedi tells of how she and her mother got the opportunity to come to the U.S. as refugees, and the great difficulties they suffered through to get here, as well as the ones they faced after they arrived. She goes out her her way to give thanks to the kind strangers who helped her out at critical moments in her life, and her humility and gratitude are very endearing. The reader is left with a renewed awareness of how hard life can be, and how much some of the immigrants around us have endured. This is a beautiful book, and I intend to write the author and thank her for sharing her story.

Incidentally, this book is the product of Good Morning America's essay contest and Ms. Ahmedi's story was selected from among hundreds to be the one published.

Bridget: 9/26: A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0553106635/103-4631202-6313408?v=glance

Summary: 924pp. Continuation of the same story found in earlier posts. I have to admit, I was starting to wonder if this author (though the writing is still excellent) liked to drag stories on (like the Robert Jordans and Jenkins/LaHayes of the world.

This book took me a bit longer to read because there is one character whose story doesn't interest me too much (although found in all the books so far) and I was beginning to wonder if I could get some closure to some of the plot hairs sprinkled throughout these enormous book.

All I can say is this: Don't get too heavily attached to any of the characters no matter how important you think he or she is. And the 2nd half of this book visibly progresses the story line. Jay will agree with me on this one, the events found at the end of the novel really stand out in your mind and make you wish the 4th book were out already!

Great read. Although the first half felt slow the second half made the book worth it!

Still Highly Recommended.

swingbeat: 6/26: The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason

This book is a collection of fictional parables that detail ideas on money management. They involve conversations with The Richest Man in Babylon, in ancient times. He starts off with a few rules:
1. Start thy purse to fattening
2. Control thy expenditures
3. Make thy gold multiply
4. Guard they treasures from loss
5. Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment
6. Insure a future income
7. Increase thy ability to earn

The author takes these ideas and assumes that the reader will be able too apply them to his modern life.

All in all, this was an OK book, not unlike David Chilton's "The Wealthy Barber". There were some nice ideas, but the whole "thee" and "thou" and "thy" got a little distracting and pretentious.

If you want a book on money management, read Personal Finance for Dummies - way better, more entertaining, more applicable.

From the editor:
It's exactly 365 days until the finish mark of our challenge.

Total number of books finished: 22/198

Fiction: 18

Novels: 6

Fantasy / Sci-Fi: 5

Young Adults: 3

Classics: 3

Poetry: 1

Non-fiction: 4

Advice / Topical Study: 3

Memoir / True Crime: 1

Yours truly has been deluged with too many interesting books to handle all at once. Plus, with the upcoming new season of LOST, my Wednesday night 9-10pm time slot is shot. Add to that 2 evening/weekend classes, I just may be joining the ranks of the students in our group. (i.e. Silent for the next 3 months.)

- k

Jonny: 2/26: The Illuminated Rumi, translations and commentary by Coleman barks

ISBN: 0767900022, 127 pages

This is a beautiful book of poetry by 13th-century Persian philosopher Rumi, with magnificent illuminations by artist Michael Green. Rumi's writings are as fresh and accessible to us today as if they were written by a contemporary Western writer. Much of his poetry deals with the rapture of being in love and the agony of losing it (and again the ecstasy of regaining it). Yet he also addresses a wide range of life's weightier issues, such as our relationship with God and recognizing those things that give our life meaning and purpose. His poems are gentle and thought-provoking, and like all collections of poetry, some will speak to the reader and some will not. But if you're interested in becoming more soulful, put down those collard greens and pick up this book, or another collection of Rumi poems such as Hidden Music, translated by Mafi & Kolin.

Jonny: 1/26: Under and Alone by William Queen

ISBN: 1400060842, 262 pages

This is the true story of an ATF agent who worked undercover in southern California to infiltrate the Monguls, the most violent outlaw biker gang in America, between 1998 and 2000. His work resulted in 53 convictions for crimes ranging from murder to firearms and drug offences. Queen's undercover biker identity was so convincing that he was made a full-patch member of the gang, and even became the secretary-treasurer of his local chapter.

Queen is an able writer, and he does an excellent job of communicating his impression of the gang and numerous individual members' personalities. The reader is constantly aware of the danger hanging over the writer's head, and the numerous near-misses as he manages to avoid detection keep the book interesting. Queen also shares his thoughts and feelings about the experience, relating for example the pride and exuberance he felt when he was made a full member - not because he was suceeding in his law-enforcement mission, but because he had been accepted into the group he'd been on the periphery of for so long. Another interesting portion is where Queen relates how the bikers expressed their sincere love and sympathy for him after his mother died, while not one of his ATF colleagues even offered cursory condolences.

This was an enjoyable book, though it may not have very broad appeal.

Bridget: 8/26: A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0553579908/102-3279098-3146566?v=glance

haha! Thanks to Kayan, I now know how to add a picture :)

Summary: 969pp. This was an excellent sequel to A Game of Thrones! I have the 3rd book in the series with me as I speak! I can't say enough about Martin's great ability to write a great Fantasy novel. Same stuff found in the first book: knights, royalty, battles for power AND great complex charaters that are easy to understand. I have to say that his writing is so good that it is hard to put the books down!

Let's see, a plot description in a nutshell: There are 4 "named" kings throughout the 7 kingdoms (these kings have named themselves king). Two are brothers, one is the heir to the deceased king, and one is the son of a deceased high lord. The prose is so good. Again, you can't tell who you can or cannot trust or who to like or not like. Martin has dozens of characters sprinkled throughout but he does such a good job describing them, you don't get them mixed up.

If you have a big span of time and like fantasy fiction at all, you should definitely check one of these books out :)

Highly recommended!

swingbeat: 5/26: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling

Not much I can say here without spoiling the ending. If you're a Harry Potter fan, you've probably already got this book on your booklist anyway. This book sets the tone for the seventh (is it the last?) book, and the book rises (even more than with book 4) out of its children's book beginnings to become a dark, mature tale.

It's a little tough to read if you haven't recently read the last 5 books since there were lots of acronyms, characters, and words/spells that are hard to keep track of. But you can get along fine if you just go by context (and at least I have Bridget around to remind me what these things are :) ).

Recommended.

swingbeat: 4/26: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

Summary:
The Red Tent is a story of Dinah, the daughter of Jacob from the Bible. It's basically the tale of Jacob from the women's point of view, and then some. The writing is detailed and flows easily (reminds me of Harry Potter). I read it in two days. Be aware that this book doesn't follow the Biblical story exactly, and in some cases contradicted it. It is a story of women during Biblical times.

Details:
The author of this book is a Jewish journalist who has written many books on modern Judaic life. I was confident she didn't have the agenda of tearing down Judeo-Christian beliefs.

Quick summary of Jacob's tale from the Genesis: Jacob stole his twin brother Esau's birthright, ran away to a foreign land. He came to his uncle, Laban, and fell in love with his youngest daughter Rachel. He worked for Laban for 7 years in order to marry Rachel, but on the wedding day Laban tricked him and it turned out he married Leah, the eldest daughter. Jacob was mad, but Laban said it was tradition for the eldest sister to get married first. So then Jacob worked 7 more years, and married Rachel. Jacob then had many sons, and one daughter (Dinah). One of Jacob's sons is Joseph of the technicolor dreamcoat, who got persecuted by his brothers (for his pride in dream-reading), got sold into slavery, and ended up years later as a vizier in Egypt because of his wisdom and dream-reading abilities. Joseph, now a powerful man, in the end forgave his brothers for their crimes against him. I glosses over some parts. Oh yeah, Dinah was raped by a prince of the city of Shechem, and the man wanted to marry Dinah. Jacob told them that the city must convert to the God of his fathers, and therefore every man must get circumsized. After all the men got circumsized in the city, while they were in pain, Dinah's brothers Levi and Shechem entered the city and slayed everyone. Whew!

I liked how the book started. Women whisper their tales to their daughters, not their sons. Dinah was the only daughter in a family of four mothers, and so she heard all of their tales. Much of this took place in The Red Tent, the one tent in the camp where men did not enter. The Red Tent was where women went to for their monthly visitor, as well as childbirths.

Part one of the book is all about the generation previous to her, and it recalls a mostly Biblical account of what happened to Jacob. The characters were well-developed and the stories were detailed and plausible. Some things were changed from the Biblical story; the author took advantage of dramatic license (e.g. Jacob worked less than 7 years for the two women). Part one concluded with Dinah's birth.

Part 2 was about Dinah's life, from her childhood until her experience with the prince from Shechem. It follows the Biblical story largely, but departs from it in surprising ways. In this section the idea of a feminine goddess gets brought up - a heathen religion from Laban's family before Jacob came into the picture (Rachel stole those idols when they left Laban). Some of the contradictions she had with the Biblical story implied that the Biblical story was just a story from another point of view, as opposed to being the actual happenings.

Example: In the Bible, Jacob and his family fled from Laban. In The Red Tent, the family was actually waiting around for Laban to properly say goodbye, but they were in a rush so they couldn't keep waiting forever, and Jacob lamented that he hated running away as if he was a thief. Get the gist?

There are examples of this sprinkled throughout the book. Frankly, some of it bothered me.

After her experience with the prince of Shechem, the book goes further, making up a tale of Dinah (unBiblical, but not contradictory). It describes the rest of her life. The book ended well; it ended where it needed to end.

The author has a way of writing that is clear and descriptive. It is not presumptious, but it does use some words that I wanted to look up (which I am thankful for). I read it effortlessly.

I recommend this book, but with caveats about Biblical contradictions that I noted above. If I viewed this purely as a book of historical fiction, I'd recommend it wholeheartedly.