Stiff by Mary Roach

Have you ever wondered about what happens to your body after you die? If you have, Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach is the book for you. Roach writes about a number of ways in which the bodies of the dead are used: medical education and research, ballistics research, forensics research, etc. She also writes about the different final dispositions of the dead, the traditional burial, the more modern cremation, or even newer ones like composting and liquefaction. Not for the squeamish reader, Roach's book is a trip through the morbid afterlife of our bodies here on earth.

This was my second book by Roach. I thoroughly enjoyed my first, Bonk, finding it quite hilarious at many points. Stiff was a little disappointing. Her attempts at humor seemed more strained, perhaps because of the subject. It was, however, an fascinating book about a variety of topics. Overall I think I found this book disappointing because I had such high hopes for it given how much I liked Bonk. That being said, Stiff is a solidly enjoyable read. If you are curious or even just a very eclectic reader, I would suggest adding Stiff to your TBR.

3.25/5

Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell

Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell has been on my TBR list for a while. I cannot remember where I heard about it first, but as a regular listener of This American Life, I am somewhat familiar with her work. Wordy Shipmates is about the Puritans who founded Boston. No, not the Pilgrims of the cliché Thanksgiving parades, but the dour Calvinists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Vowell traces American Exceptionalism and even much of our democracy itself back to these people. Jumping off from the sermons of John Cotton, Vowell regales us with the tale of colonial Boston. She writes about the heated religious disputes between Cotton and his two nemeses, Roger Williams and Anne Hutchison, both of whom would be banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Vowell also discusses the colonists relationship with the Native Americans, culminating in the brutal Peqoud War.

Vowell's writing is breezy and conversational. It is sprinkled with ironic humor, some of which made me laugh and then read aloud to my wife. Although some might not take kindly to her critique of both American Exceptionalism and a strain of anti-intellectualism that she feels springs in part from these colonists, I certainly enjoyed her book. Of particular interest to me was her discussion of the bookishness of these colonists in particular. For example, when a friend of John Winthrop's was trying to dissuade him from going to America, the friend wrote:

How hard will it be for one brought up among books and learned men, to live in a barbarous place, where is no learning and less civility?

Or perhaps when John Cotton escapes a certain prison sentence by coming to America because in prison there would be no opportunity for books or pens.

3.5/5

House of Cards by William Cohan

House of Cards: A Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess On Wall Street is an engaging look at the fall of Bear Stearns. Mr. Cohan makes an admirable attempt at explaining how the giant investment bank imploded. Unfortunately, I expected a better book. Cohan's book suffers from it's length and from the sheer number of people that about whom he writes. I found myself taking notes just to keep track of who was who. Also, at the end of the book, Cohan tacks on a little bit about Lehman Brothers bankruptcy. But this coverage of Lehman Brothers is shallow and irrelevant to the main story of the book, that of Bear Stearns.

My overall feeling about the book is that Cohan rushed to get it published, and his haste shows. It reminds me of Blaise Pascal's quip about writing a long letter because he didn't have time to make it brief. Perhaps Mr. Cohan didn't have time to make his book clearer and shorter.

3.5/5

Sunday Salon

This week I wrapped up the Numbers Challenge, for which I read the following books:

1. 39 Steps by John Buchan  review


2. 7 Deadly Sins by Aviad Kleinberg  review


3. A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters  review


4. At Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien  review


5. And Then There Were None (also published as Ten Little Indians) by Agatha Christie  review

I am currently reading House of Cards, a book about Bear Stearns and the crash of 2008. I started it earlier this year but put it aside. It grabbed my attention again this month, so I picked up and started reading it again. It is an interesting read so far, but it is sometimes difficult to keep track of all the names because the author quotes and talks about so many people. I continue to read What Is Ancient Philosophy? by Pierre Hadot, albeit rather slowly. I also started The Time Paradox by Philip Zimbardo (of the Stanford Prison Study fame) and John Boyd. In addition, I will be starting a novel too, I just haven't decided which yet. I am getting a little burned out on serious fiction, so I am probably going to read some easy fantasy or sci-fi. That would leave me reading four books at one time. How many to you usually read at once?

At-Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien

At-Swim-Two-Birds is such an odd and chaotic novel that it is really hard to review. It was so queer, in fact, that I cannot even really decide if I liked it or not. Nominally, it is about a sullen student of Irish Literature who is writing a novel about a novelist whose characters conspire against him. Perhaps enjoyable by those that like really strange novels, I found it more confusing than anything else.

1.5/5

Bonk by Mary Roach

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex was a fantastic read! Mary Roach's book discusses a variety of topics from the multifaceted world of sex research. Despite the book's subject, or perhaps because of it, Roach can be hilariously funny. At times I laughed so hard there were tears in my eyes. Unfortunately, on the rare occasion, Roach's attempts at humor crossed over the line between funny and juvenile. But don't let that stop you from reading this fascinating and brilliantly funny book. Fair warning though, the book is not for those easily put off by frank discussions of sex.

4.95/5

For a preview of what you will find in Bonk, try listening to a talk she gave at TED:

In The Land of Invented Languages by Arika Okrent

In the Land of Invented Languages by Arika Okrent is about artificially constructed languages. Okrent's style in this book closely resembles that of a travelogue. For several of the languages Okrent gives a little historical background mixed with a description of her personal experiences with the language in question. At times the material can be a little dry, it is linguistics after all. But don't let that discourage you because Okrent can be uproariously funny too.

I found the topic and Okrent's style so engaging, I read the book in a little over a day. I enjoyed it immensely, recognizing several of the languages she discusses. My only disappointment was that, at times, Okrent may have been a little too breezy. I would have enjoyed a little more background in linguistics and perhaps a more description of how the constructed languages she discusses worked.

If you don't know anything about artificial languages, Okrent is a capable tour guide. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the geeky world of constructed languages, even if that interest is only a passing one.

4.25/5

And Then There Were None

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie is an iconic whodunit that lives up to its promise. The prose felt a little archaic, but the plot and mystery were compelling. If you are looking for a quick and enjoyable beach read, you won't go wrong with this mystery novel.

As an aside, I have decided to count this toward the Numbers Challenge. I believe it is within the rules because "None" is a number word in the same sense as "First". Also, this novel has also been published as Ten Little Indians, which would definitely qualify as a "Number" book.

3.5/5

The Overflowing Brain by Torkel Klingberg

In his book The Overflowing Brain: Information Overload and the Limits of Working Memory, Dr. Klingberg discusses what working memory is and how it is highly correlated with attention control, IQ, general intelligence, and problem solving ability. He goes on to explain how this topic relates to ADHD and the treatment of this disorder.

I have a B.S. in Psychology that is several years old, so I had high hopes of updating my knowledge about attention and working memory. But, I was disappointed to find the book did not really add much to my understanding of these topics. In addition, the quality of the book itself was underwhelming. There are numerous spelling mistakes and other typographical errors throughout the book. However, if you don't have the benefit of a Psychology degree and you can look past the typos, you might find this book to be an interesting book about how the brain works.

2.0/5

7 Deadly Sins by Aviad Kleinberg

7 Deadly Sins by Aviad Kleinberg is an essay like book that takes the reader through ideas about sin from Jewish, Christian, and Classical perspectives. Kleinberg is quite erudite in his writing, citing a variety of sources. I found the book to be quite intriguing, but so wide ranging that it is hard to summarize. For anyone interested in the topic directly or just fascinated by religion or philosophy, I think 7 Deadly Sins would be a quick enjoyable read.

4.00/5

Movie Review: Up

This weekend my wife and I took our seven year old son, Cullen, to the movie Up. It is always a gamble when you go to a movie aimed at children. Many are a barrel of laughs for the child, but will bore the adults in attendance to tears. I am happy to report that this is not the case for Up. This movie is a wonderfully constructed story that is entertaining for children and adults.

As a boy, Carl Fredrickson worships his adventurer hero, Charles Muntz. The explorer is eventually disgraced as a fraud when he brings what scientists believe is a fake bird skeleton back from a trip to South America. Carl, on the other hand, soon meets a young girl, Ellie, who shares his passion for adventure. They become lifelong friends and eventually marry. Their whole life together, Carl and Ellie want to go on a South American adventure. But, life's little mishaps are always getting in the way. Sadly, Ellie dies before the two can fulfill their shared wish for adventure.

So, Carl decides to attach thousands of balloons to this house and fly away to South America in a bid to fulfill his promise to Ellie. But Carl didn't count on eight year old wilderness explorer Russell to be on his porch when he took off. So, Carl and Russell go on the adventure of a lifetime.

This movie is uproariously funny. I highly recommend it. If you don't have a child of your own to take with you, borrow one, or just go see it yourself.

A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters by Julian Barnes

Julian Barnes A History of the World In 10 1/2 Chapters is a set of loosely connected stories revolving mostly around the story of Noah and the Great Flood. The first is a hilarious retelling of the story by a "stowaway" on the Ark. The second is an even funnier story of insects being tried in a criminal proceeding, made even funnier by the fact that the story appears to be based on actual historical documents of animals being tried during the middle ages. While the first two stories are funny, others are deeper, more thought-provoking. For example, Barnes tells the story of the Wreck of the Medusa and Gericault's famous painting of the same.

Barnes is known for irony and satire, and this book is no exception. If you like your humor sly and subtle, give A History of the World In 10 1/2 Chapters a try.

4.25/5

Musing Mondays

Do you read non-fiction regularly? Do you read it in a different way or place than you read fiction?

I read quite a lot of non-fiction on a regular basis. I think that I go in cycles. For a while I might read mostly fiction, but then I will start to read more non-fiction. But, I always have a non-fiction book in progress. It is just a question of how much time I spend reading each type of work.

For the most part, I read non-fiction at a slower pace than fiction. I am more likely to underline things or take notes in the margin (if I own the book). Finally, I am much more likely to purchase non-fiction than fiction. It seems to me that I refer back to non-fiction more often than I do to fiction. But, that being said, I am still a sucker for owning my own books.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz is nominally about Oscar, a Dominican nerd. But more than anything else, the novel is about a fuku, a curse that afflicts Oscar's family. What follows is the tale not only of Oscar and his misfortune, but the misfortune of his mother and grandparents as well. But, be warned. The novel is full of Dominican language and nerdish allusions.

Junot Diaz tells his tale with humor and tenderness. I thought this novel was absolutely fabulous. However, it may require a little work on the part of the reader. My twenty year old high school Spanish was no match for Diaz' Dominican idioms. Nor did I understand all the nerdy allusions throughout the novel. (I did, however, understand a little too many for my comfort, if you know what I mean.) The website The Annotated Oscar Wao provided all the help I needed. I would recommend the site to any reader that does not speak Spanish and/or was not a nerd during the eighties. I would also highly recommend this Pulitzer Prize winning novel.

4.75/5

King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard

King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard is a classic adventure tale set on the "dark continent" of Africa. It is the tale of three men on a search for a missing brother and the untold riches of King Solomon's Mines. It is full of wild animals, warring tribes, and an evil witch.

King Solomon's Mines is what could be called a good yarn, nothing special perhaps but enjoyable nonetheless. I definitely enjoyed it enough to add H. Rider Haggard's other classic tale, She to my TBR list.

3.75/5

It's Tuesday, Where Are You?

I am, despite its physical impossibility, in several places at once:

1. I am in New York City on Wall Street trying to figure out what happened. (House of Cards by William Cohan)


2. I am in Durban, South Africa, about to set out towards King Solomon's Mines (King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard)


3. I am also in the lamely named Megacity. (For the screenplay I am writing for Script Frenzy.)

Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett

Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett is the story of an anonymous Continental op, a private dick, that is hired by newspaper man Donald Willsson to come to Personville for a case. As soon as he arrives in Personville, which is sometimes called Poisonville, his employer is murdered before they can meet. So begins the story of intrigue and deceit in which the Continental op finds himself in the middle of a war between four men who want to run Personville.

I was quite disappointed by this novel. I love the movie Yojimbo, which is said to based, in part, on Red Harvest. Perhaps this led me to set the bar too high, but I did not feel that Red Harvest lived up to its billing. It was entertaining, sure, but it really wasn't anything special. So, if you like noir, give it a try. Otherwise, you might want to look elsewhere for your fill of crime and punishment.

2.0/5

Musing Mondays

Coming towards the end of April, we’re a third of the way through the way through the year. What’s the favourite book you’ve read so far in 2009? What about your least favourite? (question courtesy of MizB)

That is a really tough question. I read a lot of fiction and non-fiction books. It is too hard to pick an overall favorite. So, as an added bonus for you the reader, I will pick my favorite of each.

Fiction

The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa is easily my favorite work of fiction so far. It is so elegantly written and it is a great story about friendship and love. I highly recommend it to you.

Non-Fiction

It is a tough choice, but I have to go with How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer. This is a book about the neuroscience of how we make decisions, which may sound dry and boring. It isn't! Lehrer begins each chapter with the riveting story of a really hard decision someone had to make: the pilot of a plane who cannot control any of the flight surfaces, a Lt. Commander who has just seconds to decide whether to fire on unknown targets threatening the lives of those serving on an aircraft carrier at war, and many more. It is a great book.

Least Favorite

All the Names by Jose Saramago. I know he is a nobel prize winner but I just cannot get into his novels. I abandoned this one earlier this month. It is the second one I have tried by him. I also attempted to read Blindness several years ago, but didn't get that far in that one either.

Silver Canyon by Louis L'Amour

Louis L'Amour's Silver Canyon is the story of Matthie Brennan, a drifter and gunslinger who rides into dusty town of Hattan's Point and finds more than he bargains for. Almost immediately, he finds the woman he loves and, he insists, is going to marry, Moira Macleran. To win her hand, Matt vows to settle down. He hears that there is a bitter, sometimes violent, dispute over the land of the Two-Bar Ranch. Sensing the opportunity to make a settled life that would allow him to marry Moira, Matt leaps into the fray by forming a partnership with the owner of the Two-Bar. What follows is an adventure, for Matt and the reader.

The plot, while intricate, is easily followed. L'Amour's prose is simple and clean, making the book an easy read. It was my first western and I have to say I enjoyed it more than I thought.

3.5/5

Read-a-Thon April 2009 -- Hour 24

I made it! I finished Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett this hour.

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?

The last one, it was really hard to stay awake.

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?

My books were pretty good overall, but nothing special enough to recommend specifically for the read-a-thon.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

Nope! It is great as is.

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?

The cheerleaders were relentless with their encouraging comments.

5. How many books did you read?

I read from 5 books and completed 4.

6. What were the names of the books you read?

1. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz


2. On Love and Death by Patrick Suskind


3. Silver Canyon by Louis L'Amour


4. Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett


5. The Graveyard Book by N. Gaiman

7. Which book did you enjoy most?

The Graveyard Book, not only because it is a great story, so far, but also because I am reading it to my seven year old son.

8. Which did you enjoy least?

Red Harvest, but that may be just because it was my last read and I am so tired.

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?

I was a reader.

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?

I am definitely game to be a reader again!

Final stats -- 709pp in 15:57:17 | 5 books read from, 4 books completed | awake for 24 (well, actually 25 1/2) hours.

To my fellow readers, good night or good day in whatever part of the world you live. Go to bed! To the cheerleaders, thank you for your encouragement. Finally to the organizers, thank you for making this event possible.