Been wanting to read this for a while now; I'm about halfway through. Excellent book so far. I'm kind of surprised I've never really heard much about the World's Columbian Exposition, considering how many ties to other aspects of American history it has. Larsen was also the writer of Issac's Storm, the story of the Galveston hurricane. The story basically alternates between the Chicago architect's work toward creating the greatest World Fair (to top the one in Paris that unveiled the Eiffel Tower years before), and all the pitfalls that come with it. I thought this would be the more 'vanilla' portion of the book, but I find it to be every bit as fascinating as the other half. The scale of work - in both the ambitions of creating the fair and the work needed to be to done - is pretty incredible, considering how quickly it had to be put together. The other half is about the serial killer who settles into Chicago just in time for the fair. At this point I don't know just how gruesome his work is - just pretty horrible hints - but the guy is a doctor who has basically built his own castle of horrors right under the city's nose....and just blocks from the fair. Once the fair starts, he turns it into a hotel. Supposedly everything here is true. Really fascinating so far. Amazon's book of the year for 2009. I'm just about 50 pages away from the end, and it's been a good read. McCann is a solid writer, and he features several different protagonists here - all centered around the tightrope stunt involving the World Trade Center - and how they connect. I am sometimes wary of such a setup because usually I find one of the separate 'stories' to be lacking compared to the others. However, this hasn't really been the case here. McCann is very good at fleshing out his characters and his prose is kind of 'stream of consciousness' but it works very, very well.
It was a joke. I actually love to read. Just got finished reading 3 books....1. Hakeem The Dream. 2. Whatever you say I am (Slim Shady Bio) 3. Tweak (Some book about this kid being addicted to drugs and the street life. And how he went to rehab and stuff) Recommend all 3 books!
I am trying to lose the love handles and get healthier. The paleo diet is very popular in the crossfit forums, so I am giving it a try. I am only through the first 4-5 chapters. It seems to be much healthier than vegetarian diets or Atkins high fat diets.
I'm currently reading: It's fairly interesting. Pretty amazing what the survivors lived through and saw. You especially have to feel for the people that left Hiroshima and made it just in time to Nagasaki for the second bomb. I just finished: It was a good book, though maybe a little slow at times. Before that I read: This was my favorite of the three I've listed. Found it interesting to read what someone from Lehman was feeling and going through as they collapsed. It also focused a lot on how the banking laws had relaxed over the years. I expected it be overly biased, but for the most part, found it not to be. Thought the author was quite fair.
Has anyone read Michael Lewis' new work "The Big Short?" Its about how some Wall Streeters made billions betting against subprime. Is it worth the read? http://www.vanityfair.com/business/features/2010/04/wall-street-excerpt-201004?printable=true
I just read The Art of Racing in the Rain and I'm currently reading One Good Dog. They are both dog books...I'm a dog lover, but these books are actually pretty good. Quick reads.
Finished up The Girl Who Chased the Moon pretty quickly. Sara Addison Allen's books are getting worse with each new title, which is a shame because her first book Garden Spells was a super fun read. I started Stones into Schools by Greg Mortensen last night. It's the followup to his amazing novel Three Cups of Tea. The first book was about his efforts to build schools in rural Pakistan, particularly to educate girls. The next book chronicles his efforts to build them in Afghanistan. I highly recommend these non-fiction books, but I do have to warn you. Reading the incredible and amazing things Mr. Mortensen accomplishes makes you feel like you should be a whole hell of a lot more than posting on Clutch Fans.
Just finished Stones into Schools, and it is an incredible and inspiring story. Picking up where Three Cups of Tea left off, Greg Mortensen and his scruffy band embark on a mission to build a school in the far eastern Wakhan Corridor in Northeast Afghanistan right up against the Chinese border. In order to do so, they first have to satisfy leaders leading to the Wakhan Corridor by building schools for their villages. Ultimately Greg's organization built 21 schools along the Northern part of Afghanistan, including some in the heart of former Taliban strongholds (and one even in Mullah Omar's own village). They also managed to help build schools in Kashmir after the devastating earthquakes of 2005. The obstacles they overcame to achieve these schools in nothing short of miraculous. The work that Greg and his associates do is to be commended. I just wish I had an ounce of what drives this guy to do such laudable things. I think I preferred Three Cups of Tea to this book, however. The first book chronicled Greg's realization that he wanted to build schools in the far flung communities of Pakistan and the Herculean efforts he put forth to achieve those goals. This new book saw him assemble a highly efficient local team, and it was these folks who did most of the heavy lifting in Afghanistan. Greg was still heavily involved and it was his vision that led most of the way. However, he spent a large chunk of this book back in the US giving speeches and raising money. It's commendable and necessary work, but I found his exploits in Three Cups of Tea to be more inspiring. I mean no disrespect to Greg Mortensen, however. I have a tremendous amount of admiration for what he has done and the great things I am confident he will still achieve in the future. Up next: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. This book has sat on my shelf for far too long, and it's high time for me to read it. Khaled Hosseini wrote the foreword for Stones into Schools, and after reading a book on Afghanistan, it seemed pretty logical to tackle this book. I have heard nothing but high praise for this novel.
I'm sure it's been mentioned before, and I read the thread about it as well, but I read "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown and enjoyed it. I've read all of his past works, so I'm sure I'm biased. But, he definitely makes you want to go do your own research and educate yourself just in general. Recommend it.
One of my favorite author Guy Gavriel Kay just released his new novel and I'm hitting the bookstore today. Under Heaven.
I haven't read him, but his work sounds interesting. Where would you recommend starting with his books?
I just finished A Season On The Brink (John Feinstein), which chronicles the '85-'86 season with Bobby Knight and the Hoosiers. It was an outstanding book. Provides an inside look in to the coaching methods and troubling mind games of The General, as well as the hardships of a young team trying to find their way. I'm now reading Fall River Dreams, which provides an in-depth look at the Durfee High School basketball team in Fall River, MA, which is a blue-collar, mill-town with a high unemployment rate but a serious taste for good basketball. It stars ex-NBA player and former BC and UNLV player Chris Herren, who was a blue-chip recruit on the national circuit. It's a gripping tale, and I'm only a third of the way done with it.
Tigana and The Lions of Al-Rassan are both amazing Kay novels. Check out The Fionovar Tapestry for a really good arthur-esque trilogy. Kay is rather famous for working with Christopher Tolkien on a lot of the legendarium following J.R.R's death, especially the silmarillion. Speaking of which, I have been on a Tolkien kick lately. Just finished The Children of Hurin and the The Book of Lost Tales 1 and 2. Both are really essential if you want to understand more of the history and the development process Tolkien went through as he perfected the stories.
Exactly like what rhadamanthus posted. My first book by him was Tigana and got hooked by him ever since. I went on to tackle either Song For Arbonne or Lion Of Al-Rassan before reading The Fionavar Tapestry. They are my top four by him and love every single one of them. Kay is a tremendous writer. Another author that I really recommend if you're into fantasy is George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. It is by far the best series I've ever read.
