What book r u reading?

[jbg]

I don't know if this thread is designed to cover what we're reading now, or just finished so I'll cover both.

I am now reading Return to the Reich: A Holocaust Refugee's Secret Mission to Defeat the Nazis by Eric Lichtblau.

I just finished Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science by Marc Aronson. I read it over a day and a half. The reviews were almost overwhelming glowing. Notwithstanding I give this book a "three." First, the quibbles.

I read Sugar Changed the World with interest, since I am a history buff. I did find it readable, enjoyable and informative. The book leaves more than a few unanswered questions. First, the discussion about Hawaii does not mention one of the most important and damning facts; that sugar growers toppled the formerly independent monarchy and replaced it with the bogus Republic of Hawaii. The latter "invited" annexation.Recently, Abigail Kawananakoa, Hawaiian princess and last heir to the Hawaiian throne, died at 96, see Abigail Kawananakoa, Hawaiian princess, dies at 96.

Another is a question for academic debate. Weren't the people from the slave source countries in Africa and India pretty miserable already? After all, there has been no widespread kidnapping of U.S. citizens for slave purposes.

This is more of a fact-checking issue. The book stated that India was the first breakaway from Britain since the U.S. had gained independence. That omits Canada, Australia, Ireland and I believe New Zealand. Granted, Canada my have been more "exclaved", to coin a word, that broken away on its own, since Britain had no wish to be embroiled in the U.S. Civil War. These are quibbles, but do somewhat detract from the book for serious, informed readers.

 

[Mock Turtle]

Another is a question for academic debate. Weren't the people from the slave source countries in Africa and India pretty miserable already? After all, there has been no widespread kidnapping of U.S. citizens for slave purposes.

Can't comment on anything else, but this seems to be a bit worrying - as to anything that people experience should have any impact on what they might then deserve.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

The Origins of Judaism: An Archaeological-Historical Reappraisal by Yonatan Adler

 

[jbg]

I just finished reading Return to the Reich: A Holocaust Refugee's Secret Mission to Defeat the Nazis by Eric Lichtblau. A more fascinating page-turner is hard to find. There were many disturbing nuggets on information; without shouting, the author points ferrets out much information about U.S. complicity in the Nazi enterprise. This was not limited to the well-known refusal to admit Jewish immigrants; the subject of the book, Freddy Mayer, had his own efforts to fight in a more vigorous manner "slow-walked" almost to death. The Army kept him in pointless "training" exercises rather than putting his proposed infiltration unit to work.

I will save, for readers, the many stories of heroism, courage and accomplishment once he and two other fighters were allowed to parachute beyond enemy lines to disrupt Nazi activities in Austria. This being said, without coming out and saying it it seems there was almost a "gentleman's agreement" with the Nazis to dawdle and eventually reach a "Versailles" solution. As it is, when unconditional surrender arrived, as the book lays out, many Nazi monsters were permitted a graceful exit, while not al the soldiers and espionage combatants were well-treated.

 

[JIMMY12345]

I bet The Bible, The Koran, The Veda's The Torah will all be mentioned but does not have to be religious.
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I was in a charity shop and picked up David Niven's The Worlds a balloon. Hilarious 6/10.
Your turn.

i am waiting for Song of the cell by Mukerjee to come down in price -still in hardcover.His books on cancer and genes were masterpieces.

 

[Sand Dancer]

The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner

 

[jbg]

(cross posted from thread I inadvertently started in entertainment)
I just finished Ben-Gurion by Michael Bar-Zohar. I never tire of reading books focused around the founding of the modern State of Israel. Indeed, one of the book's disappointments is not exploring how Ben-Gurion unilaterally picked the Jewish State's name when he announced its independence of May 15, 1948. I have often wondered why it was named Israel rather than after Israel's more successful sister kingdom, Judah. Indeed, we call ourselves Jews after the kingdom of Judah.

This book is a miraculous story about a miraculous man. Compared to most authorized biographies it is far from a hagiography. It does not elevate Ben-Gurion in death above what he was in life. Indeed, the description of the Lavon Affair and the beginning of his tragic, though inevitable decline was brutally honest.

A few quibbles. Like most biographies this book spends too much time on the subject's younger days, which were just not that different from other people's younger days. Like books about other prominent statesmen, too much time is spent discussing tawdry extramarital affairs, and the ebb and flow of marriages.

I will not spoil the book for others. The real shame is that most newly independent countries, after WW II, could not have been blessed with a totally incorruptible man of courage and, despite flaws, decency.

 

[jbg]

I just got finished reading Jews Don't Count by David Baddiel. At 132 pages and definitely not "young adult" (even has its share of profanity) it reads more like a pamphlet. The book is divided into three sections, Preface, the book's body and the Coda. Jews Don't Count came highly recommended. The premise is one which I fully advocate, that it is discriminatory that Jews don't get "minority group" treatment even though they are definitely in the minority and have faced lethal discrimination for millennia.

The problem with Jews Don't Count is lack of organization. Baddiel quotes many Twitter comments, and to my mind has fallen into the trap of writing a giant Tweet.

Of course, there is much more than that. Examples of the disparate treatment of Jews and of parallels sent me racing to search engines quite often. Since I am a political junkie this means that others would resort to Google quite frequently..

David Baddiel, in Jews Don't Count tackles a topic that I felt has needed to be addressed since the late 1960's, when anti-Semitism by other marginalized groups began rearing its ugly head. What he doesn't address is the reason for this; Jews do rather well in open societies and indeed it is only such societies, i.e. U.S., Britain, Canada and Australia which, outside of Israel, possess viable Jewish communities.

That this book disappointed does not mean it should not be read.

 

[jbg]

I read the book Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry more than 45 years ago. Then, at age 20 I was able to understand more than I could from reading about it in the news in 1970 or 1971 when the trial occurred I knew that Manson attributed to the Beatles song "Helter Skelter" some of the cause of the brutal murders he organized. I had always assumed he was typical of the ideology of the counterculture when in fact he was right-wing.

Overall I remember it being quite a good read, though 45 years ago is a lot to remember.

 

[syo]

I have two favourite books. A religious one and my wedding album.

 

[JIMMY12345]

I bet The Bible, The Koran, The Veda's The Torah will all be mentioned but does not have to be religious.
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I was in a charity shop and picked up David Niven's The Worlds a balloon. Hilarious 6/10.
Your turn.

The Russia Conundrum 2022 large print by Mihail Khodorkovsky (with Martin Sixsmith)

Biography of the once richest man in Russia.He compares the Western and Eastern systems.He writes about Putin and his supporters.He writes about how he was put in prison in a Uranium mine for 10 years for confronting the Kremlin.

Rating 5/10 ( normal rating is 5 )

 

[JIMMY12345]

Between Two fires Joshua Yaffa

Very small print Rating 6/10 Chapters on Russian TV Channel one,Explanation of Chechnya,The role of the Orthodox church,Business in Russia,Gangsters in Russia.How to survive if your Russia.Your faced with two fires.Best keep your head down.
Very readable tiny print is annoying

 

[Mock Turtle]

I'm currently halfway though The World Until Yesterday by Jared Diamond, which, like most of his books, is well worth reading. And which is mainly about what can we learn from traditional societies - the ones that will likely soon be gone.

 

[Sand Dancer]

The Mystic Christ by Ethan Walker
The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan by David Perlmutter
The Brain Maker by David Perlmutter

 

[Wu Wei]

Battle for the Mind
A Psychology of conversion and brain washing
William Sargant

 

[JIMMY12345]

Battle for the Mind
A Psychology of conversion and brain washing
William Sargant

Psychology of conversion and brainwashing sounds interesting.Any good tips to pass on ?

 

[Wu Wei]

Psychology of conversion and brainwashing sounds interesting.Any good tips to pass on ?

Not yet, just started the book.... but once I get to the good parts I will be sure to post them for the purposes of brain washing all who read them

 

[jbg]

I recently finished reading The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt. This should be of interest on a religious forum.

Don't worry; The Swerve is not about avoiding animals while driving. It is an ingenious history of the demolition of the role of superstition, in particular various religious organizations, in suppressing any scientific understanding of the nature of the world, or of humans. But it is more than that. Any belief that the Pope and other religious authorities was dangerous, subversive and subject to severe punishment, and often death. The author details the early and promising history of scientific thought, in ancient Roman times. Lucretius, a writer and philosopher, built upon the views and science of Epicurus. Epicurus advocated a view that pleasure was a primary objective of people. He advocated living for the present, not the afterlife.

Unfortunately, the Dark Ages curtailed any kind of creative thinking, placing all thought under clerical control. One Poggio Bracciolini, not a monk himself but a member of the priests' body of scribes, laboriously retrieved and copies Lucretius major work, On the Nature of Things. The book lays out in excruciating (perhaps too excruciating) detail about how this work was rescued from the dustbin of history. Even though Poggio, a deeply religious man personally opposed Epicurean doctrine, he had no truck with ignorance. Basically, the genie was out of the bottle, and helped motivate Shakespeare, Galileo, Copernicus and others. The Renaissance replaced the Dark Ages.

There are a few blemishes on an otherwise excellent book. One, which may be unavoidable, is that there is so much new material and fine prose that it is a slow read. One does not skim this book unless part of a university class. Another is harder to fathom. His first mention of the colonies that became the United States, and the United States is on the last page, where he quotes Thomas Jefferson: "'I am,' Jefferson wrote to a correspondent who wanted to know his philosophy of life, 'an Epicurean.'" The book covers plenty of the 17th Century. My own view, as a history buff, is that the opening of the New World played a major role in breaking the hammerlock on thinking held by European clergy.

Perhaps I will email Mr. Greenblatt, the author.

 

[metis]

I'm currently reading "Gandhi & Churchill: The Epic Rivalry that Destroyed an Empire and Forged Our Age" by Arthur Herman.

 

[jbg]

Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert D. Putnam makes some great points. However, the author drowns those points in a sea of ink. In short, Mr. Putnam over-makes and thus loses his point.

Bowling Alone addresses a very major issue, the decline of civic involvement. Too much time is spent describing the phenomena and not enough in analyzing its cures and possible remediation. The books unarguable premise is that the civil involvement that Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville describes as being largely responsible for America's greatness is seriously endangered. He analyzes a variety of possible causes, such as urbanization and suburban sprawl, the growth of telecommunications and the Internet, and generational change. He assigns the greatest weight to the latter, and inadequately explains the "why" of its impact. Most satisfactory is his explanation of the role of telecommunications and the Internet.

This book was recommended by my Rabbi, when we discussed, both individually and in group settings the leveling off and decline in both involvement in the synagogue and membership. Robert Putnam strives mightily to achieve his goal. It, like the "strike" in the bowling game that he titles the book after, remains elusive.