 | stats |  |
| When We Read | | Jan |  227 | | Feb | 185 | | Mar | 199 | | Apr | 197 | | May | 195 | | Jun | 208 | | Jul | 223 | | Aug | 188 | | Sep | 191 | | Oct | 149 | | Nov | 166 | | Dec | 193 |
| How We Rate Movies | | 10 | 35 | | 9 | 84 | | 8 | 191 | | 7 | 199 | | 6 | 190 | | 5 | 156 | | 4 | 85 | | 3 | 53 | | 2 | 28 | | 1 | 17 | | 0 | 5 | | -1 | 1 |
| When We See Movies | | Jan | 91 | | Feb | 100 | | Mar | 106 | | Apr | 67 | | May | 63 | | Jun | 79 | | Jul | 107 | | Aug | 93 | | Sep | 83 | | Oct | 95 | | Nov | 92 | | Dec | 70 |
| | recently added books | |
The Conformist
by Alberto Moravia, 376 pages
Tony Pisarenkov Sunday, November 01, 2009
Though I've seen the movie twice, reading the book reminded me how much I didn't remember about it. I initially had some misgivings about Moravia's style, but in the end it worked.
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Life As We Do Not Know It: The NASA Search for (and Synthesis of) Alien Life
by Peter Ward, 292 pages
Steven Krise Thursday, October 29, 2009
Ward challenges the Darwinian "orthodoxy" with his startling thesis that life on other planets may (or may not) use different chemistry from Earth life.
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The Return of the Native
by Thomas Hardy, 468 pages
Steve Gadd Tuesday, October 27, 2009
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The Everything Knots Book
by Randy Penn, 273 pages
Steven Krise Thursday, October 22, 2009
A fairly standard introduction to knots. It tries to go beyond just having diagrams showing you how to tie knots by having chapters on rope management, teaching knot tying, your continuing knot journey, but the author didn't really have enough material to support these additional chapters. So +5 for the idea, but -7 for the implementation.
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Right Ho, Jeeves
by P. G. Wodehouse, 224 pages
Steve Gadd Monday, October 19, 2009
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Travels with Charley in Search of America
by John Steinbeck, 224 pages
Steve Gadd Sunday, October 18, 2009
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Starting Out in Poker
by Stewart Reuben, 160 pages
Steven Krise Saturday, October 17, 2009
A fairly standard poker text, except for the unique "Try It Yourself" section at the end of each chapter, which is a short graded quiz with rated answers in the back of the book.
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Earth: An Intimate History
by Richard Fortey, 425 pages
Steven Krise Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Fortey's thesis is (to paraphrase Dobzhansky) that nothing in geology makes sense except in light of plate tectonics. He then takes the reader on a tour of a dozen or so locations around the globe with various geological formations that either were pivotal in providing evidence for the theory or which finally made sense when explicated tectonically.
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Escape from the Deep
by Alex Kershaw, 288 pages
Steve Gadd Friday, October 09, 2009
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How to win at poker
by Belinda Levez, 106 pages
Steven Krise Thursday, October 08, 2009
Probably the lamest poker book I've ever read. This is what passes for good advice: develop a betting strategy that maximizes profit whilst minimizing loss (with no explanation of how to evaluate a strategy to see if it meets that criterion) or bluff but not too much because when people call your bluff you lose money.
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| | recently added movies | |
The Soviet Story
 
Tony Pisarenkov The Cato Institute, Washington, DC Monday, November 02, 2009
A documentary on the Soviet Union, its collusion with the Nazis in 1939-1940, and, following its joining the Allies, the West's continued reluctance to indict the Soviets fully for the horrors they perpetrated throughout the country's existence. Occasionally didactic in tone, but highly recommended nonetheless, for its chilling archival footage if nothing else.
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It Might Get Loud
Tony Pisarenkov Landmark E St. Theatre, Washington, DC Monday, September 14, 2009
Had its moments, but on the whole couldn't decide whether it wanted to be about How To Communicate Your Great Art To The World Through Music or a guitar geek-fest. It also had more than a whiff of an ego trip for jack White about it.
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The International
Steve Gadd DVD Thursday, June 11, 2009
The glossy international scenes and shootout at the Guggenheim fail to make up for the synthetic story and wooden performances.
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Michael Clayton
Steve Gadd Flexplay DVD Saturday, April 04, 2009
Seven stars for the movie, which was nothing less or more than expected. And a 9.5 for the Flexplay DVD format. For the price of a rental, you get a pristine unscratched disc and two days to watch it, with nothing to return. The only downside is the barebones menu with no extras.
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The Visitor
Steve Gadd DVD Sunday, March 29, 2009
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Happy Go Lucky
Steve Gadd DVD Saturday, March 28, 2009
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The Wrestler
Steve Gadd Fairfax Regal Cinemas Friday, March 13, 2009
Nothing really bad about the movie, but not all that much going for it either.
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Charlie Wilson's War
Steve Gadd DVD Tuesday, March 03, 2009
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Eşkıya
Steve Gadd bittorrent cinema Saturday, January 31, 2009
The best parts were the makings of a watchable film; can't quite make out how the rest got in.
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Ghost Town
Steve Gadd DVD at home Wednesday, December 31, 2008
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