| Sunlight at Midnight: St. Petersburg and the Rise of Modern Russia by W. Bruce Lincoln, 419 pages Tony Pisarenkov 16 March 2008 A very comprehensive and beautifully written history of St. Petersburg that emphasizes the artistic and cultural aspects of the city's life without shortchanging the political and economic ones. Recommended. More comments here | The Captains Brotherhood of War Book II by W. E. B. Griffin, 406 pages Jeff Gadd 03 October 2003 About Captains in the Korean War and their using of tanks that they commanded in War. |
Flushed: How the Plumber Saved Civilization by W. Hodding Carter, 241 pages Tony Pisarenkov 19 July 2009 Surprisingly interesting and occasionally very funny. A little heavy on the solid waste removal aspect of plumbing for my taste. |
Theology, Sociology and Politics: The German Protestant Social Conscience 1890-1933 (1979) by W. R. Ward, 243 pages James Donahue 19 August 2006 An excellent survey of Christian engagement with socialism from one of my favorite historians. |
The Razor's Edge by W. Somerset Maugham, 314 pages Kristin Schrock 19 November 2002 Part of my "It's Good to Read Good Books" Program. I'm not sure how good it is. This one involves a lot of speechifying about how to live a fulfilling life: being a part of society, marrying well, or dedicating your life to enlightenment. Remarkable for one paragraph in which the author says, "You can skip this next part if you want. It has nothing to with the plot, but is the reason I wrote the book." (or something like that). He was right. That part was very long and very dull. |
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham, 238 pages James Donahue 01 November 2005 |
On Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham, 607 pages James Donahue 20 November 2005 A old-fashioned Bildungsroman, for the WWI generation. An orphan raised in the bourgeouis, public-school circles of his British uncle, a vicar, Philip Carey studies philosophy in Heidelberg, art in Paris, love in Soho, and medicine at the Royal College before discovering that no abstract system can make you life meaningful and that simple (British) pleasures are the most satisfying. (This latter lesson also applies to marriages.) |
Up At The Villa by W. Somerset Maugham, 95 pages James Donahue 29 November 2005 Maugham continues to probe the deepest mystery of the universe yet again, namely: why do women always prefer the lying charmer to the decent man? I must say that one of the reasons I like Maugham is because he is, especially for writers from the 1920s, so desperately uncool. |
The Razor's Edge (1944) by W. Somerset Maugham, 331 pages James Donahue 16 April 2006 Maugham, the missing link between Balzac and Hemingway, writes in this, his last novel, of an American obsessed with finding wisdom in mysticism after the Great War. He leaves his friends in Chicago, busy making money and babies in the roaring twenties, to travel and experience life. The book is good overall, but not for Maugham. There is too much distance between the writer and the Americans, yet Maugham's own opinions, viewpoints, and experiences are the Americans', not the narrator. Which makes the strongest characters the most detached. |
Politics, Society, and Christianity in Vichy France by W.D. Halls, 391 pages James Donahue 08 September 2004 Only interesting if you're already interested. |
On the Natural History of Destruction by W.G. Sebald, 191 pages Tony Pisarenkov 31 August 2008 A collection of Sebald's essays and lectures dealing with the conspicuous absence of treatment of the allied firebombing of German cities during WWII from post-war German literature, what might have contributed to that absence, and the dangers of not rectifying it. |
The Emigrants by W.G. Sebald, 234 pages Tony Pisarenkov 19 September 2008 Unusual book. Detailed comments here |
UnderSeas Victory II 1943-1945 The Tide Turns by W.J. Holmes, 265 pages Jeff Gadd 28 November 2002 A story about America submarines against Japanese ships in WW II. |
The Protestant Evangelical Awakening by W.R. Ward, 355 pages James Donahue 09 June 2004 |
WWII Infantry Soldier by W.Y.Boyd, 248 pages Jeff Gadd 20 September 2002 The author of the book was in WWII and fought through the campains of Alsace,Siegfried Line,Wurzburg,Schweinfurt,Nuremburg,Danube, and Munich and never got wounded. Pretty empressive. |
Lancelot by Walker Percy, 272 pages Micaela Larkin 28 July 2006 continuing my descent into diagnostic Catholic reading.... Nice pairing with L&R, Walker Percy illustrates the utilitarian world that JPII critiques. |
The Hour I First Believed: A Novel (2008) by Wally Lamb, 752 pages Brad Snyder 30 April 2009 Messed up guy and his messed up wife get caught up in the Columbine shootings. This causes a search for sanity and meaning as he learns about his family history and finds, like so many of us, that they come from a long line of messed up people. |
In Stalin's Secret Service: Memoirs of the First Soviet Master Spy to Defect by Walter G. Krivitsky, 306 pages Tony Pisarenkov 29 June 2008 Shocking and unbelievable as it may be in spots, this is a priceless historical document. Detailed comments here |
Benjamin Franklin : An American Life (Audio) by Walter Isaacson, 0 pages Julie Gephart 14 January 2004 I sure got some historical schooling in this one. Old Ben was part of every single thing that happened in America for 50 years. |
Today's Gospel: Authentic or Synthetic? by Walter J. Chantry, 92 pages Brad Snyder 14 November 2005 This book uses the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10 to examine the message of salvation as preached by Christ. More than that, though, it is a critique of the message as it's preached in modern times. Unfortunately, his observations are based largely upon caricature. He doesn't cite more than a few references to support the straw man he creates, so he comes off a bit like a cantankerous old man yelling about "the kids' loud music" (or "folk rock" as he calls it in the book). Still, if you can weed through his somewhat exaggerated statements, many of his observations of Mark 10 are valuable. |
The Last Days of Europe: Epitaph for an Old Continent (2007) by Walter Lacquer, 226 pages James Donahue 01 September 2007 As pessimistic a forecast as one can get. As Europe's economy sags, it role as "moral superpower" goes unheeded, and its populations becomes Islamized, Lacquer foresees a future for Europe as "a museum of world history snd civilization preaching the importance of morality in world affairs to a nonexistent audience." At least tourist dollars are way up! |
A Short Life of Soren Kierkegaard by Walter Lowrie, 260 pages James Donahue 27 March 2004 If you love Kierkegaard, you'll love this biography. Its written in the same meandering, maddening, charming fashion that relys on parables to make its point. Some have questioned, as they should, Lowrie's intense desire to reduce Kierkegaard's works to his life -- a roman a clef of one, so to speak. Yet if one uses Lowries analysis in reverse -- to see how Kierkegaard's life affected his work -- one will not be disappointed. (More 'serious' lovers of Kierkegaard should stick to Hanney's bio.) |
The Midas Touch by Walter Winward, 276 pages Jeff Gadd 12 October 2003 Hitler's trap for American B-17 bombers as the Nazis were holding two important people near the factories that the Americans were going to bomb. So the Americans send two men in Germany to rescue them. Very interesting. |
Women at the Gates: Gender and Industry in Stalin's Russia by Wendy Goldman, 286 pages James Donahue 04 March 2003 |
The Darwin Awards 4: Intelligent Design (2006) by Wendy Northcutt, 336 pages Brad Snyder 16 May 2009 After years of getting "Darwin Awards" spam in my inbox, this book didn't make me so much as giggle. |
A Return to Modesty by Wendy Shallit, 304 pages Micaela Larkin 27 November 2006 Shallit offers an intelligent discussion of modern dating. |
You Are Here: A Memoir of Arrival by Wesley Gibson, 224 pages Jaqi Ross 26 February 2004 Not recommended; this book tries to be too many things at once. |
The Last Days of Disco, with Cocktails at Petrossian Afterwards by Whit Stillman, 339 pages Micaela Larkin 01 January 2006 Brilliant movie-man Whit Stillman novelizes his own last days of disco, and succeeds. Perfect for any UHB (Urban Haute Bourgeoisie) or Austen lover. |
VB COM by Who Cares?, 344 pages Steven Krise 09 December 2003 I can't believe I haven't discovered Property Set() before this. Btw, howda you like a book that has all acronyms in its title? |
Corporal Si Klegg and His Pard by Wilbur F. Hinman, 740 pages Brad Snyder 22 December 2005 This story, the beginning of which was originally published as part of a Union veterans' periodical in 1885, is thought to have inspired Stephan Crane to write "The Red Badge of Courage". Hinman created fictional characters to recount his own experiences during the Civil War. Mixed in with the story are several asides where he explains every aspect of military life. Many of his observations still resonate today, even as this nation finds itself embroiled in yet another "just" war. |
The Eye of the Tiger by Wilbur Smith, 390 pages Jeff Gadd 14 May 2001 |
Clare Boothe Luce by Wilfrid Sheed, 176 pages Micaela Larkin 07 May 2007 |
O Pioneers! by Willa Cather, 309 pages Kristin Schrock 19 May 2003 My favorite book with an exclamation point in the title. What I learned: visionary people live lonely lives; and the combination of passionate love and youth=violent death. |
The Progress of Redemption by Willem VanGemeren, 474 pages Jonathan Misirian 14 July 2005 VanGemeren delivers a masterful overview of the biblical themes of Salvation and Redemption. He traces these themes throughout each book of the Bible, providing a complete and unified look at the work of Christ. |
Fascination by William Boyd, 288 pages Tony Pisarenkov 28 April 2007 Some of these short stories are too self-consciously writerly for my taste, though others are quite enjoyable in an off-kilter sort of way. |
City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi by William Dalrymple, 339 pages Tony Pisarenkov 12 June 2005 An account of the author's year-long residence in Delhi, this is a fascinating and occasionally disturbing travelogue and cultural survey richly layered with Indian history from the Mughals to the Partition. An all-around great read. |
Napoleon's Pyramids (2007) by William Dietrich, 284 pages James Donahue 30 July 2008 Ethan Gage is a lazy ex-protege of Benjamin Franklin, bouncing around Revolutionary Paris until he wins an Egyptian medallion in a poker game, gets framed for murder, and runs away with Napoleon's army on its quest to invade Egypt, cut the British off from India, and harness the ancient's world's secrets. The adventure story of this novel is excellent, though little more than a well-honed rendition of the Indiana Jones-type exotic-orientalist adventures, except this time with Masons instead of Turkish secret societies and Napoleon instead of Nazis. The real enjoyment of this book for me lay in the historical fiction aspect of the book. The bizarre invasion of Egypt in 1798 opened up the Ottoman world to Westerners for the first time since the Crusades. The author liberally laces his novel with real characters that seem so far-fetched they could only be from the French Revolution. Great vacation read for those us who hate the insipidity of most vacation reads. |
Journey Through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathamatics by William Dunham, 286 pages Steve Gadd 26 February 2005 The maths may not be for everyone, but if you have ever appreciated the beauty of Euclid's ingenious proof of the infinitude of primes, a survey of mathematical history can be very rewarding. This book focuses on twelve theorems, much in the way an art history showcases great masterpieces presented with historical context. The theorems and proofs are selected both for their significance and their accessibility. Beginning with the ancient Greeks, the author describes the groundbreaking work of Hippocrates, Euclid, and Archimedes, whose derivations of volumes and surface areas would not be expanded upon until the arrival of the calculus two thousand years later. The ancient texts were tended in Alexandria and Baghdad for centuries, eventually sparking a resurgence of European development during the Renaissance. Here Newton makes his grand entrance, setting science on a new course with his development of the binomial theorem, the calculus, a theory of colors, and his famous work in gravitation. All this, incredibly, occurred during two years of intense work at Cambridge. Laplace would later describe Newton as "the greatest genius that ever existed, and the most fortunate, for we cannot find more than once a system of the world to establish." Many other famous mathematicians made their mark in the coming years, including Fermat, whose famous Last Theorem was but one of many he posited without proof, most of which were later proved (and some disproved) by the prolific Euler. Dunham does not omit the back story, describing the bitter rivalries and quirky personalities that add human color to science. Johann Bolyai was one of several co-discovers of non-Euclidean geometry, despite having been implored by his father that "You must not attempt this approach to parallels. I know this way to its very end. I have traversed this bottomless night, which extinguished all light and joy of my life.... I entreat you, leave the science of parallels alone." |
Why I Left Scofieldism (1975) by William E. Cox, 20 pages Brad Snyder 23 July 2007 Cox left Scofieldism (now referred to as Dispensationalism) after finding that he couldn't prove it using Scripture alone. Although I don't disagree with his overall assertions that Dispensationalism has some theological hurdles to overcome, I think that declaring it heresy goes a bit far. |
Who's on First? by William F. Buckley, 278 pages Jeff Gadd 20 September 2003 A book about how the Russians beat us in sending a satellite into space. |
Light in August by William Faulkner, 480 pages Tony Pisarenkov 08 January 2003 Faulkner's classic that starts out as a slowish period piece with no resonance to our time and experience, and ends as a bone-chilling work or profound pathos which makes you alternately throw it down in digust and keep turning the pages to find out just what else these so-called people are capable of. I am glad I read it now instead of having it spoon-fed to me in a class years ago. |
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, 243 pages Tony Pisarenkov 17 October 2004 Not quite what I expected from Faulkner and, frankly, not all that satisfying, although it is entirely possible, likely even, that many of the subtleties were lost on me. |
New Orleans Sketches by William Faulkner, 173 pages Tony Pisarenkov 21 November 2009 A delightful collection of Faulkner's early sketches, written when he lived briefly in New Orleans in 1924-1925, and inspired by it. Very enjoyable, and made more so by my recent trip there. The editor's introduction is very well-written as well and gives some interesting information on Faulkner's early life. |
Neuromancer by William Gibson, 271 pages Steve Gadd 28 November 1995 |
Burning Chrome by William Gibson, 191 pages Steve Gadd 10 June 1997 |
Idoru by William Gibson, 383 pages Steve Gadd 23 May 1998 The inventor of cyberpunk finally goes to Japan. |
Virtual Light by William Gibson, 352 pages Steve Gadd 06 January 1999 A favorite from the inventor of the cyber-thriller. |
All Tomorrow's Parties by William Gibson, 277 pages Steve Gadd 11 January 2003 Gibson still has the ability to create vivid portrait of the near-future, though he relies on a couple of images a bit much (dirty ice, tires on wet pavement). He has recycled the best characters from earlier novels: Rent-a-cop Rydell, his bike-messenger girlfriend, and Fontaine, who embodies the eBay wristwatch habit Gibson wrote about for Wired. The story is good enough, but the ending is kind of flat and left me with the feeling that Gibson is still coasting on Neuromancer fame. I guess that explains why I got the book for a dollar from the library with a "Removed From Circulation: Low Demand" stamp. |
Count Zero by William Gibson, 246 pages Steve Gadd 19 May 2006 When it comes to creating vibrant images of a near-future dystopia, Gibson has few peers. Plotting is another matter. I found this sequel to Neuromancer frequently putdownable, and it even had a Villain Speech toward the end. |
A Brief History of the Mind by William H Calvin, 219 pages Steven Krise 14 June 2008 Rather disappointing - read like someone's lecture notes padded out to book length. |
Lingua Ex Machina by William H Calvin & Derek Bickerton, 298 pages Steven Krise 01 February 2004 Set up as a dialog between the two authors, this book hashes out the first draft of a theory about how language evolved in the hominid line. It seemed to lack coherence (ironic given the amount of dicussion of corticocortical coherence) due to the format, but I get the definite impression that the authors are onto something. Bickerton says: "Now all that's left of the mountains of innate knowledge the old system presupposed are a few bare principles. And these principles are merely a metaphorical way of looking at what actually happens. The brain acts as if it obeyed such principles, but what it's actually doing is simply executing algorithms for putting sentences together and understanding them once they've been put together. And what this book's all about is how these algorithms came to be." |
25 Surprising Marriages: Faith-Building Stories from the Lives of Famous Christians (1997) by William J. Petersen, 504 pages Brad Snyder 22 February 2009 Mini-biographies of Christian couples throughout history: Billy and Ruth Graham, Martin and Katie Luther, etc. |
Essays in Pragmatism by William James, 189 pages James Donahue 22 May 2003 |
Deference and Defiance in Nineteenth-Century Japan by William Kelly, 291 pages James Donahue 13 March 2004 Dry social history of three peasant revolts in a small Japanese province from 1841-1873. |
Sahara Unveiled: A Journey Across the Desert by William Langewiesche, 310 pages Jonathan Misirian 19 May 2005 Langewiesche is an Atlantic correspondent, and the author of Unbuilding the World Trade Center. This account, traces the author’s trek across the desert. Always adept with his observations, Langewiesche provides a moving narrative of life and death in the Sahara. |
The Outlaw Sea (2004) by William Langewiesche, 239 pages Jonathan Misirian 06 February 2007 Talking with some friends about great authors sent me searching for another Langewiesche book. He narrates with superb precision and crisp writing, drawing the reader into the subject matter. The Outlaw Sea depicts the ¾ of the world as a vast, lawless, under-regulated and violent world that is foreign to so many. |
The Outlaw Sea by William Langewiesche, 239 pages Steve Gadd 19 February 2007 A great collection of Atlantic articles on modern piracy, oceangoing disasters, and shipbreaking. |
The Atomic Bazaar (2007) by William Langewiesche, 179 pages James Donahue 13 July 2007 Langewiesche continues to be the best writer on contemporary politics with this book about nuclear proliferation after the Cold War. Not only can he write sentences like these: "Diplomacy may help to slow the spread, but it can no more stop the process than it can reverse the progression of time. The nuclearization of the world has become the human condition, and it cannot be changed. Fear of it becomes dangerous when it detracts from realisitic assessments of the terrain." But I believe him. The usual excellent combination here of travelogue/first-hand-anecdote, grasp of the relevant history, layman's science, and political acuity. |
The Outlaw Sea by William Langweische, 239 pages Tony Pisarenkov 12 November 2006 Journalistic expose at its best -- keeps you turning the pages with edge-of-your-seat tales of spectacular shipwrecks and brazen modern-day piracy while shedding light on the obscure but fascinating topic of the inherent anarchy of the world of international commercial shipping and its political enablers. |
Freud’s Discovery of Psychoanalysis: The Politics of Hysteria by William McGrath, 278 pages James Donahue 07 April 2003 Examines Freud's early years as a scholar and examines his formulation of psychoanalysis amidst his political and religious commitments. Informative but dry. |
Arnold J. Toynbee: A Life by William McNeill, 288 pages James Donahue 08 February 2007 |
Hamburger Hill by William Pelfrey, 197 pages Jeff Gadd 12 February 2002 A great Vietnam book but sad. But amazing courage from the American soilders who fought their. |
The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty, 400 pages Jeff Gadd 23 July 2002 A very creepy book not for the less in faith people. |
The Birth Book (1994) by William Sears, M.D. & Martha Sears, R.N., 269 pages A Bennett 28 January 2006 Much less textbookish reading here. Though the book is written by avowed hippie/Green pushers of home, midwife-directed & unmedicated births, it's got a lot of information to offer, as well as insight and knowledge. However, one would not expect to find that in a book that so frequently cites scientific studies/research and encourages parents to question doctors and common hospital practices (how would you feel going up against an MD over whether your partner should or should not have a C-Section, an IV--or, any labor intervention?), discouragingly, the book, written in 1994 and in its 20th printing, has NOT ONCE been revised (only repackaged) in the last 11 years. Ergo, I think it is a good book with sound principles and well-documented opinion/thought and science, yet, that same Science tells me 11 years is a long time ago. |
Othello by William Shakespeare, 45 pages Julie Gephart 30 November 2003 Just a quick refresher after watching the movie _O_. Thank you to this play for giving us “the beast with two backs.” |
Sophie's Choice by William Styron, 562 pages Kristin Schrock 16 January 2003 Near the end of the novel the narrator (who, let's face it, is just William Styron) relates a sentence from his journal during the summer he knew Sophie: "Someday I will understand Auschwitz". But, of course, the narrator (and everyone else) will never understand Auschwitz. Instead, we get a compelling, haunting, story, with the right amount of distance and history to make it bearable. Styron is often pretentious (I hate him for my suffering during Lie Down in Darkness), and oddly chooses to dramatize a, what's the word, sex marathon after Sophie reveals her choice. And, as a book to read before going to bed, it doesn't make for good dreams, but it is a gripping novel. Recommended Vocabulary: pettifoggery (that's a made up word, I'm sure of it), scupperning, lacunae, satraps, adumbrated, mucilaginous, avoirdupois |
Expelled From Eden by William T. Vollmann, 383 pages Steve Gadd 06 February 2007 This "reader" includes selections from Vollmann's epic works of fiction as well as reportage from the urban underworld and various down-and-out places around the world. Thanks to Raully for suggesting this author. |
Europe Central (2005) by William Vollmann, 752 pages James Donahue 01 June 2006 Wow! This is the first book in a long time that I have re-read chapters simply for the pleasure of feeling the words on my tongue. |
The Way of Lao Tzu by Wing-Tsit Chan, 285 pages Steven Krise 02 July 2003 Annotated "Tao Te Ching" with a lengthy introduction covering the history of Taoist thought, the debate about who Lao Tzu is and when the book was written. Trivia: Wang Chung was an ancient Taoist scholar. |
Child of the Revolution by Wolfgang Leonhard, 432 pages James Donahue 12 June 2002 In counterpoint to Eggers, a fascinating memoir of a life worthy of reading about. Leonhard fled at thirteen to the USSR to flee Hitler, after which his mother was 'purged', he was drafted into the Comintern educational system, and then trained to reenter Germany after the war to institute a Soviet satellite state in Berlin. In the end, his love for Marxism led him to reject Stalinism, and flee to Yugoslavia in 1949 in order to participate in Tito's anti-Soviet state. A fascinating and rare look into Stalin's Russia and the workings of totalitarian education. |
The Tiger of France: Conversations with Clemenceau (1949) by Wythe Williams, 303 pages James Donahue 04 December 2006 Williams was the Times journalist in Paris from 1911-1935. This is part-biography, part-love-affair with Clemenceau, aka the Tiger, the dodgy and fiery premier of France during WWI. Colorful; but accurate?? |