2011 Book of the Year – The Big Roads

The Big Roads: The Untold Story of the Engineers, Visionaries, and Trailblazers Who Created the American Superhighways, by Earl Swift. A new-born industry is growing explosively, changing the entire landscape of American communications and bringing down the cost of doing business. Consumers are buying and using its products at an amazing rate, but this same industry requires a tremendous infrastructure. Who’s going to pay for its construction during times of global conflict and economic struggle? Private companies, the federal government, or the states? No, I’m not talking about the Internet. I’m talking about the original superhighways. Earl Swift tells their story in his fascinating book: The Big Roads. The dedicated engineers, the clueless and turf-coveting politicians, the entrepreneurs willing to risk getting in early were all there, just as they are now and Swift does a good job of making it reasonably entertaining to readers with little technical knowledge.

On a personal note, my grandfather began his post-WWI career as a State Road Commissioner in West Virginia and eventually became a senior Highway Civil Engineer with the Forestry Service.

American history is relatively short and yet it repeats itself in so many different areas. Maybe it’s time I look at re-subscribing to American Heritage magazine.

For all my previous “books of the year” lists, see my dedicated page for these titles.

2011 Books of the Year – Without Reservations

Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach. Steinbach takes a sabbatical from reporting for the Baltimore Sun and travels alone through Europe in an effort to break out of a self-determined rut and rediscover her more adventurous self. She effortlessly describes her stays in Paris, London, Oxford and Italy where she befriends several other travelers and does a lot of walking through the narrow streets and wide courtyards. Her adventures might not seem very extreme to experienced globe-trotters, but this neophyte with a virgin passport was enthralled, and inspired, by her stories.

By revealing past relationships and aspirations for the future, she also examines how to define herself as she enters a new period of life as a single woman of a certain age: her divorce several years behind her and her sons grown and independent. She does not seem to reach any conclusions on this subject, but perhaps they are addressed in her second travel memoir: Educating Alice.

(follow up) Steinbach’s second book, Educating Alice, does not answer the questions left unresolved from her debut, nor does it have the same effortless flowing atmosphere as the first set of travel tales. However, it may hold some appeal for those interested in stories about educational adventures in Europe and Japan.

For all my previous “books of the year” lists, see my dedicated page for these titles.

2011 books of the year – Running the Books

On to the best non-fiction books of the year 2011.

Running the Books by Avi Steinberg. Steinberg’s memoir about his time working in a coed Boston prison library conveys the tension, paranoia, hope and hopelessness that is prevalent in that environment. He gives depth to his characters, both civilian and con, while describing his own internal struggles to find his life path as a lapsed Orthodox Jew from whom much was expected. It reminded me of the visits a group of us took many years ago to the minimum security facility in Pleasanton to play tennis against the inmates. Also of note is Ben Wiseman’s excellent cover illustration using multi-colored date stamps to create a portrait of Steinberg.

For a darker, even more intimate look at life behind prison walls, I recommend Jeffrey Archer’s three-volume memoir, A Prison Diary, detailing his time in British prisons following his perjury conviction in 2001.

For all my previous “books of the year” lists, see my dedicated page for these titles.

2011 Books of the Year: historical mysteries

It’s that time of year again: time for “Best of” lists. This year I managed to finish almost 150 books and, although most were of only average quality, some managed to rise above the others. We’ll start with my favorite genre, historical mystery and look at the non-fiction titles in future posts.

Best Historical Mystery (foreign setting) Borgia Betrayal by Sara Poole. Poole’s debut mystery about Francesca Giordano, the woman who serves as the poisoner and protector for Pope Alexander VI of the Borgia court almost made last year’s list. The second in the series isn’t as strong as “Poison,” but then, neither is this year’s competition. The mystery about who among the Pope’s many enemies is attempting to kill him is a little weak, but the action is fast-paced, the romance is very sexy, and the characters and descriptions of Rome are first-rate.

India Black by Carol Carr. An excellent debut mystery set in 1876 about a brothel keeper recruited (blackmailed) by the British government to retrieve some missing documents before foreign agents can relay the information abroad.

The Blood Royal: A Joe Sandilands Murder Mystery by Barbara Cleverly. I thoroughly enjoyed the initial four books in the Sandilands series set in India, but the more recent titles showcasing his work upon his return to England have been extremely disappointing. However, this latest adventure is a worthy comeback effort. The mystery surrounding a plot to assassinate members of the royal family and high-placed government officials is adequately complex, but sometimes predictable. What makes this book worthwhile is the introduction of a new female character, Constable Lily Wentworth, who practically steals the book from Sandilands with her intelligence, feistiness and wit. Publishers Weekly totally disagrees, but I hope we see more of Lily and much less of Sandilands’ niece, Dorcas, in future books.

Best Historical Mystery (U.S. setting): None of the three books I read this year in this category made this list’s cut.

For all my previous “books of the year” lists, see my dedicated page for these titles.

2010 Books of the Year

In addition to the books I reviewed last year:
Best Historical Mystery (foreign setting) “Parisian Prodigal” – Alan Gordon
Best Finance/Economics Book “Age of Turbulence” – Alan Greenspan
Best Entertainment Book “Prisoner of Trebekistan” – Bob Harris

I do want to mention two others that made my 2010 “Books of the Year” list.

Best Historical Mystery (U.S. setting). City of Dragons – Kelli Stanley. As she did with ancient Rome in “Nox Dormienda,” Stanley vividly captures the atmosphere of her setting, 1940 San Francisco, and presents a complicated heroine in PI Miranda Corbie, who seems to subsist on cigarettes and bourbon.

Best Book of the Year. Mr. Lincoln’s High-Tech War: how the North used the telegraph, railroads, surveillance balloons, ironclads, high-powered weapons, and more to win the Civil War – Thomas B. Allen & Roger Allen. Published by National Geographic for young adults, it provides detail without jargon. I found it most interesting given the ongoing conflicts overseas and advancements in drones, communications and medical devices.

The Grimm Legacy

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman.  Fans of Sci-Fi’s current series Warehouse 13 or the older Friday the 13^th: the series might enjoy this teen fiction novel about a lonely girl who goes to work as a page in a NYC repository that loans out objects instead of books.  A thief is raiding the Grimm Collection, which contains magical items related to the fairy tales.  Too much teen relationship angst and a weak ending are offset by quirky characters and a new twist on this classic idea.

Vordak the Incomprehensible

Pfzzt … Greetings insignificant readers of The unset alarm clock.  I, Moldar the Omnipotent, have temporarily taken over this blog as step one of my evil plan to conquer the world.  Step two: I command you to read “Vordak the Incomprehensible: how to grow up and rule the world.”  This self-help guide will increase your evilness and is filled with many practical tips on such topics as selecting sinister lairs, managing your minions, and building diabolically clever yet extremely slow-acting death traps.  Naturally, some of you may feel that reading juvenile fiction is beneath you and none of you will become as wondrously evil as I, Moldar the Omnipotent, but it should help you prepare if you decide to interview to be one of my henchmen.

You have three days in which to complete this assignment or face the consequences (if you need more time, I guess that’s alright since I’ll be visiting my sister for the holidays anyway and won’t have time to implement the consequences until I get back).  MUAHAHAHAHA!

Prisoner of Trebekistan

Prisoner of Trebekistan by Bob Harris.  Given that I grew up reading trivia books cover to cover, it will come as no surprise that I enjoyed this inside look at the game show “Jeopardy.”  Harris was a middling comic in the 1990s when he becomes a contestant on the show after several failed attempts.  He goes on to win a lot, lose occasionally and eventually write a funny and interesting book on his experiences.  It is part autobiography, part game show insider (new Jeopardy clues appear on average every 12 seconds).  Beyond the one-liners and trivia, it also includes sections on how people learn, how the brain and memory works and how much everything in our lives and on this planet is interconnected.

A similar, yet different, book touching on the topics of intelligence and how we learn is A.J. Jacobs’ The Know-It-All.  This long-ago Christmas gift from my mom describes one Esquire editor’s quest to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica and how this project takes over his life and affects his relationships with his wife, father and co-workers.  Both titles are filled with factual trivia and self-indulgent descriptions of personal neuroses, but their individual circumstances also make for unique and entertaining stories.

The Age of Turbulence

Like his career, Alan Greenspan’s “The Age of Turbulence” is long, but with many highlights.  The first 250 pages are primarily autobiographical with much detail given to his government work under President Ford and as Fed Chairman.  The last 250 pages are a collection of essays on a variety of economic topics ranging from analyses of several countries to education, energy and population demographics.  It was interesting to see how often business cycles have repeated themselves over the last century and his insistence that the concepts of the rule of law and creative destruction are the necessary foundations of a capitalistic marketplace.  It was published in June 2007 and, therefore, doesn’t include any mention of the most recent stock market decline.  It’s not too technical, but really only a gift idea for economics or finance geeks.

The Parisian Prodigal

I hadn’t really planned to post any more, but Alan Gordon’s The Parisian Prodigal was so good, I’ll make an exception.  I’ve written about Gordon’s Fools’ Guild mysteries previously, but the latest episode is one of the best.  Our heroic family of fools remains in Toulouse for a second adventure serving Count Raimon.  Although I immediately guessed the killer’s identity, the revelation of the motive and the witty dialogue throughout made this title worth reading.  I was sincerely saddened to turn the last page and eagerly await further escapades with Theo and Claudia.

It was an easy segue from that loving pair to another witty duo in George Baxt’s Hollywood-based mystery, The William Powell and Myrna Loy Murder Case.  The playful banter of the Thin Man movie series is accurately captured in this light-hearted, yet deadly title.  A celebrity madam’s decision to publish her memoirs leads to multiple murders with Powell and Loy front and center helping with the investigation.