Reading Update

As Keith noted, River of Doubt, by Candice Millard, was terrific. The others in my stack o' books lately include:

The Assassins' Gate, by George Packer. I wanted to read this in hardback when it came out, but I bided my time. I've read a number of books on the Iraq mess and the history behind it. This one was written by a believer in the cause -- at least originally. It follows the whole adventure in chronological order from a reporter's standpoint. Much of it takes place in the country as he interviews natives, neocons, soldiers, and bureaucrats in real-time. The book ends shortly after the election and the spiral into sectarian violence. Definitely a different perspective and worth reading.

The Darwin Conspiracy, by John Darnton. This is one of those "what if" mysteries that builds around the notion that Darwin's depression later in life was due to the secret circumstances surrounding a hidden rivalry between Darwin and a shipmate. It sounded more interesting than it turned out to be. It was fun to learn some about Darwin and the voyage of the Beagle, but in the end I just could not buy into the whole conspiracy basis for the book.

The Traveler, by John Twelve Hawks. I'm thinking of changing my name to Steve Twelve Hawks. But I digress. The book was kind of a non-religious DaVinci Code meets Robert Ludlum meets The Matrix type of novel. The bad guys are after controlling all of us, even though we don't know it. The good guys are trying to make sure that there is still some chaos and unpredictability in the world, and of course the best way to do that is to be incredibly techno-savvy, be an expert in martial arts, and carry a sword. A good story if this kind of thing appeals to you, but I think this is only book one of four planned.

Acts of Faith, by Philip Caputo. This is the same Phil Caputo who wrote the Vietnam war memoir, A Rumor of War. I also read Horn of Africa years ago, and he has a very gritty, realistic style I enjoy. I really liked this book that centers around the Darfur region and the strange mixture of religious types and do-gooders trying to both help and convert the natives in the region. There are a number of sub-plots, including one that follows a band of black rebels fighting the Arab muslims from the north. One of the cover quotes mentioned this book as being like Graham Greene's Quiet American. The comparison is apt, and the book will make you as uncomfortable about the good intentions of Americans in today's complex political situations as that one did for Vietnam. Thought provoking in any case.

The End of Faith -- Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason, by Sam Harris. I would characterize this as more of a well organized, thoughtful rant than a book. It's basically an argument in favor of reason prevailing over religion, and the increasingly destructive and dangerous role that religion plays today in the world. (9/11. Need I say more?) I have to say that having a president who believes he is executing on a mission from God, and that all the true believers will be taken up to heaven leaving their clothes and fillings behind is, er, extremely scary to me personally. Moreover, the notion that those are reasons why people voted for him to have his finger on the button is even scarier. So maybe I'm more sympathetic to this book than others will be. I'm at least glad that someone wants to have the conversation.

The Last Expedition, by Daniel Liebowitz and Charles Pearson. An entertaining non-fiction account of Stanley's wild dash through the Congo in an effort to rescue Emin Pasha from the Islamic jihad in the Sudan that killed British General Gordon in 1887 or so. Stanley was a megalomaniac, whacko explorer, most famous for finding Livingstone. When the Muslims took over the Sudan and killed General Gordon, Stanley hatched a scheme to rescue Gordon's lieutenant, Emin Pasha. The scheme included breaking ground through a jungle that Tarzan would have been scared of, going from west to east across Africa. By the time the rescuers found Emin, they were the ones who needed rescuing. Fascinating story. I read this just before Acts of Faith, and it covers some of the same physical locations separated by 120 years.

No Country for Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy. McCarthy is pretty harsh, maybe a western Jack London who uses shorter words. I enjoyed this book, but if you're looking for an uplifting modern western, you should look elsewhere. It's the story of a drug deal gone bad, and a local boy who finds a bunch of cash among the dead bodies surrounding some pickup trucks in the desert. He's no fool, but the bad guys are on him, and bad doesn't really capture them properly. The sheriff who tries to keep things in control is the main character, and he's someone you can identify with.

The Tender Bar, by J.R. Moehringer. I liked this non-fiction memoir about a kid who grew up in Long Island and whose life was dominated by his experiences in a local bar and the characters who inhabited it. I'm not exactly a fan of glorifying drinking, so the book had to have a lot more in it than a series of bar stories. He was raised by a single mother, and ended up going to Yale. Part of the book covers his time at Yale as a poor public-school-educated kid among the blue bloods. I would cut and paste part of it and point Kyla at it if I could, because I feel sure she could relate. Also interesting was the part that covered his getting a job and adventures as a copyboy at the NYTimes. Offbeat and interesting.