The Way of the World (From the Dawn of Civilization to the Eve of the 21st Century (David Fromkin, 2000)

I had liked other Fromkin books quite a bit (Europe's Last Summer, A Peace to End All Peace), but didn't find this very compelling.

The author tries to provide a short overview of the history of civilization. Some useful perspectives but inevitably cursory. He does believe the west generally is on the right track in terms of individual liberty, economic freedom, "progress," etc. But who knows.

The Warden (Anthony Trollope, 1855)

I keep running into references of Trollope being such a famous Victorian novelist, so I thought I would try one of his books. It didn't leave me rushing to try more, though I may do so at some point.

This book was the first of a set known as the "Baretshire" books - often revolving around the clergy. In this one, the application of Anglican church revenues is challenged by a do-gooder; the beneficiary of the revenue is conflicted; unexpected romance. Etc.

Don Quixote (Miguel de Cervantes, 1605)

2005 being the 400th anniversary of this famous book, I thought it was time to read it. So I did.

Basic plot is well known - the protagonist reads too many novels about chivalry and pretty much goes out of his mind; then pursues various adventures with Sancho Panza. Dulcinea, windmills, practical jokes, etc.

I pretty much achieved nothing other than reading the stories and enjoying them (Part 2 more than Part 1, though to be honest there were plenty of slow parts). When you read about the book, there is all sort of commentary explaining why it was ground-breaking. But this is hard for me to discern while reading.

The Nobel Institute supposedly voted for this as "The Greatest Book of All Time." Wow?

Cervantes fought at Lepanto, which is pretty neat.

Collected Stories 1911-1937 (Edith Wharton)

800 pages of short stories. Mixture of WWI era, NY “society,” ghosts, European. I actually enjoyed these quite a bit. Author was from NY money and seems to be writing about the many and varied things she’d seen.

Where Angels Fear to Tread (E.M. Forster, 1905)

Lilia travels to Italy and marries penniless Gino; dies in childbirth within a year.  Her brother (Philip) and sister (annoying Henrietta) and Ms. Caroline Abbott go to retrieve the child so it can have a proper English upbringing.  Seems to lead to a Philip-Caroline romance but she goes for Gino, without plans to follow through.  Henrietta persists in child retrieval.  I liked the book well enough.

Karl Marx: A Life (Francis Wheen, 2001)

Biography written after the demise of communism.

Focuses on early radical days in Germany; dealing with Prussian authorities; moves to Paris and eventually to London.

Jenny = wife; noble birth.

Brilliant; constantly out of money, constantly supported by Engels.

Several children, several early deaths; fairly regular episodes of poor health; procrastinator as a writer (esp. w/r/t Capital).

Pretty much tried to (and did) live a bourgeois lifestyle.

Effective in the various socialist organizations but seldom got along well for long with folks. He was around for the 1848 revolutions; admired Darwin; became well known in England after writing a piece regarding the commune that ran France following the defeat to Bismark at Sedan. Died in early 1880s. Engels had to put together volumes 2 and 3 of Capital.

The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway, 1926)

American expats in Paris go to Pamplona for bullfights. Post WWI disaffection theme (?) Main character = Jake; female character (Brett) is just leading guys around, including the lead bullfighter; Jake tires of Robert Cohn, who is misled by Brett and is annoying.

I understand this is the book that made Hemingway famous, led to folks imitating his spare writing style, etc. I didn't like it very much, far prefer For Whom the Bell Tolls and A Farewell to Arms.

Chuchill’s Folly (How Winston Churchill Created Modern Iraq) (Christopher Catherwood, 2004)

Probably to make the book more salable, author tries to pin Iraq situation on Churchill; not that interesting as it just quotes a bunch of letters. Overall background discussion of this part of the world was useful.

• Sunni = 80+% of Muslims worldwide.
• Shiites = Iran, Iraq, Azaerbaijani. (Fatimids in Egypt were Shiite.)
• Kurds tend to be Sunni, ethnically close to Iranian.
• Arab-centered in Baghdad in 800ish? (previously in Damascus). Had been stopped by Charles Martel at Tours in 732.
• Mongols take Baghdad in 1258; convert to Islam; center the caliph in Constantinople (Ottoman Turks) after 1453. Taking territory in Africa, Balkans, Iran. Vienna attacks fail in 1529 and 1689; Ottoman Empire weakening thereafter.
• “Turkification” starts around 1900; WWI intervenes.

Britain sponsors kings in Iraq not thought to be legitimate; Sunnis empowered; fail to create Kurdistan (Kurds split among Turkey, Iraq, etc.)

Stonehenge (Bernard Cornwell, 2001)

Summary below. I actually enjoyed this one quite a bit even though it's not in my normal reading zones. It did drive imagination as to what might have been going on with Stonehenge.

Another Cornwell novel, also well researched (as far as I know), also via audio book while commuting.

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"He imaginatively unlocks the mystery of Stonehenge's creation in 2000 B.C., at the beginning of Britain's Bronze Age. Lengar, the eldest, murders his own father to become the chief of his tribe. Camaban, a sorcerer ruthlessly determined to have a massive stone temple. The youngest, Saban, will ultimately construct the temple, but not until he has endured torture, slavery and betrayal. The story covers nearly 20 years as the brothers and the people of Ratharryn struggle to survive as a tribe. It is Camaban's idea to build Stonehenge as a temple to create balance between the moon god and the sun god, to eliminate winter and force a change in the circle of life. Cornwell's detailed descriptions of how Stonehenge was constructed utilizing primitive engineering are the real strength of this book."

For Whom the Bell Tolls (Ernest Hemingway, 1940)

My favorite of the Hemingway novels.

Robert Jordan (an American fighting on the side of the Republic) is assigned to blow up a bridge in the Spanish Civil War (covered in detail in this book). He works with local partisans. Pilar (steady older woman) is married to Pablo (unsteady partisan leader). Jordan falls in love with Maria. Interesting story line about Jordan's family history.

Hemingway was in Spain for much of the civil war and elements of the book supposedly are based on incidents he observed or heard about.

Like A Farewell to Arms, characters are disillusioned about war and war leadership.

Tales of Courage and Conflict (Leo Tolstoy, various stories from 1842-1893)

Large collection of shorter works.

His writing is fantastic. The Sevastopol sketches are wonderful war stories. Numerous similar examples.

The War of the Worlds (H.G. Wells, 1898)

Read somewhat in anticipation of Spielberg movie starring Tom Cruise released June 2005.

I enjoyed it more the first time I read it, decades ago.

Never did see the movie, the reviews were not good.

Sentimental Education (Gustave Flaubert, 1869)

"Based on Flaubert’s own youthful passion for an older woman, Sentimental Education was described by its author as "the moral history of the men of my generation."

It follows the amorous adventures of Frederic Moreau, a law student who, returning home to Normandy from Paris, notices Mme Arnoux, a slender, dark woman several years older than himself. It is the beginning of an infatuation that will last a lifetime. He befriends her husband, an influential businessman, and as their paths cross and re-cross over the years, Mme Arnoux remains the constant, unattainable love of Moreau’s life.

Blending love story, historical authenticity, and satire, Sentimental Education is one of the great French novels of the nineteenth century.”

He also hangs out with “the Marshal,” and the widow of a wealthy banker; also a girl from his hometown. Also hangs out with friends, including deLorrier. Historical context = 1848 revolutionary atmosphere, founding of the Second Empire.

Listened to this in a "books on tape" format.

East of Eden (John Steinbeck, 1952)

Trask family:  father is Civil War fraud; Adam goes into army, returns, ends up in Salinas; Charles is violent, stays on farm, dies there.  Adam’s children (Charles’) with Cathy = Aron, Caleb.  Cathy/Kate: user, eventually commits suicide.  Hamilton family:  Samuel as elder; wife is religious/hard-nosed; multiple children.  Lee:  Chinese housekeeper etc., central character.  Abra – falls in love with Aron and Caleb in turn.  Caleb dual nature; through Lee’s intervention, receives Adam’s blessing (“thou mayest”) after Adam has a stroke following Aron getting killed in WWI (after enlisting because Caleb showed him his mother).  Read at La Camarilla.

A Peace to End All Peace: Creating the Modern Middle East 1914-1922 (David Fromkin, 1989)

Lengthy summary of World War I era in Middle East.  Ottoman Empire had loose control and was assumed weak.  Young Turks took power.  It was believed by many that Jewish interests had meaningful (almost conspiratorial power) and that gaining Jewish support was important to the war effort.  Britain had trouble defeating Ottoman armies (Gallipoli, etc.)  Britain and France are rivals, with France focused on Syria, Lebanon.  Mistaken assumptions from Kitchener and others.  Russia and “Great Game” legacy changed, but only somewhat, by Bolsheviks – they ended up imperialistic after all.  Overtures from and to Jewish leadership; Wilson supportive; end up with Balfour Declaration; left ambiguous whether it would be an independent state or British controlled; Jewish expected Trans-Jordan (now Jordan, east of Israel) would be part of their territory.  In the end, Ottoman control is gone.  Turkey is basically its own country; the Saud family is propped up in Arabia; Kurds are left scattered across Turkey, Iraq, Iran; French have interest in Syria and Lebanon; British in Iraq; also Iran; significance of oil is recognized.  Many episodes of local uprising akin to the last few decades.  Turks kill many Armenians along the way.  Turkey and Greece at war, with bad results for Greece, in 1922.  US withdrew from the peace process after letting the self-determination genie out of the bottle.

Down the Great Unknown (Edward Dolnick, 2002)

John Wesley Powell’s 1869 journey through Grand Canyon.  Christmas gift from MB Stern.  Good.  Read at La Camarilla.

Eisenhower and Churchill - The Partnership that Saved the World (James C. Humes, 2001)

Short biographies showing interactions between C and E over decades.  Read at La Camarilla.

Bosnia: A Short History (Noel Malcolm, 1996)

Bosnia as a unique place with heavier Muslim concentration than Serbia (Slav/Orthodox) or Croatia, but also significant Orthodox and Roman Catholic as powers changed over the centuries; due to location, less dominated by any of the powers.

During WWII Bosnians fought for and against both sides. Author attributes 90s situation primarily to Serbian aggression. Since 1995, the country is now Bosnia-Herzegovina. Serbia/Montenegro to the east, Croatia to the west.

Raj - The Making and Unmaking of British India (Lawrence James, 2000)

Detailed discussion. Pretty amazing how a few Brits took control in late 18th century and ran things with local assistance for so long. Success here certainly made up for loss of North American colonies, but led to lots of other intrigues as Britain over time tried to exclude competitors in any area leading to India.

Congress party became active in late 19th century; British control pretty much ended during/after WWI; sectarian strife intensified as end of Raj became imminent; Jinnah with Muslim League pushes for partition; what a mess.

Author didn't care for Mountbatten.

The Golden Rule Challenge (George Lobdell, 2004)

History of POW camp in upper Midwest, mostly Algona.  Ends with discussion of Edward Kaib and crèche.  Christmas gift from EMG and HSG. Read at La Camarilla.

A Canticle for Leibowitz (Walter M. Miller, Jr., 1960)

I first had read this as part of a college course reading list, I believe it was an international relations course.

The story is set in an abbey in the southwestern United States. An order of monks seeks to preserve knowledge following a nuclear holocaust. The story is divided into three parts separated over thousands of years, as mankind gradually recovers knowledge and technology (with attendant challenges).

I like the book a lot. I remember sections quite vividly, for example the very last words of part I, and the too-accurate voicing of government-speak in Part III.

I read that the book has never been out of print since its initial print run. And that the author participated in bombing runs over Monte Cassino in World War II, which gave him the idea of monks preserving knowledge in the wake of destruction. It really works well.

Compare against this book, also very effective and containing many similar strands.

Europe’s Last Summer: Who Started the Great War? (David Fromkin, 2004)

I found this useful.

Fromkin explores the causes of WWI; says there were two wars (Austria starts v. Serbia, German (Moltke) starts against Russia/France). Believes Germany wanted to start the war before Russia built up strength, and needed Austria to hold Russia in the east while Germany took out France first. Austria's tiff with Serbia played into this strategy (though the assassination probably qualifies as more than a tiff, it needn't necessarily precipitate a world war).

Germany pretty much required Austria to contend with Russia, and the Serbian war became an afterthought (which I believe Austria ultimately lost).

Sharpe's Seige (Bernard Cornwell, 1987)

Another Cornwell book in which Sharpe is the hero (compare this). Also listened to this while commuting.

Convoluted plot line set in Napoleonic wars (1814) - Sharpe is working with the regular British army to launch a diversionary action near Bordeaux; American forces are involved; the leader of the British regular army is incompetent; they take a fortress but then have difficulty holding it.

The Terror Before Trafalgar (Tom Pocock, 2004)

Per title - goes through lead-up to famed British naval victory.  Napoleonic era.  Read at La Camarilla.