"To compensate a little for the treachery and weakness of my memory, so extreme that it has happened to me more than once to pick up again, as recent and unknown to me, books which I had read carefully a few years before . . . I have adopted the habit for some time now of adding at the end of each book . . . the time I finished reading it and the judgment I have derived of it as a whole, so that this may represent to me at least the sense and general idea I had conceived of the author in reading it." (Montaigne, Book II, Essay 10 (publ. 1580))

Friday, July 29, 2011

Unbroken (Laura Hillenbrand, 2010)

This book was a father's day gift from Nicole.

It is a remarkable story - yet another instance where if a novelist tried to sell a story like this, it would seem too farfetched to succeed.  I can scarcely believe that I've never heard a word about the subject of the biography - Louis Zamperini.

Some thoughts about Zamperini:
  1. In early years:  basically a juvenile delinquent in Torrance, CA.
  2. Older brother figured out that Louis could succeed as a track athlete.  As a high school graduate (!) - he competes in the 5000 meters at the Berlin Olympics.  And has an interaction with Hitler.
  3. Several amazing missions in the South Pacific following Pearl Harbor - his crew, or at least most of it, survives.
  4. But his crew next ends up taking an undesirable plane - the B-24 Green Hornet - on a search and rescue mission.  It crashes.  Louis and two others are on a raft for weeks.  Fighting off sharks.  Learning how to catch birds and fish.
  5. Experiences in various prison camps - particularly when the "Bird" identifies Louis as a high-profile target and regularly abuses him.  In camps in mainland Japan when B-29 incendiary bombing starts, and when the atomic bomb is dropped.
  6. Challenges - severe - in returning to civilian life.  Ultimately figures it out.  
  7. And how cool:  he runs a segment of the torch run for the 1998 Olympics at age 81 - in Nagano, Japan.
The author did a great job - made the difficulties for the soldiers, prisoners and families come to life.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Ethan Frome (Edith Wharton, 1911)

Short novel, read it on the recent plane flight to DC.

I really enjoy Edith Wharton's books (see list here). This particular novel is well known for, among other things, being very different than Wharton's other works. I liked it quite a bit, but would say it isn't what I was really looking for in a Wharton novel.

This one is tense and sad. Ethan Frome is isolated in rural Vermont; had to take care of ailing parents. Ends up marrying a hypochondriac. Very limited economically; loveless marriage. All the more difficult to deal with given that he had a brief glimpse of life on the outside during a short college stint.

The hypochondriac wife needs help, and her cousin is brought to live with Ethan and wife. The cousin is the opposite of what Ethan has suffered with - pretty, lively, optimistic. They hit it off. Hypochondriac of course becomes jealous and arranges a replacement helper. Bad things ensue.

Friday, July 22, 2011

The Man Who Was Thursday - A Nightmare (G.K. Chesterton, 1908)

Short work, read it on the recent plane flight to DC.

I didn't know much about Chesterton, and still don't. He converted to Catholicism - seems like several of these English authors did - and there is some kind of message of hope and goodness here.

But mostly the story just struck me as weird.

The protagonist (Syme, a/k/a "Thursday") is a policemen who infiltrates a council of anarchists - seven folks, each named for a day of the week, and led by the formidable Sunday. Syme figures out that almost everyone on the council is not what he expected.

Plenty of well-written passages and sayings. I liked Syme's speech when he is being recruited to join the anti-anarchist department of the police force . . . "Yes, the modern world has retained all those parts of police work which are really oppressive and ignominious, the harrying of the poor, the spying upon the unfortunate. It has given up its more dignified work, the punishment of powerful traitors in the State and powerful heresiarchs in the Church. The moderns say we must not punish heretics. My only doubt is whether we have a right to punish anybody else."

The anarchist council, using Sunday's idea, conducted their business in plain sight (for example, discussing bombings in an open-air restaurant setting). This was thought to reduce suspicion.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Brideshead Revisited (Evelyn Waugh, 1945)

This book is quite well known - partly due to a TV series and movie - and shows up on "100 best" lists. But I can't say I found it all that compelling. I liked Waugh's short stories better.

Waugh wrote this after an injury while in WWII service. The story is told through the eyes of Charles Ryder - in the army, then narrating his earlier encounters with the Marchmain family (aristocratic and Catholic). Ryder becomes great friends in college with Sebastian Flyte (who pretty much is an unhappy drunk); meets the rest of the family (sister, Julia - physically resembles Sebastian; somewhat domineering mother, absent father, dorky older brother); later marries (unhappily); becomes quite well reacquainted with Julia Flyte; the father returns to Brideshead to die as WWII is breaking out.

Themes include Catholicism, grace, changing times (aristocracy on the way out).

Monday, July 18, 2011

A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War (Victor Davis Hanson, 2005)

It was easy to see why this book has received so many glowing reviews. It constantly presents interesting ideas. And reinforces the notion that so very little has changed over the course of the centuries since (and preceding) this war.

Plus I finally was able to straighten out some basic geography about Attica (surrounding Athens), Corinth, and the Peloponnesian peninsula itself (Spartan territory). And the timetable for famous folks such as Aristophanes, Socrates etc. - the outburst of artists and philosophers probably made possible by the immense trading wealth of Athens created prior to a concerned (agrarian, conservative, sitting on large helot class) Sparta making the preemptive strike that kicked off the war.

Athens (under Pericles) had an interesting strategy - outlast Sparta by avoiding direct confrontation with the elite Spartan hoplites, and rely on city walls (including the long walls to Piraeus) plus incoming tribute from satellite states to keep things going. The author thinks this would have worked but for the devastating plague experienced early in the 30+ year conflict, which drastically reduced Athenian manpower, killed Pericles, and had a strong psychological impact.

The war had a large number of modern elements - including the realization that it was very important to inflict direct pain on the non-combatants who supported the military effort. Athens wouldn't engage Sparta in large-scale hoplite conflict, and Sparta wouldn't engage Athens in a large-scale naval battle. So a great deal of energy was expended ravaging the countryside, attacking (and punishing) cities, etc. This change from traditional tactics was decried by Socrates/Plato and many others.

Athens had extreme democracy - all citizens (well - except women, slaves, etc.) - could vote. Which led to great influence by demagogues. (Sounds familiar.)

Cavalry was almost a hobby element - hoplite/infantry courage was considered the most admirable. Only rich folks could afford horses, and they fluttered about the perimeter of battles for the most part (most Grecian territory wasn't suitable for horse maneuvering). Then came the battles on Sicily - open country, devastating cavalry.

Neither side was very effective at breaking through city walls - this wasn't a traditional element of Greek fighting.

The author says cavalry types were maybe 5'6", 120 pounds - riding what we would consider to be small ponies. No stirrups.

Lots of interesting discussion about trireme warfare, how it might have felt to be an oarsmen, etc. Lots of skill was involved - a key Athenian advantage. Triremes were limited - had to stop on land each night to forage for provisions. Very expensive to build and maintain.

Things fell apart for Athens on the ill-fated attack on Syracuse - otherwise it may have achieved stalemate notwithstanding the plague.

Things were never the same following this war - a weakened Greece eventually was susceptible to the brilliance of the Macedonians (Philip and his son, Alexander the Great).

Friday, July 08, 2011

Short Novels by Leo Tolstoy (Modern Library)

This volume had similarities to the recently-completed Chekhov compilation. In both cases, these are somewhat unusual works in terms of length.

In the case of this edition of Tolstoy works, they were written prior to 1862 - it's easy to see some of the themes that are more fully developed in Anna Karenina and other of this longer works. And it's enjoyable to read Tolstoy's earlier works - before some of the preachiness set in. So I liked this quite a bit.

Five short novels:

1. Two Hussars. This was least interesting of the five - a hussar's son repeats some of the same moves of the father in the same town about 30 years later - with the daughter of the woman the old man had romanced.

2. A Landlord's Morning - this resonates more with Tolstoy's own life and some later writings. A young landowner idealizes peasant life, tries to lift up the peasantry, accomplishes little. Similar to Tolstoy's own efforts to free and educate his serfs. The descriptions of the serfs - and portrayal of poverty - are pretty compelling.

3. Family Happiness - a young girl and a friend of her deceased father - who happened to be in charge of the family's financial affairs - fall in love. There is an age difference, and a bit of a falling out while the young girl goes through the stage of pursuing life in society. But these are two appealing characters, and the ending works. I like Tolstoy's descriptions of the relationship, falling in love, etc. (though not as much as the way he did it in Anna Karenina).

4. Polikushka - another story centered on serf life - this was a very strong story - the titular character was a serf with a reputation for dishonesty. The out-of-touch female landlady tries to reform him, trusts him to fetch a large cash payment and bring it back home. Detailed descriptions of the serf residences, the serf overseer, etc. Including persons selected for conscription - always a very bad day for 19th century Russians. One serf with cash wasn't inclined to buy a substitute for his nephew who had been conscripted.

5. The Cossacks - this story had the power - it felt a bit like the story of the Steppe in the Chekhov compilation. A Moscow dandy heads south to take up a commission in the Caucasus, with the goal of starting a new life (things not having gone well in Moscow). Tolstoy was with the army in this part of the country as a young man. Great descriptions of the friction - even then - with the Chechens (described as "braves" per the North American term); Cossack life ("Old Believers" allied for the most part with the Russian imperialists, but identifying with the Chechens and Circassians); Lukashka and Maryenka; Daddy Eroshka - these are three great characters. The Moscow dandy likes Maryenka but of course can never fit into the Cossack life.