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.

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.

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).

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).

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.

1491 - New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus (Charles C. Mann, 2005)

I wasn't even aware of this book until seeing favorable reviews of the author's next book - titled "1493", of course. This one is simply full of interesting ideas about what may have been going on prior to arrival of Europeans in 1492, many things I've never thought or heard about, many things not very well "proven".

My take-away on "1491":

1. He makes the point that an incredible amount of new research and thinking have taken place in recent decades, yet most folks carry around a few simplistic ideas in the form taught in the 1960s or 70s. Count me in that group.

2. Inca very much top-down. Northeast Indians more democratic. Likely that settler observations of these Indians influenced European thinkers advancing individual rights. Interesting idea - that Europeans learned from the Indians, rather than strictly one-way.

3. A different take on the deaths-by-disease - this author (and some others) believes that massive depopulation via European disease occurred between the time of Columbus's landing (and the other early arrivals) and the later arrival of settler groups. Early arrivals talked about all the settlements and Indians that were observed; those arriving say 100 years later talked about how empty the country was. This is quite interesting, if quite unproven. It's quite possible that the widely held idea of a lightly populated wilderness wasn't accurate.

4. Another very interesting idea - that the Indians somehow lived in beatific harmony with an untouched primeval wilderness - this idea has been widely accepted (probably going back to the day of the "later arrivals" per preceding paragraph) but may well be false. Author discusses widespread use of fire to promote forests with limited underbrush, preferred trees actively promoted by the Indians, etc. Also applied to Amazonia and elsewhere. The environmental crowd may not like this approach, but it seems that even the Indians actively managed their landscape.

5. Discussion of Clovis and Folsom in reference to the Siberian land bridge . . . not sure where this ends up.

6. The amazing-ness of Peru - along the coast, in the uplands - so much discovered since my school days. Widespread use of cotton - then rare in Europe - via irrigation. Europeans loved ditching wool for cotton. The flukes of Pizarro and Cortez.

7. The amazing-ness of Maya country. And Aztec country. Genetic engineering to come up with maize - a wonder product in terms of nutrition that took over much of the world.

8. Some ideas about animal and plant life . . . similar to rabbits in Australia - how an odd event led to odd consequences ("breakout" event). Passenger pigeons and buffalo may have exploded in population between the first European arrivals and later arrivals, as depopulated Indian groups no longer managed these species. Who knows?

The Complete Short Novels (Anton Chekhov, various dates 1888 - 1896)

I knew almost nothing about Chekhov. I did remember a photo of him visiting a very old Tolstoy. I see he was born in 1860 and mostly wrote short stories and plays. These works (called "short novels" by the translators) are probably the longest works he wrote - five stories, each in the range of 100+ pages.

He was born and raised in a town near the Sea of Azov; his father wasn't very nice it seems, plus bankrupted the family; Chekhov thus grew up quickly and took a lot of responsibility for the family. Became a doctor but didn't do a lot with it; gradually became very well known for his writing.

I liked these novels, a lot.

The first was The Steppe - very different from the other four. Atmospheric, plus. A small boy travels across the steppe to live with a relative and go to school following the death of his mother; he is in the company of a priest, a merchant and then various folks crossing the steppe. Chekhov knew the steppe from growing up and this is a delight to read. The plot, such as it is, is secondary to setting the scene. I probably liked this best of the five.

The Duel was recently made into a movie; it's in the Netflix queue.

The Story of an Unknown Man - this is about someone who poses as a servant to gain information about an enemy, ends up in love with his master's paramour.

Three Years - wealthy Moscow merchant marries a provincial (Yulia) who is not in love with him. They persevere, nice ending.

My Life - Young nobleman doesn't want to undertake a noble profession and falls out with his father. Paints house roofs. Marries the engineer's daughter and they undertaking farming (along with a sobering effort to raise up the serfs (resonant with Tolstoy). Ends up looking out for his sister's daughter (a variant of this theme happened three times in these five stories.)

The Invisible Gorilla - And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us, (Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons, 2010)

Very quick read. Very unusual type of book for me to select, but the reviews were good.

The authors put together a test that involves counting the number of passes made by basketball players. Hard to believe, but in countless administrations of the test, there are always about 50% of the viewers who don't see that well.

The test is in the video below - it's worth taking.

The book goes on to demonstrate that we shouldn't particularly trust our memories, our eyewitness evidence, etc. How we can and do convince ourselves that we remember being present at events where it isn't the case. About "flashbulb" memories ("where were you when you heard John Kennedy was shot" for people of my generation), and how even these are often inaccurate.

It took the authors lots of pages to make just a few points. Important points, but ones that any reasonably observant person should have a pretty good handle on, at least if they've lived long enough.

Still, a quick read and worth the little time that it took.

Here's the video:

We The Living (Ayn Rand, 1936)

An early novel by Rand - published when she was 30. She describes it as semi-autobiographical. She grew up in Russia in the early days of Communism - and had what now seems like a pretty good take on the system even though both she and the Communist state were quite young.

The theme is the individual being overwhelmed by the collective. Along the way, shows the hypocrisy of the too-often venal Party leaders (who live well while the population stands in lines, lacks food, is shipped to Siberia at a faster rate than under the czar, forced to attend classes - the whole "party line" thing).

The protagonist is Kira; she interacts primarily with Leo (who wasn't a compelling character, not sure why Kira fell for this guy) and Andrei (joined the Party in the early going and is disillusioned as things develop). Plenty of other characters are developed. Sasha and Iruna scene on the train is extremely effective (and sad).

Not great, but a good read. I continue to have the same outlook on Rand - politically incorrect, oversimplifies, but plenty of things definitely worth thinking about.

Sugar: A Bittersweet Story (Elizabeth Abbott, 2008)

Glowing WSJ reviews from a couple years ago, so I decided to try this. Skeptical - I thought it would be another book about how awful slavery was, and how the local ecology was wrecked. The author covers these, but includes all sorts of other fascinating ideas. Well worth reading.

Some thoughts:

1. Cheap sugar in England was consumed disproportionately by lower classes. Cheap and tasty; the ultimate comfort food; sound familiar? A cheap "treat" for factory workers.

2. In sugar societies (and other commodities no doubt) - whites access slaves, resulting in mixed race offspring; this requires classifications (mulatto, sambo, quadroon, mustee, etc.) Differing rights. Whiter-skinned look down on darker-skinned (sounds like Muhammed Ali taunting Joe Frazier).

3. Breathtaking value created by sugar colonies - Pitt the Younger estimates that Barbados alone was more valuable to British capitalism than New England, New York and Pennsylvania combined. Fuels factories in England.

4. British authors incorporating West Indies sugar magnates into stories (Jane Austen).

5. Further to #3 above - the West Indies planters pioneered many elements of modern day lobbying. The mandated naval rum ration - didn't happen in a vacuum. Planters even hired a friendly "expert" to tout rum's health benefits. Monopolies, price supports, tariffs. Fighting off competition from sugar beets. All sounds very familiar.

6. Distortion of African development - the old question - impossible to know, but how might the continent have developed without the slave trade?

7. I had wondered why many of these small islands etc. had so many races - in many cases, as abolitionists succeeded or black slaves simply became difficult to obtain or control, planters brought in (via indentures or whatever - tantamount to slavery) - other races. Created tensions which survive to this day between races which might have a lot in common.

8. Haiti - so often in the news - self-liberated black republic. Hasn't worked well.

9. Abolitionists pioneer techniques like boycotting the offending product (sugar). This tactic became widespread.

10. Spanish-American War - hadn't realized the extent of American interests in controlling Cuban sugar.

11. 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis - how "fast foods" were pioneered - folks could grab items and eat while walking around the exhibits. Many are sugar-based. "Pop." Ice cream. Techniques to make chocolate more accessible. Resulting spike in sugar consumption.

The cover photo - check out the tattered outfits - cane workers did incredibly difficult work - abolition of slavery (including in US) didn't fix things quickly.

The Time it Never Rained (Elmer Kelton, 1973)

Very unusual read for me - a "western" novel.

The protagonist - a small-scale rancher named Charlie Flagg - tries to survive a multi-year west-Texas drought while refusing to participate in government relief programs. That's why it was recommended on one or two of the economics websites I follow.

The author was trying to tell a good story, not just make some points about government interventions in markets. And it was enjoyable - but a very easy read, probably too easy. I did like the way he addressed the relationship between the ranchers and workers who had crossed, or illegally were trying to cross, the border. Some of that resonated with current news.

He developed quite a number of characters, including his wife, the Mexican family that lived on the ranch and assisted with the work, his rodeo-crazed son (and rodeo-follower wife), other local ranchers, the government officials, etc.

Also addressed the hierarchy within the Hispanic groups - similar to Elizabeth Abbott's book about sugar (finished but not posted).

And it's a useful discussion about the manner in which government programs cause more problems than they solve; they become entrenched and almost impossible to shut down as coalitions coalesce around them; how politicians chase votes spending other people's money. That discussion certainly resonates approximately 40 years later.

Dimanche and other stories (Irene Nemirovsky)

I didn't care a great deal for this set of short stories - written around the time of the second World War but just now translated into English. Perhaps it was published because the author had achieved quite a bit of fame based on her recently published Suite Francaise - which I thought was quite good. The biography of the author also is quite compelling, all the way up to her death in Auschwitz during World War II.

"Flesh and Blood" had many elements that rang true - including the interactions of family members who got together regularly with their elderly (and ill) mother. I liked "Fraternite" - elderly Jewish man encounters person at train station with same name. "Le Spectateur" and "Monsieur Rose" were somewhat similar; the latter had elements of the fleeing-Paris scenes in Suite Francaise.

Quick read, worthwhile.

Cather: Stories, Poems and Other Writings (Library of America)

I still haven't figured out why I find such enjoyment in Willa Cather's work. But I do. It often creates a wistful feeling for me; there are themes about music; there are themes about the midwest in the days of the early settlers; something about that combination really works. And then there appear the odd story about World War I, or even the early days of French Canada, plus various other unexpected items.

This is a volume that probably is considered the odds and ends of Cather's works. I didn't intend to read through the entire volume (just under 1000 pages) but ended up getting through at least 3/4, mostly at the gym, and finding a number of very nice pieces. Mostly shorter stories; some reviews; some poetry (I mostly skipped the latter two categories).

I liked a set of stories titled "Youth and the Bright Medusa" - including "The Diamond Mine," "A Gold Slipper", "Paul's Case", "A Death in the Desert."

"Neighbour Rosicky" is a delightful, warm story - the description of his Bohemian wife and the way she interacted with her five children and others, certainly brought to mind my wife. Just check out the part where they are discussing the five breakfasts with the doctor. Nice.

Another strong character (in "The Best Years") also brought to mind my little wife - this woman was Scandinavian - perhaps it was the way the four children insisted on sleeping in one large room even as they grew up. The title refers to a quote: "Well, this I know: our best years are when we're working hardest and going right ahead when we can hardly see our way out."

Cather ran into a favorite niece (Caroline) of Gustave Flaubert - put together a short work titled "A Chance Meeting" - interesting in its own right, plus I liked the discussion of Flaubert, Balzac, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Stendhal, etc. Apparently Flaubert was very close to this Caroline, wrote her lots of letters (which are compiled), somewhat relied on her.

Of Human Bondage (W. Somerset Maugham, 1915)

I know pretty much nothing about the author; did read that this work is considered his best (and is #66 on a list of top 100 English language novels). Title comes from a quote in Spinoza's Ethics - relating to emotions overcoming reason.

Looking over the dust jacket, I wasn't particularly looking forward to this - seemed likely to be unpleasant (orphan handicapped with club foot is overly sensitive, short on money, directionless, embarks on "doomed love affair").

But the book really works - it pulled me along for 600+ pages, and I got to the point where it really mattered to me that things would go better for the protagonist (Philip).

Thinking back - the book involved lots of characters and locales. We meet Philip as a small child; he moves to the vicarage with his childless uncle and aunt (who really loves him); studies in a public school; studies in Germany; takes a job in accounting; studies art in Paris; studies medicine.

Meets Miss Wilkinson (a middle-aged friend of his aunt and uncle); various interesting pals in Germany, Paris (meets Fanny Price), London; meets Mildred Rogers and falls inexplicably hard for her (repeatedly humiliating himself); meets Norah; meets the Athelny family. Always struggling with funds. Gets offered a share in a practice in a seaside town in the south of England. Gets to know Sally. Philip is always looking for the answer, the pattern, that explains life. Maybe in Cronshaw's Persian rug? He grows, gets to know himself, gets along with all types of folks as the book progress.

I don't know quite why this works so well. Autobiographical elements, I understand. The behavior of the characters, their voices, etc. ring true. Simple, direct writing. Quite a few observations about life that at first blush seem pretty negative, but an even stronger underlying theme with hope; very sympathetic and understanding toward at least the common man.

I liked the book quite a bit.

Anthem (Ayn Rand, 1938)

This is a quite-short work by Ayn Rand - I think it was something of a warm-up for Atlas Shrugged and the Fountainhead. Dystopian future where collectivism has ended up degrading society and individuality is entirely suppressed. A person named Equality 7-2521 breaks out.

Rand is taking lots of the usual criticisms these days in the mainstream media, occasioned by the recent release of a film version of Atlas Shrugged (apparently not a particularly great film version). I continue to think that she has a lot to say, and also continue to think that folks who pick away at elements of "positivism" probably quite correctly find lots of flaws . . . but overall her message has quite a bit of value, especially these days.

Reminded me of Love Among the Ruins, from this collection of Evelyn Waugh short stories.

Also some elements of A Canticle for Leibowitz, described here.

And the suppression of the individual certainly resonates with just-read "Everything Flows".