Into Thin Air

Title: Into Thin Air

Author: Jon Krakauer

Pages: 291

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: A-

Synopsis: Into Thin Air is a personal account of the disaster that unfolded high upon the slopes of Mt. Everest in 1996. Krakauer was climbing the mountain as part of a guided expedition by Rob Hall, a guide from New Zealand, considered by many to be the best in the world. After summitting the mountain, many climbers were overtaken by a powerful storm and couldn't get down the mountain. This is the true story of what went wrong.

Why I Chose This Book: I've just always wanted to read it.

My Review: Jon Krakauer tells an incredible story that makes you feel like you are there. He does a very nice job of describing the difficulties of the climb and the problems that can happen while acclimatizing yourself to the thin Nepalese air. I really enjoyed this book and had a hard time putting it down at times. For anyone who has ever daydreamed about climbing Everest or doing something similarly amazing, this book may help knock some sense into you.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay

Title: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

Author: Michael Chabon

Pages: 636

Genre: Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: Joe Kavalier emigrates from Prague to New York City in the late 1930's (via Japan) and moves in with his cousin Sam Clay. They begin writing and illustrating comic books and making a great deal of money on them. Joe eventually joined the Navy because he wanted to redeem the deaths of his family members. This is the story of their entwined lives.

Why I Chose This Book: I have seen this book mentioned on multiple "top 10" booklists.

My Review: This book is a very difficult one for me to review. There were parts of the book that I really enjoyed and there were parts that I simply loathed. The f-word was used a fair number of times (although other swearing was minimal) and gay activities are described (gratefully not in detail) which made me uncomfortable. Often the book was a slow read and is rather long. There are still many parts of the book that move along fairly well. The best part of the book are the descriptions that the writer supplies.

From the Book: "(p. 70, Sammy speaking to Joe) At Empire they put out a whole bunch of items that make farting sounds. A fart, you know what that means?" Sammy clapped the cupped palm of one hand to the opposite armpit and pumped his arm, squirting out a battery of curt, wet blasts. His cousin, eyes wide, got the idea. "Naturally, we can't say it outright in the ads. We have to say something like 'The Whoopee Hat Liner emits a sound more easily imagined than described.' So you really have to get it across in the drawing."

"(p. 255, Joe) He leaned forward to kiss her again. They bumped teeth, and it made him weirdly aware of all the bones in his head. her tongue was milk and salt, an oyster in his mouth. She put her hands on his shoulders, and he could feel her getting ready to push him away, and then after a moment she did."

"(p. 408) Sammy pursed his lips and allowed a long strand of saliva to dangle downward, tipped by a thick bubbled bead. The bubble lowered itself like a spider on its thread until it hung just over Bacon's face. Then Sammy reeled it back in. It had been years since he had last attempted the trick, and he was pleased to discover that his spittle retained its viscosity and he his pinpoint control of it."

The Notebook

Title: The Notebook

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Pages: 216

Genre: Fiction

Grade: A-

Synopsis: This is a love story set in the South, mainly in the latter half of the 1940's. Noah Calhoun has returned from the War and is restoring an old plantation home with money that he inherited. The whole time that he is working he is dreaming about a girl and the summer, 14 years ago, that they spent together.

Why I Chose This Book: I was between library visits and looking for something to read. Alison had just finished this book and she convinced me to pick it up.

My Review: I'm not sure that I've ever really read a book like this. I've never really been interested in "love stories" and all that mushy stuff. This is one that I would recommend though. I enjoyed the progression of the book and the unique way that it is written. The story is a display of unconditional love that we should all be striving for. Although sad at times, it can be classified as a "feel-good" story. (disclaimer: This is a book about love and there are some lovin' scenes included as well)

From the Book: "(p. 4) I sit just for a second and stare at her, but she doesn't return the look. I understand, for she doesn't know who I am. I'm a stranger to her. Then, turning away, I bow my head and pray silently for the strength I know I will need. I have always been a firm believer in God and the power of prayer, though to be honest, my faith has made for a list of questions I definitely want answered after I'm gone."

"(p. 102) She couldn't think of anyone else who remotely resembled him. He was complicated, almost contradictory in so many ways, yet simple, a strangely erotic combination. On the surface he was a country boy, home from the war, and he probably saw himself in those terms. Yet there was so much more to him. Perhaps it was the poetry that made him different, or perhaps it was the values his father had instilled in him, growing up. Either way, he seemed to savor life more fully than others appeared to, and that was what had first attracted her to him."

"(p. 180) We sit silently and watch the world around us. This has taken a lifetime to learn. It seems only the old are able to sit next to one another and not say anything and still feel content. The young, brash and impatient, must always break the silence. It is a waste, for silence is pure. Silence is holy. It draws people togerther because only those who are comfortable with each other can sit without speaking. This is the great paradox."

Before I Say Good-Bye

Title: Before I Say Good-Bye

Author: Mary Higgins Clark

Pages: 332

Genre: Mystery

Letter Grade: A-

Synopsis: Nell Macdermont's husband, Adam, is hosting a business meeting on his yacht when it blows up in New York Harbor. Nell and Adam had argued that morning about Nell's decision to run for her grandfather's congressional seat. He had held the seat for 50 years and was loved by his constituency. Adam had been supoportive in the beginning but had since become almost hostile to the idea. Nell goes on a search to unravel who her husband's killers were and why they would do it.

Why I Chose This Book: I've read Clark's books many times and enjoyed them. I found this one sitting on a library display calling out to me.

My Review: I've read books by Mary Higgins Clark before and enjoyed them. This one was no exception. The plots are always easy to follow and the premises are very believeable. It's been a long time since a book has kept me up late reading until I finish.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Title: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Author: Douglas Adams

Pages: 216

Genre: Science Fiction

Letter Grade: B

Synopsis: Arthur Dent is taken off of Earth by his neighbor Ford Prefect who had been stuck on Earth for 15 years. They are picked up by a ship of Vogons and then thrown out into space once they are caught. They are then picked up by Zaphod Beeblebrox (president of the galaxy), Trillian (also an earthling) and Marvin (a clinically depressed robot). They are in a ship called the Heart of Gold which has a new feature called Infinite Improbability Drive.

Why I Chose This Book: Alison and I saw the movie made from the book and both of us found it extremely strange. I would never have read this book had my Dad not recommended it. Now his recommendations have lost all credence.

My Review: As you can probably tell by the grade that I gave the book, I found it a little too off the wall for my liking. By the end of the book I was used to Adams' writing style and I was enjoying it more, but I'm afraid that it was still just a little too strange.

From the Book: "(p. 11, introducing Ford Prefect) He struck most of the friends he had made on Earth as an eccentric, but a harmless one - an unruly boozer with some oddish habits. For instance, he would often gate-crash university parties, get badly drunk and start making fun of any astrophysicists he could find till he got thrown out."

"(p. 64) Vogon poetry is of course the third worst in the Universe. The second worst is that of the Azgoths of Kria. During a recitation by their Poet Master Grunthos the Flatulent of his poem "Ode to a Small Lump of Green Putty I Found in My Armpit One Midsummer Morning" four of his audience died of internal hemorrhaging, and the President of the Mid-Galactic Arts Nobling Council survived by gnawing one of his own legs off. Grunthos is reported to have been "disappointed" by the poem's reception, and was about to embark on a reading of his twelve-book epic entitled My Favorite Bathtime Gurgles when his own major intestine, in a desperate attempt to save life and civilization, leaped straight up through his neck and throttled his brain."

***UPDATE: I changed this grade from a B- to a B after I found myself considering reading the other books in this series.

The Bad Beginning

Title: A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the First, The Bad Beginning

Author: Lemony Snicket

Pages: 162

Genre: Children's Fiction

Letter Grade: B

Synopsis: This is the sad story of the Baudelaire youngsters, Violet, Klaus and Sunny. Their parents die while they are at the beach and they are forced to live with a very distant relative, Count Olaf. He is not very nice and conjurs up a scheme to get his hands on the children's large inheritance.

Why I Chose This Book: I've heard these books were good, but I'm not entirely sure.

My Review: I had to keep reminding myself that this was a children's book. It was just okay for me. I am still undecided as to whether or not I will read the rest of the books (13 in total I believe). They may be fun to read with Ada when she is old enough to enjoy them.

Angels and Demons (Illustrated Edition)

Title: Angels and Demons (Illustrated Edition)

Author: Dan Brown

Pages: 498

Genre: Thriller

Letter Grade: A

Synopsis: This is the story of Robert Langdon's adventure before The Da Vinci Code. He is flown to CERN in Switzerland to help solve the murder of one of their top scientists. The murdered scientist had been branded with the annagramic word "illuminati" and Langdon was a leading scholar on this satanic cult. The search takes Langdon and the murdered scientist's daughter Vittoria to the Vatican and Rome where they are chasing the murderer while also trying to recover an explosive canister of antimatter buried somewhere in Vatican City.

Why I Chose This Book: I just recently used an Amazon.com giftcard that I got for Christmas to buy this book and I figured that I should read it.

My Review: I think that I like this book more than The Da Vinci Code. There are parts that are unbelievable, but they still make for an exciting story. It was fun to read the illustrated edition and to be able to see pictures of the churches, artwork and sculptures that are described in the book. I wish that I would have read this book before I visited Rome and Vatican City.

From the Book: "(p. 42, Langon speaking with the director of CERN) "But aren't scientists today a bit less defensive about the church?"
Kohler grunted in disgust. "Why should we be? The church may not be burning scientists at the stake anymore, but if you think they've released their reign over science, ask yourself why half the schools in your country are not allowed to teach evolution. Ask yourself why the U.S. Christian Coalition is the most influential lobby against scientific progress in the world. The battle between science and religion is still raging, Mr. Langdon. It has moved from the battlefields to the boardrooms, but it is still raging.""

"(p. 455) "Not on your life!" Langdon sat bolt upright, eyes flying open.
"Attento!" one of the creatures yelled, steadying him. His badge read Dr. Jacobus. He looked remarkably human."

Mafia to Mormon

Title: Mafia to Mormon - My Conversion Story

Author: Mario Facione

Pages: 105

Genre: Autobiography

Letter Grade: B+

Synopsis: Mario Facione grew up in Michigan and began experimenting with theft and deceit when he was quite young. This is the story of his conversion to the LDS Church. He became a successful businessman and had a few dishonest business dealings on the side. He was very successful in these and he and his family lived very well. Missionaries were prompted to visit his house one day and the incredible story of how he was converted and what he had to give up in order to free himself of all his ties to the mafia is what follows.

Why I Chose This Book: My parents read this book when it first came out. I had checked the Salt Lake City Library for it at the time but they did not have it. I remembered the book a couple of months ago and placed my name on the hold list in order to get a copy.

My Review: This book won’t win any awards for its writing or the proofreading but nonetheless, I really enjoyed it. It’s a very quick and easy read and it will leave you feeling good. The strength of Mario’s testimony is inspiring and there is something that everybody can learn from reading this book.

From the Book: "(p. 27) The biggest score I made was $500,000 in one week. I had eleven guys with trucks that could move equipment and hit eleven different jobs in seven days. For the most part, I remained in the background overseeing the operation. Sometimes, though, I tagged along on the jobs I thought were going to be the slickest, just to get in on the excitement of it."

The Da Vinci Code (Illustrated Edition)

Title: The Da Vinci Code (Illustrated Edition)

Author: Dan Brown

Pages: 467

Genre: Thriller

Grade: A- (I would give the non-illustrated edition a B+)

Synopsis: A Harvard symbologist (Robert Langdon) is in Paris, France when an albino monk murders the curator of the Louvre. Langdon is immediately a suspect and flees from the French Judicial Police with the grand-daughter (the cryptographer Sophie Neveu) of the murdered curator. They are sent on a wild goose chase in search of the Holy Grail and information about Neveu’s family. They are chased by the police and another group of people who are desperate to get their hands on the grail.

Why I Chose This Book: I used a gift card to purchase the illustrated edition of the Da Vinci Code a few years ago. I have never actually read it (Alison has) and I was in the mood for an easy, exciting read.

My Review: I’ve read this book before and I enjoyed it once again. It was especially enjoyable to read the illustrated edition. Instead of trying to imagine the architecture, paintings and sculptures that are described in the book, full-color photographs make it much easier to envision. While the book does make some far-fetched claims about Christianity I feel that it is up to every reader to decide what they believe and what they feel is fiction. It is especially enjoyable because it is a work of fiction that makes you think.

What is Dan Brown Writing Next? See this story from ksl.com.

The Great Bridge

Title: The Great Bridge

Author: David McCullough

Pages: 565

Genre: Non-Fiction

Letter Grade: B

Synopsis: This is the story of the long-process of building the Brooklyn Bridge. A lot of time is spent describing the Chief Engineer, John A. Roebling and his life. He ends up only designing the bridge and dies before work on the bridge is started. His son, Washington A. Roebling takes his place as Chief Engineer and gets the bridge built.

Why I Chose This Book: A coworker first recommended this book to me during the fall and it sounded very interesting. Then in April, Ben wrote a great review on this book and I was convinced that I should read it.

My Review: I thought that I would like this book a lot more than I did. It took me a while (~100-150 pages) to get into it and once I was into the book, I felt that McCullough spent too much time on the politics during the time as well as the politics involved in getting the bridge built. I guess, that I felt that there was simply too much information in the book. A short book of just a couple of hundred pages would have told the story well. It's a hard complaint to make because after reading this book I certainly understand a lot more about the era than I would have had he left it all out. All in all, it was still a pretty good book.

From the Book: "(p. 27 - A quote by John A. Roebling) The completed work, when constructed in accordance with my designs, will not only be the greatest bridge in existence, but it will be the greatest engineering work of the continent, and of the age. Its most conspicuous features, the great towers, will serve as landmarks to the adjoining cities, and they will be entitled to be ranked as national monuments. As a great work of art, and as a successful specimen of advanced bridge engineering, this structure will forever testify to the energy, enterprise and wealth of that community which shall secure its erection."

"(p. 502 - William Marshall defending the Chief Engineer before the board who want him removed) There are two bridges across the Niagara. He built the largest of them and it stands there today - a perfect success. When I say 'he' I mean his father and himself - the father who sacrificed on this bridge. There are two bridges across the Ohio, one built by Mr. Roebling and one by a man who is ashamed of his name. The one at Wheeling fell into the river; the other, at Cincinnati, is an honor to the man who built it... For one I would take the arm off my shoulder before I would permit myself to vote against a man standing here without a blemish upon his character or ability. If you search back to the time of the sinking of the caisson to the present moment you will find that he has not kept the bridge back a moment."

Gifted Hands

Title: Gifted Hands

Author: Ben Carson & Cecil Murphey

Pages: 232

Genre: Biography/Autobiography

Letter Grade: A-

Synopsis: This is the story of a young pediatric neurosurgeon who is the best in his profession. He attempts (and usually succeeds) at surgeries that no other doctor is willing to attempt. The African-American surgeon (Ben Carson) grew up very poor in inner-city Detroit. With the motivation of his mother (who only had a third grade education) and his own desire to be the best, he rises above the stereotypes and graduates from Yale and then the University of Michigan with his medical degree. He has spent most of his time as a surgeon at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore. He shares numerous experiences where the reader is left with no doubt that the Lord was guiding him. His faith in Christ is very apparent from this book.

My Review: I really enjoyed this book (I read it in only 2 days!). His story is inspiring and amazing and he never fails to give credit to the Lord for his successes. There are a few sad stories but most of them are simply miraculous. He obviously feels very strongly about his Adventist faith and comes across as a little preachy at times. The book is an easy read and one that will not soon be forgotten.

From the Book: "(p. 119) I learned something from that experience. No knowledge is ever wasted. To quote the apostle Paul: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28). The love I learned for classical music helped draw Candy and me together and also helped me get into one of the best neurosurgery programs in the United States. When we work hard to acquire expertise or understanding in any field, it pays off. In this case, at least, I saw how it certainly had yielded results. I also believe that God has an overall plan for people's lives and the details get worked out along the way, even though we usually have no idea what's going on."

A Train to Potevka

Title: A Train to Potevka

Author: Mike Ramsdell

Pages: 345

Genre: Thriller, Autobiography

Letter Grade: B+

Synopsis: This is the story of an LDS CIA agent who works covertly in the Soviet Union and Russia. Although he classifies it as a work of fiction (because of the sensitive nature of many of the stories), I would classify it as an autobiography. The stories told are incredible and often inspiring. He was blessed with many miracles during his trials. The main story is of a covert operation in a Siberian town that goes wrong. Mr. Ramsdell is forced to evacuate the city and go to Potevka on a slow peasant train. Although the book mainly follows his journey and adventures in Russia, he intertwines many other stories from his youth in Bear River, Utah and family life.

My Review: I enjoyed this book. While reading it, it is apparent that the book has been written by an "amateur" and not a professional writer. That's not to say its not well written though. The book is inspiring and draws heavily upon Mike's LDS mission and church experiences. When he breaks away from his stories about Russia, the book slows down but it always seems to pick up again. This book has a hard-to-explain human quality that really makes the stories easy to envision and hard to put down.

From the Book: "When I was younger, I always thought that after a person reached a certain age of maturity, life's troubles would finally be behind him. Yet, for whatever reason, the Good Lord apparently has a different plan for some of us."

The Cold War

Title: The Cold War

Author: John Lewis Gaddis

Pages: 266

Genre: History/Non-fiction

Letter Grade: B+

Synopsis: Most people in my generation know very little about the Cold War. This is a book written by a Professor of History at Yale University specifically for people who do not remember the fear of life during the Cold War. The book describes how the Cold War began, how the world was divided during the Cold War, the major political decisions that were made during the Cold War and how the Cold War finally ended after 45 years.

My Review: I really liked this book. It was a little dry at times (it is a history book), but most of it was very readable. The book is organized by concepts and by time. This means that once a new chapter is started, the book often goes back in time to explain a new concept. I would have preferred the whole book to be written on a time line and to not go back and forth between decades. I almost even shed a tear at the description of the Berlin Wall being breached.

From the Book:

• "(p. 48)

President Truman: We will take whatever steps are necessary to meet the military situation, just as we always have.

Reporter: Will that include the atomic bomb?

President Truman: That includes every weapon we have.... The military commander in the field will have charge of the use of the weapon, as he always has.

• "(p. 82) And so, to paraphrase Kurt Vonnegut, it did indeed go. The Cold War could have produced a hot war that might have ended human life on the planet. But because the fear of such a war turned out to be greater than all of the differences that separated the United States, the Soviet Union, and their respective allies, there was now reason for hope that it would never take place."

• "(p. 257) Gorbachev was never a leader in the manner of Vaclav Havel, John Paul II, Deng Xiaoping, Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, Lech Walesa - even Boris Yeltsin. They all had destinations in mind and maps for reaching them. Gorbachev dithered in contradictions without resolving them. The largest was this: he wanted to save socialism, but he would not use force to do so. It was his particular misfortune that these goals were incompatible - he could not achieve one without abandoning the other. And so, in the end, he gave up an ideology, an empire, and his own country, instead of using force. He chose love over fear, violating Machiavelli's advice for princes and thereby ensuring that he ceased to be one. It made little sense in traditional geopolitical terms. but it did make him the most deserving recipient ever of the Nobel Peace Prize."
  

The Radioactive Boy Scout

Title: The Radioactive Boy Scout

Author: Ken Silverstein

Pages: 209

Genre: Biography

Letter Grade: B+

Synopsis: This is the biography of David Hahn as a teenager outside of Detroit, Michigan. He was a science genius and spent much of his life attempting to build a model breeder reactor, which is quite different than a normal nuclear reactor (and much, much more difficult to build). This book chronicles his achievements, first building his own fireworks, brewing moonshine and creating a self-tanning lotion. Eventually he sets his sights on obtaining every element on the periodic table. Most of his peers, teachers and scout leaders didn't see just how ambitious and ingenious David really was. The methods that he used to obtain radium, thorium, americium, uranium, lithium and many other elements is very impressive but very scary as he took little thought towards protecting himself. Eventually he does build a neutron gun and a highly radioactive nuclear reactor (not a real breeder reactor).

My Review: I really enjoyed this book. I believe that I first heard about it in an IEEE magazine. There is really a lot of chemistry in the book and those interested in chemistry would probably enjoy this book even more than I did. David's scientific ambition is very impressive. Unfortunately for him, this ambition didn't translate well into schoolwork. It's a little nerve wracking the kinds of things that can go on right under your nose (in his case his parents' nose).

From the Book: "(p. 105) But David had discovered a secret, which had been first revealed to him when he read in his Boy Scout materials about polonium and americium: Many household and consumer items contain radioactive elements. Perhaps they contained only small quantities and certainly not in a pure form, but David figured he could devise means of isolating and gathering radioactive elements from store-bought goods."

Sarah

Title: Sarah

Author: Orson Scott Card

Pages: 390

Genre: Historical Fiction

Letter Grade: A

Synopsis: This is the story of the prophet Abraham's wife Sarah. Card follows her from a young child to when Abraham leads their only son Isaac to the hills to be sacrificed. He describes Sarai's marriage to Abram, their life in the wilderness and time in Egypt. After their time in Egypt, they return to the land of Canaan and descriptions of the wickedness of Sodom and the righteousness of Salem (Melchizidek's city) ensue. Sarai's emotions and feelings are brought to life throughout the book as she struggles to find out why she has not been blessed with children and to accept that God wishes her to give her handmaiden to Abraham.

My Review: I really, really enjoyed this book. I have read a handful of other books by Orson Scott Card but they were all science fiction books. I was impressed with how this one turned out. Sarah is an example of faith and obedience that everybody can appreciate. Because Card is a Mormon, his views and the liberties that he takes with what little is written in Genesis and the book of Abraham is very believable. Although, the book is fictional, Card has made the book of Genesis come alive for me.