Play Money

Title: Play Money: Or, How I Quit My Day Job and Made Millions Trading Virtual Loot

Author: Julian Dibbell

Pages: 336

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: I think that this book has been on my to-read list since it was published in 2006. I finally got around to reading it and it was interesting to read this book in the context of 2019 as opposed to when it was written.  The book was about the digital economies of online role-playing games such as World of Warcraft, Everquest, Eve Online, Second Life, etc.  Similar to apps like Candy Crush or Farmville, a lot of the value in these games comes from simply spending time in the game and people are willing to pay for the items that are or can be produced by those who have spent enough time in the game to have obtained the expertise necessary to create rare items in the digital marketplaces.  This book gives background about these games and economies and outlines the author's attempt to create an income stream from the trading of these items that would be enough to live off of.

My Review: For the record, I've never actually played any of these games (or similar games), so I wasn't 100% familiar with what the book was about.  That said, I still found this relatively interesting, but this was a book that would have been far more intriguing during the heyday of these MMORPGs (massive multi-player online role-playing games).

The Boys in the Boat

Title: The Boys in the Boat

Author: Daniel James Brown

Pages: 12 discs

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Grade: A+

Synopsis: The 1936 eight-oar rowing crew from the University of Washington defied the odds and won National Championships as freshman, junior-varsity and varsity.  They went on to represent the United States at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, where although forced to row against the odds in the worst lanes were able to pull off a stunning upset and win the gold medal.

My Review: If you liked Seabiscuit or Unbroken, then this book is for you.  Similar to those books (especially Seabiscuit), the author takes a sporting event that most of us know very little about and turns it into the most fascinating chronicle of the rowing world in the early to mid-1930s.  Very well written and very well researched, I can't wait to watch the rowing races in the next Olympics!

No Applause ~ Just Throw Money

Title: No Applause ~ Just Throw Money

Author: Trav S.D.

Pages: 328

Genre: History, Non-Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: This book is a biography of vaudeville in the United States. For a period of about 30 years, vaudeville was the main source of entertainment here in the USA.  It's legacy lives on at halftime shows during major sporting events, America's Got Talent, traveling circuses and loads of shows in Vegas.

My Review: The book was definitely well-researched and well-written, I'm just not sure why I picked it up.  For people who love reading about how the old-time stars got their starts (i.e. the Marx Brothers, Charlie Chaplain, Harry Houdini, Mae West, etc.), then you'll probably enjoy this book more than I did.

The Well-Educated Mind

Title: The Well-Educated Mind

Author: Susan Wise Bauer

Pages: 480

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: The subtitle for this book is "A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had." I thought it would be a primer on a bunch of different subjects, but instead, it is just a glorified reading list of novels, autobiographies, histories, dramas, poetry and science texts. Bauer gives strategies for making it through difficult subjects and advocates for time spent reading each day, keeping a reading journal, asking questions and reading books at the same time as a friend in order to stimulate discussion.

My Review: I do love reading lists.  I've got a good number of them and I rarely read books that are not on one list or another. However, I'm posting this review after only reading about 90 pages of the book as the remainder of the book is dedicated to the reading list along with little tidbits about the books suggested. While I can see the benefit of the strategies suggested for deep learning while reading, I also am of the mindset that life is short and that I'm not going to spend too much time re-reading and studying these texts.  Instead, I'll just read them for enjoyment with sparknotes open to help provide clarity to the difficult passages.  Next up (from Bauer's list): Don Quixote.

Brave Companions

Title: Brave Companions: Portraits in History

Author: David McCullough

Pages: 240

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Grade: A

Synopsis: Each chapter of this book focuses on an exceptional man of woman who has helped to shape the course of history. The book is composed of short essays about Alexander von Humboldt, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederic Remington, Louis Agassiz, Charles & Anne Lindbergh and others. Each of these persons profiled has done something exceptional.

My Review: If you've ever looked at McCullough's 7-800 page books and thought that they looked too overwhelming, then this is the book for you.  It gives you a taste of the storytelling abilities of David McCullough and you may find yourself wanting to read one of his longer books to learn more.  It seems like these essays are a sort of preview to the longer books about some of these same individuals that McCullough has written since this book was published.

On a side note, this book brings McCullough's reviewed books on this blog to 8, which breaks a tie with Brandon Mull and John Grisham (and with J. K. Rowling and Dan Brown right behind).

In the Garden of Beasts

Title: In the Garden of Beasts

Author: Erik Larson

Pages: 448

Genre: History, Non-Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: William E. Dodd is an academic from Chicago when he is named as America's first ambassador to Hitler's Germany.  He arrives in Germany in 1933 and is immediately surprised by the opulent expectations of him.  He is determined to only live off of his annual salary, but most ambassadors (and even others in the State Department) come from families with deep pockets and are used to having chauffeurs, servants, cooks, etc.  While Dodd doesn't immediately recognize the threat of the Nazis, once he does he tries to convey the risks and threats back home to America. Most of his warnings are ignored as the US public is mostly interested in a policy of isolationism. As is often the case in Larson's books, there is a second story-line, that of Ambassador Dodd's daughter Martha, who sleeps her way around Berlin with other dignitaries, communists and even some from Hitler's staff.

My Review: This is a book about Hitler's Germany, but focuses more on his rise in the 1930's, which is a time period that I'm not too familiar with.  It was interesting to read about how the German people were slowly acclimated to Hitler's crazy policies and ideas.  He would move things two step forward, apologize and step back, then take another two steps forward, with a few large leaps thrown in.  A good lesson on warnings flags to watch out for.

Ten Days that Shook the World

Title: Ten Days that Shook the World

Author: John Reed

Pages: 351

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Grade: B

Synopsis: John Reed was an American journalist living in Saint Petersburg (Petrograd) during the height of the Russian Revolution in 1917 when Lenin and the Bolsheviks seized power and setup their own government.  The writing is not flashy or embellished as his intent was to simply convey the timeline and a description of what was happening during the height of the revolution. Incredibly, almost everything that Reed reported on in this book was based on his own account.  He was able to sit in on the meetings, congresses in addition to visiting the front of the battle and meeting with people involved on both sides. Side note: John Reed died in 1920 of typhus and is one of only 3 Americans buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.

My Review: To be perfectly honest, I'm pretty proud of myself for making it through this book.  I don't think that I've read a book of this substance since college. If there is a university class on the Russian Revolution, this would be the textbook. Even though a substantial chunk of the book was well over my head, I found that I enjoyed it the more I got into it. It was more difficult to read this book in small chunks and I had to be sure to only read in places of  silence and without distractions. Normally I have no problem reading with music on in the background, but this one was too meaty.

Tiny Dancer

Title: Tiny Dancer: The Incredible Tue Story of a Young Burn Victim's Journey from Afghanistan

Author: Anthony Flacco

Pages: 243

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: In the summer of 2001, 9-year-old Zubaida Hasan falls into a kerosene fire in rural Afghanistan.  She is severely burned all over her body and the family lives far from any medical facilities.  Miraculously she survives, even though the local Afghani doctors only suggestions to the parents are for them to pray for her to have a speedy death.  After a few months the scar tissue on her body and face is building up to such an extent that her chin is fused with her torso and it is even pulling the skin from around her eye sockets. (You may have even seen her photo before). Her father is desperate to save her and travels with her to the nearest American Army Base where she is seen on the streets by an American Green Beret who takes pity and begins campaigning for her to get help. Eventually Zubaida is brought to Southern California where she undergoes a series of treatments and surgeries to remove the excess scar tissue.

My Review: This is an incredible true story and a reminder of how blessed I am to live in a country with access to some of the best medical care available. The risks of living and growing up in the USA are far less than are faced by other children throughout the world.  The book was also a nice reminder of the humanity around us. So much of what we hear these days is only the bad and yet there are good people across the globe who are still trying to be good and willing to help those in need.

A Burglar's Guide to the City

Title: A Burglar's Guide to the City

Author: Geoff Manaugh

Pages: 296

Genre: Non-fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: Geoff Manaugh explores how building design and architecture as well as city planning and design is exploited by criminals in their thievery and other malfeasance. The premise is that criminals and other fugitives see things differently than most people on the street.  Where a regular guy may see an impenetrable bank vault, the thief is considering ways to tunnel into the vault from the sewer tunnels below, or he (or she...) may know where they can be spotted by police helicopters or patrols.

My Review: This was an enjoyable side read.  It wasn't a book on my list, but when I passed by this copy on display in the library it caught my eye and it was pretty interesting.  With my background in working with architects on building design, I found this book to be related to the decisions that architect's are making everyday in trying to design a building that is safe and useful.

Flash Boys

Title: Flash Boys

Author: Michael Lewis

Pages: 10 discs

Genre: Non-fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: The book opens with a very interesting description of a new fiber optic line to be installed between Chicago and New York.  It will take the straightest path possible at any cost.  The builders and investors of this line are banking on the potential profits that will come by trimming a few milliseconds off of the market trades between New York and Chicago.  For years the market had essentially been rigged by the big Wall Street banks, but in a way that had not been noticed before.  A new high-frequency trading exchange is setup in the attempt to eliminate these benefits for the big traders and banks.

My Review: I realize that my synopsis above is likely confusing and certainly not book-jacket material, but I found this book to be very interesting.  Lewis is an expert at taking a subject that you know nothing about and making it digestible and interesting.  This one is no exception.

The Race For A New Game Machine

Title: The Race For A New Game Machine

Author: David Shippy & Mickie Phipps

Pages: 256

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: B

Synopsis: IBM was tasked with creating the new cutting-edge microprocessor that was to power the PlayStation 3.  When Microsoft was also searching for designers for their new chip for the Xbox 360, they also turned to the same team at IBM, but had different performance requirements and an even tighter design and manufacturing schedule.

My Review: Ok, so the writing itself could have used some touching up and condensing, but the back story and technical aspects of this book were very interesting.  A lot of the book was focused on the relationships between the design teams, but the parts that I found most interesting were details about the performance, technical requirements and how Microsoft and Sony each approached the design process. That said, a good portion of the technical topics were over my head.

Killing Lincoln

Title: Killing Lincoln - The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever

Author: Bill O'Reilly & Martin Dugard

Pages: 324

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: A

Synopsis: We all know how this book ends, but the stories and history surrounding the assassination of the 16th president are a little less well-known. This book covers the last days of the civil war, to the celebration of the end of the war in Washington DC to the death of Lincoln and the manhunt for his killer.

My Review: I listened to the audiobook version of this book and it was read by Bill O'Reilly, whose buttery voice was soothing and calming. Aside from Bill's voice, my opinion of him is not the strongest, so I have hesitated to read these books written by him, mostly because I was not sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised by the easy readability of the books and by how much I enjoyed it. I have great respect for any author that can produce an enjoyable work of non-fiction.

The Executioner's Song

Title: The Executioner's Song

Author: Norman Mailer

Pages: 1056

Genre: Creative Nonfiction, Pulitzer Prize

Grade: A

Synopsis: Gary Gilmore lived in Utah County in 1976 when he robbed two men on separate occasions and then shot them both at point blank.  This is Gilmore's story, from his release from prison, to the murders, then his fight FOR death on death row.  Gilmore was the first person executed in more than 10 years, after the Supreme Court had declared the death penalty constitutional. The lengths to which the Attorney General's office of the State of Utah went to finally execute Gilmore are fascinating, while it seems that everybody else wanted to fight for Gary's life, even though he himself was fighting for his sentence to be served.

My Review: This book was a pretty epic undertaking.  At over 1,000 pages it covers Gilmore's life after being paroled in extreme detail from extensive interviews (both with Gilmore while alive and with his acquaintances after his death), and explores his obsession with his girlfriend Nicole, which in a way led to his killing of two innocent and random victims.

Disclaimer: This book does not hold any punches, nor does it sugar-coat or censor any of Gilmore's letters or interviews.  His letters and conversations with Nicole are often vulgar and the language overall is quite strong.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Title: Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Author: Amy Chua

Pages: 242

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: Everybody knows that Chinese parents in America expect their children to be the best.  What people don't usually see is what goes on behind the scenes.  This book is a look how Amy Chua raised her two daughters, Sophia and Lulu, to be the best (at least in everything except gym and athletics). To do this, she and her daughters made tremendous sacrifices, such as having friends outside of school (or having playdates), practice the violin or piano for 6 hours/day, participate in any after-school extra-curricular activities, etc.

My Review: I really enjoyed this book.  It seems to be a very honest account of the things that Amy did right, as well as including the things that she may have done wrong, but she generally leaves the interpretation of her parenting decisions up the reader. From verbal abuse, to forcing her children to practice their instruments in hotel rooms, or wherever they could locate a piano while traveling, this was no holds barred parenting. While I don't subscribe to all of her methods, I was impressed with her dedication to helping her children be the best.  That is something that I can certainly improve upon.

The Greater Journey - Americans In Paris

Title: The Greater Journey - Americans In Paris

Author: David McCullough

Pages: 16 discs

Genre: History, Non-Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: During the 19th century not all pioneers went west.  Many American artists, doctors, writers and others made journey eastward across the ocean to study and hone their craft in Paris. Between the 1830's and 1900 hundreds of Americans went to Paris seeking inspiration, education and the chance to mingle with the greatest minds of the day.

My Review: I don't put this on the same pedestal as John Adam, Truman or The Path Between the Seas (my favorites of the 7 David McCullough books that I've read), but this was another interesting, unique and enjoyable book by one of my favorite authors.  I especially enjoyed the book because I read it in the weeks leading up to my own first visit to Paris and many of the same wonders that were present in the city over a hundred years ago are still there today.

Too Far From Home

Title: Too Far From Home

Author: Chris Jones

Pages: 304

Genre: Non-Fiction, Science

Grade: B+

Synopsis: When the Columbia space shuttle disintegrated on its return to earth there were three astronauts orbiting the earth in the International Space Station.  Once the disaster struck nobody knew for a long time how or when these men would get home. This book focuses on the lives, careers and time spent in space of the Americans Don Petit and Ken Bowersox and the Russian Nikolai Budarin.  At the time, the International Space Station was fairly new, as was spending long amounts of time in space.  It was supposed to be a routine 14 week mission, which turned out to be much longer.

My Review: It took me a while to really get into this book, and it took me longer than I would have liked to finish it, but I did enjoy it.  It's not really a thriller, but it is centered around events that most of us probably remember.

Born to Run

Title: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

Author: Christopher McDougall

Pages: 287

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: A-

Synopsis: This book explores whether or not humans are built to run, and what our anatomy, history and genetics may have to do with it.  Intermingled in this research are stories of great runners in history, including the Tarahumara Tribe that lives secluded in the Copper Canyons of Mexico, but who are known to be able to run 100 miles or more at the drop of a hat.

My Review: I don't run, I don't particularly enjoy running, but I really enjoyed this book.  The science and research is very well interwoven with the stories about great runners and a race that the author participates in with the Tarahumara Tribe and other invited long-distance runners. If you're a runner, you'd probably love this book, but I'd recommend it to anybody with legs.

The Disappearing Spoon

Title: The Disappearing Spoon - And other true tales of madness, love, and the history of the world from the Periodic Table of the Elements

Author: Sam Kean

Pages: 11 discs

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: A-

Synopsis: This book explores the origins of the periodic table of the elements and specifically many of the stories behind the creation of the periodic table and of the elements themselves.  The periodic table of the elements is one of mankind's crowning achievement, and has unlocked many mysteries of the Universe and will potentially give us something consistent to communicate with once we have made contact or been visited by aliens...  A few tidbits from the book: Gandhi hates iodine, gallium melts at 84 degrees (thus creating the perfect disappearing teaspoon), Lewis and Clark can be tracked across the continent by the mercury in their waste and Marie Curie's was a regular magician with her glowing radioactive elements.

My Review: This book had a perfect mix of chemistry, physics and stories to keep the book interesting and to ensure that there is something intriguing for everybody.  I've always had a fascination with the elements and I really enjoyed this look at the elements on an individual level and how they fit in the table and relate to their neighboring elements.

D-Day, June 6, 1944

Title: D-Day, June 6, 1944: The Battle for the Normandy Beaches

Author: Stephen E. Ambrose

Pages: 20 discs

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Grade: A

Spoiler Alert: We won.

Synopsis: This book mainly covers the events of D-Day, June 6th, 1944, but it also includes details about the Allied build-up to D-Day. The full industrial might from the United States was put to work building tanks, boats, landing crafts, guns, ammunition, airplanes and anything else that you can imagine was needed for a full-scale invasion from water to land in 1944.  From Utah beach, to Omaha beach to Gold, Juno and Sword Beaches, Ambrose describes the landings and fighting at each beach.  The invasion starts in the days before the landing with heavy air bombardment, followed by paratroopers behind the enemy defenses along the beaches.

My Review: The Allied landings on D-Day are some of the most amazing war-time feats in history.  I especially enjoyed reading this book around Veteran's Day, as I felt that I could greater appreciate some of the sacrifices and efforts that were expended by those who are willing to risk everything for our freedom. This book was very, very well done and I often found myself arriving at work or at a meeting at an architect's office with tears in my eyes from the stories included in the book.

D-Day by the numbers:

• 156,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy on D-Day, with more than 4,400 deaths, most of which occurred during the first hour or two of the landings. The biggest memories for residents of Normandy and the German soldiers were often about how the English Channel was simply full of thousands and thousands of Allied ships, destroyers, landing craft, etc.  It looked as though you could walk from ship to ship all the way across the English Channel.
• 11,590 airplanes & almost 7,000 ships were involved.
• Within 5 days, over 326,000 troops and over 104,000 tons of supplies landed on the beaches.

Shadow Divers

Title: Shadow Divers

Author: Robert Kurson

Pages: 335

Genre: Non-fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: Deep-sea divers are an elite group of experts and hobbyists who risk their lives any time they enter the water.  In the fall of 1991 a small group of divers find a shipwreck off the coast of New Jersey that they're determined to find out more about.  They determine that the wreckage is from a German WWII U-boat, but neither government knows of any U-boat missing in the area nor any reports of a submarine having been sunk in the area.

My Review:  I really enjoyed this book and learning a bit about the culture and danger of deep sea diving.  The dedication that John Chatterton and Richie Kohler showed in trying to bring closure to the families of the U-boat crew in figuring out exactly which U-boat they had found was impressive.  It felt like this was far more than a hobby to these two men.