Twenty-something preppy Stanford grad poses as high school student in Orange County to get the goods. Nothing new here, as far as I can see. Only touching moment, for me, was when Cody didnt beat the crap out of Aram at Disneyland. Book was recommended by a friend.
A Discarded Books selection. Only two checkouts in forty years. So I read it. Some pretty good stories in here, but I was uncomfortable with the one about minstrel shows. Are they PC? Do I have White guilt?
Smoke Quote::
"I am glad to see," said Penn, "that you are ashamed of that vile habit."
"Not at all," said a Friend, "we only lay down our pipes lest we should affend a weak brother."
Words I Had To Look Up:
the bed...undoubtedly used by Lafitte as a caprice (pg. 141) -- Acquired as an impulse? kennebecker (pg. 265) -- A valise for clothes which Maine lumbermen take with them into the wood bedcats (pg. 264) -- I thought it might be s reference to bedbugs, but I guess it is cats that hangout in the bunkroom. There is a traditional Paul Bunyan tale titles "The Bedcats" that I see referenced on the web. No definitions, though. I guess it is just common knowledge!
The story of John Eastwood, dambuilder, who designed the Lake Hodges and Lake Murray dams in San Diego, among others. Extremely interesting, profusely footnoted.
Shirley Jackson's first book, written before The Lottery story. A street in town, Pepper St. A street of nice families. What could happen there? Needs a map. I may make one.
Jackson's last book, I understand. Mary Katherine Blackwood lives in a big old house with her sister Constance and her Uncle Julian. Her parents are dead (and her younger brother and Aunt), and her sister was tried for the crime and found not guilty.
Quote:
"No, no." Constance caught me by the arm. "Not until I've washed the napkins; what would she think of me? "
A biography of C.S. Lewis. I fought my way through this for three weeks. It is pretty good, but very hard for my little brain to comprehend. I felt I was that putting forth the effort to understand what the author had spent so much energy creating. I feel bad about that, but it's certainly not the first time! The last two chapters went very well, and I was in tears at the end.
Volume one of The Pearl Wars. Engaging story of foundling recruited to travel to the surface of Earth to acquire the "Pearls" that are used to power technology.
Book two of the trilogy, it takes place ten years later with a different main character, a blind woman named Oree. It was pretty good, then it got a whole lot better at the end.
First book in series. The city of New York is under attack and the avatars of the borough (who didn't know they were the avatars of the boroughs) work together (mostly) to repel the Enemy. Pretty good, and certainly different!
First book in the The Broken Earth series. Very nice storytelling. Some people have the power to control the earth, like stopping earthquakes and volcanoes. Seem vaguely Earth-like, we shall see what happens!
Book one of The Inheritance Trilogy. Yeine is summoned, by her estranged grandfather, to the ruling city were he is effectively the ruler of pretty much everything. Really good, I'm looking forward to the next book.
Historical story, with made-up dialog, of the so-called Towner Bus Tragedy of 1931 in which several children and the school bus driver died in a blizzard. Written at just the right level for me, third grade, there are lots of pictures and explanations of how life was back then. I enjoyed this very much, even though I cried a bit.
A rather unlikely novel of the Viet Nam war involving two Marine helicopter pilots, a president name Larry Bob, an actress named Barbonella, and the president of North Viet Nam that drives a Corvette.
Quote:
My suggestion--that the U.S. commander in chief be constitutionally required to garb him- or herself in full battle dress, replete with facial camouflage and flora-festooned helmet, whilst any U.S. troops are engage in combat--will most likely not be adopted.
Three guys take a bicycle trip through the the Black Forest in Germany. Very amusing. Read as a Project Gutenberg e-book. Not amusing, because, basically, one is staring at a light bulb for hours on end.