Reading Lamps and Smoking Jackets

[HillDweller]

The story, chapter after chapter, is as engrossing as any action thriller.

I've been reading this sporadically over the summer. It does seem as fast paced as a thriller, despite the time span it covers. I'm nearing the end. Despite the blood-thirstiness of these Sultans some seemed to be very good administrators.

 

[deluxestogie]

A curious parallel that I found between the Ottoman Empire and the history related in Romance of the Three Kingdom (history separated by ~1500 years and more than 4000 miles) is the common practice, after a new heir has been raised to the throne, of killing his siblings, in order to minimize intrigue and disruption. Also, that government and leadership decadence occurs in cycles.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Emperor Claudius of Rome:
"As he had a limp and slight deafness due to sickness at a young age, he was ostracized by his family and was excluded from public office until his consulship (which was shared with his nephew, Caligula, in 37). Claudius's infirmity probably saved him from the fate of many other nobles during the purges throughout the reigns of Tiberius and Caligula, as potential enemies did not see him as a serious threat. His survival led to his being declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard after Caligula's assassination, at which point he was the last adult male of his family."

Claudius - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Kind of a common thread.

Bob

EDIT: I watched the 13 TV episodes of I, Claudius on PBS, back in 1977. Superb acting and storytelling.

 

[jclif43]

Whew! Four-and-a-half months after beginning the first volume, I finished reading the second volume of Romance of the Three Kingdoms last night. I can see why it has remained popular reading in China. The messages it delivered to me are that:

• people's behavior has not changed over the millennia
• there are always good leaders and bad leaders
• there are brilliant advisors who are occasionally wrong
• there are stupid advisors who are occasionally right
• power corrupts
• corruption leads to defeat
• there are always those who remain loyal
• there are always those who betray
• most ordinary soldiers have no choice
• most folks readily engage in magical thinking
• all governments, dynasties, kingdoms, nations—all eventually fail

I guess what I'm saying is that Romance of the Three Kingdoms reads like today's news.

Bob

https://www.amazon.com/Romance-Three-Kingdoms-Tuttle-Classics/dp/0804834679/

https://www.amazon.com/Romance-Three-Kingdoms-Tuttle-Classics/dp/0804834687/

Sadly history does tend to repeat itself. Perhaps we haven’t advanced as much as we would like to think we have!

 

[deluxestogie]

Italian burglar caught after sitting down with book

The would-be thief became distracted after picking up a book about Greek mythology on a bedside table.

www.bbc.com

 

[deluxestogie]

by Daniel James Brown

This is an engrossing, true saga of the first third of the 20th century. While delving into the profound hardships of growing up in poverty during the post-pioneer days of the US northwest, its scope shifts repeatedly to the events occurring in the wider world. Bank failures, comfortable families becoming instantly homeless, the shock of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl collapse of Midwest agriculture—these are all explored within the context of impoverished boys overcoming daunting odds, in order to get an education. And in Europe, the rise of the Nazi party in Germany includes Hitler's grandiose plans for hosting the Olympics.

I found this book therapeutic in that it helped me to laugh at the many niggling aggravations that were consuming my time, attention and motivation. I have it easy.

Two Coincidences:

1. The story of the University of Washington's evolving rowing competition with the University of California-Berkeley (CAL) mentioned CAL's practice venue in the Oakland estuary. I lived in Berkeley for a time, only a few miles away from the estuary. As I was reading that portion of the book, the news carried a story of a wildfire burning homes in the Oakland hills. That was just down the street from my 1903 brown shingle (easily combustible) house at the base of the adjacent Berkeley hills.
2. One of the main characters (a real person) taught himself to play multiple stringed instruments, and would often sing old folk songs while he played for anyone who would listen. Some enjoyed it; some laughed at him. As a teenager, I would carry my guitar in a hand-sewn cover, when I would travel on the commuter trains outside Philadelphia. Occasionally someone in the 69th Street train station would ask me to play something. I would then proudly pull the cloth cover off of my $25 guitar, and sing folk songs to anyone who would listen. Some enjoyed it; some laughed at me.

You don't need to be interested in rowing (I'm not.), or even in sports, for this book to be a wonderful read.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

These two books, by the same co-authors, are not light reading. Robinson and Acemoglu (together), were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for 2024. But the books are not "economics". They are both detailed excursions into the historical narratives of tribes, civilizations and nations that you have likely never heard of, as well as those you certainly know already.

The authors' basic thrust is an attempt to answer the question of why some nations thrive economically, while most do not. The first book, Why Nations Fail, constructs their theories regarding the impact of exclusionary political systems together with extractive economic systems [ruled by the elite, and enriching only the elite]—systems that discourage innovation and progress for fear of change [creative destruction]. This is contrasted with inclusive political systems together with open economic systems.

They recount numerous instances where top leaders of nations, upon being presented with a brilliant, new technical or industrial innovation, simply execute the inventor. As western Europe began to create extensive railroad systems, eastern European nations forbid the building of them.

In their second book, The Narrow Corridor, they utilize Hobbes' "Leviathan" in a choice of:

• a no Leviathan government (absent)
• a shackled Leviathan government
• an unshackled Leviathan government (despotic),

and also the analogy of The Red Queen, from Alice in Wonderland—together, they run and run, but get nowhere.

These are both wonderfully written, and will surprise even history buffs.

Bob

 

[Knucklehead]

These two books, by the same co-authors, are not light reading. Robinson and Acemoglu (together), were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for 2024. But the books are not "economics". They are both detailed excursions into the historical narratives of tribes, civilizations and nations that you have likely never heard of, as well as those you certainly know already.

The authors' basic thrust is an attempt to answer the question of why some nations thrive economically, while most do not. The first book, Why Nations Fail, constructs their theories regarding the impact of exclusionary political systems together with extractive economic systems [ruled by the elite, and enriching only the elite]—systems that discourage innovation and progress for fear of change [creative destruction]. This is contrasted with inclusive political systems together with open economic systems.

They recount numerous instances where top leaders of nations, upon being presented with a brilliant, new technical or industrial innovation, simply execute the inventor. As western Europe began to create extensive railroad systems, eastern European nations forbid the building of them.

In their second book, The Narrow Corridor, they utilize Hobbes' "Leviathan" in a choice of:

• a no Leviathan government (absent)
• a shackled Leviathan government
• an unshackled Leviathan government (despotic),

and also the analogy of The Red Queen, from Alice in Wonderland—together, they run and run, but get nowhere.

These are both wonderfully written, and will surprise even history buffs.

Bob

I actually looked at the title earlier today on Amazon while scanning for political science books. I will have to give those a try. Kinda spooky those popped up again a few hours after I was considering them.

edit: I added Why Nations Fail to my wishlist. I'm currently reading both the The Hope and The Glory by Herman Wouke for about the third time. I just finished The Winds of War, War and Rememberance (for at least the third time) and A Hole in Texas (for the second time). All great books. Highly recommend.

 

[deluxestogie]

Wow! Today's declaration of Marshal Law by South Korea's unpopular, right-wing president, is right out of the discussion of Latin American dictatorships, in the second book, The Narrow Corridor, by Robinson and Acemoglu.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Have you ever read a book of fiction? Any genre—literary; pulp; Tarzan; sci-fi; fantasy; who-done-it? If so, then you will delight in reading Bound to Please, by Michael Dirda. It's a big book (~550 pages), but divided into 3-4 page chapters.

Bound to Please, on Amazon.

Dirda wrote the book review column for the Washington Post for decades. This book is a carefully selected compilation of 100 of his literary reviews.

Have all successful writers lived troubled lives? Were they all nuts? It seems so, from the biographical feast presented in Bound to Please. My biggest surprise was to discover that Samuel Beckett, author of some of the most disturbing, absurdist plays (e.g. Waiting for Godot, Endgame, etc.) was one of the few nice, ordinary, normal guys. Most of the rest were not.

Because of its 3-4 page chapters, this book encouraged me to pick it up whenever I found a brief moment to just sit. Even though I have read tons of books over the decades, I found Dirda's reviews to be a revelation. They are delightful.

And if you happen to know anybody who has ever read a book, then you can happily pass this one along, when you're done reading it.

Bob

 

[johnny108]

Just arrived in the mail…

 

[deluxestogie]

Nice find. I suspect that a copy of every book about tobacco, published in the last 30 years could fit side-by-side on a 30" bookshelf. Neuburger is a University professor from Texas.

Balkan Smoke book by Mary Neuburger

Bob

 

[BarG]

Any readers here? I read all the time from history to fantasy to westerns. I just finished the “Atlantis Gene“ trilogy by A.G. Riddle since the topic was a pandemic that wiped out most of the humans (thankfully this is fiction) and I’m well on the way to reading “Departure” by the same author. I’m looking forward to catching up on some Jonathan Moeller soon. Any fans? I also like Lee Childs but Hollywood messed up the picture in my mind of former Military Police Major 6’5” 250 lb. Jack Reacher by having him played by 5’7” Tom Cruise? Whatever. My smoke of the evening is my homemade cigarette blend consisting of 40% flue cured, 20% TN90 burley, 20% Maryland 609, 10% VA355 dark air, and 10% Prilep. It’s smoooooth cough. So, whatcha readin‘ and smokin’?

I wish I did read again like when My eyes were good knucklehead, I loved it,

 

[deluxestogie]

Up in the Old Hotel
by Joseph Mitchell

This is a book that I doubt I would ever have picked up, much less purchased, had it not been highly recommended by Michael Dirda, in Bound to Please (see above). The author of Up in the Old Hotel was a reporter in lower New York City during the 1920s, 1930s (the Great Depression), 1940s (World War 2), 1950s, and into the 1960s. The book is a thick one—716 pages. It is a collection of articles that he wrote during that period for The New Yorker magazine.

"Saloon-keepers and street preachers, gypsies and steel-walking Mohawks, a bearded lady and a 93-year-old 'seafoodetarian' who believes his specialized diet will keep him alive another two decades. These are among the people that Joseph Mitchell immortalized in his reportage for The New Yorker...still renowned for their precise, respectful observation, their graveyard humor, and their offhand perfection of style."​

—Newsweek

This volume is a collection of 27 non-fiction articles, plus 10 fiction articles. My impression is that the non-fiction is more interesting and better written than the fictional ones. If you have ever studied anthropology or ethnographies of remote peoples or "uncontacted" tribes, this volume reads like them. Although a few of the stories drift into what felt like spreadsheets of data (e.g. the various species of clams pulled up from the harbors and bays around New York City), most feel like sitting around, after dinner, chatting with your most aged relative. Crazy people and crazy stuff. Crude tales. Sad stories. Tombstones and suicides. There is a lot of alcohol and tobacco going on in them. Many of the narrators of the true tales were born in the mid-1800s. The greatest takaway is just how much things always change from what they used to be.

Although the general drift of these articles is a bit depressing (like the times they covered), I found myself laughing out loud in many of them, and eager to continue reading.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Rise to Greatness: The History of Canada From the Vikings to the Present, by Conrad Black, 2014.

[note that the author's name is the largest font on the book's dust jacket]

The text of this book, excluding the many pages of "references" at the end, totals 1020 pages. So, over 1000 pages of Canada history. Like knitting a blanket for a king-size bed, I took my time reading this. I couldn't even bring myself to start reading it until it had been sitting on an end table in my living room, glowering at me, for about two years.

Quick Opinion: This is a wonderful survey of world history from the earliest European explorations of the New World—up to about the year 2000. After that, the remainder of the book—published in 2014—abandons fact, in order to ooze the personal political opinions and biases of its author. But he is forgiven. [President Trump pardoned this journalist and publisher in 2019 for a fraud conviction in the US.]

My Rambling Discussion:
Every author has his or her strengths and weaknesses. The greatest strength of this book is Black's ability, as a media mogul, to have instantly called up all the previously documented history snippets from the files of his many publishing outlets. [That's how all news organizations are able to whip-up instant and lengthy, detailed obituary articles within minutes of the death of a well-known person.] My guess is that the author himself actually wrote only the last hundred or so pages. Kudos to his staff! (Paul Johnson, in his foreword to this book, hints at how remarkably fast this book was put together.)

As an American having read several other books (by reputable authors and editors) on Canadian history, I can say that the effort of reading about Canada (only scantily covered in history classes outside of Canada) is enlightening and rewarding. I believe that understanding reality is always a good investment.

From this book, I learned many non-jingoistic facts about American, European and Asian wars, politics and politicians. Even though I have read extensively on WW1 and WW2, I learned new aspects and new connections from Rise to Greatness. I also gained a better sense of the universality of conflicting nuances in the national economic policies of every nation.

One other beneficial aspect of reading this particular book is that, in the immediacy of today's political upheavals and conflicts, it reminded me that everybody everywhere has experienced the very same anxieties and stressors throughout the past five hundred years, and likely well before the start of the Bronze Age.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Are there any forum members from Ohio?

This quick-reading book (258 pages), by the famous historian and award-winning author, David McCullough, is all about the events leading up to and following passage of An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio of 1787. It is the history of the birth of the state of Ohio. [Sounds boring!]

The Northwest Ordinance was passed before the passage of the US Constitution. So it was the Congress of the Confederation (3rd Continental Congress) that passed it. It was actually passed by fewer than a dozen men, after intense, personal persuasion (i.e. "lobbying") by investors in a New England land speculation company. Each state had a single vote.

The Northwest Territory in 1787.

Most Americans have "learned" about the Northwest Ordinance in a public school history class. [What is it? When was it passed? No need to learn anything else about it.]

In this wonderful book, you will sense the daunting challenges of even simply getting there. The very first people to take the bait were good folks—civilized New Englanders. But the marketeering sales pitch exaggerated the perfection of the new territory, while entirely omitting any mention of the dangers. There were blizzards, epidemics, Indian attacks, more epidemics, robbers, military defeats and successes, yet more epidemics, earthquakes, floods—and a number of courageous, persevering people. (Lafayette and Aaron Burr even show up at different points of the tale.) Just to put your mind at ease, when the first doctor finally arrived, so did the first lawyer.

The narrative of the book focuses, individually, on biographical vignettes of specific people, rather than droning through a list of dates and events. You don't need to be from Ohio (or even care about Ohio) to enjoy this book.

Bob

EDIT: Just as an aside, when I was in 8th grade in Bucks County Pennsylvania, taking an American history class, I built a balsa wood model of a flat boat that closely resembles the one shown on the dust jacket of this book. It was about 15" long.

 

[Plinsc]

Interesting I’ll have to read it, from NW Ohio originally. ( down the street aways from fallen Timbers and Fort Meigs

 

[Tobaccofieldsforever]

Are there any forum members from Ohio?

This quick-reading book (258 pages), by the famous historian and award-winning author, David McCullough, is all about the events leading up to and following passage of An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio of 1787. It is the history of the birth of the state of Ohio. [Sounds boring!]

The Northwest Ordinance was passed before the passage of the US Constitution. So it was the Congress of the Confederation (3rd Continental Congress) that passed it. It was actually passed by fewer than a dozen men, after intense, personal persuasion (i.e. "lobbying") by investors in a New England land speculation company. Each state had a single vote.

The Northwest Territory in 1787.

Most Americans have "learned" about the Northwest Ordinance in a public school history class. [What is it? When was it passed? No need to learn anything else about it.]

In this wonderful book, you will sense the daunting challenges of even simply getting there. The very first people to take the bait were good folks—civilized New Englanders. But the marketeering sales pitch exaggerated the perfection of the new territory, while entirely omitting any mention of the dangers. There were blizzards, epidemics, Indian attacks, more epidemics, robbers, military defeats and successes, yet more epidemics, earthquakes, floods—and a number of courageous, persevering people. (Lafayette and Aaron Burr even show up at different points of the tale.) Just to put your mind at ease, when the first doctor finally arrived, so did the first lawyer.

The narrative of the book focuses, individually, on biographical vignettes of specific people, rather than droning through a list of dates and events. You don't need to be from Ohio (or even care about Ohio) to enjoy this book.

Bob

EDIT: Just as an aside, when I was in 8th grade in Bucks County Pennsylvania, taking an American history class, I built a balsa wood model of a flat boat that closely resembles the one shown on the dust jacket of this book. It was about 15" long.

I would enjoy that read and yes northeastern Ohio born and raised. Thank you for the suggestion!

 

[jaredwyoung]

Are there any forum members from Ohio?

This quick-reading book (258 pages), by the famous historian and award-winning author, David McCullough, is all about the events leading up to and following passage of An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio of 1787. It is the history of the birth of the state of Ohio. [Sounds boring!]

The Northwest Ordinance was passed before the passage of the US Constitution. So it was the Congress of the Confederation (3rd Continental Congress) that passed it. It was actually passed by fewer than a dozen men, after intense, personal persuasion (i.e. "lobbying") by investors in a New England land speculation company. Each state had a single vote.

The Northwest Territory in 1787.

Most Americans have "learned" about the Northwest Ordinance in a public school history class. [What is it? When was it passed? No need to learn anything else about it.]

In this wonderful book, you will sense the daunting challenges of even simply getting there. The very first people to take the bait were good folks—civilized New Englanders. But the marketeering sales pitch exaggerated the perfection of the new territory, while entirely omitting any mention of the dangers. There were blizzards, epidemics, Indian attacks, more epidemics, robbers, military defeats and successes, yet more epidemics, earthquakes, floods—and a number of courageous, persevering people. (Lafayette and Aaron Burr even show up at different points of the tale.) Just to put your mind at ease, when the first doctor finally arrived, so did the first lawyer.

The narrative of the book focuses, individually, on biographical vignettes of specific people, rather than droning through a list of dates and events. You don't need to be from Ohio (or even care about Ohio) to enjoy this book.

Bob

EDIT: Just as an aside, when I was in 8th grade in Bucks County Pennsylvania, taking an American history class, I built a balsa wood model of a flat boat that closely resembles the one shown on the dust jacket of this book. It was about 15" long.

I've been living in SE Ohio for just about 2 years (originally from NW Nebraska) I'd be interested in reading this, thank you!

 

[deluxestogie]

Pushing Miles: a chronicle of Motorcycles, Mayhem and Mettle, by Wendy Crockett and Ian McPhee

If you are a motorcycle nut—not just a motorcycle owner or motorcycle lover—a genuine motorcycle nut, they you may find this thick book interesting. I read it solely because my eldest brother is a genuine motorcycle nut, and handed it to me to read. To fulfill my brotherly duty, I read it.

After the confinements of the Covid pandemic ended, two motorcycle nuts set about riding their big, street bikes to every state capitol in Australia and then in the US, in alphabetical order by state name. So they spent non-stop months of zig-zagging back and forth across the country. It is mostly a saga of nightmare logistics, endless breakdowns, near-death experiences and exhaustion. Plus you get to learn what their favorite side-dishes were at various eateries along their path. Their ultimate motivation was to score some sort of record, for the official motorcycle nut record book. There is a separate chapter for each day of the ride.

Bob