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Charlie D.
Trad climber
Western Slope, Tahoe Sierra
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Just finished "Beneath a Scarlet Sky" - Sullivan. Epic true story of an young Italian man during the Nazi occupation of Milan. Interestingly enough Pino Lella was a climber and skier who later in life had early connections with Mammoth. The hardship he endured as a spy for the allies and as a driver for a Nazi general is both heartbreaking and inspirational......."if we are lucky enough to be alive, we must give thanks for the miracle of every moment of every day, no matter how flawed" - Pino Lella. The author Sullivan lives in Bozeman.
Another fantastic book I finished last month, "All the Light We Cannot See" - Doeer. Another life epic during WWII as experienced from the vantage point of a blind girl living in Paris with her father who later....well I don't want to spoil it for anyone. The author Doeer lives in Boise.
Enjoy!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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The Raven Steals the Light, by Bill Reid, in case you really want to know about creation.
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Norton
climber
The Wastelands
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*Better to Have Never Been...
by David Benatar
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AP
Trad climber
Calgary
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Directorate S by Steve Coll
About the CIA, Pakistani ISI and Afghanistan post 9/11
How come all the big US adventures turn out to be a clusterf**k?
This may give you a few clues
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Fossil climber
Trad climber
Atlin, B. C.
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Aug 31, 2018 - 12:01pm PT
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Just out in the US, "Lands of Lost Borders", by Kate Harris. The writing is simply superb. I kept getting stopped by sentences that were so beautiful I had to go back and read them again. I am biased in that Kate is a very dear friend, a sort of Honorary Grand Daughter.
But here are some reviews by top authors:
“Old cliché: I couldn’t put it down. But beyond the fact that Kate’s story hooked me, I realized that I was witnessing the emergence of a formidable voice speaking startlingly original things about the world. I can’t remember coming upon a first book that so dazzled me.” — David Roberts
“Kate Harris arrives among us like a meteor—a hurtling intelligence, inquiring into the nature of political borders and the meaning of crossing over. The honesty behind her self-doubt, her championing of simple human friendship, and her sheer determination to explore what she does not know, compel you to travel happily alongside her in Lands of Lost Borders.” — Barry Lopez
“Kate Harris packs more exuberant spirit, intrepid charm, wit, poetry and beauty into her every paragraph than most of us can manage in a lifetime. Lands of Lost Borders carried me up into a state of openness and excitement I haven’t felt for years. It’s a modern classic.” — Pico Iyer
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Aug 31, 2018 - 12:07pm PT
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Thanks, Fossil, your reviews of her writing has tempted me to inquire before. I'll read this one...
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Ward Trotter
Trad climber
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Aug 31, 2018 - 07:31pm PT
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This book is not for the casual reader. Very richly textured, and sometimes difficult to follow for anyone not familiar with these particular antiquities; but nonetheless it certainly grows on you.
Within the mythological threads so lavishly presented by the author we see the overall weave of human history presented as revelation and narrative.
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Mei
Trad climber
mxi2000.net
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It's hard to put this book down once opened:
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou
"A great and at times almost unbelievable story of scandalous fraud, surveillance, and legal intimidation at the highest levels of American corporate power. . . . The story of Theranos may be the biggest case of corporate fraud since Enron. But it’s also the story of how a lot of powerful men were fooled by a remarkably brazen liar."
—Yashar Ali, New York Magazine
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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The following is not even close to book length, but long for a spontaneous complete read after stumbling upon it. Nicely balanced reflections of history and modern societal problems and pleasant prose to bind it all together:
http://bittersoutherner.com/the-many-battles-of-atlanta
I have a work trip to Atlanta next week, and figuring out what sort of cultural/educational enlightenment I can glean while I'm there.
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Just finished this and highly reccomend it!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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The (Mis)Behavior of Markets-A Fractal View of Financial Turbulence by Benoit Mandelbrot
You didn’t realize that yer financial well being could be described in terms of fractal geometry,
did you?
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Gunkie
Trad climber
Valles Marineris
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Oct 11, 2018 - 09:09am PT
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Just finished it. It was pretty much a yawner, IMO. $13 for the Kindle edition was probably $11 too much.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Oct 11, 2018 - 09:44am PT
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The Bonanza King by Greg Crouch of Enduring Patagonia fame...great read.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Oct 11, 2018 - 10:30am PT
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The writing is simply superb. I kept getting stopped by sentences that were so beautiful I had to go back and read them again.
Doncha love it when that happens?
Right now: Jane Eyre. Always liked the move, mostly because Joan Fontaine never looked better.
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Ward Trotter
Trad climber
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Oct 11, 2018 - 01:49pm PT
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Interesting read. Whitman is placed squarely in his native surroundings. Every notable aspect of his character, his leanings, his follies, his equivocal yet quintessential liberalism, and his poetry set indelibly in the America of the 19th century. Reynolds does such a great job that it becomes momentarily difficult for me to think of the United States of that time without thinking of Whitman.
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DanaB
climber
CO
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Oct 11, 2018 - 02:05pm PT
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The Paranoid Style in American Politics, by R. Hofstatder
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ydpl8s
Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
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Oct 11, 2018 - 02:30pm PT
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Aurora - Kim Stanley Robinson -I like the way this guy thinks.
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Fat Dad
Trad climber
Los Angeles, CA
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Oct 11, 2018 - 02:43pm PT
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Right now I'm reading two books on and off, Catcher in the Rye and Madame Bovary.
I picked up the former after learning a bit more about J.D. Salinger's involvement in WWII. I had always heard that he committed himself to an institution in his earlier years, which does him a great disservice unless you learn of its context, i.e., he did it shortly after returning stateside from the war in Europe. First day in Europe was Utah Beach on D-Day, then up to the Battle of the Hurtigen Forest, Battle of the Bulge and then eastward to liberate Nazi Death camps. I would question my sanity after living through all of that. I'm enjoying Catcher quite a bit, funnier than I remember, but now find the protagonist a bit too worldly for someone who's supposed to be an awkward teenager in prep school.
I started rereading Madam Bovary on a lark and had totally forgotten was a consummate story teller Flaubert is. It's also interesting in that, while Flaubert penned it to demonstrate Emma Bovary's constraint by marriage and society, as someone who's been married for nearly 20 yrs., I find her husband Charles to be a far more sympathetic figure than I previously remembered. Is that bad I wonder?
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cron
Trad climber
Dover
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Oct 11, 2018 - 02:46pm PT
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I just finished Infinite Jest last night. Took me nearly 3 months. What a journey. No regrets.
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