The Pentagon's Brain by Annie Jacobsen5/24/2023 But perhaps, I am being unfair with this criticism, as I have read Jacobsen's earlier work "Operation Paperclip" which also, like this one, I found worth a read. Perhaps it is the author's career as a reporter ("just the facts, ma'am) that enforces a reluctance to colour her reports with the finishing touches of imagination.The reader can only speculate how much more edifying and entertaining this book could have been with a brighter, more science oriented author. Something in the work is lacking and it is too bad that it is not there. She also almost, but not quite, speculates on what still might remain hidden under overs stamped "CLASSIFIED". The author competently investigates non-covert aspects of DARPA, the prime mover of defense related research, how and to what extent it operates and some of its more familiar, non-covert production (Internet, robots, drones, networks, cyborgs, etc.). This book is certainly jammed backed with interesting detail. Some of the subject matter presented here simply amazes the average reader, who would find himself hard put to believe manifest, even in the most far-fetched science fiction novel. A Potentially Fascinating Look At Dark Tech.Ī comprehensive reportage on part of the machinery that has evolved to produce the products of what, for want of a better description, has been called the American Industrial-Military Complex.
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The sentinel clarke5/24/2023 So if you’ve been thinking about giving this one a go, do. That kind of makes it a fascinating little glimpse of a particular point of history, and that’s an added bonus or a cherry on top of a dessert that’s already pretty sweet. There’s even a reference to the Hindenberg disaster because the Challenger disaster hadn’t happened yet. Some of the space stories were written before Sputnik went up. There’s a little bit of something for everyone here, and it’s also quite quaint because of the time it was written in. Mostly, though, it seems as though his back of the envelope calculations were generally good enough to get remarkably close to the truth.Īll in all, it’s a pretty good little collection of short fiction and one that I’d recommend to both Clarke newbies and to people who are long-term readers of his work. Clarkes short fiction, including the stories on which 2001: A Space Odyssey and Childhoods End. In this collection, he does a bit of an Isaac Asimov, introducing each of the stories and talking about how they came about and whether later scientific theory debunked them. It was all about the British heir to the throne sneaking onto a space ship because he knows that without stowing away, he’d never be allowed on board.Ĭlarke is a great ideas man and he went out of his way to put a lot of research into each of his stories. I also thought it was funny because one of the stories had been in a previous collection that I read and I remembered it in pretty good detail. Clarke’s short stories, but what’s particularly noteworthy about this one is that all of the stories are illustrated. This is a collection of some of Arthur C. A long petal of the sea5/24/2023 But they will also find joy as they wait patiently for a day when they are exiles no more, and will find friends in the most unlikely of places. Over the course of their lives, they will face test after test. Starting over on a new continent, their trials are just beginning. As unlikely partners, they embrace exile and emigrate to Chile as the rest of Europe erupts in World War. In order to survive, the two must unite in a marriage neither of them wants, and together are sponsored by poet Pablo Neruda to embark on the SS Winnipeg along with 2,200 other refugees in search of a new life. Among them is Roser, a pregnant young widow, who finds her life irreversibly intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, an army doctor and the brother of her deceased love. When General Franco and his Fascists succeed in overthrowing the government, hundreds of thousands are forced to flee in a treacherous journey over the mountains to the French border. In the late 1930s, civil war gripped Spain. From the New York Times bestselling author of The House of the Spirits comes an epic novel spanning decades and crossing continents, following two young people as they flee the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War in search of a new place to call home. This time together by carol burnett5/24/2023 What other anecdotes made you laugh? Do you have any favorites in the book?ĥ. Many of the stories related in the book are funny, some laugh-out-loud hilarious-especially the ones with Lucille Ball. Would you say she's too modest, even hard on herself? Is her success due to talent, hard work, and perseverance? Or would you agree that her success is, in fact, a matter of luck?Ĥ. Burnett maintains a bewildered attitude toward her fame, going so far as to claim that her success is due, in large part, to luck. What was the overall tone of this book-humorous and lighthearted as you would expect in a Carol Burnett memoir? Or sadder, more poignant than expected? What do you make of the fact that Burnett rarely, if ever, takes aim at others, that she speaks well of almost everyone? (Okay, be honest - were you hoping for more Hollywood gossip?)ģ. What kind of person is she.how does she come across in this book? Is she someone you would like to have dinner with?Ģ. Has your opinion of Carol Burnett changed after reading This Time Together-or has it confirmed your prior opinion of Carol. Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)Īlso consider these LitLovers talking points to help get a discussion started for This Time Together:ġ. Generic Discussion Questions-Fiction and Nonfiction. A Real Southern Cook by Dora Charles5/24/2023 Rawlings, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of the novel “The Yearling,” brought New York literati and Hollywood stars to her orange farm to enjoy fine meals of the freshest local ingredients. Rawlings at her home in the village of Cross Creek, Fla., throughout the 1940s. Charles, provided the means for her employer to shine as a food expert, cooking for Ms. Specifically, she juxtaposes Charles and Deen’s story with another celebrity chef, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, and her personal cook, Idella Parker. In an Op-Ed piece appearing in this week’s The New York Times, Rebecca Sharpless, author of Cooking in Other Women’s Kitchens: Domestic Workers in the South, 1865-1960, traces the long and troubling history of black cooks and their white employers. The downfall of cooking celebrity Paula Deen reached new heights last week as The New York Times interviewed Dora Charles, the African-American chef behind the success of Deen’s award winning restaurant “The Lady and Sons.” Deen has proclaimed their relationship to be that of “soul sisters,” but Charles explains it much differently. Empire steven saylor5/24/2023 Empire covers the 130 or so years from the last days of Augustus to the early years of Antoninus Pius. This is the sequel to the author's novel Roma, which covered the 1000 years of Roman history from before the city's founding up to the time of Augustus. Steven Saylor once again brings the ancient world to vivid life in a novel that tells the story of a city and a people that has endured in the world's imagination like no other. But at the novel's heart are the choices and temptations faced by each generation of the Pinarii. The Pinarii, generation after generation, are witness to greatest empire in the ancient world and of the emperors that ruled it-from the machinations of Tiberius and the madness of Caligula, to the decadence of Nero and the golden age of Trajan and Hadrian and more.Įmpire is filled with the dramatic, defining moments of the age, including the Great Fire, the persecution of the Christians, and the astounding opening games of the Colosseum. A modern master of historical fiction, Saylor convincingly transports us into the ancient world.enthralling!" -USA Today on RomaĬontinuing the saga begun in his New York Times bestselling novel Roma, Steven Saylor charts the destinies of the aristocratic Pinarius family, from the reign of Augustus to height of Rome's empire. "May Steven Saylor's Roman empire never fall. The Magic Cottage by James Herbert5/24/2023 When I stopped reading my gateway teenage books and moved on to my dad's horror novels, he was one of the big three: him, Stephen King and Dean Koontz. Novelist James Smythe, who writes about horror fiction for the Guardian, said: "James Herbert was one of the first adult writers – in both senses of the term – that I ever read. His death marks the passing of one of the giants of popular fiction in the 20th century." He has the rare distinction that his novels were considered classics of the genre within his lifetime. It's a true testament to his writing and his enduring creativity that his books continued to be huge bestsellers right up until his death. He said: "Jim Herbert was one of the keystone authors in a genre that had its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. Tributes were led by Jeremy Trevathan, his editor for 10 years. Original Magic by Stephen E. Flowers5/23/2023 The author also shows how the 22 Major Arcana cards were related to the 22 letters of the Roman alphabet used for oracular purposes in ancient times. Exploring the Magian teachings on the Stoeicheia, an alphabet that acted as a map for understanding the order of the cosmos, he demonstrates how this alphabet of magical symbols was the template for the Tarot. He explains how the sequencing of the Major Arcana is related to the images used in Mithraic initiation, elements of which were then integrated into existing Roman and Egyptian traditions. Drawing on theories first pioneered by the Swedish scholar Sigurd Agrell (1881-1937), he reveals the genesis of the Tarot's symbolism in the great Hermetic tradition at the same time the Magical Papyri were being written in Greco-Roman Egypt. In this book, Flowers explores the historical roots and mythology of the symbolic images that became known as the Tarot. Flowers reveals, their original roots lie in the Mithraic tradition of the Persian Magi. These oracular cards have long been thought to have come from Egypt or from the "Gypsies," but as Stephen E. Yet the true origins of the Tarot remain shrouded in mystery. It offers a meta-language of signs and symbols that communicate their meaning precisely. The Tarot is a mythic map of the world and of consciousness. Reveals the historical roots of the symbology of the Tarot in the Mithraic tradition of the Persian Magi and the Hermetic tradition The Chalet by Catherine Cooper5/23/2023 It was a time when she wanted to get something published before she got into her post grad pre-entry course. She had her first story published when she was just seventeen and was sure she was going to get a rejection slip. As a journalist, she writes reviews of ski resorts, hotels and travel for the likes of “Daily Mail,” “The Sun,” “Daily Express,” “The Times,” “The Guardian,” “The Telegraph.” He has also written for trade magazines such as “Nursing Standard,” “The Pharmacist” and women magazines such as “Connexions” and “Living France.” As for how she came to start writing, Catherine has asserted that she was writing ever since she was a child. She currently lives with her two teenage children and her husband in the Pyrenees in France and is an avid skier. Catherine Cooper is a bestselling American author and freelance journalist. The idea factory book5/23/2023 My next book for Random House will examine NASA’s long-running Voyager mission-its engineering, scientific observations, and legacy. A story about the process of scientific discovery, the book aims to tell how the work in Greenland, aided by an evolving array of technological tools, has led us to a profound understanding of our current climate crisis. The Ice at the End of the World, (Random House, 2019) details 150 years of exploration and investigation on the Greenland ice sheet, beginning in the 1880s. My first book, The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation (Penguin Press, 2012) chronicles a generation of scientists working at the 20th Century’s greatest laboratory and explores the importance of technological innovation. To put it slightly differently: In my longer projects, I’m trying to pay close attention to certain aspects of our past so we can better understand the present, and perhaps the future. My books, however, focus on historical episodes that have had a significant but underappreciated influence. My magazine and newspaper stories mainly address contemporary issues in science, technology, and business. My journalism and book reviews have also appeared in Wired, The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. In addition to writing books, I’m a longtime contributing writer at the New York Times Magazine. |