BOOKS THREAD

I got this as a Father's Day gift, and really liked it. I shot a bunch of concerts back in the day, so I could relate to the fact that he had to sneak in his cameras and lenses and film. He got busted by security a few times, and had a major technical glitch shooting one show and ended up with 15 rolls of blank film. The fact that he shot a Prince show just made this for me.

Interestingly, the book is available on Amazon for $60, but a signed copy on the author's website is $30. And it's $150 on ABEBooks. I dunno.

Anywho...Joe Bob says check it out, especially if you're a fan of '80s rock-n-roll.

 

I read this one a few months ago, but forgot about it until I was actually cleaning house and found it again. It’s a collection of essays by folks from working-class backgrounds who are now in academia. There are often feelings of guilt and imposter syndrome present. It was really interesting, but, more importantly (at least to me), it sparked an idea that turned into a pretty well-paying freelance gig, so I’ve got that going for me, which is nice.

Joe Bob says check it out.

 

Kenny Loggins's new memoir, Still Alright, is a breezy read, perfect for summer. It's covers all the bases from the Loggins and Messina years (and reunion) through his run through the 80s as the king of the soundtrack hit, his involvement in We Are The World (who knew?) and the phenomenon that is yacht rock. You'd have to be a huge fan to be familiar with his work since those days but he's pretty honest about what he's done and where he fits in the music world these days.

Currently reading Hollywood Ending, Ken Auletta's new book on Harvey Weinstein which is anything but a breezy summer read.

 

Mayday 1971 by Lawrence Roberts. Fantastic read, especially considering it is his first book (he is a longtime investigate projects editor). Even the last paragraph is stunning. One of my many, many historical interests is the antiwar movement so I had long wanted to read this, it came out April 2020. Book cuts back and forth between the protestors and the Nixon White House.

Highly recommend.

 

I finally gave up on Go Set A Watchman after multiple running starts. It's just bad. I'd rather reread E.B. White's parody of Faulkner and Welty than try to slog through that again.

 

Liz Phair, "Horror Stories (A Memoir)." Came out a few years ago, and I picked up a used copy. An autobiography that retells some of the darker moments of her career and life, in no particular order.

Of particular interest for you alt-country folks was the #Hashtag chapter, about how her comeback album collaboration with an unnamed, slightly younger rock star (*cough* Ryan Adams *cough*) was dashed by "MeToo" allegations against him. It prompted her to recall the sexual harassment and abuse she endured, both before she became a rock star and since. She makes a lot of good points and is hopeful that maybe the next generation of women, or the one after that, might be treated a bit more as human beings and less as empty bodies to be obsessed about.

There's also some self-depreciating humor here, such as when she recalls her desperate attempts to rebound from a brutal breakup by flirting with a hunky clerk at an unnamed upscale store (he's referred to as "Mr. T.J.").

It was an entertaining read, especially if you are familiar with Phair's background and the odd trajectory of her rock/pop career.

 

Just finished the solid James Baker bio, the Man Who Ran Washington by Peter Baker (no relation) and Susan Glasser. Lots of interesting insidery tales.

 

In college when this happened, 80 percent of the time I’d look at the author’s name and it was the professor’s book.

I had to read some of the most awful futurist fiction dreck that a sociology professor wrote once. It’s the only book I’ve ever willingly burned on a campfire. There was no way I was keeping it and there was no way anyone was taking it from me.

 

I teach college, and I do my very best to keep costs down for my students. I don't assign a textbook in most classes, and I assign only the AP Stylebook in my writing classes. It pisses me off when students tell me that a professor in another department has assigned his (it's always "his") own book, and the book comes with a unique access code for online content that can't be used again. Thus, every semester, all the students have to buy new books; there's no market for the used ones. That's total abuse of the system.

 

Recommending a fascinating and highly readable history book: 1493 by Charles C. Mann. It's about how the world changed after Europe and Asia began to colonize and trade with the Americas. A huge topic obviously, but the author breaks it down into manageable topics (such as tobacco, malaria, slavery, potatoes, silver, rubber). I felt more educated after having read it.

 

I’ve wanted to read the Baker bio ever since it was written, he was such an obvious heavy hitter than even us Canucks knew who he was.
Recently finished “Shane”, Donnie Brasco: My Life in the Mafia”, Fat City”, “You Are Looking Live!”, a couple of which were recommended here. All worthy of reading although “You…Live!” was TMI.

 

This reminds me of the book 1492 about the Chinese landing on the West Coast. See the US history studies is so euro-centric that I got a different POV which helps one’s identity.