BOOKS THREAD

Just finished Jay McInerney's (Bright Lights, Big City) "Bright Precious Nights" once again set in NYC. A somewhat entertaining view of human issues (mid-life, fidelity, true friendship) using the pretentious NY/Ivy League populace as a backdrop. As a non-Ivy Leaguer/non-NYC its interesting at times.

I really enjoyed his Brightness Falls (married people are a social safe harbor) because at the time I was a late 20's single guy in SF who was going out to dinner with my married friends.

 

I love brights lights, big city, though I doubt I'd want to reader another book written in second person

 

I am not into movies and rarely watch anything on TV that isn't sports-related but I really enjoyed Powerhouse, the new oral history of CAA. No shortage of behind the scenes dope and all of the particulars, both at the company and many of its biggest clients, have their say. I found it bogged down over the last 50-75 pages with talk of buyouts and how their competition is gaining on them but for those into TV and movies (their venture into sports gets some play over the last third) this is a great read.

 

If you need a feel-good book, A Man Called Ove should put a smile on your face and maybe bring a few tears to your eyes: A Man Called Ove.

I've been in a lousy mood for a while not, at least mostly, and this book made me very happy.

 

Just finished Testimony, Robbie Robertson's new memoir. Terrific book from a guy who has always seemed to be pretty reclusive since the end of the Band. Goes from his early days in the Toronto rock scene - including a shoutout on one of the first pages to the late, great Dixie Arena, where yours truly played hockey as a little kid and often went to watch the mighty Jr. B Dixie Beehvies - through his joining Ronnie Hawkins and Levon Helm and ultimately the formation of the Band. Lots of great stuff about their albums and work with Dylan. It ends with the conclusion of The Last Waltz so it gives some hope there might be a second volume sometime down the road.

 

Just when I thought I had read everything there was to read on Muhammad Ali comes Drama in the Bahamas, a new book by Dave Hannigan covering Ali's last fight against Trevor Berbick. It's a slim book - less than 200 pages - and while most of the principals are dead it does a good job detailing the circumstances that saw the fight land in Nassau and the various hustlers, con men and flesh peddlers who helped bring such an inglorious end to the career of the greatest sports figure of my lifetime.

 

I'm just now getting to Brinkley's The Great Deluge.

It's anger-inducing even a dozen years later.

 

Just about finished with The Nix. Loving it. Some This Is Us twistiness going on. Touches on all kinds of subject matter -- politics, social media, damn millenials -- without being preachy. A bit of a comic touch to it, but it doesn't devolve into parody. A long one at 620+ pages, but I'll finish it in the next day or two, making it about nine days it'll take me to read it.

 

Finally got a chance to read Hillbilly Elegy during a cross-country flight last week. It's every bit as good as advertised.

 

I finished Under the Banner of Heaven last night. In my 2004 version, Krakauer included a Mormon elder's critique of the book and Krakauer's response to that letter in which he acknowledged a few errors. Interesting read that brought things about the church that I sort of knew around the edges more into focus.

 

Just finished "Ragtime" by E.L. Doctorow. Best piece of historical fiction I think I've ever read. Really engaging. JP Morgan, Freud, John McGraw, Houdini, Henry Ford, Emma Goldman, Stanford White, their stories all woven together in the era when flight and movies were just taking off.

 

I found The Perfect Pass, S.C., Gwynne's new book about Hal Mumme - and Mike Leach - and how his Air Raid offence changed football, to a be a terrific read. Great look at the life of a coach in the boonies in high school and college and some great X's and O's on how it all worked.

Phil Knight's memoir, Shoe Dog, was pretty good too.