Review: Plainsong by Kent Haruf

Wow, it has been a long while since I wrote a review. I didn't forget about you all, though. I've still been reading, though, so I'm five books behind. I'll be knocking these out in the next week or so to try to get up to date. I'm going to be changing to a briefer reviewing format to try to not get back in this situation again. Since I won't be providing as much detail in the reviews, feel free to email or tweet me with any questions on the novels. As always, thank you for reading and continue to feel free to send me any recommendations for stuff you've enjoyed recently!


Plainsong, written by Kent Haruf, tells the interconnected story of a handful of individuals' live who live in the rural plains of Colorado. In typical small town manner, the lives of each of these individuals touches each others', providing a very human, touching picture of a type of living that most of us readers don't even know exists. Plainsong is almost devoid of a plot, instead focusing on letting us "know" the characters and what drives them. This is a gritty novel that is at times very emotional.

The dreariness and featureless-ness of the plains both provides the backdrop for the story-telling and at the same time is the defining factor in what makes the characters tick. The writing style reflects this setting, forgoing eloquent, grandiose prose and instead relying on terse, short sentences that drive straight to the point. This is an amazingly touching novel. Too often we "city slickers" poke fun at the real rural community for its supposed uneducated and backward nature. It's too easy to forget that these individuals are not caricatures, but real people with real problems. While their problems are certainly different than ours, they are just as real and, many time, far, far less trivial. This is easily one of the best books I've read this year and give it my highest recommendations.

You'll like it if you like: Cormac McCarthy (but with a heart), human interest pieces, character building, concise writing styles, small towns drama, emotionally-driven works.

Review: Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser

It's been awhile, but the RNG finally drew another Modern Library Top 100 novel, and this one actually wasn't terrible.

Sister Carrie follows a small town girl who moves to Chicago to escape the drabness and parochial nature of her tiny burg. She imagines glamour, excitement, and all of the other glitz that comes with the "big city". She moves in with her working class sister and her husband, where this vision falls apart. She struggles to find a job and, when she finally does, she abhors her long hours and terrible working conditions as a seamstress. Luckily for her, she is quite the looker and is snatched up and taken care of by an up and coming young man who has fallen in love (or something along those lines) with her immediately. She finally gets to enjoy the social life she dreamed of when heading to Chicago.

Of course, as she gets used to this lifestyle she can't leave well enough alone and seeks "better", in the form of an older, more established man with more money. In a flurry of events, her and this new man run off together, first to Montreal and then to New York City. The two have a difficult time getting on their feet, and live destitute for quite some time. It is at this point that she begins her upward ascent as an actress and he begins his converse path from a weathy socialite to unemployed to beggar. Carrie moves on and he moves to the streets.

The book was not terribly engaging, but it was a somewhat easy read. The characters are well developed throughout the novel, but not of them have an iota of likability surrounding them. The best part of this book, by far, is the description of Chicago and New York City. Everything from the build environment, to the street cars, strikes, women's (and men's) fashion, and the Broadway scene is amazingly detailed. The reader can almost picture him or herself walking through these newly booming metropolises (that's certainly an awkward word), getting lossed in the hustle and bustle.

It's not a terribly uplifting story and in some place is actually pretty depressing. While it's a relatively interested story, it doesn't dive deep into the social commentary like something from Fitzgerald would. Regardless, it's enjoyable enough and if you like period fiction concerning the rise of the cities or the early Twentieth Century, this one might be worth checking out. I give Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser six out of ten stars.

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I'm still a review behind since I just finished Plainsong by Kent Haruf, but I should have that one up soon. On deck after that is Point Counter Point by Aldous Huxley. As always, thanks for reading!

Review: Falconer by John Cheever

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I've posted a new review. I've been putting off this one for a couple of weeks for a few reasons. The first of which is that I have been crazy busy with house stuff. Amazingly enough, renovating a 125 year old house isn't conducive to reading, let alone writing my reaction to what I have read. Who would have guessed?

The other is that I just didn't want to write anything about this novel. I didn't enjoy reading it and I didn't expect to get much fun out of writing about it. I'll go ahead and finally do it, but you can't make me like it!

Falconer is a faux-intellectual piece of work about a strung out drug addict named Farragut who is in jail for the murder of a certain someone (wouldn't want to ruin it for those of you who still want to read it after this review). Farragut also happens to be a middle class intellectual, unfortunately for us reading about him. Not a whole lot happens in this book; much is in the way of flashbacks that reference his wife and the tumultuous relationship it seems they had before he was incarcerated. There is a lot of music by Farragut about this an that as well.

Pretty much nothing of importance happens in this book. Sure, things happen, but very few of them are particularly exciting, engaging, or thought-provoking. The characters are formulaic, unrealistic and none act in a manner which I expect anyone would ever act in prison. None of them, and particularly not Farragut, are likable whatsoever. Some of them are pitiful, but none with redeeming qualities.

There is really no plot to analyze, only the daily life of a prisoner and the earlier mentioned flashbacks. Outside of a couple interesting moments, such as a prison riot (which amounted to nothing), this is a tremendously boring book. It took me quite a long time tp read, all outside factors held constant, despite barely being over 200 pages. Even the writing itself is quite annoying. The dialogue is completely absurd at points and high culture references are made frequently for absolutely no reason. This is 1970's suburban edginess at its stupid, cringingly vacuous worst.

It should be noted that there is a good deal of content in this novel that could be considered obscene by some. If you are the type who burns books or tries to get them banned from libraries, this one probably isn't for you. There is a pretty good amount of vulgar language and explicit sexual content. Strangely enough, this didn't bother me as much as the writing and the rest of the book itself. Frankly, I was offended by how crappy the book was as a whole, completely outside of any potentially offensive material.

With all of this terrible-ness in mind, I give Falconer by John Cheever three stars out of ten. There is virtually no reason to pick up this book unless you're a huge John Cheever fan (do those exist?) and this is the last book of his you haven't read yet. Otherwise, don't waste your time.

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I promise it won't be another month before I get another review up. I actually just finished Sister Carrie (#33 on Modern Library top 100) by Theodore Drieser, which is what prompted me to get my butt in gear so I didn't have to stack up reviews. Next up after that will be Plainsong by Kent Haruf. See you soon!

Review: The Thin Red Line by James Jones

Is there anything more American than the glorification of World War II and, more specifically, the United States' role in it? I would argue not. Look at the wide collection of popular culture offerings, from Band of Brothers (great), to Pearl Harbor (terrible), to the absurd number of WWII video games created since video games have existed. Hell, even the term "The Greatest Generation" was coined to describe those who grew up in the Great Depression and fought in WWII. If there is anything that defines World War II it is 1a) American Exceptionalism and 1b) its glorification and the glorification of the soldiers who fought in it.

This runs counter to Vietnam, Korea, now Iraq and Afghanistan, or even World War I, where much of the works are cynical or even flat-out negative. Watch Platoon or The Hurt Locker after watching Saving Private Ryan and tell me the tone is the same. All too often, WWII movies make their characters this impossible amalgamation of fearless Norse gods of war coupled with the prototypical crafty American underdog. Glossed over is the terror of being shot at, mortared, grenaded, or bombed by individuals whose sole purpose of existence is to make sure you die. Works covering other wars don't have this issue, but most covering WWII (especially the Western Front) do.

Enter The Thin Red Line. This novel, on which the movie of the same title is based, follows Charlie Company during the Guadalcanal Campaign in the Pacific Theater of WWII. It starts with them on a ship immediately before transport to the island and finishes with American victory on the island. During this time period, "C for Charlie" goes from combat virgins to relatively battle hardened men who have all experienced shots fired in anger. The interesting part of this novel is watching them slowly progress from the former to the latter.

If you like to read military books because of the tactics, this novel is probably not for you. The small skirmishes, the battles, and even the war itself is not the point of The Thin Red Line. What is important here is the effect of all of those things have on an individual's psyche. The Thin Red Line is essentially a character study of the way war affects a company of men who have never stepped foot in a war zone before. The results are about as varied as one would expect. There are almost equal numbers of displays of bravery, cowardice, cruelty, and glory-seeking. There are lesser amounts of friendship and kindness among the men.

The characters and their development are the draw here. For all intents and purposes, the war and fighting is merely a vehicle to drive these characters to change. Watching them go from smooth-cheeked young men to battle-hardened veterans over the five-hundred'ish pages is very rewarding.

Jone's writing throughout is relatively concise and to the point. Even when relatively important characters are killed in action, there is no grieving or hammering the point. This suits the cynical atmosphere and theme of the book well, as there should be no point in dwelling on a cog in a machine that can be replaced immediately.

This cynicism is reflected not only in the writing itself, which sometimes drifts into dark humor, but in the minds of the men themselves. The terror that comes at first with their entrance into battle turns to shock and apathy. Many of the men realize that they are not cowards, but only because they have come to the know that they and their lives mean virtually nothing in the grand scheme of things. This is certainly a different way of portraying WWII soldiers' way of think than in most other popular works.

Just a note: for those of you who don't want your sensibilities offended, this book isn't for you. It includes acts of extreme violence (duh), lots and lots of profanity, sexual content, and some just general grossness (think rotting corpses, dragging entrails, etc.). None of this bothered me, but some of you might be more squamish, so keep this in mind.

What did I think of the book? I really enjoyed it, especially as a counterpoint to many of the other WWII books I've read. It is a gritty, realistic portrayal of the way war deeply affects the bodies and minds of human beings. I was really impressed with The Thin Red Line and definitely will be seeking out the movie. Do I recommend it? Yep, especially if you're remotely interested in war novels. You don't need to know military strategy, tactics, or ranks to enjoy it (though the latter is helpful).

I give The Thin Red Line by James Jones eight out of ten stars.

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I realize that reviews have been sparse recently and apologize for the lack of content. Life, as it tends to, has sprung up and massively reduced my free time. Regardless, the next book chosen is Falconer by John Cheever. I'm not familiar with this novel at all, so we'll see how it goes.

In other news, I'll be starting a new beer blog next week called A Beer a Day. The title pretty much gives the theme away, but check out the initial post describing it if you're interested. While you're at it, you can 'Like' the blog on Facebook (pretty please?) and follow on Twitter. I'm starting it to separate the beer and book content, uncluttering this blog a bit. Plus it just sounded fun.

Additionally, I will be joining the wonderful crew at CincyVoices, primarily writing articles about good beer with @brewnas, but it looks like I'll have relative independence to write about other topics which pique my interest. It's going to be a great opportunity to team up with such a knowledgeable individual on all things beer related. I'm going to learn a lot and have a great deal of fun doing it!

As always, thank you all so much for reading! It would sure be boring to write these reviews if no one was interested.

Review: Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold

The month of June has been brought to you by the state of exhaustion. Never, ever before have I experienced a busier, more stressful, more exciting month in my life. Part one of June was consumed by wedding prep, the wedding itself, and the honeymoon. Part two of June has been completely filled with the purchasing of our first home and then the subsequent moving of all of our belongings into said house. All the fun doesn't stop there, though, because even though the house certainly is livable, we will be (and have been) renovating almost every room in it. Between the physical exertion of these activities and the sleep deprivation that comes with getting used to the creaks and groans of a 125 year old home in the middle of the night, I am flat-out exhausted.

I only note this because I have been derelict in my duties to review anything, whether it be books, restaurants, or beer. Luckily (sort of) I've had no time to read, so I don't have a queue of backed up reviews other than this one. Beer reviews, on the other hand, will be forthcoming.

Enough of my whining. I owe you folks a review and I intent to deliver.

Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold is about magic. Magic: the stuff you know doesn't exist, but you hope does in spite of what you know. Sleights of hand, card tricks, levitation, dangerous feats with sharp or very, very fiery items, and all the other good stuff that boggles the mind.

Charles Carter, the protagonist in this novel, actually was a magician during the 1920s, though this certainly can not be considered a factual biography by any means. The plot of Carter Beats the Devil focuses on Carter's performance that occurs the night before the then-president of the United States, Warren G. Harding, dies in his hotel room. Harding had attended the performance and actually had an appearance in the final act whose name the title of the novel draws from. Since Carter had spent time alone with Harding before the performance and was one of the last to speak with him, he naturally becomes a prime suspect in the case.

As this crime involved the president, the Secret Service are tasked with solving the case and figuring out what exactly happened that night in Harding's hotel room. Through this investigation details on Carter's past are brought up and the reader learns about his childhood and his rise to fame as a magician. Through this clever device, Charles Carter slowly transitions from the subject of an investigation to the main character of the novel.

Despite the description, Carter Beats the Devil is not a typical mystery or perhaps even a mystery novel at all. Yes, there is the whodunnit aspect and yes there is the obligatory plot twist at the end, but in between are three separate love stories, a tale of the rise and fall of fame, the invention of television, and a number of other things you would never attribute to a mass market mystery (at least, not the new ones).

The characters are, for the most part, are beautifully developed, though a few of the peripheral characters could have used a little work. Easily the best part of this novel is the description of the setting in which the story takes place. Most of it is in Prohibition Era San Francisco, with its brothels, speakeasies, dock workers, and beautiful views. I've never been to San Francisco, let alone in the 1920s, but Gold does such a remarkable job describing it that I feel like I can imagine it perfectly. He also does a great job working in a number of cameos of famous, historic figures from the time. A perusal of the novel's Wikipedia page shows what I'm referring to.

So, overall, what did I think of the book? Though not short by any means, it is a relatively easy read, only bogging down in a few places. It is the kind of entertaining read that probably sits itself right in the middle of "lowbrow" and "highbrow" (if not aligning a little bit closer to the latter). I'm going to say that it is pretty darn as close to great as good can get. For it being Glen David Gold's first novel, I would say that it is not a let down at all. He will definitely have a tough time following this one up.

I give Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold 7.7 out of 10 stars.

[I'm moving from 5 stars max to 10 to allow for greater definition between ratings. It was getting difficult to show the difference between, say, a 3.4 star book and a 3.8 star book even though there is a marked quality difference between the two scores. From now on, anything rated about an 8 (instead of a 4) will be the cream of the crop.]

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Next up is The Thin Red Line by James Jones. The movies by the same name are based on this fictional account of the Guadalcanal campaign in the Pacific Theater of WWII. I've never seen the movie, but I am looking forward to the book. Also, as noted above, some quick beer reviews will be coming soon to a computer monitor near you.

Quick Reviews: Do Androids Dream of Girls Who Play with Fire?

Usually, my reviews are a little more in-depth than these, but because of the wedding/honeymoon/house buying, I've gotten a bit behind on the reviewing. I read these three novels while on my honeymoon.

 

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

In a relatively dystopian, future version of planet Earth, androids are created to do the crap jobs people don't really feel like doing anymore. Every so often, the misbehave and have to be put down. This is a story of one of those circumstances. This novel is the "inspiration" for Bladerunner, which I suppose means it is tangently based on it. I didn't really care for the film (I know, blasphemy), so I was hoping for something a little different and definitely got it. This book manages to be lighthearted in a heavy way, with both goofy and very serious moments. It's sarcastic without being explicitly so, and as Philip K. Dick likes to roll, it is a good piece of social commentary. I don't think it's as hard-hitting as some of his other books, most of which I prefer over this one. Overall, though, a solid offering and a quick, interesting read.

Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

 

The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

I have to say, I was majorly disappointed by both of these books. I read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and really enjoyed it, so I was caught off guard hoping these would be good. The former of these two have nothing to do with the first novel in the trilogy except for the characters. Lisbeth Salander, the our glam-emo protagonist from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is back in this novel, richer, and a little more grown up (at least appearance wise). She gets caught up in and then framed for the murder of two individuals reporting on a sex trafficking story, and the shenanigans ensue. We have spies, government cover-ups, patricide, fratricide, the whole shebang. This story starts in the second novel and then picks up immediately in the third. Even with all of this craziness, I was still disappointed.

Both of these books, but moreso the last of the trilogy, are unnecessarily long and filled with details which add absolutely nothing to the progression of the plot or the building of the characters. The Girl Who Played with Fire is at least one-hundred pages too long (and probably two-hundred) and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest seems to exist solely as a disjointed five-hundred page effort to tie up all the loose ends put forth in its predecessor. Character after character are introduced, few of which inspire enough emotion to be either likable or unlikable.

This trilogy got progressively worse as it went on, so if you've read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, in my opinion, you're probably best off stopping there and pretending it's not part of a trilogy.

Score:
The Girl Who Played with Fire: 3 out of 5 stars
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest: 2.5 out of 5 stars

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I'm reading Carter Beats the Devil  by Glen David Gold currently, and crazy schedule pending, I should have it done by this weekend. See you soon!

Cincinnati one of the most "well-read" cities in the U.S.

Yesterday Amazon released its list of the "Top 20 Most Well-Read Cities in America", which was based on sales of books, ebooks, and other word-based media since January 1*. On it are some cities you would expect: Cambridge, Berkeley, Seattle, and Washington, DC. Much to my pleasant surprise, sitting one spot ahead of our soon to be streetcar sister city Portland, is our beloved Queen City.

Reflecting on it, my surprise was really ill-founded. It was based on stereotypes and misconceptions about cities in the Midwest, in general, and Cincinnati, in particular. Despite what the naysayers might claim, Cincinnati is not a cultural wasteland. Like any other city, this one can not exist (or at least thrive) based solely on business and sports. Creative people are drawn to creative outlets and without either, you can't have a successful city.

I haven't lived here long enough to make any time-based comparison, but I can say that our library system is phenomenal. Not only is the Cincinnati/Hamilton County Public library one of the largest, most accessible large library networks I've ever had the fortune of visiting, but we are also graced with its older sister, the Mercantile Library. It is one of the most relaxing, peaceful places in an urban area that I've ever visited and it even manages to host a great collection. If you're not a member there, you need to be. At least give it a visit. You'll probably never see anything like it anywhere else.

In addition to literature, the rest of Cincinnati's art scene continues to thrive. I dare you to go to an OTR Final Friday (TONIGHT!)and walk the galleries then catch a show (and have a drink) at MOTR and then tell me Cincinnati is a cultural wasteland. You just can't do it. The people who denigrate this fine city have either never spent time here or haven't done so in the recent past.

As is indicated by this study, Cincinnati, the Queen City of the U.S., and its population will not conform to the negative stereotypes of misconceptions of people who have no stake in its/their success. Since moving here I have met more smart, cultured, positive people than I ever expected. These people are the present and the future of this city and they are the reason, in addition to the institutions listed above, that this city will continue to thrive and be a place people want to work and live.

If you ask me, I'll take Cincinnati over Cambridge, Berkeley, or Washington D.C. any day of the week and I doubt I'm the only one that feels that way.

Via: Good.is Education


*I have some qualms about the methodology used to create this list, but that's neither here nor there.

Review: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

 

John Steinbeck is a great author. I literally don't think I have ever read anything by him which has disappointed me. Even the recently epically-promoted East of Eden (see: Oprah) was as epic as I could have ever hoped. So, what's up with Steinbeck and why are all of his books so great?

He doesn't write with flair, his novels are not filled with action or suspense, and his personal life wasn't particularly exciting. In my opinion, what makes all of his works immensely readable, compelling masterpieces is (brace for the cringe-worthy artistic descriptor) his ability to tell the human story. From the half hour read of The Pearl to the earlier-noted epic East of Eden, what Steinbeck excels at is painting a picture of the complexity and depth of the species Homo sapiens. In Steinbeck's writings, even the most sympathetic protagonist is sometimes a coward or a cheat. Likewise, villains aren't (or weren't) always villains; they have brief moments of kindness, or at least non-evil behavior. 

It is in this way that Steinbeck proceeds in Cannery Row. For the most part, the novel does not have a typical plot or story line. In fact, more than anything else, it is a character study of the people who live in the Cannery Row neighborhood in Monterey during the Depression.  It focuses primarily on two characters. The first is Doc, a cultured, well-educated man beloved by the community who makes a living selling specimens, land and sea-based, dead and alive, for scientific uses. The other character, who actually happens to be several characters, is a group of vagrants who live a relatively carefree life in Cannery Row. On the periphery are a number of other colorful characters, including your stereotypical Asian grocer and a Madam of the local brothel with the heart of gold. 

If there is a plot to the novel, it goes like this: Mac and the rest of his group of squatters decide, because of all that Doc has done for them, that they will throw a party for him. They screw up royally and everything goes to the birds. To make up for this, they decide to throw him a better, more successful party. Shenanigans, as expected, ensue.

In the midst of this main story, there are almost what would almost be considered intermissions. They are two to three page chapters highlighting a very, very peripheral character in an anecdote. This way you come to know not only the main characters deeply, but get a shallower feel for the peripheral characters and an understanding of the community as a whole.

The plot obviously isn't supposed to be the highlight of this novel, though. In fact, the book is just over one-hundred pages, so nailing down a complex plot is not going to happen. The plot exists to allow Steinbeck to shine a light on the traits and behaviors of the characters. The bums, though thieves and sometimes swindlers, are kind-hearted and well-meaning. Doc, though universally beloved and generous to a fault, is a lonely and sometimes sad man.

It is classic Steinbeck that the group of men who have next to nothing are far more content that Doc, who is one of the most well-off members of Cannery Row. Both have their virtues and vices; the only difference is which well each springs from. 

I'm not going to go more in-depth into the analysis and description. Just read the book. It will take you a day or two if you're even relatively diligent about it. It's worth your time.

Is this a great book? You bet it is. Is it one of the best one-hundred I've ever read? I would say no, but I wouldn't say it with complete certainty. Steinbeck manages to pack more in just over one-hundred pages than some (*cough*Virginia Woolf*cough*) manage to say with several times the page length. I'm biased towards this style and this is probably why I love John Steinbeck's works. With this in mind, I'm going to Cannery Row four out of five stars and recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading words.

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Next up is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick. I'm not a huge fan of Bladerunner (I know, travesty), which Do Androids... was an inspiration for, but I'm hoping I enjoy the book more. I've had good luck with his novels in the past.

Review: The Reader by Bernhard Schlink

Before The Reader was released in film form, I had never heard of the book. I was actually given the movie as a gift at some point, but never got around to watching it. I saw it on the shelf at the Friends of the Library book sale and decided "what the heck".

On its surface The Reader is a very simple book. It is essentially a romance novel set against the post-WWII era in Germany. Michael Berg, a 15 year old boy, through a set of strange circumstances becomes lovers with Hanna Schmitz, a 36 year old single woman. Michael, being young and hopelessly naive, falls immediately in love with her, even believing that they would be married some day. Hanna is tender towards Michael, but is prone to extreme mood swings and is loath to share any information with him concerning her past. This torrid affair goes on for some time until Michael is sucked into the social life with people his own age and then one day Hanna just disappears. He blames himself for this at first, but then he gets on with his life.

Later, as a law student, he is part of a seminar which attends the trials of those indicted of charges of war crimes during WWII. One of these defendants happens to be Hanna. As an SS guard, she is being charged with the deaths of a number of Jewish prisoners during the retreat from the Soviet invasion. Michael's feelings for her, which have been quieted but never fully died away since her disappearance, come full to the forefront. He is forced to examine the shame he feels for having loved a war criminal and at the same time makes realizations of her odd past behavior based on things that emerge from the trial. I'm not going to continue with the plot because I don't want to spoil anything, but the last part of the book primarily focuses on Michael's reflection on his time with Hanna as a young man.

The Reader both explicitly and implicitly looks at the conflict between the adults that were alive during Nazi rule and the generation that follows after it. The shame that Michael feels concerning his brief affair with Hanna is analogous to the shame felt by the children of those adults complicit (or at least tacitly accepting) of the Nazi regime. His conflicted love of someone who committed atrocities reflects how difficult it was for this new generation to deal with their parents' "Holocaust Legacy". It is obvious that this is something Germans struggle with even today.

The writing was good, but didn't blow me away. Written in the first-person, The Reader mainly focuses on telling the story without bombast. This was quite a change of pace after finishing Orlando prior to this. It is definitely an easy read. You could probably finish this pretty easily over a weekend if you set aside some time.

What surprised me most about this novel is the lack of emotion involved. I expected a work heavily reliant on emotion (ala: Sophie's Choice), but received a sober, almost academic look at the themes above. For this reason, the two main characters never really seem human. Hanna, though emotionally unstable and a war criminal, is neither detestable or an object of sympathy. Perhaps the most appropriate feeling towards her is pity. Michael, after his affair as a young man, seems incapable of emotion or feeling. His sterile examination of how he feels during Hanna's trial is something that would be read out of a psychiatrist's patient notes. For the most part I didn't particularly care about how he felt, which worked out because he didn't seem to feel much.

Despite the character flaws, I thought this was a good novel. I won't say it was "enjoyable", but it was valuable. The soberness of the content is not light stuff. Would I recommend this? Yes, but you have to be in the mood for it. It is a serious book about a serious topic.

I'm going to give The Reader three and a half stars. It is very good without being great and is definitely worth a read.

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Edit: Almost forgot; the next book up to bat is Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. I love Steinbeck, so this should be an enjoyable one.

Review: Orlando by Virginia Woolf

Do you ever read a book and feel like you're in the midst of an inside joke* that you're not privy to? That is pretty much how I felt like the entire time I was trudging my way through Orlando. I'm going to keep this review brief, mostly because I didn't like it, but didn't despise it nearly enough to write a diatribe about it.

Orlando is (duh) about Orlando, an young aristocrat who is growing up in the English Elizabethan Era (1500s for those of you, like me, who are not in the know). He is hopelessly rich and in the good graces of the Queen, which obviously is never a bad thing. Like all young men, he falls in love and has his heart broken by a Russian princess (you've never been trod upon by Eastern European royalty?). He entertains scholars and poets. He travels to Turkey, becomes a woman, and decides that he no longer needs to age.

Yes, he changes from a young man to a young, unaging woman, without hardly any fuss or explanation whatsoever. He goes into a deep sleep for days and wakes up a she. Woolf doesn't find any need to explain the metamorphosis and Orlando him(or rather, her)self isn't too particularly concerned about it either. He merely accepts that he is now a woman and begins to learn the gender, as if he were taking on a role in a play. She even gets married. How domestic.

Also equally as odd and unexplained is that he, then she, is stuck at about thirty-two years of age, physical appearance-wise. Considering that this novel starts in the sixteenth century and ends in early twentieth, I found this peculiar.

All of this silliness would be so much easier to accept if the novel was more readable. The prose is beautiful, but not even remotely flowing. The narrative will be moving along at a brisk pace and out of the blue Woolf brings the flow screeching to a halt by spending several pages describing some bit of minutia. Also, some sentences are so long and unwieldy that it is extremely difficult to parse out the individual phrases to make sense of it all. She definitely knows how to write, though, and makes sure the reader knows it. In the instances that it does flow, Woolf is virtually unmatched in vocabulary and elegance. Unfortunately these instances are few and far between.

Overall, I didn't care for this book one bit. In my opinion, it is the exact work of self-indulgence that steers readers away from many of the well-known "difficult" books. Density is not necessarily a bad thing if the reader is rewarded for making it through the words. I, personally, found no satisfaction from this novel and finished it only so I could start a different one.

I'm going to give it two and a half stars out of five. Only those few and far between examples of masterful writing and the shallow, brief gender-bending analysis of societal roles and behaviors of men and women manage to salvage even that rating. I can't in good conscience recommend this, but if you're in the mood, go right ahead. I won't stop you.

*Yes, I know it really is an inside joke. For those of you who care, it is a semi-biographical (and I use semi in the loosest terms humanly possible) piece on Woolf's female love, Vita Sackville-West. No, she did not change from a man to a woman and no she did not live to be over three hundred years old.

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I am actually behind on reviews. I finished The Reader on the bus to Chicago last Friday, so I owe you all a review for that. Sneak peek: it was much better than Orlando. Be back soon!

Review: Naked Pint by Christina Perozzi and Hallie Beaune

I'm going to mix it up a little bit with this review. I am going to review a book outside of my list and one which was not chosen by the RNG [GASP!].  I know it's crazy, but you all out there will just have to deal.


As noted way back in the early days of this blog, I received Naked Pint for Christmas. Since then, I have slowly been working my way through it as time permitted. I actually finished it a couple of months ago, but didn't even think about writing a review about it. I saw it sitting there all lonely today and decided to give it some attention.

Naked Pint is about beer. To be specific, Naked Pint is about good beer or, at minimum, better beer. It is a homage to the exploding craft beer industry. If you or someone you love are the type who are befuddled by the choices of beer available to you, whether it be a nice, refreshing pilsner or a syrupy, chocolate-y imperial Russian stout, this is the book for you. Even if you are already familiar with and enjoy partaking in the consumption of craft beers, you may find that you don't know all of the esoteric, minute (yet interesting) details behind many less commonly available beer categories. I know that I didn't.

The Naked Pint covers pretty much everything you would want to know about craft beer, from how beer is made, to the history of beer, how to properly drink a good beer (hint: a lot like a good wine), and how to pair different types of beers with food. It has a breakdown of almost every type of ale/lager in existence, explaining the characteristics of each and providing a few (in their opinion) stand outs that are available for purchase. If you are so inclined, it even has a brief section on brewing your own beer. It won't serve as a replacement for some of the more extensive brewing books out there, but it is a nice introduction.

There was only one thing that was a little off-putting to me, but it wasn't anything that ruined the experience for me. If you notice above, both of the book's authors are women. They make sure, over and over, to ensure that the reader is made aware of this. I understand that in the world of better beer drinking that women are woefully underrepresented, which is obviously a shame, but they beat this one to death. Like I said: it's nothing that ruins the book, though.

Overall, this book is the perfect gift for the neophyte is the big world of craft beer or the weathered beer drinker who takes special trips abroad to try legendary beers and who happens to be an all-grain brewer. I fall somewhere in the middle and found it a useful and entertaining read. The authors are welcoming and light hearted in their writing, inviting anyone to take part in the craft beer revolution.

I'm not going to give this a score since it's not within my usual scope of reviewing, but I will say it is a great book. While not entirely exhaustive, it is one of the most readable and complete guides to the world of craft beer that I have ever seen.

Review: Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally

It's hard to believe that there was a time, not too terribly long ago, that Oskar Schindler was not a widely known figure. Sure, he was recognized his his deeds numerous times after World War II, but it took a absolutely chance meeting between an author who needed a new briefcase and a store owner who was touched by the fairness of Schindler years earlier to bring him to the general public's attention. Of course, Steven Spielberg making a movie about him helped, too.

I, like most people out there, had seen the movie. I had never read the book, though, and actually didn't even know that it existed. I was definitely looking forward to reading it when the RNG chose it for me. I was hoping for a change in pace from Treasure Island, and I received it. Schindler's List (also known as Schindler's Ark) won the Booker Prize for Fiction in 1982. To simply categorize it fiction, however, does a disservice not only to the extensive research on Schindler and his actions during WWII by Keneally, but an even greater disservice to those who lived and died in the context of this period. It may be considered fiction in that it describes true events in a narrative format, but the author states clearly in the introduction that he takes as few creative liberties as possible in telling this story.

I am not going to delve extensively into the plot of this story. Schindler's List has become so ingrained in popular culture that most people (even those who haven't seen the movie or read the book) know the overall theme. During WWII, Polish Jews are being rounded up into ghettos and, subsequently, into work and extermination camps. Oskar Schindler is a businessman in Krakow who, after he realizes what the "final solution" will be takes it upon himself to save as many Jews as he can, putting his personal safety at risk and financially ruining himself.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the whole story is how unlikely of a candidate Oskar Schindler would seem to be as one responsible for the saving of over 1,000 human lives. Schindler was always motivated as a youngster and seemed to succeed in anything he undertook. Much of this motivation was born from a hatred of his father and a need to be a bigger and greater than him. Not exactly driven by a humanitarian philosophy. He got into the war industry business as a way to make money hand over fist with cheap Jewish labor. He was, in all honesty, a profiteer, an adulterer, and a drinker. Despite the inherent unfairness of his early business using Jewish labor, he treated his workers well and kindly. To say that Schindler was a complex man would be an understatement.

It wasn't later into the war, when the Eastern Front was pushed back by Soviet forces and the "final solution" was defined, that Schindler had a "come to Jesus" moment. Once he realized that the Nazis, against all rational thought, would begin to exterminate all Jews rather than use them to prop up the war effort, he knew that he couldn't sit idly. It is then when the famous "Schindler's List" begins to be drafted. Those lucky enough to be on this list will be brought to a new factory compound that would be owned and operated by Schindler. This factory would be outside the concentration camp system and isolation in a rural area. In other words, it was a relative safe haven.

This is a great novel. The amount of time interviewing those familiar with Schindler during this period is obvious in the extreme detail of the individual anecdotes that fill the pages. This book isn't merely a biography of Oskar Schindler. The stories told, while including Schindler, reveal just as much about the more1,300 men, women, and children he kept safe during this horrific period. It tells deeply personal stories while avoiding much of the melodrama that the film version and many other Holocaust books and films rely on. It tells you what happened in all of its gruesome and saddening details, but it leaves the emotion to the content itself. With a topic like the Holocaust, there is really no need to amplify the pain and suffering of those who lived through it.

The novel kept me enthralled throughout its entirely, even though I had seen the movie. It was hard to read, not because of the writing, but because the content. One can only take so much of this devastating of a topic in one sitting.

When reading, it is difficult to remember that the amazing heroics displayed by Schindler and others saved just over 1,000 people. While this was occurring, thousands upon thousands of other people in positions of authority did not have the courage or moral integrity to do what he was doing. While it may be easy to scoff at the tiny percentage that 1,300 or so individuals makes up of the total number of people who were brutally murdered by the Nazi regime, one quote comes to mind. This was a quote which was engraved on a ring given to Oskar Schindler before he fled the coming Russian troops after the war ended. In Hebrew, it stated "He who saves a single life saves the world entire". What Schindler did was bigger than saving 1,300 individual lives, though this is nothing short of amazing. He showed that even when the world is going crazy and morality is being turned upside down, anyone, even the least likely individual, can step up and do what is right.

I give Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally, #41 on the Radcliffe Rival 100 list, four and a half out of five stars.

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Next up is Orlando by Virginia Woolf. This will be the first novel I've read by Woolf, which is intimidating, but supposedly this is one of her more accessible works. I hope so.

Looks as if Joseph-Beth bookstore will stay open

 As a follow up to an earlier post I stole from Cincinnati Blog, Cincinnati-area readers have some good news.

Via the Enquirer:

"The Joseph-Beth stores in Norwood, Lexington and Cleveland soon will have a new owner.
The three stores were purchased at a bankruptcy auction Wednesday by an entity associated with Lexington-based Langley Properties Co. Langley owns the shopping center in which Joseph Beth’s Lexington store operates.

The company plans to maintain the current Joseph Beth management team except for former owner and CEO Neil van Uum, said Mark Wilson, the chain’s chief operating officer. Van Uum was one of the five bidders in Wednesday’s auction.

“Our customers will not see any real change,” Wilson said. “We are excited to expand our customer programs. It will be interesting and a lot of fun to see what can be done without the burden of debt.”

I'm glad to see that they will be able to keep the Norwood store open. It has been a great stop in the past for notable author signings and other events.

A call for recommendations: Cincinnati History books

In the little under a year that I've lived in Cincinnati, I've been enthralled by the history of the city. Huge pieces of the Queen City's history, such as the canals, riverboats, and the riots as well as the minutia have been 100% new to me. To say that I was ignorant of the amazing history of Cincinnati would be quite an understatement. I had never even visited the city before taking a job here; I certainly knew nothing about it.

I've been learning details of the history of my current home piece by piece, almost randomly. I'd like to make a more concerted effort to learn more. With that in mind, I am on the look out for the best books which concern Cincinnati. It can be general history or more focused on a piece of the city's history. Both will satisfy me. The only thing I ask is that your recommendations are either still in print or are available for check out at one of the area's libraries. I already own Over-the-Rhine: When Beer Was King so I don't need that one.

I thank you in advance and look forward to your recommendations!

Joseph -Beth Bookstores to be auctioned

Good book-related post over at Cincinnati Blog today. Looks like the future of a really good (yet apparently unprofitable) bookstore remains up in the air. This ties in to yesterday's post regarding ebooks overtaking their print counterparts in sales. The question to be asked: what is the future of brick and mortar bookstores not named Barnes and Noble? Are even they immune from the shift to ebooks or will they go the way of Borders or are they nimble enough to shift their business plan away from physical inventory?

Hat Tip - Cincinnati Blog: "The Remaining Joseph-Beth Bookstores to be Auctioned"

Report: Ebooks sales overtake that of all print versions

Back to the world of ebooks (or EBooks, E-books; whatever the preferred nomenclature is):

This February, US publishers sold more e-books than they did books in any other format, including paperbacks and hardcovers, according to a report from the Association of American Publishers. This marks the first time ever that e-book sales have surpassed those of all other formats.

 The growth of ebooks over the past couple years has been absolutely amazing. According to the same report, ebook sale revenues have risen by more than 200% from just a year earlier. This is a game changer in the publishing industry and frankly it seems that many firms are struggling with the change. The way that "print" media is published, sold, and delivered has changed fundamentally over this brief time period.

It seems from other news that publishing companies are still trying to figure out how the transition from real print to electronic print will be a profitable venture. At the present, skyrocketing sales of ebooks are not making up the difference for decreased sales of print copies. I'm sure it's happening already, but publishers are going to have to take a real serious look at their business models to determine how they are going to remain viable and profitable. Unless the movement of sales towards ebooks is a fad (which seems unlikely to me), the status quo is neither of those over the long run.

The Christian Science Monitor: "E-book sales overtake paperbacks in February"

Association of American Publishers report

Review: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

Oh boy did I not want to read this book. Frankly, I have absolutely no idea how it got on my list. I remember reading it long, long ago (maybe middle school) and not being particularly impressed. Regardless of my whining and foot dragging, the book was picked so I had to read it and write a review for it. I got through the former and now I am forcing myself to do the latter.

I'm not going to go into the plot in any real detail. I'm sure you've all heard/read/watched it in some form and if you haven't, read the title of the book. That's essentially what it's about. For those of you not in the know, I'll sum it up in about a minute.

An old pirate staying at Jim's (main character) family's inn dies and leaves a chart for treasure on an island. Other pirates come for the chart and and are chased off. Jim and a few other courageous folks decide to go find the treasure, procure a ship, and head out. All but a few of the crew are found to be pirates looking for the treasure before the ship comes ashore the island land and plans are made to escape from aforementioned pirates. Drama and action unfolds as the two sides duke it out and try to beat each other to the treasure. The end.

One thing about this novel confused me. I do not understand at all how it is supposed to be a children's/young adult novel. Leaving aside the great deal of violence which occurs throughout it (in the form of shootings, stabbings, strangulation, clubbings, and getting run down by a horse), the only middle schoolers who would understand a lot of the language used in Treasure Island would be those who are currently being home schooled on a pirate ship. Outside of Somalia, I'm not sure how often this occurs. I'd guess not much.

Between the outdated language (published in 1883) and the technical sailing language used, I had to look a good number of words up in the dictionary. Boy did that make me feel not particularly smart.

Anyways, I'm not particularly sure what niche this novel fills anymore. I can't see it interesting a large number of Harry Potter-Twilight-reading young adults and find it equally as unlikely that adults will pick it up very often. I suppose it will be relegated to the despised status of middle school English literature required reading. It could be worse; at least it will still get readership (minus all those Sparknotes users out there).

Treasure Island isn't a bad book. It is one of the seminal young adult adventure books that exist and has provided almost all of popular culture's references to pirates (cheap fried seafood at Long John Silver's, for instance). I'll never read it again, but I wouldn't sway any young readers away from it. Looking up words in the dictionary builds character.

I give Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson three out of five swashbuckling stars.

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Next up is Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally. I had no idea this was a novel before it was a movie until just recently. Love the movie so I'm hoping the book is enjoyable.

Review: One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn

Sometimes, one's best weapon of criticism is a concise, unemotional attack on one's opposition. For one: you don't lose anyone in the screed; also, if you're mundane, no one will think you're making things up.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn's (going forward referred to as "the author") One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich (going forward referred to "One Day") brutalizes the treatment of prisoners in Soviet work camps during the Stalin era. Sometimes even so bitter as to cut cold and sharp, the novel fulfills both of the criteria above. It weighs in at just over 150 pages; not quite what you expect when you think of Russian literature. Also, there is no manufactured drama in this book. One Day is exactly that: a single day in the life of a prisoner in a Soviet work camp. There are no prisoner revolts, rescue missions, or other exhibits of high adventure. Just one man's attempts to maintain even the slightest shred of humanity and dignity in a a setting that does not allow for either.

Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, referred to as Shukhov through the novel, is in his eighth year of a ten year work camp term for "spying". In this case, "spying" refers to his crime of being captured by the German military during WWII, escaping, and returning to Soviet lines. By this time, Shukhov has become a respected member of the 104th work squad and has learned what it takes to stay alive and well (all is relative when it comes to "well" in a Soviet work camp), yet maintain a bare minimum of humanity. This means bundling up in multiple layers for the sub-zero cold, working hard for one's squad leader, doing small favors in return for small favors, and not debasing one's self by doing things like licking other prisoners' bowls after supper.

The one day chronicled goes like this: Shukhov wakes up to reveille, leaves the barracks for breakfast, eats breakfast, reports for work where he and his squad begin to build a stone building (without the use of a lift or any mechanical tools), break for lunch, continue working, turns in for dinner, and then turns in for bed until the next day.

The day itself is not the main focus of this story. It is implied that it is completely ordinary and reflects most of those before it and will reflect most of those after it. The focus here is on the little things: the teamwork of his work squad, the joke told by one of his squad member, the extra bread ration he receives, the cigarette he smokes (savoring every inhalation).

Also of particular interest are the interactions between the prisoners themselves. Some of them, by currying favors or weaseling to the guards and officials, are able to avoid hard labor, instead working in the mess or the guard house. These prisoners are generally despised by those more common prisoners, for obvious reasons. Even within the labor squads, there is a clear hierarchy. The squad leaders, who are deeply respected and obeyed, are responsible for the well-being of their workers. A good squad leader will save your life and keep you out of the guardhouse. Then there is the squad leader's deputy, who is responsible for all of the little things that are below the leader himself. Finally, there comes the squad, who maintains an informal power structure based on the length of time served, how hard he works, and what he does for others.

The most striking aspect of this book, though, are the prisoners' attempts to remain human. While some have abandoned any attempts at this and will lie, cheat, and steal to get by, most retain some semblance of dignity through the smallest practices or gestures. A Soviet work camp, as one would imagine, is not a setting conducive to dignity. All prisoners are numbered and are never referred to as anything else by guards or other camp officials. In these camps, survival is the first concern. All else is secondary. Despite this, our protagonist and other prisoners finds ways to elevate themselves above the animal level. Shukhov wakes before reveille to enjoy the few minutes he has to himself before the day begins. Two of his squad mates share cups of "real" tea, which was received in a parcel sent to one of them. The prisoners even escape in the work itself, working so hard and so fast that they think about nothing other than the work itself. It is in ways like these that the prisoners find solace. Not freedom, but solace. Most of these men will never see freedom, but each can find at least brief moments of solace every day.

This is a hugely important piece of literature. It details a mythical concept (the gulags) using actual personal experience. It does so in a readable manner, without the hysterics which usually accompany such terrible personal tragedies. I found myself bored at times because of the lack of action and the understated method the author uses to describe the conditions the prisoners exist in. It is a monumentally important book and it is a good book, but is it a great book? I don't think so. I'd put it somewhere between good and great. It isn't one of the best one-hundred books ever written (or that I've read), but it merits every bit of praise it receives. It is the antithesis of a Schindler's List; the heroics are not in any specific act. They are found in the process of surviving, which does not happen in just one day.

It should be added that the veracity of the details in this novel is unquestionable. Alexander Solzhenitsyn himself spent eight years in a Soviet work camp for writing letters to friends which insulted Stalin's handling of WWII. After being released, he began work on One Day, which was submitted for publication and was ultimately approved personally by Nikita Khrushchev.

I give One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn three and a half out of five stars.

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Next up is Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stephenson. I read this long, long ago and remember next to nothing about it. I'm not really looking forward to it, but we'll see.

Modern Library Challenge: #75 - Scoop by Evelyn Waugh

Looks like I finally return to the Modern Library 100 list!

When the RNG chose another Evelyn Waugh book, I have to admit that I was a teensy bit less than ecstatic. I wasn't particularly impressed with Brideshead Revisited, the last book of Waugh's that I read. While reading and after finishing Scoop, though, I was happily surprised. The two books share almost nothing in common, which is just fine with me.

Scoop, as the title implies, is about journalism. To be precise, it is about the wacky shenanigans involved with reporting foreign news. In the obviously fictional African nation of Ishmaelia civil war looks like a certain thing. Despite knowing nothing about this insignificant country and the actors involved, the British media is scurrying all over itself to send foreign correspondents. One of these outlets, the Daily Beast, decides to send John Boot, an up-and-coming author, to Ishmaelia as a favor curried through John's benefactor. In the midst of the craziness of hammering out the plans, the orders to ship abroad are accidentally sent to William, not John, Boot.

Enter William Booth. William happens to be a far-removed cousin of John who works for the Daily Beast as a nature reporter. He lives with his extended family in a crumbling manor way, way out in the sticks. He loathes and fears London and submits all of his work through the mail. To say that he is not worldly would be quite an understatement. When he receives his orders to go abroad he at first thinks he is being punished and refuses to go. He finally caves, though, and the adventure begins. Just getting to Ishmaelia with his almost-literally ton of supplies of luggage proves to be an exercise in futility. Once he (and the rest of the gaggle of foreign correspondents) get there, the fun really begins.

Obviously out of his league, Boot has absolutely no idea where to begin. Through a strange bumbling series of mishaps, misdirection, Soviet scheming, and even a brief love affair, he somehow breaks the big story and vaults himself into the pantheon of journalistic brilliance. How he he gets from point A to point B is about 99% of the fun of reading this novel, so I won't spoil it for anyone.

Despite being written over seventy years ago, Scoop is still a brilliant piece of satire and is as relevant to foreign and war journalism as ever. This novel touches on several themes of importance, including war reporters crafting stories and manufacturing facts at a typewriter hundreds of miles away from the front. If you believe this hasn't happened in modern military conflicts, I have some beautiful swampland you may be interested in purchasing. Scoop also focuses on is the story creating the action (aka "life imitating journalism"). In this novel, the correspondents have no idea what they are doing or what is actually going on in Ishmaelia. Despite this, the newspapers needs to stories so the correspondents supply them, regardless of the factual validity of the reports.

As I said, Scoop a great piece of satire. In many ways, it reminds me of Vonnegut before Vonnegut had even written his first novel. The absurdity of the whole thing never ceases to entertain. Since I still have one more novel by Waugh left on the Modern Library list, I will hold out hope that it is of this caliber and not that of Brideshead Revisited.

Just one note of caution: there are some relatively racist pieces of dialogue in this novel. I'm not sure if it's a reflection of English sentiments towards Africans at the time or "Kipling-esque" feelings held by Waugh, but it does get offensive at times. Nothing over the top or anything, just a little surprising.

Despite all over my initial hesitation over this book, I give it four and a half out of five stars and recommend it to anyone interested in a hilarious rollercoaster of a novel, good satire, and those who like Abbot and Costello films.

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The RNG chose One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn next. Because it is short (and because I've been slacking with reviews), I have already finished it. I'll try to get a review up in the next couple of days. Cheers!

Review: Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787-1788 by Pauline Maier

The state of civic disengagement in the United States today is not exactly news. It seems that almost every week a new poll is released that shows U.S. citizens don't know something that they should have learned in 4th grade social studies. I would argue that the one thing most people, even the most history-ignorant individuals, know is that our federal government was established by and is controlled by a Constitution. What many don't know is how the U.S. Constitution came to be. In Ratification, this is exactly what Pauline Maier attempts to chronicle in extreme detail.

Cut to 1787. The current system of government, the Articles of Confederation, is failing miserably. Hamstrung by a power structure which heavily leans towards state sovereignty, the federal government is struggling to pay its debts incurred during the Revolutionary War and fulfill its other duties set forth in the Articles. In addition, potential adversaries surround the states and are beginning to look hungrily at their territory. There is no doubt that if England or Spain attacked one of the states, the federal government would be almost entirely incapable of raising an army powerful enough to defend itself.

With all of this in mind, a convention is called to amend the Articles of Confederation to grant the federal government more adequate powers. Some of the greatest minds of this time, if not in the history of our country, gather to determine how to go about this. In the end, they determine that the Articles in their current form can not be amended sufficiently, and just decide to scrap it and start over. During this convention, what we know as the Constitution is first drafted and will be sent out to the individual states to be ratified.

This is where the story really begins. The states will all approach ratification differently; some will be overwhelming for ratification from the get-go, other overwhelmingly against. In most, however, the ratifiers just don't know what to think. Many are torn between giving the new federal government the powers it needs to operate and not giving it so much that it turns into an institution drunk with power which has no qualms about subjugating its citizens. Both the failures of the Articles of Confederation and the memories of British rule weigh heavily on the ratifiers' minds. It is with all of this in mind that the battle lines are drawn and the ratifiers, some names we all know and some who will be relegated to the dust bin of history, will determine whether the states will remain in union. This book follows the ratification conventions in each state to this final decision.

Accessible

While extremely thorough, Ratification never seems to get bogged down in the details. The ability of Maier to clearly explain not only the nominating process itself, but the positions and beliefs of those individuals who took part in it, is absolutely amazing. While it was slow reading, the pace was dictated by the amount of information delivered, not the difficulty of it. The ordering of events in the book certainly made the process easier to follow. By keeping each state ratification convention to a different chapter, each of them is shown to be unique in both the processes followed and the beliefs held by the nominators.

Scholarly-ness

Ratification profit immensely from the Wisconsin Historical Society's The Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution (or DHRC, to be a bit more reasonable). This project was started in 1976 and aims to serve as a complete a collection as possible for the ratification process in each state.  The editors collected pretty much any documentation that they could find in any media available. They include writings not only from the most famous names of the time, but even those from "commoners". The twenty-one volumes of the series include documents from Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Virginia, Massachusetts, and New York. The twenty-one volumes are not spread evenly among these states, however. While Delaware, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut are combined into one volume, New York spans five volumes by itself.

For those five states not yet included in the DHRC (New Hampshire, South Carolina, Maryland, North Carolina, and Rhode Island), Maier's research admittedly was "old-fashioned" and "far less comprehensive" than those states included. Despite these sections' supposed flaws, I didn't notice decrease in the quality of the research at all. Everything is still comprehensively documented, with minutia represented.

Writing/Prose

I will say this: Maier is an excellent paraphraser. Since most of her sources are either primary in the form of journals and letters or secondary sources merely repeating speeches or other primary sources, there was the risk of turning this into a book of quotes. While this would have been informative, it most assuredly would have been unreadable. Instead, Maier does a masterful job working partial direct quotes into longer sections of summarizing and paraphrasing, always without editorializing or injecting her beliefs into the equation. Other than this, there isn't much to say for the prose. Rightfully, it exists as a vehicle to deliver others' words.

One complaint: the transitions between chapters are a bit hokey. I've always been of the persuasion than a transition should not be a cliffhanger, but an almost invisible segue to the next section or chapter. The high drama introduced at the end of many chapters always seems a bit manufactured. Not a huge deal, though.

Final Thoughts

Despite being a collection of a collection of facts and details about a potentially very boring topic, Maier finds a way to actually craft a compelling story. This is even more remarkable when one considers that the reader already knows the end of the story. We all know the Constitution was ratified. At least, I hope we all know the Constitution was ratified. What many of us don't know is how this ratification occurred. While it may seem strange to us over two hundred years later, ratification was not a sure thing. The states were at an existential crisis: they could unite under a stronger government that they greatly feared or they could dissolve and fall into civil war or be annexed by colonial powers. This was the mindset of many during the time. It is a grand story; a story which defines how we live today.

Who do I recommend this book to? I would say pretty much anyone with the reading comprehension skills to get through it. Anyone even remotely interested in American history or politics will find this enthralling. I know I did. I also believe this would make a great substitute for some of the more dry, boring high school and college civics textbooks. I'm not going to pontificate about the U.S. public's lack of knowledge about the country they live in. Many have done it and done it better than I possibly could. What I will say is that there needs to be more books like this one. When an author can get a reader looking forward to the next page when the topic is a group of old white dudes maybe signing a piece of paper, that is an achievement.

Accessible - ****

Scholarly-ness - *****

Writing/Prose - *** 1/2

Overall - ****

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Because of the brief break I took, the RNG actually chose my next book, Scoop by Evelyn Waugh, last week. I am almost all the way through it now, so I'd expect a review late this week.