Blue at the Mizzen, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  Blue at the Mizzen
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
• Started: 1/16/2014
• Finished: 1/31/2014

 
Can it really be that there will be no more Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin to read?
 
I started reading/listening to this series with Master and Commander in about April of 2012.  I have just finished a few months of brutal chemo, was still out of work on disability, subject to all sorts of physical (and mental) issues.  As my strength slowly came back I was still too weak to go to work, but hated to spend all day in the house watching tv, sleeping, feeling sorry for myself.
 
So I decided I would start a big project that I could do in small pieces.  To go along with this project I decided that rather than listen to music I'd listen to books.  I went through several classics over the weeks that followed as I slowly worked and recouperated. 
 
Master & Commander was one of those books (as were the 2nd & 3rd books in the series, Post Captain and HMS Surprise).   I can't say it was my favorite book that I listened to (that might have been Watership Down), but it stuck with me, in particular the characters.
 
And so it has progressed for the last two years as I've read and listened to this series of books as I recovered from cancer treatment, returned to work, and had my life return to normal (or the new normal, as we cancer survivors like to say).
 
I can't pretend to have anything profound to say about the series, but it's had a ridiculoulsy big influence over my life for the last couple of years.  I'll read what is available on the unfinished work (final voyage), but I know that this really is the last book. 
 
I just can't get over that one guy (Patrick O'Brian) was able to create such a remarkable world of characters and situations, all so real I could believe I had been party to it.  What an incredible legacy to leave behind for others.
 
 

Fire in the Hole: Stories, by Elmore Leonard

• Title:  Fire in the Hole:  Stories
• Author:  Elmore Leonard
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle)
• Started: 1/22/2014
• Finished: 1/30/2014

 
Collection of short stories, one of which is "Fire in the Hole" which is the story the pilot episode of Justified (Raylan Givens) is based on.  A decent collection of stories all around.

Riding the Rap, by Elmore Leonard

• Title:  Riding the Rap
• Author:  Elmore Leonard
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle)
• Started: 1/18/2014
• Finished:  1/21/2014

 
Book two of the "Justified" Raylan Givens series.  Despite the numerous books he wrote, and his massive popularity, I'm not sure I've ever read anything by Leonard.  Not his westerns, not Get Shorty or the like.  I've always known I should read some of his stuff, but just never felt like it or got around to it. 

Pronto, by Elmore Leonard

• Title:  Pronto
• Author:  Elmore Leonard
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle Book)
• Started:  1/15/2014
• Finished:  1/18/2014

 
I'm one of those people you hear about who doesn't have cable.  When my wife and I bought our first condo together in 2004, we called Comcast to install cable like I had done at every other place I had lived before.  Comcast, as usual, screwed up the dates/time for the install so many times that I finally decided "screw this" and we switched to rabbit ears.
 
Sort of.  It just so happens the building we bought in had a good master antenna on the roof that was wired to all of the units, so I was able to get great over the air reception in a big city (pre-HD conversion).  I also signed up for Netflix (pre-on demand, back when you got 3 DVDs at a time) and we adjusted to no more home design shows for my wife, no more cable sports for me.
 
I write that to note we still don't have cable (10 years!) and so I'm late to lots of popular TV shows.  They have to make it to Netflix or Amazon on demand services (for free) before I see them.  Thus I didn't know about the tv show Justified until about a year ago. 
 
I love it.  My wife loves it.  I feel like I could watch the episodes on a continuous loop.  I figured now was as good a time as any to read the books/stories by Elmore Leonard, see which I liked better.
 
It's unusual, but he TV show wins.  The books are good and entertaining, don't get me wrong, but the TV show surpasses the books. 

The Hundred Days, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Hundred Days
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
• Started: 1/4/2014
• Finished:  1/15/2014

 
I have a colleague who has read this series a few times, but told me she always stops before the end of the series b/c she believe O'Brian loses his way, forgets his characters, has them act in a way which doesn't make sense based on the earlier stories, and starts killing them off.
 
I assume this book, The Hundred Days, must be one of her least favorites because you lose not only Diana, but perhaps more difficult to accept, Bondon. 
 
I don't agree with my colleague on that at all, I found The Hundred Days to be one of my favorites of the last few books, and that's saying something.  I just love this series and can't believe the next book is the last full novel by O'Brian involving these characters.  This has been one of the most enjoyable literary experiences of my life.

A Spell for Chameleon, by Piers Anthony

• Title:  A Spell for Chameleon
• Author:  Peirs Anthony
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle Edition)
• Started:  1/6/2014
• Finished:  1/11/2014

I went to school at USF in Tampa, and the library there had a special collection of Piers Anthony materials (manuscripts, notes, and the like).  I always thought, with the connection to FLA and Tampa/USF, I really should read some of his works.  But Fantasy has never been a genre I've enjoyed much in literature (much as I do love sci-fi), I think it has to do with the covers of novels being filled with monsters, maidens, etc.

Anyway, as was noted in the press back when the shades of grey sex books were popular, e-readers make it so what you're reading in public is totally private.  So no more book-cover-shame about reading a fantasy novel, which means I've finally consumed a Piers Anthony novel, the first in his Xanth.

Overall, I enjoyed it.  I wasn't blown away by it, but it seems like a solid young-adult novels, coming of age, self discovery, and other similar themes.  I'll probably read a few more in the series, and then check out a few other book by Anthony not in this Xanth collection to see if I like them more or less.

The Man with the Golden Gun, Ian Fleming

• Title:  The Man with the Golden Gun
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed from Amazon.com Kindle Library
• Started:  12/30/2013
• Finished:  1/5/2014

 
This one was pretty bad, maybe the worst of the Bond novels.  I know most people think The Spy Who Loved Me is the worst, but I'd say it's this one.  Fleming apparently died writing/drafting this one, so it might have ended up a great novel with a couple of rewrites and edits.
 
Anyway, this ends the Fleming Bond series, and might end my reading of the Bond novels in order.  Not sure if I'll continue with the other writers who pick up the series.

The Yellow Admiral, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Yellow Admiral
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
• Started:  12/18/2013
• Finished 1/3/2014

 
I'm blowing through the series now.  As I ran on a treadmill this morning I was about 20 minutes into my run when I finished this book, but I already had the next one lined up and started it immediately.
 
These books are just one big seriel adventure and I love them.  It is bittersweet to be so close to the end of the series.

The Commodore, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Commodore
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from Worcester County Public Library (MD -- Ocean City), Audio Book
• Started:  12/3/2013
• Finished:  12/17/2013

 
Somehow I forgot to add this book to my list from 2013, despite enjoying it greatly.  One cold but not too cold day in December in Ocean City, MD, I had this book playing on my iPhone through headphones, and started a long, slow, 10 mile jog from almost the DE border to the inlet in Ocean City.  The first 10 mile run I had made in years.  While that may have nothing to do with the book, it did open up longer distance running to me again, even if slower than I used to run.  I never stopped running, but had dropped my distance significantly to just 2 or 3 miles  a day.  I've fired off 5, 7 and 10 mile jogs several times since that Ocean City run, while listening to this book.
 

 

You Only Live Twice, by Ian Fleming

• Title:  You Only Live Twice
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed from Amazon.com Kindle Library
• Started: 12/26/2013
• Finished:  12/29/2013

 
Another enjoyable Bond book, the end of the Blofeld series.  Also another cliff hanger, an amnesiac Bond is living with a native Pacific islander, rowing and fishing his days away, but thinking he might need to go to Russia to figure out who or what he really is. 
 
If the other cliff hangers in the series are any indication, the next book with quickly move on with just a sentence or two to explain how Bond got back to normal health.
 
Probably my last update of the year, had hoped to beat my previous best of 60 books but will come up one or two short.  The extremely long but enjoyable Stone's Fall (practically 3 books in 1) stymied my progress to suprass 60 books in 2013.

The Great Game, by Michael Kurland

Title: The Great Game
Author: Michael Kurland
Borrowed from DC public library
Started: 12/3/2013
Finished: 12/25/2013

Hit a bit of a slow-down in reading at the end if the year. Didn't like this book as much as the first series, but still an ok read.

The Infernal Device and Others: A Professor Moriarty Omnibus, by Michael Kurland

• Title:  The Infernal Device and Others: A Professor Moriarty Omnibus
• Author:  Michael Kurland
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle Book)
• Started: 11/15/2013
• Finished 12/2/2013

I'm cheating a bit here as I haven't actually finished the book.  I have, however, finished the titular story and the second story, so with just one more remaining it seemed worth writing up.  This series focuses on Moriarty, as a criminal genius of sort, but not the overall criminal genius from the Holmes stories.  In fact Holmes comes off as obsessed with Moriarty and looking to blame all crime on him.  The two stories have been enjoyable, another fun off-shoot from the Conan Doyle stories.

Stone's Fall, by Iain Pears

• Title:  Stone's Fall
• Author: Iain Pears
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (audio book)
• Started: 10/12/2013
• Finished:  12/2/2013

This was a very enjoyable, but very long, book.  It took me months to finish, but since it was broken up into three parts it was easy to take a break when necessary.  The ending threw me, still not sure how I feel about it.  Daring, but also a huge coincidence.  A bit of Chinatown at the end, but it doesn't matter.  Overall, very enjoyable.

On Her Majesty's Secret Service, by Ian Fleming

Title:  On Her Majesty's Secret Service

Author:  Ian Fleming

Borrowed from amazon.com Kindle store

Started:  11/1/2013

Finished:  11/15/2013

This might be my favorite of the series so far. Even knowing Tracy would die, it was still a sad, moving shock when it happened.  In some ways a slower Bond novel, I really liked this one. 

The Wine-Dark Sea, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Wine-Dark Sea
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed From Worcester County Public Library (MD -- Ocean City), Audio Book
• Started: 10/28/2013
• Finished:  11/12/2013

 
Book #16 in the Aubrey-Maturin series (Master & Commander), I hate that this series is very quickly coming to a close.  Everyone is older now, old in fact, and their luck is starting to turn.  These books long ago stopped being about the quality of a single work, and more about the serial novel being written as a whole.  Just so damn enjoyable.

The Spy Who Loved Me, by Ian Fleming

• Title:  The Spy Who Loved Me
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed via Kindle Lending Library, Amazon.com
• Started:  10/13/2013
• Finished:  10/19/2013

 
Before I get to this book I wanted to comment that every time I read one of the books, the damn corresponding song from the movie is stuck in my head.  Not just when I pick it up to read the book, but the entire time this is the book I have lined up.  So if it takes me 6 days to finish the book, as it did this time, I've spend almost a week singing in my head "Nobody does it better..." over and over again.
 
Anyway, I had read this one before, maybe the first Bond book I ever read (although I think that was actually Moonraker).  I liked it then, and still like it now although less so.  I know most consider it an abomination, but I like the telling of the story from the young lady's point of view, no matter how bad Fleming was at writing from such a view.  It's still a fun break from the usual.

Of course Fleming really loses people near the end of the book with a comment of something like "all women want semi-rape sex" so he no doubt deserves all the criticisim he got for this book.  Still, I found it an enjoyable read, and the worse James Bond book is still a lot more fun than most other spy thrillers.

Prisoner's Base, by Rex Stout

• Title:  Prisoner's Base
• Author:  Rex Stout
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
• Started: 10/3/2013
• Finished:  10/11/2013

 
One of the best Nero Wolfe books in recent memory.  This one was dark, much more so than usual, without the lure of a high paying client to justify Wolfe's involvement. The final murder, in particular, really left an impression and made me (the reader) wish Archie had handled things differently.  That's the sign of a good writer/great characters:  I'm wishing a fictional character had handled things differently...

Witches' Children, by Patricia Clapp

• Title:  Witches' Children
• Author:  Patricia Clapp
• Borrowed from DC Public Library
• Started: 10/6/2013
• Finished: 10/9/2013

 
I didn't like this one as much as Jane-Emily, but still a fun read.  Good for a colder October day.

Jane-Emily, by Patricia Clapp

• Title:  Jane-Emily
• Author:  Patricia Clapp
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Kindle Book)
• Started:  10/5/2013
• Finished:  10/5/2013

 
Jane-Emily is probably considered a novella, maybe even a long-ish short story.  I read this because a few online reviewers of the last ghost-story I read (The Little Stranger) compared the two.  Jane-Emily was part of a two book set, the second of which is "Witches' Children" but I'm still reading that one.
 
Jane-Emily did have some similarities to The Little Stranger, but was a much more straight-forward ghost story, for a younger audience, and was very enjoyable.  I read this one mostly while laying on the beach in Ocean City with an unseasonably warm October day.  While I really enjoyed this quick read, I'm not getting the same satisfaction from Witches' Children and expect a very short update on that book next.

All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky, by Joe R. Lansdale

Title:  All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky

Author: Joe Lansdale

A gift from Mom

Started:  10/1/2013

Finished: 10/4/2013

My mom and sister came to visit me about a month ago. As they were leaving my sister was looking for a book to read and I game her Lansdale's "The Bottoms."  

My sister passed the book to my mom when finished, and my mom seemed to really enjoy it. So much so she picked up several other books by Lansdale, including then one I'm writing about today. 

Atettts is similar to The Bottoms. A coming of age story with lots of hardship, love, good and bad people, and action (and a hell of a lot of coincidences). It's a young persons book, but charming and enjoyable for all readers. Not as polished as The Bottoms, atettts was still an enjoyable read. 

The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters

• Title:  The Little Stranger
• Author:  Sarah Waters
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audio Book)
• Started: 9/25/2013
• Finished: 10/2/2013

 
A little break from my James Bond, Aubrey/Maturin, Nero Wolfe books.  I wanted another audiobook for while I exercise, but wasn't sure what I wanted to listen to.  I decided to see what Overdrive (my library's audiobook vendor) offered that was read by Simon Vance, the man who narrates all of the Aubrey/Maturin (Master & Commander) books I've so enjoyed.
 
It was in that search that I discovered this book, The Little Stranger.  I have not read any of Waters books previously, and didn't read anything about this one except that it was something of a period piece ghost story.  That sounded fun, if potentially spooky (I work out in the gym in my building around 5 am, almost always alone). I wasn't disappointed.
 
The book isn't really a ghost story (or is it?), definitely a period piece, and is a real slow burner.  I suspect some people would find it too slow, maybe boring.  Had I read it, rather than having Vance read it to me, maybe I would have found it so as well.
 
But that's not the case, and I found it to be a very entertaining book.  The ending, initially, was  a disappointment to me as it never explained if the goings on were supernatural or not, and even if supernatural who, whom, or how many were doing the haunting.  But as I thought the book over (and over, and over), and then turned to online discussions to see what others have said, I think the book is probably ended pretty well.  I'd love just a bit more info, but I guess that's the sign of a good book.
 
 

Thunderball, by Ian Fleming

• Title:  Thunderball
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed from DC Public Library
• Started: 9/23/2013
• Finished:  9/28/2013

 
James-Bond-Fest continues in order with Thunderball, an entertaining book with the first introduction of SPECTRE and Blofeld.  This book, if I'm not mistaken, is also the one which caused a lot of headaches for the author, who lost part of his control over Bond to a man who sued (and won, again, I believe) saying the story was his idea.  You shouldn't take my word for any of this, and a quick internet search would no doubt provide the proper details.  But as this site is just a place for me to note the books I've read and my musings, it hardly seems worth the trouble.

The Truelove, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Truelove
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public (Audiobook)
• Started: 9/19/2013
• Finished:  9/24/2013

 
I continue to enjoy these novels quite a bit.  Truelove (15th in the Aubrey/Maturin, AKA Master & Commander series) started a little slow for me, but quickly developed into a very enjoyable  novel.  The subplot (main plot?) with Clarissa had me confused at some points, wondered if I understood the underlying context and meaning at all times.
 
At any rate, an enjoyable continuation of these wonderful characters.

Fuzz, by Ed McBain

• Title:  Fuzz
• Author:  Ed McBain
• Purchased from Antique shop in Fenwick Island, DE
• Started: 9/18/2013
• Finished:  9/22/2013

 
Three of these 87th Precinct books in relatively quick succession is one too many.  I probably would have liked this book just fine if I read it 6 months from now, but reading it on the heels of two others is just too much of the same.

Jigsaw, by Ed McBain

• Title:  Jigsaw
• Author:  Ed McBain
• Purchased from antique stores on the Eastern Shore, in DE
• Started: 9/15/2013
• Finished: 9/17/2013

 
Another 87th Precinct book, another satisfying procedural.  Not the best plot, but some pretty entertaining writing. 

In the Best Families, by Rex Stout

• Title:  In the Best Families
• Author:  Rex Stout
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (audio book)
• Started: 9/13/2013
• Finished: 9/18/2013

 
This novel completes the Arnold Zeck trilogy (Nero Wolfe's Moriarty).  Zeck wasn't much of a villian, and his death isn't much of a story.  In fact I enjoyed this book the least of any Wolfe novel in recent memory.
 
First off I should note the following:  I am a hypocrite.  If you look through this site at the novels I've read, the vast majority are crime novels, and the vast majority of those deal with the deaths of humans.  I am not bothered by these deaths, for the most part, at all.  But in this book, along with a woman being killed, so is her loyal dog.  And dammit if that didn't really get to me.
 
With that out of the way we get to the first reason I didn't enjoy this book very much:  Although I've always thought the narrator (Archie Goodwin) was my favorite character, it turns out I don't like him as much as I thought when he doesn't have Wolfe around.  In this book, Wolfe is around in the beginning and the end, but the majority of the book is Wolfe free.  Goodwin, without Wolfe, is a pain in the ass.  I'm sure Stout did this on purpose, and I imagine Wolfe without Goodwin is equally a pain.   And it turns out Goodwin doesn't like dogs, and doesn't seem to care much that one died.  Strike two.
 
Another reason I wasn't much of a fan of this one is the Arnold Zeck death is anticlimactic to say the least, and Zeck really never seems like much of a threat. 
 
Stout (the author), however is to be commended.  He clearly knows (knew) his audience, and I must admit I fell for the having Goodwin not care about dogs business.  After Zeck is killed there is still the question of who killed the woman who hired Wolfe in the beginning (she was killed while walking her dog, her dog was killed immedately after she was).
 
Wolfe states (paraphrasing) to his collected guests, one of whom is the killer, that the death of the dog was in fact worse than the death of the woman.  The woman was killed for her money.  A tragic death, but not an uncommon one.  But the dog, the dog was killed by someone she loved and trusted, and the killer broke this trust and for that Wolfe insisted he be brought to justice.
 
So Stout (the author) made me finally find a flaw in Goodwin (the narrator), but raised my esteem for Wolfe.  The ending where Wolfe is stating how the dog loved and trusted the killer probably wouldn't mean much to a non-animal person, but if you've ever loved a dog, it will get to you.  I found the description stayed with me for hours after I'd read it.  It didn't have the power of the Polar Bear story I mentioned in my last update (O'Brian's Nutmeg of Consolation), but it was moving none-the-less.

Hail, Hail, The Gang's All Here, by Ed McBain

• Title:  Hail, Hail, The Gang's All Here
• Author:  Ed McBain
• Purchased from antique stores on the Eastern Shore, in DE
• Started:  9/14/2013
• Finished: 9/14/2013

 
A one day beach read, my kind of day and book.  Love these old police procedurals from McBain (an 87th Precinct book).  This is contained in a volume with three of these 87th Precinct novels contained therein, so I'll have a few more of these to post soon I imagine.

The Nugmeg of Consolation

• Title:  The Nutmeg of Consolation
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audio Book)
• Started: 9/2/2013
• Finished:  9/12/2013

 
The most unweildy title of the series so far, as I got closer to listening to the one I was curious what the Nutmeg of Consolation would be.  Silly me, it was (is?) a ship, of course.
 
I'm pressed for time so won't go into this much except to say two things:
 
1.  I enjoyed it very much, as I have all of the other Aubrey/Maturin (Master & Commander) books (this one is book 14), and
 
2.  Holy crap -- the polar bear story in this book is perhaps the saddest thing I've heard heard.  A tiny aside in the big work, that has (seemingly) no connection to the story, it is just incredibly powerful, and moreso, terribly sad.

Fletch and the Man Who, by Gregory McDonald

Title: Fletch and the Man Who
Author: Gregory McDonald
Purchased from used book store in Ocean City, MD
Started: 8/32/2013
Finished: 9/2/2013

Another Fletch book, the last purchased at the used book store while on vacation, pretty weak overall.

The Thirteen-Gun Salute, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Thirteen-Gun Salute
  
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
  
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
  
• Started: 8/19/2013
  
• Finished:  9/2/2013
  

Yet another in the Aubrey/Maturin (Master & Commander) series.  I didn't love this one as much as the others, but still an eminently enjoyable read.  I've said it before, but I'll be very sad when I reach the end of this series.

Flynn, by Gregory McDonald

Title: Flynn
Author: Gregory McDonald
Purchased from used book store in Ocean City, MD
Started: 8/30/2013
Finished: 8/31/2013

Part of a collection of books by McDonald I picked up. Didn't enjoy Flynn, a spin off from the authors Fletch series.

Fletch's Fortune, by Gregory McDonald

Title: Fletch's Fortune
Author: Gregory McDonald
Purchased from used book store
Started: 8/29/2013
Finished: 8/30/2013

I've read a few other fletch books, including the first. Entertaining, witty reads, so-so mysteries. This was no different.

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, by Roald Dahl

• Title:  Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator
• Author:  Roald Dahl
• Borrowed from DC Public Library
• Started: 8/21/2013
• Finished 8/21/2013

The last updates have been very short, sent from my phone or other portable device just so I don't forget to add them.  Not a reflection on quality (I really enjoyed "The Letter of Marque" for instance). 

This book, however, was terrible.  None of the cute fun of the other Dahl books, can't believe it was even the same author.  Really horrible. 

The Second Confession, by Rex Stout

• Title:  The Second Confession
  
• Author:  Rex Stout
  
• Purchased from PaperbackSwap
  
• Started: 8/25/2013
  
• Finished: 8/28/2013
  

Second book in the Arnold Zeck trilogy (Nero Wolfe's Moriarty), very enjoyable.  First of these I've read and not listened too in a while.

The Letter of Marque, by Patrick O'Brian

Title: The Letter of Marque
Author: Patrick O'Brian
Borrowed from dc public as audio book
Started: 8-15-2013
Finished: 8-18-2013

Goldfinger, by Ian Flemming

Title: Goldfinger
Author: Ian Flemming
Borrowed from amazon.com kindle library
Started: 8-1-2013
Finished: 8-18-2013

The Sisters Brothers, by Patrick deWitt

• Title:  The Sisters Brothers
  
• Author:  Patrick deWitt
  
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audiobook)
  
• Started:  8/9/2013
  
• Finished:  8/14/2013
  

I'm torn on this one.  I really enjoyed the story while listening to it, hated when I had to stop for one reason or another.  But when I finished it this morning I didn't really like the ending at all, and as I look back I'm not sure I could recommend the book.  I'm not sorry I listened to it, as I said I like some of it very much, but overall I was looking for a more cohesive story, I suppose.

The Reverse of the Medal, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Reverse of the Medal
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audio book)
• Started:  7/27/2013
• Finished: 8/8/2013

 
This is the 11th of the Aubrey/Maturin series (aka Master & Commander) and this book continues the great form I've been so enjoying.  O'Brian is really in full stride now, the last several of these have just been so great, so much fun, that I wish the series could go on forever. 
 
This was a totally land-based book, poor Captain Aubrey has once again been duped financially and now finds himself before a civilan court.  The plot is good and entertaining, and there is a wonderful scene near the end of the men in the royal navy coming out to support  Aubrey in his hour of need. 
 
I've said it before, but these books just wouldn't be the same to me were they not read so expertly by Simon Vance.  The few I've read in print paled in comparison to those read by Vance.  That's not a comment on O'Brian's writing, rather my poor ability to read these characters as written.  Vance's reading removes the obstruction caused by my own inferiorities when it comes to reading these characters, and I'm grateful to him for it.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl

• Title: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
• Author:  Roald Dahl
• Borrowed from DC Public Library
• Started:  7/28/2013
• Finished:  7/30/2013

 
Like The Witches, my wife and I read this book outloud to each other, only this time I did the majority of the reading.  I started over our 3 hour drive home from the beach on Sunday and blew through half of the book, practically yelling to cover the noise from having the top off of our jeep.  These are very fun, easy reads, extremely enjoyable.  Sharing them with someone you love, creating different voices for the characters, such fun.
 
Now this probably indicates that we should have kids rather than two grown people reading them to each other (even our dog in the backseat tuned out most of the story), but this is who we are, and it was damn enjoyable.

World of Wonders, by Robertson Davies

• Title:  World of Wonders (book 3 in the Deptford Trilogy)
• Author:  Robertson Davies
• Borrowed from Coworker
• Started: 7/22/2013
• Finished: 7/29/2013 (at 3 am on a sleepless sunday night/monday morning...)

 
I wanted to really like this book, the final chapter in the Deptford Trilogy, but if I'm being honest this book was a let down to me.  The first book (the fifth business) was just amazing, and the next two so much less so, to me.  But I see from online reviews that I am in the minorty, many consider World of Wonders to be the best of the bunch.  Maybe I've been reading too many hack-mysteries...
 
Very happy to have read these three books, and grateful to my coworkers for the recommendation.

And Be A Villian, by Rex Stout

• Title:  And Be A Villian
• Author:  Rex Stout
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audio Book)
• Started: 7/18/2013
• Finished:  7/26/2013

 
Much as I enjoy the Nero Wolfe audio books, I really need to take a break from them.  A few too many in a row, which is a shame for this book b/c it was very good.  Especially b/c Stout introduces Wolfe's "Moriarty," a shadowy figure called Arnold Zeck.  I understand this is the first in the Zeck-Trilogy, so I might skip ahead and listen to the next two if available.  After a decent interval to enjoy a few different authors, that is.

The Manticore, by Robertson Davies

• Title:  The Manticore (Book 2 of The Deptford Trilogy)
• Aurhor:  Robertson Davies
• Borrowed from Coworker
• Started:  7/18/2013
• Finished: 7/21/2013

 
Book two of The Deptford Trilogy was interesting, but not nearly as good as The Fifth Business.  Not even close, and it wouldn't make for much of a stand-alone novel in my opinion.  But it did add depth to The Fifth Business, and I suspect will help flesh out the trilogy as a whole. 

The Fifth Business, by Robertson Davies

• Title:  The Fifth Business (Book 1 of The Deptford Trilogy)
• Author:  Robertson Davies
• Borrowed from Coworker
• Started: 7/11/2013
• Finished: 7/17/2013

 
A coworker gave me this book a while back, but I had several books lined up so it took me a while to get started.  The volume I have is huge, because it contains all three books that make up The Deptford Trilogy, the book this post is about, The Fifth Business, is book one of that trilogy.
 
This was a very entertaining book, something of a coming of age story, mystery, and a generational drama.  It reminded me a little of a book I read a few years ago, Barney's Version, and not just b/c both are by Canadian authors.  Anyway, thoroughly enjoyable and I look forward to reading the next two books in the trilogy, especially b/c the murder mystery appears to have been solved at the end of the first book... will that prove to not be the case as I continue on?

Not Quite Dead Enough, by Rex Stout, also contains the story "Booby Trap

• Title:  Not Quite Dead Enough
• Second Story Title:  Booby Trap
• Author:  Rex Stout
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (audio book)
• Started: 7/14/2013
• Finished: 7/17/2013

 
I had listened to this book before, years ago when I first discovered both these downloadable audio books from the library, as well as the Nero Wolfe series.  My  memory is terrible, so I didn't remember the mystery and knew it would be no trouble to listen to this one again.
 
I enjoyed both stories (both short).  I have read that many people dislike the first (Not Quite Dead Enough) and I can understand that, it is a little rough around the edges.  In particular the narrator, Archie Goodwin, usually so entertaining, is a bit too smug and mysoginistic.  But the mystery is one of the best, it has a great twist at the end which I recount here not to spoil the book for anyone (don't read further if you don't want it spoiled), but so I can remember it later:  the twist is that the initial reports of a murder were false, but the (would-be) murdered overheard that the murder had been committted, and how, and then rush to committ the murder in that fashion.  I'm butchering the twiste here so maybe it wouldn't spoit it for anyone anyhow, but it is enough to jog my memory.
 
The second story, Booby Trap, is much smoother although the mystery is somewhat ridiculous.  Still it it too has a very surprising ending, with Nero Wolfe allowing (commanding?) the murder to commit suicide by hand grenade (I'm not making that up). 

The Far Side of the World, by Patrick O'Brian

• Title:  The Far Side of the World
• Author:  Patrick O'Brian
• Borrowed from DC Public Library Audio Book
• Started: 7/3/2013
• Finished: 7/13/2013

 
These Aubrey/Maturin books (aka Master & Commander) have hit a good stride now, I loved the last one (book 9, Treason's Harbour) which took place mostly on land; now comes The Far Side of the World which takes place mostly on water.  This was a fun, exciting book, and now that I've spend 10 novels with these characters I really feel like I know them.  I've said it before but the guy reading these books, Simon Vance, is amazing.  I really lose myself in these books, and can't believe I'm at the half-way point in the series now.

Dr. No, by Ian Fleming

• Title:  Dr. No
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed via Amazon.com Kindle Library
• Started: 07/01/2013
• Finished:  7/10/2013

 
Well so much for the "From Russia With Love" cliff-hanger.  The start of Dr. No sums up very quickly how Bond survived the poisening, pretty lamely I might add.  Still Dr. No was a fun read, much sillier perhaps than the earlier books.  This one reads more like a typical Bond movie (sexy, often nude, girl, evil genius who must explain his entire plan, overly elaborate method to kill Bond, hidden fortress, etc.) but we don't really spend much time with Dr. No, the titular character.

The book has a lot of short comings, but still fun as hell and easy to read.  And while the death of Dr. No is pretty anti-climactic (burried under tons of bird poop), it doesn't matter much b/c Dr. No really isn't an important part of the book.  His empire/fortress/gang is, but Dr. No himself could be removed from the book without much trouble.
 
One final note about the Kindle version -- this is the first time I have had an issue with formatting of a volume that is sold as a Kindle book.  There were several coding issues where you would see "–" (without quotes) instead of a dash ("-").  Or at least I assume it was supposed to be a dash.

The Alienist, by Caleb Carr

• Title:  The Alientist
• Author:  Caleb Carr
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (ebook)
• Started:  6/1/2013
• FInished:  7/2/2013

 
I don't enjoy panning books, and when I first discovered this title I thought it sounded like a fun read.  But my hopes for a good book were quickly dashed, and I struggled to finish the novel (that's why it took me a month for what should have been a quick beach-style read). 

Over My Dead Body, by Rex Stout

• Title:  Over My Dead Body
• Author:  Rex Stout
• Borrowed from DC Public Library (Audio Book)
• Started:  6/24/2013
• Finished:  7/1/2013

 
Quick update just to get this one on the blog, mostly forgettable Nero Wolfe mystery.

From Russia With Love, by Ian Fleming

• Title:  From Russia With Love
• Author:  Ian Fleming
• Borrowed from Amazon.com via Kindle Owner's Library
• Started: 6/20/2013
• Finished:  6/27/2013

 
A cliffhanger!  The damn book ends with a cliffhanger.  Is Bond dead?  What kind of poison was in the sharp point hidden in the shoe?
 
As expected, From Russian With Love did not disappoint.  This was the first Bond book that truely felt like the movies.  There are gadgets (although most of them belong to the Russians), secret rooms and passageways, exotic locals, Bond bangs the beautiful spy, corny humor ("a king is always a king, but once a knight is enough"), and Bond's not as dark or tough as earlier novels.  He lets his guard down, a lot, and doesn't put queen & country before the girl.
 
This was a fun, exciting book.  I can't imagine reading this when it first came out and having to wait for the next book to see what happens.  Lucklily I only have to wait a few days for July 1st, when I can again borrow a book from the Kindle Owner's Library to pick up the next book, Dr. No.

The Witches, by Roald Dahl

• Title:  The Witches
• Author:  Roald Dahl
• Borrowed from Take-One/Leave-One Library found in Northside Park, Ocean City, MD
• Started:  6/22/2013
• Finished:  6/24/2013

 
Prepare to feel a little quesy.  My wife and I are in love.  We've been in love for a long time, we continue to be in love, and we tend to make people sick with our lovey-ness and displays of cuteness and affection.  We've been together for a little over 11 years, and this past weeked is the first time we've ever read a novel to each other out loud.  It was cute, wonderful, and if you are not my wife or I, probably a bit sickening.
 
I have never read a Dahl novel before.  I've wanted to read Charlie & the Chocolate Factory but never seem to come across it.  I had never heard of this book (The Witches), but my wife had read it as a kid and thought it might be fun.
 
We found the novel in a cute, take-one/leave-one library in Ocean City, MD's Northside Park.  In the park there is a memorial garden to a young boy (Sam) who drowned years back at the park.  This year someone added this book library to the front of the memorial garden (Sam's Place), it is the size of a really large bird feeder, on a post (like a mailbox).  Probably holds 20 normal sized books.
 
The Witches was in this box, so we took it this past Saturday and later that day while laying on the couch as the beach my wife (much to my surprise) started reading the book to me.  We took turns with the chapters and got about a quarter of the way through the short book.
 
On the long drive back to DC from Ocean City the next day, my wife continued where we had left off in the book and made it most of the way through the novel.  We finished up the last chapters Monday night. 
 
This was a funny, charming, somewhat dark in places book.  I thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience associated with this book.