<i>The Innocents Abroad</i> by Mark Twain

That is the strangest curiosity yet---a really polite hotel waiter who isn't an idiot

I haven't read any Twain in quite some time. I actually have no Twain in my paper reading journal, which covers the last nine years of books. I had forgotten, or maybe never realized the level of cutting commentary and sardonic humor Twain integrates into his prose.

This book is a travelogue. Twain travels abroad in a time when Americans were rarely seen in Europe. At a time when an arriving boat full of Americans was an event where the Czar would take notice. They traveled on a chartered steamship throughout Europe and the Holy Land. I enjoyed reading Twains characterizations of the places I have visited, particularly Italy, where his assessments were similar to my own, despite the 150 years of separation of our visits. To me much of Italy just seemed worn out. Twain echoes that in his characterization of Venice:

In the glare of day there is little poetry about Venice, but under the charitable moon her stained palaces are white again, their battered sculptures are hidden in shadows and the old city seems crowned once more with the grandeur that was hers five hundred years ago.

Another thing that hasn't changed is the characterization of Americans traveling. Twain's group might not be the first to barge in unaware of local customs, but I hazard to guess that the idea of the crass American tourist may have been popularized by Twain. One example of such behavior was referring to all guides as Ferguson, no matter where they were. Very amusing, but rather insensitive to other cultures.

A theme here that is also present in other Twain stories is the critique of romantic literature. In Huck Finn, it is commentary on romantic fiction writers. Here it was on the similarly romantic travel writers who detailed their fantastic excursions and wonderful experiences in such a manner that any real experience would pale in comparison. And, as Twain wrote it, most did. And those passengers who wrote home and in their journals kept to the romantic standard set by the guide book, turning their lack-luster experiences into perfection. Twain clearly felt the original source material and the writings of his fellow passengers to be equally pour reproductions of reality.

Overall, an enjoyable read. Twain brings you along for all the enjoyment and frustration of overseas travel. As you read, you realize that few things have changed in the people and the world---other than the population of Jerusalem and the view from the Duomo.

<i>Logicomix</i> by Apostolos Doxiadis and Christos H. Papadimitriou

I like these graphic novels with a historical basis. It gives me a quick read covering a historical topic in a manner that sticks with me a bit more as it is visual.

This graphic novel, much like Persepolis, covers a topic knew little about going into: Bertrand Russell and his work. While I have heard of Russell,I had no knowledge of his area of expertise, other than him being an intellectual.

This book tells the story of his intellectual development from his youth up through his older age, including his encounters with other logicians and mathematicians. I particularly liked the coverage o his youth, how he spent his time wondering around his grandparents's place. One other scene that was great and took advantage of the graphic novel format was a fist-fight between a group of mathematicians. it went from a discussion in one block to a BIFF! BAM! comic book fight. Amusing and effective in conveying the passion they had in their beliefs.

Although I enjoyed the book overall, I was a bit distracted by how the authors and artists were inserted into the story. I, personally, don't like that device, as I tend to immerse myself in the book, so stepping out breaks my concentration on the story more than, I think, the authors intend. I know they are trying to provide a certain perspective when using such a device, but I find it rarely works for me.

Here, I also felt the device wasn't as effective as intended. Including more context through more tales of Russell would have gone further and kept me engaged in the story. Also, since the story of Russell was told in a flashback, there were already to layers tot eh story. Coming out to the level of the authors added a third, further distancing me from the real point of telling this story: to teach people about logical modes of thought and Russell's work.

7/10

<i>Snow Crash</i> by Neal Stephenson

This is a first for me: a cyber-punk novel that I didn't lose my place in or otherwise lose the plot at some point. I was able to keep track of teh characters and understand what was going on for the entire book. Though I loved The Diamond Age, I lost the plot for a bit in the last 100 pages or so.

.There were a few interesting ideas that stuck with me. The first being the franchises. These took the corporate participation in American politics to a rather frightening conclusion. Unlike the traditional country with boarders, America is more a huge collection of individual corporations with individuals holding citizenship with them. There is no overall set of laws---each franchise controls its own land with its own force and internal rules.

Another was the visualization of cyberspace with a main street and houses, businesses, etc. Instead of logging on, you goggle-in, using a type of VR to interact with the cyber-world. a type of Second-Life, but with more people and more meaningful actions occurring.

I really liked the details Stephenson gave to some of the technology, like Y.T.'s skateboard, with all of its add-ons and exciting features. The wheels, in particular, which adjust to any surface to give a smooth ride---an adaptive surface. Very cool.

The mystery itself about the fundamental basis of language in the brain was interesting. I liked how Stephenson tied it tot he Tower of Babel story and how the story built on the myths regarding language and society's development. I think Stargate may have looked here a bit...

Great sci-fi. 8/10

<a href="http://www.happiness-project.com/"><i>The Happiness Project</i></a> by Gretchen Rubin

This book chronicles Gretchen's year-long attempt to try out happiness ideas, to see if they do, in fact, make her happier. Each month of her project has a theme (for example: Boost Energy, Remember Love, Be Serious About Play...), and she selects three to five resolutions related to that theme to add to her chart where she daily keeps track of how well she has stuck to each resolution.

It sounds like it could be really dull, but I actually enjoyed reading this book, and have tried to take on a few of Gretchen's resolutions. One thing she suggests is making your bed each morning, so that first thing you will have accomplished something (also, it's nice to go to bed in a made bed). Another is to tackle nagging tasks - I cleaned out my email inboxes yesterday and feel lighter. She also resolved to exercise more, which I am also attempting to do, but that's not really a direct result of having read this book.

Overall, this is a book I feel comfortable recommending to almost anyone - it's a quick, informative read, that I think I will probably read again with a notepad next to me. I liked a lot of the ideas she has, as well as am interested in looking up some of her sources.

7/10

<i>The Brothers Karamazov</i> by Fyodor Dostoevsky

p>Two items of note about this book---it is the first book I read on my Kindle and Sedina had recommended it.

The only other Dostoevsky book I know well enough to compare it to is Crime and Punishment, which I last read about 3.5 years ago. The biggest similarity is the presence of a mystery and some sort of forensic investigation. In both cases, the police spend a lot of time asking questions, finding clues and doing the 19th century equivalent of modern police work.

Crime and Punishment was written 5 years after The Brothers Karamazov. It appears in that time Dostoevsky changed his assessment fo police work a bit, as the detectives are a bit bungling in The Brothers Karamazov, following only material leads and making only the simplest psychological guesses, where as in Crime and Punishment the detective's focus is primarily on the psychology of the crime. This also may be seen as a contrast between city and country police forces, as Crime and Punishment was set in St. Petersburg, where The Brothers Karamazov was set in a small town. But the representatives of the big city---the doctors and lawyer---do not fair well in The Brothers Karamazov, so this seems to speak more in a change of Dostoevsky's thinking, rather than a consistent evaluation of the innate competence of city versus country folk.

As far as the characters go, the most interesting to me was Ivan. Mitya was a bit over-the-top in terms of his passion and behavior. While believable especially in his reaction to being arrested, I found his inability to stay focused one goal infuriating. That he couldn't bring himself to go to Katya and have her take mercy on him despite the fact that he did trust her was more proof that he had, through his own short-sightedness, put himself in a position he did not and could not understand.

Alyosha, while the most sincere and patient of the brothers, was in no way a participant in the story. His actions were most involved when he was a messenger. His reason for being in the story seemed to be mostly as the observer and as a point of comparison---the purest and most confident in the belief of his brother's innocence.

Ivan, on-the-other-hand, seemed caught between the two brothers (quite literally as teh middle brother as well...). He wrestled most openly with his brother's arrest and possible guilt. He did the footwork to try to understand what had happened and the role Smerdyakov played in the death of his father. he was the only one who was able to put together all the pieces and arrive at the true conclusion.

The way Dostoevsky plotted the mystery was very good. I liked how we didn't quite know the whole truth until Ivan did. Though the reader could put much of it together as the plot advanced,t he entire story wasn't clear until Ivan arrived at the same conclusions the reader had reached.

A good read.

9/10

<i>Not Without Peril</i> by Nicholas Howe

I have trouble with some books like this where the author inserts himself to hike in an area or otherwise give their own opinion on the topic when the rest of the work is focused on retelling the stories from a more historical perspective. Here Howe describes a death or near death experience on Mount Washington then in many cases describes where you can find traces of the incident or describes his own experience going there.

Generally the stories of trouble on the mountain are very interesting. Especially the early ones when there were fewer people in the area and the hikers did not have modern equipment. Reading about how they hiked through fluke summer storms and missed buildings by 50 feet was very engaging and remind me why we carry all that extra gear in our bags.

I could have generally done without Howe's interjections. Particular on the story about Jesse and her fall while ice climbing. That was a compelling enough story on its own. I did not need the author's memories of her to get there.

Overall, an okay read. Good for camping and other times when you are pitted---even slightly---against nature.

6/10

<i>Living to Tell the Tale</i> by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

I generally liked this book Marquez tells the story of his early life in the same style that he uses in 100 Years of Solitude. I was expecting fantastic things to happen at every turn. Generally, though since this is a story of real life, there were few fantastic occurrences. Despite that, I enjoyed the adventures he told of his early years and the stories that had grown into his family's legends about how both his parents and maternal grandparents had met, courted and married.

Marquez's father is a bit of an enigma. He would leave the family for large amounts of time, then call for them when he had secured a location to open a pharmacy or had otherwise arranged a place for them to live.

As much as a I enjoyed Marquez's stories of living with his grandparents, going to school and otherwise growing up, I struggled to make it through the sections where he was talking about the newspaper industry in Columbia. The stories outside the paper would good---finding a new place to live, the riots, etc., but much of the rest seemed merely like name dropping. He gave lists of people who were important in the industry and who he spent time with, serving little other purpose other than just to list the names.

Overall, I learned a bit about the history of Columbia and enjoyed the stories of Marquez's childhood and personal struggles.