What are you reading?

[HereBeforeCoachK]

The Call of the Wild remake prompted me to start reading Jack London. I've read that one, White Fang, and I'm almost through with The Sea Wolf. Apparently the Kindle edition I have must include all of his short stories. Don't know when I'll take a breather and read something else. There's still 85% of the collection to finish.

I know he was accused of plagiarism at least twice, and his novels supposedly don't measure up in some technical ways. But I can't wait to start some short stories. Jack London is a master.

In Middle School, I did a book report on White Fang by that same author. I got chosen to do a one man skit on it. This was like mid 70s...and at the time, the Wolfpack Wolf did not have all the red and black garb...it was just a plain great full body suit wolf costume. My dad, an EENT specialist, had been the doctor who set Monte Towe's famous broken nose, and fitted him with the mask. (He was a UNC grad when it meant something). He made a few calls, and actually arranged for me to use the iconic State Wolf costume for my one man skit.

And of course, everyone knew I was a big Duke fan...and we were really rare in the mid and late 70s. It was a hoot. I may have to dig back into some London...now that I think about it.

[devildeac]

the-pioneers-9781501168680_lg.jpg

From the Simon & Schuster ad for the book:

"In 1788 the first band of pioneers set out from New England for the Northwest Territory under the leadership of Revolutionary War veteran General Rufus Putnam. They settled in what is now Marietta on the banks of the Ohio River."

Cool stuff as our son and his wife now live in O-HI-O and we spent a very pleasant night in Marietta a couple years ago traveling to/from Cleveland and Cuyahoga Falls.

[devildeac]

Ooo, saw a review on that, would like to hear what you think.

Ooops, just catching up with this thread. Glad you texted about it.

[devildeac]

I just finished "Everything I Never Told You" by Celeste Ng ( how do you pronounce that last name). I have been encouraged to broaden my horizons and read some contemporary women writers.

Excellent, sad, thoughtful book.

I've seen/heard/know two pronunciations:

1. Ing
2. Nong

Any others?

[budwom]

For anyone who enjoyed Elizabeth Strout's Pulitzer Prize winning Olive Kitteridge, I can report that the follow-on Olive Again is quite entertaining.

[Bob Green]

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison.

I have a feeling I will be reading more than normal.

[Phredd3]

I've seen/heard/know two pronunciations:

1. Ing
2. Nong

Any others?

I've typically heard "Eng". Of course, if you're in the South, "Ing" and "Eng" are basically the same.

[budwom]

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison.

I have a feeling I will be reading more than normal.

How true...just downloaded Erik Larson's new The Splendid and the Vile, about Winston Churchill and the blitz...Kindle may get an MVP award before all is said and done...

[brevity]

I just finished "Everything I Never Told You" by Celeste Ng ( how do you pronounce that last name). I have been encouraged to broaden my horizons and read some contemporary women writers.

Excellent, sad, thoughtful book.

I've seen/heard/know two pronunciations:

1. Ing
2. Nong

Any others?

I've typically heard "Eng". Of course, if you're in the South, "Ing" and "Eng" are basically the same.

Answered! Celeste Ng is on Twitter, and her handle is @pronounced_ing. (That question must come up a lot.)

If your local library is like mine, it's closed, but still offering online resources. Mine offers Hoopla, which is free with an existing membership from a participating library, and I can check out various E-books, music, and movies from what I assume is a limited selection. I did find two books by DBR's Jim Sumner there: Tales From The Duke Blue Devils Locker Room (2016) and So You Think You're A Duke Blue Devils Basketball Fan? (2017).

(Somewhat randomly, I also found an audio recording of a rock concert that the band Yes performed Live At Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, November 11, 1972.)

[Jim3k]

Answered! Celeste Ng is on Twitter, and her handle is @pronounced_ing. (That question must come up a lot.)

If your local library is like mine, it's closed, but still offering online resources. Mine offers Hoopla, which is free with an existing membership from a participating library, and I can check out various E-books, music, and movies from what I assume is a limited selection. I did find two books by DBR's Jim Sumner there: Tales From The Duke Blue Devils Locker Room (2016) and So You Think You're A Duke Blue Devils Basketball Fan? (2017).

(Somewhat randomly, I also found an audio recording of a rock concert that the band Yes performed Live At Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, November 11, 1972.)

Yup. At 9:30 Sunday night, our library advised that it was shutting down all activities until further notice based upon a recommendation/directive from the county health department. This is Contra Costa County California.

[devildeac]

I've typically heard "Eng". Of course, if you're in the South, "Ing" and "Eng" are basically the same.

That's the one I forgot and the one I've heard the least.

WRT the South, it could easily be stretched into 2-3 syllables .

[devildeac]

Answered! Celeste Ng is on Twitter, and her handle is @pronounced_ing. (That question must come up a lot.)

If your local library is like mine, it's closed, but still offering online resources. Mine offers Hoopla, which is free with an existing membership from a participating library, and I can check out various E-books, music, and movies from what I assume is a limited selection. I did find two books by DBR's Jim Sumner there: Tales From The Duke Blue Devils Locker Room (2016) and So You Think You're A Duke Blue Devils Basketball Fan? (2017).

(Somewhat randomly, I also found an audio recording of a rock concert that the band Yes performed Live At Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, November 11, 1972.)

Yes, indeed. I was there. Amazing. I'll listen to it later today.

[nocilla]

Into Thin Air is on the list of my all-time favorite reads, up there with Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and I, Claudius.

I recently read Peak by Roland Smith which also involves climbing Mt Everest but it's a young adult book. So Into Thin Air sounds like a good follow up.

I've read several books from the young adult section in the last few years mainly because my daughter is reading them for her book club. But I also find them enjoyable because they can be a quick and easy read while usually still entertaining. It also can be a good way for someone that doesn't read a lot to ease onto a new hobby while we're all spending more time at home for a while.

[WillJ]

The third volume of Hilary Mantel's series on Henry Cromwell and Henry the Eighth - The Mirror and the Light - is out, and it's as good as its predecessors.
I've also enjoyed "The Friend" by Sigrid Nunez and am enjoying "The Emigrants" by W.G. Sebald.

[roge054]

Answered! Celeste Ng is on Twitter, and her handle is @pronounced_ing. (That question must come up a lot.)

If your local library is like mine, it's closed, but still offering online resources. Mine offers Hoopla, which is free with an existing membership from a participating library, and I can check out various E-books, music, and movies from what I assume is a limited selection. I did find two books by DBR's Jim Sumner there: Tales From The Duke Blue Devils Locker Room (2016) and So You Think You're A Duke Blue Devils Basketball Fan? (2017).

(Somewhat randomly, I also found an audio recording of a rock concert that the band Yes performed Live At Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, November 11, 1972.)

Great concert. Opening act was also good. Bonus, met my wife at this concert.

[devildeac]

The General vs the President-H. W. Brands

A fascinating, highly educational/informative (to me) and well researched/written account of the lead-up to and accounts of the Korean War with "MacArthur and Truman at the brink of nuclear war."

[curtis325]

The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis.

Pretty much predicted (or at least anticipated) the mess we are in now with the pandemic.

[Ggallagher]

I just finished reading "A Game of Birds and Wolves" by Simon Parkin. It deals with an element of the WWII Battle of the Atlantic that I was not previously aware of. It's a fascinating story.

The book documents the work of the female Naval Reserves, the Wrens, of the Royal Navy during the war. Their job was to "play" in the game that was used to teach anti-Uboat tactics to defend the convoys that were sailing back and forth to England. In effect they played a giant game of "Battleship" at the training facility against Royal Navy escort officers and captains of the merchant ships that made up the convoys. Needless to say, the officers and sea captains were not particularly receptive to being told that they needed to play a game against a bunch of women in their early twenties - most of whom had never been to sea at all - in order to learn how to operate their ships in the Atlantic.

But the light came on pretty quickly for these men. What they saw was that if they played the game commanding the surface vessels against the female Uboat commanders, the surface vessels got sunk. Likewise if the men played the game as Uboat commanders against the women commanding the surface ships, then the Uboats got sunk by the women on the surface. Fortunately they quickly acknowledged that the tactics the women used needed to be integrated into their plans.

These women played an important role in the efforts that protected the U.K from going past the tipping point that might have forced them to surrender early in the war. It took the combined effects of code breaking, improved air cover, massive production efforts, and the tactics developed at the anti Uboat school to prevent the submission of the U.K. Without what these women did, it might not have worked out they way it did.

[jv001]

Book of Luke, KJV version.

GoDuke!

[aimo]

Reading Tara Westover's Educated, a non-fiction best seller. I really hope she's exaggerating, because this is one messed up family.