Toastrel Posted April 9, 2021 Share Posted April 9, 2021 I just finished this excellent book. The story of Pino Lella, an Italian kid in WW II who grows up pretty quick. A lot of information I did not know about the war in Italy. Despite the sadness and heartbreak throughout, it is a really excellent story. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vikas83 Posted April 9, 2021 Share Posted April 9, 2021 Probably specific to my industry, but just read this. Fascinating story about corporate bankruptcy/restructuring that explains the process for a normal person. https://www.amazon.com/Caesars-Palace-Coup-Billionaire-Corruption/dp/163576677X 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rambo Posted April 9, 2021 Share Posted April 9, 2021 6 minutes ago, vikas83 said: Probably specific to my industry, but just read this. Fascinating story about corporate bankruptcy/restructuring that explains the process for a normal person. https://www.amazon.com/Caesars-Palace-Coup-Billionaire-Corruption/dp/163576677X Shouldn't have shorted those GME stocks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vikas83 Posted April 9, 2021 Share Posted April 9, 2021 Have Boehner's book on order. The excerpts are awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sameaglesfan Posted April 9, 2021 Share Posted April 9, 2021 2 hours ago, Toastrel said: I just finished this excellent book. The story of Pino Lella, an Italian kid in WW II who grows up pretty quick. A lot of information I did not know about the war in Italy. Despite the sadness and heartbreak throughout, it is a really excellent story. Truth. Completely agree. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Moss Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toastrel Posted April 12, 2021 Author Share Posted April 12, 2021 Just received my signed copy of this book. After the Pino Lella story, I started reading some comic books I had forgotten about. This is next up in my list, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gannan Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 Currently reading "The Regulators" by Stephen King and "The Last Don" by Mario Puzo, which is awesome. My MIL bought me this for Christmas... I'll get to it, but I have to be in a certain mood for non fiction. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCTANK Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EaglesRocker97 Posted April 20, 2021 Share Posted April 20, 2021 My best friend in college recommended this book to me. He's a bookworm, but not particularly a history nerd, so I think it's notable that he and I both really liked it. Every American, but especially those with an interest in Washington's life and times, should read this biography to understand why the man was truly great in every form of service and leadership that he undertook. This is a serious work of scholarship but also an effortless read. It somehow keeps the narrative firmly grounded in primary sources and avoids the excessive characterization that often turns biographies into dramatizations and charicatures that only reinforce the romantic notions that obscure their humanity and distort their legacy. Honestly, the book is incredible in the the sense that, while it rightfully humanizes Washington and makes him seem like a somewhat awkward figure among the founders and a man who was ironically ill-suited to be president, it nevertheless establishes that, aside from being an all-around genius and a humble soul, Washington was undoubtedly one of the greatest military and political leaders in history. The facts are arranged and related to circumstances so effectively that they legitimize the title without seeming to go over the top; the guy was truly indispensable. I highly doubt we could've won the Revolution and survived as a nation without his leadership. For as good of a general as he was, he was equally as valuable as a steady hand guiding the nation during his presidency. The fact that he didn't really even want the job and conducted himself with such grade and humility as president gave so much precedent to the role that just about everything that we consider "presidential" by today's standards was really set on that track by Washington. From Fort Necessity to the beginnings of the Republic, it just seemed Washington was always the only man for the job, always in the right place at the right time and willing to sacrifice for the good of the whole. One final thing that I thought about this book and that wasn't really on my mind when I read it 15 years ago (time for another read) was that it's probably about the peak of this kind of scholarship. It was written in 1994, and while not much has really changed about the documentary record or our general understanding of the military and political history of that time, much has changed very rapidly about how we frame these men. This work is deep on scholarship and offers none of the bloviating "wokeness" that seems to have invaded every medium today. Yes, Washington owned a ton of slaves, and there is recognition of it being a dilemma, but it honestly has very little to do with his legacy of leadership; it is largely impervious. This author gives the respectable amount of attention to some of these contradictions but always frames them within the time period and makes no effort to read backward through history in order to preach contemporary notions of social justice. I don't think I could stand to read anything on this time period written in the recent years. Don't bad mouth G.W. around me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toastrel Posted April 20, 2021 Author Share Posted April 20, 2021 I'm actually going to reread the Hobbit and the LOTR. We finally got around to redoing my daughter's room into a guest room. I found my copy of the Hobbit and the first LOTR book that she "never borrowed" which have been missing for nearly 20 years. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 Just ordered this on the recommendation from a friend in the military. It’s the personal memoirs of general Wrangel about his fight against the communists in revolutionary Russia. It’s supposed to be fantastic. Description Russia, 1917. As World War I drags on, political turmoil slowly paralyzes the Empire. The Czar abdicates. His replacements are ineffectual and incompetent. Violence sweeps the country. One by one, institutions collapse under the weight of chaos and terror. The Bolsheviks, a small group of communist radicals initially supported by German intelligence, launch a revolution that sends the country into a tailspin. The nation is plunged into a terrible civil war which by its end will leave over 10 million Russians dead, with millions more scattered across the globe. Leading the anti-communist "White" forces against the new "Red" army to the end was Pyotr Wrangel. Wrangel, a career cavalry officer who fought with distinction in the Russo-Japanese War and World War i, found himself at the center of various intrigues in the early stages of the Russian Revolution. After narrowly escaping death at the hands of a Bolshevik execution squad, Wrangel joined the Volunteer Army of General Denikin. Although Wrangel accomplished the impossible repeatedly, leading his tiny cavalry force to victory over communist units many times its size, he was unable to persuade Denikin to abandon an ill-planned assault on Moscow. After that offensive failed, the Volunteer Army collapsed. Widely recognized for his tactical brilliance and unimpeachable character, Wrangel accepted the burden of command over the last remnant of anti-communist forces. Under his leadership the outnumbered and out-gunned White Army launched a devastating counterattack, retaking Crimea and the surrounding area from the Reds. There, he and his remaining men staged a heroic defense while attempting to obtain international support. After Russia was abandoned by its former allies and his position became untenable, Wrangel personally directed the evacuation of his Army and thousands of civilian refugees. Wrangel published his memoirs in 1928, shortly before his death. Although the book was translated into English in 1929, it eventually fell out-of-print. For more than 60 years, no new copies were made. The few remaining used editions became unaffordable for the average reader. Mystery Grove Publishing Company is proud to make the memoirs of one of the greatest champions in the fight for civilization available to the public once again. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IFB DOG Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 On 4/20/2021 at 7:51 AM, EaglesRocker97 said: <Word Puke> <relevant, but run-on> Honestly, the book is incredible in the the sense that, while it rightfully humanizes Washington and makes him seem like a somewhat awkward figure among the founders and a man who was ironically ill-suited to be president, it nevertheless establishes that, aside from being an all-around genius and a humble soul, Washington was undoubtedly one of the greatest military and political leaders in history On 4/20/2021 at 7:51 AM, EaglesRocker97 said: <word puke> Washington was undoubtedly one of the greatest military and political leaders in history. The facts are arranged and related to circumstances so effectively that they legitimize the title without seeming to go over the top; the guy was truly indispensable. I highly doubt we could've won the Revolution and survived as a nation without his leadership. For as good of a general as he was, he was equally as valuable as a steady hand guiding the nation during his presidency. <moar word puke> JFC I really wanted to read the book, until you popped an erection at the book club meeting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBW Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 Just started this one. It’s riveting! I can’t wait to see if he catches a foul ball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Omega Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 On 4/12/2021 at 11:14 AM, NCTANK said: One of the most influential books I've ever read. Solzhenitsyn was a hero. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toastrel Posted June 7, 2021 Author Share Posted June 7, 2021 This was utterly amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaEagles4Life Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 Next group of books to read Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gannan Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 Stephen King seems to be getting better with age. His latest is one of his best... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiPros Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matchew88 Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 On 4/12/2021 at 7:56 AM, Dave Moss said: Ironic from both the poster and the award, which was given to journalists for covering a fake news story to such amazing completion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Moss Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 17 minutes ago, matchew88 said: Ironic from both the poster and the award, which was given to journalists for covering a fake news story to such amazing completion Lots of books get Pulitzer’s every year - there’s 21 categories. Have you ever read a non-fiction book? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vikas83 Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 3 minutes ago, Dave Moss said: Lots of books get Pulitzer’s every year - there’s 21 categories. Have you ever read a non-fiction book? FYP 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boogyman Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 1 hour ago, matchew88 said: Ironic from both the poster and the award, which was given to journalists for covering a fake news story to such amazing completion 800% match bro. Just saying, don't miss out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toastrel Posted June 8, 2021 Author Share Posted June 8, 2021 My sister was here for Memorial day and over the weekend she asked to go to thrift stores (I guess Rochester doesn't have our selection) She spent 99 cents on this for me. Just started reading it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matchew88 Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 3 hours ago, Dave Moss said: Lots of books get Pulitzer’s every year - there’s 21 categories. Have you ever read a non-fiction book? I stick mostly to fiction. Was reading Nostromo by Joseph Conrad last, as well as Count Zero by William Gibson, and was going to get to The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Brown. The Neuromancer Series by William Gibson was the inspiration for the movie The Matrix, and has inspired many other film makers, like Christopher Nolan, etc. Joseph Conrad has several books in many high profile rankings of Greatest books Ever Written, and the Hyperion Series was supposedly one of the most successful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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