The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - reading

Finished "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The version I read included a total of twelve adventures. The earlier ones were quite compelling, and it was an altogether fun read.

The Language God Talks - reading

Finished "The Language God Talks: On Science and Religion" by Herman Wouk. To quote from the book: "You are as ignorant of religion as I am of calculus." I wouldn't say I'm exceedingly well versed in either. I think I know more about religion than I do about calculus. It's funny, though, because every time the story edged toward religion, specifically Judaism, I felt like I did not identify with it. When the author wrote about himself, I really did not identify with him. But when the author wrote about Richard Feynman or about the science or calculus, I was hooked and wanted more. The same was true when he told stories about others that he encountered along the way. Then it would veer back to him and his other writings, and I just wanted to skip ahead. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Trumps of Doom - reading

Finished "Trumps of Doom" by Roger Zelazny. What I liked immediately about this one is that in my perception, Zelazny writes with a different voice for Merlin than he did for Corwin, enough that it doesn't at all seem like the same story (which is a trap some authors can fall into when beginning a new series - I'm looking at you, David Eddings). The story itself seems to have evolved pretty independently but conforms to the same universe from the first series. Sadly, like father like son, Merlin finds himself subject to a very similar, imprisoned fate. Finally, is Ghostwheel the original Skynet?

Infidel - reading

Finished "Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, and rated it 5 stars. This is the story of a woman raised Muslim in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Kenya, and the influences in her life that ultimately led her to flee from an arranged marriage to seek asylum in the Netherlands and become politically active. It brings to light the cruelty of the life of Muslim women and women in war-torn Africa, the issues she had with the Prophet Muhammad (whom she calls a "pervert and a pedophile" for his marriage to a six-year-old which was consummated when the girl was nine), and the trials she underwent in her transition to a European country. It was well-written and memorable. I recommend it with the warning that some of it is tough to get through.

The Courts of Chaos - reading

Finished "The Courts of Chaos" by Roger Zelazny. While this is essentially the denouement of Corwin's story, it is an interesting and fitting end that wraps things up nicely at the edge of chaos.

A Hologram for the King - reading

Finished "A Hologram for the King" by David Eggers. Spoiler alert: nothing happens. Seriously. The main character, Alan Clay, doesn't learn or grow. If anything he shrinks, having gone from a manufacturer/designer who cares about what he did to being a schlock salesman who seems happy to leave the work to his one-dimensional coworkers. The entire time I found myself not liking the character and not caring one way or the other what happened to him (which as I said above is nothing anyway).

The "plot" is about a team of salespeople who go into King Abdullah Economic City ("KAEC", pronounced like "cake") to sell their wondrous hologram technology. They arrive, set up, wait around, get bored and find other things to do. Alan finds himself making the same mundane mistakes of his entire mundane existence. Even when something could have happened, nothing happens. Plus: he's impotent, so even when you think something might happen with the naked woman right next to him, nothing happens. I really don't understand how this could have an average of 3+ stars on GoodReads.com.

tl;dr: Don't waste your time.

D-Day: The Battle for Normandy - reading

Finished "D-Day: The Battle for Normandy" by Antony Beevor. Loaded with facts and perspectives from both the Germans and the Allies, this was an interesting overview of the period running up to D-Day all the way to the liberation of Paris. Spoiler: Hitler doesn't die in this one. (That's the year after.) I learned what a Bangalore Torpedo was. YouTube video of Bangalore Torpedo