Books of October 2021
It is hard to believe that we are basically into the holiday season! Thus begins one of my favorite times of the year. Although that doesn’t necessarily mean that I will read great books, I normally do come across some great ones at the end of the year, and I’m hopeful that I will.
I read some great ones in October already, so the expectation is high!
Classic: Mrs. Dalloway - 2 Stars. I have read Virginia Woolf before, but admittedly not much. Reading this book was a reminder as to why. Although I appreciate her skill as an author (which is largely why she has endured for so many years), I found this book (and to my memory, whatever of her works I have read previously) to be choppy, and at times, hard to follow. The characters also seemed patently shallow - both in the people they were meant to portray and in terms of their development on the pages. Regardless, I did enjoy her artistic language and that pulled me in again and again. I also love the idea of a story taking place over a single day - the granularity that it allows is unique and appreciated. I don’t intend to read much more Virginia Woolf, for the reasons listed above, but I am glad I read this one.
Re-Read: I Am The Messenger - I have had this title saved on my phone for over a year as a reminder to myself that I wanted to re-read this book. Somehow, I kept overlooking it and so when it came to mind (or rather, when I came across the note), I immediately planned to read it ASAP. The story was as real, raw, and genuine as I remember - the kind of heart-warming vulnerability that Markus Zusak does so well. Compared to some of his other works, this one uses poetic language to its advantage and in most places, it complements rather than gets in the way of the plot. Although the book isn’t strongly moralistic, the message it shares does speak of a deep humanity and draws you closer to others while simultaneously bringing out more of yourself.
In addition to the books from my categories, in October I also read:
The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War - 4 Stars. I have read a lot of Malcolm Gladwell's books over the years and this one I liked more than most - which is surprising since I have enjoyed many of his books. This one stands out, however, because it is a different style for him, which he admits upfront. It’s a history book, and the narrative is much more linear than a lot of his other works. I don’t read a lot of history or war books, so I was even more surprised that I liked this one. But I did. And I appreciated that he still brought his analytical mind and depth of research to the topic. Malcolm Gladwell also did an amazing job of boiling everything down to the core conclusions that lay at the heart of the narrative surrounding the bombing raids that served to end WWII. It was an amazing (if chilling) example and reminder of the importance of integrity, the heartbreak (and sometimes, inevitability) of collateral damage, and all of the small decisions that have led to the world that we live in today.
Countdown bin Laden: The Untold Story of the 247-Day Hunt to Bring the Mastermind of 9/11 to Justice - 4 Stars. I know that I just said that I don’t read a lot of war or history books, but this month definitely broke the norm for that. I have been completely fascinated by these books. Even though I was too young to remember 9/11, the day that bin Laden was killed is one of my most vivid recollections from childhood. Although I didn’t know much about the raid that resulted in his death at the time, and really haven’t learned much about it over the years, I was fascinated to read this book and see how all of those pieces came together. There was so much going on behind the scenes that I didn't know about. A lot of different aspects of the story are woven together in this book, and it is done very well - creating a cohesive narrative while also illustrating all of the different factors that were at play. I was struck by how hard it is to even make easy decisions sometimes, the number of things that really are outside of our control, and the human cost of it all - interestingly, these were some of the exact same things that stood out to me from The Bomber Mafia. Maybe that’s because I read them back to back, maybe because those are lessons I need to think more deeply about, or maybe for a different reason altogether.
Ghost: My Thirty Years as an FBI Undercover Agent - 3 Stars. There are so many important and fascinating aspects of work within the FBI, and this memoir which depicts much of the developments in the undercover branch was very well done. I appreciated the way the stories were woven together without a lot of excess narration, while still sharing the necessary background and supporting information. I am so grateful for people who have and do serve their country in every way, and the ones who do so while impersonating a mobster or drug dealer are just that much amusing. Michael R. McGowan performed his duties (and often above and beyond them) with strength and perseverance and I’m glad there are many individuals still in the Bureau striving to do the same.
Pieces of Her - 3 Stars. This novel was the blending together of two pretty disparate stories and it took a bit too long in my mind to bring them together. I also found the main characters in both plots hard to connect with. Both were well-written though, and I appreciated that the structure of each of the stories. The depiction of a cult with a charismatic confidence man as the leader was particularly interesting after several of the other books I have read in the last month or two. After a story fraught with complication and manipulation, I thought that the ending was well done, if a bit over the top.
The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics - 3 Stars. I’ve always loved statistics and I find research (both in general and the particulars) to be fascinating. This book did a good job of breaking down the ideas and premises behind much-lauded research and the principles can be applied to other research as we examine it going forward. A lot of the points did seem a bit obvious, but that doesn’t necessarily make them unimportant, especially in a world where so many of our decisions, plans, and policies are based on the statistics put forth (and not always with the most reputable of intentions). I think I made sense of statistics before this book, but some of the principles I do plan to keep in mind going forward.
The Confidence Men: How Two Prisoners of War Engineered the Most Remarkable Escape in History - 2 Stars. I was intrigued by the title of this book (hence why I decided to read it), but it was not quite what I was expecting. The story was based on a long con through the use of mysticism and spiritualism, which was not quite what I was expecting. And I found it more than a bit frustrating that ultimately, it wasn’t actually even what led to the escape - especially after all of the detail. The writing was a bit dull and intense too, which made it more difficult to stay engaged and quite a lot of it seemed to be pulled directly from the autobiography of one of the confidence men themselves. However, this isn’t something that I have read about or heard discussed before, and it is definitely an interesting subplot during a time where there was so much else going on. I enjoyed reading about confidence men, especially after I read the book about confidence women last month, and while this story is definitely worth telling, it probably doesn’t need to be told in quite so much detail.
The Like Switch: An Ex-it FBI Agent's Guide to Influencing, Attracting, and Winning People Over - 3 Stars. This book was a great blend of practical and informational. Although as could probably be expected from a book that lets you know what to look for in a raised eyebrow, some of the information is a bit minute. I appreciated the breakdown of what goes into forming a friendship and establishing connections in ways that make so much sense, but that I don’t think I’d ever have been able to articulate. It was also fascinating to see how much of our interactions are completely subliminal and yet universally understood. A lot of the information shared could be used for good or to harm others - but that demonstrates the inherent power of the material.
Uncertain Endings: The World's Greatest Unsolved Mystery Stories - 2 Stars. I was intrigued by the idea behind this book, and since I love mysteries and have long thought I should probably read more short stories, I thought that this would be a perfect place to start. And I will admit, some of the stories were good, engaging, and complete. Others were pointless, dull, and boring. Since I never knew what was coming next, I felt like I was vacillating between one extreme and the other - never sure where I was heading next. The book also warned the reader at the beginning that if your favorite part of a mystery is the conclusion and having all of the loose ends tied up, then this book would probably be deeply unsatisfying (due to all of those uncertain endings). I do love that part of mystery stories (although I’m not sure it is my favorite), so I was a bit apprehensive going in. However, I really didn’t mind the decide-the-ending resolutions to most of the stories, and as I have shared before with other books, in most cases, I actually appreciated the open-endedness. But for the most part, rather than enjoying the diverseness of this book (and some of the authors really are quite renowned), I was frustrated and just kept turning the pages to get to the end of the book, although not the resolution of any of the plots.
The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense - 3 Stars. I have not watched very many Alfred Hitchcock movies. But that is something that this book inspired me over and over again to change. So although I do want to watch more of his films, I also wish that I had watched more of them before reading the book, since the ones that I had seen helped me understand the text (and what was meant) that much more. So although I am unlikely to read this book again after watching more of his movies, I can hope that maybe it gave me some preemptive insight for when I do. This book reminded me strongly of Gretchen Rubin’s book Forty Ways to Look at Winston Churchill: A Brief Account of a Long Life (and no, not just because everything reminds me of her), since both books deconstruct the individuals they analyze and seem to examine them from several distinct angles. Although this can certainly help us to gain a more complete (if sometimes, disjointed) perception of the individual, it can also lead to a somewhat confusing portrait. Although I definitely know more about Hitchcock than I did before I read this book, I can’t say that I understand in him a deeper way - but maybe that just his own life was his greatest act of suspense.
No Cure for Being Human (And Other Truths I Need to Hear) - 3 Stars. As soon as I heard that book was chosen as the next book in the Happier podcast book club, I added it to my list. It is one of the few that I have actually read before the interview with the author comes out, and I can’t wait to listen to that episode. I enjoyed this heart-rending read as much as it is possible to do so. Kate Bowler writes honestly and vulnerably about her time in one of the most painful positions imaginable - between her young son, fulfilling career, and big dreams, and the crushing diagnosis of colon cancer. Although everyone’s journey down that road is different (and I certainly hope that it is never one that you have to travel at all), Kate meets you where you are at, breaks down the meaningless platitudes, and offers genuine hope - or in the absence of that, understanding. I don’t necessarily hold to all of the same spiritual beliefs that Kate Bowler shares, but that is another area where she shares her feelings openly. I have been blessed to never be in a similar position, so I am unable to relate to the particulars of what she shares on a personal level. But I do think that pain is an inherent part of being human, so that is something that I can grasp and sit with her in. For she is right, there is no cure for that.
As I begin to contemplate the end of the year, the goals I have set, and the ones I am planning to work on next year, I have yet to decide if reading will play any significant role. Don’t worry, I will definitely keep reading and sharing about the amazing (and not so amazing) books I read. I’m just not sure if I am going to set any parameters around it in the coming year. The category-based reading I’ve experimented with in the last couple of years I really didn’t like. Buying my favorite books, on the other hand, I definitely did.
Speaking of which, this month I bought The Curated Closet: A Simple System for Discovering Your Personal Style and Building Your Dream Wardrobe and The Unexpected Spy: From the CIA to the FBI, My Secret Life Taking Down Some of the World's Most Notorious Terrorists - two pretty wide-ranging books, but both ones I love and that I am excited to have on my shelf.
We shall see what I decide to do about my 2022 reading-related goals. I have plenty of time (well, a few more weeks at least) to decide. And regardless, I have plenty more exciting books on my list that I can’t wait to tackle.
Until next time,