I started to read the first volume of Shelby Foote’s “The Civil War: A Narrative,” but I immediately realized I needed to start with more of an overview. So I put it back on the shelf and read this, and I am really glad I did! It was an excellent overview of what led to the war, the war itself, and …
[Read More]LCMS pastor Henry Gerecke enlisted with the army at age 50 to serve as a chaplain during WWII. He performed that work diligently and was eventually called on to be chaplain to the Nazi leaders standing trial at Nuremberg, including:
Here are all the books I read in 2023:
January 2023
February 2023
Here are my pretty raw notes, mostly just excerpts, from the book.
“This book is about the British experience on the western front from 1914 to 1918 and some of the literary means by which is has been remembered, conventionalized, and mythologized.” The author examines how “life feeds materials …
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How do you catch a killer if he’s already dead when he starts killing? The cyberpunk premise was pretty entertaining: A software genius leaves a program that kills people – but not without a purpose. He wants to remake society and correct its ills from beyond the grave. Lots of interesting moments, although it lacks something… …
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I saw this at Book People and thought it looked interesting, and then I found it in Libby (library app), so I could read it for free on my phone. The first third of it was pretty compelling. A young Chinese girl named Wen, adopted by a gay American couple, is catching grasshoppers outside a remote cabin where they are …
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I really enjoyed this one - True Grit meets Cormac McCarthy.
“I have seen him fight several times, and though he typically loses, I do not think any of his opponents would wish to fight him again.” (8)
Basic truths can be poignant when plainly stated. “Some days we are stronger than others.” Or, “It is true. …
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Holly Gibney is back, and this time she’s tracking down missing people who are being eaten by a couple of elderly cannibals. Despite how the author’s note at the end addresses this, I found the covid commentary pretty heavy-handed. Good characters are vaxxed, or better yet double vaxxed. Or vaxxed and boosted. That’s how you know they …
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Spoilers here. This is a short story (72 pages) from McSweeny’s issue #27. Two older men hate each other because of a real estate dispute, and one of them (Grunwald) installed an electric fence that killed the other’s (Johnson’s) dog. Grunwald convinces Johnson to meet him, then forces him at …
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Overall, this was not my favorite McCarthy. Instead of continuing on to part two (Stella Maris), I may try to read one of his older books next. But I still thought this was good, and here are passages I noted:
Why John, she says, is that you? I havent seen you in ages. Where have you been? And I said: My dear, I have …[Read More]
