Another List, Read It

Some reviews of books I've been reading in recent months, with five *'s being the best recommendation:

The Road, Cormac McCarthy

Dark, depressing, hard to read. As JScott said, "After finishing the book, I can now rest easy knowing that we'll be spared at least one 'Feel-Good Movie of the Year' blurb in 2009." I couldn't put it down. I began this novel on a Thursday and finished in the wee hours that Sunday morning. Highest recommendation*****.

The Year Of Living Biblically, AJ Jacobs

A very interesting look about an agnostic Jewish New York writer who lives for a year as a follower of the Bible, taking its words as literally as possible. It's very eye-opening, and even though I don't agree with most of Jacobs' views after his 'experiment,' it was definitely worth reading.*****

Outliers, Malcom Gladwell


A unique look at why successful people are successful. It's entirely possible (and likely) that Gladwell conveniently looked at people and stats that supported his theory, but I don't care. Loved it.****

Loose Balls, Terry Pluto

This book has been one of the best-selling sports books of all time, and it delivers. Pluto fills the book with first-hand accounts of players, coaches, GM's, and others who experienced the ABA as it happened. Filled with entertaining and eye-opening tales of an era that changed the way that basketball is both played and marketed today.****

Busting Vegas, Ben Mezrich


Similar idea of last year's Bringing Down the House, also by Mezrich, but not nearly as good. If you're gonna read one of them, read BDtH.***

Grave In Gaza, Matt Beynon Rees

My least favorite book in this list. It's one of those fictional stories based on true events. I didn't follow it too well, but it's basically a story of bad things going on in Gaza.**

Fast Food Nation, Eric Schusser

I had no idea this book was as old as it is, (copyright 2001) but it was still relevant and quite disturbing. It looks at the growing trend of cattle farms, and the rush to 'raise meat' in the fastest, cheapest way possible, often to the detriment of the cattle, meat packers, and consumers.****

The Lost City of Z, David Grann

Good, but not quite as good as I anticipated. Still, it was an informative account of early exploration in the Amazon, and worth taking a look at.***

When March Went Mad, Seth 'My Favorite Dookie' Davis

Centers around the 1978-79 NCAA basketball season of Michigan State and Indiania State, which culminated with the much-hyped (but largely disappointing) Championship game featuring Bird and Magic, which launched college basketball into its golden age of the 1980's.****

Odd Man Out, Matt McCarthy

I mentioned a few weeks ago how the author was a teammate of Quan Cosby in the Angles single-A team in the summer of 2002. It was an easy, entertaining read that's mostly a lighthearted look at life as a minor-leaguer.****

The Breaks Of The Game, David Halberstam

Due to school getting busier by the second, I haven't gotten too far into this one yet, but it's looking good so far. Halberstam chronicles the 1979-80 season of the Portland Trail Blazers, and is another historic, best-selling book by Halberstam.***

Done, Done, On To The Next One

As of approximately one hour ago, with the completion of No Country For Old Men, I accomplished my goal of reading ten books by the end of 2008. Thanks to everyone who recommended books for me to read, and to Kayla for allowing me to hole myself up in our room for hours at a time when I felt more like reading than watching Dancing With The Stars. Hugs and Kisses all around.

For those who care, here's the list of the ten I've read so far, with a ranking of one star (not great) to five stars (highest recommendation). Of course, feel free to recommend more to me, my mind is an open book. That was really lame. Read on, readers, read on...


1)Forever Odd, Dean Koontz-Second in the Odd Thomas trilogy. A good book, but the ceiling is lowered considerably when the story is based on a twenty-year old fry cook that sees ghosts.**



2) False Memory, Dean Koontz- The fifth Koontz book I've read so far, and one of the best. A psychological thriller, this one was gosh-awful long but very very entertaining.****


3) Con Ed, Matthew Klein- Witty, sarcastic novel about an over-the-hill con man who thinks he has one more great con in him. Blunders and hilarity ensue.***



4)21:Bringing Down the House, Ben Mezerich- Faaantastic book. As many of you know, a movie has been made based-very loosely-on the book. Mezerich interviews the actual people that were involved with the MIT blackjack team, and so the book is predictably more accurate and entertaining than the movie.*****


5) Ugly Americans, Ben Mezerich-Another great Mezerich book based on true events. This time Mezerich goes around the world to interview the young American businessmen who made fortunes trading in the Asian markets.***


6)Rammer Jammer Yellowhammer, Warren St John-Reccommended by Justin Scott, this book delves into the rabid fandome of the SEC, focusing on the authors personal obsession with the University of Alabama, and the 2000 football season.****


7) The Final Shot, Darcy Frey-A documentary of Coney Island's Lincoln High Schools 1991-1992 basketball season. In a neat twist of fate, one of the stories main characters is Stephon Marbury, then an up and coming freshman who started on the varsity.****


8) The Blind Side, Michael Lewis-Another fantastic rec from J Scott. This book parallels the
importance of the left takle position in football and the bizzarre upbringing and subsequent recruiting of Michael Oher. It's particularly relavent since the main character is still in college and has a shot at being drafted next April.*****



9) The Bad Guys Won, Jeff Pearlman-An awesome account of the antics of the 1986 World Series Champion, New York Mets. The '86 Mets were an end of an era squad and Pearlman does a great job of chronicling their bad behavior and performance both on and off the diamond.****


10) No Country For Old Men, Cormac McCarthy-Creeeeepy book, couldn't put it down. As great as it was, I'm gonna have to finally watch the movie so I can hopefully tie up the loose ends that I may have missed while reading.****



That's the list, folks. Again, feel free to recommend more, I'm all ears.

-Twig

Read Me

Today, sports will be taking a backseat for the Twig, because, let's be honest, there isn't too much going on in that area right now. Yes, March Madness and Opening Day are right around the corner, but as of Right Now-8:44a.m. CDT-It's pretty slow in the sports world. What I'm bringing to the table this morning is a topic that I've suddendly grown very fond of in 2008. That's right, we're talking books at JAT!! (Told you it was a sllloooowww sports day) My interest in books has peaked this year, as I made a new year's resolution that I may actually accomplish.

Three months ago, I made it my goal for the year to read ten books in 2008. Somewhere, Justin Scott is giggling, thinking, "Ten? Really? In a year? Dude, I've read ten books in a month before!" Well excuse me, smarty pants, not all of us are 'single' and in 'post-graduate school.' Here in the real world, we have responsibilities, such as providing for one's family, and...uh, blogging once a week. Anyway, I've knocked out four books so far, and I'm close to finishing the fifth, so it looks like ten for the year will be attained. The books I've read range from the supernatural-Dean Koontz's Forever Odd-to the wildly entertaining-Rammer Jammer Yellowhammer, by Warren St. John and 21:Bringing Down the House, by Ben Mezrich. (For those who haven't seen the previews on TV, the new movie 21, is based on the true story of a group of MIT students who learn to count cards while playing blackjack and make millions during their weekend trips to Las Vegas. From the looks of it, the book seems exponentially better than the movie will be, so I highly recommend reading the book first if you plan on watching the movie)

Last week, after finishing 21, I went to Barnes and Noble with Kayla and Bethany, and ended up buying the book I'm currently reading, Con Ed, by Matthew Klein, and my next book, Ugly Americans, also by Ben Mezrich, as well as a toilet reader, What Would MacGyver Do? True Stories of Improvised Genius, by Brendan Vaughan. After I'm finished with these, however, I'm not sure what my next read will be, which brings me to the point of this post. I'm running out of ideas, and need suggestions from faithful readers. I've heard great things about Cormac McCarthy, and have been thinking about getting something by him, as well as a few other possiblities, but I'm sure I'd be missing out on something great if I didn't consult the JAT community first. Thank you for your time, you've been fantastic as usual.

-Twig